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From: jdd@db.toronto.edu (John DiMarco)
Newsgroups: soc.religion.christian
Subject: Predestination
Message-ID: 
Date: 17 Aug 89 07:45:34 GMT
Sender: hedrick@athos.rutgers.edu
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Approved: christian@aramis.rutgers.edu

We cannot be reconciled to God by ourselves. Clearly God must save us. 
Hence our salvation is up to him. God wants all people to be saved, but
clearly he does not give the same amount of grace (unmerited favour) to
everybody. Does everyone have Christ appear to him on the road, like
Paul? Does everyone see Christ in the flesh, like the Apostles? Clearly
God does more to save some people than he does to save others. 

I believe that God offers every person sufficient grace for salvation.
Nothing else is consistent with God's mercy, justice, and love. But not every
person receives the same amount of grace. God goes to great lengths to bring
some people to salvation, but seems to allow others to go their own way.

God predestines his elect by giving them great gifts of his grace. Only those
whom God has chosen receive these graces. But nowhere in scripture does it say
that God predestines some to receive no grace at all; i.e. to perish in 
hellfire. He does harden hearts, but he doesn't petrify them. 

John
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