Does God Love Everyone? # 5

Does God Love Everyone? # 5

The gospel is the means which God uses in the saving of His own chosen ones. By nature God's elect are children of wrath "even as others" they are lost sinners needing a Saviour, and apart from Christ there is no solution for them. Hence, the gospel must be believed by them before they can rejoice in the knowledge of sins forgiven. The gospel is God's winnowing: it separates the chaff from the wheat, and gathers the latter into His garner. Third, it is to be noted that God has other purposes in the preaching of the gospel than the salvation of His own elect. The word exists for the elect's sake, yet others have the benefit of it. The sun shines though blind men see it not. The rain falls upon rocky mountains and waste deserts as well as on the fruitful valleys; so also, God suffers the gospel to fall on the ears of the non-elect. The power of the gospel is one of God's agencies for holding in check the wickedness of the world. Many who are never saved by it are reformed, their lusts are bridled, and they are restrained from becoming worse. Moreover, the preaching of the gospel to the non-elect is made an admirable test of their characters. It exhibits the inveteracy of their sin; it demonstrates that their hearts are enmity against God; it justifies the declaration of Christ that "men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil" (John 3:19). Finally, it is sufficient for us to know that we are bidden to preach the gospel to every creature. It is not for us to reason about the consistency between this and the fact that "few are chosen."

It is for us to obey. it is a simple matter to ask questions to the ways of God which no finite mind can fully fathom. We, too, might turn and remind the objector that our Lord declared, "Truly I say unto you, All sins shall be forgiven unto the sons of men, and blasphemies with which soever they shall blaspheme. But he who shall blaspheme against the Holy Spirit has never forgiveness" (Mark 3:28-29), and there can be no doubt whatever but that certain of the Jews were guilty of this very sin. (see Mark 12:24), etc.) and hence their destruction was inevitable. Yet, notwithstanding, scarcely two months later, He commanded His disciples to preach the gospel to every creature. When the objector can show us the consistency of these two things - the fact that certain of the Jews had committed the sin for which there is never forgiveness, and the fact that to them the gospel was to be preached - we will undertake to furnish a more satisfactory solution than the one given above to the harmony between a universal proclamation of the gospel and a limitation of its saving power to those only that God has predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son. Once more, we say, it is not for us to reason about the  gospel; it is our business to preach it. When God ordered Abraham to offer up his son as a burnt-offering, he might have objected that this command was inconsistent with His promise: "In Isaac shall your seed be called" (Gen. 21;12). But instead of arguing he obeyed, and left God to harmonize His promise and His precept. Ezekiel, might have complained that the Lord was asking of him a hard thing when He said, "Son of man, go, get you into the house of Israel, and speak with My words unto them. For you are not sent to a people of a strange speech and of an hard language, but to the house of Israel, Not to many people of a strange speech and of an hard language, whose words you can not understand. Surely, had I sent you to them, they would have hearkened unto you. But the house of Israel will not hearken unto you; for they will not hearken unto Me; for all the house of Israel are impudent and hardhearted" (Ezekiel 3:4-7).

"But, O my soul, if truth so bright
Should dazzle and confound your sight,
Yet still His written Word obey,
And wait the great decisive day," Isaac Watts.

It has been well said: "The gospel has lost none of its ancient power. It is, as much today as when it was first preached, "the power of God unto salvation." It needs no pity, no help, and no handmaid. It can overcome all obstacles, and break down all barriers. No human device need be tried to prepare the sinner to receive it, for if God has sent it, no power can hinder it; and if He has not sent it, no power can make it effectual."

~A. W. Pink~

(The End)