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Of course the context is Pentacost, and Peter is talking to the heirs of Promise...the Jews, who we, as Christians are the heirs of promise as well. Ths is what Fulfilled Covenant Eschatology (Full Preterism) is. To be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ, is to be an Israelite.
This is the entire message here. Joel 2 is being fulfilled in this chapter.
Earthly realities are spoken here.
Yes it does. Afar off, is not 40 years in the future to 70 AD when Israel, as a earthly nation, was grafted back into Israel with the Gentiles, so this promise and blessings, cannot be directed solely to the Ethnic Jews. This promise is referring to those "baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins" "For the promise is unto you, and to your children, and to all that are afar off, [even] as many as the Lord our God shall call".
The Blessing is perpetual for all time, all around the world, for the Israelite.
I will let Matthew Henry speak:
It was very express (Isa. 44:3): I will pour my Spirit upon thy seed. And (Isa. 59:21), My Spirit and my word shall not depart from thy seed, and thy seed’s seed. When God took Abraham into covenant, he said, I will be a God to thee, and to thy seed (Gen. 17:7); and, accordingly, every Israelite had his son circumcised at eight days old. Now it is proper for an Israelite, when he is by baptism to come into a new dispensation of this covenant, to ask, "What must be done with my children? Must they be thrown out, or taken in with me?’’ "Taken in’’ (says Peter) "by all means; for the promise, that great promise of God’s being to you a God, is as much to you and to your children now as ever it was.’’ "Though the promise is still extended to your children as it has been, yet it is not, as it has been, confined to you and them, but the benefit of it is designed for all that are afar off;’’ we may add, and their children, for the blessing of Abraham comes upon the Gentiles, through Jesus Christ, Gal. 3:14. The promise had long pertained to the Israelites (Rom. 9:4); but now it is sent to those that are afar off, the remotest nations of the Gentiles, and every one of them too, all that are afar off. To this general the following limitation must refer, even as many of them, as many particular persons in each nation, as the Lord our God shall call effectually into the fellowship of Jesus Christ. Note, God can make his call to reach those that are ever so far off, and none come but those whom he calls.
Romans 10:9 That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.
This must take place to be "elected" and "had been called" into the faith.
So you must be elected to have been called? So the calling and the election is past but the faith is future? HUH?
I really need to read up on my preterist/calvinist doctrine!
I do not believe God literally knows the future down to our exact answers to questions every time, etc. I believe that humans believe God knows this, and that humans tell other humans God knows this.
Would you set up a Monopoly game to be played with yourself, fully knowing the outcome of every single move? If you knew this, why would you even play?
I do not believe God is fully omniscient in a "predict-the-future" sort of way. If he were I don't believe he would express emotions in reaction to things he already knew would happen since they were all of his own design. For example, he wouldn't be angry with Adam and Eve for eating the fruit, and he wouldn't be horrified by humans and cause a flood to destroy all mankind (as the story goes, I mean) and then apologize and swear he'd never do it again.
IMO...the *emotions* expressed by God in the bible point to a being that *didn't* expect certain outcomes.
ETA: Oops. Crap. I'm not a Calvanist. I really should learn to read these thread titles.
Its not future in Gods perspective, all is one big eternal present in God's perspective.
Can we really blame something not making sense on God's perspective or can we only see from our perspective. Do you think God tried to explain to us things from his perspective?
Can we really blame something not making sense on God's perspective or can we only see from our perspective. Do you think God tried to explain to us things from his perspective?
Do I think God explains things from His perspective ? Sure, what you think the bible is for ? The bible is from Gods perspective, not men.
Now do I believe God gives all men understanding of the bible and its Truth ? No, only some are privileged to have God open up their understanding .
Matt 13:
11He answered and said unto them, Because it is given unto you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it is not given.
I do not believe God literally knows the future down to our exact answers to questions every time, etc. I believe that humans believe God knows this, and that humans tell other humans God knows this.
Would you set up a Monopoly game to be played with yourself, fully knowing the outcome of every single move? If you knew this, why would you even play?
I do not believe God is fully omniscient in a "predict-the-future" sort of way. If he were I don't believe he would express emotions in reaction to things he already knew would happen since they were all of his own design. For example, he wouldn't be angry with Adam and Eve for eating the fruit, and he wouldn't be horrified by humans and cause a flood to destroy all mankind (as the story goes, I mean) and then apologize and swear he'd never do it again.
IMO...the *emotions* expressed by God in the bible point to a being that *didn't* expect certain outcomes.
ETA: Oops. Crap. I'm not a Calvanist. I really should learn to read these thread titles.
Your entitled to your beliefs, nothing I can do to change them, thats how God is pleased for you to think.
God does change his mind, but the problem is that typical teaching does not adequately address the manner in which he does change it.
Typical teaching presents God as a parent faced with a pleading child who gets the parent to change their mind based upon the allowance of a chold to have what they want.
The scriptural path of God changing his mind simply occurs as a result of God preparing our way.
Proverbs speaks of two things that prove this against the idea that Gods sovereignty includes man not having his own will at all and in opposition of doctrines such as prosperity that comes from pleasing God according to the whims of a believer.
One is "A mans heart devises a way, but God directs his feet" "The other is "all of mans routes are before God and he prepares the way for them"
The idea that a person has only one path to get from spiritual point A to spiritual point B is wrong. The problem many people cannot wrap their brains around (not meaning any offense, because it was difficult for me at one point too) is the fact that we have a certain amount of liberty in our will while God already knew what we was going to choose. This knowledge has no bearing upon the fact that our will chooses things.
The difficulty in this is that people argue things that are not applicable to the issue. God is not confused or surprised, just because it can be shown that God changed his mind.
It shows exactly what it means when God tells us he has prepared our way, God already knowing he was going to change his mind based upon knowing what we would choose does not detract from the fact that he can and does change his mind.
You will not find a change of Gods mind that is written in scripture to be anything in opposition to his character and in fact you can see that it is in alignment with his stated will.
We are to witness the gospel to everyone, for we do not know which ones were chosen by God
Funny, this is the exact same thing I was told 2 years when I went to see a councilor at church, I thought about it long and hard and realized that most churches are based on a foundation of pure lies and deception, and that this life is a cruel farce and total sham, if this is what they truly believe
How utterly cruel and deceptive it is to stand up in the front of a pulpit each and every week proclaiming that Jesus loves everyone, when it may not be true
Don't you think a far more honest approach to spreading your type of gospel would be
We are here to pronounce a message from God but only those whom God loves and has chosen will accept it, lets be clear here, God does not love all people, but there may be a fortunate person amongst you that he has chosen, therefore we bring you this message.........
Last edited by TheUnknown67; 04-19-2010 at 03:32 PM..
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