Cheryl Schatz

Robin, In your second point you said: 2) If God’s plan to reach the Third World people is to show them He exits and that He has power via nature… then hasn’t that plan seemed a little inadequate, since the majority of people through the centuries don’t acknowledge God? (This seems to illustrate how necessarily essential supernatural intervention in the human mind must be?) Robin, I encourage you to trust what the Scripture says without putting it through a Calvinist pair of eye glasses. First of all if Jesus said that He would draw all to Him, it doesn’t mean that we have to understand fully how He can do that, but to just believe Him and take Him at His word. Let’s look at Romans 10:13-18 for confirmation. Romans 10:13–15 (NASB) 13 for “WHOEVER WILL CALL ON THE NAME OF THE LORD WILL BE SAVED.” 14 How then will they call on Him in whom they have not believed? How will they believe in Him whom they have not heard? And how will they hear without a preacher? 15 How will they preach unless they are sent? Just as it is written, “HOW BEAUTIFUL ARE THE FEET OF THOSE WHO BRING GOOD NEWS OF GOOD THINGS!” In these verses, God says that it is those who call on the name of the LORD who will be saved. He doesn’t say that it is the ones who are pre-chosen that will be saved. The next verses (14, 15) show that faith will ultimately come down to the sending of the messengers. Who is the one who sends? Is it not God Himself? Is not God ultimately responsible as Lord of the harvest to send out the laborers? Then in Romans 10:16-18 Isaiah is quoted as asking who has believed their report? Romans 10:16–18 (NASB) 16 However, they did not all heed the good news; for Isaiah says, “LORD, WHO HAS BELIEVED OUR REPORT?” 17 So faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ. 18 But I say, surely they have never heard, have they? Indeed they have; “THEIR VOICE HAS GONE OUT INTO ALL THE EARTH, AND THEIR WORDS TO THE ENDS OF THE WORLD.” Who has believed their report? It can’t be said that they have never heard the word of Christ since verse 18 says they HAVE heard and their voice has gone out into ALL the earth! Then look at the next few verses: Romans 10:19–21 (NASB) 19 But I say, surely Israel did not know, did they? First Moses says, “I WILL MAKE YOU JEALOUS BY THAT WHICH IS NOT A NATION, BY A NATION WITHOUT UNDERSTANDING WILL I ANGER YOU.” 20 And Isaiah is very bold and says, “I WAS FOUND BY THOSE WHO DID NOT SEEK ME, I BECAME MANIFEST TO THOSE WHO DID NOT ASK FOR ME.” 21 But as for Israel He says, “ALL THE DAY LONG I HAVE STRETCHED OUT MY HANDS TO A DISOBEDIENT AND OBSTINATE PEOPLE.” Here the LORD is said to be found by those who were not seeking Him. He manifested Himself to those who did not ask for Him. And as for Israel He draws them by saying that all day long He stretched out His hands to the disobedient and obstinate people. He has promised to draw all, even those who have never heard of Him and even those tho have heard of Him but who are disobedient. I believe that eternity will show us the amazing ways that He drew the lost, yet they turned their backs on the revelation that He gave them. Do I believe Jesus when He said that He would draw all to Himself? Yes, I do and I encourage you to accept His words first and then seek to understand. Do not say that He has failed to do as He said. Believe Him and wait for the evidence in eternity. The failure of men to believe is not His failure. God is not limited by our sin or by our unbelief.