delvanis said:
There is nowhere in scripture where regeneration precedes believing. Especially in consideration of I John 5:1 and also the fact that Christ expects men to believe and repent, BEFORE receiving eternal life. Also, if men were incapable of doing this when exposed to the gospel message, then Christ would not have stated it as something men must do to obtain eternal life.John 3:15-16.
Yes, the command is there, but the ability is not unless we are born anew. If we believe that faith precedes regeneration, then we set our thinking and therefore ourselves in direct opposition not only to giants of Christian history but also to the teaching of the Apostle John, the Apostle Paul, and of our Lord Himself.
1 John 5:1 - "everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ
has been born of God" Note it reads “has been born of God” not “will be” born of God!
Our faith doesn’t result in the new birth but is a result of the new birth.
John 1:13 “He came to His own, and His own did not receive Him. But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name:
who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.”Rom 9:16 “So then it is
not of him who wills, nor of him who runs, but of God who shows mercy.”
John 6:63,65 "It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life... Therefore have I told you that
no man can come to me, unless it be given to him by my Father."
John 10:25-30 “Jesus answered them, “I told you, and you do not believe. The works that I do in My Father’s name, they bear witness of Me.
But you do not believe, because you are not of My sheep, as I said to you. My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand.
My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father’s hand. I and My Father are one.”
Note this passage doesn’t say “if” you believe you are my sheep but rather it reads “My sheep hear My voice.” The ones He has chosen will believe in Him and follow Him. The ones the Father has given Him. So regeneration preceeds faith. Anything else denies the necessity of being born again.
Wes
