Dear brother Josh T

Since ReformedSbc has already responded to the first few of your sentences, I will deal with your eisogesis of 1 peter 1:2.

Your interpretation of 1 peter 1:2, in my view, is not correct. By the way, just to mention in passing, your view of election is not based on Grace, rather it is merit, in this case your faith. Contrast your position with 2 1 Tim 1:9, which states we are called "not according to our works but According to His Own purpose and grace". In addition, your position implies that it is not God Electing Anyone. Rather it is people Electing him. Ephesians and 1 Peter, as I will show below, state that God’s election is initiated in Himself and because of His own Will.

In love he predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ, IN ACCORDANCE with HIS pleasure and WILL.....In him we were also CHOSEN, having been predestined ACCORDING to the PLAN of him who works out everything in conformity with the PURPOSE of HIS will, in order that we, who were the first to hope in Christ, might be for the praise of his glory(1:5, 11).
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OH, yes God does foresee our faith and everything else that occurs in whole of creation and time. Since God is infinite, omniscient, eternal, etc, then it is easily implied that he knows all, and scripture provides plenty of evidence, unless of course one subscribes to the ridiculous position of “open-theism”. That, however, is NOT the point of the passage in Ephesians nor in 1 Peter and other passages the speaking regarding Election. The text of 1 Peter 1:2 says the Object of the Foreknowledge is the ‘Elect’ for the purpose of Obedience and Sprinkling of the blood Of Jesus Christ, through the means of Sanctification. What does it mean that God Foreknows the Elect “The chosen ones”? What does foreknowledge “prognosis (noun), proginosko (verb)” mean or better yet, how is it used the Biblical context? Well let’s look at the biblical data. The noun & verb forms of Foreknowledge are used of God as the subject 5 times in the New Testament, including the passage mentioned by you. They are 1 peter:2, 20, Romans 8:29, Acts 2:23, and Romans 11:2. We will look at some of these passages in a few, but first let’s look at the use of the word itself.

I submit to you that the word ‘foreknown’ or ‘known’ does not simply include the idea of a general knowledge as grammatical definition denotes, but of an intimate commitment or relationship. The word “fore” is just before time (Jer 1:5-6 is a great illustration of being intimately known before time ). We will look at this in the New Testament and Old Testament passages regarding those words. One of the easiest examples of this is Matthew 7:15-23:

15"Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves. 16By their fruit you will recognize them. Do people pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? 17Likewise every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. 18A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit. 19Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. 20Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them. 21"Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. 22Many will say to me on that day, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?' 23Then I will tell them plainly, 'I NEVER KNEW [ginosko] you. Away from me, you evildoers!'

The point of Verse 23 is not that Jesus did not know of them, rather He did not have an intimate relationship with them. If that is not the meaning of the text I know not what it is. See the reverse In John 10, where It speaks of Jesus ‘knowing’ of His sheep. Thus, ‘knowing’ denotes more that just a mere intellectual knowledge. Not convinced yet? Well let’s do a closer analysis.

That New testament Greek word ginosko and its associated words is equivalent to that of the Hebrew word yada. One Theologian states:
“This Hebrew term refers to knowing with experience or intimacy. For example, it is used of sexual union (Genesis 4:1, 19:8); of personal acquaintance (Genesis 29:5; Exodus 1:8);..and of knowing the true God (1 Samuel 2:12 - 3:7; Jeremiah 3:22).....In Matthew 1:25, the statement "he kept her a virgin" is literally "he knew her not" (eginosken). Moreover, in Philippians 3:10, the Apostle states his foremost desire, "that I may know Him" (gnomai). The reference in Romans 11:2 also has the meaning of the Hebrew yada: "God has not rejected His people whom He foreknew. Or do you not know what the Scripture says in the passage about Elijah, how he pleads with God against Israel?" (NASB)
I believe the context is clear in that ‘Foreknew’ here means more than forethought. In this context, ‘foreknew’ almost synonymous with ‘forelove’ ( as some theologians prefer to say).

Let’s look at another text that speaks of God’s Knowing of the people of Israel that demonstrates that this is more than mere knowledge.

Amos 3:1-2 states : Hear this word that the LORD hath spoken against you, O children of Israel, against the whole family which I brought up from the land of Egypt, saying, 2 You only have I KNOWN [yada] of all the families of the earth: therefore I will punish you for all your iniquities.”

Some translations ( such NIV) even render yada as ‘Chosen’ in this text. The passage definitely expresses experience or relationship between God and Israel, more than just mere knowledge. Why did God ‘known’ Israel above all the families of the earth. I submit Deut 7:6 For you are a people holy to the Lord your God. The Lord your God has CHOSEN you out of all the peoples on the face of the earth to be his people, his treasured possession. 7 The Lord DID NOT SET HIS AFFECTION on you and CHOOSE you because you were more numerous than other peoples, for you were the fewest of all peoples. 8 But it was BECAUSE the Lord LOVED you and kept the oath he swore to your forefathers that he brought you out with a mighty hand and redeemed you from the land of slavery, from the power of Pharaoh king of Egypt (Deut 7:6-8)

There are many more passages in the old testament that proves the point that ‘know’ is not just mere knowledge. But I will now turn back to the specific passage of dispute.

1 PETER 1:2
Elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through sanctification of the Spirit, unto obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ: Grace unto you, and peace, be multiplied.

JoshT, The text states that this Election is in according with God’s Foreknowledge. I have been looking through over and over again, I still can’t see you can come up that God Foresees one’s faith and then based on that He Elects Them. Rather If were are consistent the rest of the scriptures, old and new testament, then Foreknowledge is actually based on a committed that God has made to the Elect , That is, He made a free choice to love them and Elect before time. I like how one theologian put it : “He knew us from eternity past with a sovereign and distinguishing delight.”

Let’s look at another passage in the same book.
1 Peter 1:19-21 "19But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot: 20Who verily was FOREORDAINED [proginosko] before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you, 21Who by him do believe in God, that raised him up from the dead, and gave him glory; that your faith and hope might be in God."


1 Peter 1:20 attributes God’s foreknowledge to the mission of Christ. Cook comments: God not only knew ahead of time that Christ would be the Lamb (a concept that is self-evident and tautological), He determined it. No other interpretation of [foreknowledge] makes sense ...

JoshT,
How is that you can ascribe to a foreknowledge that means that God know who will respond to him and Thus elect him, etc. and then hold to view that Christian Can loose their Salvation. According to Rom 8:28-30, Those He did foreknow, God declares them also as “glorified”.

Romans 78:28-30 “29For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren. 30Moreover whom he did predestinate, them he also called: and whom he called, them he also justified: and whom he justified, them he also glorified.

So I ask, Is God mistaken in his foreknowledge according to your system if subscribe to the fact that one can “loose their salvation”

However, believe that this text does not support the Arminian view of Foreknowledge. Rather this text is focusing on God’s doing, not the response of the believer. That is, It is God who Foreknows (foreloving), Predestines, Calls, Justifies, & glorifies. To read "whom He did foreknow would repent and believe" is nothing more than Eisogesis.

So I ask , JoshT, please shown me from the scriptures that God chooses based on the fact that He foresees people’s “Faith”. By the way, this view in my eyes is incompatible with the description of the natural in scripture. I like the way RL Dabney puts its:
This leads to the crowning argument. This Saul was by nature "dead in trespasses and in sins" (Eph. ii. 1), and, therefore, would never have in him any faith or repentance to be foreseen, except as the result of God's purpose to put them in him. But the effect cannot be the cause of its own cause. The cart cannot pull the horse; why, it is the horse that pulls the cart.”
Praise Be to God who made us live so in we can in turn can forsake our old lifestyle and sins and cling to Christ, our Lord & Savior.

Brother in Christ,
Carlos

"Let all that mind...the peace and comfort of their own souls, wholly apply themselves to the study of Jesus Christ, and him crucified"(Flavel)