REJECT OR ACCEPT
Reject or Accept
One of the most favourite verses among Christians is alsoone of the most disputed by them. “For God so loved the world that He gave Hisonly begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but haveeverlasting life” (John 3:16). Does the word ‘world’ mean the heavens and theearth or is it speaking of the earth’s population or just a portion thereof? However,though directly related with the word ‘world’, the dispute has more to do withthe word ‘whoever’.
To narrow it down, it has to do with who will acceptand who will reject God’s free offer of salvation. Is it saying that the ‘whoever’are only those chosen by the Father, and that only these will accept andreceive God’s salvation in Jesus? E.g., “No one can come to Me unless theFather who sent Me draws him; and I will raise him up at the last day”(John 6:44). Or is it saying that people can believe in Jesus even without the Fatherdrawing them to His Son? That is the dispute in a nutshell. It’s the old ‘freewill’ versus the ‘sovereignty of God’ issue.
Image from WebDo you reject or accept the bondage of the will? This doesn’tmean that you’re not free to choose the salad instead of the vegetables toaccompany your pub lunch. Nor does it mean the red instead of the white wine toaccompany your chicken, even though the etiquette is white with white meat andred with red meat. The bondage of the will is your ability or lack thereof toaccept the salvation God offers in His Gospel. The bondage of the will meansthat, because of your fallen nature, your will is in bondage to sin, to self,and to Satan. If little Johnny is offered chopped liver and onions or hisfavourite ice-cream, which will he take? But Johnny, liver is good foryou. It is a good source of protein, rich in essential nutrients, Vitamin A isgood for vision, B12 for brain health, iron for… What does little Johnny hear?Bla, bla, bla… He will only have the ice-cream, thank you! Yum!We can tell non-Christians till we’re blue in the faceall the benefits of salvation; escaping God’s final judgment, renewed body inthe resurrection, escape from the fires of Hell and everlasting torment, anabundant life in the here and now as we await the restoration of all thingsetc. But what does the non-Christian hear? Bla, bla, bla – Rejection! ‘Unless’,as Jesus says, ‘the Father who sent Me draws him.’ Therefore, the will isin bondage and will therefore reject Jesus unless God sets you free. Jesussays, ‘whoever commits sin is a slave of sin… Therefore if the Son makes youfree, you shall be free indeed’ (John 8:34b, 36). Do you believe this?
So, when it comes to the free offer of the Gospel, theoffer is genuine and is genuinely offered to anyone and everyone who will believe.However, we don’t know what’s good for us, and we will continue to love our sininstead of God’s salvation unless He sets our will free from its bondage to ourbad choices which result in our evil deeds. ‘For everyone practicing evilhates the light and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should beexposed’ (John 3:20). Therefore, be one of the ‘whoever believes.’ Do notreject but accept God’s free offers of salvation to you. It is freebecause it has been paid in full by the life, death, and resurrection of JesusChrist. And give God the glory for your salvation. And always remember that ‘TheFather loves the Son, and has given all things into His hand. He who believesin the Son has everlasting life; and he who does not believe the Son shall notsee life, but the wrath of God abides on him’ (John 3:35-36).
