What Does It Mean That God Desires All People To Be Saved?

I very much agree with you that God gave mankind an amazing ability to reason out worldly things, but according to 1 Cor 2:14, mankind has no ability to think on things that are spiritual until he has been born again with the indwelling of the Holy Spirit (Eph 2:1-5).

Are you telling me that you know nothing about the scriptures?

Can't think spiritually about spiritual matters. Many people consider spiritual things, and acknowledge many biblical truths.

what scripture says that God has the desire?

Yes, and these many people are all born again of the Spirit.

No. I'm saying I already know what I believe. I'm interested in what other people think. And I thought a discussion on the subject would prove useful.

1 Timothy 2:4.

Pharisees weren't generally saved, but they considered spiritual matters. And Jesus said they got some things correct.

John 1:9 That was the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world.

Because the Bible makes that clear - that the Holy Spirit indwells only those whom God saves and makes born again, from which, are they given faith as a gift: salvation first, from salvation, faith, from faith, belief. Given that God made a promise (which He did make), then as it is His promise, He therefore alone took upon Himself sole responsibility to bring it all completely to fruition, otherwise, the promise could not be guaranteed, and hence, God could not make it, but it was made by Him. IOW, for it to come true, God had to make Himself guarantor of His own promise - its fulfillment not being dependent upon anything outside of Himself, who would make it all transpire. Consequently, a person's belief, if true belief, had also to be included as part of His promise, because were the giving of belief not part of the promise, yet it still being a requirement to receive the promise, then God could not rightfully have made the promise because things outside of God's control could and would have, invalidate it - notice in Rom 9:8, the "children of the promise" part - that of the promise itself, only certain specific spiritual children are brought forth. As such, they all, and they alone, must come to belief. Should any not, or should it not be of them alone. then the promise becomes of no effect because it would be broken, which would be impossible.

[Rom 9:8 KJV]
8 That is, They which are the children of the flesh, these [are] not the children of God: but the children of the promise are counted for the seed.

[Gal 2:16 KJV]
16 Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified.

[Heb 6:17 KJV]
17 Wherein God, willing more abundantly to shew unto the heirs of promise the immutability of his counsel, confirmed [it] by an oath:

[1Pe 1:3-4 KJV]
3 Blessed [be] the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,
4 To an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you,

[Gal 5:22 KJV]
22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith,

[Rom 8:9, 14 KJV]
9 But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his. ...
14 For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.
[1Co 3:16 KJV]
16 Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and [that] the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?

It is those which comprise the world which is to come. He does not give light to everyone of this present world:

[Jhn 1:10 KJV] 10 He was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not.

All scriptures must harmonize if we are to understand the doctrine that Jesus taught.

In the book of first timothy Paul sent Timothy to the church at Ephesus that he might charge some in the church that they teach no other doctrine (1 Tim 1:3).

The word "saved" in 1 Timothy 2, according to Strong'd concordance, means "delivered". Timothy is instructing the "all men" who are preaching a false doctrine, to come unto a knowledge of the truth and be delivered (saved) from the destruction of preaching false doctrines.

Your insistence on applying all salvation (deliverance) scriptures to eternal deliverance will tend to teach you that eternal deliverance is accomplished by your good works.

There is a deliverance accomplished by our good works, but it refers to a deliverance the child of God receives as he sojourns here on earth, that is not eternally.

I appreciate you sharing.
And I haven't insisted on anything. Your insistence on me taking a side is the only insistence I'm finding.

I think there is a difference between spiritual things and the Spiritual things of God. They can be one and the same, but they are not always. So saying man has no ability to think on spiritual things is not entirely correct unless you clarify further to mean the Spiritual things of God. And it is not even an inability to think on these things, but to accept them.


1 Corinthians 2:12 + 14

In Acts 9, God knocks Saul to the ground saying "Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?".
Saul had not repented, if fact he was on his way, breathing threats against the disciples of the Lord.

Breathing out threatenings and slaughter is a cool phrase. Next time I get into a strong disagreement, I'm going to use this phrase.
Dude, why are you breathing out threatenings and slaughter?

I have updated my 1 Corinthians 2:12 + 14 panel .


1 Corinthians 2:12 + 14


I thought the font face was too heavy on that other one.
I had already changed it, but changed it some more...

Saul would have been banned for sure.

I stand corrected. Your words are words of wisdom. there are many spiritual things that are of the world. I admire your perception of the scriptures.