Reading God’s Word – 4 Principles and 10 Steps

First – What does God’s Word say about reading God’s Word?
Second – What are some proper steps to reading and understanding a Bible passage?

Four Principles for Reading God’s Word

  1. Since the Bible is God’s Word, it must be spiritually discerned. 

    1 Corinthians 2:12-14 – “Now we have received not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might understand the things freely given us by God. 13 And we impart this in words not taught by human wisdom but taught by the Spirit, interpreting spiritual truths to those who are spiritual.14 The natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned.”
  2.  Pray for wisdom in understanding God’s Word before reading and while reading!

James 1:5 – “If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him.” 

 3. All Scripture testifies about Jesus, so seek Jesus in every text you read. 

John 5:39-40 – “You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is they that bear witness about me, 40 yet you refuse to come to me that you may have life.” 

4. Scripture interprets Scripture.

1 Corinthians 14:32 – “The spirits of prophets are subject to prophets.”

Ten Steps to Reading and Understanding a Bible Passage

  1. Pray, asking for wisdom and to see Jesus in the passage. 

  2. Biblical and Historical Setting
    • Who wrote it?
    • Who was it written to? 
    • When was it written?
    • Why was it written?
    • What historical people, dates, and places are named in the passage?

  3. Immediate Literary Context
    • What precedes the passage?
    • What comes after the passage?
    • How does the passage fit into this immediate context?
    • What purpose does the passage have within the immediate context?

  4. Historical and Cultural Context
    • What historical events are explicitly or implicitly mentioned in the passage?
    • What social and cultural norms are explicitly or implicitly mentioned in the passage?


  5. Doctrines
    • What doctrines are directly mentioned in the passage?
    • What doctrines are indirectly mentioned in the passage?


  6. Parallel Passages
    • What passages in the Bible contain the same or similar words or phrases?
    • What passages in the Bible mention the same people, places, or events?
    • What passages in the Bible reference the same doctrines?
    • What passages in the Bible are being quoted, referenced, or alluded?

  7. Law Application
    • What commands, demands, or expectations are directly stated in the passage?
    • What commands, demands, or expectation are indirectly implied in the passage?
    • How do those commands, demands, or expectations apply to myself and those in my life? 
    • What consequences for sin are named in this passage?
    • What is stated in this passage about mankind’s sinful condition? 

  8. Gospel Application
    • What blessings and good promises of God are directly stated in the passage?
    • What blessings and good promises of God are indirectly implied in the passage?
    • How do these blessings and good promises of God apply to myself, those in my life, and to all people who have faith in Christ? 

  9. Translations
    • Compare translations of the same passage. 
    • What is similar or the same within all of them? 
    • What is different and can different implications be drawn from these variant translations? 
    • Look at the Greek and Hebrew readings of the passage to see what is happening in the sections of the passage that have variant translations.  Likely that section is difficult to translate into English, either due to words having multiple meanings in Greek and Hebrew or due to a part of speech or method of emphasis within the language that is not readily available in English. 

  10. Word Studies
    • Pick out a few words that seem important or central to the passage and see where else they appear in Scripture and how that word is used throughout the Bible. 
    • Use a Hebrew or Greek interlinear Bible to discover what the key or central words in Greek are and conduct a word study using a lexicon.  See where else in Scripture that word appears and how it is translated differently or the same across the whole of God’s Word. 
    • Does one author use this word in one sense and another author use it in a different sense?  Do these findings given guidance in understanding the meaning and use of the word in the passage at hand? 
    • How was this word used in secular Greek culture and writings? 

Andy Wrasman1 Comment

God’s Word – From Scripture Alone

God’s Word

Three Forms of the Word

  • Personal Word (Jesus as God’s Word to Us)
  • Spoken Word (Prophets, Apostles, Pastors, Teachers, All Christians – in Preaching, Evangelism, Conversation)
  • Written Word (Definitive instances of written proclamation by prophets and apostles)

  • The Written Word serves the spoken Word which delivers the personal word.

Three Forms – To Be Distinguished but not to be separated.

Scripture cannot be broken.

John 10:35 – “Scripture cannot be broken”

Jesus said this initially in reference to the OT.
Nothing in the OT can be broken by the NT.
Any future commentary or books cannot go against OT or NT.

Scripture came from the Holy Spirit – and it originated with God, not with man.

2 Timothy 3:16 – “All Scripture is God-breathed”  Parallel to Gen 2:7 – “Then the LORD God formed a man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being.”

2 Peter 1:20-21 – “Above all, you must understand that no prophecy of Scripture came about by the prophet’s own interpretation of things.  For prophecy never had its origin in the human will, but prophets, though human, spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.” 

Acts 4:25 – “You spoke by the Holy Spirit through the mouth of your servant, our father David: “‘Why do the nations rage and the peoples plot in vain?”

They were compelled, even commanded, to publically preach God’s Word.   It is to be spoken and shared, not just read.

1 Corinthians 9:16 – “For when I preach the gospel, I cannot boast, since I am compelled to preach. Woe to me if I do not preach the gospel!”

Jeremiah 26:2 – “”This is what the LORD says: Stand in the courtyard of the LORD’s house and speak to all the people of the towns of Judah who come to worship in the house of the LORD. Tell them everything I command you; do not omit a word.” 

Jesus affirms that the Holy Spirit will HELP his apostles write the teachings he has given them. 

John 14:26 – “But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you.”

God’s Word doesn’t change.

James 1:17 – “Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.” 

God’s Word is true! 

Psalm 18:30 – “flawless”

John 17:17 – “Sanctify them by the truth, your word is truth.”

Psalm 33:4 – “right and true”

Specifically the Gospel has the power to save, and in fact it is the power to save.

The Gospel the power of God for salvation.  Romans 1:16 – “For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes: first to the Jew, then to the Gentile.”

Scripture makes us wise for salvation. 2 Timothy 3:15 – “how from infancy you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.”

John 20:31 – “But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.”

1 Corinthians 1:18 – “For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.”

God’s Word (Gospel) has the power to save, yet It can be resisted, rejected.  In other words, God’s Word is resistible. 

Ezekiel 2:5 – “And whether they listen or fail to listen–for they are a rebellious people–they will know that a prophet has been among them.”

Isaiah 66:4 – “so I also will choose harsh treatment for them and will bring on them what they dread. For when I called, no one answered, when I spoke, no one listened. They did evil in my sight and chose what displeases me.”

John 10:27 – “My sheep listen to my voice.”

Matthew 23:3 – “I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wing, but you were not willing.”  God’s intent can desire can be resisted. 

Though God’s Word can be resisted, it will not return empty.  It will accomplish what God desires it to accomplish. 

Isaiah 55:11 – “so is my word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.”

Since God’s Word goes out in Law and Gospel, even when the Gospel that has the power to save is rejected, God’s Law still produces its desired effect.  In the context, this word likely was Law.  God spoke that nations would attack Israel and God is saying, I have spoken this and it will happen! 

God’s Word illumines the path to salvation. 

Psalm 119:105 – “lamp to my feet” “light to my path” 

2 Peter 1:19 – “lamp shining in a dark place”

John 1:1-14 – Jesus is the Word of God and the Light of the World. 

Yet, men reject the light, because they love darkness.

John 3:19-21 – “This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but people loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil.  Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that their deeds will be exposed.  But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what they have done has been done in the sight of God.” 

God’s Word is understood/discerned spiritually, not by human reason, so that even infants who we do not perceive to be capable of comprehending God’s Word, or any words for that matter, may know God and His Word and have faith in Jesus Christ. = Mind-blown! 

1 Corinthians 2:14 – God’s Word is “spiritually discerned” and needs the Holy Spirit to be discerned. 

2 Timothy 3:15 – “Timothy knew the Scriptures from infancy and they made him wise for salvation! 

Andy Wrasman3 Comments

Repent from Greed and Love of Money – Bible Verses

A lady wants Scripture to share with her brother who from her perspective has rejected God and his siblings over a love of money and the sin of greed. The siblings in the family are all mostly in their retired years and have inherited the family farm. They rent the farm out to others to work and they make very little from this rent. Four of the siblings want to keep the farm in the family, but the one greedy brother who has made a large chunk of financial gain from another property sell wants to sell the farm. His desire to sell versus the desire of his other siblings has driven a great wedge in the family. The brother has increasingly become hostile towards the others and is even working deals with nephews and nieces behind the scenes looking forward to a future opportunity to make more money. This man is already in his 70s. It appears as if he is not attending Church anywhere now. His sister literally thinks he has rejected God for his love of money. The following are the verses and commentary I provided her to consider sharing:

Ecclesiastes 5:10 – “Whoever loves money never has enough; whoever loves wealth is never satisfied with their income. This too is meaningless.”

Your brother needs to realize that he will never be satisfied with the amount of wealth he has.  Even if he sold the farm, it wouldn’t be enough. 

What is he saving for?  What are his goals?  What is the point?  To give a large chunk of change to his kids?  What would be the meaning in that?  What would give value to that?  What would give such a gift to his kids eternal value? How will they responsibly use the money if they do not know the Lord, because he has not taught them the Lord and his ways? 

Hebrews 13:5 – “Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.”

He’s not content with what he has… he’s not content with you, his family!  He has in fact lost his family due to his love of money that will never be satisfied. 

Luke 12:15 – “Then he said to them, “Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; life does not consist in an abundance of possessions.”

What is most valuable in this life?  Is stuff your life?  Is money your life?  If it is… that’s a very sad and empty life. 

Matthew 6:24 – ““No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.”

Is he serving Jesus with his money?  Or is he serving himself?  Who does he love? 

Proverbs 13:11 – “Dishonest money dwindles away, but whoever gathers money little by little makes it grow.”

If the farm is sold it wouldn’t be dishonest, but to coerce and continue to badger and to cut off family members because he alone desires to sell the farm to get a big chunk of change is selfish and self-serving and self-seeking.  That large stash he gains will little by little fade to nothing.

Proverbs 15:27 – “The greedy bring ruin to their households, but the one who hates bribes will live.”

What has he brought to his household through his love of money?  What has he lost because of his greed?  In his time of dying, who will be by his side?  What has he cut off from his family by his greed? 

Proverbs 28:25 – “The greedy stir up conflict, but those who trust in the LORD will prosper.”

He has stirred up much conflict within your family by his greed.  Is he trusting in the money and not the Lord?  What is he seeking after?  If it’s not the Lord, he will whither and die! 

Matthew 6:19-21 – ““Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, 20 but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. 21 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”

What he is storing up for himself will be stolen from him.  What he has stored up will be destroyed.  It will wear out.  It is of this world which is destined for fire!  Instead, he needs to seek the things of God of eternal merit and heaven.  That is where his heart needs to be set. 

Luther said that anything we love, trust, or fear above all else is our god, our idol!  We all commit idolatry in some form or fashion.  All sin is ultimately rooted in a falling short of trust in God, love in God, or fear in God.  Some idolatry however is rejection of faith, a rejection of God!  All idolatry if unrepented leads to death – eternal death – as the rejection of faith (a state of unbelief and unrepentance) is blasphemy of the Holy Spirit, the unforgivable sin.

He must repent, turn from his love of money and greed and turn to Jesus for forgiveness of his sins! 

Matthew 16:26 – “What good will it be for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul? Or what can anyone give in exchange for their soul?”

2 Peter 3:8-18 – “But do not overlook this one fact, beloved, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. 9 The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance. 10 But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, and then the heavens will pass away with a roar, and the heavenly bodies will be burned up and dissolved, and the earth and the works that are done on it will be exposed.

11 Since all these things are thus to be dissolved, what sort of people ought you to be in lives of holiness and godliness, 12 waiting for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be set on fire and dissolved, and the heavenly bodies will melt as they burn! 13 But according to his promise we are waiting for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells.

14 Therefore, beloved, since you are waiting for these, be diligent to be found by him without spot or blemish, and at peace. 15 And count the patience of our Lord as salvation, just as our beloved brother Paul also wrote to you according to the wisdom given him, 16 as he does in all his letters when he speaks in them of these matters. There are some things in them that are hard to understand, which the ignorant and unstable twist to their own destruction, as they do the other Scriptures. 17 You therefore, beloved, knowing this beforehand, take care that you are not carried away with the error of lawless people and lose your own stability. 18 But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be the glory both now and to the day of eternity. Amen.” 

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Freed to Give All of Life

This blog post is a sermon I gave at Oak Road Lutheran Church in Lilburn, GA, on November 7th, 2021. Our church follows a 3-year lectionary of Scripture readings. An OT, Epistle, and NT reading is given in the services before the sermon. The readings for this Sunday were 1 Kings 17:8-16, Hebrews 9:24-28, and Mark 12:38-44.

Intro

I’ve been hearing about the coming collapse of the American economy for over a decade now… I thought it was supposed to happen back in 2012! 

I had friends who kept saying the American dollar will completely collapse… you need to invest in silver and gold! 

I’m sitting there going, I’m too dumb to know what do with a bar of silver.   If the economy completely collapses and every grocery store is raided and the shelves are empty (except for the tofu hot dogs), I’m sorry… I don’t know how I’d buy a loaf of bread a whole bar of silver… how do you even make change???

I just don’t think I know how to live in that system… so I’d just say, “I’m just going to trust God and pray that he’ll have some ravens bring my wife and me some bread.”  This was before kids. But in reality, I knew I was just going to go their militarized supply fortress if that happened.   

Now with kids… and in GA and no longer able to get to the doomsday preppers I know, this conversation came up again with a neighborhood friend I grew up with via text before January 6th, and I had to say, “I have nothing… I’m going to just find a creek and pray that God will have some ravens bring bread to my family.”  He’s a good friend… he didn’t correct me and say I needed six months of freeze-dried Patriot food… he just said, “God will provide.”  The other friends are good friends too, they’d tell me, that’s great, but you should prepare at least a month’s worth of food and water.  Hey that’d probably be wise stewardship – maybe God would then be able to send the ravens to someone else! 

Why am I talking about finding myself with nothing to eat, no provisions to be found even if I had the American pesos?  And why ravens? 

If you remember not being able to find toilet paper… and you’re now seeing a empty spaces in the food aisles, you probably know I’m why.  Many of you probably already know why I’m talking about bread from ravens? 

Old Testament Reading – 1 Kings 17:8-16

In our Old Testament reading, Elijah is told to go to a widow’s home to be fed! 

Do you know how Elijah was being fed at that time?  By ravens!

Elijah had told the wicked King Ahab… there shall be no rain or dew until I say so!  And God told Elijah to go to an obscure brook and drink there and that he’d send ravens to feed him.  And ravens brought him meat and bread each morning… God provides! 

But because of the drought, the brook dried up… but… God provides!  He tells Elijah to go to Zarephath and that there he has commanded a widow to feed him.

But does this widow have food? 

Yeah… enough to make one last meal of bread for her and her son.  She actually says, “I’m making it so my son and I can eat it and then die!”  At this point… she’s already rationed a lot… they’re done.  This is it.  No mas comida. 

Out of this last of her food, Elijah asks her to give to him, the prophet of God whose words will stop the drought. 

She initially says she has nothing to give… I’m about to die… this is my last meal… quite different from saying, “Sorry, I don’t have any change.”  Or “Sorry, I only have plastic.” 

But Elijah says, “Do not fear!  Go eat and die, but first give me a bit of that last meal of yours, because God says, “It ain’t your last; it won’t be.”  You will have flour and oil until the day the Lord sends rain.” 

So literally, she gives of the last that she had… trusting God provides. 

Most of us have not been in this situation… no foreseeable way to get more money, more food tomorrow or the next day or the week after that.  Most of us do not know what it is like to give all that we have from our poverty, from the end of our life. 

Most of us have not been put into that situation where we are free to give all of life with nothing left to lose. 

Most of us have not been put into that situation to demonstrate our faith in the God that provides with by giving from the last of all that we have to him.  Though she gave to Elijah, she was giving to God, trusting in the promise of God Elijah has just spoken.  God will provide! 


New Testament Reading – Mark 12:38-44

Most of us have never been put in that situation, but in our Gospel reading we see another widow giving out of poverty, everything that she had, all she had to live on. 

We witness this giving as Jesus witnessed it in the temple of God, in the Court of the Women, where all of Israel could enter and give financial offerings to support the temple worship! 

Many rich people put in large sums. 

Large coins… many of them… you could hear their giving.  (Clang clang clang, miming dumping bags into the treasury 2 to 3 times before ruffling through my pockets to drop a few more in.) 

But the widow… you don’t hear her offering.  Two small copper coins which make a penny. 

What can you buy with a penny? … In her day, what she gave was 1/64th of a days wages.  Not enough for a meal… So where does she go?  What does she do to keep on living?  She goes to the temple and gives from her poverty, everything she has, all she had to live on.  Jesus sees this and Jesus called his disciples to himself… “Truly I say to you, this poor widow has put in more than all those who are contributing to the offering box.” 

Last Sunday, we commemorated Luther’s kickstart of the Reformation Movement that dumped the Roman Catholic system of our works playing a role in our salvation right upside on its head, bringing back to the forefront of the Church the good news that we are saved by grace alone through faith alone in Jesus alone! 

We see today, Jesus dumping the system of works righteousness and self-justification before God upside down on its head.  He is God and Jesus’ name means, “The Lord Saves!” Not your money. Not your prayers… your faith in God saves you.  True faith prays.  True faith gives to God’s workers who do God’s work. 

You are not saved by going to church!  You go to church because you are saved because you have faith in Jesus!  You come to church because you have faith in Jesus has promised to be here where his people are gathered in his name with his Word proclaimed. 

This wasn’t how things were being conducted in Jesus’ day.  And dare I say we fall into the same traps. 

Before the incident of the widow who gave the least in monetary value gave the most because she gave all that she had from her poverty, Jesus had dropped this warning, “Beware the scribes!”  Who were the scribes?  These were priests who were set apart as scholars!  Being a scribe wasn’t a bad thing… the prophet Ezra is the first scribe listed in Scripture… knowing Scripture inside and out and being able to interpret it, quote it, and apply it isn’t a bad thing.  Ezra wasn’t a bad guy!  Being a scribe isn’t a bad thing, but in Jesus’ day, “Beware the scribes!”  At least the ones who walked around in long robes – perhaps a mark of holiness – Mine’s longer than yours! They really liked being called grand titles in the public marketplace (Oh Rabbi, Oh Teacher), who got all the best seats in the synagogue or right next to the host at the feasts. 

None of this is necessarily bad… who are the pastors who are set apart as scholars today, who are the Scribes today? In our church denomination, I’d reckon the he seminary professors, the professors at our Concordia Universities… when they role into town, people call them Dr. People call them Professor.  When they come to your church, they do get treated as royalty. Nothing is wrong with this… depending on their heart at such receptions and heart in the giving of such respect and adoration…

But in Jesus’ day, Beware of the Scribes… Jesus says it straight up – the Scribes devour the widows houses.  The Scribes had no source of income but offerings, and they abused the giving system.  They took advantage of widows… just like the church took advantage of people selling indulgences in Luther’s day, and just as the church sometimes takes advantage of the downtrodden today… using passages like ours today to say, give until it hurts!  Give it all from your poverty. 

No, this widow is the one whose house was being devoured by the Scribes.  This widow was giving everything she had… give her a meal! 

Jesus could have given her a meal… but it wouldn’t have solved the systemic problem.  The problem of sin… the problem of the Scribes living large, devouring the homes of widows who had no safety net of protection in their day… no large life insurance policies in the first century if your husband died and left you with little kids or no elder son to care for you and in a societal system that offered women no training or skills for in demand hired labor.  Giving her a meal wouldn’t solve the systemic sinful problem that we have of looking to how much money we give as being the mark of who gives the most. Or the sinful problem we have of putting worship buildings over people – and the need to keep the temple worship going over people’s physical needs – when someone literally has given all they have and can’t eat or drink.  How about that? 

Do you know what the disciples said right after Jesus told them the widow gave the most… they left the temple and one of them started saying, “Look, teacher, what wonderful stones and what wonderful buildings!”  Yeah… these stones are really nice… and they were, these stones were 37 ft long, 18ft wide, and 12 ft high and covered all in gold!  (Clang clang clang miming the dumping of money into the treasury). 

Where was their heart?  Did they even hear Jesus?  Beware the Scribes.  This poor widow gave more for they contributed from their abundance, but she out of her poverty has put in everything she had, all she had to live on…

She gave from all of her life — the word used is bios… life… all the translations say what she had to live on… but I really like just saying she gave all her life… and in her position… she was completely free to do so…

Jesus gave all his life!!! Jesus gave all of his life from his abundance, from having everything as the eternally begotten Son of God, creator and sustainer of all things. Jesus gave all of his life, dying on the cross for your sins, so you may have eternal life through faith in him. 

We in return are free to give all our life…. Not all that we have to live on… but all of our life… to give it to God.  It’s beginning to see that all of our life is to be offered to God – out of freedom, not compulsion or to earn anything from him, we’ve already been given everything for free from his giving all of his life for us. 

God provides, and he has given all of his life to you! 








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Faith is A Gift From God – Yet Single-Predestination is True

We are saved by grace through faith.  

John 3:16 – ““For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.”

Ephesians 2:8-9 – “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.”

Romans 4:4-5 – “Now to the one who works, his wages are not counted as a gift but as his due. And to the one who does not work but believes in him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is counted as righteousness.”

Faith is not our work but the work of the Holy Spirit.

Titus 3:5 – “He saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit.”

1 Corinthians 12:3 – “Therefore I want you to understand that no one speaking in the Spirit of God ever says “Jesus is accursed!” and no one can say “Jesus is Lord” except in the Holy Spirit.”

John 1:12-13 – “But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.”

Ephesians 2:8-9 – ““For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.”

Ephesians 2:4-5 – “But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved.”

Romans 9:16 – “For he says to Moses, “I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion.” So then it depends not on human will or exertion, but on God, who has mercy.”

John 6:28-29 – “Then they said to him, “What must we do, to be doing the works of God?” Jesus answered them, “This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent.”

We are incapable of deciding to have faith.

1 Corinthians 12:3 – “Therefore I want you to understand that no one speaking in the Spirit of God ever says “Jesus is accursed!” and no one can say “Jesus is Lord” except in the Holy Spirit.”


Ephesians 2:1-5 – “And you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience— among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind. But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved

John 1:12-13 – “But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.”

John 6:44 – “No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him. And I will raise him up on the last day.”

1 Corinthians 2:14 – “The natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned.”

Any verse about being born again indicates this also, for what role do we play in our natural birth?  None.

Since faith is purely a gift of God and we play no role in our conversion, then it could be assumed that God then chooses who will be saved, and also chooses who will not be saved. 

This is what scripture teaches in this matter:

God elects/predestines to salvation!

Romans 8:29-30 – “For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified.”

2 Timothy 1:8-9 – “Therefore do not be ashamed of the testimony about our Lord, nor of me his prisoner, but share in suffering for the gospel by the power of God, who saved us and called us to a holy calling, not because of our works but because of his own purpose and grace, which he gave us in Christ Jesus before the ages began.”

Ephesians 1:3-13 – “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. In love he predestined us for adoption to himself as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will, to the praise of his glorious grace, with which he has blessed us in the Beloved. In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace, which he lavished upon us, in all wisdom and insight making known to us the mystery of his will, according to his purpose, which he set forth in Christ as a plan for the fullness of time, to unite all things in him, things in heaven and things on earth.

In him we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to the purpose of him who works all things according to the counsel of his will, so that we who were the first to hope in Christ might be to the praise of his glory. In him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit.”


It is the will of God that no man should perish!

1 Timothy 2:3-4 – “This is good, and it is pleasing in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.”

2 Peter 3:8-9 – “But do not overlook this one fact, beloved, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.”

It is never written anywhere in scripture that God predestines people to Hell!  If someone goes to Hell it is because of their sin and their rejection of God.  We do not have the ability to accept God, but we have the ability to reject Him! 

The Following is what we have read in Scripture:

  1. We are saved by grace through faith.
  2. Faith is not our work but the work of the Holy Spirit.
  3. We are incapable of deciding to have faith.
  4. God elects/predestines to salvation (not damnation)!
  5. It is the will of God that no man should perish!

This is a paradox – Single-Predestination (God only elects to salvation!  Damnation is all on us!)

This is monergism – God alone is the one who works conversion.

If we say that faith is not solely a work of the Spirit, but that we play an active role in our conversion we would ignore parts of scripture.  We would ignore points 2, 3, and 4.

If we say that faith in conversion is solely a work of the Holy Spirit and thus God predestines some to heaven and others to hell, we would ignore parts of scripture. We would ignore points 4 and 5.

To teach that God predestines to both salvation and damnation is called Double-Predestination and it is taught by Calvinists. This teaching is also called monergism.

Five Points of Calvinism

T – otal Depravity
U – nconditional Election
L – imited Atonement
I – irresistible Grace
P – reservation of the Saints

Five Points of Arminianism

  1. Free-will, human-ability
  2. Conditional Election (Election is Foreknowledge)
  3. General Atonement (Objective Justification)
  4. The Holy Spirit can be resisted.
  5. Falling from Grace

Lutheranism Rejects

L, I, and P of Calvinism

And

Points 1 and 2 of Arminianism

Does this matter?

Arminianism – Our works are involved in salvation, which can cast uncertainty on our salvation.  Do I believe enough? Do I have too many doubts?  If one work is involved, the tendency is to insert more required works. 

Calvinism – Jesus didn’t die for everyone.  God doesn’t love everyone.  Apathy towards evangelism. And how do I know that I have faith? I can’t just look to Jesus and know that my sins are forgiven, because didn’t die for everyone. I must look to my own works to see if I am bearing the fruit of repentance, but God is to be the judge of that, not me.

Both of these systems of theology point people inward to their work for justification and not outward to Christ.

Proper Application of Election

  1. For our comfort.
  2. God saves us unconditionally.

You are saved by grace through faith in Jesus Christ, apart from any of your works.

Andy WrasmanLeave a comment