Recap: We are continuing to look at the three criteria Jesus gives in John 6, vv 37-44, 65 that preceded being able to "come to" him: (1) taught by the Father - see Post 31, (2) drawn by the Father - see Post 32, and (3) given by the Father. I have proposed that these three works were the Father's exclusive strategy to recruit and place the apostles with Jesus, not a normative description of how people become "saved".
I have been arguing against the traditional teaching by many that these three works by the Father (teaching, drawing, giving) are how "the elect" come to believe in Jesus. I'm proposing that these unique, pre-cross works of the Father are not applicable to us, and only serve to create confusion and contradictions in our theology when we try to insert ourselves into this first century, foundational Church-initiating work, uniquely performed by the Father.
This week we'll tackle the final of the three criteria for "coming to Jesus" in John Chapter 6 - being given to Jesus by the Father
John 6:37
All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never cast out. (John 6:37 ESV)
Context
After seeing Jesus miraculously feed a large crowd from a few loaves of bread and a couple of fish, the following day, many followed Jesus to the other side of the sea.
Jesus said to them, "I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst. (John 6:35 ESV)
But I said to you that you have seen me and yet do not believe. (John 6:36 ESV)
(Note the present tense verbs in v 35 - a general rule- see post 30).
Observing their disingenuous hearts and their disbelief, and knowing that before this day is over, these people will leave him, Jesus explains (for the benefit of his chosen disciples - the apostles) how the Father is meticulously managing this critical stage of Jesus' ministry. "All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never cast out." These people were not of those given to him by the Father.
Calvinism: The Calvinist's see two important principals here: (1) true Christians (the elect) are those given to Jesus by the Father, and (2) they are guaranteed eternal life. According to Calvinism, all true Christians were unconditionally chosen by God from before the foundation of the world (Eph 1:4), irresistibly drawn to Jesus, given to him by the Father, and predestined for ultimate glorification (Rom 8:30),
Non-Calvinism: The traditional non-Calvinist agrees with the Calvinists' interpretation that this verse supports the notion that all true Christians (the elect) are given to Jesus by the Father. Unlike the Calvinists, the most common non-Calvinistic view (Arminianism) posits that these are people whose faith the Father foresaw by looking "down the corridors of time". In other words, those given to Jesus were chosen, not unconditionally, but on the condition of foreseen faith.
For Your Consideration
For starters, almost every Christian is familiar with the well-known statement by Jesus in the fourteenth Chapter of John's Gospel - "No one comes to the Father except through me (John 14:6 ESV). Christians generally agree that no one gets to heaven apart from faith in Jesus.
Yet, note that both camps, citing John 6:37, propose the reverse. They propose that "no one comes to believe in Jesus except through the Father." This statement, I suggest, is not biblical. Here's why.
If we follow their logic and assume that both processes are true - no one can come to believe in Jesus unless they are given to him by the Father, and no one comes to the Father except through Jesus - we can create a simple model of their "gospel" that illustrates this soteriological position.
The model reads like this:
(1) The Father has chosen who will be saved - the elect (Eph 1:4).
(2) He gives them to Jesus. (John 6:37)
(3) In the end, Jesus gives them (the elect) back to the Father. (John 14:6, 1 Cor 15:24)
In my book, God's Elect - The Chosen Generation, I refer to this unbiblical process as a form of "divine re-gifting". Here's one very important concept that makes this unbiblical.
Profitability
In Chapter 25 of the gospel of Matthew Jesus tells a parable intended to teach his disciples God's desire/requirement for profitability in the kingdom. Jesus tells of a man going away on a journey who gives one servant five talents, another two talents and another one talent. (A talent was an exceptionally large sum of money.)
The servant with five talents invests wisely and returns ten talents to the master. The servant with two talents also doubles what he was given. These two servants are praised as “good and faithful”. But the servant who was given one talent, buries his talent in the ground and returns to the master only what he was originally given. For this, he is rebuked, called “wicked and slothful” by the master (Mat 25:14-30).
Note that God (the master) expects increase from his servants. He expects them to return to him more than they are given. In other words, God expects profit, and profit in the soul-redemption business simply means an increase in saved people. Note also that breaking even is not an option. The chosen servant who gives back to the master only what he was originally given is severely rebuked.
In the model above, Jesus only returns to the Father the same people originally given to him. This is the exact result for which the servant in the parable is called "wicked and slothful". Sure, "the elect" are sanctified and refined by the Holy Spirit, but the master’s complaint in the parable is not the condition of the talents returned to him, but the quantity. A good harvest should provide fruit that is both ripe and plentiful.
The Arminian could argue that profit is accounted for in that God gives to Jesus only those whom he foresees will choose him by their own free-will response to the gospel. The problem is that there is no support in Scripture for their assertion that God "looks down the corridors of time" to see who will believe. This is a topic for another day.
Final Thought
In sum, if our theology regarding the doctrine of election falsely asserts that no one comes to believe in Jesus unless they are given to him by the Father, we have proposed a doctrine that not only isn't supported in any post-cross writings, but exposes a very exclusive gospel with no provision for kingdom growth. Such a theology should give us pause.
Any interpretation of the gospel that is not “good news” for the whole world is not the gospel of Jesus Christ which, according to the apostle Paul, is no gospel at all.
To learn more, please consider picking up my book - God's Elect: The Chosen Generation
(also available on Kindle)
Amazon - https://www.amazon.com/Gods-Elect-Generation-John- Chipman/dp/1632695723/ref=sr_1_1?crid=1507WZLOS9FHL&keywords=god%27s+elect+chipman&qid=1682632127&sprefix=god%27s+elect+chipman%2Caps%2C293&sr=8-1
(Also available at Barnes & Noble & Christianbook.com)
Next Post: We'll track the phrase "those the Father gives/gave me" through John's gospel account to better understand this divine work. Here is a link: https://www.bibleinsights.net/post/post-34-given-by-the-father-election-in-the-gospel-of-john-part-6b
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