Means of Election
In saving people unconditionally, God must guarantee all the means that he has for men to be saved. This means that true faith must be guaranteed. The source of this guarantee arises from the infinite worth of Christ's death to be applied to what God intended it for; like the salvation of a particular people. This is worked out by the Holy Spirit, which convicts the world of sin and righteousness. In doing this, the Holy Spirit opens hearts and eyes. This makes sinners both willing and able to exercise faith in the gospel. The goodness and grace of the gospel becomes irresistible to a rational person, so faith results. It is the result of a new nature that comes from being born again or regenerated by the Holy Spirit preceding faith. People are saved unconditionally while they are still enemies of the Cross. Yet, sinners do not remain enemies of the cross because of the things that follow election: God's calling to faith, justification by faith, and glorification.
Read more about this topic: Unconditional Election
Famous quotes containing the words means of, means and/or election:
“To develop an empiricist account of science is to depict it as involving a search for truth only about the empirical world, about what is actual and observable.... It must involve throughout a resolute rejection of the demand for an explanation of the regularities in the observable course of nature, by means of truths concerning a reality beyond what is actual and observable, as a demand which plays no role in the scientific enterprise.”
—Bas Van Fraassen (b. 1941)
“Sebastian: When we’re up in the air, I fall more and more in love. You too, no?
Holly: No!
Sebastian: Oh, a girl may say no, but the woman in her means yes.”
—Fredric M. Frank (1911–1977)
“The election makes me think of a story of a man who was dying. He had only two minutes to live, so he sent for a clergyman and asked him, “Where is the best place to go to?” He was undecided about it. So the minister told him that each place had its advantages—heaven for climate, and hell for society.”
—Mark Twain [Samuel Langhorne Clemens] (1835–1910)