pearl malyk Supporter

All people are God's 'elect'.. many are called, few are chosen (Mat 22:14; & 20:16) God does not want anyone to perish (mat 18:14) but we ultimately make the choice to desire GOD and His ways, or desire our own ways. God is LOVE, and God's (type of) FAITH worketh by LOVE, but faith can be developed without pursuing love as it's basis. Miracles can be performed without LOVE being the basis (Mat 7:22,23) & a 'strong faith' might not be of God.. and what appears to be a 'weak' faith may not be weak, or it could be they simply have not yet come to fully know and trust in their Savior completely. Every human being has the right to be God's elect, and each of us has the right to pursue God as deeply or as little as we choose. "weak faith" is like a weak muscle... it simply has not been 'exercised'.. 'strength' (or faith) has not been a priority in that person's life.

December 10 2013 • 0 responses • Vote Up • Share • Report

Anthony Clinton Supporter Teacher in China

Jesus healed 10 lepers and each came to him in faith, does that mean they all repented and became The elect of God! When the one and only returned to Jesus He said to him "where are the nine". One does not have to be the elect for Jesus to heal them, in fact he healed the person Peter had cut off his ear in the time of His arrest but he had not become the elect to be healed. 

Peter's faith was weak and fallible though he was the elect and it happened when he denied Christ, in fact Jesus often said to His elect, "oh you are of little faith" whether you are elect or not weakness of faith can be experienced.

People don't become the elect to receive the faith for healing, people can experience the miracles before repentance and rebirth as seen by those who were delivered from demons and various other miracles in Acts chapter 8. After these signs were performed those that repented and were baptized became the elect. Certain of the elect are described as having shipwreck faith so it is evident especially in James that though a person is the elect his faith can die. That is why the Scripture implores us to be faithful to the very end of our lives.

Revelation 2:10,11 show us that we need to be faithful unto death so that we may avoid the lake of fire.

December 10 2013 • 6 responses • Vote Up • Share • Report

JD Abshire Supporter

Yes, I believe an individual could just be going through the motions, having never been called of God and saved. 

False teaching, absence of teaching, no personal study or meditation in the Word, denying or rejecting revealed truth and unconfessed sin all result in weak or little faith in the life of a believer. Faith in a nutshell is agreeing with God, taking Him at His Word. We all fall short. 

Paul summarizes Romans 10:13-16 in verse 17, "So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God."

1 Peter 2:2 "As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby:"

The terms elect, election, choice, chosen in biblical usage is consistent. Israel is God's elect, a point well established Deuteronomy (7:7-8). "The Church", the ek-klā-sē'-ä are the called out ones. To elect, choose or call out necessitates that there is a larger group from which the elect come.The group is humanity. 
(John 6:70, 13:18, 15:16, 15:19, Romans 8:28-30, 9:11, Ephesians 1:3-6)

1 Corinthians 8:3 " But if any man love God, the same is known of him." 

To "know" is to have an intimate, love relationship. So why do we love God? 1 John 4:19 "We love him, because he first loved us."

December 11 2013 • 2 responses • Vote Up • Share • Report