Christian Univesalism - Real Atonement

[Seth]

 :iagree:

[rosered]

For what it is worth, this is the way I see it.

God sees things from an eternal viewpoint. There is no time in God's viewpoint. Time is part of the creation of God, a measurement for finite minds between the occurring of events.

While God sees things from an eternal viewpoint, humans experience things in the unfolding of time. Christ's atonement on the Cross effectively saved all people for all time. And that is the way God sees it. He sees all in Christ.  However, from our viewpoint, in time, all are not yet in Christ.

A person is not IN CHRIST until he or she is born again spiritually. It is God's goal that all come to be IN CHRIST. But all are not yet in Christ. So we should still preach the gospel to every creature, so that all may come to know, love and accept Christ, Who died to save us all.

That is the purpose of the elect of this age, and explains so much of the New Testament that speaks of the elect. The elect are those born again spiritually in this age who help others come into the Kingdom, i.e. come to be IN CHRIST.

The atonement is not efficacious to anyone until that person is born again and comes to faith. Then Christ is working in him to bring him to perfection. Still, Christ may be at work in a non-believer also, in a way we cannot see or understand, to bring that person to faith. Since God loves all souls He has created and ultimately in time will bring all to salvation, then we should view all people with His kind of Love.

  Just beautifully said Mary !!   :thumbsup:

I can  look at some as being saved already   though Christ    and forgiven  now  , something    that  never   was  even  considered before .

  By What Christ has done   already     and nothing we   could do

  Just looking in the past history    as a proof /example .

[marie glen]

  Amen!! Very beautifully said!! ...and very well said! :))

[eaglesway]

Sorry to disagree ;o(

God created time. He established the ages. His plan is an administration suitable to the fulness of times. There is, imo, definitely time in God's viewpoint, and the Holy Spirit has communicated God's "within time" views and also His "without time views" within the oracles of God.

It is for the discerning disciple and student of the scriptures to understand the context, by instruction from the Holy Spirit, to understand the difference between those views and where they are seamed together into the whole counsel of God.

:2c: