A Concise Sermon on Pre-Converted Elect Disobedience and Determined Foreordination

Henceforth my theological subject of study is Romans 11:32.  Here is a presentation of different versions of this one New Testament verse: 

Romans 11:32 KJV:  
For God hath concluded them all in unbelief, that he might have mercy upon all. 
Romans 11:32 ASV:  
For God hath shut up all unto disobedience, that he might have mercy upon all. 
Romans 11:32 ESV:  
 For God has consigned all to disobedience, that he may have mercy on all. 
Romans 11:32 NASB:   
For God has shut up all in disobedience so that He may show mercy to all. 
Romans 11:32 NIV:   
For God has bound everyone over to disobedience so that he may have mercy on them all.

All the elect before salvation committed sinful disobedience.   That is, we were people of extreme lust and children of wrath (see Eph. 2:3).  We committed the same sins as those who will never truly believe.  We formerly lived in total rebellion against a holy God (Lev. 11:44; Deut. 31:27).  The greatest sin among men is spiritual unbelief (1 Tim. 1:13).  

Everyone outside of Jesus Christ cannot merit heaven.  Rather everyone outside of Jesus Christ is a law-breaker of the divine testimonies of God.  There is nothing in and of ourselves that can save a lost sinner, because all that a lost sinner can do is sin.  We have no delight in ourselves; we have nothing to offer a holy God as lost violators of His holy perfection.  

But a lost sinner should do all he can to belong to Christ by God's providential direction (Phil. 4:8).  This seems like a contradiction, but all of us must go through a unconverted process.  I believe in my unconverted process I had to go to VA for a Bible course, but this adds nothing to Christ alone.  That is, it is an "unconverted interest" in the things of God (see cf. Mk 6:20).  If God chooses too, He can use what you learned in the "unconverted process" in the time when you respond as a converted elect sinner.  This is what He did with me, because I learned about Him when I did not know Him and when I was spiritually awakened He used it to enrich my Christian testimony later on. There is no telling what God can do; there is a song that sings "it is no secret what God can do."  We had to enter the unconverted process which starts at natural conception (that is divinely providential and foreordained of God, see Eph 1:11) but none of it adds to Jesus Christ alone in His person and work (Rom. 1:16-17; Jn 19:30).  

The way to start to understand if you know God and if He has "made you willing" may be a simple meditation on these three questions:  1.) Are you seeking Christ and His Cross (Deut. 4:29; Heb. 12:2)? 2.) Have you forsaken sin, trusted the power of Christ alone in forgiveness of your sin and repented according to the God-appointed gospel (Mk 1:15; Rom 1:16-17)?  3.)  Do you know in your whole being that Christ alone is how you are right with God and no other way (Gal 2:20)?

If you are a sinner outside of Christ and you know it, please heed this instruction: Reformed Baptist Theology is the only correct understanding of the Christian faith that is the most biblical, scriptural, doctrinal, historical and theological consistency in Christian orthodoxy (see 2 Tim. 1:13; Tit 1:9).  If you want a solid subordinate standard to the Christian faith check out these Internet links:

Click here: 
"The 1689 London Baptist Confession of Faith - Vor.org"
"A Puritan Catechism - The Spurgeon Archive"

The prayers of God's people do not save anybody.  Rather we are commanded to prayer for the lost sheep.  That is, that God's Spirit and Word would change the stoney hearts of Adam's fallen race (Phil. 4:6 cf. Jer. 31:34).  We would do well not to add anything to the work of the Holy Trinity alone.  It is the Father's divine intention to save according to His plan of salvation through the designed intention of the person and work of God the Son by the spiritual application of God the Spirit in working with the Word that changes hearts of men, provides true faith and repentance and the very unified merit of the God-man to lost hell-bound, uncooperative, sin-abounding sinners!

Sin is a complete violation of the law of God.   The law of God teaches us how to live in obedience to God and how we live toward our fellow man.  Everyone has completely broken the law of God.  If we violated one point of the law of God, we have violated it all (Js 2:10).  

It refers to complete depravity not mere woundedness (Rom. 3ff).  It refers to complete corruption not mere sinfulness (Is. 1:4).  Everyone prior to Christ were disobedient in unbelief.  However, He has mercy upon all the elect who are God's people but not of works or the will of mere men (Jn 1:3 cf. Rom 9:11) and chosen before the foundation of the world (Eph. 1:4).  

It surely does not refer to having mercy on all people.   That is, it does not refer to mercy on every single individual that ever lived.  For example, Jesus refers to Judas Iscariot as the son of perdition in eternal loss (Jn 17:12) and who is of the devil (Jn 13:2).  It does not mean the efficacious atonement of Jesus Christ did not work for Judas.  Rather the atonement of Jesus simply was not divinely intended for him (Ps. 33:12).

The fall of Adam and Eve (Gen 3ff) has caused all human creation to be conceived and born in unbelief.  We are indeed bound, consigned, shut up and committed to disobedience!  It has left a great sin upon the human race where animal sacrifice cannot make us clean (Heb. 10:4). 

The sin of the pre-converted elect is used by God to teach the elect sinner that they are not good.  It will be used by God to trouble their minds that they have a life of sin and do not belong to Christ alone.  It will be used by God to teach them that they cannot save themselves in anyway.  It is important to learn that we are not spiritually good because only God is good.   

Every sin was determined by God through foreordination.  How?   Nothing can be excluded out of all things (see Eph. 1:11).  Sin is used for the sinner's good to humble us and teach us of our corrupt natures.  People sin because God removes His hand from them (Job 21:30; Prov. 16:4).  People are retrained from sin because God keeps them from it (Gen. 20:6).  If God did not keep His retraining Hand upon desperately wicked sinners (Jer. 17:9) all of us would be devils incarnate!  

We are told that God works all things for our good, "And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose" (Rom 8:28 NASB).  It means that even our sin is used for our good.  Let me say this: whatever you do is tainted with the extreme sinfulness of sin and the deceitfulness of deceit in the sinful nature.  However, you ought to conduct yourselves (who are still dead in sin by providential knowledge) in civil goodness.  Let me also say that civil righteousness cannot save anybody.  Rather that too can be used for your good by God.  

There is a time when God will save His people in time and space.  There is a time when God's people will respond in faith and repentance towards God in the obedience of faith (Rom 1:5; 16:26) and repentance (2 Kin 17:13; Mk 1:15).  The response of God's redemptive work by His Spirit in God's people alone is faith and repentance (Job 1:1) and the day of salvation is now (2 Cor 6:2).  

Everyone spends time under God's divine condemnation will continue in sin (Gen. 13:13) because they are not dead to sin (Rom. 6:7)  but under divine wrath (Jn 3:36) until the free gift is supernaturally appropriated by the Spirit of God and the Word of God in an non-cooperative and non-free willism touching God-appropriated regeneration (Jn 3; Titus 3:5) in time and space (Rom 5:16, 18).  

God is not in anyway the author of sin but He created evil (Job 21:30; Prov 16:4; Eph. 3:9; Col. 1:16; Rev. 4:11) to work for our good (Rom. 8:28).  It is not the same thing to say this means "evil is good and good is evil" (Is. 5:20).  He foredetermed the greatest work of obedience (Lk 22:22; Acts 4:27-29) in His Son's atoning (Ps. 79:9; Prov. 16:6; Jn 19:30) and appeasing death (Rom. 3:25; Heb. 2:17; 1 Jn 2:2; 1 Jn 4:10) in making Him the greatest curse for the greatest sinners (Gal. 3:13; 1 Tim 1:15). 

Day of judgment! day of wonders!
Hark! the trumpet's awful sound,
Louder than a thousand thunders,
Shakes the vast creation round.
How the summons
Will the sinner's heart confound!  
See the Judge, our nature wearing,
Clothed in majesty divine;
You who long for his appearing
Then shall say, This God is mine!
Gracious Saviour,
Own me in that day as thine.  
At his call the dead awaken,
Rise to life from earth and sea;
All the pow'r of nature, shaken
By his looks, prepare to flee.
Careless sinner,
What will then become of thee?  
But to those who have confessed,
Loved and served the Lord below,
He will say, Come near, ye blessed,
See the kingdom I bestow;
You for ever
Shall my love and glory know.