PETER, 2nd, 3:9, C. H. Cayce Brother Jas. H. Moore, of Blountsville, Ala., requests our views on this text, which reads, “The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.” Our views were given on this text in our debate with Elder I. N. Penick, but we suppose Brother Moore has not read that.
Some men count the Lord being slack concerning His promise. Note that it is promise, not promises. God’s promise is eternal life; see Tit. 1:2; 1 John 2:25. If God is not slack concerning His promise, and the promise is eternal life, then He will give eternal life to every one embraced in the promise.
He is “longsuffering to usward.” Who are the usward? Those characters to whom He has made the promise. “Not willing that any should perish.” Not willing that any of whom should perish? Not willing that any of the “us,” to whom He made the promise, should perish. Then, as God is not willing that any of them should perish, and His promise is to give them eternal life, He will bestow that life upon them, and not one of them will ever perish.
“Not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.” God’s will is that all these characters, to whom He promised eternal life, should come to repentance. Those who repent are led to do so by the Spirit of God. See Rom. 2:4. It must necessarily, therefore, be true that every one embraced in the promise of God, every one to whom He has promised eternal life, will come to repentance, for they will all be led thereto by the Spirit of God. The Primitive Baptist, June 13, 1911.
C. H. Cayce 1. Does God will the eternal salvation of all mankind? 2. Will all mankind be saved eternally? 3. If not, is it true that God does all His pleasure?
The above appeared in the Baptist Reaper of December 17, 1896, a Softshell paper published in Martin. I have been requested to pay some respect to the same, and according to promise will proceed to “make it pleasant for Tommy” for a little while.
lst. Elder Moore says “yes,” and quotes a part of 2nd Peter 3:9. Here is the whole verse as it reads in the Bible: “The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.” Then he says, “all who come to repentance will be eternally saved, therefore it is the will of God to save all.”
Let us quote Romans 3:4: “Or despisest thou the riches of His goodness and forbearance and longsuffering; not knowing that the goodness of God leadeth thee to repentance?” Elder Moore says God does all His pleasure, and tries to prove that it is God’s will that all the race repent. We have shown that God leads those to repentance who do repent. If God does all His pleasure, and His pleasure is that all the race come to repentance, it follows that He will lead all of them to repentance; and according to Elder Moore’s position, Universalism would be the truth. That is not all. Peter says God is not slack concerning His promise. Hence, as God leads those to repentance who do repent, it follows, if God’s will is that all come to repentance, He will certainly lead them to repentance.
According to Elder Moore’s position God is very slack. The Elder is not like Peter in his belief. Elder Moore’s position says God is slack. Peter says he is not slack. I guess Peter was correct, and Elder Moore mistaken.
Elder Moore quotes a part of l Cor. 1:21. Here it is as it reads in the Bible: “For after that in the wisdom of God the world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe.” According to Elder Moore’s position it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save the unbeliever. The text shows conclusively that the preaching of the cross is foolishness to the world—to the unbeliever. No man will believe any proposition that is foolish to him. It may be ever so sensible to you, but as long as it is foolishness to him he will never believe it. Hence, according to Elder Moore’s position, no one will ever reach heaven and immortal glory.
The Elder says Baptists can answer any question pertaining to their faith without contradicting themselves. If you can do so, you will have to try it again, for you failed this time. See these two statements:
“Therefore it is the will of God to save all.” “You see the pleasure of our Lord is to save those only who believe in His Son through the preaching of the gospel.” God wills to save all the race, and His pleasure is to save only a part of the race—yet no contradiction!
“He was made under the law to redeem them that were under the law.” If the purpose was to redeem them that were under the law, and He fails to do so, was not the coming of Christ in vain? The text Elder Moore quotes a part of is Gal. 4:4,5, and reads as follows: “But when the fullness of the time was come, God sent forth His Son, made of a woman, made under the law, to redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons.” The next verse says: “And because ye are sons, God hath sent forth the Spirit of His Son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father.” This shows conclusively that those for whom Christ was made under the law are redeemed from under the law, and that God sends forth the Spirit of His Son into their hearts crying, Abba, Father. Not only so, but it shows that they are all sons—or children—of God, hence heirs of God, and joint heirs with Christ. If one of those for whom Christ was made under the law fails to be redeemed from under the law and its curse, then all may fail, and heaven be a blank at last—so far as the redeemed family of our God is concerned.
But Elder Moore quotes another text: “He came to seek and to save that which was lost.” Brother Moore, please tell us why you contradicted this text. You say mercy is offered. This text does not say a word about such a thing as offered mercy. It plainly says He came to seek and to save. If He came to seek and to save, He did not come to offer to save those who would accept. If the salvation of a sinner depends upon his seeking God, then none will be saved, if Paul told the truth, for in Rom, 3:11 he says “there is none that seeketh after God.”
Elder Moore says provisions were made in the death of Christ sufficient for the salvation of all the race, but he failed to tell where the text is in the Bible that says so. He has good reason for not doing it—because it is not there. Jesus says, in John 10:15, “And I lay down my life for the sheep.” In verse 26 He says, “But ye believe not, because ye are not of my sheep, as I said unto you.” This shows conclusively that He did not make provision for the salvation of all the race, as Elder Moore affirms. If He did make provision for the salvation of those who were not His sheep, it was not made by His death, because he did not die for them. He died for the sheep, and did not die for those who were not sheep. The Primitive Baptist, February 1. 1897.