ALL ARE GIVEN A CHANCE . . . BUT . . . Part 1

Published On : May 3, 2001

Last Updated : May 7, 2009

Rastafarian Doctrine, The Bereans, Twisting The Scriptures,
Universal Nature Of Salvation Plan, God Is No Respecter Of
Persons, One In Christ, Not All Will Be Saved, The Path Of
Unbelievers And Rebellious, Not All Fish Bite, Two Fishless
Nights, Smart Fish Or Dumb Fish?, Foolishness Of The Gospel,
Predestination, Children By Adoption, The Endtime Deceivers



Some time ago, a woman wrote to me regarding a problem she
had encountered while trying to witness to members of the
sect known as the Rastafarians. To be honest, I know very
little about this group; but according to the message she
sent me, the problem lies in the fact that they embrace a
doctrine which states that Salvation is only meant for black
persons. As this woman noted -- and naturally I agree with
her -- all matters regarding doctrinal truth and error, can
best be determined by looking to the Scriptures. As I have
stated on previous occasions, this is precisely what the
Bereans did in the seventeenth chapter of the Book of Acts,
after Paul and Silas had presented the doctrine of Christ to
them. Consider the following verses:

"And the brethren immediately sent away Paul and Silas by
night unto Berea: who coming thither went into the synagogue
of the Jews. These were more noble than those in
Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all
readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily,
whether those things were so."
Acts 17:10-11, KJV

Based upon my personal knowledge of the Scriptures, and more
specifically, my understanding of the doctrine of Salvation,
I must concur with this dear woman and clearly say that the
Rastafarian's so-called doctrine of "Blacks only" is utterly
false, totally ridiculous and quite unScriptural. It has no
Biblical foundation whatsoever; that is, unless a person or
a particular group purposely distorts the meaning of the
Scriptures for their own personal convenience. But then, the
practice of perverting the true meaning of the Scriptures is
nothing new. It has been happening since the First Century;
and probably before that as well. The Apostle Peter wrote
the following regarding certain individuals who were trying
to distort the meaning of some of Paul's more profound
doctrines:

"As also in all his epistles, speaking in them of these
things; in which are some things hard to be understood,
which they that are unlearned and unstable wrest, as they do
also the other scriptures, unto their own destruction."
2 Peter 3:16, KJV

That word "wrest" is derived from the Greek word "strebloo",
pronounced streb-lo'-o, which means to twist, or to pervert
language in a metaphorical sense. The writers of the New
Testament undeniably prove that Jesus died on the Cross in
order to make the Plan of Salvation not only known, but also
available, to all men everywhere, regardless of national or
ethnic origin. God is trying to save as many people as He
possibly can; but, as I explain in such articles as "Free
Will And Personal Choice" and "Love And Light, Or Rod And
Wrath?" -- and as we will see in a moment -- He usually does
not override our personal choice. In fact, this theme is the
primary message of my article "Is Salvation Meant For All
Men?". It is because of God's Love, Mercy, Compassion, and
desire to save all of His creations, that Peter and Paul
wrote the following verses. I have taken the liberty to
capitalize certain words in these verses for the sake of
emphasis:

"For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared
to ALL MEN,"
Titus 2:11, KJV

"For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our
Saviour; Who will have ALL MEN to be saved, and to come unto
the knowledge of the truth."
1 Timothy 2:3-4, KJV

"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."
2 Peter 3:9, KJV

Some of my other articles concerning Salvation which you may
be interested in reading include "Message To The World", and
"The Blood Atonement: In Jesus' Own Words". Jesus Himself
not only made it quite clear that the Gospel of Salvation
would be preached to all nations before His glorious Return,
but that by His Death upon the Cross, He would also draw all
men to Himself. Common sense dictates that if God was not
interested in the Salvation of all of humanity, then He most
definitely would not have made the Plan of Salvation such a
public affair, as we see in the following verses. Instead,
He would have chosen to send His emissaries secretly to only
witness to those whom He had ordained. Again, I have taken
the liberty to capitalize certain words for the sake of
emphasis:

"And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in ALL THE
WORLD for a witness unto ALL NATIONS; and then shall the end
come."
Matthew 24:14, KJV

"And he said unto them, Go ye into ALL THE WORLD, and preach
the gospel to EVERY CREATURE."
Mark 16:15, KJV

"But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is
come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in
Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and UNTO THE
UTTERMOST PART OF THE EARTH."
Acts 1:8, KJV

"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten
Son, THAT WHOSOEVER BELIEVETH in him should not perish, but
have everlasting life."
John 3:16, KJV

"And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw ALL MEN
unto me."
John 12:32, KJV

If you are not yet personally convinced of these two points,
following are some additional verses I have compiled, which
clearly show the all-inclusive, global nature of God's Plan
of Salvation. Again, I have capitalized some words for the
sake of emphasis:

"BUT AS MANY AS RECEIVED HIM, to them gave he power to
become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his
name:"
John 1:12, KJV

"The same came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light,
that ALL MEN through him might believe."
John 1:7, KJV

"And the times of this ignorance God winked at; but now
commandeth ALL MEN EVERY WHERE to repent:"
Acts 17:30, KJV

"Therefore as by the offence of one judgment came upon all
men to condemnation; even so by the righteousness of one the
free gift came upon ALL MEN unto justification of life."
Romans 5:18, KJV

". . . because we trust in the living God, who is the
Saviour of ALL MEN, specially of those that believe."
1 Timothy 4:10b, KJV

"For YE ARE ALL THE CHILDREN OF GOD by faith in Christ
Jesus."
Galatians 3:26, KJV


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