Everyone Means Everyone

For “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” [Romans 10.13]

Let's back up some (as Paul's letter to the Romans goes). What if Pharaoh called on the name of the Lord?

For the Scriptures say that God told Pharaoh, “I have appointed you for the very purpose of displaying my power in you and to spread my fame throughout the earth.” So you see, God chooses to show mercy to some, and he chooses to harden the hearts of others so they refuse to listen. [Romans 9.17-18]

So, could Pharaoh have called upon the name of the Lord and been saved???

I want to point out a very important fact that I believe most (steeped in doctrine) miss: Galatians 1.8:

But even if we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel to you than what we have preached to you, let him be accursed. [Galatians 1.8]

Paul is very clear that we must all stay true to the Good News even if he himself preached something wrong! (I also want to point out here that Paul and Barnabas had a disagreement over John Mark - someone was wrong in that ordeal.) The point is that we are responsible for the Good News as Jesus preached it as our first priority. It may hurt a lot of people's feelings to consider this, but, like it or not, Paul's writings take second place to Jesus' words.

I don't really have a problem questioning some of what Paul said. I don't feel as comfortable questioning what Jesus said though - as a matter of fact, I just can't do it. And, if it comes down to choosing between what Jesus said and what Paul said, I will go with Jesus (thank you).

Oh, don't worry, I know this is a slippery slope! But, all of us need to determine what we believe and do a little acting upon what we believe. We need to know what we believe! I dare say churches are full of people who don't have a clue what they really and truly believe. They say they believe God is love and just and fair, but then they can't seem to process hard questions about Pharaoh and others in the Bible. So, they 'say' they believe certain things about God, but then go right back on what they say to declare something else about God in stark contrast.

Is that not what Paul did here in Romans? He said everyone who calls on the name of the Lord would be saved, but before that said that Pharaoh (the poor brute) was predestined for damnation. Something just doesn't line up. We must not get all spiritually-starry-eyed and blank out on this! We have to deal with - to know what is and what is not! And, we can only make this determination as we know and understand the very nature and character of God. We have to know God - otherwise, we will make erroneous character judgments about Him and, that is dangerous!

I will start out with this: God is love. And, I will furthermore quote Jesus Who said "For God so loved THE WORLD..." (except Pharaoh? - I don't think so)

Father, the Bible can be really confusing for just bits and pieces of it. Help us to know the book cover to cover and primarily for the purpose of knowing You! Then, help us make accurate assessments of Who You Are and what You do!