It is a widely held belief in some factions of Christianity that no one can bring anyone to Christ but the Father only. As a result, any effort by any Christian to evangelize is a waste of time. An example of such a belief is what we have seen from a poster here in this forum.

Here is the post ... http://pub31.bravenet.com/forum/2579584272/fetch/263451/

Here is the quote ... "Neither you nor I can bring anyone to Christ. No man cometh to me but the Father draw him."

Well, what does the Bible say concerning this?

First of all, we see Andrew bringing his brother, Peter, to Jesus:

"One of the two who heard John speak, and followed Him, was Andrew, Simon Peter's brother. He first found his own brother Simon, and said to him, "We have found the Messiah" (which is translated, the Christ). And he brought him to Jesus.
Now when Jesus looked at him, He said, "You are Simon the son of Jonah. You shall be called Cephas" (which is translated, A Stone)." (John 1:40-42)

Secondly, Jesus told His disciples that they would be "fishers of men":

"And Jesus, walking by the Sea of Galilee, saw two brothers, Simon called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea; for they were fishermen. Then He said to them, "Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men." They immediately left their nets and followed Him." (Matthew 4:18-20) NOTE: If they were not to catch men for Christ, then why did Jesus say that they would be fishers of men?

Thirdly, it was commanded by Jesus Christ Himself for us to evangelize with the purpose of bringing them to Christ:

"And He said to them, "Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature." (Mark 16:15)

"Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age." Amen." (Matthew 28:19-20)

Four, Logically speaking, a person will know nothing about Christ unless someone goes to them and tells them about Christ ... hence evangelize:

"How then shall they call on Him in whom they have not believed? And how shall they believe in Him of whom they have not heard? And how shall they hear without a preacher? And how shall they preach unless they are sent? As it is written: "How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the gospel of peace, who bring glad tidings of good things!" (Romans 10:14-15)

Five, and to top it all off, it is stated that one who evangelizes ... "wins souls" ... is a wise person. This, of course, implies that if one does not evangelize that they are the opposite of being wise - which means that they are foolish:

"The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life, And he who wins souls is wise." (Prov. 11:30)

Now, this is just a small sample of the countless passages throughout the entire Bible that teaches, encourages, and commands all children of God to evangelize to the lost world. This teaching that no one can bring anyone to Christ does not originate from the Bible. If it doesn't come from the Bible, where does it come from? You figure it out!

So the moral of the message is ... tell others about Christ and bring lost souls to come meet the Savior!

Deist

Ron, where are you?

Dear Diest,

Whatsoever is not of faith is sin. If you have faith to evangelize the world, then you need to get busy. You do not have much time.

Do you know that by preaching the gospel to some, you are bringing them into ****ation?

2Peter 2:20 For if after they have escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, they are again entangled therein, and overcome, the latter end is worse with them than the beginning.
2:21 For it had been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than, after they have known it, to turn from the holy commandment delivered unto them.
2:22 But it is happened unto them according to the true proverb, The dog is turned to his own vomit again; and the sow that was washed to her wallowing in the mire.

Moral of the story; be careful to whom you preach. For some (many?? Most??) it would be BETTER if they never heard the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Do you belive that everyone will be saved, or do you believe in election, or do you believe in "whomsoever will"?

Ron Harvey

Email: rsnm10@hotmail.com

Did you not even read those scriptures that posted??? Do you pick and choose only what agrees with your own dogma and leave out the rest??? The scriptures are clear that we are to evangelize "to every nation" (Matthew 28:19-20). Who are you to select who "deserves" to hear the gospel and who doesn't? Are you God? God said for us to "go". No stipulations or exceptions. Who are you to add to God's command exceptions? All we are to do is sow the seed. If it falls on good ground, then good. If it doesn't, then so be it. But our job is to share the gospel with everyone.

I guess you haven't considered the following passage when you formulated your "doctrine" because if you had, then you would clearly see how Un-Godly your doctrine clearly is. Here is the scripture. [NOTE: I copied it for your convenience, since you seem to have trouble finding anything in the Bible.]

Ezekiel 33:7-11:
"So you, son of man: I have made you a watchman for the house of Israel; therefore you shall hear a word from My mouth and warn them for Me. When I say to the wicked, "O wicked man, you shall surely die!' and you do not speak to warn the wicked from his way, that wicked man shall die in his iniquity; but his blood I will require at your hand. Nevertheless if you warn the wicked to turn from his way, and he does not turn from his way, he shall die in his iniquity; but you have delivered your soul. "Therefore you, O son of man, say to the house of Israel: "Thus you say, "If our transgressions and our sins lie upon us, and we pine away in them, how can we then live?"' Say to them: "As I live,' says the Lord GOD, "I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but that the wicked turn from his way and live. Turn, turn from your evil ways! For why should you die, O house of Israel?" (Ezekiel 33:7-11)

I little bit of advice ... Change your beliefs to fit the teachings of the Bible, instead of trying to change the Bible to fit your beliefs.

Deist