We've been looking in 2 Peter 3 and verse 9 at this phrase that Peter is using at the end of the verse. That God is long-suffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance. And we've been saying that this verse, though it's often used by Arminians to prove that God wants every person in the world saved, is actually not at all telling us that, but rather it is speaking to believers that God wants none of us to be lost, but that we should come to repentance. And we were looking last time at the argument that is often used for the Arminian position that God has no pleasure in the death of the wicked. So that verse must mean that he doesn't want anyone to perish. Anyone at all. But we're also seeing what does the Bible say about God's pleasure. And we saw last time that God does all his pleasure. Not some of it. And so When you think of that and you think of the gospel and the work of salvation and who is saved and who is lost, if God does all his pleasure because he's absolutely sovereign and all powerful, then how is it that he could say, I don't want anyone to perish, and yet many do? And so it creates a conflict. And a contradiction. If you remember, we were looking at Isaiah 55. God talking about how he works, especially in the work of redemption. how it far surpasses human comprehension. It's above, out of our sight. And then he gives an illustration from nature about rain watering the earth and bringing forth seed and crops to provide bread Well, he says in verse 11, so shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth. It shall not return unto me void. In other words, it's never going to be a fruitless, useless, empty result when God's word is sent forth by him. But it shall accomplish that which I please. And it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it. Now why am I reading this verse? Well, if God says He has no pleasure in the death of the wicked, and that means He wants all men, universally, without exception, to be saved, how can He say that His Word always accomplishes whatever He pleases? And the thing we have to understand is that in the ministry of the gospel, God is in full control. God determines where the gospel goes and when it goes there, who hears the gospel, and he also determines what the response of the hearers will be to the gospel. Now, why do I say that? Well, when you think about it, the world for a very long time sat in the darkness of ignorance. And God did not bring them the light of special revelation. They had the dim light of creation, but not the light of scripture. And in Acts chapter 14, it says, who in times past suffered all nations to walk in their own ways. He left the nations to themselves to follow after their way. And he did not reveal to them his way, the way back to him. In Acts chapter 17, he calls it the time of ignorance. In verse 30, the times of this ignorance God winked at. As you let those times pass over the world until the fullness of the time was come and he sent forth his son and brought the gospel to the nations. But it says, but now he commands all men everywhere to repent. Because he hath pointed a day in the which he will judge the world in righteousness by that man whom he hath ordained, whereof he hath given assurance unto all men, and that he hath raised them from the dead." So there you have the Gospel that Christ died for our sins, was buried, rose again. Now, did they have the Gospel in the Old Testament? Yes, it was found in the writings of the prophets. Did God require men in the Old Testament to repent in order to be saved? Yes, he did. But in a sense, he waited all those thousands of years before he made his message more general to all the world and more clear and apparent, not under the old symbols and pictures and shadows of the Old Testament. And so in chapter 16, you see Paul going out on his mission to preach the gospel to the Gentiles. And how did God direct him? Verse 6, Now when they had gone throughout Phrygia and the region of Galatia, and were forbidden of the Holy Ghost to preach the word in Asia, I don't want you going into Asia now and preaching my word there. And they were come to Mycenae, And they assayed to go into Bithynia, but the spirit suffered them not. No, you can't go there either. And they, passing by Mysia, came down to Troas. And a vision appeared to Paul in the night. There stood a man of Macedonia and prayed him, saying, Come over into Macedonia and help us. So God said, I want you there. After we had seen the vision immediately, we endeavored to go into Macedonia, assuredly gathering that the Lord had called us for to preach the gospel unto them. I want you preaching in Macedonia. And so they set sail for that place. And what did they find? He comes into Philippi, and he has persecution raised up against him. He's beaten and thrown into prison, and he found the man. in that prison, the jailer who ultimately heard the gospel from Paul and Silas and was saved with all his house. Now here's God saying, I want you to go preach the gospel, but not to them, not here, not now, over there, yes to them, that's who I want to hear it. And it didn't return void, it produced the result that God intended. Here's another verse we can look at, John chapter 12, verse 37. Jesus is toward the end of his earthly ministry, and he's being greatly persecuted by the leaders of Israel, And it says in verse 37, But though he had done so many miracles before them, yet they believed not on him, that the saying of Isaias the prophet might be fulfilled, which he spake, Lord, who hath believed our report, and to whom hath the arm of the Lord been revealed? Therefore they could not believe. First he says they did not believe, and then he says they could not believe. Why? Because Isaiah said again, He hath blinded their eyes, and hardened their heart, that they should not see with their eyes, and understand with their heart, and be converted, and I should heal them." These things said Isaiah when he saw His, Jesus' glory in chapter 6 of his prophecy and spake of Him. Now can you reconcile, whatever or however you might explain that verse, can you reconcile that with the idea that God wants everyone to be saved? When they are hardened by him so that they will not be converted and be healed, forgiven of their sins and saved, but rather perish in their sins? That doesn't line up with that verse. Remember we saw that God made all things for his pleasure in Revelation 4.11 which means for his will. What is his will? Romans 9 verse 15 and 18 referring back to the book of Exodus. He says, For he saith to Moses, I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion. In other words, whoever I choose to have mercy and compassion on, I will do so. Then you read verse 18, Therefore hath he mercy on whom he will have mercy. Whoever he chooses to have mercy on, to them he shows mercy too, to them he saves. And whom he will or whom he wills or chooses, he hardens. So they cannot believe. Does that sound like he wants everyone saved when he wills people to be hardened? Remember we saw that God made all things for himself, even the wicked, to be judged. We saw that in Proverbs 16. There's a lot of verses that say that. 1 Peter 2. Verse 7. unto you therefore which believe he is precious. Here are the ones he had mercy on. But unto them which be disobedient, the stone which the builders disallowed, the same is made the head of the corner. The very one rejected by the religious leaders of Israel is the headstone of the church and a stone of stumbling. That's to those who believe. But notice, to those who don't believe, he's a stone of stumbling and a rock of offense. someone set there for them to fall over, be offended by, even to them which stumble at the Word. Some believe, and to them they love the Lord and He's precious to them as their Savior. But others stumble at that Word, that saving message of the Gospel. Being disobedient, they refuse to submit to God's call. And whereunto also they were, what? Appointed. They were appointed to that. It doesn't happen by accident. I know I shouldn't do it. It just gets me frustrated. I listened to a sermon on television for a few minutes this morning. The guy says, you know, we have two choices. Again, everything comes down to man's choice. And he says, you can either live for yourself and live your life the way you please and refuse to give God a chance. In other words, if you don't let God have a chance and you choose to live your own life, Well, God can't do anything. You've just tied his hands, and he's helpless. Just give him a chance. He really wants to save you, but you won't let him. Of course, no one's saved until they believe, but no one can believe but by the grace of God. Let's look at Jude, verse 4. talking about false teachers. For there are certain men crept in unawares who were before of old ordained to this uncondemnation. Men from eternity ordained to be condemned. Ungodly men turning the grace of our God into lasciviousness and denying the only Lord God and our Lord Jesus Christ. Yes, they're damned for their unbelief and for their rejection of Christ, but that's what they were ordained of old for. They're condemned because they're ungodly sinners, but their condemnation, the procuring cause of it is their own sin, but yet the ultimate cause of it was God's foreordination. that that would be their destiny. Second, Thessalonians 2. Look at verses 11 and 12 with me. And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion that they should believe a lie. Who? Verse 10, with all deceivableness of unrighteousness, talking about Satan's blinding power using false miracles to lead people to follow him rather than come to Christ. And he says, with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish because they receive not the love of the truth that they might be saved. They rejected the truth. They did not love it. They hated it. And so they refused it. And as a result, they perished. They count themselves unworthy of salvation. And for this cause, God shall send them strong delusion that they should believe a lie, that they all might be damned who believe not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness. God sending strong delusion so that they would believe a lie and ultimately be damned for their unbelief and sin and love of wickedness. Does that sound like God is trying to get everyone saved and wants everyone saved? Can you put that together and say that those two do not conflict or contradict each other? Yes, this is a response of God to their unbelief, but again, unbelief is the only response that a sinner can make to the Gospel apart from God's special grace. His irresistible, efficacious grace in special calling. Now that's the negative side. God's will is also to save His people. He will have mercy on whom He will have mercy. And we saw that. He predestinated us to the adoption of children unto himself by Jesus Christ according to the good pleasure of his will. He was pleased to have mercy on his elect. Notice 1 Corinthians 1.30. Now Arminians also argue God wants everyone saved, and so sometime in their life they'll hear the gospel or have the opportunity to come to Christ. And of course, it depends on what they choose, one way or the other. But God leaves many people without the gospel. How many die and have never heard of Christ? And God does not owe anyone the gospel. He sends it as he pleases and uses it as he has purposed. In 1 Corinthians 1.30 it says this, But of him, of God, are you in Christ Jesus? If you're in Christ, which is the position of a believer, we're in Christ by faith, God puts you there. It's of him. And then being in him you receive all his benefits. who of God has made unto us wisdom and righteousness and sanctification and redemption. And so if we are united to Christ, it's of God. And being united to Christ the head, we are also united to His body. We are members of His body, the Church. How do we get into the Church? 1 Corinthians 12. Do we make ourselves members of Christ? I always thought of it this way, a body has so many members and it's perfectly formed and each member has its place and function and it's a complete unit, a body. Now does God say, I'm going to see who accepts me and then try to put a body together with those people? Or does God already have a perfect body determined and then puts each individual into that body in order to make up that body? Well, according to 1 Corinthians 12, 28, it's the second. He says, God has set some in the church. No, I'm sorry, I want verse 1 Corinthians 12, 18. But now hath God set the members, every one of them, in the body. This is talking about Christians who are members of the body of Christ, the universal church, How did they get there? God has set the members, every one of them, in the body as it hath pleased Him. So if you're in the body of Christ and a member of His church is a believer, indwelt by His Spirit, God put you there because He was pleased to put you there. You know, it's not an accident that you're a Christian today. This was God's eternal program, His decree. 1 Samuel 12, here's what Samuel said to the Israelites, and it's certainly true of believers. 1 Samuel, I want chapter 12 and verse 22. For the Lord will not forsake his people for his great namesake, because it hath pleased the Lord to make you his people. Again, the plan of salvation is not something haphazard and random and left up to chance or man's free will. God was pleased. The God who does all his pleasure was pleased to make you his people. And you can say in Psalm 139, verse 16 of the church, the body of Christ, as David was speaking of his own physical body, which I think he was trying to use as a representation of the church, even as Paul does. He says in Psalm 139, verse 16, Thine eyes did see my substance. This could be put in the mouth of Jesus. God in his eternal sovereign decree saw his substance, yet being unperfect, as he saw who he had chosen and was going to save. And in thy book, we can say the book of life, all my members were written. All those who were elected to salvation were already written in that Lamb's book of life from the foundation of the world. which in continuance were fashioned, when as yet there was none of them." So what is he saying? God, before the world began, already had determined who he would save and who would be joined to Christ to become members of his body, the church. And it would be a perfect and complete church, not waiting to see who would accept God's offer and then he would try to put something together with them based on their free will. Now here's another thought. Some would try to weaken what Peter is saying here in chapter 3 verse 9 by explaining that it means that God wishes or he wants or he desires that none should perish. In other words, he didn't outright will it, he just would prefer it or would like it. We already saw that the word will here does not allow for that. It's talking about an absolute determination. But, even if we were to say, alright, God desires that none should perish. How would we take that? Well, the Bible says that whatever God desires, that is what He does do. There's no such thing as God wishing something or wanting something and it doesn't happen. In other words, God has no unrealized desires. Why do I say that? Let's look at Job chapter 23. Verse 13, but he, God, is in one mind. He knows what he's doing, and when he sets his mind to something, that's what will be. And who can turn him? Are you going to make God change his mind or prevent him from accomplishing what he has decided would be? No. And what his soul desires, even that he does. God does all his pleasure, And whatever he desires, that's the thing he does. Not that he's frustrated and wishing and wanting and desiring, but never having that realized. For he performeth the thing that is appointed for me. God has something appointed for every man, woman, and child. And many such things are with him. Therefore am I troubled. I mean, this is a very great, almighty, sovereign God. and I need to tremble before him. Remember what Jesus said? He said that we must be born again to be in his kingdom. That's an absolute divine essential. No new birth, no entrance into the kingdom of God. Now, how can a person be born again? Is it something he can do for himself or to himself? Is it something that any other man or any other church or anything whatsoever can do for him? Is it something his own free will can accomplish? How do you account for the new birth? Well, we're told specifically that when we're born again, First of all, we're told it's not by man's will. That's the negative side. And then we're told that when we're born again, it is by God's will. In other words, I can no more new birth myself than I could my physical first birth myself. Look at John. We read John chapter 1 this morning. John chapter 1. Here's the positive side. It tells about Jesus coming into the world and not being received by His own people. Verse 12, but as many as received Him. He wasn't received, but He was received. Well, how come some did receive Him? Well, he explains why. First of all, he tells what they have by receiving Christ. As many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name. Then he tells us how it was that they came to believe. See, a lot of people will tell you you have to believe and then you'll be born again. But that's like saying you have to act before you live. You have to have life before you can have action. Well, God is saying here, You have to be born again to believe. In other words, those who believe in his name were born. And that's why they believed, which were born. How? Not of blood, not of physical birth, nor the will of the flesh, not a human accomplishment, nor the will of man. Nothing anyone could confer upon them but of God. They were born of God, and so they receive Christ. That's the positive side. James chapter 1 gives us the negative side. James chapter 1 says in verse 16, don't err my beloved brethren. It's so easy to err. Don't do it. And then he tells us the source of every good and perfect gift, it comes from above. Is the new birth a good gift? Is salvation a good gift? Yes, it comes from God. How does it come to us? Verse 18, Out of his own will, or from his own will, that's the source of our being born again. Of his own will begat he us with the word of truth. In other words, the scripture is the instrument of our regeneration when the Holy Spirit unites it to our hearts and by it brings us to new life in Christ. Of his own will beget he us with the word of truth that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures. If we are some of his saved people, it was his will. Why? It's God who works in you. to will and to do of His good pleasure. In other words, if it's God's good pleasure to save us, He works that in us so that we do repent, so that we do believe, so that we do come to Christ, so that we do receive Him, having first been born again. In other words, God makes us willing to come to Christ. I read a neat quote by George Whitfield, he says, Jesus Christ is not begotten to us for our coming to him. Or beholden to us. He's not beholden to us for our coming to him. We owe it to him. He doesn't owe it to us. Look what Jesus said in Matthew 11, 27. He talks about God's will and purpose in salvation. talking about the father hiding the things of the gospel from wise and prudent revealing the babes verse 26 even so father for so it seemed good in thy sight all things are delivered unto me of my father and no man knows the son but the father neither knows any man the father save or accept the son And he to whomsoever the Son will reveal Him. The only ones who know God are the ones that the Son chooses to reveal Him to. That's what that word will means. Those who He wills to reveal the Father to. And so only those that Jesus wills to reveal the Father to will know Him as their God and Father, as their Savior. God has to make us willing to come to Christ by the exercise of His own power. Isn't that what we saw in Psalm 103? God has to change our wills, turn our wills, renew our wills, and act our wills to come to Christ. Psalm 103. God has a people. It's pleased you to make you His people. And how does he bring that about? He draws you to himself by his own spirit. In Psalm 110 and verse 3, he says, thy people shall be willing in the day of thy power. In other words, it's an act of God's power that makes his people willing to come to Christ. Thy people shall be willing only in the day of thy power. And until that happens, no one will be willing. That's why Jesus taught in John 6, verse 44, No man can come to me, except the Father which has sent me draw him." In other words, he doesn't say, it's hard for you to come to me, or you can only come to me with great difficulty. You cannot come to me. That's man's sinful inability to convert himself. So the Father has to draw us. He has to put forth his power in his effectual call to cause us to come to Christ. And I will raise him up at the last day. Notice, Jesus says if the Father draws someone, they will be saved because I'm going to raise them up at the last day to be with me in heaven. 64 and 65, he says there are some of you that believe not. For Jesus knew from the beginning who they were that believed not and who should betray him. Because it was his purpose that It would be so. And he said, Therefore said I unto you, that no man can come unto me, except it were given unto him of my father. Unregenerate man only wills, and can only will, to not come to Christ. That's what John 5.40 says. And ye will not come to me that ye might have life. He says to them, it is your will. Your will is set and determined not to come to me. And as long as we're under the power of sin and in our natural state, that will always be the case. You will not come to me that you might have life. Well, if unregenerate man wills not to come to Christ, then what does he will? He wills to do the lusts of the devil, John 8. Does the devil want anyone to come to Christ and be saved? Does the devil want anyone to become a new creature in Christ and to be holy as God is holy? Certainly not. John 8, verse 43, Why do you not understand my speech, Jesus says, even because you cannot hear my word? Again, they can't hear it. They're deaf in their sin. They cannot receive it and respond to it as they should. He goes on to say, you are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. In other words, you will to do whatever the devil wants. Like Paul said, you are taken captive by him at his will. And in another place he said, he's the spirit that works in the children of disobedience. That word works is the same word as we saw in Philippians God works in you to will and to do of His good pleasure? Well, in the unbeliever, the devil works to will and to do of his good pleasure, and they willingly follow his will. He says, He was a murderer from the beginning and abode not in the truth because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks of his own, for he is a liar and the father of it. And because I tell you the truth, you believe me not. What hope is there for someone who will not believe just because what they're hearing is the truth? And how are we saved? By hearing the word of the truth of the gospel. But those who are in the power of sin and the devil, to them our gospel is hid. They're lost. The devil has blinded their minds, lest they should believe, and the light of the gospel should penetrate their lost hearts. Again, Is God really trying to get everyone saved? Not according to what the scripture sets forth. God has a definite plan of salvation and he knows who's included in it and who isn't based on his own sovereign choice and decree, and all those who he has elected will be saved. Those who he has not elected will be lost. And that's his own good pleasure, which is done in all things. And we need to accept what God says and to agree to him. Not like the Armenians, God's trying to get everyone to hear the gospel. Even if they don't hear it, they're going to have some opportunity in their life. And maybe he'll save them if they just have good intentions and mean well and follow the light they have. They try to figure out a way that God is going to somehow give everyone an equal chance and opportunity and wants them all saved. And if they're not saved, it's because of their own bad choice. Well, God's choice determines all things, and thank God for it. Let's close in prayer.