God Desires All People to Be Saved
“For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth” (1 Tim. 2:3-4)
“Or do you despise the riches of His goodness, forbearance, and longsuffering, not knowing that the goodness of God leads you to repentance? But in accordance with your hardness and your impenitent heart you are treasuring up for yourself wrath in the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God, who ‘will render to each one according to his deeds’: eternal life to those who by patient continuance in doing good seek for glory, honor, and immortality; but to those who are self-seeking and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness — indignation and wrath” (Rom. 2:4-8)
Salvation Does Not Happen by Force, but Is Opened to Those Who Seek
“But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him” (Heb. 11:6)
“I sought the LORD, and He heard me, and delivered me from all my fears. They looked to Him and were radiant, and their faces were not ashamed” (Ps. 34:4-5)
“I love those who love me, and those who seek me diligently will find me” (Prov. 8:17)
“for the LORD searches all hearts and understands all the intent of the thoughts. If you seek Him, He will be found by you; but if you forsake Him, He will cast you off forever” (1 Chr. 28:9)
“Or do you despise the riches of His goodness, forbearance, and longsuffering, not knowing that the goodness of God leads you to repentance? But in accordance with your hardness and your impenitent heart you are treasuring up for yourself wrath in the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God, who ‘will render to each one according to his deeds’: eternal life to those who by patient continuance in doing good seek for glory, honor, and immortality; but to those who are self-seeking and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness — indignation and wrath” (Rom. 2:4-8)
God Grieves over the Perdition of Sinners and Tries to Save as Many of Them as Possible
“Do I have any pleasure at all that the wicked should die? says the Lord GOD, and not that he should turn from his ways and live? <...> Yet you say, ‘The way of the Lord is not fair.’ Hear now, O house of Israel, is it not My way which is fair, and your ways which are not fair? <...> Therefore I will judge you, O house of Israel, every one according to his ways, says the Lord GOD. Repent, and turn from all your transgressions, so that iniquity will not be your ruin” (Ezek. 18:23,25,30)
“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?’” (Ezek. 33:11)
“Jesus answered and said to them, ‘Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance’” (Luke. 5:31-32)
“The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance” (2 Pet. 3:9)
A Person Perishes Because of His Own Unwillingness to Turn His Will to God
“O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the one who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing!” (Matt. 23:37)
“And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. For everyone practicing evil hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed. But he who does the truth comes to the light, that his deeds may be clearly seen, that they have been done in God” (John. 3:19-21)
“Or do you despise the riches of His goodness, forbearance, and longsuffering, not knowing that the goodness of God leads you to repentance? But in accordance with your hardness and your impenitent heart you are treasuring up for yourself wrath in the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God, who ‘will render to each one according to his deeds’: eternal life to those who by patient continuance in doing good seek for glory, honor, and immortality; but to those who are self-seeking and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness — indignation and wrath” (Rom. 2:4-8)
God Predestined to Salvation Those Whom He Foreknew (That Is, Knew Beforehand That They Would Choose)
Predestination does not take place without regard to a person’s deeds, which God, being outside time, knows beforehand, and it is precisely on the basis of this knowledge (foreknowledge) that He predestines. This is the key point. Predestination does not happen at random, but precisely with regard to the deeds of each person, which God knows before they are done, being outside time:
“For whom He foreknew (Greek: προέγνω — “knew beforehand”), He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren. Moreover whom He predestined, these He also called; whom He called, these He also justified; and whom He justified, these He also glorified” (Rom. 8:29-30)
“Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, to the pilgrims of the Dispersion in Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia, elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, in sanctification of the Spirit, for obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ” (1 Pet. 1:1-2)
“All human beings come from the ground, and humankind was created out of the dust. In the fullness of his knowledge the Lord distinguished them and appointed their different ways” (Sir. 33:10-11)
“Now when the Gentiles heard this, they were glad and glorified the word of the Lord. And as many as had been appointed to eternal life believed” (Act. 13:48)
The Fate of Man Is in God’s Hands
(In the Russian Synodal translation the Greek κρίματα and the Hebrew מִשְׁפָּט — “judgments, decisions” — are often rendered «судьбы», literally “fates, destinies”. English translations render this word as “judgments” or “justice”.)
“Your righteousness is like the great mountains; Your judgments are a great deep; O LORD, You preserve man and beast” (Ps. 36:6)
“A man’s steps are of the LORD; how then can a man understand his own way?” (Prov. 20:24)
“Many seek the ruler’s favor, but justice for man comes from the LORD” (Prov. 29:26)
“Like clay in the hand of the potter, to be molded as he pleases, so all are in the hand of their Maker, to be given whatever he decides” (Sir. 33:13)
“This also comes from the LORD of hosts, who is wonderful in counsel and excellent in guidance” (Is. 28:29)
“Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and His ways past finding out!” (Rom. 11:33)
God Predestined the Sufferings of Jesus Christ on the Cross
“For truly against Your holy Servant Jesus, whom You anointed, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles and the people of Israel, were gathered together to do whatever Your hand and Your purpose determined before to be done” (Act. 4:27-28)
God Chose the Apostle Paul Beforehand
“Then he said, ‘The God of our fathers has chosen you that you should know His will, and see the Just One, and hear the voice of His mouth’” (Act. 22:14)
Criticism
God Is Not Almighty if He Wants to Save All, but Not All Are Saved
Love is a free feeling: you cannot be loved by force. God desires that His creatures be able to love God, and therefore gives them the possibility to freely choose or not choose God: to love Him or to hate Him.
Can God save everyone? He can. Does God want all to be saved? He does, but in a particular state — having love for God. God does not want to doom to eternal life with Him those who hate God. Therefore He does not do what He does not want. Does this make God not almighty? No, because God does not want to force anyone to love.
Can a loving God grant people the possibility to freely love or hate Him? He can. And if He could not give freedom of choice, would He be almighty?