It can withstand God?
Many say yes. Many Christians and non-Christians, they are convinced that there is a choice, they are convinced that we have the free will. But is not so. They are convinced that to obtain salvation it is enough to accept Christ, and that's that. But this would be an empty faith, it would be like saying “Yup. I accept you because I have to, because they tell me that you save, but inside of me I don't really believe it” and there is no regeneration. This can then be verified, and it is not that by accepting Jesus one automatically obtains salvation, because “God looks at hearts” and he knows who is faithful to him and who is not. And it is obvious that in cases like these there has been the call, but external, that is, the gospel has been preached to us by someone, but God did not call us inwardly. While when God calls us (the so-called inner call) we absolutely cannot resist it, because he has given us faith, because it opened our eyes, because he called us to himself, and we have no free will, we cannot resist the Holy Spirit. Many are convinced that it was they who said yes to the Holy Spirit, but what a great arrogance it is to believe that we are, sinners, always under sin, we have the power to understand and decide what is right. There is no free will, but only servant will, it is God who chooses, plan and call, as the Bible says.
Have you ever been called for dinner by your mother? You resisted? Have you ever been called by God?
There are two types of calls from God, as I said. The external call and the internal call.
The external call it is what we have when we hear the words of the Gospel preached by a preacher. Many hear the gospel but not all receive the message. Good, this is not to say that people who do not accept it have decided for themselves, but they simply did not receive the inner call from God, which occurs immediately after hearing the message of salvation. Indeed the external call can be resisted, but not the inner one.
The inner call it is that operated by God for his chosen ones, the one that regenerates you, it makes you spiritually reborn and resurrect, the one that makes you become a new person. And it is not operated by men, but by the Spirit of God. God puts within us the desire to know him and to follow him. Before the inner calling takes place, no person is inclined to follow God, after receiving the inner call no person is able to reject God.
I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will remove the heart of stone from your body, and I will give you a heart of flesh. I will put my spirit within you and make sure that you will walk according to my laws, and you will observe and put my prescriptions into practice. (Ezekiel 36:27)
and those whom he predestined he also called; and those he called he also justified; and those he justified he also glorified. (Romans 8:30)
But we must always thank God for you, brothers loved by the Lord, because God from the beginning elected you to salvation through sanctification in the Spirit and faith in the truth. To this he also called you through our gospel, so that you may obtain the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. (2Tessalonicesi 2:13-14)
So do not be ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, born to me, his inmate; but you too suffer for the gospel, supported by the power of God. He saved us and gave us a holy call, not because of our works, but according to his purpose and the grace that has been given to us in Christ Jesus from eternity, but which has now been manifested with the appearance of our Savior Christ Jesus, who destroyed death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel, for whom I have been made herald, apostle and doctor. It is also for this reason that I suffer from these things; but I'm not ashamed of it, because I know who I believed in, and I am convinced that he has the power to keep my deposit until that day. (2Timoteo 1:8-12)
So, answering the initial question “We can resist God?” we answer “Yup, of course, in our state of depravity and sin, we can and certainly resist God. But grace prevails over our natural and obvious resistance when he manifests himself to his elect by his Spirit”.
Rieccomi! Ma scusa la domanda semplice… Ma allora può succedere che qualcuno ascolti la parola ma non venga chiamato da Dio?
Certo che può succedere, succede continuamente che alla gente viene presentato il messaggio del Vangelo non ci crede. Quanta gente si converte perchè riceve illuminazione e il dono della fede di Dio? Forse una persona su 100? Pure troppo. Diventare cristiani non dipende da noi e dalle nsotre scelte, dipende da dio che chiama. La fede è un dono di Dio che arriva quando meno te l'aspetti, e non a tutti. Jesus said:
All those the Father gives me will come to me; and he who comes to me, I will not cast him out (Giovanni 6:37)
E' il Padre che chiama tramite il suo Spirito e conduce i suoi scelti a Gesù Cristo.
Quelli che ha scelto nel corso della loro vita andranno a Lui. E? Lui che sceglie e non dipende da noi che non possiamo cercarlo se Lui non ci ha già seminato dentro il dono della fede:
What shall we say then? There is perhaps injustice in God? Certainly not! For he saith to Moses: "I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion". So then neither by those who want or exertion, but of God who shows mercy. (Romans 9:14-16)
Now we know that all things work together for the good of those who love God, which are named according to his design.
Because those he foreknew, li ha pure predestinati a essere conformi all'immagine del Figlio suo, that he may be the firstborn among many brothers;
and those whom he predestined he also called; and those he called he also justified; and those he justified he also glorified. (Romans 8:28-30)
Ci chiama e ci salva!
Non ci si puo ritenere cristiani se non si è ricevuta la chiamata interiore, cristini non si è per nostra volontà perchè decidiamo di appartenere ad una chiesa o un'altra, ad una religione o un'altra, ma solo per volere di Dio che fa cooperare le cose in base al suo piano prestabilito.
Il cristiano che si definisce cristiano solo perche gli piace una chiesa, o perchè credere di fare del bene, ma non ha ricevuto la chiamata, non è cristiano agli occhi di Dio. Per diventare cristiani bisogna invocarlo e chiedergli di far manifestare il suo spirito in noi. Dopodichè arriva il dono della fede e si chiede perdono per i proprio peccati, da quel momento si diventa figli di Dio. E viene tutto spontaneo. Senza questo passaggio non si è cristiani. E' ciò che la Bibbia chiama "il nascere di nuovo".
E per diventare cristiani bisogna seguire ciò che dice la Parola di Dio e conoscerla bene, non puoi decidere di seguire Cristo se non sai cosa ha comandato o detto.