Attention Greek Scholars

Originally posted by lucifershammer
This might help you:

http://www.ibiblio.org/bgreek/archives/96-12/0290.html

"It is important to note that the saving is not made contingent on
believing here, but, as it turns out, the saving is contingent on
the sending."

Do agree with this finding, that our salvation is not contingent on our belief, but rather on the fact that Jesus has been sent?

Originally posted by DoctorScribbles
"It is important to note that the saving is not made contingent on
believing here, but, as it turns out, the saving is contingent on
the sending."

Do agree with this finding, that our salvation is not contingent on our belief, but rather on the fact that Jesus has been sent?

Isn't this a variant on "Do all non-Christians go to Hell"?

Could you elaborate what your understanding of the statement is?

Originally posted by lucifershammer
Isn't this a variant on "Do all non-Christians go to Hell"?

No. It's "Doesn't everybody go to heaven?" If the analysis that you cited is correct, then everybody does go to heaven, since it finds that salvation is not contingent on belief.

Originally posted by lucifershammer
Isn't this a variant on "Do all non-Christians go to Hell"?

Could you elaborate what your understanding of the statement is?

"the saving is not made contingent on believing here"

For one event to be contingent upon another means that the occurrence of the latter may affect the occurrence of the former.

For one event to not be contingent upon another means that the occurrence of the latter has no bearing on whether the forumer occurs.

Thus, as far as this verse in concerned, under the interpretation in question, one's belief has no bearing on whether the salvation occurs, because the saving is not contingent upon believing.

Originally posted by DoctorScribbles
Does the verb 'believe' as used in John 3:16 have a perfect or progressive aspect?

This question pertains to the dispute about whether "once saved, always saved" is true or false. That is, whether a saved person can become unsaved and then need to be saved again in order to enter heaven.

Related to the issue of whether being saved is reversible or irreversible is the issue of whether being saved is all or none.

Specifically, why can't being saved admit of degree? After all, one's goodness and strength of belief typically admit of degree also. That would facilitate a better one-to-one mapping.

So, instead of a straight heaven-hell dichotomy, beloved of fundamentalist thinkers, why wouldn't God institute an eschatological continuum, ranging from right beside Him in blissful heavenly glory, to right beside the devil in agonizing infernal ignomy?

Originally posted by DoctorScribbles
No. It's "Doesn't everybody go to heaven?" If the analysis that you cited is correct, then everybody does go to heaven, since it finds that salvation is not contingent on belief.

Another post from the same thread:

James H. Vellenga (jhv0@viewlogic.com)
Thu, 19 Dec 96 15:33:24 EST

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>
> And so, I affirm that this verse means,
>
> God loved the world so much that He gave His only begotten
> Son in order to save all the ones believing in Him.
>
> It is important to note that the saving is not made contingent on
> believing here, but, as it turns out, the saving is contingent on
> the sending. He came to save His people from their sins (Mt. 1:21).
>
The translation seems fine, but it seems to me that the contingencies
are joint rather than mutually exclusive. For example, if one says

"I put a light in the ceiling so that it would shine on
everyone coming into the room."


then two conditions are necessary for "shining on". One is
the light in the ceiling, the other is that people actually
come into the room.


Similarly, it seems to me that the salvation requires not only
the Son's being sent, but it is also effective (according to
this sentence) only for the ones who keep believing in Him. The
sentence doesn't explicitly say that salvation is only for
those who believe, but it also doesn't explicitly say that
salvation can only come through the Son's being sent. But both
seem implied.


Regards,
Jim Vellenga


James H. Vellenga | jvellenga@viewlogic.com
Viewlogic Systems, Inc. __|__ 508-303-5491
293 Boston Post Road West | FAX: 508-460-8213
Marlboro, MA 01752-4615 |
http://www.viewlogic.com

http://www.ibiblio.org/bgreek/archives/96-12/0296.html

Might address your question.