God says to us, “I love you with an everlasting love” (Jeremiah 31:3).
Through His love, we have “a happy song” to sing (Jeremiah 31:7).
Through His love, we are “changed.” Our life is “turned around”
(Jeremiah 31:18). The love of God for us is revealed most powerfully in
His Son, our Saviour, Jesus Christ. He is the fulfilment of the prophecy
in Jeremiah 31:31-34. When we consider Him – how wonderful He is – and
all He has done for us, we will “give thanks to the Lord”, rejoicing in
His goodness and praising Him for “His love which endures for ever.” We
see His love – supremely – in “the righteous branch” – Jesus: “The Lord
our Righteousness” (Jeremiah 33:15-16).
Some people are impressed by Barth’s distinction between universal election and universal salvation. They defend his position. Some have been influenced by Barth and have become universalists. Berkouwer’s view was that our critique of Barth must begin with looking closely at his teaching concerning universal election. * By speaking of the idea of the depth-aspect of salvation, Berkouwer distances himself from double predestination. * In his critique of Barth, Berkouwer distances himself from universal salvation. * With such a strong emphasis on both grace and faith, Berkouwer guards against any suggestion that, by our faith, we contribute anything to our salvation. It is always God’s free gift, and all the glory belongs to Him. I think that the distinctive feature of Berkouwer’s teaching is that he emphasizes that everything we say about God’s salvation is said from within the experience of having been saved by grace through faith. We have heard the Good News - “Christ Jesus came...
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