Is Forcing One to Believe Really Believing?

Common sense recognizes that forcing one to "believe" something is a futile effort. There is an old saying, "A man convinced against his will is of the same opinion still." Yet in Islam and Calvinism, force is the main means of "conversion." Muhammad even boasted that to become a Muslim, one does not need to believe. Similarly, in Calvinism you don't need to repent and believe in Christ to be regenerated.

The Messiah simply said to Jews and Gentiles, "Follow Me," an invitation that may be accepted or rejected. The Bible ends with this gracious offer, "Whosoever will may come." The Messiah, who came to the world through Israel, forces nothing upon anyone. One is free to choose hell or heaven. Jesus paid the penalty for all of mankind's sin, but this payment is effective only for those who believe and receive His sacrifice on their behalf. Tragically, most Jews still remain resistant to the salvation that God offers through the promised Messiah as well as Muslims and Calvinists.

Sadly, there are those who claim to be Christians who deny that the Messiah came to be the Savior of all. They contradict what John the Baptist declared: "Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world" (John 1.29). This is also a contradiction of the message given by the angels to the shepherds in announcing the birth of the Messiah: "Behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people" (Luke 2.10). These good tidings could hardly be to all people if they are, as some would tell us, effective only for the elect (specially chosen for heaven), leaving the "unchosen" to go to hell.

Jesus preached His good news from the Old Testament, often using events in the history of Israel as illustrations. He introduced the best-loved verse in the New Testament, John 3.16--"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life"--with an illustration from Numb. 21.8-9. There had been an insurrection among the children of Israel against Moses and Aaron. In judgment, God sent "fiery serpents" among them. The remedy was for Moses to quickly form a likeness of the poisonous serpents and put it on a pole where all could see it. Everyone who had been bitten was marked for death, while everyone who looked upon the brazen serpent on the pole was healed. Their free will to do so is not forced.