. It is not worth anything as an "assurance verse" (in the Calvinistic sense of assurance) since you don't know whether you are elect, therefore you don't know whether you are one of those whom the Father has given to Christ.
In response to the idea that you can't truly know you are of the elect I say pray. Every time I've had doubts I've prayed and a calm assurance came over me.
Are you a Mormon? They all talk like this. So do charismatics. That's the gnostic move: base everything on your subjective internal experience. Apparently, in your opinion, no apostates-to-be get warm assurance fuzzies when they pray about whether they are elect.
In John 6:37 Jesus is not putting any strings on those who come to him. Our conduct, thinking and relationship with God are changed due to our being one of the elect.
Have you never experienced fellow [seeming] believers who later apostasized? You seem to be clueless about their existence. Many apostates have undergone major changes in conduct and thinking when becoming Christian, only to lose their faith later on.
-A8
Thank you! I hope the Sox come back next year too. They have a great team. I'd love to see an I-55 series. :)
In response to the idea that you can't truly know you are of the elect I say pray. Every time I've had doubts I've prayed and a calm assurance came over me.
I agree. Occasionally over the years I have caught myself over-anaylizing, and when that has happened, prayer has always worked. God gave us minds to use, and of course sometimes we will get a little off track. But just like the Bible says, God always brings His elect back.