Okay, here's the first one. It's from Matt Oskverick, a Facebook guy. He says, okay,

here is my shot. This is the theological question. Does God desire all people to be saved?

The question is not about anything but desire concerning all humans.

He says, I'm not asking about being predestined, election. I understand John Owen's teaching and the

smart seminary types. I'm wondering, though, about all people, does God really want all people to be

saved? Not God's sovereign decree and determination, but does he really want everyone to be

saved? And his question is out of 1st Timothy, 2, 3, and 4, this is good, pleases God our

Savior who wants all men to be saved and come to a knowledge of the truth. A classic Calvinistic

question, God sovereignly decrees salvation, does he really want everyone to be saved? What

would you say?

Well, when we talk about God's want to, excuse me for being a theologian here for a second,

but you said it was a theological question, is that we're looking at the biblical concept of the will of God.

And if you look at it, there are two different Greek words that are translated by the English word, Will, Othello, Thelow, My, for example.

And yet, if you examine those words, etymologically, you'll see that they're very nuanced.

There may be seven or eight distinct ways in which the Bible speaks of the will of God.

One of which is his sovereign will that you've mentioned, another will is preceptive will,

his law that he gives us.

But there's also what we would call his will of disposition.

That is what pleases him. And when the Bible says that God is not willing, for

example, or it takes no delight in the death of the wicked, it tells us something I think about

the character of God, that even though he's committed to justice, even though he's committed to judgment,

he doesn't get his jollies by subjecting people to punishment, like a sadistic tyrant would.

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