John vi.44 says what?

Contrary to popular belief, John vi.44 is in the Bible (I know I'll get a lot of folks saying "huh?" to that, but that's ok). Contrary to popular interpretation, Jo. vi.44 intensely speaks of human inability and election which is not based on foreseen faith and choice by man. If you want to know what Calvinism teaches, just look here to what Christ teaches. This particular passage is in the forefront of my mind and heart right now because I am presently discussing (if you can call it that) this with members of the LDS church. So far, I have not received any reasoned responses from the actual text. There has been rhetoric and straight opinion; but not one look at the Scriptures, not one attempt to deal with the text. Well, let me do so once again.

First, let's look at what the text says. In Jo. vi.44 Jesus says, "No one is able to come to Me unless the Father Who sent Me draws him; and I will raise him up in the last day." Let me also put here the Greek text; this will be important as we look into this passage:

ουδεις δυναται ελθειν προς με εαν μη ο πατηρ ο πεμψας με ελκυση αυτον καγω αναστησω αυτον εν τη εσχατη ημερα

There are a few different aspects of this short verse that we have to understand in order to grasp what Christ said. What does it mean to come to Crist? What does "the Father draws him" mean? What's the significance of "unless?" Does the Greek really help understand the text?

What does it mean to "come to Christ?"

Christ here said, "No one is able to come to Me." Earlier, as recorded in Jo. v.37-40, Jesus told unbelieving Jews,

And the Father who sent me has himself borne witness about me. His voice you have never heard, his form you have never seen, and you do not have his word abiding in you, for you do not believe the one whom he has sent. You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is they that bear witness about me, yet you refuse to come to me that you may have life.

Life is to be found in Christ. Only those who go, or "come to" Him, will receive it. And these Jews, even as they were searching the Scriptures to find Christ, rejected Who the Scriptures revealed (the Christ standing right in front of them) and therefore would not come. As Christ reiterated in Jo. vi.47, "Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes has eternal life." And, again:

It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh is of no avail. The words that I have spoken to you are spirit and life. But there are some of you who do not believe." (For Jesus knew from the beginning who those were who did not believe, and who it was who would betray Him.) And He said, "This is why I told you that no one can come to Me unless it is granted him by the Father." (Jo. vi.63-65)

Only those who believe will come; and those who believe will definitely come. Those taught by the Father Himself will come to Christ, because they believe in Him Whom the Father sent (see Jo. vi.45). So as Christ said, "No one is able to believe in Me, to come to Me in faith, unless the Father Who sent Me draws him." Unless a man is drawn by the Father to Christ, that man will not come.

What does "unless the Father draws him" mean?

You will notice in the LDS Joseph Smith Translation, John 6:44 (and, yes, I use a different format for my references; for the Bible, I use the classic roman numerals, my way of extra respect for God's Word; for the JST I use the regular reference style) reads as follows:

No man can come unto me, except he doeth the will of my Father who hath sent me.
And this is the will of him who hath sent me, that ye receive the Son; for the
Father beareth record of him; and he who receiveth the testimony, and doeth the
will of him who sent me, I will raise up in the resurrection of the just.

Well, how is that similar? The JST was created to restore the truths that have been lost or corrupted in the original Bible.

To be continued...