Inclusive or Exclusive

From :  John Michael Platanitis

INCLUSIVE/EXCLUSIVE LANGUAGE?
Jn 13:1 "Having loved His OWN who were in the world, He loved THEM to the end".
Eph 5:25 "Husbands love your wives, as Christ loved THE CHURCH and gave Himself up FOR her"
Jn 10:11 "The good shepherd lays down His life FOR the sheep".
Jn 14:21, 23 "He who loves Me will be loved by My Father. I too will love him"
Many professing believers argue against the explicitly taught scriptural truth of sovereign-grace, preferring the oft-refuted by scripture misnomer of "free-will salvation". They claim that passages like Jn 13:1; 15:21,23; Eph 5:25 are NOT exclusive passages, but merely "inclusive" ones.
An argument I often hear presented by them says "IF a man is said to love his child, does it necessarily follow that he loved ONLY his child? What about his friends? Spouse? Siblings? Same is true with the inclusive language, it is not intended to convey an either/or scenario." (They argue).
To be fair, I appreciate the attempt by them here. On the surface, it appears to have merit. However, under more careful scrutiny, I submit, it is easily refuted. Here is how and why:
I. Jn 13:1 does NOT say "He loved His disciples"; Nor does it say "He loved do and so". It says He loved "His OWN" - thus, EVERY person whom HE deemed His OWN, was included in that summary. Nothing more needs to be added, as it is a comprehensive statement. So when the subject is God incarnate and the object is "His own" that comprehensive language nullifies the afore-mentioned objection.
IF Jesus loved everyone, regardless of their relationship to/with Him, then Jn 13:1 tells us NOTHING of value by qualifying it with "His OWN". He loved all humanity, there was no need to single out a smaller group within the larger. For they are included in the larger. The caveat then is at best redundant and at worst meaningless! The ONLY relevant thing to say then is "Having loved all men, He loved them". This is NOT what John wrote.
If I love every other child the same way and to the same degree I love my own, then there is noting special, unique or intimate in my love FOR my own!
II. If Jesus loved/died FOR every descendant of Adam, then the caveat "He loved the church gave Himself FOR her", is likewise irrelevant in its particular emphasis.
- If a man dies FOR his wife AND also dies for every other woman, then there is nothing significant gained or expressed claiming "But he died FOR his wife"!
III. IF God loves and will love all humanity, regardless of their faith in, love of Jesus, then Jesus telling us God "WILL LOVE" those who believe in/love Him, is once again meaningless. If God loves me regardless of whether I believe in and love Christ, then telling me He "WILL love me if I do", tells me nothing of value. Nothing is therefore gained or added to me that was not already present anyway. In which case, the very incentive Jesus expressed, loses its incentive value and becomes practically speaking, meaningless.
May God give light
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