Does Regeneration Proceed Faith?

One of the classic arguments against Calvinism is the belief of regeneration proceeding faith. Many non-Calvinists would say, no faith always comes first then we are regenerated. That does sound nice, but it is not biblical. What is implied by saying faith proceeds regeneration is our salvation is based on our decision to trust in Christ. They are saying we determine our salvation which is very unsound.

Does the Bible teach that regeneration proceeds faith? Yes, it does. Jesus said, "All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will never cast out..No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him; and I will raise him up on the last day" (John 6:37, 44, LSB). God is the One who draws to Jesus (regeneration), and He will never cast us away from Him (faith). 

Ephesians 2:1 says we were dead on our transgressions and sins. How do dead people come back to life on their own. They cannot. We need someone to bring us up from the dead, spiritually speaking. Romans says no is righteous and no one seeks for God (Romans 3:10-11). We have been made alive in Christ by God and saved us by grace through faith which is not our own doing (Ephesians 2:4-9).

Another verse to consider is 1 John 5:1, "Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ has been born of God, and everyone who loves the One who gives new birth loves also the one who has been born of Him" (LSB). If you come to believe that Jesus is the Christ, you have been regenerated by God. The reason you can claim faith is not because of some rational explanation that came to you mind, it is because God has made you alive in Him. "But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name, who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God" (John 1:12-13, LSB). It was God's will for you to be born again. 

You have come to faith in Christ because God has made you alive in Him not because of a prayer or going down during an invitation. It is because salvation is the work of God. We come to Him because He is the One who made us alive.