“The biblical theologian must stop where the biblical text stops, even though some issues appear to remain unresolved. … The doctrine of election inevitably produces a certain intellectual tension, particularly with regard to ‘free will’ or personal activity in one’s own salvation (cf. Rom 5:18; 1 Tim 2:5; Titus 2:11; 2 Pet 3:9). … Balanced biblical theology requires that such tensions remain. Rejecting clear biblical teaching because of limited human understanding is dangerously shortsighted.”

Thomas D. Lea and Hayne P. Griffin, Jr., The American Commentary Volume 34: 1,2 Timothy, Titus, (Nashville: Broadman, 1992), 264-65.