Salvation is of the Lord, Part 4 of 9

“For if Abraham were justified by works, he hath whereof to glory; but not before God. For what saith the scripture? Abraham believed God, and it was counted unto him for righteousness. Now to him that worketh is the reward not reckoned of grace, but of debt. But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness,” Romans 4:2-5.

Personal Prayer Request

It was a strange night for my family last night. My parents live in the same neighborhood as I do, just on the opposite side of Gary, New Duluth. Sunday night at about 11PM a high speed chase brought a man and a woman in a stolen car into Gary, erupting into a firefight with speeds exceeding 80 RPM.

Salvation is of the Lord, Part 3 of 9

“Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God; To declare, I say, at this time his righteousness: that he might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus. Where is boasting then? It is excluded. By what law? of works? Nay: but by the law of faith,” Romans 3:25-27.

Salvation is of the Lord, Part 2 of 9

Jesus clarifies this indictment when confronted with the rich young ruler who believed his good works would make him acceptable before God. This young man felt that he followed the law from birth without error, and was merely looking to Jesus to confirm and see if he lacked anything apart from his rigid law-keeping. He did not approach Jesus in His native capacity of Savior; the ruler was not looking to be saved: he was looking to ensure that he had done a sufficient job of saving himself. He wanted a famous Rabbi’s opinion about it, and that prompted him to visit Jesus.

Salvation is of the Lord, Part 1 of 9

I have noticed that one of the strongest trends within the professing church today is a rejection of salvation by grace. Many who profess to be devout, Bible-believing, God-fearing Christians refuse to believe that salvation is accomplished according to Scripture by the simple vehicle of faith. That faith rests upon the nature and credentials of one person namely: Jesus Christ.

Cult Methodology

I decided to comprise this list for our mutual edification that entails the tactics of cult coercion; that is a cult’s general efforts to bring someone “into their fold.” Not every cult functions or uses every tactic listed below, but some or most appear in their dealings with both those without their sect and (to keep everyone faithful) those within. This list has been compiled by men who study cults and their tactics, and have dedicated their lives to reaching out to those caught in such a sect and extracting them, by the grace of God. It is for those who are part of such a system, and for everyone who ought to be warned about these tactics that I present this list. God bless.

Irresistible God? A Considerate Search into Calvinism, Part 7 of 7

Two passages of contention:

#1: Acts 13:48, a pro for Calvinism.
The portion of the verse that seems to strongly support Calvinism is, “And as many as had been appointed to eternal life believed.” The KJV uses the word “ordained” in place of “appointed.” The Greek word for “ordained” is “tasso” and can mean either “appointed, determined, or disposed (to a certain position or lot).” In the sense of the latter two uses of the word the verse’s context would entirely alter, and read as such it would suggest that those who were disposed to eternal life believed the gospel. There is another Greek word rendered as “appointed” in Acts 17:26; the word being “protasso.” It literally means “to pre-arrange or appoint before.” Surely, had Luke intended to clarify this verse in Acts to teach predestination as Calvinism explains it this would have been the word of choice.

Irresistible God? A Considerate Search into Calvinism, Part 6 of 7

When God hardened Pharaoh’s heart, take note that Pharaoh also hardened his own heart first, Exodus 3:19; 4:21. This is in accord with 2nd Thessalonians 2:11-12, which tells us that God sends strong delusion to those who resist His message, so He might destroy those who received not the truth. God hardened Pharaoh in his obstinacy so that He might demonstrate His power in him, but this was not something that Pharaoh, by his volition, hadn’t already chosen for himself.

Irresistible God? A Considerate Search into Calvinism, Part 5 of 7

Regarding again the topic of Total Depravity: True, man is “dead in sins and trespasses” but spiritual death is not the same as physical death. Physical death is the passage of one state into another. The body is inanimate and moldering; the spirit has passed on into an eternal abode. The physically dead can’t speak, think, act, etc. Spiritual death means that your sin has separated you from God, Genesis 2:17; Isaiah 59:2.

Irresistible God? A Considerate Search into Calvinism, Part 4 of 7

Irresistible Grace is another topic of contention. Were this doctrine true, then believing on Christ (the criterion for salvation according to the New Testament) is mistaken. God quickens someone to eternal life before the gospel can even be heard or believed on; in other words, your choice is removed because according to Calvin, were you left to yourself you would never believe the gospel.

Irresistible God? A Considerate Search into Calvinism, Part 3 of 7

Calvinism’s doctrine of Limited Atonement does not agree with Scripture, which clearly states that Jesus Christ was the propitiation for the entire world. Anyone may be pardoned on account of Jesus’ merit from His satisfactory payment on the cross. Twisting Scripture to demean certain clear passages so they fit a Calvinist mold is not what I call rightly dividing the Word. The world, used in several verses cited later, means simply that: the entire world, all men.

Irresistible God? A Considerate Search into Calvinism, Part 2 of 7

One of Calvinism’s boldest claims is that God in fact does not desire all men to be saved, but rather foreordains men to Hell by His sovereign pleasure, or due to the mystery or hidden will of God; an idea contrary to certain passages of Scripture (I will cite those in due time). The Calvinist argues that if it was God’s purpose to save all men (that is, if He desired to save them) they would be saved because what God desires to do He will.

Irresistible God? A Considerate Search into Calvinism, Part 1 of 7

I would like to explore the concept of Calvinism at length, comparing the teachings of John Calvin with Scripture to determine how “Calvinist” Christians truly are. I say this on my own behalf; I always believed that Calvinism possessed theological flaws, but felt that most fundamental Christians were essentially at least “mildly Calvinistic” in their thinking. Upon closer inspection, I humbly confess that this is a wrong assessment of John Calvin’s teachings, and much taught by this alleged Biblical exegete was not Scriptural. Together let us peer into Calvinism as its proponents teach it.