My mom heard a pastor preach on the subject of double predestination or reprobation, that God predestined or ordained some people to salvation and God ordained others to hell. The manner in which this preacher taught this subject left my mom in total despair over the salvation of some of her loved ones. The Scriptures do not leave believers in despair. God was not teasing in his Word when he declared, “Whosoever believes in him shall not perish but have everlasting life” (Jo 3:16).
I agree with John Calvin that the doctrine of double predestination or reprobation is a “dreadful” doctrine. Calvin, in his The Institutes of the Christian Religion, wrote: “The decree, I admit, is dreadful.” [1] However, I disagree with John Calvin that this “dreadful” doctrine is biblical.
Read moreSome Bible teachers advocate that there is healing in the atonement of Jesus on the cross based on 1 Peter 2:24: “By whose stripes we are healed.” Can you imagine the audience of Peter who were suffering persecution for their faith and witness being confused if Peter was teaching because of Jesus’ atonement, you should not be suffering. These persecuted believers were not suffering because of a lack of faith or sin. Additionally, they would have been equally confused because some of their loved ones had died. People don’t of good health.[1]
Read moreThe Christian apologist, John Lennox, who holds a Ph.D. from Oxford and another from Cambridge, rightfully contends that Christianity is distinct from every other religion. All of the religions of the world teach that the unsaved must do religious works and earn God’s acceptance somewhere in the future. Christianity teaches that when we “believe,” which is an act of our will to receive Christ as our Savior, God accepts us right then, and then we work for him.
Lennox tells how he proposed to his wife, Sally. When he proposed, he handed her a cookbook and said, If you cook more good meals than bad meals over the next 40 years, I will accept you, and we can get married. Not really; he was illustrating what the world's religions advocate.
That is what the world's religions teach. Acceptance has to be earned and is at the end of someone’s life only if the unsaved has performed more good works than bad works.
Read moreI hope the title of this article reveals the importance of the doctrine of imputation. Many conservative evangelicals pushed back on Evangelicals and Catholics Together in 1994. Charles Colson represented evangelicals and Richard John Neuhaus represented the Catholics. The gospel was watered down. “We affirm together that we are justified by grace through faith because of Christ.” (click to open). But the indispensable word "alone” was left out. Salvation is by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone. R. C. Sproul wrote Justification by Faith Alone to correct this biblical error.
Read moreThe operative spiritual gifts for today
Every believer has a spiritual gift or gift/mix.
Peter in 1 Peter 4:10 confirmed this truth: “As every man has received the gift, even so minister the same one to another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God.” God in grace not only gave us the gift of eternal life but a spiritual gift to serve Him.
Read moreAbraham would have agreed with Job in 14:1, “Man that is born of a woman is of few days and full of trouble.” Abraham faced seven major tests and the last was the hardest. Abraham is possibly 137 years old. Sarah in Genesis 23:1 is 127 years old and Abraham is ten years older (Gen. 17:17).
Read moreIn Part Two, the content of the story will be examined. After the context (STUDY THE CONTEXT: Macro Hermeneutics, Part One) is thoroughly researched, the interpreter moves inside to the content of the text itself. Macro hermeneutics looks at the trees. Micro hermeneutics focuses on the tree. Part two is: EXAMINE THE DETAILS OF THE PASSAGE SELECTED TO PREACH (Micro Hermeneutics, Part Two).
Read moreWhat do you think is the most important sign that indicates Jesus is coming back? Wars and rumors of wars? Earthquakes? The love of many waxing worse and worse? Jesus in his end time sermon compared his future coming to the past flood. Jesus is referring to his second coming at the end of the Tribulation in Matthew 24:37-39. Jesus prophesied the sinful people before his coming would replicate the sinful people before the coming judgment of the flood who were “marrying and giving in marriage until the day that Noah entered into the ark.” In Genesis six, the godly were specifically marrying the ungodly before the flood. Being unequally yoked in marriage with unbelievers led to the Genesis flood in Genesis 6-8. Jesus warned his and our generation “to be ready” for the coming of Christ and his judgment just like the generation before the flood needed to be ready. Are you ready for the coming of Christ? Do you know Christ as your Savior? Jesus instructed us to learn from the generation that experienced the flood.
Read moreAdvocates of the doctrine of perseverance teach that the believer must persevere to the end in holiness of character, love for God and the brethren, and belief in the doctrines of Scripture.
On the other hand, proponents of the doctrine of preservation teach that God keeps the believer saved even if he does not persevere to the end of his Christian life in holiness, love, and truth. Not enduring to the end is not normal for believers but there are examples in Scripture of believers who walked not with God at the end in holiness, love, and truth.
Read moreJohn 1:9 is sometimes called 'the Quaker text,' because the early Quakers, based on the verse, believed that sufficient light was offered to every person" (David J. MacLeod. The Creation of the Universe by the Word: John 1:6-9. Bib Sac 160 July-Sept 2003: 305-320). Some Quakers refer to the “inner light” as an internal revelation if appropriately responded to can save. They use John 1:9 as the proof text: “[That] was the true Light, which lights every man that comes into the world.”
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