Posted on 01/21/2005 6:34:28 AM PST by P-Marlowe
No, because man would have nothing to believe in if God did not offer the plan of salvation in the first place.
That is why Calvin stated that faith on the part of man did not diminish grace
We receive salvation by His grace through the free gift of faith in Jesus Christ, from God alone. That's what the words say. Just like the words of Paul.
We don't "bring our faith" in order to believe. We bring our faith to every moment in our lives because we believe according to God's gift of grace.
On the surface, it's semantics.
In truth, it is the very reason for the Reformation -- it divides those who believe in salvation by the grace of God alone from those who believe in salvation by men's good and inbred righteousness, ability, works, tithing, piety, connections, professions, intelligence, luck.
But none are righteous. We are all fallen and dead in sin, unable to rebirth ourselves. "Nothing connected with it is our own." Like Lazarus' second life, only God can breathe righteousness back into the dead corpse of the fallen sinner.
We agree that he is saved IF he is a real believer.
To reject the instruction to be baptized as your first decision as a new believer is to cast doubt on the legitimacy of your believing.
IF the thief on the cross had managed to get down from the cross, he would have chosen to be baptized BECAUSE his faith was real as testified to by Jesus.
Help me! Help me! Oh, please help me. Why have the Arminians delcared that they suspect that I'm not saved and now they refuse to save me?
And my only crime is that I delcared that there is only one gospel, not many like some Arminians believe. Why will they not tell me what is the right gospel for today?
Would somebody please help me!
And that Gospel is....?
But that all it would be is doubt, since we would not know either way.
My impression from the Lutheran view was that they would know for sure.
You, fortheDeclaration, are out of line.
Real men don't whine.
Dec, I remember before the GCPL ( Great Calvinist purge list) there were times when the only ones giving the gospel were woody and I ...the Armenians were silent ..maybe one of our archive folks want to go back and look for those threads..
So what do the tracks say?
Do they say that Christ died for the sinner or do they say maybe Christ died for you, lets step back and see if God saves you'?
I think you are the only Calvinist on these threads who has given a correct Gospel and that is because you came out of an Arminian church!
They present the gospel, you are a sinner and you need a Saviour..
We know that if God gives them ears to hear they will, and if it is not the ordained time of salvation or if they are not the elect , they will just not hear it
We have an open youth program where the gospel is regularly presented ...on Superbowl Sunday we will be having an outreach to men.. a bible study and then a Superbowl party . We have a church plant in a town 20 minutes from us.. .so tell me again, what is YOUR CHURCH DOING on Super bowl Sunday? Do your teens go and tell? How many missions does your church support.. ours has about 20
See Dec we were the first to take the gospel ...after all look at paul.predestined and preaching
Without Calvinists you would be going to mass on Sundays..
There is not an Arminian on the threads (that I know of) who would disagree with Calvin's statement.
The fact is, faith comes before regeneration, not after, since there is something man has to do before he is born again, he has to believe
I think it depends on the messenger
Am I asking an unreasonable question to those who state they are fellow Christians?
A Calvinist would have the right to question an Arminian to see what he is depending on for salvation would he not?
How many words do we get this time?
The Arminains will not share the correct gospel with me after they have declared me unsaved.
"What must I do to be saved?"
Christian.
Exactly. Spoken like a Bible-believing Christian and non-member of any secret society which might demand an earthly show of allegiance in order to be saved.
ALL are works, but His hand alone.
The brave and dying soldiers you spoke about yesterday, xzins, who were stranded in a contaminated area and thus couldn't be reached to be baptized, should have no fear for their eternal destination. If they love Him, it is because He first loved them. And that's all anyone needs.
***the only ones giving the gospel were woody and I ...the Arminians were silent ..***
Do you think that you or Woody could give me the gospel? The Arminians have declared me unsaved and now they don't want me to hear the right gospel.
In the service of the Lord,
Christian.
What do you think was was the point Christ raising Lazarus from the dead? He wasn't asleep and he couldn't get up on his own. He was dead.
That's the entire point and purpose of creation. Adam couldn't obey, even with free will.
And if Adam couldn't obey, we sure can't, either.
Salvation is of the Lord.
***I think it depends on the messenger***
Oh! Are you saying that Arminians can call people unsaved, but other people can't? What makes them so special?
Christian.
You want to have it both ways. You have God throwing something against the wall, and then looking to see what stuck, and choosing that. If you spend a few brain cells thinking about it, you would see that if God chooses those whom He foresees as obeying Him, then His choice is based on their foreseen actions, and not within Himself. The foreseen actions become the reason for the choice.
That makes God a respecter of persons, something which you yourself have categorically (along with the Word) stated is not possible. I agree with the bible, God is no respecter of persons. That makes it impossible for God to choose to save those whom he foresees as believing, because in order to choose on that basis, He MUST be a respecter of persons, seeing that you say He makes His choice on what THEY do.
***How many words do we get this time?***
Well, I'd sure like someone to tell me. I'll count them. OK? But, until the Arminians, who have delcared me (and most Calvinists) unsaved, preach the right gospel for today, how am I suppose to answer your question?
In the service of the Lord,
Christian.
I have given the scripture verses for salvation many times on these threads.
So what do the tracks say? Do they say that Christ died for the sinner or do they say maybe Christ died for you, lets step back and see if God saves you'? I think you are the only Calvinist on these threads who has given a correct Gospel and that is because you came out of an Arminian church! They present the gospel, you are a sinner and you need a Saviour..
So far so good, what else do the tracks say?
We know that if God gives them ears to hear they will, and if it is not the ordained time of salvation or if they are not the elect , they will just not hear it
Well, that was not the issue,the issue is you cannot say that Christ died for that particular individual.
We have an open youth program where the gospel is regularly presented ...on Superbowl Sunday we will be having an outreach to men.. a bible study and then a Superbowl party . We have a church plant in a town 20 minutes from us.. .so tell me again, what is YOUR CHURCH DOING on Super bowl Sunday? Do your teens go and tell? How many missions does your church support.. ours has about 20
Actually, the church supports a large number of missionaries.
However, I am against 'Super Bowl Sundays' since we are now bringing the world into the church.
I myself am starting my own track ministry, and am going to send tracks to homes in Sugar Land by mail.
I also send out Bibles.
Now, what does this have to do with a Christian not wanting to testify to the Gospel that saved him?
See Dec we were the first to take the gospel ...after all look at paul.predestined and preaching Without Calvinists you would be going to mass on Sundays..
In fairness to the Lutherans, I think they had more to do with that then did the Calvinists.
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