Results 221 - 240 of 1459
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Results from: Notes Author: John Reformed Ordered by Date |
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Results | Verse | Author | ID# | |||
221 | God is not the author of evil. | Job | John Reformed | 99054 | ||
Firstly Dear Parable, Matt 10:29 "Are not two sparrows sold for a cent? And yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father. As christians we believe that every thing that has been created, down to the smallest particle, was created by God. We also belive that God is omnipresent and that nothing that exists exists without His knowing and by His will. He is also omniscient. Nothing happens that He is not aware of. He is omnipotent. Nothing can happen that He does not cause to happen. All power originates from Him. Acts 17:28 for in Him we live and move and exist, "From our experience..." is an arguement from human reason that is based on worldly wisdom. It certainly does not apply to All-Mighty GOD!!! Our God is bigger than we can even imagine. To God be the glory. John |
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222 | God is not the author of evil. | Job | John Reformed | 99053 | ||
Dear Colin, Please try to understand...It is not my desire to be contentious. My desire is to glorify God in the midst of the saints. I'm certain that you share that same desire and sought to do so in your reply to parable. I just happen to think you are mistaken in your view. It is my view that God dos not long for anything. At least not in the way you meant in your post. The Bible does say that God longs to be gracious to you, but, the meaning of the word "longs" denotes patient waiting. The way we come to know God is through His Word. To the extent that we properly interpret scripture, that right understanding will be the measure of our success. It is crucial that we strive to understand Him as He is. In that spirit of christian fellowship I have written you my reading of Gen 6:3 The Hebrew word for "strive" is "din". It means to judge; administer, dispute etc. Webster's defines the english word "strive" as To struggle in opposition; to be in contention or dispute; to contend; to contest; -- followed by against or with before the person or thing opposed; as, strive against temptation; strive for the truth. I realize that God takes no pleasure from the destruction of the wicked, however, Gen 6:3 does not convey the idea of a helpless God grieving over the stubborn opposition of a wicked race of people; longing for their salvation but powerless to persuade them to repent. Our God is omnipotent and accomplishes everything to which He stretches forth His hand to accomplish. Is 46:10 Declaring the end from the beginning, And from ancient times things which have not been done, Saying, 'My purpose will be established, And I will accomplish all My good pleasure'; Compare your interpretation of Gen 6:3 with the above verse. Do they harmonize with one another? John |
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223 | God is not the author of evil. | Job | John Reformed | 99046 | ||
Dear Parable, The church is indeed engaged in a mop-up operation. The question is has God not only ordained the beginning from the end, but, has He also ordained everything that occurs in between? I believe the answer is yes! The following texts are a few of the foundation stones for my stated belief. Is 46:10 Declaring the end from the beginning, And from ancient times things which have not been done, Saying, 'My purpose will be established, And I will accomplish all My good pleasure'; Dan 4:35 "All the inhabitants of the earth are accounted as nothing, But He does according to His will in the host of heaven And among the inhabitants of earth; And no one can ward off His hand Or say to Him, 'What have You done?' Eph 2:10 For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them. Ps 73:28 But as for me, the nearness of God is my good; I have made the Lord GOD my refuge, That I may tell of all Your works. John 9:3 Jesus answered, "It was neither that this man sinned, nor his parents; but it was so that the works of God might be displayed in him. Rev 15:3 And they *sang the song of Moses, the bond-servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying, "Great and marvelous are Your works, O Lord God, the Almighty; Righteous and true are Your ways, King of the nations! John |
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224 | Who determines our destiny? | NT general Archive 1 | John Reformed | 99043 | ||
Gene, I would be happy to discuss any doctrine or theology you wish. However, it must be on the basis of brother to brother. Perhaps God has given you the gift of teaching. But, that remains to be seen. Frankly... the tone of your post is not particularly inviting. John Reformed |
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225 | "objects of wrath" | Eph 2:3 | John Reformed | 98876 | ||
Dear Tim, For the record: I did not mean to imply that an "object of wrath" itself was necessarily destined for destruction. But the term as quoted by NC was " objects of his wrath--prepared for destruction". "prepared for destruction" is the key modifier. I'm sure you must agree! John |
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226 | "objects of wrath" | Eph 2:3 | John Reformed | 98873 | ||
Dear Hank, You wrote : "John Reformed - This evening I happened to glance through the Book of Romans and lo, I discovered that Romans 9 has 8 chapters before it and 7 chapters after it. Just thought I'd pass this on in case you thought Romans 9 was the only chapter in the book. No charge for the service. Glad to oblige." --Hank Sarcasm: A keen, reproachful expression; a satirical remark uttered with some degree of scorn or contempt; a taunt; a gibe; a cutting jest. I don't know if "sarcasem" is a sin, but, it certainly is'nt a grace. John |
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227 | Is the Potter free to do as He pleases? | Eph 2:3 | John Reformed | 98865 | ||
Dear NC, You wrote: "My question wasn't about the identity of who these individuals were, but rather that the individuals mentioned, no matter who you view them as being, were not in a fixed or unmovable state of being "objects of wrath". I agree with your conclusion. But in Rom 9 the term used is "vessels PREPARED for destruction" (caps mine). My point being that "objects of wrath" represent mankind universally, but vessels prepared for destruction represent those to whom mercy has not been given. This country, in particular, has a great deal of difficulty in accepting the fact that no one has a right to mercy. In fact if mercy was a right it would not be mercy at all. Paul clearly states mercy to be up to God alone. He gives it and witholds it according to His good pleasure...And He always does so in holiness and according to justice. Our problem is believing that God would purpose to show mercy to some, but, justice to the rest. It seems un-democratic (small d). We forget that God's government is a Kingship and He is a soveriegn King! 17 Dan 4:35 "All the inhabitants of the earth are accounted as nothing, But He does according to His will in the host of heaven And among the inhabitants of earth; And no one can ward off His hand Or say to Him, 'What have You done?' John |
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228 | Is the Potter free to do as He pleases? | Eph 2:3 | John Reformed | 98862 | ||
Hi Tim, Indeed, all men come into this world under the curse, and prior to faith in Christ, are objects of wrath. The fact that Paul (an object of wrath himself at one time) and those saints to which he wrote had now recieved mercy, places them apart from those who are called "vessels of wrath prepared for destruction?". We were by "nature" objects of wrath, but by the grace of God, were fore-ordained to recieve mercy. John |
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229 | Is the Potter free to do as He pleases? | Eph 2:3 | John Reformed | 98835 | ||
Dear NC, Eph 2:3,4 identifies as "us" being the objects of mercy. Context cannot be ignored just because we find a doctrine offensive to our human sensibilities. All that God has done is holy and just. I'll stick with the plain and simple reading of the chapter. Got to go, John |
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230 | Who determines our destiny? | NT general Archive 1 | John Reformed | 98717 | ||
Dear EdB, The problem is not the subject matter, but, people. I have noticed that some controversial topics (Baptism; The trinity, eternal security, to name just a few) are discussed almost daily on this forum without complaint. This being the case, why should the doctrines of grace (TULIP) which deal with the essentials of knowing God be quenched in the name of peace? Many times I have been engaged in polite arguement with another member over one of these doctrines, only to find myself being assailed by one or another of two long time users. I will not mention names because I wish to avoid personal rancour. You already know of whom I am speaking. These men have appointed themselves doctrinal "watchdogs", barking at all references to the aforementioned doctrines that appear on the forum. Well...I, for one, have decided to ignore them; I am obliged to present and to defend what I believe is the gospel truth. 2 Tim 2:15 Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a workman who does not need to be ashamed, accurately handling the word of truth. At the same time I do not consider myself wise or learned. My prayer is that my heart and mind be open to correction. John Reformed |
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231 | Who determines our destiny? | NT general Archive 1 | John Reformed | 98565 | ||
Dear Gene, In answer to my question regarding God's sovereign rule over His creation, you said “We determine in which direction our destiny will take. God determines the results of our choices.God has destined for us to choose. God determines the consequences for our choices." I can understand why you would believe this to be the case. I assume that you believe that fallen man has the ability to exercise a spiritual attribute…faith in Christ (free-willism). But can you provide a scriptural foundation that supports the view that the unregenerate have this capacity? The following is a nutshell definition of the “reformed” view concerning the spiritual condition of fallen man. Total Depravity (Total Inability) Total Depravity is probably the most misunderstood tenet of Calvinism. When Calvinists speak of humans as "totally depraved," they are making an extensive, rather than an intensive statement. The effect of the fall upon man is that sin has extended to every part of his personality -- his thinking, his emotions, and his will. Not necessarily that he is intensely sinful, but that sin has extended to his entire being. The unregenerate (unsaved) man is dead in his sins (Romans 5:12). Without the power of the Holy Spirit, the natural man is blind and deaf to the message of the gospel (Mark 4:11f). This is why Total Depravity has also been called "Total Inability." The man without a knowledge of God will never come to this knowledge without God's making him alive through Christ (Ephesians 2:1-5). (www.reformed.org/calvinism/) I look forward to your response. John |
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232 | Who determines our destiny? | NT general Archive 1 | John Reformed | 98503 | ||
Eph 5:14 For this reason it says, "Awake, sleeper, And arise from the dead, And Christ will shine on you." John R. |
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233 | Who determines our destiny? | NT general Archive 1 | John Reformed | 98502 | ||
Dear Gene, I had believed the teachings of The RC church; New age craziness; pentacostalism and now calvinism. The last(calvinism) is a theology that I fought to discredit, but defeated by Scripture, I was made in the end to embrace. My history does not indicate a ridgid adherence to any particular system or denominational tradition. I am interested in one thing only, knowing God and His will for me. That having been said, I am staunch in my beliefs as long as I am fully persuaded of their Biblical foundation. I am not (I pray) intractable, but am willing to conform to God's Word when shown my error or mis-interpretation. My reliance is on the Holy Spirit and His grace in enlightenment. I do not believe that any system of theology or denominational tradition is perfect. My desire is to follow the example of the Bereans and have a Scriptural basis provided for all doctrines. At the same time, I am also pig-headed, stubborn and unwilling to embrace new ideas. I see these attitudes as vestiges of my old man. Nevertheless, in God's time and according to His eternal purpose, He has, from time to time, turned my feet to different paths. My sins are mine, my victories over sin are His. The pursuit of the knowledge of God comes by His invitation and the discovery of that knowledge is according to His good pleasure. John Reformed |
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234 | Who determines our destiny? | NT general Archive 1 | John Reformed | 98411 | ||
In a way Gene, we are almost saying the same thing. I as well do not believe that God forced Herod or any of the others to do what they did. Each one made his own choice to particpate in the crucifixtion of Christ. They were free to follow that which their unregenerate hearts desired. The fact that they were slaves to sin and being sons of the devil, does not excuse their wicked deed. Where we still may disagree is on whether fallen man is capable (absent the work of the Holy Spirit in regeneration) of having a desire that would be pleasing to God. I say he (fallen man) cannot. Heb 11:6 And without faith it is impossible to please Him, This leads to the controversial issue regarding the real state of the unregenerate. Knowing that they are spiritually dead makes it impossible for them to have faith in God. This topic is not popular on this forum among many who have debated it time and again over several years. But in order for you to know where I'm coming from, it seems best if you realize that I believe the doctrines of grace (TULIP). I belive them for one reason and one reason only: They agree with Scripture. John |
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235 | Who determines our destiny? | NT general Archive 1 | John Reformed | 98395 | ||
Dear Gene, The reason I can't accept your interpretation is because it does not address the fact that Acts 4 teaches that God predetermined that certain people would do certain things. We also know that all the works of God are holy and just. The way I see it is that these people are among those whom to God has with-held His grace. Instead of mercy they will recieve justice. They did evil out of the desire of their own evil hearts. Nevertheless, it was God who directed their steps. Question: Can a person choose to act contrary to the strongest desire of his heart? If you say yes, please give an example. John |
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236 | Who determines our destiny? | NT general Archive 1 | John Reformed | 98341 | ||
Dear Gene, "We determine in which direction our destiny will take. God determines the results of our choices.God has destined for us to choose. God determines the consequences for our choices." Ok Gene, if I understand your statement, God simply reacts to man's free-will choices by either blessing or punishing him based upon whether those choices be for good or evil. Presuming that you are correct, how do we explain what Peter said : Acts 4:25-28 who by the Holy Spirit, through the mouth of our father David Your servant, said, 'WHY DID THE GENTILES RAGE, AND THE PEOPLES DEVISE FUTILE THINGS? 'THE KINGS OF THE EARTH TOOK THEIR STAND, AND THE RULERS WERE GATHERED TOGETHER AGAINST THE LORD AND AGAINST HIS CHRIST.' "For truly in this city there were gathered together against Your holy servant Jesus, whom You anointed, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, along with the Gentiles and the peoples of Israel, to do whatever Your hand and Your purpose predestined to occur. This passage seems to clearly state that God had predestined the actions of those who were gathered together against Jesus. I know that God is not the author of evil and neither does He tempt anyone to sin. But, if we look at the case of Joseph and his brothers, what they did to Joseph they meant it for evil but God meant it for good! The same could be true for those evil doers that Peter cites in Acts 4; Herod, Pontius Pilate, the gentiles, the Jews etc. Nevertheless God pre-destined that just as Joseph's brothers were pre-destined to sell him into slavery, these people were pre-destined to crucify the Holy Servant Jesus. Will they be punished? Absolutely! Do they deserve punishment? Of course they do! Did God ordain from all eternity that these people would do what they did? The Bible says Yes!....Do we understand that God is Soveriegn over all things that occur, but, man is still resposible for his own actions? No. I just don't think that things are that simple or easy to explain. I believe that God is bigger than any of us are capable of understanding. Eternity itself will not be long enough for us to ever comprehend how marvelous and wonderful His ways really are. Time to earn my bread by the sweat of my brow. I look forward to hearing your thoughts on this subject. John |
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237 | And what about those who will die before | NT general Archive 1 | John Reformed | 98288 | ||
"Something given has no value." If you needed a liver transplant and a dieing man left (gave) you his...would you consider it a valueless gift? Much more valuable is the gift of eternal life to a miserable sinner who knows he deserves nothing but an eternity of torment. I would'nt place all that much confidence in the wisdom of man. 1 Cor 3:18 Let no man deceive himself. If any man among you thinks that he is wise in this age, he must become foolish, so that he may become wise. John Reformed |
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238 | Church curses??? | Bible general Archive 2 | John Reformed | 98150 | ||
Hi Elaine, In all honesty, I don't know. I do believe we should pray that the schemes, which wicked people design in a vain attempt to thwart God, are to be considered anathema. But, Paul himself was the chief of sinners before he was called by God. I see no clear biblical mandate for christians to call down a curse from heaven upon the unregenerate, per se. I am content to pray "Thy will be done". God Bless, John Reformed |
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239 | When did Christians start to use altars? | Ex 17:15 | John Reformed | 98035 | ||
Hi Ed, I understand why you feel the way you do. You are right to say that I'm hung up on the the term "altar". But words mean things, and an altar is a table upon which sacrifices are made. Altar - (Heb. mizbe'ah, from a word meaning "to slay"), any structure of earth (Ex. 20:24) or unwrought stone (20:25) on which sacrifices were offered. Altars were generally erected in conspicuous places (Gen. 22:9; Ezek. 6:3; 2 Kings 23:12; 16:4; 23:8; Acts 14:13). The word is used in Heb. 13:10 for the sacrifice offered upon it--the sacrifice Christ offered. Paul found among the many altars erected in Athens one bearing the inscription, "To the unknown God" (Acts 17:23), or rather "to an [i.e., some] unknown God." The reason for this inscription cannot now be accurately determined. It afforded the apostle the occasion of proclaiming the gospel to the "men of Athens." The first altar we read of is that erected by Noah (Gen. 8:20). Altars were erected by Abraham (Gen. 12:7; 13:4; 22:9), by Isaac (Gen. 26:25), by Jacob (33:20; 35:1, 3), and by Moses (Ex. 17:15, "Jehovah-nissi"). (Easton's) To my mind, each element of worship must mean something to the worshippers. The meaning must of neccessity come from Scripture! How can we be in one accord if that meaning is subjective and left to the sentiments of each individual? We don't have tabernacles. Why not? Because our bodies are the temple of the Holy Spirit and God now dwells within us. Does your church provide a Bible based reason for having an altar? If so, I would appreciate your providing it. Thanks Ed, John |
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240 | When did Christians start to use altars? | Ex 17:15 | John Reformed | 97978 | ||
well... I had hoped for a reply which contained an honest answer; instead i get more spin. The study of the amish has not been a major pursuit of mine. The reformers of the 16th century is more my style. Heroes of the faith who rescued and returned the gospel to the people. Bye, John |
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