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NASB | Romans 10:9 that if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved; |
AMPLIFIED 2015 | Romans 10:9 because if you acknowledge and confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord [recognizing His power, authority, and majesty as God], and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. |
Subject: Who, besides the elect of God,are saved? |
Bible Note: Be glad to. First of all, the initials make a lot of difference. This is what I mean by the need to be precise. There is a world of difference, theologically speaking, between the PCUSA (the denomination you were referring to) and the Presbyterian Church in America, a completely separate denomination which was founded in 1973 as an answer to the liberal influences you mentioned. This denomination, of which I am a member, is adherent to the Reformed confessions of the English Puritans and the theology of the Reformation. While there are both liberal and good churches within the PCUSA, the PCA as a whole does not ordain homosexuals, promote "a woman's right to choose," blink at divorce, or any of those other things you depicted as being fruits of Calvinism. Unlike the PCUSA, the PCA is a growing denomination, with thriving North American and foreign missions. We hold to sola Scriptura as an inflexible standard of our church. In addition, there are other Reformed denominations in the United States, such as the Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church, Korean-American Presbyterian Church, Orthodox Presbyterian Church, Reformed Church in the U.S., Reformed Presbyterian Church of North America, and the United Reformed Churches of North America. In addition, there are many other denominations with Reformed congregations. Many Baptist churches, for example, are Reformed (the president of Southern Baptist Theological Seminary is himself a 5-pointer, and was responsible for conservatizing what had become a very, very liberal academic institution). Of course, many independent congregations teach many of the distinctives of Reformed theology as well (Alistair Begg's Parkside Church and John MacArthur's church are examples of those). The fact is that one cannot be a good, traditional Calvinist and endorse those sins you previously mentioned. Once more, it is important to be careful in one's debating to avoid bearing false witness. --Joe! |