Subject: Is Limited Atonement Bibical? |
Bible Note: Dear Hank, I am absolutely stunned! Is that the smell of burning torches I detect in the air? Acrimony is the last thing I expected to find among a fellowship of Christians. Pehaps I'm just naive enough to expect Christens to show a greater degree of tolerance and love for one another. Besides, If my memory serves, the topic of limited atonement was presented as a challenge to those who hold to it's Scriptual basis. What would you expect? I for one will not shrink from the defense of the faith as I understand it. Or does Christian Liberty apply only to the majority? I can sympathize with your apparent boredom with reformed doctrine. It must be tedious to have to deal with constant challenges to your own brand of theology. The fact is that this debate has been continuosly waged scince Augustine and Pelagious, and will probably continue til Our Lord returns in glory! Permit me to answer a few of your points. 1. This continuum of debate on election, limited atonement and other tenets of reformed theology is not only endless, but highly biased. I disagree with "endless". It will end when Christ returns and we will be perfected. The differences once so hotly debated will evaporate in the light of His Glorious person. You charge the reformed with BIAS, but make it a blanket charge without even troubling to substantiate your claim. What is that called? Let us not confuse bias with conviction. 2. The only real purpose it is serving, and not a particularly meritorious one at that, is giving the advocates of reformed theology a soap-box on which to speak their piece. Are you really saying that our interpretation of Scipture has no merit? Or have you lost faith in your arguements and wish the loud mouthed reformers would just shutup and go away. I do not think such a sentiment is worthy of you Hank. 3. Meanwhile the majority of us are supposed to sit back and watch these views aired over and over, day after day,with no apparent end in sight. Who told anyone to sit back? Jump into the fray! If God is for you who can be against you. Fight for the truth as you understand it and do not weary from doing good works. Come let us reason together saith The Lord. 4. "I would say that no one is being really edified by it..". I am. Do I count? 5. I should rather think that new believers and would-be believers are being confused, abashed, and turned away by it. On the contrary new believers will suffer no harm by hearing different views on doctrine, after all, If they are believers they have the Holy Spirit who will lead them into truth. Hbr 12:2 "Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of [our] faith". 6.It is in poor taste at the least and flat wrong at the most to air on this forum a daily megadose of one-sided denominational bias, and air it over and over and over to the point of disgust. How can you have one-sided bias between opposing positions? One-sided bias could exist only if the reformed take your advise and skeedaddle out of town, back to Scotland or someplace. Oh Well! (sigh) Rom 8:28 "And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose". Thank you Lord I almost forgot. God Bless You Hank (All of us have bad days) John |