a Plea To christian Unity On this BB!

splendid response...:thumbs:

 

Yes, Tom, if someone makes caustic remarks (a euphemism for being downright rude) to you on the BB, then when you log off, you may not give the debate a moment's thought, but the remarks are still there, and unless they are on one of the few private forums, they are able to be read by anyone with access to the internet.

It cannot be right for us to insult one another, and then use hypersensitivity as an excuse for doing so. Not only is it against Posting Rule 3, it is also (and far more importantly) against what Jesus said in John 13.34-35:

"A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another."
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We should word our posts in such a way that if a non-Christian were to read the messages, his reaction would be, "Wow! I knew that Christians have their differences, but look at the love they show one another even when they disagree!" Their reaction at seeing Christians hurling insults at one another is more likely to be: "Look! Those Christians are hypocrites! They are no different from anyone else!"

 

Jesus also had a multitude of kind, compassionate and loving things to say, my personal favorite.

"Father forgive them for they know not what they are doing" Luke23:24

Let me add, as I read the NT scriptures, I in no way come away with Jesus being one dimensional. Yes, sometimes he was blunt and harsh. Sometimes he was kind and gentle. Sometime he was humorous.

 

Spoken like a true moderator Dave

 

:thumbs::thumbs::thumbs:

 

I am certainly agreeing with you. I try (emphasis on "try") to be kind in my responses. I also understand that any remark is permanent on the internet.

For me, all the arguing and arrogance displayed on both sides is what I did in bible college. I knew everything back then. All I'm trying to do now is tell as many people about Jesus as I can and encourage saved people to love God's Word and obey Him. I'll leave to God how salvation happens and what He decided in eternity past. I don't have to know the mechanics of God's Work to enjoy it.

Personally, i think that any unsaved person reading the threads about soteriology would be bored to sleep far before they ever got to the name calling.

 

If you insist on calling a faith response "a righteous work" then you too must affirm that it must be added for man to be saved. Regardless of wether the grace God grants for faith is resistible or irresistible, we still must believe to be saved.

 

If Christ dying on the cross and the hearing of the gospel was sufficient for salvation then anyone who hears could be saved, but Calvinists teach that the individual must be "enabled" through the Irresistible Call (regeneration), otherwise the gospel is not "able" to have any effect, thus it is not sufficient for salvation. It is only sufficient for the elect who are first regenerated.

You may word it differently than I did, and that is fine, but there is nothing inconsistent with what I said regarding what most Calvinists affirm regarding the prior need for a work of enabling a Totally Depraved individual.

 

:thumbsup::thumbsup: Well said David!

 

Off topic. Reprise the theme song and roll the credits.