Indeed, when I watch Paul Washer preaching, he very hardly smiles! The Prophet Jeremiah is known as the "Weeping Prophet". People deal with things very differently, because we are different. Some openly mourn the loss of a loved one, while others show no emotion.
HD's complaints are moot.
Right, and since the bible says to keep our giving quiet I am not sure how we are supposed to know how some Christian spends their money. For example, I heard that one Christian musician uses the proceeds of his concerts to support many many thousands of foster children every year. If all we did was look at the concert intake money, we might get the wrong idea.
Let's take a look at one of Dr. John MacArthur's doctrines claimed to be based on scripture:
Does the statement highlighted in "Red" say "apart from divine IRRESISTIBLE GRACE?"
Nope.
But is that the hidden message?
You bet.
Thus the carefully crafted statement can be taken as absolutely true, God's grace being His "General and Special Revelation."
Do any of the cited verses actually say anything about "Irresistible Grace?"
Nope
Recall the words of scripture, false teachers secretly introduce destructive heresies.
Let's take a look at another of Dr. John MacArthur's doctrines claimed to be based on scripture:
Here we find the false doctrine individuals were chosen by God before the foundation of the world.
This is based on Ephesians 1:4 which clearly says God chose us in Him before the foundation of the world.
The issue of course is whether this election was corporate, in choosing Christ as His Redeemer, God corporately choose all those His Redeemer would redeem, or was an individual election as taught by Calvinism and John MacArthur.
Why the individual election view is precluded by scripture should need little explanation.
1 Peter 2:9-10 says (NASB95)
Since everyone individually chosen by God (our election for salvation) was once "not a people" chosen by God, and once "had not received mercy" we were chosen individually after we lived as "children of wrath."
John Calvin did not burn anyone at the stake. You have been reading rag mags. I remember once about 15 years ago a staunch Arminian claimed that Calvin killed Arminius. I got a chuckle out of that one.
I find that I tend to agree with preachers I listen to something like (if they are good) 80-93%. There is always what I consider to be some error. It might be Calvinist doctrine, it might be an obsession with thinking that God's called out ones are basically limited to the church system. etc etc. I like JMs prophesy, and a lot of his sermons. If I find say, .09% wrong in what he said do I need to consider him a false prophet in your mind?
That brings to mind who you listen to. I bet if you named 2 preachers whose sermons you like, I could find something about them that was wrong. Just like if we name any denomination, we could find something wrong in there. Seems to me that Peter was less than perfect and even spoke as a voice for Satan one time. Does this mean we toss out the book of Peter?
Or we spend all of our time judging our famous brethren and each other where they do not meet up with our ideas of truth?
That is what we all do here on this board isn't it?
We are doing it to keep ourselves on the straight path, right?
He is a false teacher, not a false prophet.
Why did you mis-characterize my view?
I demonstrated irrefutably that his views are unbiblical.
And the "everybody is wrong some of the time, so it is ok to be wrong" argument is hardly striving to be Christ-like.
Name 2 preachers you like then! We will see who is perfect. I already said there are NO preachers I totally agree with. But John has pretty high marks.
Ephesus - Messianic - Beginning with the Apostle to the circumcision, Peter. Smyrna - *Gentile Persecuted Church - Beginning with the Apostle to the uncircumcision, Paul. Pergamos - Orthodoxy formed in this time... Pergos is a tower... Needed in the dark ages Thyatira - Catholicism formed in this time - The spirit of Jezebel is to control and to dominate. Sardis - Protestantism formed in this time- A sardius is a gem - elegant yet hard and rigid Philadelphia - Wesleyism formed in this time - To be sanctioned is to acquire it with love. Laodicea - Charismatic movement formed in this time - Rich and increased with goods and have need of nothing?
*Noting also “Ye Shall Have Tribulation Ten Days” Rev 2:10 (from the Foxes Book of Martyrs)…
Time Persecutor Description
67 AD Nero The Smyrna Church Age begins with Nero setting fire to Rome, and then blaming the Christians
81 AD Domitian Declaration that no Christian should be exempt from punishment, Paul’s Timothy died in 97 AD.
108 AD Trajan and Adrian Severe persecution against Christians from 108 to 138 AD during the time of the Bishop Ignatius
162 AD Marcos Aurelius Marcos Aurelius, commendable in study of philosophy, sharp and fierce towards Christians.
192 AD Severus This persecution was carried out by the will and prejudice of the people and extended into Africa.
235 AD Maximus Numberless Christians were slain without trial and burned indiscriminately in heaps
249 AD Decius Began because of the amazing increase in Christianity, and with the heathen temples forsaken.
257 AD Valerian The martyrs that fell during this persecution were innumerable, their tortures and deaths painful.
274 AD Aurelian A brief persecution that ended with the emperor’s assassination.
303 AD Diocletian The last persecution ended with Constantine’s triumph against Rome in 313 AD
So, these churches are unique. The church did not walk off Noah’s Ark Baptist. I have read in Wikipedia that, “Historians trace the earliest "Baptist" church to 1609 in Amsterdam, Dutch Republic with English SeparatistJohn Smyth as its pastor.” In which I would call Sardisean times.
I have enjoyed the teachings of John MacArthur and was surprised to have learned of his materialistic ways, indicating to me that he has inherited some of the ways of this Laodicean church age. I do not think John
MacArthur as un-Christian or a heretic - just surprised to have learned of him so materialistic.
The mystery of the seven stars which thou sawest in my right hand, and the seven golden candlesticks. The seven stars are the angels of the seven churches: and the seven candlesticks which thou sawest are the seven churches. - Revelation 3:20
Candlesticks - Seven church congregations Stars - Individuals within the congregations, all held in the right hand of Christ Seals - The seven seals sealed each congregation within the lambs book of life
And I wept much, because no man was found worthy to open and to read the book, neither to look thereon. - Revelation 5:4
If this interpretation is not correct why all the ado?
Let's take a look at another of Dr. John MacArthur's doctrines claimed to be based on scripture:
Here we find the false doctrine individuals were chosen by God before the foundation of the world.
This is based on Ephesians 1:4 which clearly says God chose us in Him before the foundation of the world.
The issue of course is whether this election was corporate, in choosing Christ as His Redeemer, God corporately choose all those His Redeemer would redeem, or was an individual election as taught by Calvinism and John MacArthur.
Why the individual election view is precluded by scripture should need little explanation.
1 Peter 2:9-10 says (NASB95) 1Peter 2:9 - 10
Since everyone individually chosen by God (our election for salvation) was once "not a people" chosen by God, and once "had not received mercy" we were chosen individually after we lived as "children of wrath." Ephesians 2:3