Divorcing Christ 2

Fooling ourselves

kainos — Sun, 27 Nov 2011 14:09:50 +0000

James tells the “dear brothers and sisters” we must obey the word God has planted in our hearts, or we are only fooling ourselves. Fooling ourselves about what?

Doing good works, or not

kainos — Wed, 23 Nov 2011 22:15:34 +0000

Doing good works won’t get you into heaven, but not doing them will keep you out.

What would you think of such a shepherd?

kainos — Tue, 15 Nov 2011 03:15:08 +0000

What would you think of a shepherd who doesn’t believe the lion out there — prowling, searching for a vulnerable, unsuspecting lamb — poses a mortal danger to his flock? What if he insists a “true” member of his flock could never be mortally wounded by such a beast?

In what way is the OSAS pastor-teacher not such a shepherd?

Hebrews 3:13 instructs us to “warn each other every day.” About what? Does your shepherd do that? Do you?

Sophisticated rationalizations

kainos — Thu, 10 Nov 2011 13:13:44 +0000

The problem with rigid Calvinism — or Arminianism, for that matter — is that they are rationalizations of Scripture, and that in two senses.

They are rationalizations in that they attempt to force a binary either/or framework onto the rich, multifaceted, often paradoxical truth of God’s Word. They also are rationalizations in the sense that they begin with an opinion — “Man is free” or “Man is not free” — and then twist, distort and ignore Scripture to make their case.

They are not crude rationalizations. In fact, they are wondrously sophisticated. The complexities of Calvinist sophistry is one reason Calvinism is experiencing a resurgence in this generation. Young people who have not understood the Scripture, left hungry for substantial truth by their parents’ dumbed-down evangelicalism, mistake complexity for profundity.

A sophisticated rationalization, however, is not any more true than a crude one. It’s just more effective at deceiving people.

Don’t stop trusting

kainos — Sun, 21 Aug 2011 20:53:39 +0000

… those branches were broken off because they didn’t believe in Christ, and you are there because you do believe. So don’t think highly of yourself, but fear what could happen. For if God did not spare the original branches, he won’t spare you either. Notice how God is both kind and severe. He is severe toward those who disobeyed, but kind to you if you continue to trust in his kindness. But if you stop trusting, you also will be cut off. (Romans 11:20-22)

A static, past-tense, once-saved-always-saved view of salvation cannot comprehend the dynamic, present-tense, salvation-is-a-journey view of salvation Scripture teaches. A rationalistic mindset believes the dots between any two Bible truths can be connected with a straight line, when in fact Scripture declares it is impossible for us to comprehend God’s ways — unsearchable (anexereunetos) and unfathomable (anexichniastos) in Romans 11:33. The rationalist brings “order” to God’s Word by ignoring or, worse, distorting the Scripture to fit the presuppositions of his theological system.

Paul wrote to the “dear brothers and sisters” of the church at Rome. He plainly said God himself had broken off natural branches of God’s cultivated tree because they did not believe in Christ. He was, and is, severe toward those who disobey.

Paul encouraged the brothers and sisters that they they had been grafted into the tree because they do believe in Christ. He promised them that as long as they continue to trust Christ, they will remain in him. Should they stop trusting, however, he warned that they themselves would experience God’s severity toward disobedience and be cut off as well.

Parse it any way you want. Unless you are willing to distort the Word of God, the message for the brothers and sisters is terrifyingly simple: If you stop trusting, you also will be cut off.

The believer — the one who trusts Christ — is secure. Don’t stop trusting.

‘Never saved in the first place’?

kainos — Fri, 05 Aug 2011 11:39:05 +0000

Jesus replied, “All who love me will do what I say. My Father will love them, and we will come and make our home with each of them. Anyone who doesn’t love me will not obey me. And remember, my words are not my own. What I am telling you is from the Father who sent me. (John 14:23-24 NLT)

Becoming disobedient to Jesus and returning to a life of “un-faith” doesn’t mean a person was “never saved in the first place.” That’s an easy excuse that avoids the issue and ignores the plain teaching of Scripture.

When a Christian begins to live again like an unregenerate person, it may mean the new believer was never taught about discipleship, about the need for a firm foundation and deep roots to endure in Christ. A sprout in shallow soil dies in the heat of the day. (Mark 4:5-6, 16-17) What if the shallow soil is the church that doesn’t teach about discipleship?

We have done new believers a disservice by teaching only the “born again” dimension of salvation. It is true: “If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.” (Romans 10:9 NLT) But what does it mean to believe? And must we believe for more than that one moment in which we are born again? And is it possible to quit believing? And what happens if we do?

A “once saved, always saved” conviction has led some preachers and evangelists to think they only need to proclaim “born again” salvation to get people into heaven. That is simply not true, but what does it mean for all those people — literally millions of souls — who have trusted Christ in evangelistic services but were never discipled? Will they be lost in the end? No, not if they sincerely accept Jesus and sincerely trust that decision for the rest of their lives. Perhaps they will read the Bible for themselves and grow in Christ. But how many Regular Church Attenders actually do that, much less those who only made a profession of faith and never became part of a fellowship of believers?

If people sincerely accept Jesus and sincerely trust that decision for the rest of their lives, I’ve got to believe they will enter heaven. God is faithful. Jesus will never forsake us. Nothing in heaven or earth can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus. Those who trust Christ for their salvation are secure in that salvation.

However, when we fail to teach new believers about obedience, bearing fruit, and enduring, we leave them at grave risk of failure. We don’t place a newborn in the crib and then never return to care for her. Many pastor/teachers do not teach about obedience, bearing fruit, and enduring. Perhaps it’s because their OSAS belief leads them to think discipleship is somehow optional. Perhaps it’s because church members don’t want to hear about discipleship after they have been taught they can be saved apart from it. In either case, without teaching about discipleship, it’s a second miracle of grace that any new believers survive at all. And if they don’t survive, part of the blame is ours.

Many new believers fail to become disciples because we do not obey the Lord’s command to make disciples. And what does Jesus say about those who don’t obey his commands?

Prodigal’s choice

kainos — Sat, 16 Jul 2011 16:47:32 +0000

Nothing could change the fact that the prodigal son had been born into his father’s family. But the son chose to leave home and go waste his life in a far country.

The son never quit being a son; the father never quit being his father. Happily, the son eventually chose to come home and be restored to his father’s love and grace.

But he could have chosen to stay in the far country. And die there.

Luke 15:11-32

If his branches don’t bear fruit …

kainos — Sat, 16 Jul 2011 15:11:35 +0000

John 15:1-6 says Jesus is the “true grapevine” and promises that if you, like a branch of the vine, will remain/abide in Christ, then he will remain/abide in you and you “will produce much fruit.” Praise God! What a great promise from the one who is faithful and true, the one who is able to keep every promise he makes!

However … “if” implies “if not.” So the passage also notes that branches “severed from the vine” cannot produce fruit. It says the Father is a gardener who “cuts off every branch of mine that doesn’t produce fruit.” It warns: “Anyone who does not remain in me is thrown away like a useless branch and withers. Such branches are gathered into a pile to be burned.”

This is not about people who were never saved in the first place. Jesus says these are his branches. They were connected to the vine at one point but did not produce fruit. Because they were useless branches, the gardener severed them from the vine. They were cut off and thrown away. They withered. They will wind up being gathered into a pile and burned.

The crucial difference between a Christian and a branch on a grapevine is that a Christian chooses to abide in Christ and be fruitful — or not.

“Anyone with ears to hear must listen to the Spirit and understand what he is saying to the churches.” (Rev. 2:7,11,17,29,3:6,13,22 )

Why called but not chosen?

kainos — Wed, 06 Jul 2011 17:12:08 +0000

The choices of the called were what caused them to not be chosen.

Matthew 22:1-14

instead of TULIP

kainos — Wed, 08 Jun 2011 11:39:26 +0000

AGAPE

Awful depravity: universal, not total

Grace gift: free, not irresistible

Atonement for all: available, not limited

Perseverance promised: assured, not inevitable

Election: yes, unconditional