I’m sure these issues will come around again, probably soon.

No Calvinist should complain that he’s not well received in other churches, be they Southern Baptist or whatever. WHAT are they doing in our churches anyway? We don’t want their doctrines and they don’t want ours. As far as our churches go, Calvinists need to mind their own business, like the other Christian cults do.

2 Pet 2:1-3 explains Calvinists in our churches….

I simply shared my very “personal” experience…

It was not my intent to demonize non-Calvinist in anyway, I have many non-Calvinist friends in the SBC (those who believe somewhere between 1 and 4 point of Calvinism). I was simply trying to draw attention to truth that many Calvinist Pastors have quietly been suffering an unjust and ongoing persecution in the SBC at the hands of those who are aggressive and belligerent Anti-Calvinist.

Brother David, it has broken my heart to see what has been done to some of the most humble, gracious, and kind men of God in the SBC; all because they dared to believe what they found in the Scriptures and what their forefathers believed. Yes, I know there have been Jerks among us Calvinist and I really have no sympathy for them when they have gotten the boot, but for every Calvinist Jerk that lost his pulpit, I know a dozen who were not Jerks and did not deserve to be treated with such hostility and disrespect.

Grace Always,

Greg Alfords last blog post..Voddie Baucham on The SBC and Calvinism

It hard to believe that God was Sovereign to Mr. Calvin when in his opinion (judgment) of the Word at John 6:29, he says, “First, it is plain enough that Christ does not speak with strict accuracy, when he calls faith a work, just as Paul makes a comparison between the law of faith and the law of works,” (See Calvin’s opinion of the inspired Word of truth by Paul at Romans 3:27.)

Unlike Pilate, Mr. Calvin saw fault in the Word (Christ), and reformed (corrected) it/him to fit a faith of his own (that faith ‘is not’ a work to be accounted as merited by a man and rewarded). (See Abraham at Gal 3:6/James 2:23 and Heb 11:6)

Anyway, Calvinism isn’t called the “reformed” faith for nothing. I for one refuse to have my faith (the Word of God) reformed (corrected) by any man.

As for a decline of membership or attendance in our churches, it seems that Christians today are in hiding, and ‘people in general’ simply don’t want to go to church. More signs of the times….?

But pastor, you’re right, just preach the gospel of God to all the people you can, as if they’re all your children and you love them and want them all to have eternal life with you and the Lord, and I’ll bet you’ll be called a faithful servant.

How many people have great truthful things to say but are tuned out by those who need to hear it because of their presentation?

As a Calvinist myself, I must admit that I am guilty of being too loud at times. I must be careful in the future not to come across to others as you have come across to me in this thread.

Thanks,

CC

Your presentation of Calvinists as innocent victims under attack by anti-calvinist forces just does not match up with reality. For the record, I believe in the sovereignty of God in salvation, though I am not crazy about the tag calvinist because I believe there is much weak doctrine that parades under that umbrella today.

SBC calvinists sometimes make their own problems by being overly-aggressive, dismissive and condescending to those who have not seen the light and seeming more interesting is growing calvinism than in growing the church.

I don’t doubt that anti-calvinists have done some bad things, but your presentation of the situation is slanted and, I think, unfair.

Dave Millers last blog post..Divorced Men CAN Serve as Pastors, Elders and Deacons

TO ANSWER YOUR QUESTION MY DD IS FROM GOSPEL BAPTIST
MISSIONS, KNOXVILLE, TN, SIGNED BY WILLIAM L HARVEY PHD PRESIDENT/FOUNDER. It is a honorary doctorate Given for 40 years of service.

thanks for the clarification of where you’re comin’ from. i’ve heard “hard calvinism” as a non-judgmental way of meaning you accept all 5 points, and “soft” as a designation meaning you accept 3 or 4. i’ll do well to keep in mind that my terminology might be heard differently from people in different circles than mine.

yeah, i think there’s room for both views. thanks for hearing that part of my (over)lengthy comment. i was blessed to pastor a small church in missouri with mature lay-people who stood on both sides. the same people who could have lively discussions (lively, but rarely heated) over this were also able to sit down, worship together, eat together, work together, and even evangelize togther. that was also eye-opening.

yeah, i agree with the post, that ministers need to own some of the blame for decline. and, like yourself, i think the answer is preaching the gospel, building our theology from there, and continuing to dialogue about which matters are central and which have room for multiple positions, like the order of salvation.

thanks for your response, i appreciate it.

mike

Mikes last blog post..can a stalled economy help us refocus?