ryan.the.calvinist

"Love the sinner, hate the sin!" Does that phrase sound familiar to you? This simple phrase has been spreading like a disease among both Mainliners and Evangelicals for many many years now. I can remember hearing this and buying into it at a very young age as I had been drawn in to the Unregerate-Friendly Church some years ago. However I learned something today that startled me to be sure. You may be familiar with said quote... but you may not be aware from whom it came. "Love the sinner, hate the sin." -- Mahatma Ghandi ... wow. "Christians" are taking THEOLOGICAL ADVICE... from a HINDU??!?!!? WHAT?! We should be quoting our Lord Christ Jesus in confronting sinners about the gospel-- " Repent and believe in the gospel! " (Mark 1:15). Do we hold the words of an unregenerate Hindu above those of Holy Scripture? Actually, let's take a look at what the BIBLE says about God's relationship to unregenerate sinners: " For you are not a...

Matthew 10:20-23 For it is not you who speak, but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you. Brother will deliver brother over to death, and the father his child, and children will rise against parents and have them put to death, and you will be hated by all for my name's sake. But the one who endures to the end will be saved. When they persecute you in one town, flee to the next, for truly, I say to you, you will not have gone through all the towns of Israel before the Son of Man comes. I read this verse today as part of my Bible reading schedule I am currently going through (the NT in 6 months). I pointed this verse out because it is largely glossed over by many pillow "Christians." What do I mean by pillow Christians? I guess I could bring Snuggles back from my previous post, but I am trying to be more creative. Anyway... I digress... Osteen and other prosperity preachers like to focus on man. A very man-centered gospel is sprung from their mouths. T...

I am astonished how often people misunderstand the Sermon on the Mount, recorded in Matthew 5, 6 & 7. I have actually heard it claimed this sermon of Jesus isn't preachy... that it is a wonderful piece that shows a fluffy gracious God who seems more like a fictional Santa than Lord. These persons read Matthew 5:3-12 , and then it seems their eyes wonder off, or they shut down. To them, Jesus is ONLY someone who cares about the poor, the sorrowful, the meek, the hungry, the the merciful, peacemakers, and persecuted (I skip Mt 5:8, because most probably do-- if they had a concept for what purity was they would view the gospel differently), accepting them as they are! But wait a minute. Surely Jesus Christ IS concerned with those things! ALL scripture is God-breathed and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in self righteousness, that the man of God may be competent, equipped for every good work. I do not deny the words of Christ Jesus. Be...

"Hence, the soul in its natural state is spiritually dead. Ephesians 2:1, 'And you hath he quickened, you were dead in trespasses and sins.' Colossians 2:13, 'And you, being dead in your sins... hath he quickened together with him.' That is, the soul is so entirely destitute of the first principles of holy and spiritual life that [it is] as much without it as he that is naturally dead is of the principles of natural life. The fires is all gone out. There is not one spark left. It signifies nothing to blow, except fire be brought from some other place. "Surely physicians are, of themselves, none of them able to raise the dead. You may apply what medicines you please to a dead man, you cannot fetch him to life. You may set what food you will before him, it will not nourish him. You may represent what objects you will, he will not see. If you charm in his ears ever so wisely, he will not hear. You can do no good at all to a dead man. Nothing...

**taken from ReformationTheology.com ** Unconditional Election God is Sovereign Exo 15:18; 1Chr 29:11-12; 2Chr 20:6; Psa 22:28 He exercises that sovereignty in actively ordaining everything Deu 32:39; 1Sam 2:6-8; Job 9:12; Job 12:6-10; Psa 33:11; Psa 115:3; Psa 135:6; Isa 14:24; Isa 45:7; Act 15:18; Eph 1:11 Including matters of “chance” Pro 16:33; 1Ki 22:20, 34, 37 The wicked actions of men Gen 45:5; Gen 50:20; Exo 4:21; Jdg 14:1-4; Psa 76:10; Pro 16:4; Isa 44:28; Amos 3:6; Act 2:22-23; Act 4:27-28 The actions of evil spirits 1Sam 16:14-16; 1Ki 22:19-23; 1Chr 21:1/2Sam 24:1 The good actions of men John 15:16; Eph 2:10; Phi 2:12-13 The actions of good angels Psa 103:20; Psa 104:4 The actions of animals Num 22:28; 1Ki 17:4; Psa 29:9; Jer 8:7; Eze 32:4; Dan 6:22 The operations of all creation Gen 8:22; Psa 104:5-10; Psa 104:13-14; Psa 104:19-20; Mark 4:39 Man is not permitted to question his sovereign acts Job 33:12-13; Isa 29:16; Isa 45:9-10; Mat 20:1-16; Rom 9:19-...

The following is a paper I wrote last night for my Historical Jesus course. Who Jesus Is For many, a course about the “Historical Jesus” may shake one's faith that existed prior to taking such a course. After all, there seem to be many apparent contradictions that are, at first glance, impossible to harmonize with one another. Such examples of inconsistencies are Judas' death, Jesus' last words, and even the style of picture that is painted of Jesus by the writers of the gospels. However this course has done nothing to cause me to lose my faith in the New Testament or in the person of Jesus of Nazareth. As I look back on the last few months, I can see that my view of Jesus of Nazareth has changed very little, if at all, as a result of this course. Having to describe Jesus using ten words or fewer, my answer would still be, “Jesus' death and resurrection provided the only way to God.” That wasn't my exact answer as it was in September, however it is ext...

It has been quite a while since I've written a blog.  I'm thinking back to when I began college in August 2004... now it is December 2007, and I rarely update any of my blogs it seems.  So much is always going on, I rarely see a point to really do so any more.  ::sigh:: My classes are now at nears end.  I will say, the course I have enjoyed far more than any other course this semester is my Religion 320 course... Jesus of Nazareth, commonly called "The Historical Jesus" (as if the Jesus of biblical Christianity is different from the "historical figure" of Jesus... ha on the liberal university for trying to indoctrinate me to believe it is so).  Again, I think I mentioned this in a previous blog, I felt I am too conservative for the class.  Some of my peers, including one I thought to be a strong believing Christian when the course began in August, seem Hell-bent on proving error in the text and that Jesus couldn't have done x , because...