Category All Articles

Ephesians 2:8-9

8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:
8 τη γαρ χαριτι εστε σεσωσμενοι δια της   πιστεως και τουτο ουκ εξ υμων θεου το δωρον
             n;DAT;Sg,F   vpPerfPasNomPlm  GenSgF nGenSgF      NomSgn                                     nNomSgn

9 Not of works, lest any man should boast.
9 ουκ εξ εργων ινα μη τις καυχησηται
               nGenPln

Calvinism claims that saving faith is “gifted faith” – that God causes each person whom He elected and foreknew to receive faith from God in order to be saved...

Looking at Matthew 11:25-30, notice a few things:

“Come unto me all who labour and are heavy-laden, and I will give you rest.” Jesus was speaking to the crowd; His invitation is to ‘all’.

“Take my yoke upon you and learn of me…” something they must choose to do for themselves.

My Strong’s concordance notes re: 1014 are interesting: “will; to will, to be willing, to be disposed, minded, intend.” But when you look at the other ‘will’ 2309 thelo / theleo etc., it says “to determine; as an active option from subjective impulse” and calls attention to 1014, stating 1014 ‘properly denotes passive acquiescence in objective considerations”. In other words, the 1014 “will” found in 11:27 has the sense of allowing something to come about...

T – Total Depravity of Man

U – Unconditional Election

L – Lmited Atonement

I – Irresistable Grace

P – Perseverence of the Saints

Total Depravity of Man:

Calvinism states that when Adam sinned against God, human nature changed. Mankind became inherently wicked by inheriting from Adam a “sinful nature” which is supposedly acquired as a consequence of his disobedience. All humans born after Adam would inherit his innate wickedness, being born with a nature completely at enmity with God; in-born rejection of God, a disinclination to consider or hear God, and an inability to respond positively to God. Wicked humanity would, if God did not intervene, naturally and wilfully oppose God in every way, with neither the desire nor the ability to choose to do otherwise...

You ask why a good God would allow a negative circumstance to happen; but what would you recommend as the alternative?

 Most negative circumstances are direct results of human decisions. While it is true that we can be negatively affected by decisions made by others, which may seem “unfair”, the fact remains that those were human choices, and choices made contrary to God’s right – ness.

 So, should God interfere in the decisions of men to prevent every choice that may have a negative impact on other people? Some have said that God should have “stopped” Hitler, or Pol Pot. He should have “stopped” the dozens of school shooters, He should “stop” the drug lords.

 How exactly should He stop them? Wipe them out? When should He wipe them out: when they begin to ‘go bad’? Should He prevent the...

Man’s nature did not change when Adam sinned. The same nature in Adam that inclined him to disobey God inclines each of us to do likewise. The same nature that allowed Eve to question what God had said continues among millions today who question God’s Word. As soon as anyone entertains the possibility that God might have been wrong, he has demoted God in his own mind from Sovereign Deity. [1] If God is neither sovereign nor divine, the requirement to submit to Him does not exist. He has neither absolute authority nor the power to exercise ultimate authority; men are free to judge for themselves and follow their own thinking.

Adam and Eve were clearly shown to be able to doubt God’s word, God’s right and ability to judgement and pronouncement, and even to doubt God’s motives in sett...

The Bible does not teach that man’s nature has changed since the fall, despite the concept of man’s sin nature becoming widely accepted due to its propagation through certain theological systems. Some modern English versions of the Bible, including the NIV, have erroneously used the English phrase “sin nature” or “sinful nature” for the Greek word sarx , which is correctly translated ‘flesh’, imposing a sense that does not exist in the text itself.

Man’s nature had always included the capacity to sin, yet at creation God declared his creation to be ‘very good’.[1] Adam’s original sin therefore was not a result of his nature except to the extent of his ability to commit it...

God could have built one people from Isaac making of both sons one holy nation. But it was His purpose to make a distinction between the two men. Esau sold his birthright. Jacob sought a birthright he did not possess.

Why did God choose Jacob? The Bible does not say, it only states that He chose him to make a people of him. Jacob desired a blessing to which he was not naturally entitled. The Bible does not say that God placed that desire in Jacob’s heart, nor caused him to seek the face of God. In fact, Jacob’s desire was motivated by sin, and empowered by sin – deception and supplanting of the natural heir.

Esau, on the other hand, was unfaithful and ungrateful, despising his birthright for the immediate satisfaction of his natural desires...

Chosen Father

God chose Abraham to father the nation of Israel. Out of a wilderness of idolatrous people[1], God called to Abram to leave his country, his people, and his father’s house to travel to a new land which God would show to him. We see nothing about Abram that would distinguish him from the people around him, to cause him to have special consideration from God, and God does  not tell us why Abram was chosen. We see only that he was chosen.

In the same way that God chose Abram to father the earthly nation, God chose Jesus Christ to father the spiritual nation, the family of the redeemed of God. In election, Abraham is a type of Christ, being the chosen vessel through whom God would birth a holy people to Himself.

God appointed Isaac, the miraculous son of Abraham, to father a n...

Christian Apologetics is the defense of the reasonableness, relevance, and importance of Christian faith, the authenticity, reliability, and truth of the Bible.

Is apologetics Biblical?

Some people argue that apologetics is a waste of time, or that it’s unbiblical. A thorough read through the entire book of Acts shows that the apostles and early disciples did not share that position. Christ’s messengers employed a variety of modes and means to communicate the truth of Christ, according to the audience they were addressing. By the time you have finished reading the Book of Acts, you will have read dozens of examples of the followers of Jesus Christ providing an apologetic for the truth and reliability of Holy Scripture, the importance of believing God, and the reasonableness of the Chr...

The following information is intended to provide a framework within which to approach the study of Apologetics.

Definition of Apologetics

The English word “apologetics” derives from the Greek word “apologia”, which means:

“reasoned defence, esp. of Christianity” (Oxford Illustrated Dictionary) or “a speech in defence” (The New Webster Dictionary of the English Language, 1965)

Purpose of Apologetics

To give a defence of 1) the Christian faith   2) the authority of Scripture 3) its relevance

What it is NOT

To use reason and material evidences to ‘prove’ the Bible

Principle

The Bible is true because it is God’s word, not because we can prove it...