Election is greatly misunderstood by many who claim to be Christian. Israel is elect among the nations yet not all of Israel is saved. God chose Israel by His sovereign will to be a peculiar nation among mankind. Those who receive Christ as their Savior are elect among mankind again by the determinate sovereign will of God. Those who reject Christ are lost.
Calvinism is the result of a theological argument not a divine doctrine cause by God. Not a single person becomes saved by following Calvinism or any other religious teaching i.e. Catholicism, Baptist or such.
You do not need a degree in theology to come to Christ. You need only to hear the word of God, the bible, the Holy Spirit will bring conviction of sin, righteousness and judgment. You will know and understand that the word of God is true and short of repentance and belief in Christ you will perish for eternity.
After conversion if one is not discipled in the word of God they are likely to be tossed about with every wind of doctrine that is not biblically sound.
Exactly.
2 Tim 3:15-17 15
From a child thou hast known the holy scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus. All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: That the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works.
Israelite and Jewish children are "sons of the commandment" (bar mitzvah) as they are raised 'under the Torah' or Pentateuch, pre-eminent to 'the law' itself in the litigious sense (e.g. the way they argued against Christ), and predating the 'prophets' (bar Moses), psalms, et al, and NT. Similar is taught to Christian children, those at new missionary churches, etc. The problem is that this teaching typically ends prematurely. i.e. supercessionism.
"Ye shall not add unto the word which I command you, neither shall ye diminish ought from it, that ye may keep the commandments of the Lord your God which I command you." (Deu 4:2)
The first 5 books are
the fundamental 'foundation' of Christ. Hence the Lord said, "For if you believed Moses, you would believe Me; for he wrote about Me" (Jn 5:46)-- Deviation from this is where all errors or 'heresy' originates, inc. papal authority, bishops, ministers, reverends, 'teaching elders', doctors of theology, church councils, whatever. These
para-religions are
not from Christ, thus are inevitably
anti-Christ (both lower case and capitalised).
"Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven. ... And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity." (Mt 7:21-23)
People at Christ's time were debating about Hillel and Shammai, just like this thread.
The reason Christ taught of a 'Good Samaritan' is because the Samaritans take the above so seriously that the Torah/Pentateuch is followed
exclusively. In fact, the Samaritans challenge nearly all the decisions regarding at Jerusalem, from David, Solomon, etc. Similar for the Essenes who penned the Dead Sea Scrolls.
And as we know from the parable, this manifested in the 'good deeds' or 'good works' ("charity") done in going above and beyond to help another man who 'fell among thieves'. Victim to theft is the case for most people living under our current kleptocratic authorities. It goes back to the Serpent and Eve, Jacob defrauding Isaac.
Jerusalem, however was corrupt: Priests, Sadducees, Pharisees, all deviated from the foundation therefore could not see Christ. Christ's rejection of these groups is numerous, even the physical location has been destroyed. The kleptocracy was profiteering and snickering at their congregations expense. The same is true now, except churches are doing the same.
And yet the Lord did
not discredit them entirely: "For I say unto you, That except your righteousness shall
exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven." (Mt 5:20)--Indicating that their base principles regarding Scriptural 'purity' and emphasis on the Torah are
correct, however their
interpretation and
teaching (doctrine and system of religion) regarding the 'application' that is in error and will thus yield no fruit. e.g. the vanity of religious ritualism. It is a path of death. -- Nicodemus could not understand Christ for this reason, his presupposition lacked the notion of a physical 're-birth' and other things. Resurrection and a new kingdom was bizarre to him as it was for Christ's disciples. Yet ironically,
Zoroastrianism from Persia/Media/Central Asia had already grasped this 1500-1200 BC! In the same way God has repeatedly used Gentiles to arouse "jealousy" in Israel/Judah.
'Calvin's Calvinism' agrees in this principally but deviates elsewhere unfortunately, I believe due to political pressure from the Council of Geneva (Genevan Consistory), political reasons for the purposes of progress ('semper reformanda') at the expense of truth, but also his character/temper. That Calvin was a man and his ideas cannot be taken as Gospel or divine revelation.
He wrote: "By the Law, I understand not only the Ten Commandments, which contain a complete rule of life, but
the whole system of religion delivered by the hand of Moses." (Calvin, Institutes)
I repeat the irony: Torah/Pentateuch = "a complete rule of life"
Quoting McMahon:
The Law plays an integral part in the whole schema of redemptive history. Man cannot keep it, and so a Mediator must arise who can keep it and fulfill its requirement. Calvin sees the Law of God as the whole system of religion handed down by God to Moses. The moral Law has its end in Christ, as Paul makes so plain in Romans and Galatians. The Law, Calvin says, makes men inexcusable. If they kept the law perfectly (which none do) then God would be obliged to reward them with eternal life. However, all break the law and have broken the law in Adam. Thus the Law stands to condemn them. The Law also keeps men from doing evil. It restrains them, which is necessary for society to function properly. For believers, though, the Law is used for teaching and for exhortation. “Confronted by the Commandments, we learn how far we are from righteousness.” Thus its final purpose is to provide the pattern by which we must live in perfect conformity to mirror God’s righteousness. The Old Covenant was used as a type of the perfect fulfillment of Christ to come and is completed in him.
(A Short Summary of Calvin's Institutes - by Dr. C. Matthew McMahon,
A Short Summary of Calvin’s Institutes – by Dr. C. Matthew McMahon | Reformed Theology at A Puritan's Mind)
This is where Jerusalem, Roman Catholicism, Protestantism, Lutheranism, Calvinism, and Dispensationalists et al are in error. Re-categorisation of 'Mosaic Law' and or hateful anti-semitism. -- "They said in their hearts, Let us destroy them together: they have burned up all the synagogues of God in the land." (Ps 74:8) and the Reformers said: "Set fire to their synagogues or schools" (Luther, on the Jews and their lies)
All of us are born into a certain thought culture that shapes our thinking rightly or wrongly, we are all tainted, errant, heretical, and complicit in the death of Christ in that regard.
My encouragement to all believers on CC is to focus on the fundamentals, to build one's house/life on the solid rock that is Christ: "That ye study to be quiet, and to do your own business, and to work with your own hands, as we commanded you" (1 Thes 4:11) -- And placing one's 'faith' and 'hope' in Christ, without dismissing God's original promises.
Blessings to all
