Saturday, January 04, 2025

Origen Refutes Calvinism

So you believe that Calvinism is "biblical" and interprets the Bible "correctly"? Read Origen's apologetic against the Gnostics of his day and take note of the verses they used and what they taught. Notice the parallel with Calvinism. Origen refutes their interpretation and obliterates their beliefs.

"Let us observe how Paul, too, addresses us as having freedom of the will and as being our- selves the cause of ruin or salvation. He says, "You are treasuring up for yourself wrath on the day of wrath and the revelation of the righteous judgment of God—who will render to everyone according to his works." . . . There are, indeed, innumerable passages in the Scriptures that establish with exceeding clarity the existence of freedom of the will. But, since certain declarations of the Old Testament and of the New lead to the opposite conclusion-namely, that it does not depend on ourselves to keep the commandments and to be saved, or to transgress them and to be lost—let us examine them one by one and see the explanations. . . . The statements regarding Pharaoh have troubled many, respecting whom God declared several times, "I will harden Pharaoh's heart." For if he is hardened by God and commits sin because of being hardened, he is not the cause of sin to himself. If so, then Pharaoh does not possess free will. . . . There is also the declaration in Ezekiel, "I will take away their stony hearts and will put in them hearts of flesh so that they may walk in My precepts and keep My commandments." This might lead someone to think that it was God who gave the power to walk in His commandments and to keep His commandments—by His withdrawing the hindrance (the stony heart) and implanting a better heart of flesh. And let us look also at the passage in the Gospel . . . "That seeing they might not see and hearing they may hear and not understand. Lest they would be converted and their sins be forgiven them."

There is also the passage in Paul: "It is not of him that wills, nor of him that runs, but of God who shows mercy." Furthermore, there are declarations in other places that "both to will and to do are of God" and "that God has mercy upon whom He will have mercy; and whom He wishes, He hardens." . . . And also, "But who are you, O man, to talk back to God? Will the thing formed say to him who formed it, 'Why have you made me like this?' Does the potter not have power over the clay—from the same lump to make one vessel unto honor, and another unto dishonour?" Now, these passages are sufficient of themselves to trouble the multitude—as if man were not possessed of free will, but as if it were God who saves and destroys whom He wills. Let us begin, then, with what is said about Pharaoh—that he was hardened by God so that he would not send the people away. . . . Some of those who hold different opinions [i.e., the Gnostics] misuse these passages. They essentially destroy free will by introducing ruined natures incapable of salvation and by introducing others as being saved in such a way that they cannot be lost. . . . Let us now see what these passages mean. For we will ask them if Pharaoh was of a fleshly nature. And when they answer, we will say that he who is of a fleshly nature is altogether disobedient to God. And if he is disobedient, what need is there for his heart to be hardened—not only once, but frequently? Unless we are to think that . . . God needs him to be disobedient to a greater degree in order that He could manifest His mighty deeds for the salvation of the multitude. Therefore, God hardens his heart. This will be our answer to them in the first place.

Since we consider God to be both good and just, let us see how the good and just God could harden the heart of Pharaoh. Perhaps by an illustration used by the apostle in the Epistle to the Hebrews, we may be able to show that, by the same operation, God can show mercy on one man while he hardens another, although not intending to harden. . . . "The earth," he says, "drinks in the rain that often comes upon it and produces crops to those for whom it is farmed, receiving the blessing from God. But that which produces thorns and briers is worthless, and is in danger of being cursed. Its end is to be burned." . . . It may seem profane for the One who produces rain to say, "I produced both the fruit and the thorns that are in the earth." Yet, although seemingly profane, it is true. If the rain had not fallen, there would have been neither fruit nor thorns. . . . The blessing of the rain, therefore, fell even on the unproductive land. But since it was neglected and uncultivated, it yielded thorns and thistles. In the same way, the wonderful acts of God are like the rain. The differing purposes are like the cultivated and the neglected land. . . . If the sun had a voice, it might say, "I both liquefy and dry up." Although liquefying and drying are opposite things, the sun would not speak falsely on this point. For wax is melted and mud is dried up by the same heat. In the same way, the operation performed through the instrumentality of Moses, on the one hand, hardened Pharaoh (because of his own wickedness), and it softened the mixed Egyptian multitude, who departed with the Hebrews. . . . Now, suppose that the words the apostle addressed to sinners had been addressed to Pharaoh. Then, the announcements made to him will be understood to have been made with particular application. It is as to one who—according to his hardness and unrepentant heart—was treasuring up wrath for himself. For his hardness would not have been demonstrated nor made manifest unless miracles had been performed, particularly miracles of such magnitude and importance. . . .

If it is not we who do anything towards the production within ourselves of the heart of flesh—but if it is [all] God's doing—it would not be our own act to live agreeably to virtue. Rather, it would be altogether an act of divine grace. This would be the statements of one who from the mere words annihilates free will. But we will answer, saying that we should understand these passages in this way: It is like a man who happens to be ignorant and uneducated. On perceiving his own defects—either because of an exhortation from his teacher, or in some other way—he spontaneously gives himself up to an instructor whom he believes can educate him and teach him virtue. Now, on his yielding himself up, his instructor promises that he will take away the man's ignorance and implant instruction. Yet, it is not as if the student contributed nothing to his own training. . . . In the same way, the Word of God promises to take away wickedness (which it calls a stony heart) from those who come to Him. But not if they are unwilling to come. It is only if they submit themselves to the Physician of the sick. . . .

After this, there is the passage from the Gospel where the Saviour said, . . . "Seeing, they may not see, and hearing, they may not understand. Lest they would be converted and their sins be forgiven them." Now, our opponent [the Gnostics] will say . . . it is not within the power of such ones to be saved. If that were so, we are not possessed of free will as regards salvation and destruction. . . . In the first place, then, we must notice the passage in its bearing on the heretics, who . . . daringly assert the cruelty of the Creator of the world. . . . They say that goodness does not exist in the Creator. . . . Come, then, and let us (to the best of our ability) furnish an answer to the question submitted to us. . . . The Saviour . . . had foreseen them as persons who were not likely to prove steady in their conversion, even if they heard the words that were spoken more clearly. For that reason, they were treated this way by the Saviour. . . . Otherwise, after a rapid conversion and healing through obtaining remission of sins, they would despise the wounds of their wickedness, as being slight and easy to heal. As a result, they would again quickly relapse into them. . . .

"Shall the thing formed say to him who formed it, "Why have you made me this way?" Has not the potter power over the clay, of the same lump to make one vessel unto honour and another unto dishonour?" . . . Now we must ask the person who uses these passages whether it is possible to conceive that the apostle contradicts himself. I presume that no one will venture to say it is. If, then, the apostle does not utter contradictions, how can he, according to the person who so understands him, justly find fault with anyone? How could he condemn the individual at Corinth who had committed fornication, or those who had fallen away? . . . And how could he bless those whom he praises as having done well? . . . It is not consistent for the same apostle to blame the sinner as worthy of censure and to praise him who had done well as deserving of approval—but yet, on the other hand, to say (as if nothing depended on ourselves that the cause was in the Creator for the one vessel to be formed to honour and the other to dishonour. . . . The power that is given us to enable us to conquer may be used—in accordance with our faculty of free will—either in a diligent manner (in which case, we prove victorious) or in a slothful manner (in which case, we are defeated). For if such a power were wholly given us in such a way that we would always prove victorious and never be defeated, what further reason would there be for a struggle—for such a one could not be overcome? Or what merit would there be in a victory, if the power of successful resistance is taken away? However, if the possibility of conquering is equally conferred on all of us—and if it is in our own power how to use this possibility (either diligently or slothfully)—then the defeated can be justly censured and the victor can be deservedly praised."

Calvinists use these exact same verses from Romans 9 to teach the exact same teachings the Gnostics believed. The early Congregation of the Lord condemned these beliefs as heresy and Origen refuted them beautifully. If you have been taught to believe Calvinism is "biblical," then reading Origen's apologetic should give you pause to reconsider your beliefs. If you are not willing to confront your own errors and correct them, then you are part of a cult and have a cult mindset.

Wednesday, January 01, 2025

1 Corinthians 15:1-4 is NOT "the Gospel"!

David J. Stewart has no clue what the biblical Gospel is. He frequently refers to 1 Corinthians 15:1-4, but this is not "the Gospel." "But," you will argue, "Paul says, 'I make known to you, brethren, the gospel which I preached to you.'" Yes, he does, but you misread this passage. Nowhere does Paul identify that which he says in verses 3 and 4 as "the Gospel." You make this leap in logic by trying to connect these verses to his use of "Gospel" in verse 1. If he were indeed saying this is the Gospel, who do we trust and believe to rightly identify what the Gospel is? Paul or Jesus? Who is the Author and Founder of Christianity? Paul or Jesus? What Paul identifies here as "of first importance" are the essentials of the faith, that which all believers in Jesus the Messiah must hold in unity. Jesus declared to us what "the Gospel" is in Mark 1:14-15. Believe the Lord Jesus over that which originates with Martin Luther!

"Now after John had been taken into custody, Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of God, and saying, "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.""

"The time is fulfilled" refers to the beginning of the 70th week of Daniel's prophecy, initiated by Jesus' baptismal anointing. "The kingdom of God is at hand" refers to Daniel 2:44 in fulfillment thereof. The "Good News" is that Yahweh's anointed King of the whole Earth has come, and the long-awaited Kingdom is in our midst.

Rabbinism, Zionism, and Dispensationalism ignore, deny, and reject the teachings of the Holy Scriptures in favour of Jewish myths. The interpretations of the Pharisees in Jesus' day were constantly refuted and corrected by the Lord Jesus. These three groups are looking for a physical kingdom where ethnic physical Israel rules over all other nations, but God's Word teaches no such thing!

After everything Jesus had said and taught, the apostles still did not get it. "So when they had come together, they were asking Him, saying, "Lord, is it at this time You are restoring the kingdom to Israel?" (Acts 1:6). They were with Him for three and a half years and did not listen to a single thing He had to say concerning the Kingdom. "Now having been questioned by the Pharisees as to when the kingdom of God was coming, He answered them and said, "The kingdom of God is not coming with signs to be observed; nor will they say, 'Look, here it is!' or, 'There it is!' For behold, the kingdom of God is in your midst."" (Luke 17:20-21). "Jesus answered, "My kingdom is not of this world. If My kingdom were of this world, then My servants would be fighting so that I would not be handed over to the Jews; but as it is, My kingdom is not of this realm."" (John 18:36). I think come Pentecost the apostles finally understood about the Kingdom because there appears to be a change in their understanding. Otherwise, how would they preach about the Kingdom of God if they did not fully understand what Jesus had been conveying, even in His parables?

Yes, the suffering, death, and resurrection of Jesus were prophesied long ago in the Old Covenant. However, these were not identified by the Lord Jesus as "the Gospel." They had to happen, and they did, and they are part of the Gospel, but they are not what Jesus identified for us as "the Gospel." We would do well to pay attention to the words of Jesus and accept them as true than to elevate Martin Luther's redefinition of "the Gospel" using the atonement. In Jesus' parables about the Kingdom, He says the King sent His own Son and the children of the Kingdom (who would be cast out for their rejection) killed Him. The atonement is meaningless without that which it conveys.

What people like David J. Stewart call "the Gospel" is actually the atonement. While the atonement is true and is part of the Gospel, it alone is not the Gospel. The atonement grants us entrance into this Kingdom through faith (trust) in Jesus and His work on the cross, as well as by repentance and obedience. The Bible only has to say something once for it to be true. So how to so-called self-identified "Christians" who say repentance and obedience "are works" and have "no part with salvation" deal with the fact that we are repeatedly told to "Repent" and "Obey"? At the end of the Instruction on the Mount, Jesus addresses obedience and disobedience to His teachings. Repeatedly throughout the entire New Covenant, it is said "If you love [Jesus] you will [obey His] commandments/teachings."

If you call yourself a Christian, STOP listening to what preachers tell you and START reading the Scriptures for yourself and believing what they say. If a preacher tells you something that is blatantly in contradiction to the Word of Yahweh, then you need to reject it and conform to the Scriptures. If you blindly trust what these preachers tell you, like the Pharisees of old, they will prevent you from entering the Kingdom and make you twice the children of Hell that they are! Preachers, theologians, and "scholars" are the modern day Pharisees, Sadducees, and Scribes. Beware their leaven!

Here's the Actual Point

A sound, biblical soteriology can be taught, maintained, and defended without subscribing to the bankrupt theology of Calvinism.

This claim is highly demonstrable. If one is not willfully ignorant, all one has to do is look to the first three centuries. Tom Nettles claims that,

"the loss of Calvinism in issues concerning election, depravity, and effectual calling paralleled the loss of inerrancy and soteriological exclusivity and has led to a truncated evangelism that jettisoned the doctrinal foundation for the examination of an experience of grace. This affected not only soteriology, but ecclesiology."

This claim, however, is not demonstrable. It is fallacious and engages in projection, assumptions, and conclusions drawn from assumptions.

Evangelism does not include recognition and warning about the deceitfulness and hardness of the human heart, nor affirmations that only by divine prerogative and power will anyone believe, as that was not in the preaching of either Jesus or Paul, nor the first three centuries of the early Christians. These ideas were prominent among the Gnostics (to which the early Christians rejected as heresy), were then revived by Augustine (the father of both the Roman Catholics and the Protestant Reformation), and then embraced by John Calvin (whose conduct and character did not reflect that of a biblical Christian in the least). These ideas are entirely irrelevant and can be trashed without harm to evangelism, both in message and method.

A soteriology with Calvinism is a path to bad religion and compromised churches. In the past 500 years, the Calvinist experiment has been at work and has failed. Scholars have noted that Calvinism (a.k.a. "TULIP" or "The Doctrines of Grace") has risen up in popularity four times over the past 500 years. Every single time, it always dies back down. Why do you suppose that is? Well, either God ordained it to be such, or else the system just does not hold any water theologically and/or logically. The "move beyond Calvinism" is a move toward biblical religion; the move toward Calvinism is a move toward bad religion, that which mars the eternal nature of God in both His love and His holiness.

The ten-point Traditionalist statement as put forth by Leighton Flowers does have some unbiblical statements within it because it is still holding to certain Calvinistic teachings. However, all one has to do is read the first three centuries of the early Christians to see what the historical teaching of the Congregation has been. If one discerningly reads and carefully pays attention to what one is reading, it is clear that the Bible teaches the exact same things. Leighton Flowers thinks his ten points are entirely biblical, but he could not be further from the truth. He is less wrong than the Calvinist, but he is still wrong. He would do well to study the early Christians. In fact, all professing Christians would do well to study the early Christians. If you want to discover the truth, go to the primary sources; go to the beginning to see what they taught and believed.

Calvinists like Tom Nettles have a problem with humility. Their pride and ego get in the way. They assume that because they have been taught a particular way, that what they have been taught is inerrant and infallible. Guess what? Every denomination believes their systematic to be without flaw. Most Christians lack the humility to consider the possibility that they may be wrong and to subject their entire belief system to extreme doubt and scrutiny. If the Calvinist bothered to pay attention to the random isolated verses they frequently rip out of context by use of proof text methodology, eisegesis, and Scripture twisting, they would discover that their doctrines are abhorrent to actual biblical theology.

Leighton Flowers considers himself a Traditionalist, but several thoughts in his ten points deviate from the traditional teachings of the early Christians from the first three centuries. He would be more accurate if he referred to himself as a partial-Traditionalist.