Protestant
Well-Known Member
It isn’t easy being a Pelagian or Semi-Pelagian Arminian.
Holding fast to a belief system despite the extraordinary evidence to the contrary is exhausting, spiritually and mentally.
To deny the abundant evidence which is soundly presented day and night by consistent, scriptural Christians who embrace the eternal truths of saving grace as understood and taught by Jesus and all the Gospel authors requires much circular, illogical and conjectural reasoning.
Some Arminians proudly follow the doctrines of Pelagius and Socinius which deny the imputation of original sin, man’s willing slavery to sin and Satan, as well as the federal headship of Adam, to name but a few.
Other Arminians vehemently deny the impotency of man to do that which pleases God to the saving of his soul.
Still others tout the belief that God ‘helps’ all men up to a point, leaving the final outcome of salvation to the individual and good or bad use of his ‘free will.’
There is even an Arminian on this board who would have us believe that God is so sovereign that to prove His sovereignty He has willingly denied Himself, relinquishing His sovereignty to sinful man.
Let’s not forget the Arminian who boasts God has the right to demand double payment for sins if He wishes….the first insufficient payment from Christ, the second endless payment from the unbelieving in eternal torment.
Not a few Arminians deny the eternal security of the believer despite Christ’s promise and assurance that He loses none.
And then there is the Arminian who shamelessly professes, “your god is my Devil.”
Despite their cries otherwise, Arminians have much in common with the Roman Catholic Church’s understanding of salvation.
Both deny Absolute Predestination, eagerly giving man the ultimate glory in his salvation.
This would explain how such evangelical ‘luminaries’ as Billy Graham can embrace the Pope and His Church proclaiming them fellow Christians who allegedly serve the same God.
Even on this board there is an active Baptist Arminian member who is a disciple of Peter Kreeft, a Catholic Apologist whose mission is to ‘explain away’ the heresies and blasphemies of his false Church’s teachings.
Below are prime examples of the Catholic Magisterium’s authoritative teaching with which Arminians agree:
ON JUSTIFICATION (CANONS OF TRENT)
[DENIAL OF IRRISISTIBLE GRACE] CANON IV.-If any one saith, that man's free will moved and excited by God, by assenting to God exciting and calling, nowise co-operates towards disposing and preparing itself for obtaining the grace of Justification; that it cannot refuse its consent, if it would, but that, as something inanimate, it does nothing whatever and is merely passive; let him be anathema. [i.e. ‘May he be cursed by God.’]
[DENIAL OF MAN’S TOTAL INABILITY, A SLAVE TO SIN] CANON V.-If any one saith, that, since Adam's sin, the free will of man is lost and extinguished; or, that it is a thing with only a name, yea a name without a reality, a figment, in fine, introduced into the Church by Satan; let him be anathema.
[DENIAL OF THE CERTAINLY OF PERSERVERANCE] CANON XVI.-If any one saith, that he will for certain, of an absolute and infallible certainty, have that great gift of perseverance unto the end,-unless he have learned this by special revelation; let him be anathema.
[DENIAL OF ABSOLUTE PREDESTINATION, THE UNCONDITIONAL ELECTION OF GRACE] CANON XVII.-If any one saith, that the grace of Justification is only attained to by those who are predestined unto life; but that all others who are called, are called indeed, but receive not grace, as being, by the divine power, predestined unto evil; let him be anathema.
[DENIAL OF PARTICULAR REDEMPTION] But, though He died for all, yet do not all receive the benefit of His death, but those only unto whom the merit of His passion is communicated. [i.e. ‘born again’ through water baptism.]
So where, I ask, is all this endless debate headed?
For what is its purpose?
Holding fast to a belief system despite the extraordinary evidence to the contrary is exhausting, spiritually and mentally.
To deny the abundant evidence which is soundly presented day and night by consistent, scriptural Christians who embrace the eternal truths of saving grace as understood and taught by Jesus and all the Gospel authors requires much circular, illogical and conjectural reasoning.
Some Arminians proudly follow the doctrines of Pelagius and Socinius which deny the imputation of original sin, man’s willing slavery to sin and Satan, as well as the federal headship of Adam, to name but a few.
Other Arminians vehemently deny the impotency of man to do that which pleases God to the saving of his soul.
Still others tout the belief that God ‘helps’ all men up to a point, leaving the final outcome of salvation to the individual and good or bad use of his ‘free will.’
There is even an Arminian on this board who would have us believe that God is so sovereign that to prove His sovereignty He has willingly denied Himself, relinquishing His sovereignty to sinful man.
Let’s not forget the Arminian who boasts God has the right to demand double payment for sins if He wishes….the first insufficient payment from Christ, the second endless payment from the unbelieving in eternal torment.
Not a few Arminians deny the eternal security of the believer despite Christ’s promise and assurance that He loses none.
And then there is the Arminian who shamelessly professes, “your god is my Devil.”
Despite their cries otherwise, Arminians have much in common with the Roman Catholic Church’s understanding of salvation.
Both deny Absolute Predestination, eagerly giving man the ultimate glory in his salvation.
This would explain how such evangelical ‘luminaries’ as Billy Graham can embrace the Pope and His Church proclaiming them fellow Christians who allegedly serve the same God.
Even on this board there is an active Baptist Arminian member who is a disciple of Peter Kreeft, a Catholic Apologist whose mission is to ‘explain away’ the heresies and blasphemies of his false Church’s teachings.
Below are prime examples of the Catholic Magisterium’s authoritative teaching with which Arminians agree:
ON JUSTIFICATION (CANONS OF TRENT)
[DENIAL OF IRRISISTIBLE GRACE] CANON IV.-If any one saith, that man's free will moved and excited by God, by assenting to God exciting and calling, nowise co-operates towards disposing and preparing itself for obtaining the grace of Justification; that it cannot refuse its consent, if it would, but that, as something inanimate, it does nothing whatever and is merely passive; let him be anathema. [i.e. ‘May he be cursed by God.’]
[DENIAL OF MAN’S TOTAL INABILITY, A SLAVE TO SIN] CANON V.-If any one saith, that, since Adam's sin, the free will of man is lost and extinguished; or, that it is a thing with only a name, yea a name without a reality, a figment, in fine, introduced into the Church by Satan; let him be anathema.
[DENIAL OF THE CERTAINLY OF PERSERVERANCE] CANON XVI.-If any one saith, that he will for certain, of an absolute and infallible certainty, have that great gift of perseverance unto the end,-unless he have learned this by special revelation; let him be anathema.
[DENIAL OF ABSOLUTE PREDESTINATION, THE UNCONDITIONAL ELECTION OF GRACE] CANON XVII.-If any one saith, that the grace of Justification is only attained to by those who are predestined unto life; but that all others who are called, are called indeed, but receive not grace, as being, by the divine power, predestined unto evil; let him be anathema.
CHAPTER III.
Who are justified through Christ.
[DENIAL OF PARTICULAR REDEMPTION] But, though He died for all, yet do not all receive the benefit of His death, but those only unto whom the merit of His passion is communicated. [i.e. ‘born again’ through water baptism.]
So where, I ask, is all this endless debate headed?
For what is its purpose?
“For there must be also heresies among you, that they which are approved may be made manifest among you.” (1 Cor. 11:19)
