Featured And the Greatest of these......

I believe that your argument is pure philosophy. There reason I say this is:


1. You deny the greatest gift to humanity is Christ. But Scripture testifies to the contrary. Even those who are not saved have their existence through Him. They "hold together" through Him. Scripture tells us that the greatest gift is love, that God is love, that God sent His Son to the world to save those who believe as an act of love. Scripture tells us that this is the greatest. But no passage, only your "reasoning" concludes that Scripture is the greatest gift to mankind.

2. Scripture is not given to the world. Scripture was given to the people of God.

3. Even if we look only at the gospel it is foolishness to those who are perishing.

4. You misquote Scripture to prove a point. How can Scripture be the "greatest" gift to humanity if it is so easily twisted to serve a philosophical argument?

2 Timothy 3:16-17: All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work.

Romans 15:4-6 For whatever was written in earlier times was written for our instruction, so that through perseverance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope. Now may the God who gives perseverance and encouragement grant you to be of the same mind with one another according to Christ Jesus, so that with one accord you may with one voice glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.

5. You are inconsistent. You deny God as the greater gift because of those who will not be saved. But at the same time you seem to argue that Scripture is given to those who cannot benefit from Scripture.

God gives Himself to Humanity, to Mankind. That is the gospel itself. To ignore this is, IMHO, to miss the point of Christ's work.

Your error is due, I believe, to relying on Calvinism as a philosophy rather than a soteriology. It has colored your thinking to the point that you do not see Scripture is given for the purpose of equipping and teaching the man of God but the whole world. You do not seem to see Scripture is given for OUR instruction so that WE might be encouraged to have hope but seem to think that it is given to the world so that somehow the lost have a hope not coupled with perseverance.

 

It took me awhile (reading through three threads, in fact) to figure out that the objection here is a misapplication of Calvinism. They are taking Calvinism as a philosophy - which it is, but they are removing it from soteriology and applying it to Scripture as a whole.

 

@Particular ,

Reading your comments I realize we are looking at this differently.

When you determine what is the greatest gift given to humanity, are

Does God give Scripture to all of humanity OR does God give Scripture for the teaching and reproof "so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work", for "our instruction so that through preseverance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope"?

It seems to me that you are trying your best to elevate man and diminish God here. I provided you several passages. Yes, God does give His love to all humanity - in that God loved the world (humanity/ mankind) by sending His Son that whosoever (who out of mankind/ humanity) believes will have everlasting life.

It appears that you are trapped in a "vain philosophy" that has you denying Scripture to affirm what Scripture itself never states. I understand. People are like that. It is the "human" thing to do.

But if you considered, for a moment, that it is not about man but God's own glory then perhaps you would adhere a bit closer to a biblical perspective.

 

No. You have not.

You have provided that you believe God's giving of Himself to the world (humanity/ mankind) so that those in the world (humanity/ mankind) who believe may have everlasting life is of lesser value than is Scripture.

In doing so you have denied Scripture in that you reject passages that state Scripture is given specifically to those who are saved and the gospel to those who are being saved.

I do not respond to you to persuade you otherwise. I respond for the benefit of the board.

Scripture tells us a few things you deny:

1. that Scripture is given to those who are saved for their benefit.
2. that the gospel is given to those who are being saved.
3. that the greatest gift God has given is love
4. that God is love
5. that God loved the world that He gave His only Son (He gave of Himself) that whosoever in the world believes in Him might be saved.

You deny all of those passages to claim a false and vain philosophy that Scripture is God's greatest gift to humanity with the pretense that it is knowledge of Scripture rather than God who saves.
SNIP

I think that we all can see where your hearts lie, where your "treasure" is, what you value most of all. And you should be ashamed.

 

The passage you quote tells us that Scripture is given to saved people. Likewise in Romans we read that Scripture is for the Church.

2 Timothy 3:16-17: All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work.

Romans 15:4-6 For whatever was written in earlier times was written for our instruction, so that through perseverance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope. Now may the God who gives perseverance and encouragement grant you to be of the same mind with one another according to Christ Jesus, so that with one accord you may with one voice glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Using Scripture your philosophy is proven false. Scripture is not given to the lost, but to the saved (read 2 Timothy 3:16-17 and Romans 15:4-6).

You are wrong. And your argument against Scripture is wrong. Your philosophy is wrong.

Turn to Scripture. Scripture itself claims it is not given to the world but to those who are saved. The only "greatest gift" Scripture claims is love.

I suspect you hate that, given your comments about Acts. But that is what the Bible says. Do you believe the Bible, @Iconoclast ? Or do you believe that Scripture is God's greatest gift to humanity? You cannot have it both ways. You need to choose this day who you will follow.

 

He posted that Scripture was given to humanity but Christ was not.

Scripture does not affirm that claim.

You guys are too much into philosophy on this one.

You do not have to understand Scripture, but at least acceot what it says.

 

Look, it is very simple.

A gift is something "given willingly to someone without payment".

Scripture tells us the greatest gift is love.

Scripture tells us God is love.

Scripture tells us God loved us by giving us His Son

Scripture tells us there is no greater love than one lay down his life for a friend.

Scripture tells us Christ died for us while we were sinners.

Scripture tells us that Scripture is given to instruct godly men.

Scripture tells us that it was given to those who believe.


That is this is debatable is sad.

 

I did provide Scripture (both restricting Scripture to godly people and stating that God gave His Son to the world).

You are just being silly now.

 

Probably because you are moving the target away from the OP.

Do you deny that those who are not saved cannot understand Scripture?

Do you deny that the gospel is to the world "foolishness"?

Do you deny that Scripture is given to "godly men"?

Do you deny that God gave His Son to the world (that He came not only to His Sheep but to His own who rejected Him as John 1 states)?

Do you deny the greatest gift is love?

Do you deny God is love?


That is the issue. It is impossible to hold the position God is less than Scripture in terms of what has been given to mankind without denying Scripture.
There are several things that do not pass the test of Scripture.

A gift is something " given willingly to someone without payment".

In post # 24 @AustinC specifically stated that Scripture does not present God Himself as a gift (as willingly giving Himself to someone without payment). This is a false statement.

In post # 19 @AustinC claims that Scripture is given to the entire world where Christ is not. He quotes 2 Timothy 3:16-17, but that very passage (along with Romans 15:4-6) denies his conclusion.

John 1 tells us that Christ came to men and those He came to did not accept Him, but as many as did were saved. John 3 tells us that whoever out of a world to which Christ was sent believes will have life.

 

This post is wrong, but it is wrong in a very simple oversight that has plagued a few threads to include this one.

It is applying the definition of "great" to "greatest".

Were we speaking of Scripture as a great gift then the posts would have a point and it would be correct. But we are not. We are speaking of the "greatest" gifting of God.

The word "greatest" is the superlative of "great". It claims superiority of whatever it is applied to. The greatest movie is The Godfather. The greatest band is the Grateful Dead. The greatest state is South Carolina (with Georgia a close second). Like that.

The goal post was moved by those changing the term "greatest gift" which is superlative of "great" (in this context, it claims whatever it is applied to to be the superior gifting of God) to mean "great".

 

In John 3:16 God's love in sending the Lord Jesus is to be admired not because it is extended to so big a thing as the world, but to so bad a thing; not to so many people, as to such wicked people. Nevertheless elsewhere John can speak of "the whole world" (1 John 2:2), thus bringing bigness and badness together. More importantly, in Johannine theology the disciples themselves once belonged to the world but were drawn out of it (e.g., John 15:19). On this axis, God's love for the world cannot be collapsed into his love for the elect.

(D. A. Carson. The Difficult Doctrine of the Love of God)