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I am not comfortable with female pastors or bishops, but technically, there apparently were women in leadership roles in the early church. Romans 16:7 Greet Andronicus and Junia, my fellow Jews who have been in prison with me. They are outstanding among the apostles, and they were in Christ...

Matthew 29:23,24 23Then Jesus said to His disciples, “Truly I tell you, it is hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven. 24 Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.”

Salvation is 100% by grace through faith when we repent and trust in Christ’s sacrifice for our sins, believing God raised Him from the dead. Regeneration by the Holy Spirit happens after we call upon the Lord and repent, not before. Peter and Paul make this abundantly clear. Acts 2:38 Peter...

The fact that Jesus did indeed die for all the sins of all humanity does not mean every person will automatically be saved. Each person has to trust in Christ individually. If Christ died only for the elect, which is not substantiated by any Bible verse, then the unsaved have an excuse for not...

If it is God who changes a person into a saved soul before they repent, thus enabling them to repent and trust in Christ, yet repentance is not needed because they are already changed and saved… What a tangled mess of misinterpretation. An unsaved person could say on judgment day, “I did not...

So we call upon the Lord to save us only when our hearts are already changed and therefore we are already saved? Makes no sense, like saying we get saved before we repent. Makes repentance irrelevant. It’s a shame that the many times the scriptures said “all” regarding the offer of salvation...

I think it is similar if I put a huge pile of trillions of dollars on my front porch, with a sign that said, “All your bills and needs have been covered by this pile of cash. Come and get it, everybody. Do not miss this great opportunity.” But only those who actually show up and grab some loot...

Hyper-Calvinists seem to contradict their theory on the elect if they support missions or engage in any type of evangelism, sharing their faith, or giving their testimony. They would never pray for the salvation of anyone, even family members, since it is all pre-determined. A core hyper...

Since you are alive and mentally alert, I find it hard to believe that God has never helped you. You have allowed yourself to enter a territory that I hope you can escape soon. Denying God, relying on yourself, and abandoning faith are not going to make things better. I wonder if you can...

I feel the same, but I crucify those cynical feelings by forcing myself to keep trusting and praising God. My life now, the last 15 months, is completely empty and pointless. When my dear wife was alive, every day was total paradise in every possible way. It is heroic to keep loving God even...

Gods draws all humans, but when a person rejects God, it is the human who fails, not God. His drawing is achieved, but God never forces someone to trust in Christ. When a hyper-Calvinist engages in evangelism, shares their faith with an unsaved person, what is their hope? How do they mentally...

My beloved wife died 15 months ago. My whole world revolved around Andrea. We met when she was assigned to be my assistant as I taught a Sunday school class in a Southern Baptist church. We fell in love immediately. Andrea was my constant companion and my favorite theologian. We had problems...

@easternstar - I wonder if annihilation might be more cruel and horrible than eternal conscious self-torment. Annihilation sounds nice if you compare it to perpetual dreamless sleep. But can you imagine having never existed? That seems worse in some ways. Like you had never been born. Eternal...

I’m glad you both are here and I enjoy learning more about the Catholic faith.:)

I think you mean “historical revisionism that doesn't accord with official Catholic history.” What puzzles me is why a Catholic would want to spend time debating theology on a Baptist forum. I seek common ground with Christians of all denominations. But I don’t go to their forums and argue...

That is a fantastic story! When I was in high school, my gorgeous cousin Vicky spent the summer in my parents home. She was a year younger. I was so proud when my friends saw us together. My dad gave me $100 to show her a good time, which was a lot of money in those days. Not having a sister...

I always thought that salvation was a new birth. Since no matter how I behave, I will always be the son of my earthly father, it seems like the same principle holds true for remaining a son of my Heavenly Father. What confuses me is how there are cults, disgraced pastors, and abusive churches...

No, I do not object to Biblical metaphors. We have the sharp sword of the Spirit for when “we struggle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.” Ephesians 6:12 In Roman...

Constantine was not Christian. He maintained pagan titles and practices for much of his reign, showing at best a gradual, complex shift to a meager. Christian orientation, rather than an immediate, sincere, total break from Roman polytheism. In fact, he was only baptized by an Arian bishop...

I think I understand your zeal, but may I gently respond? You may dislike the word “defend”, but we may need to explain why we believe the Bible or why we prefer a certain version. But I don’t think we should get in bitter heated debates. I also don’t think anyone can be argued into faith. We...