Willis,
I cannot agree to your idea ,as I believe it is unbiblical in several ways
In your idea...men are born spiritually alive.
Yes....it would mean that
That would mean they are born indwelt with the Holy Spirit.
No...it wouldn't actually. It would only mean they were not assumed guilty prior to any infraction of the law. Old Testament believers were not indwelt either....The Holy Spirit "came" upon them...it did not "indwell" them. and yet they are "elect"....They are Saints. They are Spiritually "alive"...They were not only not born "indwelt" by the Holy Spirit....They NEVER became "indwelt" by the Holy Spirit....It never occurred. Not once. No Old Testament believer was ever "indwelt" by the Holy Spirit. There is nothing in Scripture which teaches thus...The Holy Spirit "came upon" them, but they were
never "indwelt" by him. Just read the Bible, and stop making Theological assumtions.
That would mean they lose salvation when they commit and act of sin.
Not exactly...in that they were not "saved" at all...They had NOTHING to be "saved" from. They were guilty of zero infractions of the law, and therefore they simply were not (to date) ever condemned...
that would mean they were not sealed with the Spirit like Eph 1 says.
They had no need of being "sealed" as they were never at any point, guilty. You cannot argue against Willis' assumption of innocence by assumming their guilt and then attempting to point out inconsistencies.....Consult your Calvinist
apologia again for a logically correct rejoinder. It is not covered by your objections here.
that would mean romans 3 :23 does not say this as i posted to Winman:
Correct!!!:
Romans 3:23 never said ANYTHING like what you are trying to say....it only says:
Rom 3:23 For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;
No one...to whom this is written, and who can concievably understand what Paul is saying would conclude, or assume (as you are) that somehow they are guilty of "sinning" when they have not, in fact, "sinned". This verse is a verse designed to condemn us all. And it rightly does....but it does so, by explaining that we all "
HAVE" in fact "SINNED"... In what way, pray tell, has an infant in fact transgressed or broken the law or "sinned". His audience (to whom he was actually speaking) did indeed sin...So Paul is absolutely correct. But you are trying to make us assume "Original Guilt" and then use a verse which is descriptive of
only what has in fact occured....to support the notion that infants have somehow actually "done" something they are not even capable of doing. That is insane.
8
The use of the aor. in both Romans passages, in their given context, point to an event, i.e., mankind did not simply inherit a sinful nature or tendency from Adam—“all have sinned,” thus referring to personal experience and activity,
Please explain how an infant "
HAS" sinned....that is all I ask. I don't mean....explain that Adam sinned, and therefore again assume the imputation of guilt...I mean explain how the infant itself was, in fact, party to that infraction.
Rom. 5:12, …diV e`no.j avnqrw,pou h` a`marti,a eivj to.n ko,smon…evfV w-| pa,ntej h[marton. “by one man sin entered into the world…for all sinned.”).
Absolutely true...an inarguably true statement. No one, can reasonably or Biblically argue that it is not in fact the case that it took ONE MAN, and one man only for sin to "enter the world"...this verse sums it up clearly and completely. Furthermore...you would also be correct that "All of creation groans..." because by HIM and him alone..sin "entered". By him came the curse....by him came "death" (its physical)....but....by Jesus Christ came LIFE!!!! (
also physical)!! If you read that in context.
Every human being is a sinner by imputation,
No, that is what Calvinist Theology has taught you to assume...but there is no verse which ACTUALLY says this: This has been smuggled in under the radar by disarming you with the obvious truth of the following two parts:
YUPP!!!!!! and it is also not denied.
YUPP!!!! and it is also not denied
What does not exist.....is the "imputation" part.....You actually used a verse (if you think about it) which re-inforces the "personal activity" part "all...
HAVE sinned" <---that is what we call an "action verb"....but it says nothing about "imputation"....Your Calvinist
apologia has probably repeated this in your head for so many years, I think, that you don't differentiate...I truly respect your humble search and desire for truth. I also deeply respect your hunger for deeper knowledge. I also respect your intellectual humility. But, unfortunately...I think you have so deeply engrossed yourself in those pursuits that you have become easy prey for those who you (in your humility actually) have convinced you that they are
THE "teachers" that God has gifted to his Church (and there cannot be any others)...and you tend to find it to be arrogant and presumptuous to question the fundamentals of their assumptions. and they have now programmed you, in a way to EISEGETE...what is NOT strictly in a passage......They...like you yourself, have come to these conclusions with the most noble and honest of intents. But they are simply incorrect....Thus, by extension, so are you.
I hope you do not see this as anything but an attempt at well-meant and ernest edification. I have no "GIFT"
per se for edification...well....neither do you actually, but, I mean this post in all sincerity. There were many a gifted an honest well-meant and intelligent Theologians who have taught these Calvinistic assumptions for years....and much of it is simply
ingrained in our psyche..... So powerfully so, actually, that one does indeed feel arrogant and somehow "out-of-line" to question ANY of them. But, the Scriptures do say what they say...and here's the thing....they also
don't say anything MORE......than what they say either. and "Original Guilt"...is not a Scriptural idea...it's a deeply ingrained Theological one. I don't see it. I don't think there are any Scriptures which do...........And I think you will post no Scriptures...which actually state what you are taught they State...No Scripture will claim that infants are "sinners" in the same sense that you claim they are.