Best thing about Calvinism!

[Ignazio_er]

What do you enjoy most about being a Calvinist? Knowing you're right, or knowing everyone else is wrong? I'm having trouble deciding. I think it's more important to know you're right, but knowing everyone else is wrong even when they have better arguments makes me feel good.

 

[Ransom]

The entertainment value of the Arminians' temper tantrums scores pretty high in my book.

 

[Yelsew]

Ignorance is bliss!

 

[David Mark]

Jam 3:17:... But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, easy to be entreated, full of mercy and good fruits, without variance, without hypocrisy.

If you are convinced that you are right and everyone else is wrong, I hope it would make you much more compassionate and gentle to those whom you are convinced are poor. Sharing ideas and searching for wisdom is one thing, but exalting one's self at the expense of the poor or those that are deceived is another.

If you do have wisdom from above on such a controversial issue, then you are blessed, very rich and you are trying to minister to those who are poor and possibly to some who are deceived.

Have mercy on those that are poor and be gentle, compassionate and full of mercy with those you consider deceived.

Dave.

 

[Ignazio_er]

I guess what I meant is that its edifying to know the Holy Spirit is testifying inside you, even though you may not know the exact reasons the true faith is right or be able to explain them.

 

[Ransom]

Uh . . . you mean you weren't being sarcastic?

 

[Yelsew]

Originally posted by Ignazio_er:
I guess what I meant is that its edifying to know the Holy Spirit is testifying inside you, even though you may not know the exact reasons the true faith is right or be able to explain them.

If that's the case, then you cannot limit it to Calvinists only, because every human being that believes in God has the experience of knowing the Holy Spirit, they are inseparable! Calvin has no corner on the Holy Spirit, and I'm convince that many Calvinist who post here are not listening to the Holy Spirit anyway, or they would know the truth which seems to have eluded them.

 

[PappaBear]

Well, I am not a Calvinist. But the best thing about Calvinism, in my opinion, is their lack of reproductibility. It is something we have to fight only every century or so. Once they actually convince their "converts" that there is nothing really to do, reproduction ceases and they tend to die out.

 

[Taufgesinnter]

When I was a Calvinist--before I learned that the original Baptists were Arminians and that the early Christians repudiated eternal security and particular election as Gnostic heresies--I enjoyed the smugness it gave me that I was right and everyone else was wrong, as well as the fighting spirit it imbued. After Robert Shank, et al. took my Calvinism away, I like the gentler spirit with which I approach controversies and the lesser inclination to get riled easily over adiaphora.

 

[Major B]

Originally posted by PappaBear:
Well, I am not a Calvinist. But the best thing about Calvinism, in my opinion, is their lack of reproductibility. It is something we have to fight only every century or so. Once they actually convince their "converts" that there is nothing really to do, reproduction ceases and they tend to die out.

Funny that it did not work that way for Calvin, Luther, Knox, the Puritans of England, Jonathan Edwards, George Whitfield, the Erskines, the Haldanes, William Carey, the Fullers, the Manleys, Broadus, Boyce, the Hodges, Archibald Alexander, John Newton (wrote Amazing Grace, that most Calvinistic of Hymns), Augustus Toplady (wrote Rock of Ages, even MORE Calvinistic), the Welsh Revivals (ALL Calvinistic), the Great Awakening, Spurgeon, BH Carroll, Dagg, Mell, Mercer, D. James Kennedy, Barnhouse, Barnes, Jamieson Fausset and Brown, Matthew Henry, D. Martyn Lloyd Jones, John MacArthur, James Montgomery Boyce, Darby, Scofield, MacLaren, William R. Newell (wrote "At Calvary"), Issac Watts, Adoniram Judson, Ashael Nettleton, ...etc.

Are there people who are not evangelistic? Yes. Most are NOT calvinists. Is there false evangelism? Yes. It's all non-calvinistic. I've spent many hours counseling people who'd been pushed into a false decision by high pressure arminian preaching. When God saves a man or woman, no one has to drag them down the aisle by invoking "...the tears on the page of yo momma's Bible..." or any such thing. I know men who can fill any altar at any time, and it will result in nothing but confusion.

As for me, "Jesus Paid it All", it was Amazing Grace that taught me to fear, I brought no price in my hand, and God shined the light of conviction into the dungeon of my sin-- 2 Cor 4:6.

I would never, ever, insult God by claiming any part for myself of the great gift He gave when He conquered me and "taught my heart to fear" and "my fears relieved."

Is there true hypercalvinism? Sure. Every family has its black sheep. I call them "Calvinistas."

 

[Yelsew]

adiaphora

Definition please, it is not in webster's

 

[Taufgesinnter]

archaic


(ædi'æferon) Pl. adiaphora. {Gr. adiaphor-on, adj. neut., indifferent; f. a not + diaphoros differing; f. dia apart + pherein to bear.}

A thing indifferent, upon which the Church has given no decision; a non-essential. (Once very common as a theological term.)

1553-87 FOXE A. & M. (1596) 51/1 The celebration of Easterdaie remained adiaphoron, as a thing indifferent in the church. a1652 J. SMITH Sel. Disc. iv. 126 These we may safely reckon, I think, amongst our adiaphora in morality, as being in themselves neither good nor evil. 1865 PUSEY Truth. & Off. Eng. Ch. 207 Images are to be reckoned among the adiaphora, which do not belong to the substance of religion.

--Oxford English Dictionary

 

[Ignazio_er]

Originally posted by Ignazio_er:
What do you enjoy most about being a Calvinist? Knowing you're right, or knowing everyone else is wrong? I'm having trouble deciding. I think it's more important to know you're right, but knowing everyone else is wrong even when they have better arguments makes me feel good.

Originally posted by Pestor Larry in another thread: In fact I know almost nothing about him, and I am bragging to you of never reading more than a page or two from his commentaries in my whole life.

Here it is, the official word on the best thing about being a Calvinist: Knowing everyone else is wrong even while acknowledge your total ignorance of Calvin's writings.

 

[Pastor Larry]

Originally posted by Ignazio_er:

Originally posted by Pestor Larry in another thread:[qb] In fact I know almost nothing about him, and I am bragging to you of never reading more than a page or two from his commentaries in my whole life.

Please provide a link to this quote from Pastor Larry so we can see it for ourselves. We would like to know that you are telling the truth about this.

 

[Ignazio_er]

Originally posted by Pastor Larry:
</font><blockquote>quote:</font><hr />Originally posted by Ignazio_er:

Originally posted by Pestor Larry in another thread:[qb] In fact I know almost nothing about him, and I am bragging to you of never reading more than a page or two from his commentaries in my whole life.

Please provide a link to this quote from Pastor Larry so we can see it for ourselves. We would like to know that you are telling the truth about this. </font>

Well, ok, if you insist. But I don't know why you're questioning my truthfulness. When you wrote that you never read more than a page or two of Calvin, I believed you!

http://www.baptistboard.com/ubb/ultimatebb.php?ubb=get_topic;f=35;t=000934;p=3

 

[Pastor Larry]

Originally posted by Ignazio_er:
Well, ok, if you insist. But I don't know why you're questioning my truthfulness.

Because I know you are not telling the truth. That was your account of what I said to you in the PM. Here is the section from which that "quote" was taken. This is from your post from January 01, 2004 07:59 PM. I highlighted a portion that you should remember.

Pastor Larry (not his actual words): Calvin didn't found my religion. In fact I know almost nothing about him, and I am bragging to you of never reading more than a page or two from his commentaries in my whole life. The fact that I never read any of his work thereby proves I am not a blind follower of his.

Now, let's look at what I actually said, from my PM to you.

I am not a follower of Calvin in the least little bit. I have never read anything by him, save a page or two out of one of his commentaries for a study I did in seminary.

When you compare my actual quote to your distorted quote, you see that I never said anything about "bragging" about not reading it. I in fact didn't brag. It is nothing to care about, much less brag about.

This full exchange from the link you gave, shows that you are not being truthful. You took your words and made them a "quote" of me. You knew better when you did it, unless you can't remember what you wrote 10 minutes ago as you accused me of.

When you wrote that you never read more than a page or two of Calvin, I believed you!

As well you should have. I certainly have no reason to lie about. I don't care what Calvin said particulary. I am a Calvinist because of what God says in his word, not becuase of what Calvin said in his institutes.

I would have believed you had I not known better. But you have shown yourself to be distrustful, willing to distort quotes when you think can get an advantage from them. That is unacceptable.

 

[Ignazio_er]

Post removed due to repetition of blatant untruth already corrected once. The lie was corrected in the post immediately above this and the original post from which this was taken can be found at the link on the bottom of the first page of this thread. The evidence is here for all to see.

[ January 02, 2004, 06:08 PM: Message edited by: Pastor Larry ]

 

[Michael Wrenn]

The best thing about Calvinism is: it is a minority opinion in Christendom.

 

[Nomad]

What a surprise --yet another sarcastic thread. I don't consider myself a Calvinist, but most people I know who identify themselves as such are godly, sincere, devoted lovers of God, His word, and His children. Not perfect, but certainly not heretical or harmful. When I read descriptions here of what Calvinists are like, I fail to see the resemblance. Too bad we don't see more of the real world here, instead of caricatures and cynicism.

 

[Hardsheller]

Originally posted by Michael Wrenn:
The best thing about Calvinism is: it is a minority opinion in Christendom.

You mean like the "remnant?"