Should Christians call themselves Calvinists?

Did Adam hear God calling after he had sinned and was dead in sins?

Gen 3:9 And the LORD God called unto Adam, and said unto him, Where art thou?
10 And he said, I heard thy voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself.

See, when you say that unregenerate dead men cannot hear God, you are also limiting God's power. You are saying that God does not have the power to speak to the dead.

I say God DOES have the power to speak to the dead, and that is exactly what the scriptures show.

 

Adam heard him

 

I agree? When we are "born again (from above), our desires begin to change. But it remains still a life long battle.

 

Off topic, here is a link to our last weeks message by Andy Stanley. "Make Believe Christmas" Excellent, honest and genuine message. Hope you might enjoy as did I.

http://www.wiregrasschurch.org/media/watch-online/make-believe-christmas/

 

That the unregenerate can hear God when he calls is shown in Proverbs.

Prov 1:24 Because I have called, and ye refused; I have stretched out my hand, and no man regarded;
25 But ye have set at nought all my counsel, and would none of my reproof:
26 I also will laugh at your calamity; I will mock when your fear cometh;
27 When your fear cometh as desolation, and your destruction cometh as a whirlwind; when distress and anguish cometh upon you.
28 Then shall they call upon me, but I will not answer; they shall seek me early, but they shall not find me:

The scriptures do not show the unregenerate unable to respond to God, they show the unregenerate refuse to respond to God. Huge difference.

And notice verse 28, God says the unregenerate will call upon him, they shall seek him, but he will not answer or be found of them.

So, the problem with the unregenerate is not that they are unable to respond to God, the problem is they REFUSE to respond to God.

 

Don't believe I'm telling you anything you may not know, but also we can go further. Jesus also went to hell to speak to them, and His Word today speaks to all, for we are all dead in our sins, until we believe on the Lord Jesus Christ.

 

Well, when you throw around words like "total" some folks get the idea that you are talking about 100% depraved. Calvinism seems to redefine a lot of words from their ordinary definition, and then accuses non-Cals of not understanding their doctrine. No kidding?

Look, when a mother runs into a burning building to save her children without a care for herself, that is good. They are actually following the teachings of Jesus when they do that. They are giving up their life for another as he gave his life for us. I actually know a man who entered his burning house to try to save his young son and was burnt severely. He spent several months in the hospital for 3rd degree burns.

Funny you mention Cain, because we know that Cain was lost in the NT. So he could not be elect according to Calvinism and could never have been enabled to do good. But God himself said he could do well, and if he did so God said he would be accepted. Does God accept evil?

Gen 4:6 And the LORD said unto Cain, Why art thou wroth? and why is thy countenance fallen?
7 If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted? and if thou doest not well, sin lieth at the door. And unto thee shall be his desire, and thou shalt rule over him.

If Calvinsim is true, then God was pretty mixed up when he spoke to Cain. He must have forgotten that Cain was not elect and incapable of doing any truly good thing. And God also made the mistake of saying he would accept Cain's sacrifice, which in no way could be good.

What do you think? Does God accept evil? If not, then how could he accept Cain's sacrifice being Cain was unelect?

 

According to God, the refusing comes first.

Romans 1:21 Because, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish hearts were darkened.
Romans 1:24 Therefore God also gave them up to uncleanness through the lusts of their own hearts, to dishonor their own bodies between themselves:

Psalms 81:11-12 But my people would not hearken to my voice; and Israel would have none of me. So I gave them up unto their own hearts' lust: and they walked in their own counsels.

2 Thessalonians 2:10-12 And with all deception of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved. And for this cause God shall send them a strong delusion, that they should believe a lie: That they all might be condemned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness.

 

Oh, when God says "when your destruction cometh as a whirlwind", he was only speaking about wisdom?

You know, debating with you Calvinists is a pure joke. You guys simply will not come clean.

 

If my memory serves me correctly, it is known as a "duble entendre" (sp. I am really unsure about)

 

Annsni is correct. You have attributed words to God that the author of Proverbs attributes to Wisdom. It is not an uncommon thing for an author to write with "wisdom" as a personification.

Nevertheless, "Wisdom" is saying "when your destruction comes like a whirlwind" it will be too late to heed the warnings of wisdom.

And, in this case, it is not "us Calvinists" that are not coming clean. Ann called you on something and you still will not come clean. Sad.

The Archangel

 

I don't know how you guys can live with yourself. You know for a certainty that this wisdom is God's word.

I should have included verse 23, the verse just before this passage.

Prov 1:23 Turn you at my reproof: behold, I will pour out my spirit unto you, I will make known my words unto you.

Who is speaking here? Who will pour out his spirit unto us? Whose words is the author speaking of?

Like I said, you guys will not come clean.

 

Who or what is wisdom? Who is the author of wisdom?

 

I keep forgetting that I'm arguing with someone who will not read the text.

If you look at Proverbs 1:20-33, you will see that "Wisdom" is personified and it is "she" that is talking. This is a common rhetorical tactic in many cultures.

Furthermore, you need to realize that Proverbs has different hermeneutical rules, which you are unable or unwilling to accept.

Once more, we see you probably have a Bible search program, you find the words you think support your position, and you post them, without any consideration of context whatsoever.

This is like trying to argue with an ostrich that has its head buried in the dirt.

This only serves to re-enforce my earlier assertion: You simply are not worth the keystrokes.

The Archangel

 

I did read it, and I asked you a question. Who is it that pours his spirit unto us? Who is speaking when it says "I will make known my words unto you"?

You know, I should heed God's word.

Prov 26:4 Answer not a fool according to his folly, lest thou also be like unto him.