ECT There is only one Gospel

Grosnick Marowbe

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Adam did as God ordained. "Ordain" does not define "cause" or "predestination." You cannot haphazardly use these theological terms without careful distinction.




I simply believe God ordained (decreed, ordered) all things, but "cause" is shared with mankind created in His image.

Adam was incapable of ordaining anything, but Adam was given the ability to cause and effect his duties and immediate surroundings. Thus, God being the first cause, created Adam, but Adam having the capacity of secondary cause, brought sin and death into the world . . . all of which God ordained would occur.

God predestined the fates of all men who will be Judged by Jesus Christ. Different subject matter. As is the teaching of divine foreknowledge.

Questions?

I do. How do you keep a straight face when you post this nonsense??
 

Clete

Truth Smacker
Silver Subscriber
Adam did as God ordained. "Ordain" does not define "cause" or "predestination." You cannot haphazardly use these theological terms without careful distinction.
Calvinism makes no such distinction. The terms are effectively synonymous. The distinctions are for ivory tower theologians to discuss but in normal use, the two terms are indistinguishable. To preordain is to predestine.

There is no published Calvinist who would deny the notion that Adam did precisely as God predestined that he would. On the contrary, every published Calvinist since Calvin has affirmed that belief.

A belief, by the way, that is predicated entirely on Aristotle's idea of an immutable God that is entirely foreign to the Bible.

I simply believe God ordained (decreed, ordered) all things, but "cause" is shared with mankind created in His image.
The "cause" as you use the term is both meaningless and irrelevant.

There is no alternative and thus there is no choice, by definition. In the Calvinist worldview, there are no alternatives and so every cause in nothing more than an effect of a previous cause which in turn is also the result of a previous cause which was the effect of God's decree.

Adam was incapable of ordaining anything, but Adam was given the ability to cause and effect his duties and immediate surroundings.
Every cause and effect that came from Adam was predestined to happen by God before Adam ever existed. According to your own source documents.

Thus, God being the first cause, created Adam, but Adam having the capacity of secondary cause, brought sin and death into the world . . . all of which God ordained would occur.
God predestined that Adam would bring sin into the world or else he would not have done so - according to your own source documents.

God predestined the fates of all men who will be Judged by Jesus Christ. Different subject matter. As is the teaching of divine foreknowledge.

Questions?
Questions?

Why won't you answer the questions I've alread asked?


Do you intentionally contradict yourself or do you say such things and not notice the conflict between them?

Is it when two truth claims contradict one another that they become "profound truths"?

That's a serious question, by the way. To most people reading this, those last two questions will seem rhetorical in that they appear to answer themselves. And while I think I could guess your answer, I don't think I'd bet my house on my guess being right.


"Since the universe had its origin in God and depends on Him for its continued existence it must be, in all its parts and at all times, subject to His control so that nothing can come to pass contrary to what He expressly decrees or permits."​

Do you deny that this is what you believe?
 

Grosnick Marowbe

New member
Hall of Fame
I want to take this opportunity to tell you that I've been very suspicious of you for sometime now, in fact, I'd even go so far as to say that you're a fraud.



I can quite imagine that MOST of the posters on TOL feel the same way about you. I know I do. No offense, you just come off as a kind of half-witted guy with a hate filled heart, mind, and soul. I'd feel mighty uncomfortable having you in the same vicinity as myself. I kind of see you as being the type of guy that would suddenly jump up and become aggressive for no apparent reason. I'll bet you have a lack of self-control, as well?
 

Grosnick Marowbe

New member
Hall of Fame
I knew a guy once who was in the Marine Corp Special Forces and he had a quick temper (Circa: 1975) He was sitting in my living room and suddenly got very angry with my Wife (his Sister) at the time (I was only married once) and he got up and walked towards her. I stood up and told him to sit down (angerly) he backed up quickly a number of steps and sat back down. My ex-Wife said she'd never seen him back down before. He was always getting into fights with different guys. However, I was six-four he was about 5'10" or so and built like a tank. That guy had a horrendous temper, though. ACW seems like one of those Knuckleheads.
 

Nang

TOL Subscriber
Calvinism makes no such distinction. The terms are effectively synonymous.

First, I am sure you have not been exposed to many Reformed churches and/or seminaries; certainly not all, so there is no basis for you to make such a claim. And thinking that these different terms are synonymous is why you wrongly define them.


The distinctions are for ivory tower theologians to discuss but in normal use, the two terms are indistinguishable. To preordain is to predestine.

Perhaps they are to those who prefer to dumb down language, in order to further their view, but for those who desire to plumb the depths of the truths of God, learning to distinguish them reveals many important things. Such as the difference between incommunicable attributes of God and communicable attributes from God. For it is His attributes we are really discussing.

There is no published Calvinist who would deny the notion that Adam did precisely as God predestined that he would. On the contrary, every published Calvinist since Calvin has affirmed that belief.

It is a lazy use of the word "predestined" to so use it when speaking of "ordained" or "decreed." God has decreed all in His kosmos, including determining the fate of all persons . . but there remains distinction between the two. The decrees cover all of creation, including the fall of man and God's ordained remedy (saving grace) and predestination has to do with Judgment.

A belief, by the way, that is predicated entirely on Aristotle's idea of an immutable God that is entirely foreign to the Bible.

This is the second reason for your wrong thinking. God's attribute of immutability is Scriptural. James 1:17, Numbers 23:19


The "cause" as you use the term is both meaningless and irrelevant.

So you deny all evidences of cause and effect? How brilliant you are! (not)

There is no alternative and thus there is no choice, by definition. In the Calvinist worldview, there are no alternatives and so every cause in nothing more than an effect of a previous cause which in turn is also the result of a previous cause which was the effect of God's decree.

What you are demanding here, is that the will of man be allowed to work alternative effects, from what God has decreed . . . WITHOUT CONSEQUENCE. Such an attitude and argument against God's sovereignty, is the original sin Adam committed in the garden.


Every cause and effect that came from Adam was predestined to happen by God before Adam ever existed. According to your own source documents.

All Adam did was ordained (decreed) by God to happen, due to Adam possessing secondary causal agency. And the awful consequences produced Judgment (predestination).


God predestined that Adam would bring sin into the world or else he would not have done so - according to your own source documents.

God ordained the fall, caused by Adam, and righteously judges the effects (predestination).





Do you intentionally contradict yourself or do you say such things and not notice the conflict between them?

Is it when two truth claims contradict one another that they become "profound truths"?​


There is no contradiction. I fear you simply have not spent time studying the attributes of God.




"Since the universe had its origin in God and depends on Him for its continued existence it must be, in all its parts and at all times, subject to His control so that nothing can come to pass contrary to what He expressly decrees or permits."​

Do you deny that this is what you believe?

No, I stand by these words. You only see contradiction, because your teachers and mentors contradict the historical Truths of God, and deny the attributes of God.

IOW's, you have been hoodwinked with the errors of Open Theology . . .
 

Grosnick Marowbe

New member
Hall of Fame
It seems that Calvinists ALWAYS accuse non-Calvinists of not understanding Reformed Theology. As if, they are the ONLY ones that are privy to such information. All that needs to be known about Calvinism (Reformed theology) can be found on Google search and off of Reformed websites. Come on people, Calvinists don't have any special hidden information, powers, or decoder rings. They are simply people that have been taken in by false doctrine and a false gospel. (small g) They may or may not be ("Wordsmiths} some are and some are not.

What they do have though is, a Semi-Truck full of arrogance.
 

Clete

Truth Smacker
Silver Subscriber
First, I am sure you have not been exposed to many Reformed churches and/or seminaries; certainly not all, so there is no basis for you to make such a claim. And thinking that these different terms are synonymous is why you wrongly define them.
I'd just about be willing to bet that I've read more about Calvinism than you have both for and against.

I absolutely do have basis for my claim. Not only have I read I don't even remember how many books on the topic but I've been debating this for well over a decade, if not two full decades. Calvinists use the terms preordained and predestine interchangeably as there is no practical difference between the two concepts. The only difference is purely semantic in nature.

Perhaps they are to those who prefer to dumb down language, in order to further their view, but for those who desire to plumb the depths of the truths of God, learning to distinguish them reveals many important things. Such as the difference between incommunicable attributes of God and communicable attributes from God. For it is His attributes we are really discussing.
What I'm discussing is the fact that everything that happens was set in stone before anyone did anything. There is no choice, there is no volition. You're complaints about whether someone does this or that (e.g. taking forgiveness as a license to sin) is meaningless double talk that directly contradicts your most core doctrines.

A claim that you have yet to deny, by the way.

It is a lazy use of the word "predestined" to so use it when speaking of "ordained" or "decreed."
It isn't lazy, it accurate. What event that has been preordained or decreed is not predestined?

Name one single event.

God has decreed all in His kosmos, including determining the fate of all persons . . but there remains distinction between the two. The decrees cover all of creation, including the fall of man and God's ordained remedy (saving grace) and predestination has to do with Judgment.
Calvinism makes NO SUCH DISTINCTION!!!

What is preordained is predestined by virtue of the fact that is has been ordained by the immutable god of Calvinism.

This is the second reason for your wrong thinking. God's attribute of immutability is Scriptural. James 1:17, Numbers 23:19
Calvinism's immutability is nowhere at all in the bible.

God's character is immutable, He is not.

John 1:1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
14 And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.​


So you deny all evidences of cause and effect? How brilliant you are! (not)
I deny no such thing. You're stupid.

What you are demanding here, is that the will of man be allowed to work alternative effects, from what God has decreed . . . WITHOUT CONSEQUENCE.
What are you talking about, "WITHOUT CONSEQUENCE"?

You need to go take your meds.

Without alternative possibilities, there is no choice. Without choice, there is no moral implication to any action. Without the ability to choose we're just a collection of chemicals going through the motions.

Such an attitude and argument against God's sovereignty, is the original sin Adam committed in the garden.
This was a stupid thing to say. Genesis says nothing at all about denying the notion that God controls everything (i.e. your definition of "sovereign". Further, according to Calvinism, Adam's sin was predestined to happen by God's decree before creation even began and he could not have done otherwise.

All Adam did was ordained (decreed) by God to happen,
And therefore unchangeably predestined.

due to Adam possessing secondary causal agency. And the awful consequences produced Judgment (predestination).
"Secondary causal agency" is a meaningless phrase. Adam did it because he had no choice. He had no choice because God degree what would happen in advance before Adam ever had a thought in his head.

God ordained the fall, caused by Adam, and righteously judges the effects (predestination).

God caused Adam to "cause" it. Adam could not have done otherwise. His action was not volitional, by definition. (According to your own doctrinal source documents.)

There is no contradiction. I fear you simply have not spent time studying the attributes of God.
Saying it doesn't make it so, Nang.

No, I stand by these words. You only see contradiction, because your teachers and mentors contradict the historical Truths of God, and deny the attributes of God.
Everyone can see that there is a contradiction there, including you! That's why you said it the way you did! Every Calvinist theologian that has ever published anything has gone on at length about the "mystery of the gospel" and making that phrase synonymous with the contradictory nature of the "doctrines of grace" vs. man's will. They go on and on about antinomy this and antinomy that. Everything in your whole theological system that cannot be explained rationally is tossed directly into the antinomy bin. It's what you Calvinists consider to be faith!

IOW's, you have been hoodwinked with the errors of Open Theology . . .
Thank God for that!

Resting in Him,
Clete
 

Nang

TOL Subscriber
I'd just about be willing to bet that I've read more about Calvinism than you have both for and against.

Don't put any money on it . . .

Everyone can see that there is a contradiction there, including you! That's why you said it the way you did! Every Calvinist theologian that has ever published anything has gone on at length about the "mystery of the gospel" and making that phrase synonymous with the contradictory nature of the "doctrines of grace" vs. man's will. They go on and on about antinomy this and antinomy that. Everything in your whole theological system that cannot be explained rationally is tossed directly into the antinomy bin. It's what you Calvinists consider to be faith!

Van Tillians excuse many discussions by claiming antinomies, but Clarkians do not.

If you know as much about Calvinism, as you claim, you will know to what I refer.
 
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