Thursday, April 17, 2008

SINNERS ACCORDING TO GOD'S WILL?

I recently posed the following question on a Christian discussion forum;

"Is it possible to be living TOTALLY according to God's will for your life and still be a sinner destined for hell?"

And received this reply:

How could one be "living TOTALLY according to GOD's will for their life" and wind up in Hell ?

I would agree with the sentiments of the person who responded to my question and I’d come up with come up with the same answer they obviously infer – it is impossible to live totally according to God’s will for your life and still be cast into hell.
Yet there is a very common theological viewpoint that presents just the opposite.
Maybe people are thinking I’m mistaken – surely there could be no such widespread doctrine in mainstream Christianity. Let me assure you that there is – it goes by the name of Calvinism.
According to this doctrine God personally predestined some to be saved, and others not to be saved. It is God’s will and God’s will alone that determines our eternal destiny. Therefore those who are condemned to hell are doomed entirely because they are following God’s chosen will and plan for their lives.

But what about sin? Surely they are condemned because of their sin? That is true – but WHY are they sinners? Did they really have any choice in the matter? Calvinism says no because all men are born in a totally depraved state that ensures they can do nothing but sin.
And why are they born into this state?
Because of Adam’s fall in the garden…

But wait, there’s more… According to Calvin, God Himself ordained that Adam should sin. Adam ALSO had no choice in the matter but was merely following God’s ordained plan for his life.

So here we have a doctrine that states that God Himself ordained man to be born into sin, that same God condemns sinners to hell and yet leaves the majority with no chance of being redeemed from that penalty of their sin. ALL because they are fulfilling God’s ordained will and purpose for their lives!

Now, I ask again. "Is it possible to be living TOTALLY according to God's will for your life and still be a sinner destined for hell?"
Calvin and his followers think so – though I’m sure they’d deny it. But that is EXACTLY what their doctrine is saying no matter how much they protest that this isn’t the case.

1 comment:

Preston N said...

Onesimus - Hey thanks for stopping by my blog. Great stuff you got going here! I agree totally with your comments here. Calvinism is chalked full of contradictions and illogical conclusion such as this. It's like I told someone the other day who was a Calvinist regarding sin and Total Depravity - can someone be "Righteously Sinful" or a "Saintly Sinner", then why do you say that a person can sin and yet still be righteous?? It's a real difficult arguement as it grossly violates the Law of Non-Contradiction. Keep up the great work Brother and God Bless you for seeking and promoting the Truth!