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Search results

  1. H

    Justification

    In my opinion, Christ forgives us and makes us his before we do anything. (Indeed you can argue that he did that 2000 years ago.) However once that happens, we're expected to follow him, and will be held accountable for what we do. We're held accountable, however, as followers of varying degrees...
  2. H

    Justification

    I realize I wasn't attacked, but my response is that it depends upon things not specified in your story. What you describe is certainly non-Christian. You will definitely have to face that fact in front of God. And no doubt make amends to your family. However depending upon things not...
  3. H

    Justification

    Lutheranism was a threat for reasons other than justification. It had removed whole areas from the Catholic Church, and attacked the Church's legitimacy. I find it quite credible that the 16th Cent RCC would adopt hostile understandings of Protestant theology. This is not the first time. I...
  4. H

    Justification

    When groups condemn each other, there are two possibilities. One is that their views are different. The other is that they misunderstand (or misrepresent) what the others are saying. I think most scholars believe there was a substantial amount of the latter involved in Trent (and Protestant...
  5. H

    Justification

    As to what "saved" means, Jesus seems to use it primarily for a permanent change in direction, from moving someone from being a "sinner" to being a follower of Jesus. (I quote "sinner" because it seems clear from context that Jesus understands that even his followers sin. When he uses the term...
  6. H

    Justification

    Rectify is a fine translation, but there’s some ambiguity about it. It makes make right. But what do you mean by right? The Protestant tradition says declare righteous, with a forensic tilt, meaning declare not guilty before God. In Protestant theology this is something that happens once...
  7. H

    Soul Liberty

    It's a traditional Baptist concept. https://www.baptistdistinctives.org/resources/articles/is-soul-competency-the-baptist-distinctive/ I'm not sure all Baptists agree. Particularly in the last few decades, in a fight against modern theology, many Baptists have emphasized some degree of...
  8. H

    There really are Protestants who say "The Bible is God"

    It's worth noting that the other Protestants in the discussion weren't receptive to this idea.
  9. H

    There really are Protestants who say "The Bible is God"

    Calvin saw an analogy between the Incarnation and Scripture. Scripture is a human work, but it is also God's word. When properly used, the analogy can actually be helpful. But this seems to be pushing it further, to say that the Bible is the inliberation of the Logos, the Word made book. While...
  10. H

    Trump and Syria

    He's about to make the only mistake you could accuse Obama of making: intervening just enough to increase the conflict but not enough to stop it.
  11. H

    Justification

    There is certainly an individualist strain in Baptist thought. But not so much the groups currently identified as Anabaptist -- Mennonites, Amish, etc. I do agree with Josiah on the basic point. Jesus specifically, and the NT in general, does emphasize the community. Jesus said he came to...
  12. H

    In Christ

    Of course Paul and James seem to use justification differently, and Catholics use it differently from Protestants. But in the NT justification seems like a big deal primarily for Paul, so I tend to use his definition. It's primarily Romans and Galatians. Both are about what defines people as...
  13. H

    In Christ

    Looking through uses of the phrase "in Christ." First, it's often used with something else, so depending upon that context there can be varying meanings. But when Paul speaks of someone simply as "in Christ" it seems from context that he simply means they're followers of Christ. Just what all...
  14. H

    Justification

    I'm reacting to http://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/__P6C.HTM. It suggests that mortal sin loses "charity" and requires something very much like becoming a Christian again. (1856) Until that is done, one is outside the Kingdom (1861). I understand that the Catholic concept of justification...
  15. H

    Justification

    Protestants also used the court-room meaning of justification, though perhaps in a different direction. They tended to distinguish between a verdict of not guilty and one's actual innocence. I think they may have made too much of this, but that was part of the concept that true righteousness...
  16. H

    Justification

    The OP raises the question of what justification means. It's pretty clear that the Catholic tradition uses it in a broader sense than the Reformers did, that it almost includes both the Protestant justification and sanctification. That's one reason that justification by faith seems absurd to...
  17. H

    Romans 5:12-21

    Actually, the OP wasn't "what do you think is the best exegesis of this passage?" It was about the way churches have built their understanding of original sin on it. Both questions are important.
  18. H

    Transgender policy inthe military

    You might find this interesting: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/266423271_Medical_Aspects_of_Transgender_Military_Service. It reviews the medical issues, pointing out that the military accepts the same kinds of risks and requirements for other conditions. The issue here is ideological...
  19. H

    Romans 5:12-21

    A useful summary. I would think Calvin would agree with all of them. On the first item: Calvin said one place that God never intended us to live forever on earth. Without sin we would have transitioned peacefully to eternal life. He distinguishes this from death, although my opinion is that in...
  20. H

    Transgender policy inthe military

    Until we have more experience as a culture, I'd like to stay away from policies like this, just like I'd like to leave school bathrooms to the principals for the moment. But courts have been treating this as sex discrimination. I think he's asking for a Supreme Court decision that will settle...
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