November
5, 2011
"Arminians
are not Christians" - declared some elitist Calvinists.
You
will hear that from various 'reformed' pulpits! They complain, and insinuate
like, "Reformed pastors who explain to their congregations that those who
are Arminian are still Christians, just a little mixed up and confused, and
just need better instruction in the Doctrines of Grace, are actually saying
that God does a really lousy job in saving some... but does just a great and
stupendous job of saving them!" (Randy Hartman)
The
answer to the apparent confusion and misunderstanding is quite simple: these
'reformed' people are ignorant (oh how could these elitist folks be ignorant of
anything?) of the distinction between eternal salvation administered by God's
free and sovereign grace, and temporal salvation through the gospel ministry
administered by men.
When
God saves, He saves to the uttermost, always complete and perfect every time...
from predestination all the way unto glorification, never misses one beat on
any elect. And He does not need any help from any man whatsoever. God saves by
turning condemned dead sinners into justified regenerated children of God...
all perfectly fitted for eternal glory... and all by His own free grace, based
on the finished work of Jesus Christ.
That's
eternal salvation. In this there is no variation or deficiency whatsoever; it
is always completeness and perfection. Each and every elect are equally saved
in every sense of the word. Eternal salvation deals with the BEING of God's
children.
God
appoints the gospel ministry for the instruction and conversion of His children
to the truth of their salvation by His free and sovereign grace. This deals
with the WELL BEING of God's children. The well-being of God's children is
through the gospel ministry administered through human instrumentality and a
whole host of different human factors are involved in the gospel ministry.
God's
children are at different stages of conversion through the gospel ministry of
varying degrees of faithfulness and usefulness... but they are perfectly and
equally God's children by the free and sovereign grace of God.
Apostle
Paul called the believers in Corinth SAINTS... as saints as those in the church
in Thessalonica. Look at the saints in the seven churches in the book of
Revelation.
There
is a vast degree of practical sanctification in the children of God through the
gospel ministry EVEN THOUGH all of them are equally and definitively sanctified
from their state of condemnation and death unto justification and eternal life.
Some
Americans think this way: the Americans who have not achieved the American
Dream are not true but fake Americans! That's the mentality of the 'reformed'
folks towards God's children who haven't attained their standard of doctrinal
correctness.
O
if only these elitist but misguided 'reformed' folks are aware of the
'deformity' of some of their own doctrines - they would realize that they are
not so much different from their cousins Arminians whom they despise!
A biblical distinction is the essence of sound theology.
