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| Walther - Now you must make a decision for UOJ, and you will be saved. |
LPC has left a new comment on your post "Another Plea for UOJ: Tragedy, Pity, Incomplete Se...":
I imagine Rev. Bosclair knows the original text and was taught proper exegesis in Seminary such as respecting context, or was he?
Romans 4:25 refers to believers and it is prospective. In fact even if it is taken as retrospective, it is blocked by the meaning of "our" in that verse - it refers to believers. Ichabod pointed out also that the continuing verse in Romans 5:1 shows that there is no justification of the unbeliever while he is in the state of unbelief.
This is indeed where the UOJ Lutherans are so peculiar to the rest of the
a.) the Lutheran world,
b.) to the rest of the Protestant world also.
I (as a former Calvinist) admonish Rev. Bosclair -- that if he buys the dual justification scheme, he has adopted unwittingly the presuppositions of Calvinism's central doctrine of their church, predestination and rationalism, not Justification By Faith Alone.
LPC
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GJ - Dr. Lito Cruz is correct. Calvin's divine decree of double-predestination is completely separate from the Word of God and from faith in Christ. As many Calvinists teach, this "terrible decree" (Calvin's words) was uttered before the Creation of the universe.
No wonder it was never recorded in the Scriptures.
According to Calvin, God decreed that the vast majority were doomed to eternal punishment before they were born, while the elite were elected to eternal bliss, apart from faith. That sounds terribly UOJish. Read and marvel at Walther separating election from the Gospel and faith. Compare and contrast.
Calvin even calculated that only 20% of Christians were really saved, an opinion that has plagued his followers ever since. They wonder, "How do I really know?" Faith in Christ has nothing to do with the terrible decree. Nor does church membership, although it is a plus. One would hope that the elect actually belonged to a church.
Twain remarked humorously that a good Calvinist sermon whittled down the numbers of the elect to such a tiny number that it was not worth the effort to be one.
KJV Romans 4:22 And therefore it was imputed to him [Abraham] for righteousness. 23 Now it was not written for his sake alone, that it was imputed to him; 24 But for us also, to whom it shall be imputed, if we believe on Him that raised up Jesus our Lord from the dead; 25 Who was delivered for our offences, and was raised again for our justification.
[The argument continues with the next two verses and all of Romans 5.]
5:1 Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ: 2 By whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God.
