When well meaning, but gullible Christians go around saying that God loves everyone (generally quoted with perhaps the best known and most misappropriated Bible verse ever; John 3.16!). The well worn out reply is something akin to; "If your God loves everyone, why all the murders, disasters, and violence in the world?"
An astute answer, if you go around telling people that "God loves everyone"!!!
Of course, I realize that many will say that all the aforementioned problems are the fault of fallen man, and this is true, but nevertheless to tell the sinner that "God loves you"without first telling him that he must repent of his sins and believe in His Son's precious atoning blood unto salvation, is altogether...wrong! But, how does such an one know that he is a sinner, without first believing that he has offended his Maker? Obviously these Christians first need to tell the sinner the Commandments that he has broken! Romans 1.20 elucidates the fact that a man can know that God indeed does exist! they are not stupid! For the invisible things of Him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse. Could it be clearer? Paraphrasing A.W. Pink; "To tell an unbeliever that God loves the sinner, but hates the sin, is to cauterize his conscience and afford him a sense of security in his sins." He then goes on to say "that this is a meaningless distinction, for what is in a sinner, but sin?"
Surely, the correct way of going about it, would be to say "if you repent of your sins and believe on Christ's atoning blood unto salvation, then God will love you!" The Saviour said "If a man love Me, he will keep My words, and My Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him." John 14.23.
If God did love every single man, woman, and child that has been brought into this world since Adam and Eve, then what was ever the point of creating the abode of the damned, commonly known as hell? Why did the Saviour spend so much time warning of the place "Where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched." Mark 9.44? This fire is "the everlasting fire" of Matt.25.41. Of course, there are liberal theologians and universalists who would teach us that the Lord didn't mean what He said, that "everlasting" has a terminus! Then what of "everlasting life", does that also not mean what it says?
In more biblically literate days, from the Reformation down to the mid 19th century when Darwinism was starting to do its worst, you couldn't imagine the puritans telling sinners "God loves you!" No, they first warned of "the wrath to come". But, such are the days we are in.
Gordon H. Clark said it right in 1969;
There are too few people who wish to understand even the simplest biblical teaching. This is not a theological age. Some writers say-that it is a post-Christian age. What is needed today is an exhortation to study the Bible.
Page 2. BIBLICAL PREDESTINATION
ISBN: 0-87552-137-1.
No comments:
Post a Comment