Optimism

Curious Combo

Since foolishness to the foolish is integral to the gospel message, this creates the possibility of a curious combination of circumstances. Specifically, the religious unbelieving could actually drive other unbelieving toward Christ through preaching pieces of the gospel. The religious unbelieving might teach some true things about Christ that could help others take steps toward Christ. Though if the leader does not know the whole path to the cross, then "the blind lead the blind"... read more.

Daniel 12:1-4

Wait! We must also consider Daniel 12:1-4 (WEB). Does this Scripture speak about the eternal damnation of unbelieving mankind? 1) At that time Michael will stand up, the great prince who stands for the children of your people ; and there will be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation even to that same time. At that time your people will be delivered, everyone who is found written in... read more.

Did John Calvin Originate Calvinism?

READER>> Did Calvinism Originate with John Calvin? ME>> Actually, John Calvin did not originate Calvinistic thought. The roots of Calvin's theology are also evident in the theology of Saint Augustine, a most famous Catholic priest from the 4th Century. This is a very curious fact considering that the Catholic Church then condemned Calvin and some of the Reformers for holding to Augustine's theology in the 16th Century! Sadly Christians have gone back and forth from... read more.

Disclaimer

You certainly do not need to agree with me or any particular guru to be a follower of Christ. However, to be a follower of Christ, you do need to actually follow Christ . Since Christ is one, then we should expect to become one in our thinking as we each grow closer to him. But today we still remain far from the perfection of Christ, and at times sadly far from each other. The... read more.

Eschatology is the Study of Future Good News!

READER>> What is your view of eschatology? ME>> Eschatology is one of the most difficult and dividing sciences in Christian theology. Eschatology is the part of theology concerned with death, judgment, and the final destiny of the soul and of mankind. Eschatology is simply the study of future good news! The challenge is understanding and interpreting Biblical prophecy about the future of mankind's redemption. The bold claim of the Optimism Out of Control book is... read more.

Eschatology is the Study of Future Good News! (Part 2 with Grudem, Riddlebarger, Chilton, Summers, and Ewing)

READER>> What is more of your view of eschatology? ME>> Previously I mentioned that I hold the A-Millennial understanding of future things. I believe that the present Church Age is the Millennial Kingdom of Revelation 20:1-6 and that the second coming of Christ at the Great White Throne Judgment will occur at the end of this present Church Age. The eternal New Heavens and Earth will then begin after that. Below are a few books... read more.

Essential Observations

OBJECTION>> The Optimism Out of Control book is too long and difficult to read. Can you please summarize your essential observations? ME>> Yes, I apologize for the length of the book. While defending the truth that Jesus Christ is your savior, my savior, and the savior of all mankind I may have spent too many words answering objections. I list my essential observations below. The salvation of mankind and the doom of Satan is the... read more.

Eternal Destiny

Thank you for taking the time to read my thoughts concerning the gospel of Jesus Christ. I would be grateful to receive your thoughts and comments at DGJC.ORG/CONTACT . I can think of no other subject that has grabbed my attention as powerfully as the cross of Christ. Hopefully you feel the same way. The love of Jesus Christ and his tender caress in removing the thorns of sin from the hearts of his people... read more.

Evangelicaluniversalist.com discussion

I joined evangelicaluniversalist.com discussion to get feedback on my book. However, the forum discussion has since been closed. The feedback was helpful, but also clouded by strange views from other contributors such as reincarnation and Unitarianism. Following are the titles of my posts archived at http://jeff-martin-reposted.signedon.net : BUT YA GOTTA ACCEPT IT! Fallen Angels are the Goats on Jesus' Left Is 'free will' faith saving faith? The Optimism Out of Control book now for sale... read more.

Evangelism & Discipleship

Recently I was asked, "What are the practical effects of believing that Jesus is the Savior of all mankind." My friend does not believe that Jesus is the savior of all, but was simply trying to understand why this is such an important point. I then realized that my book was missing an important chapter on application. My friend's point is well taken. If there are no practical applications of a truth or even a... read more.

Fallen Angels at The Great White Throne Judgment?

OBJECTOR>> Fallen angels will not be judged at The Great White Throne Judgment or The Sheep and Goat Judgment. You are wrong about that. The Goats on Jesus' left are unbelieving mankind that will be damned to the Lake of Fire. ME>> I certainly respect that we have a different view of these things. However, please consider one more amazing observation from the Scripture. Traditional understanding holds that The Great White Throne Judgment and The... read more.

Fellowship with Jesus

Jesus Christ is your savior, my savior, and the savior of all mankind! So how do we fellowship with Jesus now? Jesus loves to eat, drink, talk, and laugh with us, his chosen people. He created us for this very purpose. Consider that his first miracle was to turn water into wine at a wedding! We can be so excited that we are promised eternity in the home of this man! Glorious fellowship is promised.... read more.

Final Analysis

In the final analysis both Arminianism and Calvinism wittingly or unwittingly bend Scripture to fit their model of salvation. Of course everyone knows that faith must also be reasonable. Thus we might stretch our interpretations of Scripture to fit the best models available to us. Furthermore, since Arminianism and Calvinism are both considered orthodox and commonly accepted, perhaps that is why followers of Jesus Christ have not been able to find unity even on the... read more.

Flying Impossible!

My thesis is simple. Jesus Christ is your savior, my savior, and the savior of all mankind. However, most of mankind does not believe this good news, even many of those who call themselves Christians. Can any special strategies be used to overcome this disbelief? Consider a history lesson from Wilbur and Orville Wright. Suppose someone does not believe flight is possible. He tells you that flight is imaginary and we have been fooled. We... read more.

Follow Jesus

Jesus Christ is your savior, my savior, and the savior of all mankind! So how do we even begin to follow him? Matthew 4:18-20 (WEB) says, 18) Walking by the sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers: Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew, his brother, casting a net into the sea; for they were fishermen. 19) He said to them, "Come after me, and I will make you fishers for men." 20) They immediately... read more.

Forever Is Not Forever? You Gotta Be Kidding Me!

Some chide... SOME>> Forever Is Not Forever? You Gotta Be Kidding Me! ME>> You make an excellent point. I had come to the conclusion that " forever " and " eternal " in the New Testament must not always mean " forever " and " eternal " because the context of grace demands salvation satisfaction even for the unbelieving. And so I concluded that the Holy Spirit used the word " forever " and "... read more.

Forever Is Not Forever? You Still Gotta Be Kidding Me!

SOME>> Forever Is Not Forever? You Still Gotta Be Kidding Me! ME>> This is an excellent point already briefly discussed in my previous article, Forever Is Not Forever? You Gotta Be Kidding Me! The main point is that I do boldly say with others that the Greek word " aion" and its adjective " aionios" are often misunderstood and mistranslated in many translations of the Christian Scriptures. This Greek noun and adjective have a much... read more.

God is Not a Retributivist!

SEVERAL UNIVERSALISTS>> God is not a retributivist! You seem to have hope that God will be ALL in ALL and finally save ALL humanity, yet you portray God as an angry retributivist against sin and unrepentant sinners. This is a wrong view of God. ME>> A number of authors listed in my article Book Reviews have argued that traditional theology is wrong because God is characterized as a retributivist. Their concern is that a God... read more.

Gospel Foolishness

The heart of the problem with Arminian and Calvinist efforts to codify the gospel is that they do not include gospel foolishness and they depend upon a mistranslation of the word "aion." These models assume that the Bible is written to educate teachable people. These models adopt a purely informational and educational strategy for winning converts that appeals only to the natural mind. Furthermore, these models assume that the gospel can be simply codified. I... read more.

Grand Conclusion

Are you embarrassed about your spiritual questions? Are you scared of looking foolish? Are you scared of being wrong? We often try to hide our ignorance, but we should resist this. There is too much to be lost if we are wrong. There is even more to be gained when we are right with God. Ignoring the hole in our roof directly harms us and our estate. I am often secretive about my questions, but... read more.

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