Anyone who knows anything about my ministry (teaching the Word, preaching the Gospel, writing gospel tracts, making YouTube videos, etc), can at least tell one thing about me: I’M AGAINST SIN. I don’t think anyone should be sinning EVER. I preach an uncompromised message of turning from all sin and living a completely HOLY LIFE before God, walking in the power of the Holy Spirit.
Christians never have to sin and IF they sin, they must repent or they are in danger of dying and going to Hell. Even unbelievers have no excuse for their sins. If they did, then they wouldn’t truly be guilty, they would not deserve punishment and God couldn’t justly send them to Hell forever.
With that in mind, I’ve been thinking about this subject for a long time: REASONS NOT TO SIN…EVER. Even though I preach a message of absolute holiness, that doesn’t mean that holiness is automatic or easy. I need many of the points on this list just as much as the next person. I pray that this list helps to motivate you to live a holy life! I know that it helps me!
I’ve spent over a decade studying Calvinism and talking to Calvinists. I’ve read books from Calvinists, listened to their debates and sermons, and I’ve watched their videos. I’ve had hundreds (if not thousands) of discussions from Calvinists. I ALREADY KNOW that there will be some Calvinists who will read this blog post and saying, “You obviously don’t understand Calvinism!” or “This is a straw man argument against Calvinism!” or “You are misrepresenting Calvinism!” or “The people you’ve been talking to aren’t the real Calvinists!” I’ve heard these things a million times.
You know what I’ve experienced, though? Most people who I’ve talked to, who call themselves Calvinists, don’t even seem to know what Calvinism is. They probably watched some popular video on YouTube, listen to a popular podcast, read a well-known Calvinist’s books and assume that they are some kind of expert on Calvinism. Then I come along and bring out the TRUTH about Calvinism and what it leads to (“Consistent Calvinism”) and they want to act like I don’t know what I’m talking about.
When I have preached on or taught about the Doctrine of Eternal Hell, one objection I have heard often is this: “How can God send someone to Hell for all eternity for something as small as lying, stealing or lusting? Isn’t that a little harsh? That doesn’t sound like something a loving God would do.” That’s not an EXACT quote, but that’s essentially how the objection goes.
In essence, the people who make these kind of objections are saying that sending someone to an eternity in Hell would be unjust of God to do. BUT, what standard of “justice” are they using to say such a thing? Whatever standard of “justice” we have must be derived from God’s Holy Word. Any other standard of “justice” is simply arbitrary. If our definition of “justice” doesn’t line up with God’s Word we are guilty of idolatry – making up a God who is “just” according to our own arbitrary definition of what “justice” is.
One objection Calvinists often pose to non-Calvinists regarding salvation is the involvement of free will in sinners being converted/made right with God. Calvinists would have you believe that the free will of man has absolutely nothing to do with salvation and that if it did, that the man would automatically be prideful or that salvation would automatically be “works salvation,” instead of “salvation by grace.”
In meditating upon this through the years, I have come up with a parable/analogy to show how silly these objections are. Man choosing to be saved does not mean that he is being prideful, nor does it mean that his salvation is now a “works salvation.” In my opinion, these silly objections simply consist in Calvinists engaging in the redefining of Biblical words. They define the terms in light of their theological system, instead of allowing the true definitions of Biblical words to define their theological system.
BOASTFUL BEACH PARABLE/ANALOGY
Two men were at Boastful Beach one day. They loved the beach, because it fulfilled the “lust of their eyes” as they looked at all the bikini clad women. They were enjoying their day basking in the heat of the sun and getting a tan in order to fuel their own “pride of life.” They both knew that in order to get a “hot girl,” they had to have a tan. One of them began to get a little too warm, so he decided to take a swim in the Sea of Sin.
This the second part of proving the doctrine of Conditional Security, from the Bible. If you want to read Part 1, then GO HERE.Last time, I gave plenty of Scripture showing how someone can TRULY know that they are a Christian. God wants us to have assurance of salvation. He doesn’t want us to be insecure about our salvation. I also posted a video where I talk about a number of passages from the Bible, that emphatically prove the doctrine of Conditional Security.
This time, I want to go through some examples in Scripture where people actually departed from the faith. They either stopped following Jesus while He was still alive or they departed from the faith after Jesus rose from the grave. Either way, these are examples of people “losing their salvation” and therefore are Biblical proof that the doctrine of Conditional Security is true.
The Disciples from John 6
John 6:66: “From that time many of His disciples went back and walked with Him no more.”
Many DISCIPLES turned back from Him. Keep in mind that in Scripture, “disciple” is synonymous with believer or follower of Christ. One can’t be a “disciple” without being a follower and vice versa. Yet, after a difficult saying from Jesus, these “disciples” ” went back and walked with Him no more.” So, these “disciples” used to “walk with” Jesus and they decided to “go back” or “backslide.” People can twist it any way they like, but the Scripture says what it says.
Many Christians and most Protestants look up to Martin Luther as a “great theologian,” a “great reformer,” and a “hero of the faith” whose writings should be read and quoted. Yet, is he really someone who should be looked up to in such a way? Not according to what I have studied.
Sure, Luther did some good things and had some good things to say. I don’t deny that. Yet, Benny Hinn and the Pope might have good things to say at times as well. Should I then respect them in the same way that many respect Martin Luther? I don’t think so.
Do the good things he said and did automatically do away with the bad? Do we just sweep all of the bad under the rug and consider him some kind of “great Saint,” in spite of all the bad? Well, I’ll let you decide for yourself.
Maybe you’ve never read the below quotes or are ignorant of the bad things he said. Below is a collection of quotes that I have compiled from Luther’s writings. The quotes comes from his books, letters and sermons. You tell me if he should be looked up to in such a way.
Personally, I can’t in good conscience, look up to such a person. Those of you who are reading this who aren’t Calvinists, you really need to reconsider looking up to such a man. I expect this from Calvinists, because it is consistent with their theology, but not from you! Please reconsider promoting such a man or recommending people to read his writings!
Divorce and remarriage is a very sensitive subject, for many different reasons. It effects adults, it effects children, it could effect where you will spend eternity, it could effect what Church you are able to be a part of and it could effect friendships you have. When it comes to different viewpoints on this subject from the Bible, there is one that seems to be “on the rise.”
The view that I am referring to, is the one that states the following: If you have been divorced from your first spouse, you cannot remarry at all unless the first spouse has died. And if you have already remarried someone else (with your first spouse still alive), then you must now divorce them or you are in perpetual adultery and on your way to Hell. It doesn’t matter how long you were married to the first spouse or what reasons you had for divorcing him/her. It doesn’t matter how many children you have or how long you have been married to the current spouse. It doesn’t matter if your first spouse has remarried someone else or not.
It also doesn’t matter, according to this view, if you were a non-believer when you got divorced and have since become a believer who is now married to another believer. It doesn’t even matter if your first spouse is still a non-Christian, according to this view. You should still seek to be reconciled to them or remain single (after you get divorced from current spouse).
This view basically says that any other marriages while the first spouse is still alive are not legitimate marriages in God’s eyes. This view has been responsible for breaking up lots of Godly marriages through false doctrine and false guilt. Many people are now single and either waiting to be rejoined to their first spouse or waiting for that spouse to die. Some of them are lonely and burning, but are told they would be in sin if the were to marry someone else.
Is this really the way God planned things to be? Is this position really the Biblical position on divorce and remarriage? I came really close to believing in it and close to “putting my stake down” on the position. Fortunately, I continued to study things out and came to different conclusions. Here’s the first video, where I was basically teaching the view that I have been describing above:
And here’s the second video, where I had changed my mind after studying it out much more thoroughly:
If you want to know what I believe and how it is backed up with Scriptures, the second video is the one you should watch. My intention in writing this blog post is not to bring up all of the Scriptures in that video and try to prove my current position. Such is already done in the second video from above. The point of this blog post is to address one of the many objections I have received, from the “no remarriage allowed unless the first spouse has died” group.
Below is a new video, where I teach on the Biblical Doctrine of Conditional Security. This is actually the fourth teaching of five, on this topic. The previous three were devoted to properly interpreting the “proof texts” that people use to “prove” Unconditional Eternal Security, also known as Once Saved, Always Saved (OSAS) or Perseverance of the Saints (POTS).
The doctrine of Unconditional Eternal Security is possibly one of the greatest heresies in all of the history of mankind. It started in the Garden of Eden, when Satan said, “You will not surely die.” It continues to this day and I consider it to be a doctrine of demons, per 1 Timothy 4:1-2. It gives people false security and false assurance.
This post is in the same theme as my last “10 Things” post (SEE HERE FOR ON THAT POST), except that this one is the EXACT OPPOSITE of the last one. Sometimes Calvinists remind me of Mormons. Now, I know that sounds insulting, but please let me explain. Mormons, often times, try to “hide” some of their more “hard to believe” doctrines from new converts or people they are trying to convert. They won’t talk about polygamy, the blood atonement doctrine, that Joseph Smith said that the “rest of Christianity” was apostate, that you could have your own planet someday, that God used to be a human being or that Jesus and Satan are brothers.
I see the same thing happening with Calvinists, a lot of the time. They rarely ever mention their “hard to believe” doctrines while witnessing to the lost, while preaching in the open air or in their prayers. They rarely ever talk about Unconditional Election or Unconditional Reprobation, on the streets. They rarely ever talk about Limited/Definite Atonement, while they are witnessing to someone. They rarely ever mention Irresistible Grace, while they pray.
Why is that? Are they ashamed of such doctrines? Do they not think that such doctrines are important? Do they really believe in them? In light of these experiences of mine, I have made a list of 10 things that consistent Calvinists SHOULD say, but usually don’t say. As with the last list, this list doesn’t include all Calvinists. There may be some Calvinists who would and do say these things. I couldn’t possibly include all Calvinists, since I don’t know all Calvinists and haven’t had an experience with all Calvinists. I am simply going by my extended experience with Calvinists, over the last 8 years or so.
One question that seems to come up often, in the discussion on the doctrine of original sin, is “Why do people die?” Another offshoot of this question is, “If babies aren’t born sinners, then why do they die?” The implication is that the reason why everyone dies physically, is directly because of their own personal sin. In the case of the infant, they die because Adam’s sin is also “their sin”, i.e. the “doctrine of original sin”. In the case of adults, they die because of their own personal sin, that they continue in until the day they die, i.e. the “doctrine of perpetual sinfulness.”
Both of these “answers” to the question of, why people die are wrong. Both are insufficient answers to the question. If everyone dies because of their own personal sin (whether they actually committed it or they “committed it” in Adam), then we have a GREAT PROBLEM. This one problem should be enough to utterly demolish such unbiblical thinking. Are you ready?
Kerrigan Skelly's Blog - Evangelist & Pastor 