The Utterly Confused John MacArthur Jr.
While proudly calling himself a Calvinist, John MacArthur teaches in the following video clip that the believer’s baptism in the Spirit only occurs once. Yet, John Calvin and the Reformers in general believed that the believer’s baptism needed to occur daily through the death of deep repentance and the resurrection of new obedience. In other words, self-depravation brings about perpetual death with Christ, followed by the fruits of resurrection expressed in joy or some kind of manifestation of Christ’s obedience. That’s “revisiting the gospel afresh” through deep repentance and new obedience. As a result, the believer supposedly receives a perpetual forgiveness for sins that maintains our justification. It’s heresy of the first order.
Astonishingly, MacArthur also states that the baptism of the Spirit should not be sought or repeated. This completely contradicts what his associates teach in regard to “preaching the gospel to ourselves every day.” The very purpose of this mantra is to advocate a continual return to the gospel in order to “experience” death and rebirth. MacArthur cohort and Reformed hack Dr. Michael Horton stated it this way in his book on systematic theology:
Progressive sanctification has two parts: mortification and vivification, “both of which happen to us by participation in Christ,” as Calvin notes….Subjectively experiencing this definitive reality signified and sealed to us in our baptism requires a daily dying and rising. That is what the Reformers meant by sanctification as a living out of our baptism….and this conversion yields lifelong mortification and vivification “again and again.” Yet it is critical to remind ourselves that in this daily human act of turning, we are always turning not only from sin but toward Christ rather than toward our own experience or piety (pp. 661-663 [Calvin Inst. 3.3.2-9]).
Luther advocated the same in Thesis 16 and 17 of his Heidelberg Confession. There, he posits the Reformed mainstay that Christians need the same grace that saved them continually, and this saving grace should be continually sought. So, baptism does not signify a onetime event, but signifies the need to continually repent in order to receive the perpetual baptism that saved us.
Paul's Passing Thoughts 
Church? I think of Andy, Argo, Lydia, trust4him, BD, Paul, Susan and John and many others that have commented or who have yet to comment but agree. Real defending and contending for the faith and new life we have! Hope to see your comments here more often, John Immel, they are insightful and I enjoy them. Can’t say I’ve learned as much in the institutional church. God gave us a brain, he wants us to use it.
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I find the whole dichotomy of justification/sanctification logically suspect unless we concede that man’s will must be involved in the entire process (and hence, there is no actual inside/outside works; it is purely relational between two self aware individuals). If, according to the construct, man has nothing to do with salvation, even denying that he must acquiesce (choose) it, then the entire process and idea of sanctification is largely moot. At best, it is merely religiously perfunctory.
If salvation has nothing to do with man, it isn’t logically consistent to say sanctification does. By definition, sanctification in either case is irrelevant.
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“They specifically taught that there is NO savific work INSIDE the believer EVER.”
Bingo!!! That is the money quote. Let us never forget it.
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Well, it has been fun. It is clear once again that we believe two different gospels. Like the RCs, you believe that the ground of our justification is the work of God in us. I believe it is God’s work in Christ.”
Paul… are we crazy? is this not the very distinction he has been insisting he doesn’t accept? and that “Calvinists” do not believe?
WTF?”
Another shocker is that he does not seem to know that Jesus was God in the Flesh. If you listen to these guys long enough, you start picking up on their bizarre beliefs concerning the Trinity.
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Lydia,
Oh ya, total distortion of the Trinity. At best, The Father and the Holy Spirit are subordinate to Christ. At worst, the Father and the Holy Spirit are mere expressions of Christ.
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“Church? I think of Andy, Argo, Lydia, trust4him, BD, Paul, Susan and John and many others that have commented or who have yet to comment but agree. Real defending and contending for the faith and new life we have! Hope to see your comments here more often, John Immel, they are insightful and I enjoy them. Can’t say I’ve learned as much in the institutional church. God gave us a brain, he wants us to use it.”
Thanks A Mom. You are so right….we were created with brains and expected to use them…….. but that does not feed the egos of the philosopher kings.
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Paul, Don’t forget that a few years ago there was a big push was for ESS at SBTS. Eternal Subordination of the Son– to shore up their doctrine of authoritarianism for leaders mapping an invented hierarchy in the Trinity to “God ordained” hierarchy on earth. Like John says, they make it up as they go to shore up what they claim as “orthodoxy” for the moment.
Personally, I think we are witnessing a form of this warning in much of what passes as evangelicalism in the USA:
But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days. 2 People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, 3 without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, 4 treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God— 5 having a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing to do with such people.
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No doubt.
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Apostle Paul says in 2 Corinthians 11:1-15 (I picked ESV, so you can’t disagree)….
I wish you would bear with me in a little foolishness. Do bear with me! 2 For I feel a divine jealousy for you, since I betrothed you to one husband, to present you as a pure virgin to Christ. 3 But I am afraid that as the serpent deceived Eve by his cunning, your thoughts will be led astray from a sincere and pure devotion to Christ. 4 For if someone comes and proclaims another Jesus than the one we proclaimed, or if you receive a different spirit from the one you received, or if you accept a different gospel from the one you accepted, you put up with it readily enough. 5 Indeed, I consider that I am not in the least inferior to these super-apostles. 6 Even if I am unskilled in speaking, I am not so in knowledge; indeed, in every way we have made this plain to you in all things.
7 Or did I commit a sin in humbling myself so that you might be exalted, because I preached God’s gospel to you free of charge? 8 I robbed other churches by accepting support from them in order to serve you. 9 And when I was with you and was in need, I did not burden anyone, for the brothers who came from Macedonia supplied my need. So I refrained and will refrain from burdening you in any way. 10 As the truth of Christ is in me, this boasting of mine will not be silenced in the regions of Achaia. 11 And why? Because I do not love you? God knows I do!
12 And what I am doing I will continue to do, in order to undermine the claim of those who would like to claim that in their boasted mission they work on the same terms as we do. 13 For such men are false apostles, deceitful workmen, disguising themselves as apostles of Christ. 14 And no wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light. 15 So it is no surprise if his servants, also, disguise themselves as servants of righteousness. Their end will correspond to their deeds.
So… Feeling burdened by slick-speaking “super-apostles” who require your submission and money? These are some of the traits of teachers of false gospel. Note how apostle Paul describes himself: humbly puts himself below the people, free of charge. Why? He says it’s because he loves them! He warns against false apostles, he says they disguise themselves as apostles of Christ and are like Satan. If you “sit under preaching and authority” AKA you are humbled so they may be honored and exalted, then you have been imprinted by the underside of “false super-apostles”. Great news, imprints fade with exit actions. Choose abundant life. Last note: an apostle of Christ: skill in knowledge required, skill in speaking optional. Upside-down evangelicalism in the USA indeed.
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A Mom said: ” Hope to see your comments here more often, John Immel, they are insightful and I enjoy them.”
Thanks Mom. you’re wonderful. If you like my stuff, there is plenty more of it at http://www.spiritualtyranny.com.
keep thinking with that brain . . . it only gets better.
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“Oh ya, total distortion of the Trinity. At best, The Father and the Holy Spirit are subordinate to Christ. At worst, the Father and the Holy Spirit are mere expressions of Christ.”
You know full well that is not what we believe. We do believe that just as it was the Son’s mission during his humiliation to bring glory to the Father, it is now the Spirit’s mission to bring glory to the Son.
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Randy,
Why are you back here? You are merely discrediting the breed. And where does the Bible say that the Spirit’s mission is to bring glory to the Son? And is that temporary? Or permanent?
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John,
[deleted]
“eligido”, I am not posting any of your comments until you answer my question: Where does the Bible say that the Spirit’s mission is to bring glory to Christ? And is that temporary or permanent? You don’t make the rules here Bubba, I am not one of your Kool-Aid drinking minions.
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