Congratulations on the successful blog. I have a few questions regarding this video.
Why would the imputation of Christ’s active obedience being to us need to mean that the work is somehow NOT finished?
Jesus was a blemish-free, spotless and perfect sacrifice. He is the “lamb” God would provide, as prophesied by Abraham. He is the end (telos–goal, completion, fulfillment) of the law “for righteousness to everyone who believes” (Rom. 10:4). In Him the law is fulfilled.
He is the reason “There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of Life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death.”
And by what means does the rule of the Spirit do this? “For God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh” (surely that refers to sinful flesh, and not Christ’s) “was unable to do. By sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, He condemned sin in the flesh….”
So our sin was condemned in Christ, but that’s not the end of the story: “…in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.” The righteous requirement of the law needed to be met. However, for sinners like us, the law is death–“for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life” (2 Cor. 3:6b). It is only in Christ that the law could be satisfied. Jesus’ active obedience satisfied God with His life. His atoning crucifixion satisfied God the Father with His life.
With all due respect, it sounds as though you are arguing that it is irrelevant (or even false?) that Jesus perfectly fulfilled the law. A prima facie reading of Matthew 5:17 (“Do not think that I have come to abolish the law….”) ought to dispel that notion, no?
It is apparent that you have a problem with Calvinism. But I fail to see how disputing the importance of Christ’s active obedience helps your cause. Am I totally misreading you here? I mean this with all charity and respect. I’m posting this as a public comment because you posted your video response publicly. I’d be happy to have you respond via email if you would prefer.
paulspassingthoughts said, on May 17, 2014 at 11:06 AM
Joel,
Thanks for how you have framed the questions, they strike at the crux of the issue. Yes, salvation not being a finished work because of how Calvin et al viewed the law is the issue. Plainly, Calvin was a heretic who proffered a blatant false gospel. Election is not the issue, Calvin’s view of law and gospel is the issue.
“Why would the imputation of Christ’s active obedience being to us need to mean that the work is somehow NOT finished?” Because Calvin made the law the standard of righteousness. Therefore, the reality of somebody being truly righteous requires a perfect upholding of the law. Problem is, there is NO law in justification. This is where the problem with not separating justification and sanctification also comes into play. The biblical separation of justification and sanctification is a radical dichotomy, and the law is the demarcation. Scripture must be read this way: …for justification, or …for sanctification. The Reformers read the Bible as a justification book and redefined sanctification as a magnification of justification. They deliberately nuanced this belief by substituting “justification” with “grace” where appropriate. Hence, Calvin’s “two-fold grace” is really two-fold justification. “Grace,” like “gospel” have multiple ideas and usages in the Bible and the Reformers past and present use these words to bridge the gap between justification and sanctification (what I call the “430-year-gap”); I believe this is deliberate deception, the fact that they see it as a metaphysical noble lie not withstanding.
In his Institutes, Calvin states plainly in 3.11.6 that God continues to justify us by regeneration. A careful examination of his masterful nuance is that what is regenerated is NOT US, but our “vices” through the vital union of Christ. In other words, “regeneration” is the perpetual forgiveness of new sins and the application of Christ’s perfect obedience to the law in order to keep us saved.
Calvin states that otherwise we would be left as we “were” by nature. But in all of this, he is not talking about us being actually righteous, he is talking about our mere position being regenerated. I am not going to get into Calvin’s Gnostic application of realm manifestation here, but suffice to say for now that Calvin believed that regeneration (quickening, the new birth expressed in sanctification) was an expression of justification that is done TO US 100% and not BY US. It all boils down to the fact that Calvin believed that a perfect keeping of the law had to be maintained through the vital union of Christ
At any point where we believe that justification is finished and we can please God in the separate consideration of the Christian life, that is “making the fruit of sanctification the root of justification” (John Piper). In other words, anything we do in sanctification points back to justification because they are not separate; therefore, in the same way we were justified by faith alone, we must believe in the perpetual application of the cross and Christ’s works alone in order to remain justified. In this way, as stated by John Piper, the gospel CONTINUES to save us. It is not a finished work, we must continue to live by it (by faith alone) in order to keep our salvation. Again, the way this is applied is by Gnostic realm manifestation. Read Rick Holland’s book, “Uneclipsing the Son” with this in mind.
Your other questions will help unpack this, but what it boils down to is works salvation by antinomianism. Calvin taught the perfect Reformed storm of deception via works salvation by working hard at doing nothing. Antinomianism in justification is good, but antinomianism in sanctification suggests that justification is not a finished work, and therefore we must redefine or dismiss law in the Christian life. It is a picture of the fearful servant who merely gave back to the Master what He originally gave the servant. God gave us the gospel, and we must do no more or no less than continually give the gospel alone back to God. Instead of dismissing the law altogether (the Reformed definition of antinomianism), the Reformers say the law is absolutely wonderful because it is the standard of justification and shows us how wicked we are resulting in a greater and greater appreciation of grace. And through the “vital union” Christ’s perfect obedience to the law is continually applied if we live by the gospel alone. Compounding this heresy is also the idea that the cross is reapplied to new sins that we commit as Christians. Hence, when Christ stated on the cross, “It is finished,” He supposedly was only referring to the one act that would continue to be applied in “regeneration” for purposes of keeping the law fulfilled in order to keep us saved through gospel contemplationism. So, yet another way to define authentic Protestantism: works salvation by gospel contemplationism. Reformers such as John Piper state this in broad daylight and in no uncertain terms. I have written on this extensively.
Here is why TANC exists: because seminaries removed theological training from the local church according to Plato’s education model. This was perpetrated by the colonial Puritans starting with Harvard and Yale; therefore, Christians are helpless against Protestant heresy two-fold. The Reformers were first and foremost metaphysical philosophers, and then integrated their metaphysics into the Bible. TANC seeks to return the true gospel to the church through educating God’s people in regard to philosophy and Bible exegesis. This is our two-fold relationship with author and church historian John Immel in regard to the philosophy aspect. Without a proper understanding of philosophy, it is impossible to understand how the Reformers attempt to apply their anti-gospel to life. There is one reason the American church is the train wreck that it is in our day: a false gospel. God’s people must now rethink everything and flee their Puritan slave masters. TANC has a two-fold thrust, philosophy and biblicism; this makes John Immel and Andy Young critical to our organization. We may have our disagreements, but both parties understand how the deliberate European dumbing down of God’s people is having a profoundly negative effect on the gospel and God’s people.
“Jesus was a blemish-free, spotless and perfect sacrifice. He is the ‘lamb’ God would provide, as prophesied by Abraham. He is the end (telos–goal, completion, fulfillment) of the law ‘for righteousness to everyone who believes’ (Rom. 10:4). In Him the law is fulfilled.”
That’s exactly the point. As Christians we ARE righteous because in regard to justification we are SINLESS…for justification. This is so very hard to wrap our minds around: we are perfect…in justification…because there is NO LAW TO JUDGE US. Paul states this over and over again in Romans and Galatians. Christ ended the law on the cross, and where there is no law, there is no sin.
“He is the reason ‘There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of Life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death.’”
RIGHT.
“And by what means does the rule of the Spirit do this? ‘For God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh’ (surely that refers to sinful flesh, and not Christ’s) ‘was unable to do. By sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, He condemned sin in the flesh….’
Right, the old us is put to death with Christ. We are therefore no longer UNDER law. Like when a spouse dies, the other spouse is no longer under that covenant–they are free to marry another. So, even if our old dead self was exhumed and brought before the judge, there would be no law to judge him or her.
“So our sin was condemned in Christ, but that’s not the end of the story: ‘…in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.’ The righteous requirement of the law needed to be met. However, for sinners like us, the law is death–’ for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life’ (2 Cor. 3:6b). It is only in Christ that the law could be satisfied. Jesus’ active obedience satisfied God with His life. His atoning crucifixion satisfied God the Father with His life.”
NO! NO! NO! NO! NO! NO! NO! NO! Christ didn’t come to fulfill the law of sin and death–He came to END it altogether! That my friend, is in fact the end of justification’s story. We fulfill the righteous requirement of the law…for sanctification. How can we fulfill the requirement of a law that we are no longer under? How does a dead person fulfill the law? How can we fulfill a law that has been eradicated? No, we are UNDER GRACE–not UNDER LAW–these are two DIFFERENT laws: one for the unregenerate and one for the saved. You have made the law of sin and death the same law as the law of the Spirit. They are not the same! One only works death–the other life. Christ came to end the works of the devil and fulfill the law of the Spirit “THROUGH US.” Christ did not come to fulfill the law of sin and death FOR us–He came to end that law and to justify us APART from it!
Herein is the very problem with the Reformed gospel: IT KEEPS BELIEVERS UNDER THE LAW OF SIN AND DEATH WITH CHRIST PERPETUALLY FULFILLING IT FOR US VIA HIS “ACTIVE OBEDIENCE.” NO WAY! THAT LAW IS ENDED!!!!!!!!!!NOT PERPETUALLY FULFILLED!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
The law is not therefore a “schoolmaster” that keeps leading us to Christ who perpetually fulfills the law of sin and death for us, the Old Testament law is a “guardian” that imprisons all of the sin and life of those who are UNDER it (under law as apposed to under grace and the law of the Spirit). When Christ came (“when faith came”) he put an end to the law that was a guardian in that all of our sin was imputed to it until Christ came. When one believes, they are no longer under that law, that law is ended along with their old life. Now they are born again and free to serve God under the law of life. The old nature’s life and power to enslave us is broken because of our death with Christ, but yet we still sin because of its weakness. Nevertheless, that sin can not go against our finished justification and is family sin against a family relationship and not fruits for death under the law. This is also what Protestantism does–it makes sin in justification and sin in sanctification the same thing. Hence, a need for Christ to perpetually fulfill the law of sin and death to keep us saved if we live by the same gospel that saved us. No, the source of our life in regeneration is not the perpetual fulfillment of the law of sin and death, but the life of the Spirit and obedience to the law of Christ and love.
The confusion of this can be seen in Dr. Jay Adams’ contention against the Sonship movement within the Presbyterian Church. Adams argued that the power source of the Christian life is not justification, but regeneration. Calvin clearly made the two the same thing–this is the crux of the issue.
“With all due respect, it sounds as though you are arguing that it is irrelevant (or even false?) that Jesus perfectly fulfilled the law. A prima facie reading of Matthew 5:17 (“Do not think that I have come to abolish the law….”) ought to dispel that notion, no?”
You are dead wrong. Christ came to fulfill the law of the Spirit and its righteous requirements through us, Paul makes that clear in Romans. The Sermon on the Mount concerns kingdom living/sanctification/regeneration. Christ didn’t come to fulfill the law…for justification, he came to end the law. The context of the sermon on the mount is in no wise justification–it is Christian living. Because, like the Reformers, the Pharisees made the fulfillment of the law the standard for justification, they dumbed it down for that specific purpose. Christ said they made the law void with their traditions. Therefore, Christ warned that whoever “relaxes” the least of any commandment will be called least in the kingdom of heaven. The idea that Christ keeps the law of the Spirit for us is a relaxing of it to say the least. Our beliefs about the law of the Spirit reflects on what we believe about the law of sin and death; viz, that the law of sin and death needs to be perpetually fulfilled when it can only bring sin and death.
“It is apparent that you have a problem with Calvinism. But I fail to see how disputing the importance of Christ’s active obedience helps your cause. Am I totally misreading you here? I mean this with all charity and respect. I’m posting this as a public comment because you posted your video response publicly. I’d be happy to have you respond via email if you would prefer.
Peace in Christ,
Joel”
Such should be apparent because Calvin is one of the many anti-Christs that the beloved John warned us about. Calvin is a flaming heretic. I beseech you to flee the traditions of men and be the Berean that you are called on by God to be.
“But I fail to see how disputing the importance of Christ’s active obedience helps your cause.”
Christ IS God. Is God imperfect? Would we expect Christ to act in any other way? Is God currently actively obeying now? Or did Christ stop obeying at death or resurrection? Christ is still living, no? So when did Christ’s active obedience no longer become necessary? Is Christ no longer required to obey now?
So then, how does one actively obey themselves? Unless Christ & God are separate, I suppose. In that scenario (ESS or separation of Gods=HS/God/Jesus) there is obedience/hierarchy, one to the other.
I think wordplay goes on. Obey means obey sometimes…. but then obey means perfection at other times. Wordplay is typical when describing/understanding reformed/Calvinistic notions.
The question I have for Joel is this…. Is Christ God or not? Was law created before God/Christ existed? Or did God exist perfectly & then God gave law?
Paul's Passing Thoughts 
Hi Paul,
Congratulations on the successful blog. I have a few questions regarding this video.
Why would the imputation of Christ’s active obedience being to us need to mean that the work is somehow NOT finished?
Jesus was a blemish-free, spotless and perfect sacrifice. He is the “lamb” God would provide, as prophesied by Abraham. He is the end (telos–goal, completion, fulfillment) of the law “for righteousness to everyone who believes” (Rom. 10:4). In Him the law is fulfilled.
He is the reason “There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of Life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death.”
And by what means does the rule of the Spirit do this? “For God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh” (surely that refers to sinful flesh, and not Christ’s) “was unable to do. By sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, He condemned sin in the flesh….”
So our sin was condemned in Christ, but that’s not the end of the story: “…in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.” The righteous requirement of the law needed to be met. However, for sinners like us, the law is death–“for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life” (2 Cor. 3:6b). It is only in Christ that the law could be satisfied. Jesus’ active obedience satisfied God with His life. His atoning crucifixion satisfied God the Father with His life.
With all due respect, it sounds as though you are arguing that it is irrelevant (or even false?) that Jesus perfectly fulfilled the law. A prima facie reading of Matthew 5:17 (“Do not think that I have come to abolish the law….”) ought to dispel that notion, no?
It is apparent that you have a problem with Calvinism. But I fail to see how disputing the importance of Christ’s active obedience helps your cause. Am I totally misreading you here? I mean this with all charity and respect. I’m posting this as a public comment because you posted your video response publicly. I’d be happy to have you respond via email if you would prefer.
Peace in Christ,
Joel
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Joel,
Thanks for how you have framed the questions, they strike at the crux of the issue. Yes, salvation not being a finished work because of how Calvin et al viewed the law is the issue. Plainly, Calvin was a heretic who proffered a blatant false gospel. Election is not the issue, Calvin’s view of law and gospel is the issue.
“Why would the imputation of Christ’s active obedience being to us need to mean that the work is somehow NOT finished?” Because Calvin made the law the standard of righteousness. Therefore, the reality of somebody being truly righteous requires a perfect upholding of the law. Problem is, there is NO law in justification. This is where the problem with not separating justification and sanctification also comes into play. The biblical separation of justification and sanctification is a radical dichotomy, and the law is the demarcation. Scripture must be read this way: …for justification, or …for sanctification. The Reformers read the Bible as a justification book and redefined sanctification as a magnification of justification. They deliberately nuanced this belief by substituting “justification” with “grace” where appropriate. Hence, Calvin’s “two-fold grace” is really two-fold justification. “Grace,” like “gospel” have multiple ideas and usages in the Bible and the Reformers past and present use these words to bridge the gap between justification and sanctification (what I call the “430-year-gap”); I believe this is deliberate deception, the fact that they see it as a metaphysical noble lie not withstanding.
In his Institutes, Calvin states plainly in 3.11.6 that God continues to justify us by regeneration. A careful examination of his masterful nuance is that what is regenerated is NOT US, but our “vices” through the vital union of Christ. In other words, “regeneration” is the perpetual forgiveness of new sins and the application of Christ’s perfect obedience to the law in order to keep us saved.
Calvin states that otherwise we would be left as we “were” by nature. But in all of this, he is not talking about us being actually righteous, he is talking about our mere position being regenerated. I am not going to get into Calvin’s Gnostic application of realm manifestation here, but suffice to say for now that Calvin believed that regeneration (quickening, the new birth expressed in sanctification) was an expression of justification that is done TO US 100% and not BY US. It all boils down to the fact that Calvin believed that a perfect keeping of the law had to be maintained through the vital union of Christ
At any point where we believe that justification is finished and we can please God in the separate consideration of the Christian life, that is “making the fruit of sanctification the root of justification” (John Piper). In other words, anything we do in sanctification points back to justification because they are not separate; therefore, in the same way we were justified by faith alone, we must believe in the perpetual application of the cross and Christ’s works alone in order to remain justified. In this way, as stated by John Piper, the gospel CONTINUES to save us. It is not a finished work, we must continue to live by it (by faith alone) in order to keep our salvation. Again, the way this is applied is by Gnostic realm manifestation. Read Rick Holland’s book, “Uneclipsing the Son” with this in mind.
Your other questions will help unpack this, but what it boils down to is works salvation by antinomianism. Calvin taught the perfect Reformed storm of deception via works salvation by working hard at doing nothing. Antinomianism in justification is good, but antinomianism in sanctification suggests that justification is not a finished work, and therefore we must redefine or dismiss law in the Christian life. It is a picture of the fearful servant who merely gave back to the Master what He originally gave the servant. God gave us the gospel, and we must do no more or no less than continually give the gospel alone back to God. Instead of dismissing the law altogether (the Reformed definition of antinomianism), the Reformers say the law is absolutely wonderful because it is the standard of justification and shows us how wicked we are resulting in a greater and greater appreciation of grace. And through the “vital union” Christ’s perfect obedience to the law is continually applied if we live by the gospel alone. Compounding this heresy is also the idea that the cross is reapplied to new sins that we commit as Christians. Hence, when Christ stated on the cross, “It is finished,” He supposedly was only referring to the one act that would continue to be applied in “regeneration” for purposes of keeping the law fulfilled in order to keep us saved through gospel contemplationism. So, yet another way to define authentic Protestantism: works salvation by gospel contemplationism. Reformers such as John Piper state this in broad daylight and in no uncertain terms. I have written on this extensively.
Here is why TANC exists: because seminaries removed theological training from the local church according to Plato’s education model. This was perpetrated by the colonial Puritans starting with Harvard and Yale; therefore, Christians are helpless against Protestant heresy two-fold. The Reformers were first and foremost metaphysical philosophers, and then integrated their metaphysics into the Bible. TANC seeks to return the true gospel to the church through educating God’s people in regard to philosophy and Bible exegesis. This is our two-fold relationship with author and church historian John Immel in regard to the philosophy aspect. Without a proper understanding of philosophy, it is impossible to understand how the Reformers attempt to apply their anti-gospel to life. There is one reason the American church is the train wreck that it is in our day: a false gospel. God’s people must now rethink everything and flee their Puritan slave masters. TANC has a two-fold thrust, philosophy and biblicism; this makes John Immel and Andy Young critical to our organization. We may have our disagreements, but both parties understand how the deliberate European dumbing down of God’s people is having a profoundly negative effect on the gospel and God’s people.
“Jesus was a blemish-free, spotless and perfect sacrifice. He is the ‘lamb’ God would provide, as prophesied by Abraham. He is the end (telos–goal, completion, fulfillment) of the law ‘for righteousness to everyone who believes’ (Rom. 10:4). In Him the law is fulfilled.”
That’s exactly the point. As Christians we ARE righteous because in regard to justification we are SINLESS…for justification. This is so very hard to wrap our minds around: we are perfect…in justification…because there is NO LAW TO JUDGE US. Paul states this over and over again in Romans and Galatians. Christ ended the law on the cross, and where there is no law, there is no sin.
“He is the reason ‘There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of Life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death.’”
RIGHT.
“And by what means does the rule of the Spirit do this? ‘For God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh’ (surely that refers to sinful flesh, and not Christ’s) ‘was unable to do. By sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, He condemned sin in the flesh….’
Right, the old us is put to death with Christ. We are therefore no longer UNDER law. Like when a spouse dies, the other spouse is no longer under that covenant–they are free to marry another. So, even if our old dead self was exhumed and brought before the judge, there would be no law to judge him or her.
“So our sin was condemned in Christ, but that’s not the end of the story: ‘…in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.’ The righteous requirement of the law needed to be met. However, for sinners like us, the law is death–’ for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life’ (2 Cor. 3:6b). It is only in Christ that the law could be satisfied. Jesus’ active obedience satisfied God with His life. His atoning crucifixion satisfied God the Father with His life.”
NO! NO! NO! NO! NO! NO! NO! NO! Christ didn’t come to fulfill the law of sin and death–He came to END it altogether! That my friend, is in fact the end of justification’s story. We fulfill the righteous requirement of the law…for sanctification. How can we fulfill the requirement of a law that we are no longer under? How does a dead person fulfill the law? How can we fulfill a law that has been eradicated? No, we are UNDER GRACE–not UNDER LAW–these are two DIFFERENT laws: one for the unregenerate and one for the saved. You have made the law of sin and death the same law as the law of the Spirit. They are not the same! One only works death–the other life. Christ came to end the works of the devil and fulfill the law of the Spirit “THROUGH US.” Christ did not come to fulfill the law of sin and death FOR us–He came to end that law and to justify us APART from it!
Herein is the very problem with the Reformed gospel: IT KEEPS BELIEVERS UNDER THE LAW OF SIN AND DEATH WITH CHRIST PERPETUALLY FULFILLING IT FOR US VIA HIS “ACTIVE OBEDIENCE.” NO WAY! THAT LAW IS ENDED!!!!!!!!!!NOT PERPETUALLY FULFILLED!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
The law is not therefore a “schoolmaster” that keeps leading us to Christ who perpetually fulfills the law of sin and death for us, the Old Testament law is a “guardian” that imprisons all of the sin and life of those who are UNDER it (under law as apposed to under grace and the law of the Spirit). When Christ came (“when faith came”) he put an end to the law that was a guardian in that all of our sin was imputed to it until Christ came. When one believes, they are no longer under that law, that law is ended along with their old life. Now they are born again and free to serve God under the law of life. The old nature’s life and power to enslave us is broken because of our death with Christ, but yet we still sin because of its weakness. Nevertheless, that sin can not go against our finished justification and is family sin against a family relationship and not fruits for death under the law. This is also what Protestantism does–it makes sin in justification and sin in sanctification the same thing. Hence, a need for Christ to perpetually fulfill the law of sin and death to keep us saved if we live by the same gospel that saved us. No, the source of our life in regeneration is not the perpetual fulfillment of the law of sin and death, but the life of the Spirit and obedience to the law of Christ and love.
The confusion of this can be seen in Dr. Jay Adams’ contention against the Sonship movement within the Presbyterian Church. Adams argued that the power source of the Christian life is not justification, but regeneration. Calvin clearly made the two the same thing–this is the crux of the issue.
“With all due respect, it sounds as though you are arguing that it is irrelevant (or even false?) that Jesus perfectly fulfilled the law. A prima facie reading of Matthew 5:17 (“Do not think that I have come to abolish the law….”) ought to dispel that notion, no?”
You are dead wrong. Christ came to fulfill the law of the Spirit and its righteous requirements through us, Paul makes that clear in Romans. The Sermon on the Mount concerns kingdom living/sanctification/regeneration. Christ didn’t come to fulfill the law…for justification, he came to end the law. The context of the sermon on the mount is in no wise justification–it is Christian living. Because, like the Reformers, the Pharisees made the fulfillment of the law the standard for justification, they dumbed it down for that specific purpose. Christ said they made the law void with their traditions. Therefore, Christ warned that whoever “relaxes” the least of any commandment will be called least in the kingdom of heaven. The idea that Christ keeps the law of the Spirit for us is a relaxing of it to say the least. Our beliefs about the law of the Spirit reflects on what we believe about the law of sin and death; viz, that the law of sin and death needs to be perpetually fulfilled when it can only bring sin and death.
“It is apparent that you have a problem with Calvinism. But I fail to see how disputing the importance of Christ’s active obedience helps your cause. Am I totally misreading you here? I mean this with all charity and respect. I’m posting this as a public comment because you posted your video response publicly. I’d be happy to have you respond via email if you would prefer.
Peace in Christ,
Joel”
Such should be apparent because Calvin is one of the many anti-Christs that the beloved John warned us about. Calvin is a flaming heretic. I beseech you to flee the traditions of men and be the Berean that you are called on by God to be.
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Oops–I meant to say, “His atoning crucifixion satisfied God the Father with his death.”
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“But I fail to see how disputing the importance of Christ’s active obedience helps your cause.”
Christ IS God. Is God imperfect? Would we expect Christ to act in any other way? Is God currently actively obeying now? Or did Christ stop obeying at death or resurrection? Christ is still living, no? So when did Christ’s active obedience no longer become necessary? Is Christ no longer required to obey now?
So then, how does one actively obey themselves? Unless Christ & God are separate, I suppose. In that scenario (ESS or separation of Gods=HS/God/Jesus) there is obedience/hierarchy, one to the other.
I think wordplay goes on. Obey means obey sometimes…. but then obey means perfection at other times. Wordplay is typical when describing/understanding reformed/Calvinistic notions.
The question I have for Joel is this…. Is Christ God or not? Was law created before God/Christ existed? Or did God exist perfectly & then God gave law?
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