I attended a Good Friday service at a Baptist church this year, and the “doctor of divinity” up front said (roughly), “For 40 years, I have tried to make this congregation understand that any day you wake up and you’re not in hell, you’re getting much better than you deserve!” One of the verses that shook me out of my Lutheran upbringing years ago was Romans 8:1: “There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.”
This “doctor” and his congregation are living under a great weight of condemnation daily, and for 40 years?! This is utterly inappropriate for born-again people who have believed the Gospel of 1 Cor. 15:1-4.
But you’re right, this sort of Lutheran “thinking” goes on even amongst Baptists who believe in being born again and ought to know better.
Well, Baptists, who are Protestant, redefine the new birth. Shockingly, the authentic soteriology holds to the idea that we return to, or experience our original baptism perpetually. If the new birth is a baptism into the family of God making us a literal child of God, what do you need church for? That’s the rub. This is why a return to 1st century Christianity functions like a literal family, and not an institution. The ekklesia is NOT an institition.
It appears that one big reason such abuse can continue in these institutions is because the victims have more conscience than the leaders teaching them this lawlessness. Because the victims have a conscience, they can’t adopt the evil “principles” of the leadership and respond in kind.
Suppose hypothetically for the sake of argument one of these victims, upon understanding the alleged rules of the game, confronts leadership in the parking lot, blasting them with bear spray. [No, DO NOT try this–I’m only talking hypothetically.] When the leaders then complain about getting sprayed, the victim says, “You deserve only hell, so you should be thankful and forgiving for anything less, including getting blasted with bear spray. WHAT?! Suddenly YOU don’t seem very thankful and forgiving?! Well, I’m gonna SPRAY you again until YOU learn to SHUT UP and be THANKFUL for this very MILD expression of God’s wrath which is still FAR less than the HELL you deserve!”
No doubt leadership would start singing a much different tune, demanding the police and courts enforce the MAXIMUM “horizontal justice” for themselves which they deny to others, were the measure they use boomeranged and measured right back onto them.
Then it would also become clear, as you have warned, that these spiritual despots are lawlessly hypocritical, practicing “rules for thee, but not for me.” Best to just mark and physically avoid the damage of such lawless people in the first place and to warn others away from them, as you are doing.
Paul's Passing Thoughts 
Mr. Dohse,
I attended a Good Friday service at a Baptist church this year, and the “doctor of divinity” up front said (roughly), “For 40 years, I have tried to make this congregation understand that any day you wake up and you’re not in hell, you’re getting much better than you deserve!” One of the verses that shook me out of my Lutheran upbringing years ago was Romans 8:1: “There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.”
This “doctor” and his congregation are living under a great weight of condemnation daily, and for 40 years?! This is utterly inappropriate for born-again people who have believed the Gospel of 1 Cor. 15:1-4.
But you’re right, this sort of Lutheran “thinking” goes on even amongst Baptists who believe in being born again and ought to know better.
MK
LikeLike
Well, Baptists, who are Protestant, redefine the new birth. Shockingly, the authentic soteriology holds to the idea that we return to, or experience our original baptism perpetually. If the new birth is a baptism into the family of God making us a literal child of God, what do you need church for? That’s the rub. This is why a return to 1st century Christianity functions like a literal family, and not an institution. The ekklesia is NOT an institition.
LikeLike
Mr. Dohse,
It appears that one big reason such abuse can continue in these institutions is because the victims have more conscience than the leaders teaching them this lawlessness. Because the victims have a conscience, they can’t adopt the evil “principles” of the leadership and respond in kind.
Suppose hypothetically for the sake of argument one of these victims, upon understanding the alleged rules of the game, confronts leadership in the parking lot, blasting them with bear spray. [No, DO NOT try this–I’m only talking hypothetically.] When the leaders then complain about getting sprayed, the victim says, “You deserve only hell, so you should be thankful and forgiving for anything less, including getting blasted with bear spray. WHAT?! Suddenly YOU don’t seem very thankful and forgiving?! Well, I’m gonna SPRAY you again until YOU learn to SHUT UP and be THANKFUL for this very MILD expression of God’s wrath which is still FAR less than the HELL you deserve!”
No doubt leadership would start singing a much different tune, demanding the police and courts enforce the MAXIMUM “horizontal justice” for themselves which they deny to others, were the measure they use boomeranged and measured right back onto them.
Then it would also become clear, as you have warned, that these spiritual despots are lawlessly hypocritical, practicing “rules for thee, but not for me.” Best to just mark and physically avoid the damage of such lawless people in the first place and to warn others away from them, as you are doing.
MK
LikeLike
Good point.
LikeLike