Morling Tuesday Chapel 1Corinthians: Reaching the unreached

22 March, 2016

Topic: Reaching the unreached

Speaker: Simon Longdon, national director of Pioneers, http://www.pioneers.org.au/Director-s-Welcome.aspx

Scripture: 1Corinthians 15:1-11

If we ask questions like, “If I were a bit more like her, if I had more of what he’s got”, etc., 1Corinthians 15:10 is the verse for us today.

Oreo test: demonstrates that we’re all wired differently.

http://www.bouldertherapist.com/html/humor/MentalHealthHumor/oreos.html

V10: “But by the grace of God, I am what I am”. Keyword: grace.

There are a number of reasons why preachers repeat themselves. Paul does it here. Unprepared, obsessity, etc. But the primary reason from good teachers is emphasis.  

I am an apostle: someone God has trusted with a message, and that message is from God, which God trusts you to deliver. It’s a lofty calling.

V8: “I am like one abnormally born”. Meaning I am like the products of a miscarriage. That’s quite offensive. He walks with a limp. “But by the grace of God, I am who I am”.

Preposition 1: We are all moral failures: Sin, trespass, inequity, guile.

Sin means to fall short of God’s holy standard. Deuteronomy 6:5, Leviticus 19:18, love God totally, love your neighbor as yourself. We all fall short of that.

Trespass: going too far. “Thou shall not”. Eg, we say to a child, “you can take 10 biscuits from the tin”, and the child sneaks two extra biscuits.

Inequity: to pervert that which has intrinsic value. Eg. Marriage: inequalise this institution.

Guile: project a false image, like hypocrisy, to think something in your mind but speak something else.

Total depravity doesn’t mean men become as bad as they can be, but they cannot be as good as they should be. (Or, as according to theopedia: Total depravity does not mean, however, that people are as bad as possible. Rather, it means that even the good which a person may intend is faulty in its premise, false in its motive, and weak in its implementation; and there is no mere refinement of natural capacities that can correct this condition.)

Proposition 2: God is holy, righteous and just. God is immutable.

Proposition 3: There is nothing we can do about proposition 1 & 2.

Proposition 4: Not only is God holy, righteous and just, but God is also justice, mercy and grace. Justice is getting what I deserve, mercy is not getting everything I deserve, and grace is getting what I don’t deserve.

Kid gets very naughty, dad says, “I am going to give you three smacks”: that’s justice. Then instead dad gives two smacks: that’s mercy. Then dad buys an ice cream; that’s grace.

V1-2: “Now, brothers, I want to remind you of the gospel… By this gospel, you’re saved”.

Paul’s great message: Whatever we do, wherever we go, proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ as the priority.

We eat Oreos differently, we’re all different, but whatever we do, God will take us exactly as how we are wired, to reach others. All we have to do is be ourselves. 
________

Oreo Personality Test

Psychologists have discovered that the manner in which people eat Oreo cookies provides great insight into their personalities. Choose which method best describes your favorite method of eating Oreos:

1. The whole thing all at once.
2. One bite at a time.
3. Slow and methodical nibbles examining the results of each bite afterwards.
4. In little feverous nibbles.
5. Dunked in some liquid (milk, coffee...).
6. Twisted apart, the inside, then the cookie.
7. Twisted apart, the inside, and toss the cookie.
8. Just the cookie, not the inside.
9. I just like to lick them, not eat them.
10. I don't have a favorite way because I don't like Oreo.


Your Personality:

1. The whole thing. This means you consume life with abandon, you are fun to be with, exciting, carefree with some hint of recklessness. You are totally irresponsible. No one should trust you with their children.

2. One bite at a time. You are lucky to be one of the 5.4 billion other people who eat their Oreos this very same way. Just like them, you lack imagination, but that's okay, not to worry, you're normal.

3. Slow and methodical. You follow the rules. You're very tidy and orderly. You're very meticulous in every detail with every thing you do to the point of being anal retentive and irritating to others. Stay out of the fast lane if you're only going to go the speed limit.

4. Feverous nibbles. Your boss likes you because you get your work done quickly. You always have a million things to do and never enough time to do them. Mental breakdowns and suicides run in your family. Valium and Ritalin would do you good.

5. Dunked. Every one likes you because you are always up beat. You like to sugar coat unpleasant experiences and rationalize bad situations into good ones. You are in total denial about the shambles you call a life. You have a propensity towards narcotic addiction.

6. Twisted apart, the inside, and then the cookie. You have a highly curious nature. You take pleasure in breaking things apart to find out how they work, though not always able to put them back together, so you destroy all the evidence of your activities. You deny your involvement when things go wrong. You are a compulsive liar and exhibit deviant, if not criminal, behavior.

7. Twisted apart, the inside, and then toss the cookie. You are good at business and take risk that pay off. You take what you want and throw the rest away. You are greedy, selfish, mean, and lack feelings for others. You should be ashamed of yourself. But that's ok, you don't care, you got yours.

8. Just the cookie, not the inside. You enjoy pain.

9. I just like to lick them, not eat them. Stay away from small furry animals and seek professional medical help - immediately.

10. I don't have a favorite way, I don't like Oreo cookies. You probably come from a rich family, and like to wear nice things, and go to up-scale restaurants. You are particular and fussy about the things you buy, own, and wear. Things have to be just right. You like to be pampered. You are a prim. Nobody likes you.

Calvinism (Predestination) vs Arminianism (Free will)

Predestination is the decision of God choosing who will be saved and who will be lost.

	Arminianism	Calvinism	Moderate Calvinism
Definition	Prevenient grace (which is given to all indiscriminately) is universal and essential for conversion. The conditional choice of God by which he determined who would believe based on his foreknowledge of who will exercise faith. It is the result of Man’s faith. Grace is not irresistible.[1]	The unconditional and loving choice of God by which he determines who must believe. It is the cause of man’s faith.	The unconditional and loving choice of God by which he determines who will believe. It is the cause of man’s faith.
Scriptural evidence	1Timothy 2:3-4 This is good, and pleases God our Saviour, who wants all people to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth.	Romans 9:6-24 Ephesians 1:3-6
Total Depravity	Although human nature was seriously affected by the fall, man has not been left in a state of total spiritual helplessness. God does not interfere with man’s freedom. Each sinner possesses a free will, and his eternal destiny depends on how he uses it. Faith is the sinner’s gift to God.	Because of the fall, the sinner is dead, blind, and deaf to the things of God. He cannot choose good over evil in the spiritual realm. Consequently it takes much more than the Spirit’s assistance to bring a sinner to Christ. It takes regeneration by which the Spirit makes the sinner alive and gives him a new nature. Salvation is God’s gift to the sinner.	Being “dead” in sin does not mean that unsaved people cannot understand and receive the truth of the gospel as the Spirit of God works on their hearts.[2]
Unconditional Election	God’s choice of certain individuals to salvation before the foundation of the world was based on his foreseeing that they would respond to his call. The faith God foresaw resulted from man’s free will, cooperating the Spirit’s working.	God’s choice of certain individuals to salvation rested solely in his own sovereign will, not based on any foreseen response or obedience on their part, such as faith, repentance etc. Thus God’s choice of the sinner, not the sinner’s choice of Christ, is the ultimate cause of salvation.	It is unconditional from the standpoint of the Giver, even though there is one condition for the receiver – faith.[3]
Limited Atonement	Christ’s redeeming work made it possible for everyone to be saved but did not secure the salvation of anyone. Only those who believe in him are saved.	Christ’s redeeming work was intended to save the elect only and actually secured salvation for them. The gift of faith is infallibly applied by the Spirit to all for whom Christ died, therefore guaranteeing their salvation.	Extremist view is limited in extent (only for elect), while moderate view is limited in result (but for all men). Another words, although redemption was purchased for all and available to all, it will only be applied to those whom God chose from all eternity – the elect. [4]
Irresistible Grace	Man is free and can successfully resist the Spirit’s call.	In addition to the outward general call to salvation, which is made to everyone who hears the Gospel, the Holy Spirit extends to the elect a special inward call that inevitably brings them to salvation. God’s grace, therefore, is invincible.	Extreme Calvinism: irresistible grace happens in a compulsive sense (against man’s will). Moderate Calvinism: in a persuasive sense (in accordance with man’s will).[5]
Perseverance of the Saints	Those who believe and are truly saved can lose their salvation by failing to keep up their faith.	All who are chosen by God are eternally saved.	Extreme Calvinism: no saint will die in sin. Moderate Calvinism: No saint will ever be lost (even if he dies in sin).[6]
Salvation “once saved, always saved”	Possible for the saved to lose salvation. Colossian 1:23 is often used in connection with this: “if you continue in your faith, established and firm, not moved from the hope held out in the gospel.”	Strong scriptural evidence, eg. John 10:27-28. However weakened by sin, true believers endure in their faith to the end.[7]

The seemingly endless debate between Calvinism and Arminianism continues on today, and polarised beliefs have created division in the church. 

If God is in control of everything, then why should we be blamed for anything? Some believers have been known to excuse their sin, claiming: “The devil made me do it!” But the problem here is even greater, because logically one cannot stop at this point. For if God is in sovereign control of all things, then instead it would appear that, ultimately, “God made me do it!”[8] And who made the devil do it? God cannot be good and not good. He cannot be for His own essential good and be against it by giving Lucifer the desire to sin against him![9] The bible affirms that God made only good creatures. After almost every day of Creation it says, “and it was good”. But God gave free choice to good creatures, as God said to Adam: “You are free…” (Genesis 2:16). The power of moral free choice entails the ability either to choose the good God designed for us or to reject it. The latter is called evil. It is good to be free, but freedom makes evil possible. Free will is good in itself, but entailed in that good is the ability to choose the opposite of good, which then makes evil possible. Then the origin of evil is in the misuse of freedom.[10]

Staunch Calvinist Jonathan Edwards “solved” the problem of predestination and free will by claiming that, 1) free will is doing what we desire; 2) but God gives us the desire to do good. What about the desire to do evil? That comes from our fallen nature, which desires only evil. However, this does not solve the issue of where Lucifer and Adam got the desire for their first sin, as 1) God cannot give anyone the desire to sin; 2) originally neither Lucifer nor Adam had a sinful nature; 3) the will does not move unless given a desire by God or by its own nature.[11] Then here’s the unmistakable conclusion: both Lucifer Adam sinned because God gave them the desire to sin!![12]

If neither the devil nor God made me do it, then who did? I did! Extreme Calvinists object to this reasoning, claiming that every event has a cause, even our actions. And to claim that God did not cause our actions would mean there is an effect without a cause, which is absurd.[13]

However, several things should be noted. First, every event does have a cause, but not every cause has a cause. Every painting has a painter, but every painter is not painted. Further, if every cause had a cause, then God could not be the first Uncaused Cause that He is. “Who made God?” Likewise, if the creature, by means of the good power of free choice, is the first cause of evil, then no cause of evil action should be sought other than the person who caused it. Secondly, if evil actions have no cause, then no one can be held responsible for them. But both good moral reason and Scripture inform us that free creatures are held morally responsible for their choices. Lucifer, Adam and Eve were condemned for their actions. If our actions are not uncaused, then is not the extreme Calvinist’s view correct that they must be cause by another? There are three possibilities: My actions are 1) uncaused; 2) caused by someone (or something) else; or 3) caused by my Self.[14]

A self-caused being is impossible but this is not true for a self-caused action. It is true that we cannot exist before we exists or be before we have being. But we can and must be before we can do. That is, we must exist before we can act. Therefore, self-caused actions are not impossible. If they were, then even God, who cannot do what is impossible, would not have been able to create the world.[15]

Contrary to the extreme Calvinist view, faith is not a gift that God offers only to some. All are responsible to believe and “whoever” decides to believe can believe (John 3:16). While all truly free acts are self-determined and could have been otherwise, nonetheless, it is also true that no free human act can move toward God or do any spiritual good without the aid of God’s grace, as evident from the scriptures: “No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him, and I will raise him up at the last day” (John 6:44).

Sovereignty and free will. Is it one or the other, or is it both one and the other? The Bible says both. God is sovereign over all things, including human events and free choices. Nothing catches God by surprise. But human beings, even in their fallen state, have the God-given power of free choice, as the Scriptures stresses that moral responsibility for moral actions rest squarely with free moral agents and not with God. This applies to many earthly things here “below” as it does to heavenly things from “above,” namely, with regard to receiving God’s gift of salvation. Unfortunately, the extreme Calvinists have sacrificed human responsibility in order to preserve divine sovereignty, and the extreme Arminians have sacrificed God’s sovereignty in order to hold on to man’s free will. I believe both of these alternatives are wrong and lead to inordinately extreme actions.[16]

One of the most powerful indications that the Bible sees no contradiction between God’s predetermination and human free choice is found in Acts 2:23. On the one hand, it declares that Jesus’ death was determined “by God’s set purpose and foreknowledge.”[17] Nonetheless, Jesus says He did it freely: “I lay down my life, only to take it up again. No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord.” (John 10:17-18).[18]

One final illustration of the congruency between predetermination and free choice is found in the shipwreck recorded by Luke in Acts 27. Paul assured his fellow travelers in advance that “not one of you will be lost; only the ship will be destroyed”. Yet he warned them, “Unless these men stay with the ship, you cannot be saved”. Both are true. God knew in advance and had revealed to Paul that none would drown. But He also knew it would be through their free choice to stay on the ship that this would be accomplished.[19]

Extreme Calvinist view: It involves a denial of human free choice. But there are a few problems with this view. Free choice is supported by both Scripture and reason. “Irresistible grace” on the unwilling is a violation of free choice. For God is love (1John 4:16), and true love is persuasive but never coercive.[20] John Calvin faced honestly the biblical teaching that the Holy Spirit can be resisted. He recognized that Stephen said of the Jews, “You stiff-necked people, with uncircumcised hearts and ears! You are just like your fathers: You always resist the Holy Spirit!” (Acts 7:51). Calvin remarked, “Finally, they are said to be resisting the Spirit, when they stubbornly reject what He says by the prophets.” But if God’s grace can be resisted, then it is not irresistible![21]

Arminianism: The conditional choice of God by which he determined who would believe based on his foreknowledge of who will exercise faith. It is the result of man’s faith. Prevenient grace is universal and essential for conversion. The fallen human will is free and able to choose to repent and believe in response to the call of the gospel. Grace is not irresistible.[22] In terms of the role of foreknowledge, God unconditionally willed that salvation would be received on the condition of faith. Consequently, on the basis of their foreknown free choice of accept Christ, God chooses (elects) to save them. However, the difficulty with the Arminian view is that scriptures seem to say more than God simply knew what was going to happen. It appears God actually determined what would happen. God’s sovereignty means He is in control of all that happens, even the free acts of human beings. Another problem is, if God’s choice to save was based on those who choose Him, then it would not be based on divine grace but would be based on human decisions.[23]  In fact, it would suggest that God’s foreknowledge is dependent on our free choices. Finally, the whole idea of there being a chronological or even logical sequence in God’s thoughts is highly problematic for evangelical theology. God’s attention does not pass form thought to thought, for His knowledge embraces everything in a single spiritual co-intuition.[24]

Moderate Calvinism: The unconditional and loving choice of God by which he determines who will believe. It is the cause of man’s faith. Thus God works His sovereign will through the will of the elect.

Another illustration of the harmony of predetermination and free choice: Suppose you cannot watch your favourite sports event live on TV, so you videotape it. When you watch it later, the entire game and every play in it are absolutely determined and can never changed. No matter how many times you rerun it, it will always be the same. Yet when the game happened, every event was freely chosen. One may object that this is so only because the event has already occurred. In response, we only need to point out that if God is all knowing (omniscient), then from the standpoint of His foreknowledge the game was predetermined, for He knew eternally exactly how it was going to turn out, even though we did not. Therefore, God knew how we are going to use our freedom.[25]

Geisler concludes that there is no contradiction in God knowingly predetermining and predeterminately knowing from all eternity precisely what we would do with our free acts. He did not determine that they would be forced to perform free acts. What is forced is not free, and what is free is not forced. In brief, we are chosen but free.[26]

Calvinism

Strengths/ arguments for	Weaknesses/ arguments against
Romans 9:20-21. God is sovereign in all He does.	Limited atonement necessarily means God has limited His love only to some. He loves only the elect, and does not really love all sinners and desire them to be saved.[27] Extreme Calvinism is in practice a denial of the omnibenevolence of God. God cannot be all-loving if He does not love all.[28] And it would not be fair to choose only some to eternal life and passing over others. We see from the scriptures God desires everyone to be saved (1Timothy 2:3-4).
John 6. The whole human race is lost in sin. God has chosen certain people for his special grace, irrespective of their physical descent, character, or good deeds.	Free choice is supported by both Scripture and reason. “Irresistible grace” on the unwilling is a violation of free choice. For God is love (1John 4:16), and true love is persuasive but never coercive.[29] Irresistible love is forced love, and forced “love” is not love at all.[30]
Matthew 13:10-16: God has selected some to be saved, not all; and he even chosen not to reveal some truths to some people.	There is the possibility that those who have come to faith may fall from grace and lose their salvation.

References:

Clifford, Ross. “Grace and Order of Salvation.” Lecture Notes, Morling College, May 5, 2015.

Erickson, Millard J. Christian Theology. Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2013.

Geisler, Norman. Chosen but free: A balanced view of divine election. Minneapolis: Bethany House Publishers, 2001.

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[1] Ross Clifford, “Grace and Order of Salvation,” (Lecture Notes, Morling College, May 5, 2015), 6.

[2] Norman Geisler, Chosen but free: A balanced view of divine election, (Minneapolis: Bethany House Publishers, 2001), 120.

[3] Geisler, Chosen but free, 120.

[4] Geisler, Chosen but free, 121.

[5] Geisler, Chosen but free, 121.

[6] Geisler, Chosen but free, 120.

[7] Geisler, Chosen but free, 125.

[8] Geisler, Chosen but free, 19.

[9] Geisler, Chosen but free, 21.

[10] Geisler, Chosen but free, 22.

[11] Geisler, Chosen but free, 23.

[12] Geisler, Chosen but free, 24.

[13] Geisler, Chosen but free, 24.

[14] Geisler, Chosen but free, 25.

[15] Geisler, Chosen but free, 26.

[16] Geisler, Chosen but free, 37.

[17] Geisler, Chosen but free, 38.

[18] Geisler, Chosen but free, 39.

[19] Geisler, Chosen but free, 42.

[20] Geisler, Chosen but free, 48.

[21] Geisler, Chosen but free, 49.

[22] Clifford, “Grace and Order of Salvation,” 6.

[23] Geisler, Chosen but free, 51.

[24] Geisler, Chosen but free, 52.

[25] Geisler, Chosen but free, 45.

[26] Geisler, Chosen but free, 55.

[27] Geisler, Chosen but free, 88.

[28] Geisler, Chosen but free, 89.

[29] Geisler, Chosen but free, 48.

[30] Geisler, Chosen but free, 100.