tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17617194.post115217374055441824..comments2024-03-07T06:52:34.516+00:00Comments on Exiled Preacher: John Calvin on SufferingGuy Davieshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09184743462264437085noreply@blogger.comBlogger13125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17617194.post-1153734237297760042006-07-24T10:43:00.000+01:002006-07-24T10:43:00.000+01:00All people are spiritually blind until God enlight...All people are spiritually blind until God enlightens them and they become Christians.<BR/><BR/>We are spiritually blind because of our sin <I>and</I> because of the work of Satan. Both statements are true. <BR/><BR/>What I'd be concerned about if I were you is how to stop being spiritually blind. Then all these Theological issues would become a lot clearer. You need to believe in order to understand. <BR/><BR/>If you are not interested in believing what is the point in discussing these things with you at this time?Guy Davieshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09184743462264437085noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17617194.post-1153695735076872762006-07-24T00:02:00.000+01:002006-07-24T00:02:00.000+01:00'Spiritual blindness is part of our condition...'S...'Spiritual blindness is part of our condition...'<BR/><BR/>So all people are spiritually blind...<BR/><BR/>'According to Paul he is 'the god of this age [who] has blinded the minds of those who do not believe, lest the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God should shine on them.' (2 Corinthians 4:4)<BR/><BR/>So not all people are spiritually blind.<BR/><BR/>No wonder it is so hard for unbelievers to see the light, when Christians keep changing their minds about what they believe.<BR/><BR/>Does Satan blind people, or are people blind already?<BR/><BR/>Romans 9:18 - Therefore God has mercy on whom he wants to have mercy, and he hardens whom he wants to harden.<BR/><BR/>How does God choose whose heart to harden? Does he choose a heart which is hard, and then harden it?Steven Carrhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11983601793874190779noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17617194.post-1153688141907792302006-07-23T21:55:00.000+01:002006-07-23T21:55:00.000+01:00Steven,Spiritual blindness is part of our conditio...Steven,<BR/><BR/>Spiritual blindness is part of our condition as <I>sinners</I>. We have chosen and love darkness rather than light. John 3:19 & 20). We are not innocent victims in all this. We have <I>chosen</I> spiritual blindness by rejecting the light of God's Truth. <BR/><BR/>God, as part of his saving activity, delivers us from the power of darkness and makes his light shine in our hearts. Then we are able to see his glory in the face of Jesus Christ. <BR/><BR/>As John Newton put it in his famous hymn <I>Amazing Grace</I><BR/><BR/><I>I once was lost, but now am found;<BR/>Was blind, but now I see.</I><BR/><BR/>That is the experience of all true Christians.Guy Davieshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09184743462264437085noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17617194.post-1153654915980371312006-07-23T12:41:00.000+01:002006-07-23T12:41:00.000+01:00'God expects Satan to obey him because God is abso...'God expects Satan to obey him because God is absolutely sovereign. He is able to prescribe the limits of Satan's activity, saying, "Thus far and no further".'<BR/><BR/>And, of course, Satan obeys - just read Genesis to see examples.<BR/><BR/>You still believe people who have been blinded by somebody else should be punished for their blindness?Steven Carrhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11983601793874190779noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17617194.post-1153464328825593222006-07-21T07:45:00.000+01:002006-07-21T07:45:00.000+01:00I was talking about spiritual blindness in my prev...I was talking about <I>spiritual</I> blindness in my previous comments. <BR/><BR/>God expects Satan to obey him because God is absolutely sovereign. He is able to prescribe the limits of Satan's activity, saying, "Thus far and no further".Guy Davieshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09184743462264437085noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17617194.post-1153459622580244592006-07-21T06:27:00.000+01:002006-07-21T06:27:00.000+01:00If people have been blinded, then they must be pun...If people have been blinded, then they must be punished. That is justice , isn't it? <BR/><BR/><BR/>God has ordained that thet suffer by being blinded, for their own good. Isn't that what Calvin would say?<BR/><BR/><BR/>Why does God , in the book of Job, expect Satan to obey him, and respect the limits God places on him?Steven Carrhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11983601793874190779noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17617194.post-1153421159620641332006-07-20T19:45:00.000+01:002006-07-20T19:45:00.000+01:00Steven,I do believe in the existence of Satan. Acc...Steven,<BR/><BR/>I do believe in the existence of Satan. According to Paul he is<BR/><BR/>'the god of this age [who] has blinded the minds of those who do not believe, lest the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God should shine on them.' (2 Corinthians 4:4)<BR/><BR/>Maybe the Devil would hold you up as a very good specimen of his work?Guy Davieshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09184743462264437085noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17617194.post-1153374111716602442006-07-20T06:41:00.000+01:002006-07-20T06:41:00.000+01:00Do you nunderstand why Satan obeys God and respect...Do you nunderstand why Satan obeys God and respects the limits God places on the evil he can do? (As in the Book of Job)<BR/><BR/>How do you obtain such an understanding of Satan's mind, without believing in him?Steven Carrhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11983601793874190779noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17617194.post-1153299384632970522006-07-19T09:56:00.000+01:002006-07-19T09:56:00.000+01:00Steven,To quote Cowper's famous hymn God moves in ...Steven,<BR/><BR/>To quote Cowper's famous hymn <I>God moves in a mysterious way</I>:<BR/><BR/><I>Blind unbelief is sure to err<BR/>And scan His works in vain</I>.<BR/><BR/>You will never understand God's Word and ways until you believe in him.Guy Davieshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09184743462264437085noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17617194.post-1153288951524581482006-07-19T07:02:00.000+01:002006-07-19T07:02:00.000+01:00'God ordians the suffering of his people in this f...'God ordians the suffering of his people in this fallen world for their good.'<BR/><BR/>A wicked, wicked philosophy....<BR/><BR/>In the Book of Job, suffering was caused by Satan obeying God.<BR/><BR/>God simply wanted to save face, show that he was right and Satan was wrong. <BR/><BR/>Nothing whatever to do with the good of people.Steven Carrhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11983601793874190779noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17617194.post-1152878801678349852006-07-14T13:06:00.000+01:002006-07-14T13:06:00.000+01:00Hello again Steven,The world is full of suffering ...Hello again Steven,<BR/><BR/>The world is full of suffering because of sin. But that does not mean that people suffer in proportion to their sin in this life. Good people sometimes suffer horrendously and wicked people seem to live charmed, problem free lives. The Psalmist wrestled with this problem in <BR/><A HREF="http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=psalm%2073;&version=50;<br/>" REL="nofollow">Psalm 73<BR/></A><BR/><BR/>God ordians the suffering of his people in this fallen world for their good. This is not a case of either suffering is caused by sin, or God can use suffering for good. Both propositions are true. <BR/><BR/>"Therefore let those who suffer according to the will of God commit their souls to Him in doing good, as to a faithful Creator". 1 Peter 4:19.Guy Davieshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09184743462264437085noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17617194.post-1152875507826008732006-07-14T12:11:00.000+01:002006-07-14T12:11:00.000+01:00'The compiler draws out Calvin’s deeply Biblical t...'The compiler draws out Calvin’s deeply Biblical teaching that God ordains the suffering of his people for our good.'<BR/><BR/>So suffering is not caused by sin?Steven Carrhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11983601793874190779noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17617194.post-1152624444051384592006-07-11T14:27:00.000+01:002006-07-11T14:27:00.000+01:00Of course suffering come in all forms and degrees,...Of course suffering come in all forms and degrees, yet at its essense, suffering is pain, that which alerts us, thereby allowing for remedy. Without pain, without warning, remedy is impossible if not lost.Bro. Bartlebyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15980379263844521557noreply@blogger.com