Re: [asa] Who's to blame for the lost ones?

I agree that we can't *really* evaluate the hearts of a group of 3rd
grade kids (or anybody else for that matter), but that difficulty
notwithstanding, Scriptures seem to have no lack of warnings about
dangers to faith. I may not fully appreciate all the nuances of
seasoned Calvinist theology, but since I'm not a Calvinist I have no
burden to try and explain away the warnings in Hebrews about those "who
have once tasted" who turn away again, or Jesus' references to
millstones around the neck, or His inclusion of the temporarily
flourishing plants that whither for various reasons (parable of the
sower). I don't think these were just unnecessary ramblings about
hypothetical (let alone impossible) situations. So to me, the question
is still very much a live one ----about who should get the millstone.

My apologies to the many Calvinists out there (including you, Jack?),
much more intelligent than I, who no doubt have a theology that quite
ably incorporates all such Scriptures. To some extent I can understand
the whole notion of: "If they lost it, they never really had it" kind
of thinking. We can't know for sure. But Jesus seemed to take the
possibility pretty seriously in my estimation.

--Merv

Jack wrote:
> The fault is clealy not with the "evolutionist."
>
> I know what you are getting at. But I think the blame is with how the
> question is worded. I am not sure I know what "10 kids accepted
> Christ in the 3rd grade Sunday School," means. Similarly I dont know
> what "just left the faith" means either.
>
> True faith cant be lost, accepting evolution has nothing to do with
> it. There are similar problems with the idea of "accepting Christ".
> Perhaps events like this are not at all true conversions, but instead
> an attempt to fit in with their other 9 peers, or an attempt to please
> their parents.
> ----- Original Message ----- From: "Dehler, Bernie"
> <bernie.dehler@intel.com>
>> Imagine this, you hear a report at church that 10 kids accepted Christ
>> in the 3rd grade Sunday School. Everyone claps.
>>
>> Fast forward 10 years, and you hear that the kid who entered college
>> just left the faith because they now believe in evolution.
>>
>> Who's to blame, the evolutionist who is teaching the lie of evolution,
>> or the church who says that evolution is a lie?
>>

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Received on Thu Jun 5 07:25:13 2008