ravindran

You are right! It is so wrong to pick a verse, read it out of context and create doctrine out of it! It is a dangerous practice and will lead to many false teachings

Ya, the path to heaven in Old Testament was by looking up to the Savior and Cross. The path to heaven in New Testament was by looking back to the Savior and Cross. In OT, people performed sacrifices which symbolized Jesus and His sacrifice. In NT, we perform things like baptism, communion which symbolize spiritual rebirth and remember work of Jesus on Cross

Again, picking a verse and making theology out of it is not the right way to read Bible! Why Jesus didn't simply say one must be baptised to be saved? Because, it will contradict rest of the Scripture. Please read the preceding verses 3 Now there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews. 2 This man came to Jesus[a] by night and said to him, “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher come from God, for no one can do these signs that you do unless God is with him.” 3 Jesus answered him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again[b] he cannot see the kingdom of God.” 4 Nicodemus said to him, “How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother's womb and be born?” 5 Jesus answered, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. 6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.[c] 7 Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You[d] must be born again.’8 The wind[e] blows where it wishes, and you hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.” Nicodemus is curious to know about Salvation. First we see Jesus only saying one must be born again. In 3rd verse, Jesus is not talking about water at all. It is simply being born again. Then Nicodemus confuses that with physical birth. He think one must be born again in the womb of mother. Then Jesus clarifies, one must be born of water and Spirit. Jesus is saying, one must be born physically and then born of the Spirit to be saved. It is not to say one must be baptised in water and Holy Spirit. That interpretation would not make sense if you consider context of the verse. Then Jesus continues to speak and enforce the idea of being born of Spirit. We should not choose a verse and make meaning without applying it in context.

It is one big sentence by Paul. You have taken one part of it to impose water baptism. Just before that Paul is talking about being circumcised by Christ. And immediately followed by that, he is talking about baptism. Why would Paul talk about a symbolic truth followed by a literal physical activity? Just few verses back, he destroys the notion you are raising by saying this - "See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the elemental spiritual forces of this world rather than on Christ" 11 In him you were also circumcised with a circumcision not performed by human hands. Your whole self ruled by the flesh[b] was put off when you were circumcised by[c] Christ, 12 having been buried with him in baptism, in which you were also raised with him through your faith in the working of God, who raised him from the dead.

Under the law would mean, being under authority of the law. Which would mean, law has authority to punish us when we don't do things as per law. Just like how a kid is under a teacher. When we say no longer under the law, it does not mean law is weakened and nature of law has changed. When a kid passes the class and moves on, the teacher is not fired! It's just that kid is under authority of another teacher. Old teacher is still the same.

So if someone believes in Jesus, does not get baptised in water, they would go only up to paradise and will not go heaven? In eternity, there are going to be 2 places? Why Paul doesn't say anything about water baptism being a requirement for being save?

When I go to Church, I try to dress better and keep my hair combed properly and look my best. There is nothing wrong in that. It is a feeling most of us have that being presentable and look our "best clean" is a sign of our readiness to look clean inside also. Showing a bit of reverence to Lord. While Lord is looking at our hearts, it is something from our side to show our willingness to be cleansed by Lord. It is not something to be judged by other though. It is not something to be put as a rule. While we can encourage others, we cannot condemn when they don't do things the way like it

Psalm 103:12 - He has removed our sins as far from us as the east is from the west That is what Lord does when we seek forgiveness. The difficult part for is to move on, after Lord has forgiven us. I think your husband was open and told you the truth. It is not going to be easy for him to forget. But how he reacts to that is the important thing. He has already said he is not going to leave you. Which is a clear sign he is not holding any grudge against you. Continue being together spiritually and praying together. Lord will open his heart to remove it completely from his heart. You both should move on from here, since you are forgiven by Lord.

Hello! I think Paul talks about this topic a lot in 1 Corinthians 7. This is what he wrote, 8 Now to the unmarried and the widows I say: It is good for them to stay unmarried, as I do. 9 But if they cannot control themselves, they should marry, for it is better to marry than to burn with passion. Paul is saying, it is better to marry than to burn with passion. God does not call someone to be single and let them burn with passion. And it is important to understand if God is calling someone to be single. It is just like knowing God's will in any other aspect of our life. It can be found only through prayers and a very close relationship with God. When we completely surrender us to Him and are listening to His voice (through Word of God) Staying single has advantages and Paul talks about that. At the same time, Paul is not saying everyone should try to stay single. It is better to marry than to burn with passion!!

I was just waiting for a post to pop-up about Halloween! I see nothing wrong in keeping pumpkin outside the house. It does not represent halloween by any means. Even if someone looks at it, they are not going to think we are celebrating Halloween. I would avoid those jack-o-lanterns though We don't give out candies to kids on that day. We politely say this is not something we celebrate or try to stay out of the house! LOL! And we don't have our kids dress up. Those are activities which would make us participate in the event and accept halloween itself. I was telling my wife why don't we put up manger scene now itself in advance! May be that's a better thing to put in the midst of all the devils in neighboring houses.

I hope words of Jesus would bring comfort to you John 6:37 All those the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never drive away It is never too late. It is a big struggle to shrug off things we cling on to. Things we hold on to tightly, our addictions. We can break away from them only through Jesus Christ. He is our source of strength. And some times we self-condemn ourselves thinking we are not worthy and all we deserve is wrath of God. God's mercy and grace is beyond that. Something that we cannot even comprehend. Do not fall into the trap of these accusations. Don't let the devil rob the joy of salvation. Grown in Jesus and fix your eyes on Jesus Christ. He is the Author and Finisher of our faith.

I like his teaching also. While I am not part of Reformed Church or not even a Calvinist, I love the teachings of people like John MacArthur, Sproul, John Piper, Chuck Swindoll. They all have lot of resources online. Lot of sermons are made available online and free.

Ya, I hardly see Reformed Calvinists believing in anything other than Covenant theology

I think John MacArthur is one

That is the most appropriate verse! I was thinking about the same verse when I read the question

Dispensationalist. Oooh, had a tough time spelling it out

Yup! I very well know about Ligonier and RC Sproul. Leaving aside the theological difference, I think the conclusion is well said. Does not matter what our theological beliefs are and we should agree to that

As I was reading through, I was reminded of an old hymn. And please do read the situation in which it was written. That's when you would fully understand the meaning of the words. This song ministered to my soul amazingly while going through some rough situation. God has promised deliverance from our suffering. For some, the deliverance happens fast. For some late. For some it happens on the other the side of life. It all happens as per His purpose and plan. In the meanwhile, God is promising us that He is always with us. We should seek Him to draw strength. You may not get answers for your question from this thread. You would only hear promises from Bible that everyone can give you. In reality, God also wants you to cling on to His promises only. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/It_Is_Well_with_My_Soul When peace like a river, attendeth my way,When sorrows like sea billows roll;Whatever my lot, Thou hast taught me to knowaIt is well, it is well, with my soul.

What is stopping you from being baptized? May be that would help. Blessings and good day!

I like this conclusion. Applicable for everyone of us. Faithful Christians can look at these survey results and lament the state of theology in America. Or, we can look at these results and engage our Great Commission work with a renewed urgency and purpose. Ligonier Ministries is taking the latter approach

And it's also okay to pump millions of tax dollars to planned parenthood to kill more babies

You can search all you want. There is not going to be a scripture which would say, Christians should not worry whether they would have their own children to carry their legacy or not Like others said, this discussion should be had very early. There is no right or wrong answer for this.

I am not sure what is the age group of this Sunday class is. Typically it is very common for politics to get into discussions when 2 or 3 have gathered! ha ha! We usually go back and forth after Church service while having men talk. It is with the belief that each person has a personal belief and we are just sharing that. Nothing should be taken personal. You are right to say that such talks are inappropriate for Sunday school. It is surprising that the leader of the class would actually get involved in such discussions. Not knowing the structure of the Church, I am not sure who should be approached for this. It would sound appropriate to approach the leader itself to ensure such talks are kept outside the class.

He is not showing the fruits of a believer. I see his Church pastor does not want to get involved. How about your Church pastor? May be he can counsel your husband. Like others said, stay strong in prayers.

In Acts chapter 2 7 And they were amazed and astonished, saying, “Are not all these who are speaking Galileans? 8 And how is it that we hear, each of us in his own native language? 9 Parthians and Medes andElamites and residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, 10 Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya belonging to Cyrene, and visitors from Rome, 11 both Jews andproselytes, Cretans and Arabians—we hear them telling in our own tongues the mighty works of God Some say it was a miracle of hearing! I believe people spoke in tongues (or other languages) which others were able to understand. Like an American speaking Greek. This was actually the first instance of speaking in tongues. Then we see Paul talking about tongues which others don't understand and it is direct communication with God. Rather than saying two types of tongues, I think we should say different operations of tongues. It is the same Holy Spirit enabling believers to speak in tongues. It is for different purposes and simply different operations. In corporate setting for edification of Church when there is interpretation, personal edification (during personal prayers) and as sign for unbelievers (when someone just speaks their native language without knowing it). I have heard testimonies from missionaries who have spoken with tribal people and shared gospel without knowing their language. I have only heard these though