"And More" Part II

Here are some things that
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As stated, this is Part II. I got so into this that, though I split it into two posts, I wanted to get it all out today. I might have to do a part three though. . . . We'll see how it goes.

Threnody stated that she "called upon the name of the Lord" and therefore should have been saved. As I showed in my previous post, obviously something didn't work right. Now, Threnody would say that Christianity didn't work right. But, could it be that there is another explanation? Perhaps, Threnody did not call upon the name of the Lord, or did not call properly on the name of the Lord. Or both.

Technically, a great many unrepentant people "call upon the name of the Lord" in a very general sense. Think of the Jews. How many throughout the years have called upon who they believe is Jehovah God, but never come to believe that Jesus is Messiah? They are not calling upon the God of the Bible. Threnody tried to boil it down to something that it is not. Salvation does not come from crying out, "I call upon the name of God!" Calling upon the name of the Lord MEANS something.

Salvation comes to the broken publican who says, "God, be merciful to me a sinner!" There is a specific Person that we are to call upon, and there is a specific way in which we are to call. The Person is God. This would seem obvious, but, as has been spoken of on both blogs, people tend to make up gods. It would not be terribly difficult to call on the one you've made up, rather than the One Who is. Second, we must call in the proper way. The way is to turn from your sin, acknowledge that there is no hope outside of God, and believe that He WILL save you. This is humility, repentance, and faith.

Now, here is an important point, because we CANNOT call to the right Person in the right way without Him giving it to us. I cannot turn from my sins without God allowing me to see them. Repentance is a gift from God. Faith is also a gift from God, otherwise I could claim some kudos for it. I cannot believe that He is Who He says or that He will save me unless He has given me faith. So, in point of fact, Threnody - being unable to know God for Who He is, and being unable to call in saving faith - did not follow the directions in the Bible to call upon the name of the Lord and thus receive salvation. This is manifested by her claim of "ex-Christianity."

One other thing I must point out: Threnody knew that her faith was not real. She said in this post, "Half of my writing for the last several years has been as much to convince me as anyone else that my faith was real." She kept trying over and over to convince herself that it was, and it didn't work because it wasn't. The problem is her conclusion. Rather than seeing that the fault is not in the Christianity but in herself, she completely turns around and says, "Since faith has failed, Christianity is false!" Faith didn't fail; it was never there.

Here, we get to the crux of the matter. Threnody, looking back, makes the incredibly telling statement: "I never had a relationship with God." To her, this means that God does not exist, and all we who claim to have a relationship with God are either deluded or liars. To the Christian, this simply is one more evidence that she was never a Christian. There is no "ex" to it.

I have a relationship with God. EVERY Christian has a relationship with God. God is my Father and my Originator. Jesus is my Brother and my Savior. The Holy Spirit is my Comforter and my Guide. I am His and He is mine; I cannot be taken from Him and He cannot be taken from me. These are foundational truths of what it is to be a Christian. God loves me - this is the start of the relationship. I love God - this is the growth of the relationship.

Threnody claims that Christianity is false because of the experiences of her life. Were those the grounds that could prove or disprove a thing, my experience would prove it. You think there are scores of people who have left Christianity? How many more have remained? Of all those who have tasted, have the greater part left? If experience were the ground of judgment on the validity of a thing, Christianity wins the day, for far more have come to it than have left it. There are far more who own (not just claim) the name of "Christian" than those who take the name of "Ex-Christian."

I nearly ended there, but rather than make another post, I'll tack on two more things. Threnody referenced something that I said about working for salvation. I never said obeying the Bible was working for salvation. Obeying the Bible is definitely NOT working for salvation. However, doing the outward things that the Bible says to do in order to win God's love, earn His favor or attention, or any other like thing IS working for salvation. What I said was from the words that Threnody used to describe how she sought for God, she was working for it. Writing lines like, "I fought and failed His love to win" (taken from this post) is pretty much the epitome of the idea of working for salvation.

In closing, I want to reiterate that I have no ill will to either of these authors. These two posts could come across as harsh or unkind; I do not mean them in any kind of destructive way. I understand that both of our views necessitate the other side either being deceived or deceptive, and I hope, Threnody and Lalaith, that you know that I have absolutely no quarrel with you personally.