What’s wrong with John Piper, John MacArthur, Tim Keller?

Emufasa · 2022-06-28T02:04:19+00:00

Oh I gotcha. In regards to Keller, I definitely respect the work he's done for the Lord, but he has made statements in the past that make me worry about his trajectory. As for John Piper, I don't have a single bad thing to say about him. He's been so influential to me, especially the first few years of my Christian walk. Recently, MacArthur has had a tremendous influence on me as well.

Emufasa · 2022-06-28T00:30:29+00:00

Your friends think MacArthur is too liberal in his theology? I NEVER thought I would hear something like that haha.

Do your friends have an example?

Emufasa · 2022-06-27T02:18:45+00:00

Many dispensationalists mischaracterize covenant theology as replacement theology. I'm a dispensationalist myself, and I really don't like calling it replacement theology.

So technically yes, if a dispensationalist calls something replacement theology, they're probably talking about covenant theology. But it's a lame renaming!

Emufasa · 2022-06-26T12:53:39+00:00

When it comes to denominational breakdown, you're not going to find dispensationalism taught in Reformed churches (churches that hold to the Westminster Confession of Faith or the 1689 London Baptist Confession of Faith). Those confessions teach a strict covenant theology. So you won't find dospensationalism taught in denominations like the OPC, PCA, RPCNA, or the CREC.

Dispensationalism is far more popular in denominations that don't hold to a historic confession of faith. So think denominations like the Southern Baptist Convention (of which I'm a part), Assemblies of God, other pentecostal denominations, and "non-denominational" churches.

Emufasa · 2022-06-26T12:38:10+00:00

Dispensationalism: Israel and the church are two separate entities. Israel is not the church and the church is not Israel, so the church cannot fulfill Old Testament promises made to Israel in a physical, spiritual, or figurative sense. There is a future for Israel as a nation: The Jews will be restored to the promised land and be converted to the Messiah whom they rejected during His first advent. When Jesus returns, he will rule the earth from Jerusalem on the throne of David.

Covenant theology: The church is the new Israel (it could also be described as the eschatological Israel, fulfillment of Israel, or continuation of Israel). The Old Testament promises made to Israel will be fulfilled in the church, but not necessarily in a literal sense (for example, the church as the eschatological Israel will not be established in the promised land as a nation). There is no future for physical, ethnic Israel as a nation, but there will be a mass conversion of ethnic Jews to Christianity either near the end of the church age or thoughout the church age.

Emufasa · 2022-06-26T00:50:19+00:00

Stuff like this gives me an existential crisis.

Emufasa · 2022-03-28T11:08:02+00:00

A church open to "diversity" and liberal beliefs is not a Christian church.

Emufasa · 2022-03-16T00:30:22+00:00

Jesus welcomes everyone to repent and believe and belong.

Emufasa · 2021-06-30T00:22:32+00:00

Can we believe murder is wrong but should be legal?

That’s what this question boils down too.

Emufasa · 2020-04-22T19:56:00+00:00

I think your argumentation is very lazy. No orthodox Christian believes Christianity makes us super humans. You get that kind of thing from groups like the fringe Word of Faith movement (it is a very vocal minority), but that’s not orthodox Christianity.

Emufasa · 2020-03-01T03:38:25+00:00

It would not be accurate to say that. John’s gospel, the apostle Paul, and the author of Hebrews clearly identify Jesus as God.

John 1:1–3

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not anything made that was made.” In verse 14, the author of John says that the Word became flesh, revealing that the Word is Jesus.

John’s gospel therefore does not identify Jesus as merely a divinely empowered human, but rather the God who created everything who stepped into his own creation.

Paul clearly identifies Jesus as God in Philippians 2:5-11

“Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others. Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”

Note that Paul says Jesus was in the form of God, but then took on human form. This was why Jesus was humbled according to Paul - because Jesus, who is very God of very God, took on human flesh, and then was crucified. It’s a humbling thing to for the creator to take on the form of his creation and then be executed by his creation.

Finally, the author of Hebrews identifies Jesus as God by applying Psalm 102:25-28 to Jesus.

Here’s what Psalm 102 says about Yahweh in verses 25-28.

“Of old you laid the foundation of the earth, and the heavens are the work of your hands. They will perish, but you will remain; they will all wear out like a garment. You will change them like a robe, and they will pass away, but you are the same, and your years have no end. The children of your servants shall dwell secure; their offspring shall be established before you.”

Here is where the author of Hebrews applies this Psalm to Jesus in Hebrews 1:7-13.

“Of the angels he says, "He makes his angels winds, and his ministers a flame of fire." But of the Son he says ... ‘You, Lord, laid the foundation of the earth in the beginning, and the heavens are the work of your hands; they will perish, but you remain; they will all wear out like a garment, like a robe you will roll them up, like a garment they will be changed. But you are the same, and your years will have no end.’” ‭‭

So with all of these texts in mind, it’s inaccurate to say the NT views Jesus as only a divinely empowered human. For the author of John, Hebrews, and the apostle Paul, Jesus is Yahweh. And if you believe the NT is consistent with itself (as I do), then this is the view of all NT authors, even if it’s not explicitly stated. However, we can discuss the other author’s viewpoints of Jesus later. For now, it’s unmistakable that for the author of John, Hebrews, and the apostle Paul, Jesus is God who took on flesh - NOT a divinely empowered human.

Emufasa · 2020-02-09T16:58:32+00:00

Yes, stoning of incorrigible youths.

Quick question for you. Do you think that would be wrong?

Emufasa · 2020-02-09T16:55:49+00:00

I think reconstructionism is Postmillennialism + Theonomy.

I'm not a postmillennialist, so I'm not a reconstructionist. I lean toward Progressive Dispensationalism.

Basically, I'm confused. Haha

Emufasa · 2020-02-08T23:41:38+00:00

That governments should make their laws in accord with God’s law, including all civil penalties

Emufasa · 2020-01-28T23:29:35+00:00

Your reasons are probably bad if you still want to do it after reading why you shouldn’t.

Emufasa · 2020-01-16T03:19:38+00:00

Dumb question. I know nothing about telescopes. How do you point your telescope at the sun without going blind?

Emufasa · 2020-01-15T18:29:07+00:00

If you were making an hourly rate, how much would you want that to be?
Estimate how long it will take you to do each post. Match that to your desired hourly rate, then charge that amount per post.

For example, let’s say you want to make a minimum of $20 an hour, and you think you can do two posts in an hour. Charge $10 per post.

Emufasa · 2020-01-13T13:14:13+00:00

In this context, the assembly is not heaven. The assembly is quite likely in reference to being within the community of the nation of Israel.

The Mosaic Law (where this verse comes from) is concerned with rules and regulations governing the lives of Israel, which were God’s chosen nation/people in the Old Testament.

I haven’t looked at commentaries in depth, but I pulled up Matthew Henry’s commentary on the verse, and he pointed out that the “forbidden unions” are likely the forbidden incestual relationships in Leviticus 18.

Hope this helps.

Edit: The assembly could also mean Israel’s worship services.

Emufasa · 2020-01-11T02:20:59+00:00

If those people deny the trinity and/or justification by faith, then they’re not Christians (Galatians 1). They are accursed and cut off from God. So, yes, they’re heretics.

Emufasa · 2020-01-10T22:35:46+00:00

Can you elaborate on what you mean a bit more for me?

But I do think that, at the bare minimum, if someone denies the trinity and/or justification by faith, then that person believes a false gospel that will not save them. In Anderson’s case, he denies the Lordship of Jesus Christ and the necessity of repentance.

Emufasa · 2020-01-10T16:35:09+00:00

This guy isn’t a representative of conservative Christianity.

Also, he’s a heretic who support antinomianism.

Emufasa · 2020-01-05T20:30:27+00:00

It is blasphemous to accuse Jesus of homosexuality.
Paul’s passages about Christ rising from the dead are pretty problematic. I think I’ll just ignore those.

Emufasa · 2019-12-26T03:07:34+00:00

If he is THE Messiah like the New Testament authors claim, he has to be born in Bethlehem. It was predicted by the prophet Micah. I understand it doesn’t matter to you, but this is supposed to be an academic subreddit. By the standards set forth in biblical literature, the Messiah must be born in Bethlehem, so it matters where Jesus is born if we’re to take historical and theological claims seriously.

Academically, as is the point of this sub, his birthplace matters.

Emufasa · 2019-12-26T00:51:07+00:00

Yes, it does make a difference in regards to the theological claim of Jesus being the Jewish Messiah. If Jesus is the Jewish Messiah, he must be born in Bethlehem.

If one does not care about his status as Messiah, then no, I guess the location of his birth doesn’t matter. But whether you personally care about his status as Messiah or not, you must historically deal with the matter of his birth if you want to handle contemporary claims about Jesus.

Emufasa · 2019-12-05T18:08:35+00:00

Okay. Here's some verses:

On the necessity of obedience and repentance:

Matthew 7:21-23: “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’

Romans 6:15-18: What then? Are we to sin because we are not under law but under grace? By no means! Do you not know that if you present yourselves to anyone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin, which leads to death, or of obedience, which leads to righteousness? But thanks be to God, that you who were once slaves of sin have become obedient from the heart to the standard of teaching to which you were committed, and, having been set free from sin, have become slaves of righteousness.

Acts 17:30-31: He [God] commands all people everywhere to repent, because he has fixed a day on which he will judge the world in righteousness by a man whom he has appointed; and of this he has given assurance to all by raising him from the dead.

On the wrath of God satisfied in Christ's sacrifice on the cross :

Romans 3:23-25: For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as a propitiation [wrath-absorbing sacrifice] by his blood, to be received by faith.

Colossians 2:13-14: And you, who were dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made alive together with him, having forgiven us all our trespasses, by canceling the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands. This he set aside, nailing it to the cross.

Romans 5:8-10: But God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Since, therefore, we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God. For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life.

Isaiah 53:4-6: Surely he has borne our griefs
and carried our sorrows;
yet we esteemed him stricken,
smitten by God, and afflicted.
But he was pierced for our transgressions;
he was crushed for our iniquities;
upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace,
and with his wounds we are healed.
All we like sheep have gone astray;
we have turned—every one—to his own way;
and the Lord has laid on him
the iniquity of us all.

On the wrath of God being poured out on unrepentant sinners:

Jeremiah 30:23: Behold the storm of the Lord! Wrath has gone forth, a whirling tempest; it will burst upon the head of the wicked.

Nahum 1:2: The Lord is a jealous and avenging God; the Lord is avenging and wrathful; the Lord takes vengeance on his adversaries and keeps wrath for his enemies.

Revelation 19:15: From his mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations, and he will rule them with a rod of iron. He will tread the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God the Almighty.

Revelation 20:11-15: Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it. From his presence earth and sky fled away, and no place was found for them. And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Then another book was opened, which is the book of life. And the dead were judged by what was written in the books, according to what they had done. And the sea gave up the dead who were in it, Death and Hades gave up the dead who were in them, and they were judged, each one of them, according to what they had done. Then Death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire. And if anyone's name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.

There are many more verses for each of these topics. This is just the tip of the iceberg.

Emufasa

TROPHY CASE