I grew up in a conservative Jewish home and synagogue. I accepted the Lordship of Jesus (Yeshua) in 1968 shortly before my 30th birthday. I attended Golden Gate Baptist Theological Seminary, in Mill Valley ,CA for 3 semesters beginning in 1970. I worked in Christian Education until my retirement.
My doctrinal stance has been strongly influenced by Baptist doctrine; but I am not knowingly a strict dispensationalist and consider myself to be neither Calvinist, nor Armenian.
I believe God created man because He wanted a creature who was able to receive and return His love.
The price God paid for a creature able to love Him was that He got a creature who was able NOT to love Him (Love can not be programmed). I believe "you have not chosen Me; but I have chosen you" and "Whosoever will may come" are simultaneously true. I believe that God chooses those who are saved on the basis of uninfluenced foreknowledge of their response to Jesus (Yeshua). I believe that the only reason that God tolerates the presence of evil in His world is that the capacity to love is so important to Him that He is willing to accept the necessity for freewill. God is indeed not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance; and, while God, in His sovereignty, is able to make this happen; but chooses not to do so, because his desire that people have the capacity to love is more important to Him than His desire that all be saved.
I believe that the only thing worse than a believer not following his convictions is for a believer to impose his convictions on another believer. Jesus commanded His followers to make disciples; but he NEVER told anyone to make LAWS. The greatest obstacle to evangelism in America is that our penchant for legislating morality erodes credibility for the ALL IMPORTANT doctrine of GRACE!
Our invitational hymn "Just AS I AM" does NOT read" Just as I am without one plea; except you change your clothes for me. And that you learn conformity...!
The role of convicting us of our need to change our behavior belongs to the Holy Spirit and NOT to each other.
Once we have earned the trust and affection of a brother or sister, we are ONLY THEN in a position to GENTLY exhort and encourage.
Blessings on you! Nu 6:24-26.
Marc
My Commentary: latest update https://www.dropbox....y2xmB .pdf?dl=0
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