Terrifying? Good, it should be terrifying. The consequences of our actions are the only thing that could possibly matter in our lives. St St Paul says, "For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may be recompensed for his deeds in the body,
according to what he has done, whether good or bad. Therefore,
since we know what it means to fear the Lord, we try to persuade men." Just as the Psalm says, "But with you there is forgiveness
so that you may be feared." Or Jesus Christ, "
fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell."
Quote:
Only God knows Colin's heart. You're putting a bunch of unnecessary "if statements" in there for really no reason. God knows his heart. But again, this is pure Calvinism.
Why do you say they are unnecessary? These are the questions that will be answered at the judgment. He never once says, the sheep are the people who believed in me, the goats are those who didn't. Here are the verses; you're not arguing against me, you're arguing against scripture.
Did he feed the hungry, give drink to the thirsty, welcome the stringer, clothe the naked, visit the sick, come to those in prison? (Matthew 25:34-46)
Did Colin do those things with "faith working in love" (Galatians 5:6) or for others to see him like the Pharisee and receive his reward then in full (Matthew 6:2-5)?
Did he do them without love, and gain nothing (1 Corinthians 13:3)?
Did he beat his breast and say, "God, be gracious unto me a sinner" and go away justified? Or was he proud and not (Luke 18:9-14)....
What if he never loved God, never even knew Him? (Matthew 7:15-27)
God judges the heart, not the way people judge. (1 Samuel 16:7, Jeremiah 17:10).
He alone judges, (James 4:12) and He alone has mercy or not. (Isaiah 33:22, Matthew 10:28, James 5:9).
You don't know the measure given to Colin. You don't know if Colin was the wise army leader or the foolish tower builder in the eyes of God. (Luke 14:28-33)
You don't know if Colin did 1% of what he should have done or 100%. And so we do not judge, because if God wants him to stand, he will stand. (Romans 14:4)
They say to work out your salvation (not your justification) in fear and trembling (Philippians 2:12-13)
We also know God is merciful, and just; that He does not mark iniquities, and with Him there is forgiveness. (Psalm 130:3-4)
So... why are they unnecessary questions? They are
the questions. As St James says, "So speak and so act as being about to be judged by the Law of freedom.
For judgment without mercy will be to the one who has not shown mercy. Mercy triumphs over judgment. What is the profit, my brothers, if anyone says to have faith, but has no works? Is faith able to save him?...do you want to come to know, O foolish man, that faith apart from works is worthless?"
Quote:
God is all-knowing and outside of time. He knows what Colin will do before Colin is born.
You're now suggesting that a God, outside of time and all knowing is going to set a level of works for Colin that He knows Colin won't meet?
That's pure monergism. Ironically, this view makes Lutheran's much more synergist.
And free will is not impacted one way or the other. I'm not saying that God is causing Colin to do things that will cause him to end up falling short. He already knows what Colin will or won't do.
God is all-knowing and outside of time. He knows what Colin will do before Colin is born. Yeah.
You're now suggesting that a God, outside of time and all knowing is going to set a level of works for Colin that He knows Colin won't meet? No, I did not suggest that.
I believe that teleoligically every person is destined for salvation. Not one single person was created for anything else other than union with God. God loves each and every person, and Jesus Christ died both for all mankind and for every human being. He took away the sin of the whole world. (No limited atonement).
I did not suggest that God set some kind of minimum merit score. I have repeatedly said we are not saved by works, but faith working through love. What I am saying, is that we live our lives in freedom, absolute freedom, to "take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of us," to "hunger and thirst for righteousness," to "seek glory, honor, and immortality"
OR to be "self-seeking and reject the truth and follow wickedness," to "delight in wickedness."
And only God knows our hearts. It is not a one-time thing or binary thing. He's not standing up there with a pencil and an eraser writing a name down then erasing it every time a person waffles between belief or not, flipping them back and forth between being justified and unjustified. He's not tallying up points, calculating a debt, and then saying "heyo, sorry bud, you just needed fifteen more good deed schrutebucks to make it. cya!" That is not what the scriptures say. He doesn't condemn the man with one talent and reward the one with ten. He says they are both good servants. It's not an absolute value game. But it does matter what we have! "Whoever has will be given more, but whoever does not have,
even what he thinks he has will be taken away from him." (Luke 8:18)
You simply cannot argue that the scriptures DO say that we are judged by what we do. Particularly in how we treat others, because that is what Love is. He is a good Judge, the only Judge, and His judgment is perfect, righteous, and merciful. He has a steadfast love and mercy for us, but He is still righteous and blameless in His judgment (Psalm 51). At the judgment, there will be no appeals, because it will be quite obvious that what He says is true. There will be no hiding or lies. Our deeds will be revealed as they truly are, not the way people might see them (Matthew 10:26, 1 Corinthians 3:13, Luke 8:17).
Faith and love and action and doing and being all get wrapped up into this one thing, a holistic unity with and identity in God, as much oneness as the Son and the Spirit and the Father are One (John 17:22). That is what salvation is, to be totally identified with who we are in Christ Jesus, to grow up to the full measure (Ephesians 4:13), to attain to completion or perfection in Christ (Colossians 1:28).
/////
God's existence outside of time and foreknowledge of outcomes is true for everyone, believers and not. If you believe this, and you believe that justification
is salvation, that it is done without any action on man's part, and that not all will be justified, then God in his foreknowledge and sovereignty gives salvation to some and not others. Yes? No?