Okay, I actually found time to read both the articles by Ronn Johnson and Mike Heiser and will be very brief in my response.

1. Both men stand outside the Church due to their rejection of its orthodoxy, i.e., they both reject the historic and confessional doctrines as taught in Scripture.

2. Ronn Johnson mentioned his fascination with the writings/teachings of N.T. Wright, who is a known heretic of the worst kind, denying the imputed righteousness of Christ to the sinner who by the antecedent regenerating work of the Holy Spirit repents and believes upon Christ for justification.

3. Heiser denies penal substitutionary atonement as it has been understand by the Church, i.e., through Christ's death on the cross, the wrath of God for sinners was appeased. That is what Paul teaches in many passages and particularly in Romans 3:25 (see propitiation (Grk: hilaskomi/hilistarion) in most formal equivalent translations).

4. Heiser denies that the wrath of God toward sinners, i.e., God hates the sinner because he sins. God's hatred of sinners is NOT, as Heiser denies but postulates, that God is angry because sinful humans miss out on the benefits of a sinless life and thus suffer the temporal consequences of their sin.

5. Heiser holds to a universal atonement for all mankind without exception, i.e., Jesus died for everyone without exception. But then he states that it wasn't the death of Christ which redeems sinners but rather His resurrection which secures them a life of bliss.

6. Heiser denies the Omniscience of God, e.g.,

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Did God select and intend the death of Jesus as a penal substitution, or did he just foreknow what would happen to Jesus on earth (not intending that he die) and then, through raising him from the dead, endorse him as a substitution? It seems to me that God foreknew humanity would suffer the loss of immortality (i.e., Eden would fail and with it, everlasting life with God). God knew this meant that death separated him from the humans he loved and wanted in his family forever.
Further, Heiser denies God's Omnipotence for if as he believes that God did not intend that Christ die, then it begs the question, Why did God allow Christ to be crucified and die on the cross? (cf. Isaiah 46:10; Acts 2:22-28).

7. Heiser denies Federal Headship, aka: Corporate Solidarity, i.e., that Adam was appointed by God to be the representative of the entire human race. When he chose to disobey God he was punished; Original Sin... guilt for transgressing the law of God and died physically, spiritually and eternally. Thus every human being that is conceived is subject to Original Sin (Roman 5:12-18), i.e., everyone is born spiritually DEAD with a corruption of nature, aka: Total Depravity, everyone dies physically, and all, but for the infinite of grace given to the elect in Christ, are subject to eternal damnation.

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It cures the death problem, which is/was brought on by sin (my own view of Rom 5:12 helps here — that we are guilty before God not because of what someone else did [even Adam] but because of what we invariably and inevitably do — we sin).

Conclusion... beware of these men and all like him, which there are many now serving as pastors/elders in churches; yes, even in "Reformed" churches particularly. flee

Just three salient articles which are on The Highway website, of which myriad more could be recommended. grin

- The Great Exchange
- What's Wrong with Wright: Examining the New Perspective on Paul
- Does God Love the Sinner and Hate Only His Sin?

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simul iustus et peccator

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