The Highway Forums General Discussion Open Forum A very telling article by an Atheist

So essentially - Humanism and Calvinism are complete polar opposites. Not that we don't know this already, but it's interesting to see an Athiest confirm this - basically in order to be a "true" Christian you gotta be Reformed! Everything else inches closer to Humanism.

Atheism <----------------------------------------> Calvinism

AJC, this is a very interesting thought from the quoted atheist. As Christians, we have news for this unbeliever. Such a person did live a perfect life and we crucified Him for His trouble.

This reminds me of another quote from Calvin's Institutes:


Denny

Romans 3:22-24

Also, I don't think the guy realizes the difference between natural good and spiritual good.

SIn in all forms - including thoughts - are extremely damaging, regardless of how we treat others (i.e. the golden rule.)

Denny,

It's interesting that I too picked up on that same statement at the end of the article:

It is certainly unlikely that anyone will ever manage to live a perfect life, but we should hold out the possibility and use that as a goal to strive for.

However, I looked at it from another perspective; an apologetic one. Being an adherent of "Presuppositional (biblical) Apologetics" one should first use the opponent's own views against him/her by showing them to be in error, illogical, irrational, etc. and THEN bring them to a true starting point and move on from there. So, in this case, this man does what is typical of most everyone.... he "borrows" ideas and/or truths from Christianity to argue in his behalf while disparaging Christianity as being mythology, counter-productive to society, ad nauseam. The item he "borrows" is the element of "Ethics" and/or a standard of "Morality". If the God of the Bible does not exist, then such phrases as "perfect life" have absolutely no meaning. For what is "perfection" without an absolute standard of what is the highest good? And if there is no God, then anything defined as "good" will vary with what each individual thinks is good, which is exactly what all societies do. Nazi Germany believed that perfection was the Arian race and everything and everyone else was "imperfect", thus to achieve perfection in the world it was necessary to purge it of those who were not of the Arian race. Now, without an ultimate standard of truth and moral perfection (righteousness) which can only be found in the one true God, no one really has a valid argument or even a right to criticize what Hitler's Germany believed and did from the standpoint of ethics.

Okay.... I'm rambling, but hopefully you get the point... without God there is no "perfection" and thus if you reject God then there is no "right" or "wrong" and thus nothing to strive for other than what any particular society values as being desirable, aka: politically correct.

Oh yeh... I almost forgot I wanted to say that I got a genuine chuckle reading the part where he accredits evangelicals as being the ones who hold to this Augustinian extremist view of the depravity of man and his utter dependence upon a God who insists that all men do what they are incapable or doing.... or even desiring to do for that matter. IF only that were true, eh?

In His grace,

Pilgrim said:
I did too, but then again who are the real evangelicals?

Yes, we are quite the extremists <img src="/forum/images/graemlins/laugh.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/forum/images/graemlins/takethat.gif" alt="" />

<img src="/forum/images/graemlins/thewave.gif" alt="" />

Hello all, First post here! Greeting!
The above reminds me of a Thomas Watson quote, 'till a man places his faith in Christ, his best deeds are but glorious sins!'