(Originally written April 29, 2007 in Book 15)
Class Notes
Grace & Redemption Debate
Options:
1) Ture Pluralism - DeNoia, Heim
2) Coerced Pluralism - John Hick
3) Bashful Pluralism - William Alston
4) Inclusivism - Karl Rahner
5) Exclusivism
Karl Barth
Two Options
1) Either you accept God as He revealed Himself as Christ
2) Or you do not accept God
All Christians have a belief system based on God. All non-Christians' belief systems are based on self. There is no common ground.
Are those who have never heard the gospel lost?
Before answering this question it must be based completely on Biblical data, not merely philosophical or emotive arguments.
Passages:
John 14:6 - "Jesus answered, "I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me".
Acts 4:12 - "Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved".
I Timothy 2:5 - "For there is one God and one mediator between God and mankind, the man Jesus Christ."
Romans 9:1-5 "I speak the truth in Christ - I am not lying, my conscience confirms it through the Holy Spirit - I have great sorrow and unceasing anguish in my heart. For I could wish that I myself were cursed and cut off from Christ for the sake of my people, those of my race, the people of Israel. Theirs is the adoption to the sonship; theirs the divine glory, the covenants, the receiving of the law, the temple worship and the promises. Theirs are the patriarchs and from them is traced the human ancestry of the Messiah, who is God over all, forever praised! Amen"
1) Exclusivism because otherwise the anguish would make no sense.
2) Cursed and cut off from Christ makes sense only if it is possible.
No comments:
Post a Comment