Interesting and puzzeling

[msethsmile]

SD--
You are correct, we should not judge the salvation of others. First of all, we're incapable of making that judgement (we can't look into the heart). Second, it is the sole province of God (His job). We have been called upon to proclaim Law and Gospel (God chose inferior vessels--another act of mercy) and the Holy spirit does the rest.

That being said, we need to not only proclaim L&G but also warn others of their errors (and errors in our own midst, in our own individual hearts). A shepherd's job is to feed and to fend. If a religion has an official stance/confession, not in agreement with Scripture, we should tell them so with a gentle attitude--certainly not with a sword. The power of the Holy Spirit dwarfs that of the sword. How much so? He can change man's heart. Woof. Moving mountains indeed.

rexico--
A lot of theology thrown around here. I do know this, because God said it; In eternity, before the creation of the world, Jesus had your name (believer) etched into the palm of His hand, right beside the nail holes (certainty of salvation):

Isaiah 49:15b-16, "I will not forget you! See, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands..." This contract was written in Christ's blood. Validated and acceptable to God by His resurrection.

[JDS723]

I’ll tackle the question head on. I don’t know if your searching, questioning, or trolling, but either way my answer is the same. Apart from faith in Christ and repentance of sin, all suffer the consequence of sin, which is death, eternal death in Hell. So what happens to people raised in a different culture with a different religion? They suffer the consequences of their sin. Although that seems harsh and our human response feels as if it’s not fair due to them never “having a chance”, ultimately no one suffers death due to a lack of faith but rather they suffer death due to sin. All men are deserving of death. But fortunately, in His great love, even when we were still sinner, Christ died for us. Sin brings death, faith and repentance ushers us into life through Gods Grace. In the end, the Muslim who never even heard of Jesus can’t blame a God for eternal death because they willingly chose sin. Just as all men have. We ask, how can a loving a
God send someone to hell, but the Bible asks, how can a holy God Allow a sinner into heaven? Only by grace.

[godsdozer]

Galileo and Copernicus brought to the church the truth that the earth was not the center of the universe, that the sun did not go around the earth but that the earth went around the sun and that the earth rotated on its axis, giving the illusion that the sun was going around the earth.
We all know this to be true now, but did all good Christians believe it then? No, both John Calvin and Martin Luther clung, along with the church, to the error that the earth was the center of the universe, that the sun went around the earth and that the earth stood still.
"Martin Luther called Copernicus 'an upstart astrologer' and a 'fool who wishes to reverse the entire science of astronomy.' Calvin thundered: 'Who will venture to place the authority of Copernicus above that of the Holy Spirit? Do not the Scriptures say that Joshua commanded the sun and not the earth to stand still? That the sun runs from one end of the heavens to the other?'"
Both Calvin and Luther were good, well-meaning men, but they still clung to their false views because they could quote Scripture texts to support them.

[msethsmile]

Its difficult to measure the results, good and bad, of the Reformation. They attempted to return the 'church' to orthodoxy. Specifically, stopped the selling of indulgences which greatly damaged the church. Sure enough, the 'church' stop selling them in the 1600's.

Yes, Luther was a crude outspoken blowhard. In his youth had a death wish (didn't know the Gospel). When aged, cynical, anti semitic and burned out. Middle aged, he changed the world and the 'church'. Translated the Bible into the language of the people, previously only in Latin (which no one read except clergy and nobles). The rise of the common man, which gave birth to capitalism. Of the 56 signers of the Declaration of Independence, only one was not a Protestant. Opinions good and bad for Luther--but he changed western thought. One of the brightest minds of the last millennium. Keep in mind, Ford was a mass production genius and idiot at the same time. "Any color you want, as long as its black." Luther the same, because he was sinful. He was fully aware of his sins and their penalties. As a young man, before he knew the Gospel, he would scourge himself with whips--didn't remove his sins. He would go to confession for hours at a time. The Gospel was pointed out to him from a fellow monk, "A righteousness from God..." Romans 3. God the mean judge was gone, replaced by a merciful Father. Above all, Copernicus theory--anti semitism--crudeness; the saving Gospel was returned to the Church. After Luther, all man could read for himself, "While we were yet sinners, Christ died us." Rom 5:8b

Difference between Calvin and Luther: The center hub on their wheel of theology, which all the spokes attach; Cavin: God's sovereignty. Luther: God's mercy/compassion/love; exhibited in Christ's atonement of our sins. Christ alone.