In my last post I posited that a deviation from the plenary verbal inspiration view of the Bible can lead to a distorted understanding of God.  To illustrate that point I got permission from a friend, Ken Yates, to use a recent post of his on the Grace Evangelical Societies blog.  Ken edits the GES Journal and heads up their short-term mission’s work.   The Topic – Is God Good?

Ken's Post:
At the last GES national conference, Geoff Stevens spoke on the dismantling of dispensationalism. One of the points of his presentation is that if we reject a plain, common-sense way of interpreting the Scriptures (dispensationalism), we will lose sight of God’s goodness. 

Some will say that this is ungracious or an overstatement. But I would like to discuss how Calvinism denies God’s goodness. 

Most readers of this blog have probably heard a sermon on Gen 3:1, when Satan asks Eve in Eden: “Has God indeed said, ‘You shall not eat of every tree of the garden?’” Many have pointed out that Satan is questioning God’s goodness here. He leaves off the fact that God told them they could freely eat from all the trees of the garden except one. Satan implies in this question that God is a killjoy. He is holding something back from Adam and Eve. Whatever Eve might have thought about all God had done for them, He wasn’t as good as she thought. 

Who can listen to the Calvinist view of eternal salvation and conclude that God is good? Once again, some will accuse me of being ungracious. Surely, Calvinists believe that God is good. Don’t they? 

But a five-point Calvinist says that God chose only a small group of people to be eternally saved. This small group is called the elect. If you are not one of the elect, you have no hope. Whether you are of the elect or not was determined long before you were born, and there is nothing you can do about it. 

To make matters worse, you can never know in this life whether you belong to the elect. Even if you believe John 3:16, there is no guarantee that it applies to you. If you are not one of the elect, you only think you believe it. Either you didn’t really believe, or you will deny that you believe it at some later date. After you die, you will find out the truth: You never had any hope of eternal life. You were destined before you were born to an eternity of torment in the lake of fire. 

I cannot imagine believing such things. I cannot imagine the anxiety and torment it would produce. Nobody who believes such things can honestly say that God is good. 

The most he could say is that God is good to the elect. But since nobody can know whether they are part of that group, nobody can, as an individual, say that God is good. The non-elect were born into this world, destined for hell, and with no hope. The Calvinist will say they all deserve it. But the one thing he can’t say is that these people should proclaim, “God is good!” 
Satan told Eve in the garden that God was not good. There is a lot of teaching in Christendom today that says the same thing. In fact, Satan was just suggesting it. Calvinism just comes right out and says it: If you aren’t of the elect (and you probably aren’t), God destined you to hell before you were born. 
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Whatever else we say about such a system, it does not describe a good God. Free Grace theology is not like that. We need to get back to the basics: “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only Son that whosoever believes in Him might not perish but have everlasting life.” That applies to everyone. If you believe in Jesus for eternal life, you have it and can never lose it. God is good.  

​Let’s look at again at the generic doctrinal statement on the Bible with which I began my previous post. Most churches say the Bible is the inspired Word of God, without error and is the final authority on matters of faith and life.  Theologians call this the plenary verbal inspiration view of the Bible.  It means the entire Bible (plenary) including the word selection and grammar (verbal) was inspired or guided by God.  The human authors did write within the context of their own cultures and personalities however, they did so while under the supervision of the Holy Spirit.   

That is the high view of the Bible.  People who hold to that definition of inspiration take pains to seek out the original intent of the authors meaning the people who wrote and the Holy Spirit who was guiding them.  If you hold a high view of the Bible, you likely follow a literal, historical and cultural interpretation method.  when studying Paul’s letter to the Romans you seek to understand it from the perspective of a 1st century Christian living in Rome.  What did the words mean to them back then, not what they mean today in our culture. 

Not all Christians hold the High view.  There are many who believe the Bible contains the word of God but not in the plenary sense.  40 years ago the county wide association of churches where I lived surveyed all the member pastors on their various doctrinal positions including their view of the Bible.  Only 25%, 1 in 4, held to the High view of Scripture.   The rest, 75%, held a wide range of positions.  Those who believe some of it was inspired by God admitted we can’t absolutely be certain which parts were.  Some even held that inspiration occurs as we read it and the meaning will change to match our need for the moment.   We’ll label that the low view of the Bible. 

People who hold to the low view will seek extra-biblical sources for guidance.  The traditions of their denomination, earlier Church leaders or leaders of different movements in Church history.  So, we end up with a number of theological traditions, Calvinism, Arminianism, Wesleyan/Methodist, Covenant, the Orthodox churches and so on. 

If you have not yet figured it out, I hold to the High View of the Bible.  I teach it as being God’s authoritative revelation to the Human race.  I believe we have to take what the Bible says at face value, the plain meaning of the words at the time they were written is the meaning we should assign to those words today.  That sounds good, but it is not easy.  Like everyone I’m a product of my culture.  The Bible says some things that are hard to hear, that go against my nature instincts.  But I’m also convinced that if I deviate from the plenary verbal inspiration view of the Bible I will end up with a distorted understanding of God.  And if I’m not clear in my knowledge about the person of God I open myself up to uncertainty and confusion on the most important matters about life now and in the future.  
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More on that in my next post.  

Almost all Evangelical Christian Churches will have in their doctrinal statement an assertion of their belief that the Bible is the inspired Word of God, without error and is the final or ultimate authority on matters of faith and life.      

2 Timothy 3:16-17 All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.   

There is also the validation by Jesus Christ who spoke of the O.T. Scriptures as God’s Word.  Christ also foretold that the Holy Spirit would guide the Apostles in their writings.  The Lord’s use of the O.T. Scriptures demonstrated that He believed even the words and grammatical structure of every sentence were exactly what God wanted to reveal. 

All of that is reflected in the sample doctrinal statement I listed above.  However, I’ve come to realize there is often a gap between the formally stated beliefs of a church and what is actually taught.  Everyone should be on guard against any misalignment between the ideals of their beliefs and what they actually practice and teach. 

We all have personal theology.  It is our understanding of who God is and the values we derive from that knowledge.  And many of those who study history and culture have concluded that no civilization or country has ever risen above their understanding of God.  I submit the same applies to the individual as well.  As I said above, almost every evangelical Christian claims to believe the Bible is God’s authoritative revelation to the world.  But when I talk to people I find out that many, if not most, do not read their Bibles.   

They read books by Christian authors, listen to music composed by Christian musicians and pay attention to what the Pastor preaches but spend very little time actually reading the Bible.  Their personal theology is a composite of what they hear rather what they have learned for themselves by reading the Bible.  Which I believe is why so many Christians are confused about the nature of God and their salvation. 

My personal view is the only way to overcome any such confusion is to be like the Jews in Berea. 
Acts 17:11-12 These were more fair-minded than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness, and searched the Scriptures daily to find out whether these things were so. 12 Therefore many of them believed, and also not a few of the Greeks.  
Test what you hear against what you can read in the Bible.  And give priority to what the Bible says instead of what you hear.  That includes what I’m writing here.  You want to stand in truth. 
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John 17:17 Sanctify them by Your truth.  Your word is truth. 

The New Heaven and Earth as described in the Bible does sound like science fiction; especially the part about the New Jerusalem and the possibility it orbits the earth.  Hollywood has made a one movie, Elysium, that uses a similar story line of a better place to live hovering about the earth.  Elysium was taken from Greek mythology.  But I suspect there is a Biblical influence as well since the movie version has Elysium as a space station in orbit over the earth.  The main difference is the earth is still a dystopian mess.  Anyway, no matter how one interprets what God has revealed about the New Heaven and Earth it is future of unlimited possibilities and wonders that awaits everyone who has received Christ’s gift of everlasting life.  

The main idea I wanted to get across is that God has always intended for us to spread out into the universe.  It is why He made it so big.  A human population that continues to multiply itself forever needs that kind of space in which to live.  And Genesis 1 makes it clear that was God’s plan from the beginning.  It still is, only now God will move us to a New Heaven and Earth to complete it.  It will be Like the present universe but different in that it will endure forever and death will have been abolished.  It really will be a fresh start. 

My guess is He wants to remove all trace of our sinful rebellion.  Which helps to explain the amazing scope of God’s grace poured out on everyone who is born again through believing in Jesus Christ.  The first benefit Jesus spoke of was everlasting life (John 3:16).  The forgiveness of sin (Ephesians 1:7); no future Judgement for sin (John 5:24), imputed righteousness (Romans 4:5), sealed by the Holy Spirit Who is also the guarantee of our inheritance (Ephesians 1:12-13).  All of that and more is because Jesus Christ willingly took our judgement on Himself.  2 Corinthians 5:21 sums it all up well: For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.

People believe many things about what lies beyond the Grave.  The thing about belief is that believing itself has no power.  Believing a lie will not alter reality, never has and never will.  Believing what is true is what brings the more harmonious outcome.  The reality is that when we die, we will either be with God or we won’t.  Being with God brings an everlasting abundant life.  To die without Him means the Lake of Fire.  I pray you will choose life with God. 
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John 3:16 For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.