The most tightly aligned with Scripture I have ever felt is now, where I consistently find myself agreeing *mostly* with various theological systems, but never *fully*, and where I feel comfortable allowing myself to ask good questions about things I’ve always assumed.

Reading a Calvinist like Oliver Crisp is proving to be quite the breath of fresh air compared to Sproul, White, and Palmer. I admire his intellectual humility.

We are so used to the response to Paul's interlocutor being "absolutely not" that we tend to apply that answer to this question in Romans 9: "Who can resist His will?" The issue is that Paul always assumes the opposite of the interlocutor's argument, not just "no" or "no one".

One of my biggest issues with any form of determinism within Christian orthodoxy is that it, in my opinion, damages all confidence in rationality. How can I trust that I weighed the evidence rationally for, well anything, if something outside myself is the ultimate cause?

I’m seeing a lot of people present the Gospel as “Jesus keeps you from burning in Hell for eternity” in light of annihilationism. The Gospel is the message of the saving King Jesus, yes, but is more about being saved TO LIFE, here and now, than it is about escape from punishment

Is this statement true: Believers AND unbelievers are bodily resurrected because Jesus was bodily resurrected, and in this sense, Jesus’ resurrection impacts all humanity, whether believer or not.

Calvinist/Reformed brothers: Let’s assume you are correct on all fronts. Could God have freely chosen to create the universe in a way that operated in the same sense believed by Arminians, for example, and retained His character and nature?

Do not hold to annihilationism or conditional immortality because it softens the blow of judgment on those who die outside of Christ. Do not hold to ECT because it seems to be the difficult or hardest version of judgment for those who die outside of Christ.

Per Romans 5, in what way is the "gift" greater than the "trespass"? Hit me with your best explanation!

This is overrealized eschtalogy, akin to the Prosperity Gospel.

One thing that has become clear from a lot of this Twitter debate on ECT/CI: Lots of people don't know what it means to assume the point of contention. You can't argue that your case is biblical because you read it in the Bible. The contention is how to interpret the Bible.

I think that the fact that ECT is the majority held view in Church History is compelling, but circumstantial at best. We like to live in the extremes with this stuff too often. An argument can compel but not serve as a silver bullet. But we like quick and pithy.

Every once in a while someone makes that claim that to deny the "imputation of the active obedience of Christ" is heretical. The imputation view usually entails holding that the believer's righteousness rests on Christ's vicarious law-keeping. We get forgiveness of sins from his death, but "positive" righteousness from his life of law-keeping. But to say it is heretical to deny this faces a high hurdle. First, this distinction only emerged during Reformed Scholasticism. It was unknown in earlier centuries. Also, no Reformed creed or confession requires this belief (If they clearly include it at all.) Given the late arrival of this doctrine, it's very difficult to say its denial is heretical.

Who has become an annihilationist because of Kirk Cameron? 🤪

If the future gift/goal of the Gospel is everlasting life with Christ in the New Heavens and New Earth, enjoying God and His creation in perfection, then: Annihilation is the deprivation of this gift/goal, and not a *softening* of the Gospel.

If the big goal of the afterlife is to escape eternal suffering, then yes, annihilationism softens the blow of the Gospel message. If the goal is to be with Christ in resurrection bodies, experiencing life as co-rulers to its fullest in perfect communion with God, it doesn’t. 🤷🏼‍♂️

Ok, I change my mind. Annihilationism may be the most misunderstood minority doctrine in Western Evangelicalism. All these tweets man….go engage a view critically and with patience before the twitter fingers get typing 🤦‍♂️