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Did the Father forsake his Son at the cross?

The quick answer to this question is yes! God the Father did forsake his Son at the cross and I will explain why. Believe it or not, that was the pre-determined plan of God (Acts 2:23). Also, when Jesus cried out "My God My God why have you forsaken me?", he was fulfilling Psalm 22:1. It is crucial to remember that Jesus was being made an offering for sin by the Father God on purpose. 2 Corinthians 5:21 says, "He who knew no sin was made sin so that we might become the righteousness of God in him (Christ)".   Mankind's sins state was so hopeless that it required the advent of the perfect sinless Son of God to die ultimately by the hands of God the Father to deliver us from our sins which gave birth to our spiritual death (Eph 2:1; Col 2:13). The Father punished his Son on the cross and it pleased him to do it (Isa 53:10). Why? Because God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son to save the world (John 3:16-17). In order for man to receive

Is Christianity a religion?

If a non-religious person were to ask a Christian the above question most would say "no Christianity isn't a religion, its a relationship!" Is that a cliche' or a true statement? Many Christians look at the word religion as a bad word. Why? The reason being is that most "religious" people only look at religion as a system of do's and dont's. Their religious activity is emotionless, a mechanistic tradition passed down often from their parents and grandparents.  Often times people are involved in religious activity without even understanding why they are doing it, and what it all means. And in that case, one needs to examine themselves and their religion. There are also numerous others that are very impassioned about their religion because they are convinced it helps them, and they believe they are hopefully appeasing the god or ideology they worship. Then there are others that feel that what they are doing centers them - keeps their mind and

Preaching the Gospel in conjunction with Election and Reprobation

This article is a sequel to the previous one: The doctrine of Reprobation. For those who militate against Divine Election and Reprobation because in the human mind they appear to make God a mean ogre, I want to attempt to prove how wonderful both of these doctrines are, and how neither is a hindrance to the gospel, but rather how the gospel is enhanced by them.  I want to start with the negative view of what many say how preaching the gospel in light of divine election is pointless. Those who do not like divine election and predestination say that preaching the gospel is pointless because the elect are going to believe no matter what and the non-elect are not going to believe no matter what So why preach the gospel at all?! That type of reasoning is called Hyper-Calvinism. This is the fatalistic approach to the matter: Since God has already determined all things that will ever happen, why do anything at all? God has already made up his mind and nothing can change that! We

What is the doctrine of Reprobation?

The doctrine of reprobation I believe is the absolute hardest doctrine in all of scripture. It is so painful that many scholars and theologians do not discuss it. It has been my experience that only those in the Reformed or Calvinistic camps discuss the matter. So, what is the doctrine of reprobation and is it Biblical? In order to understand this doctrine one has to place it in juxtaposition to the doctrine of sovereign election. The doctrine of election as I have explained several times before is defined is that God before time and creation decided to foreknow and chose some to be recipients of his saving grace in time  when he determined. In other words, exactly when God wanted, he would save them through the preaching of the gospel message - guaranteeing their salvation when they believed (Eph 1:4). The doctrine of reprobation is that God before time decides not to choose others before the foundation of the world - leaving them in their sins to be judged by God at the end of

Did God really hate Esau?

Malachi 1:2-3 it says, "Jacob I have loved, but Esau I have hated". The Apostle Paul quotes this same passage in Romans 9:13. Why did God hate Esau? It's not that God had this seething malicious hatred toward Esau in as much that he preferred Jacob over Esau. Why? Because it served God's purpose. Keep in mind that God made the decision to choose Jacob and Esau's destinies before they were born (Rom 9:11). It also very important to remember that God's purpose included not just the twins boys but their descendants as well. Esau was the father of the Edomites. Jacob whose name was changed to Israel in Genesis 32:28 became the father of the Israelites or Hebrews (or who we call Jews or Israelis today). Jacob was chosen to be blessed in a way the Esau was not. Jacob was no better than his brother but was favored by God to receive benefits that Esau never received. The benefits, of course, have extended to the Hebrew race as they exist to this day. Edomite

Who sins have been forgiven?

It is important I ask the question because there are many in the Church if not most that are convinced that everyone sins have been forgiven by Christ. Is that indeed true? Has Jesus forgiven every last person's sins? If I could see the faces of everyone that will read this article, I could imagine you looking back at me perplexed saying, "Del are you kidding me? Of course, everyone's sins have been forgiven by Christ!"  Okay then, we need to test that reasoning against scripture. To me, it is quite simple. If one dies in sin and perishes in hell were their sins forgiven? If one says yes then you believe in a sort of double jeopardy. Meaning that you have Christ paying for sins of the hell-bound, and the lost paying for their own sins. Does that seem logical and fair? Of course, it is not. It does not make sense nor is it fair for Christ to die for the sins of those who will eternally perish in hell and pay the penalty for their  own sins. Some of yo

In light of the Fall

My foundation passage for writing this article: Isaiah 46:10, "Declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times things that are not yet done, saying, 'My counsel shall stand, and I do all my pleasure”  (italics added for emphasis). I often wonder why God created the universe in the light of the fall. What do I mean by this?  In other words, God created the earth knowing at the same time he would allow the fall of man into sin to happen and ruin his perfect creation. If you have ever pondered this reality like I do, then admittedly it brings tension to the mind. However, this does not make me question God in an accusative way, but rather it makes me desire to get to know the mind of God more so I can love and appreciate his uniqueness and explain to those in my sphere of influence the wonders of our God who also ponder this difficult matter. Let me say first off that I do not fully understand why God ordained the fall, but I do know that ordaining the f