Theology Corner

Addressing commonly asked questions about Christianity from the perspective of a non-theologian

Theology Corner

1.)  IS CHRISTIANITY COMPATIBLE WITH POSITIVE TOLERANCE?

2.)  CAN WE HAVE A FORM OF GODLINESS, BUT DENY THE POWER THEREOF?

3.)  WHAT IS THE GREAT WAR?

4.)  SHOULD PRESIDENT TRUMP HAVE BEEN IMPEACHED FOR IMMORALITY?

5.)  WHO SAID MOSES WAS HUMBLE?

6.)  COULD CHRISTIAN DOCTRINE BENEFIT FROM WOKE REVISION?

7.)  DID EINSTEIN BELIEVE ALL CHRISTIANS WERE CALVINISTS?

8.)  WHY IS MARXISM A MAGNET?

9.)  WHAT IS TRUE SCIENCE?

10.)  CAN YOU LOSE YOUR SALVATION?

11.)  WHAT ARE THE SYNOPTIC GOSPELS?

12.)  WHAT HAPPENED BETWEEN OLD AND NEW TESTAMENTS?

13.)  WAS PAUL ENTIRELY SANCTIFIED?

14.)  ARE YOU LIVING IN A WORLD AT WAR?

15.)  WHAT IS THE DIRECT METHOD FOR PROVING A CONDITIONAL PROPOSITION IS TRUE?

16.)  WHAT IS THE CONTRAPOSITIVE METHOD FOR PROVING A CONDITIONAL PROPOSITION IS TRUE?

17.)  WHAT IS THE CONTRADICTION METHOD FOR PROVING A CONDITIONAL PROPOSITION IS TRUE?

18.)  WHAT MIGHT A METHODIST THEOLOGIAN SAY ABOUT PURGATORY?

19.)  WHICH BIBLE PASSAGES ELUCIDATE CORE ASPECTS OF CHRISTIANITY?

20.)  DO SELECTED NIV VERSES ELUCIDATE CORE ASPECTS OF CHRISTIANITY?

21.)  DO SELECTED AKJV VERSES ELUCIDATE CORE ASPECTS OF CHRISTIANITY?

22.)  DO SELECTED YLT VERSES ELUCIDATE CORE ASPECTS OF CHRISTIANITY?

23.)  DO SELECTED 'VOICE' VERSES ELUCIDATE CORE ASPECTS OF CHRISTIANITY?

24.)  COULD THE CONCEPT OF 'SALVATION ONLY FOR THE ELECT' HAVE BEEN ROOTED IN THE MIND OF AUGUSTINE BEFORE HE EMBRACED CHRISTIANITY?

25.)  DID AUGUSTINE RECEIVE PUSHBACK FOR HIS TEACHING OF 'SALVATION ONLY FOR THE ELECT' DURING HIS LIFETIME?

WHY IS MARXISM A MAGNET?

For those in the USA who hate our country, hate our constitution, hate our culture, hate our history, hate our institutions and hate our flag, Marxism provides a people friendly political, sociological and economic alternative to the idea of a constitutional republic focused on capitalism.  But Marxism is much more than a political, sociological and economic system; it has all the trappings of the world religions it claims to denounce!  Marx denounced every religion as the illusory sun around which man revolves, until he begins to revolve around himself.  A being only considers himself independent when he stands on his own feet; and he only stands on his own feet when he owes his existence to himself.  The ultimate religious motivation behind this philosophy is to make each of us equal to God.  But as indicated by Colson and Pearcey:

 

“Marx’s self-deification has had disastrous results for millions, leading to war, massacre and labor camps…Because revolutionaries are confident that the next stage in history will automatically represent progress, that any change will be for the better, they readily tear down and destroy the existing order – which historically has often meant killing off anyone who resists, from rulers to peasants…Because Marxism denies the evil in human nature, it does not recognize the need to place checks and balances on the individuals in power, allowing them to accrue absolute power…Marxism is a substitute religion that wreaks devastation and death.  Today’s liberation movements [BLM, Antifa], which depend heavily on the Marxist worldview, are inherently religious as well.  They may have dropped Marx’s focus on economics in favor of race or gender or ethnicity, but the basic thought forms remain the same – and they are equally flawed and dangerous.”  (Colson and Pearcey, p 236)

 

Oswald Chambers concisely captured the sin of Marxism:

 

“The Bible does not say that God punished the human race for one man’s sin; but that the disposition of sin, viz. my claim to my right to myself, entered into the human race by one man, and that another Man took on Him the sin of the human race and put it away (Heb 9:26) – an infinitely profounder revelation.  The disposition of sin is not immorality and wrong-doing, but the disposition of self-realization – I am my own god.  This disposition may work out in decorous morality or in indecorous immorality, but it has one basis, my claim to my right to myself.” (Chambers, October 5th)

 

Marxism has failed in every instance; it is responsible for violence, suffering and death on a world scale.  But it is still a magnet for the human race.