'If Ye Love Me'

[The Nehor]

8 hours ago, Bernard Gui said:

As it has been explained to me, you find out you are chosen or not here on earth and there is nothing you can do about it.

Ah, but there are certain indicators that you are chosen. Just do those and prove you are chosen and you are good.

[Bernard Gui]

59 minutes ago, The Nehor said:

Ah, but there are certain indicators that you are chosen. Just do those and prove you are chosen and you are good.

Such as.....

[The Nehor]

1 hour ago, Bernard Gui said:

Such as.....

Not kick puppies I assume.

 

[InCognitus]

1 hour ago, Bernard Gui said:

2 hours ago, The Nehor said:

Ah, but there are certain indicators that you are chosen. Just do those and prove you are chosen and you are good.

Such as.....

This answer on the Christianity stack exchange seems to be a thorough attempt to address that question.  The answer is long and complicated, with references to the grounds of assurance in the Westminster Confession of Faith, the Belgic Confession, and the Canons of Dort, so I'll only post the link here and the conclusion:

Do Calvinists believe they know whether they are saved?

Quote

Conclusion

Calvinists teach that to be assured of salvation, you must look first to Christ, his merits, and his promises, then to the fruits of faith that he has granted you. It is not found by inquiring into the decree of election, nor by looking chiefly to yourself. It is not necessary to be assured of salvation in order to be saved, but it is a good thing to strive for nonetheless. There are ways of distinguishing it from "carnal self-assurance," and those who have such false assurance are mistaken about their salvation.

The "not kicking puppies" answer seems to be clearer than this one to me. 

[Bernard Gui]

33 minutes ago, InCognitus said:

This answer on the Christianity stack exchange seems to be a thorough attempt to address that question.  The answer is long and complicated, with references to the grounds of assurance in the Westminster Confession of Faith, the Belgic Confession, and the Canons of Dort, so I'll only post the link here and the conclusion:

Do Calvinists believe they know whether they are saved?

Conclusion

Calvinists teach that to be assured of salvation, you must look first to Christ, his merits, and his promises, then to the fruits of faith that he has granted you. It is not found by inquiring into the decree of election, nor by looking chiefly to yourself. It is not necessary to be assured of salvation in order to be saved, but it is a good thing to strive for nonetheless. There are ways of distinguishing it from "carnal self-assurance," and those who have such false assurance are mistaken about their salvation.

The "not kicking puppies" answer seems to be clearer than this one to me. 

That “strive for” is part of what I don’t understand.

[cherryTreez]

I would only win with a trust claiming the money. I would change my phone number and go on a trip for several months. I know my parent's families would come crawling out of the woodwork begging for money. I haven't even met most of them, and the ones that I have met, I don't care to meet again. If I am not good enough to be around now, I wouldn't be with money. 

I would 'owe' my sil three horses of her choice and my 'uncle' (dad's best friend) a new truck. We talk about it once many years ago. 

[Meadowchik]

5 hours ago, The Nehor said:

Easier said than done. Most lotteries want to announce winners to drum up hope that others can win. It is hard to hide.

If you ever feel like playing the lottery I heartily recommend this piece which has been posted in various places all over the internet:

Warning: Some profanity

https://gist.github.com/1RedOne/20c55b6cf7f27f7ef783aefd4214e771

Yep, I've read that. 

If I play, I will only play one that allows for anonymity.

By the way, I have since a kid played the thought experiment of what I'd do with a windfall of money. When I was a little girl, it was to buy a big farm place with horses. Each time I run the experiment in my head, I learn something. Mostly I learn that of all the material things I want most, they're actually pretty accessible already.

[JAHS]

I doubt they would be lining up at the door the next morning but with that much money I would just give some to all those people before they even asked for it.

Edited March 16, 2020 by JAHS

[teddyaware]

On 3/15/2020 at 11:04 AM, pogi said:

Another issue I have is how many accuse us of obeying for selfish reasons - to be saved.  But I wonder how many evangelicals would believe in Jesus if he didn’t offer them salvation for their belief.

How many believers would answer option “a” to his question above?  Probably all hope for something from Him.  That is the point of Him offering it after all.

It seems to me that they brag about their inheritance and snobbishly rub it in our faces more than they talk of Christ.

An excellent point... They criticize us for esteeming  the supreme blessings of salvation to be of such tremendous value that we realize the least we can do in return is show some gratitude by gladly doing what he has asked us to do. Meanwhile, they think themselves as occupying the moral and theological high ground when they consider the divine edict “if he love, me keep my commandments” to be a mere ‘take it or leave it’ suggestion.

Edited March 23, 2020 by teddyaware