WOE TO YOU

Lately I find myself wondering how often people imagine they are rejecting Christianity when in fact they are only rejecting pseudo-Christian beliefs, heresies, or the "traditions of men". 

I have seen videos on YouTube of atheists who have been exposed to Calvinism and it has hardened their hearts towards God. They will say, "I can't believe in a God who would create billions of sentient creatures incapable of knowing Him, only to torture them forever in Hell."

And I want to scream, "You don't have to believe in that god - that's not the God of Scripture!"

Speaking of hell, I have often heard atheists who reject Christianity based on the widespread belief that when Jesus speaks of people "perishing" without Him, that He means they will endure conscious eternal torment. Billions upon billions of years with no end.

These people are turned off by churches which use hell as a scare tactic to drive people towards God. And you have to admit, it is the scare tactic to end all scare tactics. (And occasionally it works - though if it creates a quality disciple, it's a fluke.) 

But what a shame. In rejecting fear-mongering Christians, these unbelievers will never take the opportunity to see what Scripture actually teaches about God's judgment.

And when it comes to judgment, who can fault nonbelievers for rejecting the notion that God poured out His wrath on His own Son in order to satisfy His own justice, holiness, and glory. (That scenario results in quite a stretch for each of those three words, isn't it?) 

They call is "divine child abuse" for the Father to inflict this on His Son. And we shouldn't be too quick to dismiss their objections. 

When people reject Jesus because of doctrines which aren't even supported by the Bible it is utterly tragic.

I believe THIS is exactly why false teachers are so roundly condemned in the New Testament. THIS is why Jesus got so angry with the Pharisees and their ilk:

“Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You shut the door of the kingdom of heaven in people’s faces. You yourselves do not enter, nor will you let those enter who are trying to.” Matt 23:13

By nature, I prefer to "live and let live", but doctrines that cause seekers to stumble need to be confronted as fiercely as Jesus confronted the Pharisees. 

(By the way, we can add Matthew 23:13 to the long list of proof-texts against Calvinism. "What do you mean, Jesus, by speaking of people who are “trying to enter the kingdom”? You seem to have forgotten people are either in or out. There is no trying!" In a Calvinistic paradigm, if the Pharisees are shutting the door of the kingdom of heaven in people's faces, their action is redundant - God shut that door Himself before the foundations of the world!)