I love that video!!! I’ve been wanting to say that for so long 
I might take it a bit farther…you know in the action film type scenario where the hero is surrounded by other people who all are getting gunned down and blown up, and the hero makes it through by the skin of his teeth?
Well, we’re all surrounded by other degenerate bad people…but we make it through by the skin of our teeth, because Christ reaches down and helps US.
because we’re naturally the hero of our own stories, it’s important we make it, and hopefully some others will too, but definitely us.
What i’m implying is that the adrenaline rush of just barely making it by the skin of our teeth despite others not doing so might be the attractive bit to a Calvinist…escaping by the skin of their teeth, so close to hell they can smell the sulphur and it singes their hair…PHEW! What a rush! I am say-aved! HALLELUJAH! etc.
I don’t know if that makes sense, but… 
It does make sense James - we gonna make it through boys.
I mean with all charity, what Mark Driscoll said about his macho Jesus was heresy if ever there was heresy, and serious heresy at that (a toxic mythopoeia). And I think we’ve seen it again with the Mel Gibson Patriot Jesus on another thread. Actually I’m out of all charity with this stuff at the moment 
Me too, mate.
So i guess in some forms of Calvinism is the action-hero God, or the Legalistic Judge God (who runs a side business as a lottery operator).
Arminians have a hands-off God, who offers stuff out but isn’t so fussed at our rejection that He goes out of His way to push the issue (maybe that’s a little unfair, but it does seem that at death, the Arminian view of God literally gives up).
Universalists could be charged with having a hippie Jesus that forgives all and keeps no record of wrongs and strongly desires the salvation of everyone…wait, that’s all Biblical stuff
must not be smug, must not be smug
WINNING!
d’oh! 
Great video, Dick! And, James, I think your analysis of the “action-movie, getting-through-by-the-skin-of-our-teeth” kind of religion is a spot-on description of Calvinism. I think such a view is predominantly part of Calvinism, but it also seems to penetrate other forms of Christianity, sadly-- if not most. 
One day, when I was around thirteen, I visited the youth service of my mom’s Nazarene (Arminian) church. The topic of the day was none other than hell-- how the pain of it would be worse than the worse pain we can possibly imagine here on earth, then multiplied by ten thousand. I distinctly remember by pastor telling us–a group of twelve to eighteen-year-olds–to imagine someone slowly slicing our eye with a knife… continually, without rest, for eternity. Then, after twenty minutes of horror-movie preaching, he went on to say how we’d be alright so long as we continued to believe in Christ. Well, after a sermon like that, I was finding it harder to believe in Christ than ever, so I figured I best begin preparing my eyes for the knife.
So I guess the sword-wielding Jesus of Calvinism isn’t just part of Calvinist gatherings. 
My dear Kate - I’d like to get my hands on that Nazarene preacher; what a sadistic berk!!! 
Well he probably had his imagination poisoned at some point - but what a terrible thing to say to children. What an awful stumbling block for you. Anyway me dear - you’ve done so well!
Oh and I’d like to take credit for posting the video link but it was actually Night Revan.
Good touch base old fruit -
Dick
Thanks Kate…yeah that’s a very good illustration! No wonder action films and horror films are so popular…they reflect a mental attitude much of humanity still has. Quite a shame, really…i love action and horror, but it’s good to be aware of the social issues they highlight (whether they do it on purpose or not is another debate )
I don’t want to be too hard on my old pastor-- He was a kind man, really, happy-go-lucky with a wonderful sense of humor (ironic, huh?) Judging by his actions, I’d doubt that he truly believed in the warrior-god he preached about that Sunday morning so long ago. In fact, he has since left the ministry to open a business with his wife. So I wonder if, eventually, he realized he, too, felt uncomfortable with what he preached.
Anyway, that pastor was so happy to see me that Sunday morning, as he had been trying to cox my shy, thirteen-year-old self into making some friends within the youth group. After his sermon, I never returned-- I wonder if he ever put two-and-two together regarding why. 
Curious Kate - sorry to have a fit of spleen there
Very curious, indeed-- Yes, there are many pastors on whom I’d like to release the wrath of my godfather, but I think Pastor Dave’s ignorance exempts him on this occasion. (Of course, if ignorance can be used for exemption, then I wonder how many Calvinists would be exempt. 
)
Kate - I hope you mean ‘coax’ up there a bit.
Just funnin’ with ya
Hey! At least I didn’t spell it ‘cocks.’
Hmm . . . we’d all be exempt to a huge degree I suppose – some more than others. (I always claim as many exemptions as I legally can, of course!) – That there was a little tax-time metaphor, in case it turns out to be opaque to our non-US friends.
Found this video today and enjoyed from about 2:20, how Piper mentions, for about a minute and a half, some of the things Lewis said that he clearly disagrees with desiringgod.org/biographies/ … lable-soul
Lewis’ views on the reformation clearly hurt Piper a little.
Way to go, Jack .
The remarks about Lewis and Catholicism show a really frightening ignorance of Anglicanism I do begin to think he is simply appropriating Lewis for Neo Calvinism rather than being genuinely open I think Rowan Williams should have write an appreciation of Jonathan Edwards in response talking about the nice bits that are agreeable to Anglicans only, and there are some nice bits. He even said some nice things about spiders as a younger man and there is lots of stuff in appreciation of nature and even some stuff about justice towards the poor.
Where? Lemme at em!
Well as a young man Edwards- wrote of spiders as -
Then he went and spoilt it all later - but did he the spider in the flame was simile (but the poetics of the image do suggest a possible scientific experiment indulged by the young Edward’s as he moved out of his poetical and fanciful phase - and an alarming ‘objectivity’ about the fate of most of his fellow human beings). However, I’m sure Rowan Williams could make a selection form Edwards with a judicious preface stating his reservations that could co-opt Edwards to the Anglican fold (part of the British way of absorbing rude boys at last as national treasures and real characters ) And why not? (Forgive me - I’ve done so many heavy duty posts of late that I need a giggle )
i do appreciate that writing by the young Edwards, before he became a grumpy old git!