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Archive - Spirit of the Word - Covenant Eschatology - Introductory Note - New Stuff
"My Views about UR....
Clarification Welcome!"
by AutumnSongAutumnSong:
Ok....I feel the need to 'lay it all out' and invite correction and clarification because the devil has a field-day with confusion and I do not wish to give him a foothold.
To start with, I came to understand Universal Reconciliation because of Charles Slagle (www.sigler.org/slagle), also affectionately known as 'Charlie' on this board.
I am a cautious person, following NO man without testing what he says....however I DO have some that I 'trust' more than others, and Charles Slagle is one of those (anyone who has ever read his books "From the Father's Heart" and "Power to Soar" or has attended one of his 'prophetic psalmist' ministries KNOWS that he truly hears from God!). To my point of view, if Charles recommended investigating something, it was worth the effort.
Because the concept of UR (universal reconciliation) was totally new to me, I read with some trepidation and then PRAYED like crazy about it....confident that God would 'red-flag' the whole thing if it was out of line. He didn't.
A friend suggested that the devil was trying to 'distort' the Truth thru these new 'revelations' and I may be in danger of being one of those 'deceived' in these end-times.
Hmmmmmmm......Didn't someone accuse Jesus of working His miracles thru the devil? I believe He told them that a house divided against itself cannot stand. To what purpose would the devil WANT us to believe that God loves us so much that He WILL rescue us all eventually?
If UR was preaching that Jesus Christ is unnecessary and that we would be saved without Him, I would have dumped the whole thing in the trash. It doesn't.
It has always bothered me that we were told EVERYONE would have a chance to hear about and accept Jesus Christ and yet I KNOW that there are places and groups of people on this earth that are so remote and/or so oppressed, they have never seen or heard anything about Christianity (thus the birth of those blessedly wonderful 'missionary' groups, who STILL don't reach everyone no matter how hard they work)! WHEN were they ALL supposed to get THEIR chance? Now I believe through UR that they will get their chance AFTER this lifetime, if not before.The only real confusion I see in UR beliefs while reading through these forum discussions is that some seem to believe in hell and some don't.
I do.
I just no longer believe that massive amounts of people will be tormented through all 'eternity' (ET) because they either didn't do everything 'right' OR they weren't fortunate enough to be 'chosen'. After all, Jesus TOOK the keys to Hell away from satan, didn't He? It didn't say He returned them afterwards.My serenity comes from believing now that we have a truly loving God that will do whatever it takes to keep every last one of us with Him.
My desires and goals now are to make those people who are not already saved, understand that God is a Living God that can help them WHILE IN THIS LIFE and NOT JUST 'a place to go after death'!!
How do people survive the traumas of this world without the help of the peace, healing, and strength of Jesus Christ? What do they DO??
I think I understand the mental-health problems this society is overwhelmed with. I would be bonkers too if I could not ask for and receive help through the power of Jesus's name.
Yes, 'SALVATION' is needed desperately HERE AND NOW for a truly suffering world, not just as a pre-paid retirement plan as so many believe.So....these are the views I accept as Truth. I am open to clarification and change if it can be Bibically proved. I am just a human with limited understanding and no one except the Father can say 'I change not'. I desire only to know God better through understanding His meanings and words. If I am understanding them incorrectly, please correct me!
Peace through Truth.
Charlie:
Hi AutumnSong!
Welcome aboard! Thank you for all the warm words about yours truly.I'm delighted that you're jumping in on these discussions; I know you're going to meet some wonderful people here.
However, I will tell you in advance that they will differ on many details of their understanding, just as do traditional Armininians (Charismatics, Holiness, Church of Christ, Pentecostals) and Calvinists (Evangelical Presbyterians, Reformed, and some Baptists).
It's amazing how many differences we find among the traditional churches and their ideas, isn't it? Some believe that Jesus comes before the Millinium, others believe after. Some sprinkle, some immerse. Some believe that "everyone" will have a "chance" (somehow!) to receive Christ (in this life or at the point of death) while others are adament that they will not. On and on and on... Some are trinitarian, some are not. Some believe in once saved always saved and others do not.
And so it is with Christians who cherish the hope (and rejoice in the certainty!) of the salvation of all people. What else is new, right?
Some believe in afterlife punishment, while others understand "aionian chastisement" as applying to THIS life. Some are trinitarian, others or not. However, all the Bible-based UR believers you will meet here do believe in the diety of Christ and that it is through Him that all must be saved and in the inspiration of the Scriptures.
But as long as folks are grounded in these areas, I can fellowship with them. And I don't divide with them over these other issues, because to me what is important is that we know GOD'S *HEART* and that JESUS CHRIST (the Successful Savior of all) is loved and worshipped.
Well, I'm just jumping in here to share this in order to assure you that you can be TOTALLY FREE to reach your own conclusions on various points of doctrine--and even if some of them differ from my own conclusions--that is NO BIG DEAL to me.
There are wonderful friends of mine who visit this board that are far better scholars than I am that differ from me on certain points, but I still HIGHLY respect them and recommend their writings and ministries.
You know what, sis? I'm just--overjoyed!--that God has been opening your eyes to the INFINITY of His love and grace. Wow... Does that bless me--BIGTIME.
You're going to love these folks who drop in here to chat with you!
Always your friend,
CharlieP.S. If you'll go to www.concordant.org there's a wonderful book listed there by an Anglican minister, Thomas Allin, that was written in the late 1800's. It is called "Christ Triumphant" and it is only 7 dollars plus postage and it is a FAMOUS "classic" on this whole gospel. If you like church history you'll really love this book, because he devotes two chapters in the middle that show that most of the early church believed this gospel for the first 5 or so hundred years. Also, www.amazon.com advertises a wonderful book written by Jan Bonda, an elderly, praying Dutch Reformed bible scholar and pastor. The book is called "God's One True Purpose... An Answer to the Doctrine of Eternal Punishment." This book is rather recent--published in 1995 or later? Anyhow, I know you're going to love both of these books. Other folks here may have some good books to recommend too.
Spirit of the Word - Covenant Eschatology - Introductory Note - New Stuff