It is simply that some thankfully not all but still some of our 'Calvinist Friends' show little of thankfulness of the forgiveness of God for their sins. Our precious sister BA being one of the exceptions to this.

It kind of goes along with 'previous pastors' that the lost have been hurt by. Kind of like these 'seminary graduates' have the gratitude of God's mercy to them personally all educated out of them and without this gratitude their "service" can be quite lacking in genuine love for the lost.

Have you ever found anyone who had the slightest comprehension of Christ dying for their sins, because their sins were terrible enough to damn them to hell for all eternity that had absolute no emotion about how great God's love is for them in Christ?

But still they go beyond our comprehension in that HOW COULD GOD LOVE US WHO WHERE SO WRETCHED IN OUR SINS AGAINST HIM?

In short His love for us is totally beyond anything we ever did or ever could to merit it. And if ought to break our hearts over how without excuse we are to sin against Him

And further it ought to flood us with the desire (a quite God given desire, or in other words a desire quite in harmony with His revealed will) to go and tell everyone everywhere that we possible can (as He leads us) of His Son Jesus Christ!!!!

It is simply my observation that when anyone set the 5 points of their Calvinism into "Theological Concrete" whereby no one is ever allowed to carefully and prayerfully consider their accuaracy both of their definitions and the attitudes (fruit) they produce let alone have the liberty to choose not to take them as ones own (after all Scripture is quite full of wonderful doctrine on all sorts of subjects not just the 5 points the Calvinists have so focused on) the insistance on Calvinism is quite similar to the party of circumcision demanding the gentiles be circumcised.

In other words it can rob a person of the very faith in God Scripture will produce thank you by demanding a person have their faith (5 point Calvinism) out of the flesh.

And honestly I believe it will stand throughout eternity that it is way beyond our human understanding that God could so love us, the wretches that we have been and even now falling so short of the glory of God (we are pretty pathetic compared to the early Christians aren't we).

Example a wicked man may hire a prostitue for money while a man blessed of God may ask a precious woman to marry him and hear her say Yes! or for that matter say No! for it is her choice and if he is a man of any character he will respect her choice won't he. And if this man had never asked her to marry him she would be legally powerless to walk into his home declare herself to be his wife and empty his check book, wouldn't she.

Now a woman of great character being asked by a man of great character may rejoice in being asked to be his man's bride but the asking would still be his and the accepting would still be hers.

If you somehow hate the idea that God who is love, so loves us that He gives people the ability to choose to reject Him than perhaps it is you who have a very dimished view of how awesome and wonderful and WORTHY God truly is.

Quote
Our God (says the Psalm, verse the third) is in the heavens: he hath done whatsoever he pleased.
End of Quote

Now my Calvinistic friend die you somehow forget man was made in the image and likeness of God Apparently with the ability to choose, which was quite horribly demonstrated in choosing to sin without excuse by the way against God of all hateful and wicked things.

If you all want to argue about man, remember God Himself made man in His own image and likes, you know with a mind to think with, emotions to feel with, a heart to love with, and a will with the ability to choose - Please take it up with a higher authority than the beloved Angus Toplady. Okay.

Yet I can show you, "Ye must be born again." and I have it on very good authority by the way that, "Ye must be born again." Some One who promises by the way that no one can pluck me out of His hand.

But I must thank you for you have illustrated my point quite well that for some Calvinists it is more important to them that someone be a Calvinist than to be born again of the Holy Spirit (all non-Calvinists must be heretical arminians - Tell that to Whitefield and Wesley or Spurgeon and D.L. Moody and how about Duncan Campbell and the Revival on th Isle of Lewis? 5 Point Calvinist?)

So does 5 Point Calvinism give you all the right to be modern day protestant popes where you can dictate to others what they must and must not believe?

Maybe I shoud pray about it and read a lot of dedicated or dead 5 point Calvinists and ask God and see if I get a 'burning in the bosom'? (Play on what the LDS "missionaries" do.)

Your request is quite resonable for I would have to think we both know individuals who say they are Calvinists who demonstrate a genuine love for Jesus Christ and the lost He gave His life for and proclaim Him with little or no mention of Calvinism or TULIP but rather what Scripture says in their witness.

I am so thankful to God, that Jesus Christ died for my sins so that I could be forgiven, I didn't deserve for Him to die for me but I am so thankful that He did.

And I like fellowshipping with people who also appreciate what He did for them also and now seek to learn of and about Him, and serve Him and witness of Him to others who so desperately need to hear Biblical Truth about Him so they might repent and believe in Him and call upon His name that they might be saved, born again of the Holy Spirit and know in Him the eternal life.

I would have to state with me from a Biblical perspective it has to do much more with definitions and attitudes.

Is God Sovereign? Of course He is. Is Calvinism's definition of His Sovereignity perfect and unquestionable - allowing man no choice, predestination. I believe Scipturally it misses it for Scripture states such things as choose ye this day whom you will serve.

Is fallen man utterly lost and unable to save himself? Absolutely. Unable to respond one way or not to the drawing of God? Again I have to conclude Scripture shows God who does foreknow how we will respond or reject and who makes all of us quite without excuse to believe that He exists also so loves us that he gives us the ability to make real choices with real and eternal consequences.

Uncondition election? Nothing we do or don't do matters? Again I believe Scripture, the Word of God, shows it matters a great deal if we repent and believe or disbelieve and harden our hearts against and suppress the truth God brings into our lives.