Is He a sufficiently expert witness of the Truth or does a Calvinist have to interpret Him through the 5 Points of TULIP and the writtings of Calvin and the Calvinists of the Reformation?

And just Who Saves anyway? John Calvin? Luther? or is it this humble carpenter Jesus whom God Himself has proven to be the Son of God by raising Him again from the dead.

And Again I ask where has Jesus Christ, and what He Himself says, gone in all this? Don't we think that He is quite more important than Calvin and especially those who force Scripture to fit TULIP?

Did not Jesus Christ tell us that if we confess HIM not John Calvin before men that He would confess us before the Father? Perhaps we might just want to consider His suffering for us, His death for us, and once again hold Him as our first and foremost love worth more than anything and anyone else to us and thank Him for His shed blood and that He has promised the one who comes to Him He will in no way cast out?

It really doesn't matter what opinion others have of you it really only matters what Jesus Christ Himself thinks of you.

Want to carefully prayerfully read the Scriptures for yourself and find out? Or do you want to make the Bible (take out it out of context) justify what you want to make it say?

Let God be true though every man a liar.

Does He not Himself tell us that if we confess Him (not Calvinism by the way) before men that He Himself will confess us before the Father BUT if we deny Him (not TULIP but Him) before men that He will deny us before the Father?

So did Calvin shed his blood for us? If he didn't than why are we so concerned with what he taught and the opinions of those who hold his teachings as more sacred than Scripture?

Is it not time we rediscover the Lord Jesus Christ and what Scripture teaches us of Him, of His commandments, His Requirements, His Ministry now... all we can possibly learn about Him and from Him that we might proclaim Him among the nations?

What kind of twisted message is it to go to sinners and tell them, 'if they are part of the elect it doesn't matter what they do or don't do they will be saved and if they are not elect it doesn't matter what they do or don't do they will be damned?'

This is the One who has told us that we must, not it would be a nice thing, but that we must be born again, something that so changes us that we are a new creature, one whose heart has been changed from a rebellious fallen sinful nature to a heart that loves God and longs to obey and please Him and do you know one that actually gives evidence of this change in a changed life, one that evidences obedience to Christ and to His Word.

Now John if you are not so changed by Christ, and He has more than enough power to change us by the way doesn't He, than you are living a life of willfull sinful rebellion against Him and as to praying daily that He forgive you Scripture warns us:
Proverbs 28:9
He that turneth away his ear from hearing the law, even his prayer shall be abomination.

It is simply not a matter of those who knew Christ personally while He lived on this earth physically know Him better than those living here now, it is a matter of obedience. Jesus Christ Himself commands that we come to Him. No where in Scripture, the very Word of God, each and every Word directly inspired by God will you find (because it is not there) any commandment, any instruction, to pray to Mary or any example of an obedient believer doing so. Therefore to do so is disobedient to Christ and disobedient to the Word of God, Holy Scripture.

As to knowing about Salvation I would humbly suggest that Jesus Christ knows far more about salvation than your minister, Billy Graham and Jimmy Swaggert combined and multiplied by 10. And Jesus apparently thinks that those who call Him, Lord, Lord, and practise sin (iniquity/lawlessness) must depart from Him because He never knew them.

Again, my friend your problem is not the Mass in Latin, shyness, protestant churches but Christ for in stiffing your neck agaist obeying Him who is worthy to be loved and served and adored and proclaimed you place yourself among the wicked you hate the idea of obeying Him who died and rose again that they might be saved.

In my observation this has brought about frightful consequences because in American Evangelism people now labor to get people to profess Christ and attend their church and not labor that and seek God that sinners might be changed, born again, SAVED FROM THEIR SINS to become obedient to God.

Why with this kind of "logic" a gynocologist could justify rape of his patients because they exposed themselves in his examination room.

Quote
"He has made the terrifying error of believing that he can be saved without making any effort, and he thinks I should make the same error."
End of Quote

Lance, you have missed it salvation does not have to do with effort but with change, one so beyond human ability that only The All Holy God by His Sovereign Power, Mercy and Grace can make. Lance, no matter what you do you will always be a sinner, you will sin against God knowingly and willingly because it is your nature, the fallen nature you inherited from Adam. You may know God exists but being dead in sin you will not know Him.

Shyness, what you like or don't like about different church services, what your brother's minister told you, they are really excuses aren't they.

Let me say again,
What are you supposed to do then?
First my friend you need to examine your relationship with Jesus Christ.
Is He important enough to you to obey Him? even if it seems to go against your feelings and your desires?

If He is not that important to you then it simply will not matter where you go to church or not will it?

When Jesus Christ saves a person then they will have a heart to obey God out of love for God and out of faith in Him that He is right.

Anyone who presumes they are "saved" and shows they rebel against obeying this Savior who saves from sin shows that something is terribly amiss in what they think is salvation.

Scripture teaches us, Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound? God Forbid! Why ever would that be, John? Could it be that those who continue to practise sin are actually of the devil and are on their way to the eternal hell?

Is He important enough to you to obey Him? even if it seems to go against your feelings and your desires?

If He is not that important to you then it simply will not matter where you go to church or not will it?

Remember He says, 'And why do ye call Me, Lord, Lord, and do not do the things which I say?'