I read, "The intent of man's heart is evil from his youth" (Gen 8:21). I read, "Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, and in sin did my mother conceive me" (Psa 51:5). I read, "All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God" (Rom 3:23). I read, "All have turned aside; together they have become worthless; no one does good, not even one"(Rom 3:12). I read, "The god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God" (2 Cor 4:4). I read, "You were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience -- among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind" (Eph 2:1-3). I read, "The natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned" (1 Cor 2:14). I read, "Those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit. For to set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace. For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God's law; indeed, it cannot" (Rom 8:5-7). All this and more leads me to conclude that human beings in their natural state are what is termed "depraved." They are sinners from birth without exception. Humans are blinded, dead in sin, incapable of accepting the things of God, and hostile to God. Others read the very same texts and conclude, "People are basically good. Everyone does some good. This 'total depravity' concept is overblown and out of touch with reality."
How do we get there from here? How do Christians read the Bible and see the plain words and grasp the simple meaning and conclude almost exactly the opposite?
This "total depravity" (using a common term) thing is a mere example. The Scriptures are abundantly clear that we're saved by grace through faith in Christ apart from works, and readers of the Bible conclude that grace and faith and all that is really nice, but we are definitely saved by works. It is undeniable that multiple passages attest to the fact that Christ paid our ransom, died for our sin, satisfied God's justice, and propitiated His wrath, but Christians argue, "Yes, He did no such thing." "What do you mean, 'Yes?' You just disagreed." "Did I?" Time and time again fundamental, crystal-clear concepts and texts are viewed and understood to mean that which contradicts what the fundamental, crystal-clear concepts and texts are saying.
How do we get there from here? How do Christians read the Bible and see the plain words and grasp the simple meaning and conclude almost exactly the opposite? I'm wondering if we're reading the same Bible. Mine is "breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work" (2 Tim 3:16-17). Are we reading the same Bible? Or do we have a different source of authority?
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39 Jesus said, “I came into this world for judgment, in order that those who do not see will see and those who do see will become blind.”
40 Some of the Pharisees who were with Him heard these things and asked Him, “We aren’t blind too, are we? ”
41 “If you were blind,” Jesus told them, “you wouldn’t have sin.8 But now that you say, ‘We see’ — your sin remains.
yea; the whole blindness thing becomes a paradox to those that see...
It's interesting laying Paul's statement that the unsaved are blinded by the god of this world alongside Jesus's representation of the Pharisees as "seeing". I suspect the problem wasn't that they were actually seeing, but that they didn't know they were blind. "You say 'We see'." If they don't know they're blind (lost in sin), they can't address their blindness (sin).
I asked, "How do Christians read the Bible and see the plain words and grasp the simple meaning and conclude almost exactly the opposite?" I asked, "Do we have a different source of authority?" I hope the reader understands that there is an answer to these questions. Yes, there is a different source of authority. For me, the Scriptures are the Word of God and, as such, carry the authority of God. Given obvious language and plain meaning, I conclude, then, that God has spoken and disagreeing with the Word is disagreeing with God. That's me. The single most prevalent alternative is self as the ultimate authority. My ideas, my opinion, my reasoning, my interpretation, my preferences -- these constitute the final authority. That is exactly how people can read the same plain words and simple meanings and come to the opposite view. "Because I do not approve that understanding. And what I understand it to mean will be deemed as correct even if it violates the text itself." You might ask if that kind of thinking can be classified as Christian. I'll let you figure that out yourself.
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