Richard Laurence

A Day Dreamer with a creative mind

[ReformedAndDangerous @ReformedRap]

Happy Reformation Month everyone!

[Richard Laurence @himself_richard]

@SamsungMobile #stop

[Richard Laurence @himself_richard]

@ProvisionistP Just because someone has more followers doesn't make them right Hitler had a million followers and Jesus had 12 does that make Hitler right?

[Richard Laurence @himself_richard]

@CalvinistFather loses the whole.” (Calvin)

[Richard Laurence @himself_richard]

@CalvinistFather The legalists among the Galatians wanted them to think that they could have both Jesus and a law-relationship with God. Paul tells them that this is not an option open to them – the system of grace and the system of law are incompatible. “Whoever wants to have a half-Christ loses

[Richard Laurence @himself_richard]

@David_wthebeard @5Solas2 Agreed

[Sadie @Sadie_NC]

Couldn't have said it better. Christianity seems to be the only religion whose leaders sell out to the woke mob.

[Jeremiah Knight @iamrjknight]

Reformed theology 101

First and foremost, it was not invented by John Calvin. Calvin did not create these doctrines. He systematised what Scripture already taught and what the church had confessed long before him. The Reformers recovered them because they are biblical, not because they were novel. Reformed theology is simply an attempt to let the Bible speak plainly about God, man, sin, and salvation.

Reformed theology does not teach that humans are robots.

It teaches exactly what Scripture teaches. God is sovereign, and man is responsible.

The starting point is God. Scripture says “He works all things according to the counsel of His will” Ephesians 1:11. Not some things. Not spiritual things only. ALL THINGS. History is not reacting to man. Man is living inside God’s purpose “The counsel of the Lord stands forever” Psalm 33:11.

At the same time, Scripture never excuses human responsibility. Men choose, act, love, hate, and are judged for what they do “The soul who sins shall die” Ezekiel 18:4. God is never blamed for man’s sin, and man is never allowed to blame God.

So how do these two truths fit together?

God ordains all things. Man chooses freely according to his nature.

Jesus says “Everyone who commits sin is a slave to sin” John 8:34. That is the key. Man has a will, but it is not neutral. Fallen man always chooses what he desires most. AND BY NATURE, HE DOES NOT DESIRE GOD “No one seeks for God” Romans 3:11.

This is why Reformed theology does not say man cannot choose. It says man WILL NOT choose God unless God first changes the heart. “No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him” John 6:44. That inability is moral, not mechanical.

When God saves, He does not force sinners against their will. HE MAKES THEM WILLING. “Your people shall be willing in the day of Your power” Psalm 110:3. New life comes before faith because a dead heart cannot believe “Even when we were dead… God made us alive” Ephesians 2:5.

This is where objections usually rise.

Does this make God the author of sin?
No. Scripture never teaches that. God ordains that sin will occur, but men commit it willingly. Joseph tells his brothers “You meant evil against me, but God meant it for good” Genesis 50:20. Same event. Two intentions. God sovereign. Man guilty.

The clearest example is the cross.
Jesus was “delivered up according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God”, yet “you crucified and killed” Him Acts 2:23. God planned it. Men chose it. God is righteous. Men are accountable.

Does this remove human responsibility?
No. Scripture increases it. God commands all people everywhere to repent “God now commands all men everywhere to repent” Acts 17:30. The command is real. The guilt for refusing is real. The inability is not physical. It is moral.

Why does God not save everyone then?
Scripture answers without apology. “He has mercy on whom He wills” Romans 9:18. Salvation is mercy, not obligation. If God owed salvation, it would not be grace “So then it depends not on human will or exertion, but on God, who has mercy” Romans 9:16.

This does not make God cruel. It makes Him holy. And it magnifies grace. The real question Scripture presses is not why some are not saved, BUT WHY ANY ARE.

What about perseverance and assurance?
Those whom God saves; He keeps. “He who began a good work in you will bring it to completion” Philippians 1:6. True believers persevere because God preserves them “No one will snatch them out of My hand” John 10:28.

Yet Scripture still warns professing believers to examine themselves “Examine yourselves, to see whether you are in the faith” 2 Corinthians 13:5. Those warnings are not hypothetical. They are acts of mercy. They strip false assurance and protect true faith. They do not undermine perseverance. They are one of the means God uses to bring it about.

Reformed theology does not tell believers to look inward for comfort. It tells them to look to Christ and then examine whether their lives reflect union with Him. “By this we know that we have come to know Him, if we keep His commandments” 1 John 2:3. Not perfectly. But genuinely.

Assurance is not found in a past decision or a label. It is found in a present clinging to Christ and a life being shaped by grace. “We have come to share in Christ, if indeed we hold our original confidence firm to the end” Hebrews 3:14.

So Reformed theology does not create fear. It creates sobriety. It does not tell sinners to despair. It tells them to stop trusting themselves. And it does not weaken assurance. It grounds it where Scripture grounds it. In God’s sovereign grace, Christ’s finished work, and a faith that endures because God preserves.

[Jeremiah Knight @iamrjknight]

I want to say this carefully, but I must say it honestly, because it is a burden I carry.

I have personally spoken to several western missionaries in India who openly admit that simply handing out gospel tracts or plainly proclaiming the gospel is, in their words, ineffective at best and dangerous at worst. When asked why they do not teach, disciple, or preach clearly to local leaders, they say it will bring persecution on the local people.

That explanation usually comes from local church leaders who do not want to be corrected, trained, or examined. And many western missionaries have accepted this reasoning without testing it against the word of God.

Modern missions training now often teaches western missionaries not to teach indigenous leadership, but only to come alongside and help. The unspoken rule is simple. Do not challenge. Do not correct. Do not instruct.

The result is exactly what Scripture warns us about. A church stunted in maturity. Paul did not say come alongside without instruction. He said, “Him we proclaim, warning everyone and teaching everyone with all wisdom” Colossians 1:28. Teaching is not arrogance. It is obedience.

I say this with grief and burden. Many local pastors I have encountered are like children in understanding. That is not an insult. It is a diagnosis Scripture itself uses. “You need milk, not solid food” Hebrews 5:12. Many are illiterate. Some cannot name the four Gospels. Many cannot clearly articulate what the gospel even is. Some preach prosperity. Some preach fear. Some preach nothing at all. And yes, many are in ministry for money, not because they are converted. Scripture warned us this would happen. “Blind leaders of the blind” Matthew 15:14.

This is the reality on the ground.

Scripture never tells us to preserve ignorance out of politeness. It commands shepherds to guard the flock and teach sound doctrine. “He must hold firm to the trustworthy word as taught” Titus 1:9. Refusing to teach for fear of offence is not humility. It is neglect.

The gospel is not dangerous. Silence is. Paul did not shrink back from declaring the whole counsel of God even when it cost him everything Acts 20:27. The church does not grow strong by being protected from truth. It grows by being built on it. “Faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ” Romans 10:17.

Handing out tracts without teaching is not missionary work. Paul reasoned, explained, and persuaded from the Scriptures Acts 17:2 to 3. He stayed. He taught. He corrected. He rebuked Acts 20:20. The gospel is not a pamphlet. It is truth proclaimed and applied. What is often called humility today is actually cowardice dressed in polite language. Fear of man has replaced fear of God Proverbs 29:25. And the sheep are paying the price.

I write this not to shame missionaries or mock local pastors, but to call the church back to courage, clarity, and love. Love teaches. Love corrects. Love does not leave people in darkness because confrontation feels uncomfortable.

And now, I am working directly with some of these local leaders to train them. This is not easy work. Many are deeply resistant. Not because they hate Christ, but because they are convinced God is speaking to them directly in visions, impressions, and voices, and therefore see no need to be taught, tested, or corrected by Scripture. When the Bible is opened, it is often treated as secondary to personal revelation. That delusion is one of the hardest strongholds to confront, because it feels spiritual while undermining the authority of God’s word “Do not go beyond what is written” 1 Corinthians 4:6.

This is my burden. These are my people. And Christ does not ask us to protect false peace. He asks us to speak the truth in love Ephesians 4:15. Love that refuses to teach is not love at all.

If the gospel is truly the power of God for salvation Romans 1:16, then we must stop treating it like a liability.

[Richard Laurence @himself_richard]

@Jingjing_Li What about China? Isn't your country an aggressor? Attacking askai chin, arunachal pradesh, invading Tibet and not to mention attacking Russia in the words of our Prime Minister 👇

[Richard Laurence @himself_richard]

@WrongPassport @redeemed_zoomer Incorrect again. Within the Protestant denomination the reformed (Lutheran, calvinist, Baptist, Presbyterian ) do not support Israel. It's the evangelicals who support Israel.

[Richard Laurence @himself_richard]

@DrFrankTurek No

[Dr Adina Priscilla ♠️❤️ @DixadinaDMK]

Dear Christians ....Not America, Russia, Canada, Newzealand, Australia, Germany, Spain, Italy, France, British Gonna Come And Save You Just Because You Are A Christian.
According To Them You Are An Indian.

Your Police Support RSS, Your Judiciary Gives Bail To These Terrorists. You Cannot Protect You Women And Children Just By Giving Money To Church. You Cannot Protect You Women And Children Just By Bible Words.

Prepare Your Men... Before It Is Too Late.