God's Love: Don't leave home without it!
I can understand the unbeliever wanting to prove that Christians can't know who is or isn't a Christian. The unbelievers entire world view (faith) can only be true if Christ is false.
And if Christ is true...then their faith is false.
Christians aren't guessers. Christians aren't unsure about Christ, as we have been blessed with His Spirit, which gives us confidence, and also the gift of spiritual discernment to know what is true and false.
We are not omniscient, and we can be fooled. But God gives us wisdom, and the closer we get to God, the clearer we can see everything.
Couple things: you might find the following quote interesting.
"[I]n the course of the present life it never goes so well with us that we are wholly cured of the disease of unbelief and entirely filled and possessed by faith," -- John Calvin, Institutes of the Christian Religion
I'm no fan of Calvin (he was, after all, an unrepentant murderer), but what he writes makes sense.
You write: "there is an admonition for one believer not to judge the faith of another believer. "
Mormons profess a belief in Jesus Christ and certainly declare that He is God. Do you consider them believers?
Good point, James-no no no no no.
That's why the point was titled:"Oranges to Oranges, Please!"
Anyone can claim to be a Christian, but true, born again, indwelt of the Holy Spirit Christians are the only ones who are my 'brothers and sisters'.
Mormonism, for all of it's pretty buildings and clean cut adherents, is a cult-they claim Christ, Who does not claim them.
Da bit of critical reasearch into Mormon theology, James-it's quite interesting, but not Christian.
As for the Calvin quote, I've never heard or read it-so I can't comment on what it means.
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