"What Does 'Total Depravity' Mean?" (James White)

[brendos444]

If you believe in total depravity, how would you explain the biblical teaching that all humanity is made in the image and likeness of God? And therefore each person has devine qualities. At the fall sin and death entered the world and has corrupted our image bearing ability, but not totally. This is why people like Bill Gates and Warren Buffet put a lot of Christians to shame with their charitable work. A person who believes in total depravity cannot explain this.

[Mr308winmag]

If you take "tota scriptora" as you say. then you would come up with "Whosoever will may come and drink of the water of life freely" otherwise the Bible would contradict itself and we know that it doesn't. As the wise old man said concerning the Bible. "He wasn't smart enough to re-write the book and if he were he would be too smart to try". It takes an extremely arrogant person to believe that God is just now accurately giving us His Word!

[helpyouseeit]

Dear friends. I think the bottom line is that there is no part of Sacred Scripture that directly defends sola scriptura or sola fide. Parts you may quote are open to multiple interpretations, and hence require an infallible authority to interpret them. Otherwise, we're left in the mud of relativism and/or speculation. Christ gave full authority to St. Peter for such a task. This full authority includes the power to hand on his authority. This authority is the Catholic Church.

[labeef1]

@helpyouseeit In what way, and to what extent is the RCC infallible?

[millball]

Poor audio quality?

[pricelesspam]

CALVINIST DO NOT BELIEVE MAN HAS AFREE WILL.WE ARE JUST ROBOTS,GOD IS THE ONE WHO DOES EVERYTHING,BASICLY WE ARE REALLY JUST NON EXISTENT IN REALITY IT SEEMS TO THEM PROBABLY.

[yarrw]

@pricelesspam Heb 11 "Faith is the evidence of the invisible" i.e. the spirit.

[pricelesspam]

@yarrw Feelings are invisible too.They have fruits too.

[yarrw]

@pricelesspam The context of Heb 11 is without faith it is impossible to please God.

[pricelesspam]

@yarrw Yeh you need to believe in GOD,AND YOU NEED FAITH FOR THAT.GOD HAS DEALT A MESSURE OF FAITH TO EVERYONE.

[yarrw]

@pricelesspam A measure of faith? Is this the parable of the gold coins? Those who have it will get more and the others lose everything.

[pricelesspam]

@yarrw Roman 12:3

[yarrw]

@pricelesspam Have you ever wondered why most Christian doctrine comes from Paul's letter to the Romans? What about the gospels? What about 1Cor 15:45 which contradicts Christianity because it says "Jesus the second Adam" which means the SECOND son of God.

[pricelesspam]

@yarrw Adam did not have a earthly father,Jesus father is GOD.He had no earthly father.

[yarrw]

@pricelesspam That's right but it's not Christian doctrine. Our churches teach that Jesus is the one and only son of God in spite of scriptures like Luke 3:38 "Adam son of God"

[pricelesspam]

@yarrw Read Romans 12:3

[yarrw]

@pricelesspam Some of those fruits might be 'total depravity' I suppose. 

[pricelesspam]

@yarrw Come on,we both know the Bible says man has the knowledge of both good and evil.This is not total depravity.Total depravity would mean he only has the knowledge of evil,and he does not .He knows both.Check GENISIS IF YOU DO NOT BELIEVE ME.HE ALSO HAS A CONSIENCE THAT GOD GAVE HIM too distinguish the two.Why do you think there are laws ,and goverment?Man knows right ,and wrong in general.We where made in the very image of God himself.

[yarrw]

@pricelesspam Maybe Adam(man) was made in the image of God before the fall but the apostle Paul says in 1Cor 15:49 "..we have borne the image of the man of dust.." so unless we are save we will never be the image of God.

If we say man is created in the image of God it is like saying God is good and evil.

[pricelesspam]

@yarrw It has not changed,was Jesus not a man?Adam was formed from the dust of the earthJesus body came from the seed OF David.He was born right FROM a women's body.If Mary was pure evil,how could God's son be pure ,and without sin? Read the .Bible.People are born with the knowledge of right ,and wrong dont delude yourselve.Why do you think The Bible says God made us to have laws and govenments,and might i say he also said he would right his law in our hearts.

[yarrw]

@pricelesspam Why do our churches teach us doctrine from Gen 3 (the words of the devil NOT God). Maybe this being was lying, in fact it is certain that when he said 'like god' he meant himself and not the true God. My understanding is that this creature gave us (intimate)knowledge of good and evil, that is he changed our hearts and minds to his way.

If I am wrong then God is both good and evil.

[pricelesspam]

@yarrw Just because we have the knowledge and or understanding of what good,AND EVIL IS,DOES NOT MAKE US EITHER.yOU CAN KNOW ABOUT SOMETHING and not be a partaker in it.WHere are you getting your info from?Have you decided in your own mind which is corrupted what GOD'S word means.What book do you believe in?

[pricelesspam]

@pricelesspam Also the evil here that was committed by Adam ,and Eve was disobediance to God,the act of disobediance to God was evil,thus rthey where made a ware of evil.yOU NEED TO REALIZE EVIL IS ALSO USED TO DESCRIBE SOMETHIMG THAT JUST IS NOT SO PRETY ALSO IN THE BIBLE,LIKE A FLOOD,or famine.So translation of this word evil can certainly be misunderstood.But what was the exact evil that Adam did,he went against God.,God does not go against himself. the word evil can be misinterpreted.

[yarrw]

@pricelesspam Actually this is Christian doctrine from Rom 3:10-20

[pricelesspam]

@yarrw You see thru translation and the way words can mean different things,people can get really confused about what scripture is really saying. This Happens alot i think to many believers.

[yarrw]

@pricelesspam This is what bible school teaches. Many people struggle with doctrines.

God only asks us for 3 things Mica 6:8 & Matt 23:23 Justice, kindness(mercy) and faith.  The most important one is faith.

[saudertim1]

Calvinist's  show that there really is a lack of intelligence in the reform cult churches.

[saudertim1]

John Calvin was a serial killer. Unrepentant to the end and is therefore in Hell. Anyone who thinks like him will find that his doctrine comes from the same place.

John Calvin the axe murderer.

[highwind8124]

James White! Eeee! I love James White. Professional butt kicker.

[daveme7]

In saying this on Total Depravity I view as not inability but sin causes man to desire to rely on the self and not on God as man according to these passages has no desire to be saved as the deification of self is the supreme ideal of humanism as well as Adam in self knowlege self determines what is righteousness apart from Christ-APART FROM CHRIST and self righteousness as to overcome sin which becomes self salvation-self redemption. Sin=Free will

[daveme7]

Just had this reccomended to me so a bit out of date. Personally, I place all disagreements on this ideal. Of course, I see a different source and somewhat a different effect of what causes men to be lost but the same results. Romans 3:10-18 as quoted in Psalms 14 and 53(a passage which I think defines foreknowledge if being omniscience-then no one is ever saved with Arminian foreknowledge) This summed in this-there is none that seek after God.

[CBALLEN]

Coming to Christ for a natural man is as impossible as a natural man flapping his arms and flying.

[gwinkler12]

Augustine was a Gnostic. Run from Augustinian teaching.

[polopowers1]

Way to complicated. Death is in the blood all men consummate and all inherit the blood of death. Which came from sin.Man is powerless to stop passing the blood line of death which came from Adam.

[Noffy1111]

So does this mean that I am guilty of Adams sins or that of my own? Does this also mean that even a brand new baby is guilty of Adams sin and will go to hell if the baby dies?

[daveme7]

@Noffy1111 This is not scripture but based on what I know of the scriptures as sometimes you see and learn a lot and get a feeling on how some things would be-is sin inherited? Yep. I tend to think if God created you or me or in the trillions of calculations of all in humanity would be the first two created-as for me-I think not one of us would have resisted the serpent and fell the same exact way. This is not scriptural and just an opinion.

[Noffy1111]

@daveme7 I want scripture not opinion, If the Calvinist is correct then the gospel is of no account.

Isaiah 46:10 God knows the end from the beginning.

Romans 8:29 For those He foreknew he also predestined. Note, the foreknowledge came first then the predestination.

1 Peter 1:2 through foreknowledge

GOD DIED SO THE WHOLE WORLD MIGHT BE SAVED

[daveme7]

@Noffy1111 So did God know his Son would become a man and die or because God planned this? In prophecy, did God discover what would happen and then inspire men to foretell what would happen? The whole point in saying opinion and not scripture is because most often in Christianity opinions are taught as biblical truth. Hopefully some will see the desire to not take my thoughts and impose them on scriptures.

[daveme7]

@Noffy1111 simply, the reason God decided Adam would stand for all humanity(as the first human created despite he was the second to sin-God places the onus on Adam and not Eve-Romans 5) God does whatever he pleases and whatever he does is righteous. saying this, most often many more today judge God as a man according to human thoughts and understandings when what we understand seems against what we think God should do. I guess I would start in Isaiah 55 and Proverbs three fotr some of this

[daveme7]

@Noffy1111

1 My son, forget not my law; but let thine heart keep my commandments: 2 For length of days, and longa life, and peace, shall they add to thee. 3 Let not mercy and truth forsake thee: bind them about thy neck; write them upon the table of thine heart: 4 So shalt thou find favour and goodb understanding in the sight of God and man. 5 Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. 6 In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths

[daveme7]

@Noffy1111 6 Seek ye the LORD while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near: 7 Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteousb man his thoughts: and let him return unto the LORD, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon. 8 For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD. 9 For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.

[daveme7]

@Noffy1111 As for foreknowledge-I would point to the conclusion of scriptures that teach there is none that seek after God as penned in Psalms 14 and 53 by David and quioted by Paul in Romans 3 which I will restate the Rom 3 passage and trust you have a bible to look up the rest. This being, God forknew not one person coming to faith:

11 There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God.

[daveme7]

@Noffy1111 The point being on Romans 3 and Psalms passages-if foreknowledge is foreseen faith-then you or I are not saved, not in Christ because these teach conclusively we all rejected God which comes to the point of my assertion, Adam and David Emme would have done the same thing if I was first created. I really do not think anyone would have had different outcomes between Adam and Eve

[Noffy1111]

@daveme7 So let me understand you clearly then. It is your belief that man cannot come to God in any way shape or form? We are so totally depraved that it is not possible for man to hear the gospel and become a believer? Is this correct?

You say God cannot foreknow those who will say yes and BECOME the ELECT?

[daveme7]

@Noffy1111 No, I maintain that man can in fact come to God as it is in his power but rather man never comes to God because of not inability but because of choice. In other words-I disagree a bit with my Calvinist friends on inability but the result is the same-humanity rejects God. God can do anything he wants and does not need conform to what I think. Again, Rom 3 Paul quoting Psalms 14 and 53 which conclusively teaches humanity never chooses God-that is bibli9cal conclusions-not mine.

[daveme7]

@Noffy1111 On the other hand, Psalms 14, 53 and Romans 3 all conclude that God saw no one ever coming in faith on their own. The conclusion in Romans 3 is that man is not righteous and in with this is the ideal that man choose against God as it says, "There is none that seek after God" If the scriptures teach this at the same time including Jews and Gentiles as that is the point of Romans 3 where not one chose to seek God-Jews and Gentiles as allare under sin

[rayh3777]

The words total depravity should never be spoken. So much confusion. WE WOULD HAVE BEEN TOTALLY DEPRAVED if it were not for God seeking us(everybody).

Luke 19:10

For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost.

Who is lost because of sin? ....????? Everyone. So God seeks everyone. end of story.

[Rhuanjl]

@rayh3777 That interpretation doesn't fit with the rest of scripture.

[jime68]

I think your videos are great and need to be seen by many:)

I was wondering if you have any thoughts on or seen videos like Secret Rulers of the World - The Cult of Amen,,or videos claiming that Jesus is a copy of Horris and other False Egypt gods?

Would love to hear your thoughts on this...

Jim

[klockheed]

Just a glance at any scholarly article about Horus, Rah, and or the other 'gods' of the ancient world will reveal great differences between the creation story of Scripture, the story of Christ, etc, and the myths of other cultures.

[cadaverousichabod]

"The rich man in hell didn't want salvation. He just wanted a drink of water. That is depravity. "

amazing.

[replikantzero]

why doesnt he get to the point? why does this guy just indulge the audience? what kind of sermon is that?

[LaneCh]

Um, what are you speaking of directly?

Also, this is a loaded question:

"why does this guy just indulge the audience?"

Try to use good logic on these videos.

[replikantzero]

is this guy anti or pro calvin? i believe in the truth of the five points, and i may be shaky on a few of them, but i think calvin is incredibly accurate in his exegesis and theology as far as i can tell. paul washer is just a better speaker is all i am saying, and i am a fan and subscriber of your channel.

[LaneCh]

He's a Calvinist.

[Revinius]

@replikantzero James White is an apologist and debater more than a preacher whereas Paul Washer is a gifted preacher. Difference in gifts there.

[LothairOfLorraine]

Just because you can't answer the question doesn't make it loaded at all. James White sounds as if he is talking on the phone to some long lost cousin, at least in the first few minutes. I lost interest once he started talking about singing at his wedding.

[LouisPlume]

No where in the bible doest it praise thinking.

[NewCovenantTheology1]

read ps 119

[pungadoo]

were is does it say in the bible that God gave us our faith

[LaneCh]

Eph. 2:8-9 and Philippians 1:29

[FORCHRST]

That position has been thoroughly refuted

[Haukman66]

By who, you and norm geisler?

[FORCHRST]

LOL

[brentrnelson]

Your rock Lane. Thanks for putting all of this great Christian doctrine up! Glory to God as we find joy in His Word!

[theocratickingdom30]

C.S. Lewis said, "The gates of hell are locked from the inside." That is total drepravity. The rich man in hell didn't want salvation. He just wanted a drink of water. That is depravity.

[ATLpirate]

Thanks for posting, Lane!