I think this is a case in missing the point. When people ask “Is this a salvation issue?” They are asking whether or not Christians can disagree on certain things and still maintain unity within the body of Christ. When assuming it’s always an issue of selfish self-preservation, you are framing that question within your own views that demand a sort of rigid doctrinal purity, despite the fact that people can come to differing conclusions regarding certain aspects of the faith, as the result of a complex list of reasons, that aren’t simply a rejection of evidence or denial of truth. Not everyone has the same underlying assumptions, hermeneutics, epistemological foundations, or life experiences. Don’t get me started on philosophical approaches to how we acquire knowledge and standards of evidence. That’s a whole other can of worms. Not to mention the limited knowledge that comes as the result of our finiteness. As a result, people can and will come to different views regarding things like the exact meaning of revelation and the end times, atonement theories, creation, etc. There are disagreements that lead to damnable heresies, but there has always been room within the church for some level of diversity of thought, and opinions regarding certain aspects of the faith. People who genuinely seek god and knowledge of god can honestly come to different conclusions regarding certain matters.
The question then becomes, do you have everything right? Do you have the ability to know everything? And I would Guarantee that you do not. Would that be a threat to your salvation then? When you require a kind of doctrinal purity that you yourself do not have nor cannot obtain, you ultimately fall into a sort of pharisaic legalism, where you condemn others for failing to uphold a pure doctrinal understanding, yet fail to reach that yourselves. We should then turn to the grace and mercy of God, to cover our faults and flaws, when we genuinely seek him with all our heart.
Ben, thank you for your comment. I want to clear up some things that I believe you might have misunderstood about this article.
First of all, I want to acknowledge the the question, "is it a salvation issue", is not always a bad question to ask. I understand that there are times when it might be important and might be asked with a good heart. However, this article was written to address what Michael and I feel is the general culture that surrounds this question, especially in the Church of Christ. The introduction lays out the way that we have seen this question used in a negative way.
Second, I want to address the idea that we are requiring "a sort of rigid doctrinal purity." This is the opposite of the goal of this article. Rather, we are trying push back against that kind of thinking - people who are more worried about what you believe than they are about whether or not you come from a place of genuinely seeking God and knowledge of God. That is exactly what we were addressing when we said, "what is meant by “everything is a salvation issue” is not that Christian’s must agree with one another on every point of view to maintain that unity." I am not advocating for a strict set of doctrines in which everybody must believe exactly what I believe on every issue in order to get into heaven. Rather, I am arguing quite the opposite. I am acknowledging that "whatever does not proceed from faith is sin." So, rather than stressing over whether or not every disagreement is a salvation issue, we should be much more worried about whether or not our actions and beliefs proceed from faith.
Ben, I believe that you and I would very much agree on this, and that you were simply mistaken as to the purpose of this article. Please let me know if I am mistaken. Thank you for taking the time to read this article and respond with your criticisms.
I think this is a case in missing the point. When people ask “Is this a salvation issue?” They are asking whether or not Christians can disagree on certain things and still maintain unity within the body of Christ. When assuming it’s always an issue of selfish self-preservation, you are framing that question within your own views that demand a sort of rigid doctrinal purity, despite the fact that people can come to differing conclusions regarding certain aspects of the faith, as the result of a complex list of reasons, that aren’t simply a rejection of evidence or denial of truth. Not everyone has the same underlying assumptions, hermeneutics, epistemological foundations, or life experiences. Don’t get me started on philosophical approaches to how we acquire knowledge and standards of evidence. That’s a whole other can of worms. Not to mention the limited knowledge that comes as the result of our finiteness. As a result, people can and will come to different views regarding things like the exact meaning of revelation and the end times, atonement theories, creation, etc. There are disagreements that lead to damnable heresies, but there has always been room within the church for some level of diversity of thought, and opinions regarding certain aspects of the faith. People who genuinely seek god and knowledge of god can honestly come to different conclusions regarding certain matters.
The question then becomes, do you have everything right? Do you have the ability to know everything? And I would Guarantee that you do not. Would that be a threat to your salvation then? When you require a kind of doctrinal purity that you yourself do not have nor cannot obtain, you ultimately fall into a sort of pharisaic legalism, where you condemn others for failing to uphold a pure doctrinal understanding, yet fail to reach that yourselves. We should then turn to the grace and mercy of God, to cover our faults and flaws, when we genuinely seek him with all our heart.
Ben, thank you for your comment. I want to clear up some things that I believe you might have misunderstood about this article.
First of all, I want to acknowledge the the question, "is it a salvation issue", is not always a bad question to ask. I understand that there are times when it might be important and might be asked with a good heart. However, this article was written to address what Michael and I feel is the general culture that surrounds this question, especially in the Church of Christ. The introduction lays out the way that we have seen this question used in a negative way.
Second, I want to address the idea that we are requiring "a sort of rigid doctrinal purity." This is the opposite of the goal of this article. Rather, we are trying push back against that kind of thinking - people who are more worried about what you believe than they are about whether or not you come from a place of genuinely seeking God and knowledge of God. That is exactly what we were addressing when we said, "what is meant by “everything is a salvation issue” is not that Christian’s must agree with one another on every point of view to maintain that unity." I am not advocating for a strict set of doctrines in which everybody must believe exactly what I believe on every issue in order to get into heaven. Rather, I am arguing quite the opposite. I am acknowledging that "whatever does not proceed from faith is sin." So, rather than stressing over whether or not every disagreement is a salvation issue, we should be much more worried about whether or not our actions and beliefs proceed from faith.
Ben, I believe that you and I would very much agree on this, and that you were simply mistaken as to the purpose of this article. Please let me know if I am mistaken. Thank you for taking the time to read this article and respond with your criticisms.
With love,
Mason Price
My bad, It seemed by the way certain things were worded that you were arguing the other way.