The Value of Controversial Rhetoric

Eric discusses a recent social media controversy and asks "Is there value in controversial rhetoric?" and "Can we be disrespectful towards ideas we find to be harmful?". Eric gives evidence for his position on these questions by showing venerated Calvinists engaged in the same controversial analogy and in arguably disrespectful rhetoric. Also, those who engage in theological discussion online should be ready for this kind of backlash and know how to respond to it.

Time-stamps
0:00 Intro
0:50 The Value of Inflammatory Rhetoric
2:05 The Original Controversial Post
5:00 "True Love is Not Offered But Given"??
10:30 Controversial Comparisons
13:00 Calvinist Hypocrisy
16:00 Steve Lawson
19:00 Martin Luther
21:39 RC Sproul
23:42 Ligonier Ministries Guy
27:27 Projecting Offense & Moving Goalposts
32:05 Being Disrespectful to Harmful Ideas
36:30 Get Ready for Push-Back
38:37 Outro

Connect with us on the socials! 👇👇

Become a Patron, Support the channel, and get cool perks! 👇👇

[stephenkeener]

Eric... Fight the good Fight...
And in a fight of this nature the gloves are off.. I've been there before and I know that I am pushing back against calvinism for the sake of the Gospel.

[jeremythompson]

I love how RC Sproul once said that noncalvinists are barely saved considering there is no such thing in his own system

[patrick-rhodamyers]

Spiritual rape is an accurate analogy based on what he said. Thank you for respectfully standing on biblical truth and holding up a mirror to Calvinists.

[TimothyFish]

Given that Calvinists are always right, no comparison that shows that they are wrong is acceptable.

[danielcartwright]

If they had a valuable rebuttal, they'd attack the point of your comparison rather than the language. Instead, they show the weakness of their position by attacking the language as well as your character.

[Sine-of-the-Times]

Eric, I think the issue is that in the twitter-verse it is way to easy to clip and regurgitate ad nauseam. There could be no doubt that the haters and baiters would grab this and attempt to wholesale slaughter all provisionist adherents with it.

Your point about conversational rhetoric that includes pointed and controversial hyperbole is effective during in-person conversation/debate, but is probably not so useful with the mob attacks of the particular twitterers in play here.

Frankly, many of these folks cannot even laugh or understand obvious hyperbole and/or levity. They seek to attack and never want to discuss. They unroll the memorized script and if you make a mistake impale you with it, but if they make a mistake they demand you to have a more generous or loving attitude.

Hang in there. On the matter of love, I spoke directly to this in my discussion on A.W. Pink and a follow up I did.

[shuai]

I don’t think you should deny the general application of your criticism to all Calvinists. I would strongly contend that all Calvinist do hold to “forced love“, and if Calvinist don’t like it they should stop being a Calvinist.

[troydunn]

One of the best advice that I've received is to attack the problem or beliefs but not the person. We supposed to love our enemies even when they seek to harm us. I believe they're an enemy to the true gospel. And that's why we're so passionate towards it and can cross the line if we're not careful. I don't think you did anything wrong. That's just how folks react when you criticize they're deeply held beliefs. I appreciate your ministry thank you.

[MarkRidlen]

I think we should be respectful toward other people, but not necessarily their theology.

[SusanMorales]

Eric, I think at first it seemed like you went too far but if we think about your point I think it is worth thinking about. Is love offered or given by God to all? I would think the person who said it’s not offered but given is wrongly and unbiblically really saying God doesn’t give His love to all people. I think God has given us relationships and used language we would understand based on our experience with reality to better understand His love toward us. So I wouldn’t leave that to mystery and assume God has a good reason for not loving all the same, because I think He has given us enough revelation about love in Scripture, intuition and experience to safely say it would be wrong if God didn’t give His love to all.
I think God does offer His love and that word also implies He gives His love to all.
Just like we see in reality, we can receive or reject anyone’s love, and that includes God. (Btw, I personally wouldn’t want to repeat the wrong doing of the people you mentioned in this video. I think their error in word and deed points to their own faulty thinking within their theological applications.)

[jamieammons]

Calvinism=CRT
When you've provided an appropriate analogy, and they've no response at the ready from their unfalsifiable, nonsensical system, they'll always resort to bulverism.

[VeryBasicBible]

No way. Listen to this-
My wife often says "hey I'm gonna read you this" and then proceeds to read. So right when the part about Steve Lawson finished, she randomly asked to read me something so I paused to listen- she had know idea what I was listening to. This is what she read:
"A word is a word, but it's interpretations are many, and the understanding of a man's words depends both on what the hearer is, and on what is his idea of the speaker." From Sir Gibbi by George MacDonald

😲

[patrickg.]

Sometimes hard things have to be said. It's the double standard that bothers me so much. Take the "Holy rape of the soul" quote by Sproul. Will ALL the people that bashed Eric please let Eric know you think Sproul's comment is horrible as well, personally, I think it's worse.

[JesusRodriguez-guwv]

In my opinion, I think that God gives and offers love to everyone. For one we are GIVEN the love of God from before you are even born or at least when you and I are in the womb. He loves us provides for us and wills us to live. But then there is salvation for a person to become a child of God which is offered not forced in the sense spoken. I guess it's the true love never fails told to us which is true so I guess I see the confusion of well if true love never fails why doesn't everyone get saved? Therefore God must not truly love everybody

[timrockholt]

It’s best in my opinion to bring the most despicable parallel in an analogy to open one eyes to see the issue with their theology. When I’m told I was disrespectful and rude I say Praise God the point was driven home.

[charlesneely]

Perhaps the better analogy would have been to say true love is offered, not given without the consent of the one the gift was intended for.

[robinduncan]

I remember reading this post of yours and not even flinching!
I knew you were pulling the old switch-a-roo on the Calvinists because this is their demented doctrine. It’s simple to identify if you research for a decent length of time and truly understand what 5 Pointers believe.
SUCH AN OFFENSIVE TO OUR LORD!
I believe I left a crying 😢 because Calvinistic thinking and understanding is just… well, pathetic 🤦🏼‍♀️

[Salvation-Damnation]

When are you guys discussing the E in PROVIDE? I'm eager to see it, since you and Drew "the highlander" Macleod don't see eye to eye on this particular topic.

[lindajohnson]

Poor Spurgeon was a boy preacher, who, no doubt, fell into the hands of some of the older Calvinist preachers he spoke about in the sermon. He suffered from severe depression, all his life. But if you read his sermon, "Salvation by Knowledge of the Truth", # 1516, Metropolitan Tabernacle, based on 1Titus 2:4, see if there's a note about his health at the end of it. If you read it, the birds are singing, the flowers are blooming again.

1 Timothy 2:4 Who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth.

[KISStheSON...]

True love is GIVEN to creatures made with the ability to RECEIVE or DENY love.

God GIVES so that we may GET and become FILLED with whatever it is that He gives!!!

Proverbs 2:6
“For the LORD GIVETH wisdom: out of his mouth cometh knowledge and understanding.”

Proverbs 4:7
“Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore GET wisdom: and with all thy GETTING get understanding.”

Colossians 4:5
“Walk in wisdom toward them that are without, redeeming the time.”