Calvinism

Jonathan Ledbetter

Back to the Basics • Sermon • Submitted 5 months ago • Presented 5 months ago

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Back to the Basics: Calvinism

We’re Not Going Back to the Basics of Calvinism…

But Back to the Basics of What the Scriptures Say…

On the Topics that Calvinism Addresses

I’m No Expert on Calvinism

In Fact, I’ve Never Studied it Deeply

But I Do Know that it has Been Straw-Manned By the Church Many Times…

And I Don’t Want to Treat it so Flippantly

A Straw Man is a Logical Fallacy

It’s Arguing Against Something By Misrepresenting it

Example:

“People in the Churches of Christ Believe You Earn Your Salvation through the Work of Baptism”

The Argument is Against Our Belief in the Necessity of Baptism for Salvation…

But the Argument Being Made is a Misrepresentation of What We Actually Believe

Baptism isn’t a Work & it Certainly Doesn’t Earn Us Salvation

Most of the Times I’ve Heard Calvinism Taught Against in the Church…

It’s Been Straw Man Arguments Like that

So We’re Going to Try to Approach this Topic with Grace & Humility

My Understanding of Calvinism is that it is Not True to the Scriptures

But We’re Going to Try to Treat this System of Belief Fairly…

And See for Ourselves if it is

John Calvin (1509-1564) was a Leader in the Protestant Reformation Movement…

And an Extremely Intelligent Theologian

There are Millions of Calvinists

(People Who Hold to the Scriptural Interpretation of Calvin)

But that Doesn’t Mean They Agree with All of Calvinistic Doctrine…

But They at Least Believe a Few Points

The 5 Main Teachings of Calvinism are Often Summed Up with the Acronym:

T.U.L.I.P.

Total Depravity

Unconditional Election

Limited Atonement

Irresistible Grace

Perseverance of the Saints

T - Stands for Total Depravity

The belief in total depravity takes the view that sinfulness pervades all areas of life and human existence. Through the Fall of Man, humanity is stained by sin in every aspect: heart, emotions, will, mind, and body. This means people cannot independently choose God. They cannot save themselves. God must intervene to save people.

Calvinism insists that God must do all the work, from choosing those who will be saved to sanctifying them throughout their lives until they die and go to heaven. Calvinists cite numerous Scripture verses supporting humanity's fallen and sinful nature, such as Mark 7:21-23, Romans 6:20, and 1 Corinthians 2:14.

U - Stands for Unconditional Election

This Calvinist view says God chooses who will be saved. Because people are dead in their sins, they are unable to initiate a response to God. In eternity past God elected certain people to be saved. The saved people are called the Elect. God picks them based not on their personal character or merit, but out of his kindness and sovereign will. It also means that election for salvation is not based on God's foreknowledge of who would come to faith in the future.

Since some are chosen for salvation, others are not. Those not chosen are the damned, destined for an eternity in hell.

L - Stands for Limited Atonement

Limited atonement is the view that Jesus Christ died only for the sins of the Elect, according to John Calvin. Support for this belief comes from verses that say Jesus died for "many," such as Matthew 20:28 and Hebrews 9:28. This point is one of the more controversial beliefs of Calvinism.

Those who teach "Four Point Calvinism" believe Christ died not for just the Elect but for the entire world. They cite these verses, among others: John 3:16, Acts 2:21,1 Timothy 2:3-4, and 1 John 2:2.

I - Stands for Irresistible Grace

Irresistible grace is the belief that God brings his Elect to salvation through an internal call, which they are powerless to resist. The Holy Spirit supplies grace to them until they repent and are born again.

Calvinists back this doctrine with such verses as Romans 9:16, Philippians 2:12-13, and John 6:28-29.

P - Stands for Perseverance of the Saints

Calvinism teaches that the Elect cannot lose their salvation. Because salvation is the work of God the Father; Jesus Christ, the Savior; and the Holy Spirit, it cannot be thwarted. None whom God has called will be lost, they are eternally secure.

Technically, however, it is God who perseveres, not the saints themselves. Calvin's doctrine of the perseverance of the saints is in contrast to the theology of Lutheranism and the Roman Catholic Church, which hold that people can lose their salvation.

Calvinists support eternal security with verses such as John 10:27-28, Romans 8:1, 1 Corinthians 10:13, and Philippians 1:6.

The TULIP acronym arranges the five points of Calvinism logically and progressively, with each point contingent on the other. If humans are totally depraved, then they are unable to make an initial response to God. God must call people to salvation through unconditional election. God must also provide the way of salvation by the death of Jesus Christ. He makes salvation secure by the effectual call of the Holy Spirit. He keeps his saved ones secure so they will inherit the eternal life he has promised them.

To Keep from Straw-Manning Calvinism, Read this Article:

https://www.crossway.org/articles/5-myths-about-calvinism/

7 Reasons Why I’m Not a Calvinist

1. I Am a Christian – The first reason I’m not a Calvinist is that John Calvin was a man. I myself am a man, and know all too well, the sins and short-comings of mankind. That is why I do not now, nor will I ever, follow a man. Paul admonished the church in Corinth for following men, when they were saying, “I follow Paul” or, “I follow Apollos” (1 Corinthians 1:12; 3:4). Even if I agreed with Calvin on every theological point, which I do not, I still could not describe myself as a “Calvinist” because I want to follow Christ, and Him alone.

Similar to what Paul asked the Corinthians (1 Corinthians 1:13), I would ask those who are Calvinists, “Was [Calvin] crucified for you? Or were you baptized in the name of [Calvin]?

2. Man is Not Totally Depraved – Calvin’s theology begins with the doctrine of “Total Depravity,” the idea that man is born so totally and completely sinful, he is incapable of making a right choice. This idea of “original sin” is foreign to Scripture. Instead, Scripture teaches that sin is the result of willful disobedience to God (Hebrews 10:26; 1 John 3:4).

Calvinism allows man to say, “Sin is not my fault. It is my ‘sinful nature.'” However, Scripture teaches that sin is our fault. Scripture teaches that man has freewill and is able to choose whom he will serve (Joshua 24:15).

3. The Church Was Predestined – The Calvinistic idea of predestination is that every individual has been predestined for salvation or condemnation. Man has nothing to do with receiving salvation; it is completely up to God whether an individual spends eternity in heaven or hell. In the first chapter of Ephesians and the eighth chapter of Romans, Paul speaks of the idea of being “predestined.” Thus, the idea of predestination is a biblical concept. However, Calvin has confused the issue. Paul wrote that God chose “before the foundation of the world” (Ephesians 1:4) to save a group of people (the church). Nowhere in Scripture do we read the Calvinistic idea that individuals were predestined for salvation or condemnation. Paul wrote, “he predestined us” (1:5) and, “we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined” (1:11). Concerning predestination, Paul always speaks in the plural (a group), not singular (an individual).

Allow me to illustrate: Suppose I told you today that in 30 years I was going to give every member of a certain Boy Scout troop $1,000. Thirty years from now, when those boys received the money, they could say as a group, “Wes predestined ‘us’ to receive this money.” However, an individual Scout could not say, “Wes predestined ‘me’ to receive this money.” It would not have been the individual who I chose, but the group. Just as God chose the group, Israel, to bless under the Old Testament, He has chosen the church to bless with salvation under the New Testament. In fact, Ephesians 1 ends this way, “And he put all things under his feet and gave him as head over all things to the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills all in all” (vs. 22-23).

Paul wrote that God, “desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth” (1 Timothy 2:4). And Peter wrote, “he Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance” (2 Peter 3:9). Salvation is available to anyone who will enter the Kingdom (the church) by being born again by water and the Spirit (John 3:1-7; Acts 2:38; 1 Peter 3:21)

4. Jesus Died for Everyone – For me, the hardest part of Calvinism to understand is the doctrine of “Limited Atonement.” Calvin and his followers teach that Christ only died for the “elect.” In other words, Christ did not die for those who are predestined for condemnation, but only for those who are predestined for salvation.

I cannot possibly believe that this idea could be reached by simply reading Scripture. It could only have been reached by the necessity of needing to support other man-made doctrines. Here is what Scripture says, “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should notperish but have eternal life” (John 3:16). And, “For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God…” (1 Peter 3:18). And, “He is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world” (1 John 2:2).

5. Grace is Resistible – The Calvinist teaches that grace is irresistible. They insist that if God predestines an individual, then God will save him; there is nothing that individual can do to resist God’s grace. However, numerous passages refute this doctrine. First, is it easy enough to see that people like King Agrippa resisted the grace of God. Even though he believed the Scriptures, he would not allow himself to be convinced to receive God’s grace and put on Christ (Acts 26:27-29).

Second, if grace were “irresistible” it would making evangelism unnecessary. Why would missionaries need to go into all the world and preach the gospel (Matthew 28:19-20; Mark 16:15-16), if it was God who irresistibly and miraculously converted men? Why would Paul say, “I have become all things to all people, that by all means I might save some” (1 Corinthians 9:22). If Paul’s preaching and example had nothing to do with the conversion of souls, someone ought to have told Paul that!

6. Christians Can Fall From Grace – The Calvinists teach the doctrine of “Once Saved Always Saved.” The idea that if someone truly becomes a Christian, it is impossible for him to fall from grace. If you were to ask as Calvinist, “Can a person fall from grace?” Surely, the Calvinist would answer with a resounding, “No! There is no way a person can fall from grace.” Which baffles me, in light of Galatians 5:4, “You are severed from Christ, you who would be justified by the law; you have fallen away from grace.” Surely that answers this question for all time, doesn’t it?!

Jesus Himself taught that one could fall from grace, “If anyone does not abide in me he is thrown away like a branch and withers; and the branches are gathered, thrown into the fire, and burned” (John 15:6). If you need more convincing on this point, you can read my previous post on “Once Saved Always Saved.”

7. The Bible is My Standard – I believe in a simple gospel (2 Corinthians 11:3 NASB). I believe that God has revealed everything to us, through Scripture, that we need to know to be saved (2 Timothy 3:16-17). Salvation is not a great mystery, that only great theologians can decipher. Salvation is simple, easy to understand, and available to all through Jesus Christ.

This is what Jesus told the apostles, “Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation. Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned” (Mark 16:-15-16). The words of Jesus, and the words of the rest of the New Testament, could not be any further from Calvinism. Therefore, I want nothing to do with it!