Theology Wars: Episode One: The Calvinist Menace
(Stolen shamelessly from George Lucas…)
I just finished reading an excellent book called Why I Am Not A Calvinist written by Jerry Walls and Joseph Dongell. I have decided to write a three part series helping me digest and download all the information found in the book. This book really helped me solidify a couple of things in my mind concerning the theology of Calvin. Before I get into the book, let me give you a small history sketch through the mind of Josh Howard. (Don’t worry, It will be a short trip)
I didn’t even realize there was a debate in the Christian community concerning issues of free will, predestination, etc… until after I had graduated from high school. I went on a trip to Florida… met a girl down there on the sandy shores of Cocoa Beach… and found out that she… 1) lived about a hour from where I lived in Moline, Illinois… and 2) was a Christian. (Weird story… I know)
Anyway… we talked a lot on the phone that summer. Her church was non-denominational, but strongly taught the Calvinist doctrine. I had no idea who Calvin was at that point… but when I heard the general points of his doctrine, it went against everything that I thought I knew about God, Jesus, and my faith. The girl eventually faded into the distance… but my shock remained. I just couldn’t come to grips with the fact that her denomination was reading the same Bible that I was reading.
Just in case some of you are in the same boat that I was in, (having no idea what the teachings of Calvin are) allow me to give you a quick (though, not adequate) overview: In college, I was taught to remember his five basic teachings with the word TULIP.
T= Total Depravity – Humanity is so ‘sin-soaked’ in all parts of their lives… they could never choose God in their own power.
U= Unconditional Election – God has chosen to elect some sinners to be saved, the rest will pay the price for their sins. It’s unconditional in that God chooses who will be saved regardless of his knowledge of what they will believe and how they will obey.
L= Limited Atonement – Since God has chosen who will be saved, Jesus only died on the cross for those people, rather than for all people.
I= Irresistible Grace – If God has chosen to save Josh Howard… it is impossible for Josh Howard to reject God’s grace. His grace is entirely irresistible.
P= Perseverance of the Saints – God will sustain his ‘elect’ for all eternity. One of His elect will never ‘fall away’ from their faith. Another couple of ‘nicknames’ for this: ‘Once saved, always saved’ and ‘Eternal security.’
The issue interested me enough to purchase this book on the recommendation of a few people that found it helpful and beneficial. Because there is so much in the book that I could ‘blog’ about… I decided to make a top seven list. Over the course of my three part series, I will share the seven big ideas that helped solidify my Arminian thoughts. (Or maybe a better way to say it: Here are seven thoughts that helped me decide that Calvinism is pretty close to heresy.) Heh heh. Nothing like a strong statement to get your attention. I’ll conclude this particular article with the first idea:
1) Assurance: In the last chapter of the book, the authors explore how the Calvinist theology plays out in real life faith and ministry. Calvinists have been known to accuse Arminians of not having a secure faith: Because Arminians believe that you can ‘lose your salvation’ with enough back-sliding… Calvinists say that our assurance is very weak. (They ask: How much backsliding is too much backsliding? How do you Arminians know when you’ve fallen out of God’s grace?) They also suggest that we will have a propensity towards legalism because we will always be wondering if we are in right standing with God. (Ex: Have I done enough?)
While it’s true that Arminians (especially those in the holiness tradition) have occasionally made the mistake of falling into legalism… Calvinists seem to overlook that their theological system offers even LESS assurance. For example, allow me to share a passage from Walls and Dongell:
“Calvinism deprives those struggling with their faith of the single most important resource available: the confidence that God loves all of us with every kind of love we need to enable and encourage our eternal flourishing and well-being.”
A thought struck me while reading this: How do ANY Christian Calvinists truly know that they are saved? If God has only chosen specific recipients of His grace, how can they be one hundred percent sure of their OWN election? According to their own theological system, they believe that God chooses His ‘elect’ UNCONDITIONALLY. So, even if they know the Bible… even if they go to church…even if they say they believe Jesus as their savior… even if they decide to go into full-time ministry… God used NONE of those things to decide who to elect! How do any of them really know? Truth is, their theological system doesn’t allow for them to really know whether they have been elected by God or not!
All this has certainly made me value my Arminian thinking much more. According to my theological system, how do I know that I am saved? When I confess my sins (I John 1:9)… when, in faith, I call on Jesus to forgive and remove my sin (Ephesians 1:7)… when I ask Jesus to mediate, in my behalf, to God the Father (II Timothy 2:5-6)… when I chase after and obey His will. It’s that simple. I’ll take my ‘small lack of assurance’ over their ‘total void of assurance’ any day of the week!
Coming in two weeks to a blog near you:
Theology Wars: Episode Two: Attack of the Arminians
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