About Doctrines
Calvinism
According to John Calvin, predestination is the eternal decree of God whereby God has handpicked before time those who will be saved and those who will be lost. It is, if you will, a double choice, or a set of two active choices by God, not a set composed of one active and one passive choice. Based upon Ephesians 1:11, there are two aspects of predestination
- First, God has determined the events of history
- Second, God has chosen some to salvation, while those not chosen are effectively picked for condemnation in eternal punishment.
Calvin sees the need for both. In his view, salvation is entirely a matter of God’s grace while condemnation is the natural result of man’s sinful state.
In its complete structure, Calvinism is presented by five key points:
- Total depravity: that man is touched by sin in all parts of his being: body, soul, mind, and emotions
- Unconditional Election: that God’s favor to Man is completely by God’s free choice and has nothing to do with Man. It is completely undeserved by Man and is not based on anything God sees in man (Eph. 1:1-11)
- Limited atonement: that Christ did not bear the sins of every individual who ever lived, but instead only bore the sins of those who were elected into salvation (John 10:11,15)
- Irresistible grace: that God's call to someone for salvation cannot be resisted
- Perseverance of the saints: that it is not possible to lose one's salvation (John 10:27-28).
Particularly in the area of predestination, one must understand the Calvinistic view as a comparison to Arminianism:
- God elects or reproves on the basis of foreseen faith or unbelief
- Christ died for all men and for every man, although only believers are saved
- Man is so depraved that divine grace is necessary unto faith or any good deed
- This grace may be resisted
- Whether all who are truly regenerate will certainly persevere in the faith is a point needing further investigation.
At the risk of further confusing the issue, both systems of interpretation have their shortcomings. The truth of God most likely rests in some combination of the two that cannot be explained based upon the existing revelation from God.
