05-THE GENERAL TEACHINGS OF CALVINISM
Chapter Four The General Teachings of Calvinism The teachings of Calvinism are usually represented by the acronym TULIP, which denotes the five points of Calvinistic Soteriology. We will define and expand upon these five points according to the principles of Calvinism. They are as follows:
T - Total Depravity U - Unconditional Election L - Limited Atonement I - Irresistable Grace P - Perseverance of the Saints
TOTAL DEPRAVITY The word depravity is not found in the Bible. The meaning of the word is: corrupt, wiched, unholy. However, the condition of the depravity of all people is clearly seen as in the following verses:
Romans 3:10-18 10 As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one:
11 There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God.
12 They are all gone out of the way, they are together become unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no, not one.
13 Their throat is an open sepulchre; with their tongues they have used deceit; the poison of asps is under their lips:
14 Whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness:
15 Their feet are swift to shed blood:
16 Destruction and misery are in their ways:
17 And the way of peace have they not known:
18 There is no fear of God before their eyes.
Jeremiah 17:9 The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?
Ephesians 2:1-3 1 And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins;
2 Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience:
3 Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others.
These verses and others teach us that all men are depraved: wicked and born with a sinful condition. This is the Bibical meaning of depravity, but Total Depravity means much more than that. Total Depravity teaches that man has absolutely no ability to know anything about God, or to seek Him in any way until he is first born again. The idea is that if we are born with a spirit that is "dead in tresspasses and sin," we have no ability to know anything spiritual.
1 Corinthians 2:14 But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.
Calvinism uses these verses to show that the "natural man," a person who is not born again, has no ability to know or understand anything spiritual in nature. In fact, Calvinism teaches that the faith which is necessary to receive Jesus as Savior must be given to an individual before he can believe. Or to put it another way, regeneration must precede faith in Jesus Christ as Savior. This teaching is not scriptural. In fact, in the section on Free Agency, we will consider several portions of God’s Word that refute this teaching.
UNCONDITIONAL ELECTION
This doctrine teaches that before God created the world, he chose and predestinated certin ones to be saved and certain ones to be damned. Those who are not part of this elect group have no hope of salvation.
4 According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love:
5 Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will,
Some Calvinists prefer not to say that God chose some individuals to be damned (Reprobation), But that God chose some to be saved, and passed over the rest (Preterition). Reprobation means to cast away, and preterition means to pass over or ignore. We will see that the Bible teaches neither of these two principles.
LIMITED ATONEMENT
The doctrine of Limited Atonement teaches that when Jesus died on the cross, He accomplished atonement, redemption, and regeneration for the elect only.
John 10:14-15 14 I am the good shepherd, and know my sheep, and am known of mine.
15 As the Father knoweth me, even so know I the Father: and I lay down my life for the sheep.
The teaching in this passage, according to Calvinism, is that the sheep are the elect, and Jesus gave His life only for them. However, when we analyse the meaning and application of atonement in a later chapter, we will see that Limited Atonement is an unbiblical doctrine.
IRRESISTABLE GRACE
The doctrine of Irresistable Grace teaches that those whom God has chosen cannot resist His call to salvation. They have no free will in the matter.
John 6:37 All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out.
At first glance, this may seem to be an acceptable teaching, but upon further consideration, we will see that this doctrine makes God’s grace a force rather than what the Bible teaches; specifically that God’s grace is His lovingkindness toward us, and that salvation is a gift that must be freely received.
PERSEVERANCE OF THE SAINTS
Perseverance of the Saints is the easiest part of the TULIP to accept because it is very deceptive in its teaching. The doctrine means more than the fact that a Christian can never loose his salvation, as we see in the following verse:
John 10:27-29 27 My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me:
28 And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand.
29 My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father’s hand.
Additionally, some Calvinists believe that the elect will persevere in their sanctification to the end. They may backslide at times, but they can never die in a backslidden condition. Furthermore, some Calvinists go as far as to say that if a professing Christian dies as a backslider, it is an indication that he was never really one of the elect! In other words, the true elect person will never die as a carnal Christian. Matthew 24:13 But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved. There is some truth in parts of these five points, but taken as a whole, all five points contain doctrinal error. The Bible does teach the following:
1. All people are in a desperate condition of sin.
2. God’s election is according to His foreknowledge.
3. The atonement was accomplished by Jesus Christ on the cross for all.
4. We are saved totally by God’s grace.
5. We will never lose our salvation.
But the following teachings are not biblical 1. Man is totally unable to know anything spiritual, or believe on Christ until he is first born again. 2. Before God created the world, He decreed who will be saved and who will be damned. 3. Atonement, redemption, and regeneration was accomplished on the cross by Jesus Christ only for the elect. 4. All those whom God has chosen to be saved will be irresistibly drawn by God’s grace. There is no free will involved. 5. The elect will persevere in faith and sanctification and cannot die in a carnal state. In this study, we will not refute each of the TULIP points in turn, but rather, we will consider the five contrasting points mentioned above to help us understand soteriology from a non-Calvinistic viewpoint. As stated previously, there are no contradictions in the Bible. We can carefully examine what the Bible teaches about salvation. We must not allow the Spurious Tulip to lead us into the garden of falsehood. As we continue this study, please ask God to open your mind to the truth. I promise you that He will do that if you prayerfully and faithfully seek the true teachings of the Scriptures.