Note from Mater: I am so blessed to see Ethan's commitment to his Sunday school class and his desire to understand sound doctrine. He chose this topic for an optional paper his teacher suggested that they write and spent nearly a dozen hours this past week researching, writing, and editing his work. He has also learned most of the shorter catechism questions these past two years. I thank God for evidence of His grace in our children's lives.
*We can't seem to get this post in the proper format, so I'm sorry about the weird spacing!
The Five Points of Reformed Christianity - Calvinism
“Our experience is that clear knowledge of God from the Bible is the kindling
that
sustains the fires of
affection for God. And probably the most crucial kind of knowledge is the
knowledge of what God
is like in salvation. That is what the five points of Calvinism are about”
(www.desiringgod.org). These are the words of John Piper which
address the Five Points of
Reformed Christianity,
also known as the Five Points of Calvinism. These doctrines are
commonly organized in
the acronym, TULIP- Total Depravity, Unconditional Election, Limited
Atonement,
Irresistible Grace, and Perseverance of the Saints. These five points
were written by
John Calvin, who,
along with Martin Luther, was a famous theologian during the Protestant
Reformation.
They were written to counter the Five Articles of the Arminian
Remonstrance.
These articles were
written by Jacob Arminius, a theological opponent of Calvin and founder of
the Arminian Party. Arminius's teaching gained overwhelming popularity
in Holland after their
publication in the
early 1600’s. Calvin's points were expressed in the Canons of Dort.
The
Canons were written at
the Synod of Dort between November 13, 1618, and May 9, 1619; here
Calvin's Points were
officially recognized. The thirteen
Remonstrance ministers, who attended
the Synod, were banned
from doing any ministerial work and from furthering their positions
through writing.
After refusing to sign a paper that would require these ministers to cease
participating in the
ministry, they were banished from the United Provinces.
Total Depravity, the first point of
Calvinism, is a topic that most Christians agree upon.
It states that man is
totally degenerate and, therefore, unable to keep God’s law. Questions 16
and 82 of the Shorter
Catechism illustrate this clearly for us.
Q. 16. Did all mankind
fall in Adam’s first transgression?
A. The covenant being made with Adam, not only for
himself, but for his posterity; all mankind, descending from him by ordinary
generation, sinned in him, and fell with him, in his first transgression.
Q. 82. Is any man able perfectly to keep the
commandments of God?
A. No mere man, since the fall, is able in this life perfectly
to keep the commandments of God, but doth daily break them in thought, word,
and deed.
From these questions,
we see that when Adam, our representative, sinned, he broke the
Covenant of Life, and his
sin was transferred to all humans who would follow. In other words,
humans are, from conception,
sinful in every part of their being. This doctrine is
expressed clearly
in Psalm 51:5 and Romans 8:7. David
states, “Behold, I was brought forth in
iniquity, and in sin
did my mother conceive me.” Likewise,
Paul teaches in Romans 8:7 that "...
the mind that is set
on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God’s law; indeed, it
cannot.” We learn from this passage that we are not
even able to please God in our own
strength. In our
corrupt estate, we are dead in our sin and not only unwilling, but unable to
make
the choice to follow
or please Him. To understand the doctrine of total depravity, we must
distinguish between
total depravity and utter depravity. R.C. Sproul offers his insight on
this
distinction by saying,
“Total depravity is not utter depravity. Utter depravity would mean that
we are all as sinful
as we possibly could be. We know that is not the case. No matter
how much
each of us has sinned
we are able to think of worse sins that we could have committed. Even
Adolf Hitler refrained
from murdering his mother” (Sproul 80).
The second point of Calvinism is
Unconditional Election.
“The biblical
doctrine of election is that before Creation God selected out of the human race, foreseen as
fallen, those whom he would redeem, bring to faith, justify, and glorify in and
through Jesus Christ (Rom. 8:28-39; Eph. 1:3-14; 2 Thess. 2:13-14; 2 Tim. 1:9-10).
This divine choice is an expression of free and sovereign grace, for it is
unconstrained and unconditional, not merited by anything in those who are its
subjects.”
In other words, God, from all eternity,
chose a number of people whom he would save from
their sins.
Those who were not chosen or elected, he justly condemned them to Hell for all
eternity. He did
this without consideration to their will, because, in man's fallen state, he
would
have neither the
desire nor the power to accept Him. Question 20 of the Shorter Catechism
illustrates this plainly
for us.
Q. 20. Did God leave all mankind to perish in the
estate of sin and misery?
A. God, having out of his mere good pleasure, from all
eternity, elected some to have everlasting life, did enter into a covenant of
grace to deliver them out of the estate of sin and misery, and to bring them
into an estate of salvation by a Redeemer.
We see here that it is
God’s pleasure alone that allows any of us to gain access to Him. This
access is gained only
by the salvation of a Redeemer. The nature and personage of that
Redeemer is expressed
in question 21 of the shorter catechism.
Q. 21. Who is the Redeemer of God’s elect?
A. The only Redeemer of God’s elect is the Lord Jesus Christ,
who, being the eternal Son of God, became man, and so was, and continueth to
be, God and man in two distinct natures, and one person, forever.
Through this question,
we see that Jesus Christ, God’s eternal Son, is the Redeemer whom the
Lord has sent to save
us from our sins. This plan for our salvation was ordained or predestined
from eternity past.
This is why this doctrine is called the doctrine of predestination. Acts 13:48
teaches that, “... when
the Gentiles heard this, they began rejoicing and glorifying the word of the
Lord, and as many as
were appointed to eternal life believed.”
Likewise Paul affirms this
doctrine in Romans
8:28-30 saying, “And we know that for
those who love God all things work
together for good,
for those who are called according to his purpose. For those
whom he
foreknew he
also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order
that he might
be the firstborn
among many brothers. And those whom he predestined he also called,
and those
whom he called he
also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified.”
Calvin’s third point, is
the Doctrine of Limited Atonement. Limited Atonement is one of the
more controversial
points of Calvinism among Evangelical Christians. “The SFA (Sufficient
for
All, Efficient for the
Elect) position, holds that God’s work of atonement is sufficient for anyone
to be saved, but is only
efficient in God’s elect. Shorter Catechism questions #29 and 30 explain
this process to us.
Q. 29. How are we made partakers of the redemption purchased by
Christ?
A. We are made partakers of the redemption
purchased by Christ by the effectual application of it to us by his Holy
spirit.
Q. 30. How doth the Spirit apply to us the redemption purchased
by Christ?
A. The Spirit applieth to us the redemption purchased by Christ, by
working faith in us, and thereby uniting us to Christ in our effectual calling.
We learn from these questions that it is only the Holy Spirit's application
of God’s Word and working faith in the elect that causes someone to be saved. In John 10:15 we read Christ's claims to have
[laid] ...down [his] life for the sheep.
In Acts 20:28
Paul warns Elders saying, "Therefore take heed to yourselves and to all the
flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd
the church of God which He purchased with His own
blood.” From these two passages it is
clear that Christ died for his sheep alone, not for those outside His
flock. Emotionally speaking, it is often
hard to imagine that a God of love would send some to eternal judgment. However,
looking at it from this perspective is wrong. It is God’s mercy alone that
allows any of us to be
saved, and because of His justice, those who do not accept Christ to pay
the price for their
sins, must pay that price themselves in Hell.
Irresistible Grace, (the letter I in TULIP), is Calvin’s fourth
point. The doctrine of
Irresistible Grace
teaches that God does not allow man’s will to get in the way of his saving
work. Christ
teaches us, “No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws
him,” (John 6:44). Acts 16:14 gives another example of the
Holy Spirit's compelling work in
Lydia's heart teach
that, “The Lord opened her heart to give heed to what was said by Paul.”
According to these
passages, if Christ had died for those who would ultimately reject Him, His
atonement would be
ineffective and His sovereignty could be called into question. Catechism
#31 summarizes this
point well.
Q. 31. What is effectual calling?
A. Effectual calling is the work of God’s
spirit, whereby, convincing us of our sin and misery, enlightening our minds in
the knowledge of Christ, and renewing our wills, he doth persuade and enable us
to embrace Jesus Christ, freely offered to us in the gospel.
Perseverance of the Saints is the final doctrine taught
in Calvin’s Five Points. John Piper
gives these seven theses
summarize our understanding of this crucial doctrine-
Our faith must endure to the end if we are to be saved.
Obedience, evidencing inner renewal from God, is
necessary for final salvation.
God’s elect cannot be lost.
There is a falling away of some believers, but if it
persists it shows that their faith was
not genuine and they were not born of God.
God justifies us on the first genuine act of saving
faith, but in doing so he has a view to
all subsequent acts of faith contained, as it were like a seed in that first
act.
God works to cause his elect to persevere.
Therefore we should be zealous to make our calling and
election sure” (www.
desiringgod.org). From these points we can gather that those who
are true Christians, will
endure and show
evidences of their faith. Those who
embrace this teaching will be more
motivated to carry out the
work to which they have been called in Christ. We must understand,
however, that not
everyone who claims to be a Christian is truly one of the elect. We, who
do
put our faith in Christ
alone, can be encouraged by the promise that if we are truly in Christ,
nothing can snatch us
out of his hands. Colossians 1:21-23 states,
“And you, who once were
alienated and hostile in
mind, doing evil deeds, he has now reconciled in his body of
flesh by his
death, in order to
present you holy and blameless and above reproach before him, if
indeed you
continue in the
faith, stable and steadfast, not shifting from the hope of the gospel
that you heard,
which has been
proclaimed in all creation under heaven, and of which
I, Paul, became a
minister.” Likewise, 2 Timothy 2:11-12 teaches, “The
saying is trustworthy, for: If we have died
with him, we will
also live with him; if we endure, we will also reign with him; if we
deny him,
he also will deny us.
These Doctrines - Total Depravity,
Unconditional Election, Limited Atonement,
Irresistible Grace,
and Perseverance of the Saints are the heart of Reformed Theology.
Without
any one of them, our
Faith would be in vain. Also, God’s attributes, his sovereignty in
particular, could be
called into question. We can praise God
for the progress made by
faithful protestant
reformers such as Luther and Calvin, and for their unwavering determination
to guard the
infallible doctrines of God's word.
Works Cited
Kolstad, Caleb. "Limited Atonement: Sufficient
for All, Efficient for the Elect." Expository
Thoughts. First Baptist Church, 12 Apr. 2007. Web. 10 Apr. 2015.
Church of Christ, 2015. Web. 10 Apr. 2015
Packer, J. I. "Election God Chooses His
Own." Election by J.I. Packer.
CPR Foundation, n.d. Web. 12 Apr. 2015.
Piper, John. "What We Believe About the Five
Points of Calvinism." Desiring God.
Desiring God Ministries, 01 Mar. 1985. Web. 8 Apr. 2015.
Sproul, R. C. "Chapter Five." Chosen by God. Wheaton, IL: Tyndale
House, 1986. 79-80. Print.
"Synod of Dort." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 18 Mar. 2015. Web. 10 Apr. 2015
By: Leo
Age: 13 Grade: 8th
