The Five Points of Calvinism
Humankind is spiritually Totally incapacitated by Sin
God chooses (elects) Unconditionally those who will be saved
The saving work of Christ is Limited to those elected ones
God's is grace is Irresistible and cannot be turned aside
Perseverance of the saints, those whom God elects in Christ are saved forever
These five points have been reduced to an acronym as follows: TULIP describing the so called “five points of Calvinism": Total depravity, Unconditional election, Limited atonement, Irresistible grace, and the Perseverance of the saints.
Calvinism is much more involved than just these five points, but they form a basis of the rest. Actually, it is Points 2 and 5 that form the basis of Calvinism and every thing else must be molded to fit the framework of those two propositions.
Since these five points were originally the five remonstrances of the Armenian’s at the Council of Dort, we have to use them as they were negated by the Council of Dort in upholding the Calvinist position.
The First Point of Calvinism says that humankind is spiritually incapacitated by Sin. As far as this statement goes it cannot be denied because the bible teaches “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked : who can know it?” (Jer. 17:9) But if this tenet is taken to mean the total depravity of mankind to the degree that he cannot seek God in his own power, then it can be demonstrated to be false both empirically and Scripturally.
In Paul’s sermon to the Athenians he taught that God has determined that all men should seek the Lord. “24 God that made the world and all things therein, seeing that he is Lord of heaven and earth, dwelleth not in temples made with hands: 25 Neither is worshipped with men's hands, as though he needed any thing, seeing he giveth to all life, and breath, and all things; 26 And hath made of one blood all nations of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth, and hath determined the times before appointed, and the bounds of their habitation; 27 That they should seek the Lord, if haply they might feel after him, and find him, though he be not far from every one of us: 28 For in him we live, and move, and have our being; as certain also of your own poets have said, For we are also his offspring.” (Acts 17:24-28) Since God has determined that all men should seek the Lord by groping for him, (if haply they might feel after him) it cannot be that mankind is so spiritually depraved that he cannot do what God has determined he will do.
If mankind is so totally depraved spiritually that he cannot seek God in his own power, if he cannot look at the Creation and be driven to the conclusion that there must be a Creator, then God has made a mistake because that would mean the scriptures are wrong where they say “the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen.” And the scripture would also be wrong that says these invisible things of the God are being “understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead.” And the scriptures would be wrong that says for these reason that man does not have an excuse for not seeking god. If mankind is so totally depraved spiritually that he cannot read the message of the Creation, then David was wrong and the message in the Heavens is not heard by every speech and language, and their line has not gone out into all the world. We must choose Scripture over what man says even if it should make “every man a liar.”
"The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament sheweth his handywork. Day unto day uttereth speech, and night unto night sheweth knowledge. There is no speech nor language, where their voice is not heard. Their line is gone out through all the earth, and their words to the end of the world. In them hath he set a tabernacle for the sun, Which is as a bridegroom coming out of his chamber, and rejoiceth as a strong man to run a race. His going forth is from the end of the heaven, and his circuit unto the ends of it: and there is nothing hid from the heat thereof." (Ps. 19:1-6)
Since there is "no speech or language" where the "voice" of the creation is not heard, it cannot be true that unregenerated mankind does not have a capacity within himself to at least hear the message that the Creator placed in the Creation to point men to himself. As already noted, the Scriptures say, "For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse: Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened."
So we see that what the Bible teaches is that it is only after men reject the message about the Creator that is taught to them by the Creation that they become totally depraved. This is what has happened, by and large, to western civilization today in that, having rejected the message of the creation and opting for the unreasonable, irrational postulates of Evolution and materialism, and Humanism, most have had their foolish hearts darkened and are going into depravity in every facet of life. Professing themselves to wise, they have become fools, and now while they call themselves "enlightened" they are children of darkness.
Both the Old and the New Testaments say that men should be driven to worship the Creator by reason of His Creation, but if they do not, Rom. 1:20 says that God then darkens their foolish hearts so that they will not afterward seek him. If they were already totally depraved before this there would be no reason, nor would it be possible, to darken their hearts further.
In the verse quoted previously from Acts 17:24-31 the Apostle Paul says that even some of the Greek poets (philosophers) had come to the same conclusion as that taught in the Gospel: that "in him we live, and move, and have our being." Observation declares that even men in an unregenerated condition do seek a god. To be sure God must reveal himself in some fashion if men are ever to find the one true God. It would appear then, that man, even though he is depraved by sin, is still able to seek God and even receive some inspiration about him.
This does not mean that we are not dependent upon the conviction of the Holy Spirit before we can come to the Lord Jesus Christ. It just means that Calvinism is in error in the assertion that men are so totally depraved that they cannot seek God in their own power. Man, even lost man, can seek God, and God has said that he will justify those who will seek him because of the message in the Creation and follow the law that he has written in their hearts and upon their consciences. “(For not the hearers of the law are just before God, but the doers of the law shall be justified. 14 For when the Gentiles, which have not the law , do by nature the things contained in the law , these, having not the law , are a law unto themselves : 15 Which shew the work of the law written in their hearts, their conscience also bearing witness, and their thoughts the mean while accusing or else excusing one another
” (Rom. 2:13-15)
Empirically it is evident that all false religions are evidence that unregenerated mankind can, and does, seek after a god. Man is by nature a religious creature and must be “educated” away from that nature before he stops seeking a god.
The second point of TULIP says that God chooses (elects) unconditionally those who will be saved. The reason the word “unconditionally” was used in this point was to assert that God’s election is not based upon his foreknowledge of who will believe, which is what the Arminianists declared. It is this proposition that is the heart of the disagreement between Calvinism and Arminianism, and having put the issue to rest in the first part of this article we will go on to Point 3.
The “L” in “TULIP” comes from the statement that the saving work of Christ is limited to His elect. Calvinists call this ‘limited atonement.” By this they mean that Christ’s atonement is limited to only those whom God has predestinated. There is no quarrel with this statement when it is agreed that God bases his predestination upon His foreknowledge as the scriptures say he does. “29 For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren. 30 Moreover whom he did predestinate , them he also called: and whom he called, them he also justified: and whom he justified, them he also glorified.” (Rom. 8:29-30) If it could be stated any plainer that God predestinated those whom he foreknew I do not see how. Once again the Calvinist position is against predestination being based upon God’s foreknowledge of who would believe because faith is a gift from God. But that is not what God has based his predestination upon. Instead of basing it upon His foreknowledge of who will believe, god has based predestination upon those who will call upon the name of the lord because of the conviction of the Holy Spirit who is being poured out upon all flesh. Once it is seen that predestination is based upon God’s foreknowledge of who will call upon the name of the Lord at the conviction of the Holy Spirit, all controversy dissolves. Christ’s atonement is efficacious to all who have called who call upon the name of the Lord. What is meant by “calling upon the name of the Lord is another topic.
Calvinists say that God's grace cannot be turned aside. By this they mean that the Spirit’s calling of a person is Irresistible. The “I” in TULIP comes from Irresistible. Calvinists say that once the Spirit convicts a person, they will not be able to resist His call. If this is so, how then is it, that everyone has not been saved? For as we have already noted, the Holy Spirit is being poured out upon all flesh to convict them of sin, of righteousness, and of judgment. If this conviction is irresistible, all flesh should be saved. Either the 4th Point of Calvinism is in error or the scripture is wrong.
“13 For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. 14 How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed ? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher? 15 And how shall they preach, except they be sent? as it is written, How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace, and bring glad tidings of good things! 16 But they have not all obeyed the gospel. For Esaias saith, Lord, who hath believed our report? 17 So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. 18 But I say, Have they not heard? Yes verily, their sound went into all the earth, and their words unto the ends of the world.” (Rom. 10:13-18)
Since faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God, and since the sound of the gospel has been heard unto the ends of the world, how is it that some have stayed unbelievers if the grace of God is irresistible? It is obvious that some can resist the grace of God.
The “P” in TULIP comes from Perseverance of the saints. The last point of Calvinism says that those whom God elects in Christ are saved forever. This proposition has been stated as “once saved, always saved.” “Once saved, always saved” is the logical conclusion of Calvinist understanding of Predestination. This position is more contrary to scripture than all of the rest combined, but because of their belief that God’s grace is irresistible, and that his election is based upon his will exclusively, they have no choice but to assert that those whom God has saved cannot become unsaved.
What does scripture have to say about this? “21 For if God spared not the natural branches, take heed lest he also spare not thee. 22 Behold therefore the goodness and severity of God: on them which fell, severity; but toward thee, goodness, if thou continue in his goodness : otherwise thou also shalt be cut off. 23 And they also, if they abide not still in unbelief, shall be graffed in : for God is able to graff them in again.” (Rom. 11:21-23) There is no reason for the Apostle Paul to have warned the Romans to take heed to themselves if they could not have been cut off again from the goodness of God. But Romans 11: 22 is very clear that in order to keep from being cut off we have to remain in God’s goodness. It is also manifest that remaining in God’s goodness is a choice that is made by the individual.
The “Day of the Lord” cannot come in Calvinist doctrine, for the scripture clearly says that the day of the Lord will not occur before a falling away has first occurred. “3 Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition;” (2 Thess. 2:3) The word translated as “falling away” is “apostasia.” “Apostasia” means “forsaking or desertion.” The only other time the word “apostasia” appears in the New Testament is in Acts 21:21 where the Apostle Paul is accused by the Jews of teaching the Jews among the Gentiles to “forsake” Moses. “And they are informed of thee, that thou teachest all the Jews which are among the Gentiles to forsake Moses , saying that they ought not to circumcise their children, neither to walk after the customs.”
Charles E. “Red” Chamberlain
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