Calvinism
Arminianism vs. Calvinism: The FACTS vs. TULIP Acronyms
Submitted by Martin Glynn on Thu, 03/11/2010 - 9:34amOne of the most frustrating aspects of the Arminian and Calvinist debate is the amount of misunderstanding that goes on about the two positions. We have found that caricatures of both sides seem to be more common than honest descriptions. This site has been devoted to bringing clarity as to what defines the Arminian position, and promoting the position while being fair to Calvinism.
We have just set up a new primary link that gives a detailed comparison between the Arminian and Calvinist sides. You will find it under An Outline of the FACTS of Arminianism vs. the TULIP of Calvinism
An Outline of the FACTS of Arminianism vs. The TULIP of Calvinism
Arminianism may be represented by the acronym FACTS:
Freed by Grace (to Believe)
Atonement for All
Conditional Election
Total Depravity
Security in Christ
A Fatal Flaw in Calvinism
Submitted by JC_Thibodaux on Thu, 03/04/2010 - 10:10am"The secret things belong to the Lord our God, but those things which are revealed belong to us and to our children forever, that we may do all the words of this law." (Deuteronomy 29:29)
A Necessary Implication of Determinism
One of the primary tenets of mainstream Calvinism is the concept of exhaustive determinism (which I'll refer to as 'determinism' here) -- all that is and occurs in the universe is exactly as God has exhaustively decreed it to be. In such a worldview, man doesn't have a will that's truly free, but does everything exactly as it was predetermined for him. Consequently, there's no real contingency upon man concerning what God does. God has (in this determinist worldview) unconditionally decreed that His will be done, and His will is in no way conditioned upon anything men say or do. To this, Jack Cottrell makes the point,
A Chilling Quote of John Calvin
Submitted by SEA on Wed, 03/03/2010 - 7:21amHere is an absolutely chilling quotes of John Calvin. It is hard to believe any Christian can believe such a thing:
John Calvin writes: “Solomon also teaches us that not only was the destruction of the ungodly foreknown, but the ungodly themselves have been created for the specific purpose of perishing (Prov. 16:4).” (Calvin’s New Testament Commentaries: Romans and Thessalonians, pp.207-208)
Wow.
[Note: This post was originally entitled, "Some Chilling Quotes of John Calvin", and gave three quotes. However, someone alerted us to the fact that, out of context, one of the quotes gave the wrong impression of Calvin's meaning, and that another quote was actually Calvin quoting an opponent's characterization of Calvin's view for the purpose of denying that to be his view. For more on this, see http://evangelicalarminians.org/node/863 .]
Mission Possible: A Response to Shai Linne
Submitted by WilliamBirch on Tue, 03/02/2010 - 7:48amThe following is an edited response to Shai Linne's Limited Atonement rap
song, "Mission Accomplished." The original version was posted by "Murray" in the comments at the Gadgetry, Thoughts, Unleashed! blog. What is in brackets has been re-written or re-worded for this posting on SEA.
_____
Well excuse me Mr. Linne, but I think you’re confused.
And there are one or two verses which you have misused.
It’s true – God only saves the group He’s elected.
But that doesn’t mean we’re born preselected.
The "children of promise" He’s chosen to save;
All who seek God through works remain in the grave.
And God truly desires all men to believe;
His words in The Book weren’t meant to deceive.
_____
And the elect themselves were just like all others,
Once children of wrath, just like their brothers.
So even if His death was selective,
A Brief Quid Pro Quo: What is Right about Calvinism
Submitted by WilliamBirch on Mon, 03/01/2010 - 10:51amSince I spend so much time expounding upon what I find wrong in Calvinism, I thought I would briefly survey what I find right in Calvinism. This will be my brief quid pro quo -- lit. something for something. Since I am always offering people thoughts against Calvinism and never offering them insights of truth which Calvinism promotes, I thought it would be appropriate to do so -- to offer something for something.
Brenda B. Colijn, "A Parable of Calvinism"
Please click on the attachment to view Brenda B. Colijn, "A Parable of Calvinism" Ashland Theological Journal 36 (2004) 101-108.
Messianic Jew David Stern and the Security of the Believer
Article compiled by Steve Witzki. Below is the intro, click on the PDF link for the complete article.
"David Stern is a Messianic Jew who believes that Yeshua (Jesus) is the Messiah. He has written The Complete Jewish Bible (CJB) and The Jewish New Testament Commentary (JNTC). He provides a number of insightful translations in the CJB and comments in the JNTC. One of the things I found interesting was his comments on passages that Arminians typically use in support of conditional security and the possibility of apostasy (i.e., believers becoming unbelievers through unbelief manifested in sin and disobedience toward God and His Word). He clearly falls on the side of Arminianism. I have put his CJB translations in bold to offset his comments in the JNTC."
Church History vs. Calvinism (Part Two)
Submitted by WilliamBirch on Wed, 02/17/2010 - 9:01amEmperor Constantine (AD 272-337), according to Laurence M. Vance,
- became the sole ruler of the Western branch of the Roman empire after defeating Maxentius (c. 283-312) at the famous Battle of the Mulvian Bridge, near Rome, in 312. It was here that Constantine claimed to have seen a vision of a shining cross that led to his victory. . . .
After supposedly attributing his victory to the "Christian God," Constantine joined with Licinius (c. 265-325), one of the emperors of the East, in issuing in 313, at Milan, a decree of toleration toward Christianity.1
By this time, the marriage of the Church to the state would be her downfall. Thus, in many cases, the redeemed sat alongside the unredeemed in every church service. Theodosius, Constantine's successor, by AD 381, proclaimed to all people that they "steadfastly adhere to the religion which was taught by St. Peter to the Romans, which has been faithfully preserved by tradition."2
Church History vs. Calvinism (Part One)
Submitted by WilliamBirch on Tue, 02/16/2010 - 9:12amTo say that any semblance of a Calvinistic framework is entirely absent from the teachings of the early Church fathers, as will become evident shortly, is an understatement. Ironically enough, however, John Calvin was not the originator of a predestinarian construction, strictly speaking. The founder of this doctrine was none other than St. Augustine (AD 354-430).
According to Vance, "The influence of Augustine upon history in general and Christianity in particular is incalculable -- but not surprising -- since, like Calvin, he was an extensively prolific writer. . . . When a modern Calvinist endeavors to substantiate Calvinism by an appeal to men, the first name mentioned is always that of Augustine."1
