Regarding Arminianism and “Calvinism”, I must disagree with you: they are certainly not talking past each other and are in fact worlds apart. And they most certainly do disagree on what the Bible says about God. In this ecumenical and doctrinally shallow age, many think these two systems are not far apart or that the issues are not that serious, but in earlier times men clearly saw the seriousness of them. As you can see from our website, we have many materials available on this subject, and I strongly urge you to study them all. It is a vital subject that is all too often easily dismissed as being unimportant. The Arminian “God” is, quite simply, not the God revealed in the Bible. He is a weak, hand-wringing “God” who doesn’t do anything unless weak, puny, sinful man “invites” him to act first. The Arminian “Jesus” is a weak, feeble shadow of the almighty Saviour presented in Scripture. Arminianism would have the three Persons of the Godhead acting at cross purposes. Arminianism is the devil’s lie. It is in fact the religion of the natural man all over the world. It is man declaring that he has the power to “choose” to either receive or reject Christ whenever he likes. It is putting the salvation of man into the hands of man, after taking it out of the hand of God. Either God is sovereign in salvation or man is. If man is, then God is not God, and salvation is not of the Lord. Not in the final analysis.
If Christ died for all, then the Bible has lied, for it says that Christ died for His elect, His chosen people, the Church. He died for the sheep but not for the goats. He died for Jacob but not Esau, for Peter but not Judas. If Christ died for all, then many are in hell for whom Christ died, and then Christ is not all-powerful, and then Christ did not actually secure the salvation of anyone, nor can the salvation of anyone be a certain thing, but subject to the whim of feeble man.
Calvin was in great error regarding infant “baptism”, the “State Church”, the putting to death of heretics, etc.
Thank you for writing, and I pray you will come to see the vital importance of these things. – Shaun Willcock
(From the same person)
After thinking, reading and praying about the issues you mention in The Doctrines of Grace, I would like to ask a few more questions…
I) Perseverance of the Saints. One somewhat practical issue raised by the doctrines presented in Doctrines of Grace is the idea that no one can be truly saved and then fall away. Why cannot it be that he was predestined to believe and then to fall away? – just as another might be predestined to believe and persevere, or another to never believe. Clearly only those who persevere would be in the Book of Life.
It seems to me that quite a few scriptures refer to the possibility of falling away. I’ll list a few here that I have come across just in my own Bible reading:
a) Ezekiel 18:21-24 (this raises the theoretical possibility).
b) I Kings 11:4 (and here it actually happened) .
c) Matthew 13:20 (these raise the theoretical possibility).
d) I Corinthians 9:27.
e) Hebrews 10:26-29.
f) II Timothy 4:10 (and here it actually happened).
It seems to me that this doctrine forces you into some extreme ideas, such as the idea that Billy Graham has been working for the devil his entire life. His manner of living seems to indicate a very godly man, albeit one who has strayed somewhat theologically in the later part of his life. The critique given by Ian Paisley, for example, seems to me more balanced – he acknowledges that Billy Graham did great work for the Lord in the beginning.