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Calvinists, what is the reason that God had to have only offered salvation to a select few, according to John Calvin?
Discussion
51 comments
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Why did God save anyone? He didn’t have to we all deserve his wrath.
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Romans 9 addresses this issue. Paul makes a great case for election
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Please show where John Calvin says the offer of salvation is to only a select few? I would like to see this.
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To me. John 3:16. Jesus died for everyone , who will receive him.
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The Gospel offer is sincerely offered to all that it is presented to … and man will be judged for rejecting it .. Responsibility and ability are two different things … Its not God’s gault that fallen man does not have spiritual eyrs to see and ears to hear … Is unable to repent and recieve grace … Its not God’s fault that the natural man CANNOT tecieve the things of the Spirit and its foolishness to them … God calls all men to repentance … and it thier responsibilty to to repent … but without the Spirit’s tegenetating grace they will not … Why God has chosen to grant repentace and faith to any of those that hate Him … those spiritually dead in tresspasses is the mustery for He owes them justice … But instead for His own good pleasure He has chosen to save some by His grace …
No man can or would come to Christ left to his own fickle will -
Do you know the number of elects?
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Calvin believed it was only due to God’s will. He chooses whom he will have mercy on, and whom He will reject. (Rom. 9:15)
This does make God’s election seem rather arbitrary on His part,and this is confusing since God desires that none shall perish but that all shall be saved. (2 Pet. 3:9). We could create the following syllogism:
1. God desires that everyone shall saved
2. God has the ability to save Everyone (through irresistible grace) and can guarantee that anyone He chooses will accept Him
3. Therefore everyone is saved.
But…
P3 is false, therefore either P1 or P2 is false. Since P1 is unlikely to be false given its scriptural support, P2 is false. Man’s Free Will prevents them from being saved
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C Cornel C Cornell Hicks: The doctrine of election is taught by the Scriptures. It is not an invention of John Calvin. For a starter, you can do a research on the writings/lectures of R. C. Sproul on the subject which are available for free in the internet.
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According to Scripture:
that the purpose of God according to election might stand, not of works, but of him that calleth
So then it is not of him that willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of God that sheweth mercy.
(Romans 9)
As Jesus said, No one can come to the Father unless He draws them. John 6
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Have you ever read your Bible?
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God calls all; some choose to accept God. A God of love does not reject those who have never heard His call; those who wilfully reject or denounce God are in another category entirely.
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25 At that time Jesus declared, “I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that you have hidden these things from the wise and understanding and revealed them to little children;
26 yes, Father, for such was your gracious will.
27 All things have been handed over to me by my Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal him. – Matthew 11:25-27 -
Narrow road few find it
Broad road many follow it
God chose who he would call before the foundation of the world
Predestination
Election
Limited atonement = Jesus dies for only those who would believe in him (Calvinist view)
Unlimited atonement = Jesus died for everyone even for the people in hell cheapening the power of Christ’s atonement putting a limit on his ability to save anyone (Arminian view)
Much more -
Well there are people in hell, aren’t there. An all knowing God knows who will be saved. Remember, He wrote the end from the beginning…
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if all are equally guilty how is that wrong – God does not own salvation to any.
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Not even Calvin was a 5 point calvinist. More Biblically accurate Calvinism is probably moderate Calvinism.
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No calvinist ever said God doesn’t offer salvation to all. Jesus wept over the city of Jerusalem. I think he wept at the tomb of Lazarus for the same reason, unbelief in the presence of the life giver. Thankfully some will believe because God commands them to come to life.
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In the end when it’s judgement day. God not going to say was you a Calvinist or Lutheran or Arminian? No he going to say did you believe in my Son Jesus Christ who lived a sinless life that you could never live? Did you put your faith in Christ alone is what’s going to matter. If you believe in Christ born of a virgin lived a sinless perfect life died for our sins resurrected from the dead? You are all my brothers and sisters in Christ.
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We should all save our bullets for the lost. These discussions never seem to bear fruit.
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According to the kind intention of His will.. Ephesians 1
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Isaiah 55:8-9 For My thoughts are not your thoughts, Nor are your ways My ways,” says the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, So are My ways higher than your ways, And My thoughts than your thoughts.
Im not sure concerning Calvin’s view but above is what God says. Yes we see it clearly throughout Scripture there are many texts that reveal to us there is a chosen, elected, & predestined people chosen from before the foundations of the earth ever was. Now we can take those verses and trust God in what He has said in truth or we can take them and twist them into what we want our view to be of them. Regardless Ephesians 2, Romans 8 & 1 Peter reveal to us there is truly a chosen people. Even our Lord Jesus speaks of this in John 10. This is exactly why Jude wrote in his epistle in chapter one and verses three and four that even though he truly desired to write to us about our common Salvation the Holy Spirit pressed upon His heart causing him to find it necessary that he write to us concerning our contention for the faith due to those who have crept in unnoticed that are taking the truths of God and twisting them to their own desires and leading the church astray.
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“The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.”
2 Peter 3:9 ESVAt first glance the scripture you would think Peter is talking about everyone. But digging deeper and reading in context you will see something different. The word “you” indicates there is an audience and that audience is the believers Peters was writing to. So when it says “patient towards you, not wishing (mandating) any should perish”, He’s saying patient towards his chosen and elect as mentioned in Ephesians 1:4-5 (just to name one supporting scripture). In reading this l, it also took me to John 8:44 when Jesus state’s to the Jews “you are of your father, the devil.” And further in verse 47 he states “whoever is of God hears the words of God. The reason why you do not hear them is that you are not of God.” Using the scripture above and reading this in relation to the reference scriptures, this means from the very beginning, they are none of God’s. A wheat and a Tare may grow together. But they are wheat and a tare from the very beginning and that they will stay (Matthew 13:24-30 and Matthew 13:36-43). I don’t identify as a Calvinist but I found this interesting in my studying. Let me know what you think.
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My people please reconsider.pleaaase.
God wants all to be saved and then turn around and hand pick some? -
The way the question is phrased misunderstands Calvin and Scripture. Salvation is offered to ALL by grace alone to the glory of God alone.
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God did not HAVE TO anything…probably there is where you are starting from a bad place
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Read Romans
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Wrong question. He did not have to chose and save any. If we had to receive what we rightly deserve, He would have chosen no-one.
He chose some because He is gracious, while at the same time not choosing others because He is just. Both are essential in order to exhibit the full nature of God. They’re two sides of the same coin – you can’t have one without the other.
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You can do a deep study on this. I have heard two different opinions. Ty here are a few questions I don’t have answers for cause I’m just a layman but you can do a deep study and come to your own conclusion. I often have to lay these few questions on the back burner. I do know christ is not the author of confusion and his ways are higher than our ways
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I have heard God foreknew how someone would choose
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C Cornell Hicks read Romans 10
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I’m not a Calvinist (though many accuse me of it), but I do have some idea of how they think. They reason that if the cross was meant for everyone, everyone would be saved, because the Trinity CANNOT fail.
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Thanks so much. Just speakimg from honesty
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Predestination and foreknowledge doctrines are biblical and are throughout the books old and new testaments…it is not a Calvinistic doctrine but almost all Christian denominations have their own elect doctrine…God selected a group of people for himself before the universe was created and it was for his good pleasure…God told Moses that he will have mercy on whom he he will have mercy…
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I would suggest the book, Chosen by God, RC Sproul …wonderful book to explain with scripture about the doctrine of election…
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The OP is actually false .. and yet another misunderstanding and misrepresentation of Calvinism
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Who cares?! What does PAUL have to say about it? He’s the Scripture writer, after all (2 Peter 3:16).
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I have learned alot from John MacArthur and he is considered a Calvinist. Now I dont agree with everything the man believes but he does believe Jesus Christ is Lord and Saviour. It seems to me that God is saying right now at least in what I have been reading and hearing preached. It’s time we put aside labels and started worshipping and believing as a unified body of Christ.
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Could it be that we have free will and God is all powerful and all knowing and not bound by time or space. The predestined elect are those that God knows will believe and come into relationship with Christ at some point in their lives. Since he knows everything that will ever happen, then it stands to reason that the elect are those who God knows will choose salvation through the atoning work of Christ crucified.
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Calvinists and arminians just can’t cope with the fact that you don’t understand how both Free Will and God’s sovereignty can be true and don’t contradict each other. They also in doing such become heretics of themselves.
Edit: I’m not saying all of them are heretics just the ones that want to blatantly ignore some scripture
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on that day, Jesus will either be your judge or advocate. He will not care if you are calvinism or arminianism. Either He will judge your works and you will be told, “well done” or He will judge you because you rejected him, at which time He will say, “depart from me, for I have never known you”. Act 17:30-31 “The times of ignorance God overlooked, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent, because he has fixed a day on which he will judge the world in righteousness by a man whom he has appointed; and of this he has given assurance to all by raising him from the dead.” What really matters at the end of the day, is, “what did I do with Jesus. “
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God is a sovereign God, meaning He is a person who makes decisions based off of His infinite knowledge and wisdom. God therefore picks those He wants to be in heaven with Him. And why would He not? God allowing anyone at all into heaven, even if it were just one person, is graceful. You might say well that isnt fair! And youre right! The fair thing for God to do would be to send us all (sinners since our conception) to hell for eternity. God is so merciful and gracious that He allows a “Multitude that no one could count” into heaven (Rev. 7:9) And if we dare question Him, which we do everyday, He says to us in His word, “You will say to me, therefore, “Why then does he still find fault? For who resists his will?” On the contrary, who are you, a human being, to talk back to God? Will what is formed say to the one who formed it, “Why did you make me like this?” Or has the potter no right over the clay, to make from the same lump one piece of pottery for honor and another for dishonor?”
(Romans 9:19-21)GOD IS SOVEREIGN, WE ARE DEAD, HE BRINGS US TO ETERNAL LIFE BY GRACE THROUGH THE ETERNAL GIFT OF FAITH WHICH HE GIVES US, FOR HIS GLORY ALONE. ?❤️
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Calvin didn’t invent predestination. It’s in the Bible. The church fathers taught it. Augustine taught it, Aquinas taught it, Luther taught it.
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Predestination doesn’t make sense to me. We each have the choice God is not within time. He knows who will choose him and who will not. That’s like selecting the winner at the starting gate, But making everyone run anyway. The way I understand from my personal study is to say you have a parade. On the street, you can see only the part of the parade that is on that street at that moment. But God is above that on top of a building so He can see the start the part on the road in front of you and see where the parade ends. So he doesn’t choose who goes, but he knows who will.
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Check out the website and podcast Soteriology 101. It is great. It has brought great clarity for me on this topic.
The word and idea “Predestined” is in scripture but we must really understand what it means. In Ephesians 1, Paul is talking to those who are faithful in Christ Jesus. He clearly states the predetermined destination (Predestined) of those who are in Christ Jesus: “that we would be holy and blameless before Him” and that we would have “adoption as sons”. What this does NOT say, is that we were causally determined before the foundation of the world to be in Christ Jesus. We are free to choose Him and once in Him our eternal destination is secure.
The other thing to consider is how you define the word sovereign. This is a huge part of the discussion as well. I fully believe that God is sovereign and IN control, but I do not believe that God is controlling everything. God is sovereign and in control and chooses freely how and when He will do what He wants.
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The few could be those who respond to the Good news.
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“In the beginning God…”
It’s His creation. He didn’t consult with us on the plans. Whether we agree with it, or whether it makes sense to us is TOTALLY and COMPLETELY irrelevant. It’s not about us… it’s ALL about God.
“And he said, ‘I will make all my goodness pass before you and will proclaim before you my name ‘The Lord.’ And I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will show mercy on whom I will show mercy.'”
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I was a dyed-in-the-wool arminian for many years. I have many friends and family members who are Calvinists, and every. single. argument. was used on me to no avail. I pretty much didn’t even want anyone to mention Romans chapter 9 to me ever again.
I even bought anti calvinist Christian books.
Then I started doing an extended scripture memory program with my son, partly because of encouragement from an Arminian pastor. We decided to memorize as much of Ephesians as we could, and I didn’t get halfway through the first chapter before I realized, “Oh man, this is everywhere in the Bible.”
It’s like a light bulb went off over my head, so I started cross-referencing scripture, and I found a thread that ran all through scripture. It was so consistent.
Anyway, arguments from people just made me angrier, and more combative. It wasn’t until I started internalizing God’s Word through memory that everything changed.
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I don’t think God “offered salvation to a selected few”. God offers salvation for all man (Jhn 3:16, 1Tim.2:3-4). Your question suggest that God is, in a way, picky towards saving people, which He’s not. The problem is not God but fallen man(Rm 3:10-11).
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