{"id":7781,"date":"2016-05-05T20:37:04","date_gmt":"2016-05-06T01:37:04","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/admin.patheos.com\/blogs\/christiancrier\/?p=7781"},"modified":"2016-05-05T20:37:04","modified_gmt":"2016-05-06T01:37:04","slug":"what-do-calvinists-believe","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/christiancrier\/2016\/05\/05\/what-do-calvinists-believe\/","title":{"rendered":"What Do Calvinists Believe?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

What do Calvinists believe?\u00a0 Is it the same thing that John Calvin did?<\/p>\n

Who Was John Calvin?<\/span><\/h2>\n

John Calvin was one of the early Reformers and followed closely in the footsteps of Martin Luther, although never directly working with him as he was considerably younger than Luther, Calvin was still seen as somewhat of the successor to Luther. \u00a0\u00a0And just like Luther, Calvin studied law.\u00a0 John Calvin was born in 1509, just when the ripples of the Reformation were being felt, thanks in large part to Martin Luther.\u00a0 Calvin was the leading French Protestant during his day and wrote one of the finest theological books of all time and the book, \u201cInstitutes of the Christian Religion,\u201d intending it to be the French Protestant statement of beliefs but the king rejected it and for his own personal safety, he fled the country and ended up in Geneva but an anti-Protestant movement forced Calvin to leave there too. \u00a0\u00a0John Calvin\u2019s \u201cInstitute of the Christian Religion\u201d was the most comprehensive explanation of the Biblical doctrines concerning grace, works, salvation, and the much controversial \u201cpredestination.\u201d<\/p>\n

Predestination<\/span><\/h2>\n

Calvinism is a misnomer.\u00a0 In other words, it\u2019s not so much what Calvin taught but what he brought out of the Bible.\u00a0 His teachings were not primarily about predestination but about grace alone, by faith alone, in Christ alone; the foundational principles of saving faith.\u00a0 Calvin believed that some people are saved ahead of time, at least in the mind of God, and much of his set of beliefs was based upon the Book of Ephesians where it says about Christ, \u201cIn him we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to the purpose of him who works all things according to the counsel of his will\u201d (Eph 1:11) and \u201ceven as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. In love\u00a0he predestined us for adoption as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will\u201d (Eph 1:4-5). Calvin believed what the Bible teaches about those who are saved and it is summed up by Jesus statement to His disciples, \u201cYou did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide\u201d (John 15:16) and had earlier said, \u201cNo one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him. And I will raise him up on the last day\u201d (John 6:44).\u00a0 In the Parable of the Prodigal Son, it is written that the prodigal father said, \u201cthis my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found.\u2019 And they began to celebrate\u201d (Luke 15:24).<\/p>\n

\"In-him-we-have-obtainedA\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Calvinism<\/span><\/h2>\n

There has been a great deal of misunderstanding about Calvinism.\u00a0 For example, some believe that Calvinism teaches that God predestines some to go to hell while He predestines others to be saved.\u00a0 I think this does Calvin injustice. The idea that God sends people to hell against their will is not easily resolved with Bible verses like \u201cWhosoever believes\u201d or \u201cWhosoever will come to Me\u201d but the Bible says that \u201cthe wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth\u201d (Rom 1:18) \u201cwhat can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them\u201d (Rom 1:19) and \u201cSo they are without excuse\u201d (Rom 1:20b).\u00a0 God never violates the human will but He does enable us, by His Spirit, to know Christ.\u00a0 How freewill and predestination work together for God\u2019s purposes can only be fully known by God.\u00a0 I am just glad that the main things are the plain things and not major on the minors.<\/p>\n

Hyper-Calvinism<\/span><\/h2>\n

So called Hyper-Calvinism is the belief that God sends people to hell against their freewill.\u00a0 How human freewill and the sovereignty of God interacts, I cannot precisely say.\u00a0\u00a0 Imagine two linear lines extending in a straight line into eternity.\u00a0 They are parallel to one another and nearly touch but both headed in the same direction.\u00a0 They don\u2019t necessarily have to cross paths in order to reach the same point. \u00a0\u00a0When reading William Stacy Johnson\u2019s book \u201cJohn Calvin; Reformer for the 21st<\/sup> Century,\u201d I couldn\u2019t find a place where Calvin states that God casts people into hell but doesn\u2019t violate their freewill. \u00a0The expression Hyper-Calvinism was not accepted by any of the churches and in the 19th<\/sup> century it became known as \u201cFalse Calvinism.\u201d Since God is going to save anyone He purposes to save, the Hyper-Calvinist sees no reason for evangelism, preaching, or praying for family and the lost.\u00a0 It\u2019s almost like a defeatist attitude. Why pray. God will do what He chooses to do. That is true but God may use our prayers as a means to the end which He purposes.<\/p>\n

Conclusion<\/span><\/h2>\n

The doctrine of Calvinists should not trouble us.\u00a0 Debating over something that is not essential to salvation leads to the ruin of the hearers.\u00a0 The Apostle Paul, in writing to Timothy, said \u201ccharge them before God not to quarrel about words, which does no good, but only ruins the hearers\u201d (2nd<\/sup> Tim 2:14). Cling steadfastly to those things we know to be true (John 3:16; Acts 4:12) and avoid those things where the Bible is not absolutely, 100% clear.\u00a0\u00a0 Especially those things that have nothing to do with the fact that we are saved by grace alone, by faith alone, in Christ alone because that is the foundational principles of saving faith.<\/p>\n

Article by Jack Wellman\u00a0<\/span><\/h4>\n

Jack Wellman is Pastor of the Mulvane Brethren Church in Mulvane Kansas. Jack is also the Senior Writer at What Christians Want To Know whose mission is to equip, encourage, and energize Christians and to address questions about the believer\u2019s daily walk with God and the Bible. You can follow Jack on Google Plus or check out his book Teaching Children the Gospel available on Amazon.<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

What do Calvinists believe?\u00a0 Is it the same thing that John Calvin did? Who Was John Calvin? John Calvin was one of the early Reformers and followed closely in the footsteps of Martin Luther, although never directly working with him as he was considerably younger than Luther, Calvin was still seen as somewhat of the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1485,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4,404],"tags":[1720,1721,883],"class_list":["post-7781","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-bible-answers","category-bible-definitions-2","tag-calvinism","tag-calvinists","tag-predestination"],"yoast_head":"\nWhat Do Calvinists Believe?<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"What do Calvinists believe?\u00a0 Is it the same thing that John Calvin did? Who Was John Calvin? 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