One of the more difficult parts about writing this sort of blog is that my readership is from a variety of backgrounds. While some can quote chapter and verse from the Bible, others can discuss the nuances of theology. All have some combination of the two that ranges from weak in both to strong in both. Therefore, while some posts are necessarily redundant for some, the same post can fly over heads of others. This is a difficult balancing act, and I beg for your indulgence as I launch into this topic.
Jacobus Arminius lived at the end of the theological century, the sixteenth century. He was a Dutch theologian who challenged some of the positions of the Reformation, particular those enumerated in the Belgic Confession, a document that I will likely review over the summer unless I do Luther or Heidelberg first. In any case, the Canons of Dordt contained the five points of Calvinism which were drafted to deal with Arminius’ theology and controversy. Arminius had written the Five Articles of the Remonstrants, published after his death, to which the Dordt Synod was responding.
Therefore, it is historically accurate to state that these are theologically opposed perspectives. In other posts, I have highlighted and explained the five points of Calvinism. They are found under the Building Blocks tab on the right, or by clicking on March, for they were all done in the last ten days of March. But for this particular post, I have some of the typical questions that are asked about Calvinism. They are a useful framework for this debate. Therefore, I’ll give the stock answers from the point of view of Calvinism.
Since God made man in His image, called his creation "Good", and gave us dignity, is Calvin's Total Depravity literal ? Perhaps “Total Inability” is a more apt expression.
This seems like the best place to begin. In the Building blocks section, I have written a more lengthy discussion on Total Depravity, but let us try just this. Paul believes that the Law is meant to convict us, to show us what is expected of us, and then to demonstrate that we fell completely short of the mark on every count. Total depravity does not mean that everyone is equally evil. This does not mean that the reprobate are incapable of civic righteousness. Oprah Winfrey does wonderful things for many people, but few, only the most liberal, would confuse her with being a Christian. Total Inability, although certainly true in the sense of what is intended in terms of works righteousness, also fails to make this distinction. This is a Two Kingdom issue. While we may do good deeds and help many people, our motives are tainted by the condition of sin. Therefore, these deeds fail utterly in satisfying the just wrath of God. This is about the extreme Holiness of God. We must be perfect to satisfy the Law. Anything short of perfection is failure in the eyes of God. This is why we need a Savior.
Is there a connection between Calvinism and Determinism -- the idea that what you do is determined by external things like environment & genes, but not by your free will so that you are not really responsible or accountable?
Responsibility and accountability is exactly the problem. The idea that God is offended by sin, such that God condemns all sin with the death penalty, is often lost in this debate. Original sin is the idea that all aspects of humanity are tainted by that original sin. Unless you understand this concept, the rest will not make any sense. It is pointless to argue about free will without an understanding of Original sin. Free will is tainted by sin. We are able to choose on the horizontal plain of man in this world to do what we like, but all of those decisions, in fact all of the observations and conclusions that we make that form the basis of those decisions, are tainted by sin. Therefore, we are unable to make a decision in the vertical direction of God, a direction that requires perfection. That is why it is necessary for God to condescend to us. He must come down to us to save us. He gave us the Law to try to make us understand this. He became incarnate to accomplish this.
What about people around us who are predestined to be excluded from the "elect" and whose souls are condemned to eternal apartheid ? Why would God bring a soul into this world inherently condemned to eternal damnation with no ability or possibility to believe in Christ?
Predestination is very often the stumbling block for this debate. The concept of election is foreign to many, particularly Americans. Americans have a particular “can do” arrogance about us. Many think that Franklin’s quip that God helps those who help themselves is actually Biblical. Obviously, this is not the case. We must imagine this problem, not from our own perspective, but from the perspective of God. God looks upon humanity and sees an ocean of lost souls, completely corrupted by sin. In His goodness and mercy, God sets about the greatest rescue mission in history. He will save more souls than can be counted. He will select those whom He will save and leave the rest. Therefore, from His perspective, we earn eternal damnation by our own doing, but we receive Salvation by His Grace. As to why not save everyone? Who can speak for God? Some things remain hidden from us.
Calvin seems stern & grim. He emphasized that Christ took on the penalty of sin. But redemption also makes us Sons of God, like jewels in which God delights, like a spouse. We're more than ex-cons pardoned from prison; The Bible tells us God paid double: Christ took on our sins and He imputed His spotless record on to us.
We are Christ’s elect to be sure. He will not lose one of us whom He has claimed as His own. That is what is called the perseverance of the saints. But we are nothing without Him. We are doomed without the Righteousness given us by Jesus in His vicarious atonement, with the imputations to which you refer. There were three great imputations. Adam's sin is imputed to man. The sin of Man, elect, is imputed to Jesus. Jesus' righteousness is imputed to the elect, so that we may stand in judgment on the Last Day, confident in the not guilty verdict. I do not understand how this message is stern and grim. This is the Gospel message, and it is the greatest news we can ever hear. Calvin explains to us that regardless of our imperfection, God has reconciled us to Him. Propitiation and imputation are not excluded by Calvin; they are embraced by Calvin as the essential components of justification. That is the Gospel, according to Paul.
We will explore this more as needed. I'll post specifically on Arminius this week.
We will explore this more as needed. I'll post specifically on Arminius this week.
--Troll--
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