Calvinism and Arminianism:
Myths & Realities
Matthew 13:24-30: “Jesus presented another parable to them, saying, ‘The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a man who sowed good seed in his field. But while his men were sleeping, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat, and went away. But when the wheat sprouted and bore grain, then the tares became evident also. The slaves of the landowner came and said to him, “Sir, did you not sow good seed in your field? How then does it have tares?” And he said to them, “An enemy has done this!” The slaves said to him, “Do you want us, then, to go and gather them up?” But he said, “No; for while you are gathering up the tares, you may uproot the wheat with them. Allow both to grow together until the harvest; and in the time of the harvest I will say to the reapers, first gather up the tares and bind them in bundles to burn them up; but gather the wheat into my barn.”’””
- God does not take responsibility for the tares, but attributes it to an enemy’s work.
- Humanity is inseparably interconnected and intertwined.
- God prefers to wait until Judgment to sort it all out.
The premise of Calvinism is that God could not really have loved those that He either created for Hell, or created knowing that they would ultimately end up there. The former is a Calvinist view, and Arminians need not defend it, since Arminians do not believe that God created anyone for Hell, and stand upon Matthew 25:41 as evidence. The latter view is an Arminian view, insomuch that it is affirmed by Arminians that God knows the ultimate, eternal destination of every person, and the reason why Arminians can successfully defend that God can indeed be sincere in offering salvation, even to those whom He knows that will ultimately perish, is because He paid the price for their salvation, having bought them. The simple fact of Calvary, and an Unlimited Atonement, is why Arminians believe that God can be perfectly sincere and loving toward the perishing. He not only paid the price, He paid their price. He did it for them, just as much as He did it for me. Now of course, He didn’t just die for the sake of dying. He died for the purpose of people being saved, and Abraham’s Bosom already contained the Old Testament saints, by the time of Calvary. So the objective and purpose of Calvary is the salvation of lost souls, and so God can speak of Calvary being for those that are being saved, even the Church, because that’s the purpose, and God for His part is willing that all receive His salvation.
Question: Wasn’t Judas pretty much predestined to betray Christ
and perish in Hell? So how could God love him?
Answer: God’s predestined plan of Calvary is also based upon
His foreknowledge, as confirmed at Acts 2:23. It can be argued
that God foreknew the state of Israel, and of its individuals,
including Judas, and chose to use him, not necessarily causing
his evil heart, but in terms of knowing it, and using him
accordingly.
If Jesus died for everyone, then can I conclude that He died for me? And would you agree that Calvary is an act of love? So if I should perish, like Judas, God forbid, and God foreknows it all in advance, then for the simple fact of Calvary, I have to conclude that God does love Me, and for that reason, God can be perfectly sincere is offering what He has already paid for.
Calvinist Charge: Arminianism is Illogical.
Myth or Reality: If God genuinely loves and sincerely desires the salvation of those that He knows that will ultimately reject Him, and spend eternity in Hell, then why did He create them in the first place, and how can He really be sincere in offering them salvation when He knows that they’ll never accept it? In other words, knowing this, God could have stopped them from being born. However, it’s not that simple, as people are interconnected. There is a parable that best expresses this. Moreover, the Unlimited Atonement is why God can be sincere.
