In our previous four articles, we have mostly given consideration to things that will help us grow. But today is warning. This article is focused on protecting us from error.
There will be some that try to get us to turn away from our faith. Some who are blatant and will try to persuade us to join them at the bar and to pursue the fleeting pleasures of our flesh. Some will be sincere and honest people that are just not keeping the word of God accurately. And some will be hypocrites.
In Matthew 7:15, Jesus said,
15 “Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep's clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves.
And while it is true that some of these people may not be dishonest, but mistaken. They are mistaken none the less.
Acts 18:24-26
24 Now a Jew named Apollos, a native of Alexandria, came to Ephesus. He was an eloquent man, competent in the Scriptures. 25 He had been instructed in the way of the Lord. And being fervent in spirit, he spoke and taught accurately the things concerning Jesus, though he knew only the baptism of John. 26 He began to speak boldly in the synagogue, but when Priscilla and Aquila heard him, they took him aside and explained to him the way of God more accurately.
Apollos was fervent in spirit, sincere, and diligent, yet mistaken. And in Acts 19 we read that his teachings had made an impact. Paul had to correct some disciples and rebaptize them.
There are all kinds of things we could talk about in regard to error, but we are going to hone in on three major erroneous teachings because these three have impacted religion in a tremendous way.
Therefore, in this article we will focus on Calvinism and in the next two articles we will address Pentecostalism and Premillennialism.
Why is this important?
2 Peter 2:1
1 But false prophets also arose among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, bringing upon themselves swift destruction.
2 Peter 3:16
16 as he does in all his letters when he speaks in them of these matters. There are some things in them that are hard to understand, which the ignorant and unstable twist to their own destruction, as they do the other Scriptures.
Error Watch #1 Calvinism
Calvinism affects just about every religious body in our world today. Even if you are not familiar with it you have probably been taught some aspect of it without even knowing.
Let me remind you and encourage you to be like the Bereans (Acts 17:11). Don’t believe me just because I am writing this article. Go back to the Scriptures. Examine the word of God to see if the things I am writing are so.
Calvinism has a long history. Its teachings go as far as back as the 3rd century and perhaps even the 2nd century. However, it was first made popular in the 4th century by Augustine, a bishop in a church in the African city of Hippo.
Despite its early beginnings it has been named after John Calvin , the 2nd generation European reformer of the 1500s who popularized this doctrine during the Protestant Reformation and whose followers systematized it.
Calvinism is based on one supreme assumption. That God’s sovereignty means He controls absolutely everything. Everything we do, everything we say, everything that comes to us and so forth.
According to Calvinist, if there is one thing God did not make happen then He is not sovereign.
Upon this, we are led into the five major tenets of Calvinism which is often known as Calvin’s TULIP.
TULIP
T = Total Inherited Depravity
It says that when you and I were born, we were born corrupt and sinful because we had inherited the guilt of Adam’s sin and also had inherited a sinful nature that was totally depraved and we cannot possibly on our own do anything that is right.
U = Unconditional Election
Because we are totally depraved and we cannot possibly do anything right on our own accord God chose some among us to be saved. Calvinism teaches that you and I obeyed because we were chosen to be saved. We didn’t become saved because we obeyed God.
L = Limited Atonement
Since God before time chose out certain people to be saved then when Jesus came to die to atone for the sins of mankind He only atoned for those that were chosen. It wasn’t even offered for anyone else. Even the offer of atonement is limited. It was simply to those God elected before time.
I = Irresistible Grace
That says that if God has chosen you or me to be His elect then we are going to be saved and there is nothing we can do to stop it. According to Calvinist, however, if we are the elect we are not going to want to do anything to stop it.
P = Perseverance of the Saints
If God unconditionally elected us and we cannot resist the grace of the Spirit, then that means I am chosen, I am going to be saved, and I cannot possibly fall from grace. I cannot possibly be severed from Christ.
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All of this fits together in a nice little package and really if you believe one of these tenets you must logically believe all of them. But different churches pick and choose different parts of this to believe. So perhaps you have heard some of this before.
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But now let’s consider it based on the Bible.
The assumption of Calvinism that God’s sovereignty means He controls everything is not presented in the Bible. The sovereignty of God that is presented in the Bible is that He is so powerful that no matter what you or I choose to do God can make His plan work.
It is illustrated in Genesis 50:20. You remember the story of Joseph. After his brother’s came back to him and they were afraid he was going to beat them or punish them or kill them.
Joseph said, 20 “As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good, to bring it about that many people should be kept alive, as they are today.”
Which God is more powerful?
The one who only works His plan because he makes everything work his way or the one who can let me and you do whatever we want and still make His plan work? That is a sovereign God.
About total inherited depravity, Ezekiel 18:20 “The soul who sins shall die. The son shall not suffer for the iniquity of the father, nor the father suffer for the iniquity of the son. The righteousness of the righteous shall be upon himself, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon himself.”
We weren’t born guilty of our parents sins and we weren’t born guilty of Adam’s sins. We weren’t born with a corrupt nature.
Unconditional Election. Why would God even put the Bible together if there wasn’t anything you and I had to do in order to be saved? The whole concept of a book that guides us and leads us demonstrates that God expects something from you and from me. If He was just going to save us and make us be saved He wouldn’t need the Bible.
Limited Atonement. 1 John 2:2 “He is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world.”
Jesus died not just for us. He died for the whole world offering that atonement to them. They must simply accept it.
Irresistible Grace. Matthew 23:37 “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it! How often would I have gathered your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not willing!”
God was offering His grace. They resisted.
Finally, the Perseverance of the Saints. Galatians 5:3 "I testify again to every man who accepts circumcision that he is obligated to keep the whole law. 4 You are severed from Christ, you who would be justified by the law; you have fallen away from grace.”
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There are so many other things we could study about this so we haven’t covered everything, but what you have here are some simple and clear passages that point out that this teaching is an error. You have to choose to serve God and continue to be faithful. I hope this series is helping you do that.
Keep the faith this week and I’ll see you here next week for our next error watch report.