Sinclair Ferguson’s well-argued article on this topic, adding to the classic Calvinist vs Arminian theology debate, is worth a read. He makes the case for “invincible grace” persuasively and passionately but I just cannot wrap my head and heart around his conclusion.
Surely, the grace that flows from above freely gives many great gifts, including faith, but we must still open-up His treasures and exercise that measure of faith which is alloted to us. To keep hammering Ephesians 2:8 – “by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God” – seems to reduce what is a deep mystery to an overly simplistic acronym (TULIP).
Why would God be less glorified if the atoning work of Christ was not limited to those He called? Why can the LORD Almighty not be big enough to weave together human actions and reactions into a complex tapestry that is simply mind-blowing? Yes, of course, He can make all things work together for the good of those who love Him (Romans 8:28) – He has the final word and is intimately connected with His creation, turning the most horrendous of our actions – the crucifixion – into the glorious resurrection. He gives us freedom on this planet that is strictly limited, as most persuasively evidenced by the curse of death. Even the most brutal tyrant cannot escape his mortality and the Judgement seat of the King of kings.
Too often, when Christians speak of “choosing” and “election” they seem to conveniently draw comfortable lines that stop us from asking the difficult questions about how we are to conduct our lives on this earth, reaching out to those who feel excluded and let-down by a church that seems more interested in preserving its institional structures and esoteric dogmas (i.e. TULIP). I can’t say for certain if everyone can be saved but I am assured by Scripture that God “desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth” (1 Timothy 2:4) and that Christ Jesus declared “For God so loved the world that He gave His only Son, so that whoever believes may not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16). So, why would I draw dividing lines in the Bible where there are none? To argue that both Paul and Jesus meant to say all kinds of different people, from all parts of the planet, seems to miss the heights, widths and depths of divine compassion.
That doesn’t mean flinging open the doors of church membership to everyone – we are told to beware wolves in sheep’s clothing after all. However, Scripture consistently emphasises God working in, through and with repentant sinners to achieve His glorious purposes on this planet, so why do some set-up a dividing wall of hostility, a stumbling block other than the cross of Christ? How can we say – or even think – that what happened there was actually not your opportunity to be saved because you were not chosen before time began?
Look at John’s first epistle and the emphasis on loving one another. Why is so much ink wasted on the Calvinism vs Arminian debate when we should be accepting free will and divine sovereignty as a beautiful mystery beyond our fathoming? We are commanded to “spur one another to outbursts of love and good deeds” (Hebrews 10:24). How does TULIP or infant baptism accomplish that goal, compared to believing in the clear alternatives promoted in Scripture?
Never forget that theology must always lead to action: “My brothers and sisters, if people say they have faith, but do nothing, their faith is worth nothing. Can faith like that save them? A brother or sister in Christ might need clothes or food. If you say to that person, “God be with you! I hope you stay warm and get plenty to eat,” but you do not give what that person needs, your words are worth nothing. In the same way, faith by itself—that does nothing—is dead.
Someone might say, “You have faith, but I have deeds.” Show me your faith without doing anything, and I will show you my faith by what I do. You believe there is one God. Good! But the demons believe that, too, and they tremble with fear.
You foolish person! Must you be shown that faith that does nothing is worth nothing?” (James 2:14-20)
excalibyte 