Calvinism and its Impact on World Missions

1. Calvinism and its Impact on World Missions HOW IMPORTANT IS THE THEOLOGY OF A MISSIONARY? DOES IT MAKE A DIFFERENCE WHAT YOU BELIEVE? HOW DOES YOUR THEOLOGY MOTIVATE YOUR MINISTRY?

2. Basic Theology Answers • The nature of God • The essence of salvation

3. Popular Calvinism • Eternal Security • 3 or 4 points of Calvinism as popularly interpreted • Total Depravity is seen as the lostness of man instead of the inability of man • Perseverance of the Saints is seen as the Preservation or Security of the Saints

4. Basic Definition of Calvinism T otal Depravity U nconditional election L imited Atonement I rresistible Grace P reseverance of the Saints

5. Augustine, Bishop in Algeria • Author of RCC doctrine of Dark Age • City of God is postmillennialist Dominionist Theology • Suppressed sexuality in marriage to pregnancy • Denial of salvation to non-Roman Catholics • Criminalization and suppression of non-Catholics • Persecution to compel membership in RCC • Damnation to non-baptized infants • Baptismal regeneration • Veneration of relics • Sinlessness and perpetual virginity of Mary • Sacerdotalism (attributing divine powers to priesthood) • Sacramentalism (religious rites necessary for salvation)

6. Augustine and the Reformation • Augustine’s integration of Greek philosophy into Christianity formed theology for 1000 yrs. • Luther was Augustinian monk • Offended at Johann Tetzel fund-raiser for Vatican • Luther’s study of the “righteousness of God” in Romans as the gift of God changed the world • Augustine had held that justification was a process • Luther challenged the sacramental theology

7. John Calvin • 19 years after Luther’s reformation Calvin writes his Institutes (1536) • Luther: “justification by faith” – Calvin: “Justification by election” • Predestination explained why some believed and some did not – logic needs an answer • Double predestination • Election = selection of some to salvation or perdition • Grace defined as irresistible regeneration of “dead” • Amillennial, allegorical approach to eschatology

8. Infant Baptism and Covenant • Failure to distinguish between Israel and Church • Acts 16:31 “… and your family” • Since the Covenant was the same in the OT and NT, children under the NT should receive the sign of the Covenant as in the OT • All children of believers are part of the Covenant as in OT • Much presumption of salvation without personal faith

9. Early Missions of Calvinists • Much of early Calvinism was students spreading new doctrine with philosophical apologetics • French Huguenots finally allowed to travel to Portuguese Brazil to extend the Geneva church • In 11 months the mission was abandoned • Five remained in Rio de Janeiro but 3 were drowned because of faith • Calvinists severely persecuted “Anabaptist” • First Baptist Church 1609 in Amsterdam – soon returned to England • General Baptist and Particular Baptists formed in England

10. Arminius and Beza • Jacobus Arminius (d.1609) opposed Theodore Beza’s (d. 1605) Augustinian views on predestination and Limited atonement. • Both equated election with salvation: Calvin was unconditional and Arminius was by choice • Arminius accused Calvinist of deductive hermeneutics through syllogisms • Arminius’ weakness was that he exaggerated free will: 1) not affected by Adam’s sin; 2) Free to chose or abandon • Synod of Dort decided for Calvin’s TULIP • Became the authoritative doctrine of Presbyterians, Baptists and Anglicans

11. General and Regular/Particular Baptists • General Baptist: believed in a GENERAL atonement – Arminian theology (virtually dissolved in N. America) • Particular or Regular Baptist: believed that Christ died particularly or only for the believers – Calvinistic theology • First Great Awakening brought criticisms that resulted in the Separate Baptist Churches • These groups united to form the Union Baptist – then the American Baptist (North) and Southern Baptists • Liberal influences forced Fundamentalists to split off and form the GARBC in 1932. • GARBC in the north and SBC in the south were “moderate” Calvinist (3-point) • Other Independent Baptists tended to be between Calvinism and Arminianism.

12. Issues between Theologies • Neither school discerns any difference between the elect of Israel and the election of the Church • Both schools miss the fact that election has nothing to do with the choice of Individual sinners for salvation – it is the choice of saints for heavenly blessings -- or the elect of the Gentile and setting aside the Jews • Arminians believed the sinner has the choice of saying “Yes” to God – Calvinists believe it is only God who has the choice of saying “Yes” for the sinner • Scholasticism of Augustine and Aquinas was the basis of Catholic Theology, then the same approach for Reformers • Scholastic methods inquire beyond biblical texts by implications of deductive logic into election and God’s will

13. Syllogisms • Core of Aristotelian logic and Scholasticism • “Certain things being stated, something other than what is stated follows of necessity from their being so” • “It would not be possible to assert the premises and to deny the conclusion without contradicting oneself” All men are mortal Socrates is a man Therefore Socrates is mortal

14. Proof of Catholic Doctrine Mary is the mother of Jesus. Jesus is God. Therefore, Mary is the mother of God. • Deductive weakness: Both premises are valid but the deduced conclusion is false = this is not a valid method for determining biblical doctrine • Inductive process identifies the particulars of a passage to come to a general meaning.

15. Calvinism deduced from Syllogisms • Starting point: God’s immutable decrees or sovereignty • Any act contrary to His sovereignty contradicts His sovereignty • God has decreed all events, choices and destinies • Sinners don’t reject God – rather, God has rejected the sinner • God’s decrees of election to salvation are immutable • Was Jonah’s view of God immutable?

16. Calvinism and its Impact on World Missions HOW IMPORTANT IS THE THEOLOGY OF A MISSIONARY? DOES IT MAKE A DIFFERENCE WHAT YOU BELIEVE? HOW DOES YOUR THEOLOGY MOTIVATE YOUR MINISTRY?

17. Total Depravity • All Bible-believers accept that sin ruined man as image-bearer of God and he has received a depraved nature prone to self-centeredness, selfishness and rebellion. • Does this mean “total INABILITY”? “Plum dead” = identical to a corpse Man is totally depraved. A totally depraved man is unable to do anything good Therefore, man is unable to repent and believe the gospel

18. Gift of Faith? Depraved men are unable to believe the gospel But the elect believe the gospel Therefore, the elect must be given the faith in order to believe • The Bible states that man is condemned because he does not believe (Jn 3:18) – How could anyone be condemned for what he could not possible do if given the opportunity? • John 3:19 declares “light is come into the world and men loved (chose) darkness rather than light” • It is not that they cannot; it is because they will not believe

19. Gift of Faith? • Eph 2:8, We are “saved through faith (fem) and this (neut) is not of yourselves, it is a gift (neut) of God; not of works lest any man boast” • Calvinists think of “faith” as a “work”; therefore faith must be a gift. • If “faith” is feminine and “this” and “gift” is neuter gender, they cannot refer to the same thing! • It is not “faith” that is the gift of God, but salvation as a whole (neuter implies a number of words and concepts). • Faith comes by hearing the Word of God – Hebraism meaning “wanting to know and obey” = “to hear” • If we are unable to believe, yet commanded to believe, then faith is like the law, where we are likewise commanded to obey but cannot. Both are meant to condemn? • Faith is a clear understanding of truth and a conscious decision to trust in it fully, even if it is exclusive (claims to be the only truth).

20. Olson’s 8 Questions • Why did Christ bother to witness and persuade the non-elect? • Why should Paul bother to use persuasion at all? • Why did Christ marvel at unbelief? • How can unbelief be judged? • How can we explain degrees of unbelief being judged more severely? • How can demonic activity hinder a direct work of the Spirit? • Why are some classes of people harder to reach than others? • Why does God give the gift of faith to so many Americans and to so few Liberians, Mongolians, Tibetans, Afghans, Iranians, Turks, etc.?

21. Unconditional Election • This is the only solution to total depravity (inability) All men are depraved and totally unable to believe the gospel However, some men are regenerated and believe the gospel Therefore, God must elect which men to regenerate • Augustine equates foreknowledge with predestination of man’s destiny: thus 2 parts: election and reprobation • Calvinist gospel preacher is to preach AS IF any sinner may come but knowing that this cannot be so. • Conflicts between sovereignty and free will are irresolvable – no such problem exists in Scriptures! • The gospel of unlimited grace of God and full pardon of all sins to anyone who will hear and believe, is rendered powerless to save the non-elect. • Parallel lines theory to resolve the man-made conflict: the finite can not understand the infinite we are told.

22. Unconditional ElectionTextual Evidence: Romans • 9:1-5 Seven privileges given to Israel • 9:6-13 Sovereign choice of Isaac over Hagar (Arabs) and Esau (Moabites) to be the people of His choice – Nothing to do with individual salvation • 9:14-18 God’s intervention to protect and bring Israel into the promised land -- Nothing to do with individual salvation • 9:19-21 God’s choices here are national, not individual – now He is electing Gentiles as He had elected Israel but, Nothing to do with individual salvation • 9:22-26 The vessels of wrath are nations (i.e. Israel) and the vessels of mercy (i.e. Gentiles, the “not my people,” v. 25; see 11:25) • 9:27-29 Isaiah refers to temporal persecution of national Israel • 9:30-31 the offering of God’s righteousness to the Gentiles (“vessels of mercy”) by “faith”, contrasted with Israel who attempted to attain righteousness by works. • NOWHERE in this chapter is there any hint of individual election and reprobation.

23. Unconditional ElectionTextual Evidence: Ephesians • 1:4-5 the different concepts of predestination from the Greek or Latin word Predestination in English follows the Latin origin Time of Belief Calvinist Biblicist

24. Limited Atonement God has predestinated the non-elect to eternal damnation If Christ died for such, His death would have been in vain Therefore, Christ could not have died for the non-elect • Yet 1 Jn 2:2 – “He Himself is the propitiation [atoning sacrifice] for our sins, and not only for our sins but also for the whole world” • “the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself a ransom for [on behalf of] all” 1 Tim 2:5 • Logic would conclude that a sacrifice of an infinite God would be likewise INFINITE in offer

25. Irresistible Grace Men are totally depraved. Totally depraved men will resist grace. Therefore, men must be drawn by irresistible grace. • Proof text: Acts 16:14 Lydia “…whose heart the Lord opened, that she attended unto the things which were spoken of Paul” • Note: Lydia was already seeking God: she “worshipped God (v. 14) as did Cornelius (Acts 10:2) -- All who seek for God will find him. • No resistance here! • Parable of the Sower (Matt 13:1-23) focuses on the type of soil (or people): some receptive (fertile), some did not understand (hard wayside road), some choked with this world (weeds and thorns) and some are persecuted (rocky ground) – but the problem is not the sower’s design … as in Calvinism.

26. OrdoSalutis:Regeneration precedes Faith Depraved persons are unable to believe the gospel Only a regenerated person can believe the gospel. Therefore, a person must be regenerated before he or she believes. • Contra Eph 1:13, “And when you heard the word of truth (gospel), - when you believed in Christ (faith) – you were marked with the seal of the promised Holy Spirit.” • Illumination (understanding) is often redefined to mean regeneration (?) • Hearing and understanding the gospel are prerequisites for a evidentiary faith that results in regeneration.

27. Heard, Ro 10:15; Eph 1:13 Understood, Mt 13:15; Ac 8:30 Persuaded, Ac 26:28 Commitment to Believe, and TrustEph 1:13 Obey(Phil 2:12) and Serve(Mt 6:24; 1 Th 1:9 Steps of Divine-Human Encounter Foreknew, prognosis, Ro 8:29 Determinedcounsel, horizo boule, Acts 2:23 Someone was sent, Ro 10:15 Elect (chose), eklektos, 1 Pet 1:2 Someone preached, or announced gospel, Ro 10:15 Predestinate, proorizo, Eph 1:4 Convicts, elecho, Jn 16:8andCalls,kaleo, Rom 8:30 Illuminates, photizo, Heb10:32 Draws, helkuo, Jn 6:44 Regenerates, paliggenesia, Tit 3:5 and Seals, sphragizo Justifies, dikaioo, Ro 3:24 Leads(Isa 48:17),empowers(Ro 15:13), and gifts(1 Co 12:4-7) He Glorifies us and we Glorify Him(Ro 8:30)

28. Perseverance of the Saints • Perseverance is not Preservation • “The believer will persevere in trusting Christ” – “he that endures to the end shall be saved” (Matt 10:22; 24:13) • Reform: “It is utterly wrong to say that a believer is secure quite irrespective of his subsequent life of sin and unfaithfulness” • Therefore, no one can know if he is elect or has the gift of perseverance until he has persevered to the end of his life. The elect exhibit certain signs which accompany salvation At present I exhibit these signs. Therefore, provided I persevere, I am among the elect • Leads to introspection, self-righteousness, legalism and works-based hope for eternity • Regeneration gives power to obey, not a guarantee; • Chastisement passages warn of present consequences; • Judgment passages for believers will determine future status (not presence!)

29. Implication for Missions • Is there hope for man beyond the reach of the gospel? • If one believes in an arbitrary grace election that regenerates a sinner before hearing and understanding the gospel, then this could … must… happen anywhere. • Some hold that General Revelation is all that is needed with regeneration, but faith comes by hearing the Word • Many theologians plead ignorance of what happens to the unengaged people, but few say it is our responsibility. • God is clear: men are lost and condemned until they hear and believe the gospel as described in the Word of God