Satan's Big Lie: The Doctrine of Predestination

By Jos Salins

For nearly five hundred years the Doctrine of Predestination as
propounded by John Calvin has held sway over the western Christian
church and its theology. Many of the major protestant denominations
are predominantly Calvinistic.

Is the Doctrine of Predestination Scriptural?
Do the Five Points of Calvinism have sound Scriptural support?

Author Jos Salins carefully examines the Five Points of Calvinism and exposes
the errors in these doctrines and the fact that none of them are supported by Scripture as assumed by Calvinists.

He brings a new understanding of Romans chapter 9 - the chapter which
was fundamental to the formulation of the Doctrine of Predestination by
John Calvin and before him his mentor, St. Augustine of Hippo.

This book is compelling, thoroughly Scriptural and scholarly, yet written in a
style that is readable and understandable by anyone, and does not necessarily
require of the reader a theological background as a prerequisite.

Its content will have a tremendous impact on the Calvinistic world and on
Calvinism as a whole and will shake it to its very foundations, with far
reaching implications.

This is a must read for every thinking Christian.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Xlibris AU
• Release date: Feb 26, 2013
• ISBN: 9781479781270

Jos Salins

Jos Salins (M.A. in Theology), Australian College of Theology, has been in the Christian ministry for forty seven years. He has served as an Evangelist in various countries and as a Pastor in Sydney, Australia. He is an able Bible expositor.

Book preview

Satan’s Big Lie

The Doctrine of Predestination

Jos Salins

Copyright © 2013 by Jos Salins.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.

All the scripture verses quoted are from The Holy Bible, New International Version, 1985, Zondervan Bible Publishers, Grand Rapids, Michigan, USA, unless otherwise mentioned.

Although I would have liked to use gender-specific words, I have used the generic term ‘him’ which could be read as him/her or her/him, whichever the reader prefers, as it would have been tedious to write him/her everywhere when it refers to humans.

Rev. date: 02/21/2013

To order additional copies of this book, contact:

Xlibris Corporation

1-800-618-969

www.Xlibris.com.au

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503075

CONTENTS

Preface

Chapter One: The Doctrine of Predestination

What this doctrine means and its origins.

Chapter Two: Total Depravity

What do Calvinists mean by Total Depravity: The unregenerate person’s inability to do good and what is pleasing to God, and his inability to turn to God in repentance and faith. Both these assumptions refuted and shown as unscriptural.

Chapter Three: Freedom of Choice or Free Will

The Calvinist view stating that a person does not intrinsically have freedom of the will. This view refuted and shown as unscriptural.

Chapter Four: God the Author of Sin?

The deterministic worldview of the Calvinist which makes God the author of sin. Sin and the consequences of it shown as the result of the free choice of humans.

Chapter Five: Unconditional Election

The Calvinist view of Unconditional Election explained. Key verses that are used to support this doctrine shown as wrongly interpreted and used and, therefore, not supporting this doctrine. Those verses correctly interpreted, using generally accepted Hermeneutical principles of interpretation. Romans, Chapter 9, which was principally used by Augustine and Calvin in support of the doctrine of Predestination exegeted and shown not to support this doctrine but to negate it. Romans, Chapters 9-11, exegeted and shown that it is mainly referring to the Jewish problem. The doctrine of Unconditional Election refuted and shown as unscriptural.

Chapter Six: Supralapsarianism and Infralapsarianism

A brief explanation of what these doctrines mean and a critique of it by Bavinck.

Chapter Seven: Repentance and Faith

The Calvinist view that both Repentance and Faith are gifts of God explained. This assumption refuted and shown as unscriptural.

Chapter Eight: Limited Atonement

The Calvinist view of Limited Atonement explained. This assumption refuted and shown as unscriptural.

Chapter Nine: Irresistible Grace

The Calvinistic view of Irresistible Grace explained. This assumption refuted and shown as unscriptural.

Chapter Ten: Perseverance of the Saints

The Calvinist view of Perseverance of the Saints explained. This assumption refuted and shown as unscriptural.

Chapter Eleven: What is the Verdict?

A brief history of the Doctrine of Predestination given. Shown that this doctrine has no scriptural support whatsoever and, therefore, is a false doctrine that needs to be exposed as such and abandoned by the church worldwide.

Notes

DEDICATION

Dedicated to my dear wife Tina

whose help and encouragement has made

this book possible.

PREFACE

For nearly five hundred years, the doctrine of predestination as propounded by the theologian John Calvin has greatly influenced the Western Christian church and its theology.

Calvinistic theology, which is named after this theologian, has been embraced by some of the major branches of the protestant churches such as the Reformed Churches, the Lutherans, Presbyterians, and the Church of England, to name just a few.

Calvinistic doctrine of predestination deeply influences major areas of Calvinistic theology such as the doctrine of God and his attributes, his decrees, the doctrine of man, his nature, the doctrine of Christ’s atonement and redemption, the doctrine of grace, calling, regeneration and conversion, the doctrine regarding faith, repentance, justification, sanctification, and the perseverance of the saints. Therefore, its influence is far-reaching and all-encompassing and covers many major areas of theology.

It has been assumed and believed by Calvinists that the doctrine of predestination is based on clear scriptural evidence and not one that is invented by mere human speculation and ingenuity.

Many serious-thinking Christians as well as non-Christians have an uncomfortableness regarding some aspects of this doctrine as it appears to be in contradiction to many of the clear teachings of scripture. Is the Calvinistic doctrine of predestination clearly supported by scripture, or is it based on a misunderstanding and misinterpretation of scripture? That is the important question on which I have thought about and studied the scriptures for many years of my Christian pilgrimage.

I have extensively read books written by Calvinists as well as non-Calvinists about this important issue. My studies and reading have led me to a conclusion of which I endeavour to share in this book with all Christians throughout the world—the Church universal.

My conclusions will have profound ramifications on Calvinistic theology and on Calvinism as a whole. It should result in a rethinking of the whole of Calvinistic theology and its creeds and articles of faith. Others before me have reached similar conclusions and have written about it, but my exegesis of Romans Chapter 9, brings to light a new aspect in the understanding of that chapter particularly regarding ‘election’, this chapter which has been so fundamental to the formulating of the doctrine of predestination by John Calvin and before him by his mentor Saint Augustine of Hippo. Surprisingly, this aspect of election which I have highlighted has been completely missed or overlooked by both these theologians and by the Calvinists.

In this book, I have examined all the five points of Calvinism and demonstrated that on closer examination and correct interpretations of scripture, applying accepted hermeneutical principles, not one of these have any scriptural support whatsoever. On the contrary, they are based on verses taken out of context and interpreted wrongly. The assumption that the doctrine of predestination is soundly scriptural is profoundly false! Those who go through this book with an open mind and examine the evidence provided will come to the same conclusion. Therefore, I invite you, the reader, to read this book carefully, prayerfully, and with an open mind.

If it is true that this whole doctrine of predestination has no scriptural support, which I believe is the case, then, as I mentioned earlier, it has far-reaching ramifications on the whole of Calvinistic theology. There would have to be a major shift in Christian thinking and theology with far-reaching implications.

It is my sincere hope and prayer that Christians—laypersons and clergy, church leaders, and theologians—would have the courage and will to act on the evidence provided in this book and to bring about the required changes wherever they are needed and whatever their implications and cost, for as Christians, we are to contend for the truth that has been entrusted to us by the Holy Spirit and to guard it against all that is false.

Jos Salins

Blaxland, New South Wales,

Australia

17 January 2013

CHAPTER ONE

The Doctrine of Predestination

Many people are confused, perplexed, and concerned about the Doctrine of Predestination as taught by those who subscribe to the Calvinistic teaching or those who subscribe to the Reformed Theology. Both these groups essentially teach virtually the same regarding the doctrine of predestination. Those who are confused and concerned about this doctrine are not only Christians but also seekers after God, to whom this doctrine is a stumbling block and a barrier to turning to God and faith in Jesus Christ. Even many Christians who accept the Calvinistic teaching concerning predestination have an uneasiness about it and feel that something is not altogether right about this doctrine as they consider it in reference to the character of God as revealed in the Bible.

Primarily, it is because this doctrine as promulgated by Calvinists distorts the character of God and portrays him as an unloving, arbitrary, capricious, and unjust monster, and not the God who is portrayed in the Bible—a God who is loving, compassionate, and absolutely just, showing no partiality.

Recently, a friend of mine who partly accepts the Calvinistic doctrine of predestination said that this doctrine is leading him more and more towards fatalism, although he knows that fatalism is not an option for a Christian. I am not surprised at my friend’s statement, for the Calvinistic doctrine concerning salvation and of God inevitably and logically would lead a thinking person to become fatalistic.

My intention in writing this book is to help those who are confused about this doctrine, to point out the errors concerning this Calvinistic doctrine, and to share what the Bible teaches about this important issue. It is also written for those who subscribe to the Calvinistic system of theology, hoping perchance on reading this book they would reconsider their views in the light of the clear teachings of scripture.

To have a right concept of the character of God is of paramount importance. A wrong concept of God will result in wrong thinking and behaviour. People who have fashioned a god after their own likeness will think of him as one who can be deceived, hoodwinked, bribed, influenced, or manipulated as humans can be. Or one could view God as a harmless old grandfather, like a soft, doting old man who would not discipline his grandchildren. Or one could view God as an angry, harsh, capricious dictator ready to come down hard on any who would commit the slightest mistake and one who is arbitrary in his dealings with humans. Or further still, one could view God as one who is distant and unconcerned, who would not involve himself with human affairs as the Deists think of God. All these wrong concepts of God have their inevitable consequences in one’s thinking and behaviour. A person would try to appease and placate an angry God so that this god would not strike him down or cause evil or harm to befall him. Or one would try to bribe the god who could be bribed to avoid judgement on oneself. Praying to the so-called saints or to Mary is based on the concept that on a human level we know that so often, it is not what you know but whom you know that counts. Therefore, some think that this god whom they have fashioned can be influenced by those they consider to be close to him and that he will be more prone to listen to them if they put in a good word on one’s behalf.

All these and other misconceptions of the character of God lead to wrong practices and thinking. Most often, as in Greek and Hindu mythology, many end up with gods and goddesses with human-like character.

The God as revealed in the Bible is very different in character. He is God and not a human.

He is a God of justice and righteousness. He is love, light, and truth as revealed by Jesus.

He is one who is compassionate, longsuffering, and one who cares for us. He is a God who has revealed himself to humans and seeks to be in a loving relationship with us.

We can only know the character of the true God as far as he has revealed it to us. To go beyond that would be speculative and highly suspicious and dangerous. Unfortunately, people have done exactly that—even Christian theologians—and have erred and spawned misleading and erroneous doctrines. These have caused great damage to the church and have misled countless people of many generations. One such false doctrine is the doctrine of predestination as taught by Augustine of Hippo and his followers and then later during the Reformation by John Calvin who was one of the theologians who popularised it. Both these greatly influential theologians have had a tremendous impact on the thinking of Christians for many centuries past and still do today. My thesis is that their teaching on this doctrine is unbiblical and, therefore, false and misleading.

If you are a lover of truth and are desirous in obeying the truth that God has revealed in his Word, then please read this book with an open mind and hear me out.

We must be like the Berean Jews of old, who, when listening to Paul who brought them a message proclaiming that Jesus was the promised Messiah foretold in the OT, although this message was new and disturbing in some ways to them, they did not close their minds and reject Paul’s words out of hand. That is what the Thessalonian Jews had done. They had not given Paul a fair hearing. On the contrary, these honourable Berean Jews opened their scriptures to see whether Paul’s preaching was in line with the scriptures or not (Acts 17: 11-12). That is the right approach.

Augustine, Bishop of Hippo (354-430)

Aurelius Augustinus, better known as St. Augustine, was the bishop of the Numidian port city of Hippo Regius on the North African coast.

Augustine is, perhaps, the most influential theologian in Christian history, particularly that of the West. Much of medieval theology has been termed ‘Augustinian’. The Reformers like Martin Luther, Zwingli, and John Calvin were greatly influenced by his writings. Martin Luther, as we know, was an Augustinian monk.

It was primarily Augustine who promulgated the doctrine of predestination, for prior to him, we do not find this doctrine taught by the apostles or in the writings of the early Church Fathers.

John Calvin (1509-1564)

John Calvin was a French theologian who was greatly influenced by Augustine’s teachings. He became the chief pastor of the church at Geneva and continued in that position till the end of his life. Calvin took Augustine’s doctrine of predestination and systematised it and even took it further and advanced the doctrine of double predestination. According to this doctrine, he wrote that God had predestined some to be saved and others to be lost, and this, unconditionally.

He wrote in his Institutes of the Christian Religion, ‘The predestination by which God adopts some to the hope of life, and adjudges others to eternal death, no man who would be thought pious ventures simply to deny; but it is greatly cavilled at, especially by those who make prescience its cause. We, indeed, ascribe both prescience and predestination to God; but we say that it is absurd to make the latter subordinate to the former.’ ¹

He goes on further to state, ‘By predestination we mean the eternal decree of God, by which he determined with himself whatever he wished to happen with regard to every man. All are not created on equal terms, but some are preordained to eternal life, others to eternal damnation; and, accordingly, as each has been created for one or other of these ends, we say that he has been predestined to life or to death.’ ²

He wrote, ‘We say, then, that Scripture clearly proves this much, that God by his eternal and immutable counsel determined once for all those whom it was his pleasure one day to admit to salvation, and those whom, on the other hand, it was his pleasure to doom to destruction.’ ³

He calls this God’s ‘incomprehensible judgment’.⁴

Central to the theological system of Calvinism are these five cardinal doctrines:

Total Depravity

Unconditional Election

Limited Atonement

Irresistible Grace

Perseverance of the Elect

Calvinists use the acronym TULIP for these five points of Calvinism. It must be mentioned that not all Calvinists subscribe to all these five points. For example, many moderate Calvinists do not subscribe to the doctrine of Limited Atonement and, therefore, call themselves Four Point Calvinists. John Calvin himself did not subscribe to the doctrine of Limited Atonement. This was a subsequent addition by his disciples.

Moreover, I want to point out that Calvinism or Reformed theology cannot be reduced to just these five doctrines but embraces a whole lot of other important doctrines. My purpose in this book, however, is to focus on just the Doctrine of Predestination and the five points associated with it, which most Calvinists hold and propagate.

Loraine Boettner in his book The Reformed Doctrine of Predestination wrote that the five points of Calvinism is a system, a ‘simple, harmonious, self-consistent system,’ and ‘prove any one of them false and the whole system must be abandoned.’ ⁵

D. Broughton Knox, the former principal of the Moore Theological College in Sydney, Australia, wrote in his book Thirty-Nine Articles, ‘Predestination is the sheet anchor of the doctrine of grace’. This is illustrated by the Epistle to the Romans in which St. Paul establishes that our salvation rests on God’s grace exclusively. He cites the two twins, Esau and Jacob, as the classic example, commenting, ‘Though they were not yet born and had done nothing, either good or bad, in order that God’s purpose of election might continue, not because of works but because of his call, she (Rebecca) was told, The elder will serve the younger (Rom. 9: 11-12, RSV). So in the Thirty-Nine Articles, the doctrine of election is fundamental to the sovereignty of grace.’⁶

First, we need to understand clearly what John Calvin and his followers mean by each of these five points of Calvinism. In order to do that, it is best to quote what Calvin and some of the leading Calvinist theologians themselves wrote about their belief concerning each of these five points. This will avoid the accusation that I am portraying a caricature of Calvinist beliefs, for that is not my purpose.

I will then proceed to examine these teachings in the light of the scriptures to see if these doctrines are scriptural or otherwise. I will also quote other eminent theologians who are non-Calvinists to share what their views are on these Calvinistic doctrines.

CHAPTER TWO

Total Depravity

First, we will consider the Calvinistic doctrine of Total Depravity.

Calvinism teaches that at creation, human beings were basically good in their intrinsic nature, endowed with free will, beauty of body and soul, reason, and moral excellence.¹

The Fall, however, corrupted every part and faculty of the humans. As Calvin stated, after the Fall, ‘no part is free from the infection of sin’.²

John Stott had a worldwide ministry as a Bible expositor, mission leader, and author. He was Rector Emeritus of All Souls Church, Langham Place, London. Stott, a Calvinist, elaborates on this in the context of Romans 3: 10-18. He wrote, that these ‘O.T. verses teach the pervasiveness of sin. For sin affects every part of our human constitution, every faculty and function, including our mind, emotions, sexuality, conscience and will. In verses 13-17 there is a deliberate listing of different parts of the body. Thus, their throats are open graves, full of corruption and infection; their tongues practise deceit, instead of being dedicated to the truth; their lips spread poison like snakes; their mouths are filled with bitter curses; their feet are swift in the pursuit of violence, and scatter ruin and misery in their path, instead of walking in the way of peace; and their eyes are looking in the wrong direction; they do not reverence God.

These bodily limbs and organs were created and given us so that through them we might serve people and glorify God. Instead, they are used to harm people and in rebellion against God. This is the biblical doctrine of total depravity, which I suspect is repudiated only by those who misunderstand it. It has never meant that human beings are as depraved as they could possibly be. Such a notion is manifestly absurd and untrue, and is contradicted by our everyday observation. Not all human beings are drunkards, felons, adulterers or murderers.

Besides, Paul has shown how some people sometimes are able by nature to obey the law (Rom. 2: 14, 27). No, the totality of our corruption refers to its extent (twisting and tainting every part of our humanness), not to its degree (depraving every part of us absolutely). As Dr J. I. Packer has put it succinctly, on the one hand no one is as bad as he or she might be, while on the other no action of ours is as good as it should be.’ ³

John Calvin himself affirms that the fall did not destroy the image of God in humans but only marred it. Humans did not lose the excellent natural gifts God had bestowed on us.

He wrote, ‘Whenever we come upon these matters in secular writers, let that admirable light of truth shining in them teach us that the mind of man, though fallen and perverted from its wholeness, is nevertheless clothed and ornamented with God’s excellent gifts. If we regard the Spirit of God as the sole fountain of truth, we shall neither reject the truth itself nor despise it wherever it shall appear, unless we wish to dishonour the Spirit of God. For by holding the gifts of the Spirit in such slight esteem, we condemn and reproach the Spirit himself. What then? Shall we deny that the truth shone upon the ancient jurists who established civic order and discipline with such great equity? Shall we say that the philosophers were blind in their fine observations and artful description of nature? Shall we say that those men were devoid of understanding who conceived the art of disputation and taught us to speak reasonably? Shall we say that