A Brief Overview of Calvinism

As we begin our venture through the studies of Calvinism, I find it necessary to lay down the foundation of what we are defending and discussing. The description of the blog states that we will be talking not only about Calvinism, but also about Hyper-Calvinism and Arminianism. While this is true, the main topic of discussion will be Calvinism. Since this is the case, I will lay out the five foundational points of the theology behind Calvinism.

These five points, known by most as “TULIP”, sum up the beliefs of every Calvinist. These beliefs are also what set Calvinism apart from other Christian doctrines and teachings, yet they are held very closely by Calvinists everywhere, and they are as follows:

1. Total Depravity
2. Unconditional Election
3. Limited Atonement
4. Irresistible Grace
5. Perseverance of the Saints

For the benefit of those who do not know exactly what these point mean or represent, I will explain each in detail. Although many, many pages could be written concerning each one of individually, I will try to do my best to explain them thoroughly, but keep it short.


TOTAL DEPRAVITY
This is the belief that mankind, after the initial fall, was and is completely and utterly dead in sin. Now when I say completely dead I mean that we are capable of doing nothing in and of ourselves that contributes to our salvation, and nothing that even resembles a good deed without it being tainted by sin.

Calvinists believe that when man fell, it was a complete step into spiritual helplessness. That first sin corrupted man so deeply that it would take the shedding of the innocent blood of a perfect being in order to reverse it.


UNCONDITIONAL ELECTION
Unconditional election is the belief that God, before the foundations of the world, chose certain people to be holy and blameless in His sight. We believe that these chosen people had, in and of themselves, nothing whatsoever to do with this election, but that it was solely Gods divine choice.


LIMITED ATONEMENT
Limited atonement has to be the most controversial of the five points. This is because it is the belief that when Jesus died on the cross, He only had a few, namely the elect, in mind. It is the belief that Jesus did not die for all men, but rather only died for His chosen people.


IRRESISTIBLE GRACE
Irresistible grace is the belief that the people who God had chosen to save do not have the power to resist or deny this calling. It is a the belief that once called by God, man can do nothing else that follow Him.


PERSERVERANCE OF THE SAINTS
The perseverance of the saints is the belief that those whom God has called unto salvation will not and cannot lose that salvation. It is the belief that God’s elect children do not have the ability to lose their own salvation, and that God will not take away the salvation He has already given them.

This is only brief summary of each point. This is why in the following posts you can look forward to further reading an each of the points individually and more in depth.

Thanks for reading!

Renzzy


Coming up next: An in-depth look into Total Depravity