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The Doctrines of Grace - by Christopher Blum

T.U.L.I.P. - The Doctrines of Grace

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A look at the doctrines of grace smothered in Scripture and commented on by Mr. Christopher Blum.

Not everyone believes in grace. Many cheapen grace. Some (most) do not take grace as it is – pure merciful grace – but desire to to overshadow that grace with their own works. Works get in the way of grace and rob God of His glory. Grace must remain grace, true grace, if it is to be praised and loved. God is gracious. Everyone would admit that, but most do not stand up to the Scriptural definitions of grace. How gracious is YOUR God? The following study is an overview of what we call the doctrines of grace. It is a happy reminder that one cannot get to heaven by works, and that God alone is the Saviour through His beloved, the Lord Jesus Christ.

Be sure to take time to read the footnotes listed as they appear through the document. These are comments by Mr. Blum to be read.

CMM, December 17, 2004

TOTAL DEPRAVITY (or Radical Corruption) asserts that because of the Fall, man’s nature was so drastically affected by sin that he in himself is utterly incapable of believing the gospel or lifting a finger to do God’s will. That is not due to God exerting some force to keep him hardened, but simply due to the desperately corrupt nature of his own heart and will, making him totally blind and deaf to the things of God. Because man’s will is not free—for it is in bondage to his evil nature—he will never, and in fact can never, choose the goodness of God over the sinful desires of the flesh. Thus, even if the Holy Spirit were to give man much assistance and help to overcome his sinful nature, see the light and choose the truth, if any part of that changing-process were left up to man with his natural will, he would be unable to repent.

UNCONDITIONAL ELECTION (or Sovereign Election) asserts that from eternity past, God the Father chose certain individuals from every tongue, tribe, nation and generation of humanity to redeem—the elect—and passed over the rest of mankind—the reprobate. His selection of specific people was not, in any way, based on or related to a foreknowledge of any future faith, repentance or actions of theirs. Being completely independent of any characteristics of the people, God’s choice was rooted entirely in His sovereign, transcendent, perfect will, the nature or specifics of which the Bible leaves as a complete mystery to us. However, all those whom God lovingly predestined to come to salvation will surely and absolutely be brought so through the death of Christ and the regeneration of the Holy Spirit.

LIMITED ATONEMENT (or Definite Atonement) asserts that Christ’s death on the Cross had only the elect in mind, and was intended to save them alone. While the Atonement was infinite in value—for, since even one sin is an infinite abomination against God, only an Atonement of infinite value could put away any sin at all—that value was reserved for the elect alone, and the blood Christ shed on the Cross was offered for their sins alone. Not even a potential application of it was, in any sense, ever made to the rest of mankind; in other words, when Christ was shedding His blood on the Cross, he never thought of his suffering with regard to anyone but those whom the Father had elected to be redeemed by it. It is thus incorrect to say that Christ died to save anyone who is now in hell, or that the Father ever intended for Christ’s blood to even try to cleanse those people. Furthermore, not only was Christ’s Atonement designed for, and given to, only the elect; it also actually secured salvation for them, and purchased all the means to such, including their faith and repentance, thereby guaranteeing their salvation. Thus, the Atonement did not merely offer its objects the opportunity to be redeemed, but it wholly and effectively redeemed them!

IRRESISTIBLE GRACE (or Effectual Grace) asserts that when the external call to salvation is made, and the gospel is proclaimed either through the spoken word or the silent reading of Scripture, the Holy Spirit extends a special inward call to the elect people that God wishes to save at that particular time. This inward call is called regeneration or the new birth, and, far more than being mere assistance in helping its objects believe, it is an entire reconstruction of their very natures and intrinsic wills, transforming them into, as the Bible puts it, “slaves to righteousness” rather than “slaves to sin.” It is a divine opening of their eyes—God revealing their sin and His splendor to their hearts, splendor which they would otherwise never have sought, but which, once they see, they can never stop desiring and pursuing. Thus, the Holy Spirit’s work is in no way dependant upon man’s cooperation for success, for man in his corrupt nature cannot willingly cooperate, and that is the very thing the Holy Spirit is changing in him. In other words, while the outward call of the gospel can be resisted, this inward call of the Spirit cannot; it is always wholly effectual in accomplishing its purpose of instantaneously transforming the nature of its recipients from evil to good, so that it inevitably causes them to joyfully and willingly repent of their deep sin and choose Christ. Thus, it is God’s choice of the sinner, and not the sinner’s of God, that ultimately and fully causes salvation, since the sinner’s very willingness to put faith in Christ is solely a gift from God that was purchased at the Cross.

PERSEVERANCE OF THE SAINTS (or Preservation of the Saints) asserts that once the Holy Spirit regenerates people, and they place their trust in Christ, they are eternally kept in their state of salvation by God. For when they were unregenerate, their wills were held captive to sin, but are now held captive to righteousness by God. And He faithfully preserves all whom He set out to save and drew to Him. Likewise, whenever anyone apparently “receives Christ,” but later falls away and dies in that state, they were never truly saved at all—for anyone whom the Holy Spirit calls was predestined by the Father and atoned for by the Son, and thus is sealed with God’s promise of eternal life. Furthermore, in addition to eternally preserving the salvation of His elect, God confirms that salvation by the process of sanctification, wherein the Spirit continually conforms all believers to Christ more and more as their life progresses. Thus, the Father’s election, the Son’s atonement and the Spirit’s regeneration are all confirmed to believers by the witness of their own changed hearts and minds, and by the production of good works and fruit.

Scriptures Supporting the Doctrines of Grace, or the Five Points of Calvinism (T.U.L.I.P.)[1]

Total Depravity (or Radical Corruption)
Genesis 6:5 (emphasis mine) “The LORD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intention of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.”

Job 15:15-16 (emphasis mine) “Behold, God puts no trust in his holy ones, and the heavens are not pure in his sight; how much less [God puts trust in] one who is abominable and corrupt, a man who drinks injustice like water!”

Psalm 14:2-4 “The LORD looks down from heaven on the children of man, to see if there are any who understand, who seek after God. They have all turned aside; together they have become corrupt; there is none who does good, not even one. Have they no knowledge, all the evildoers who eat up my people as they eat bread and do not call upon the LORD?”

Psalm 51:5 “Behold, I [David] was brought forth in iniquity, and in sin did my mother conceive me.”

Psalm 58:3 “The wicked are estranged from the womb; they go astray from birth, speaking lies.”

Ecclesiastes 8:11 (emphasis mine) “Because the sentence against an evil deed is not executed speedily, the heart of the children of man is fully set to do evil.”

Isaiah 64:6-7 (emphasis mine) “We [humans] have all become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous deeds are like a polluted garment. We all fade like a leaf, and our iniquities, like the wind, take us away. There is no one who calls upon your [God’s] name, who rouses himself to take hold of you; for you have hidden your face from us and have made us melt in the hand of our iniquities.”

Jeremiah 13:23 “Can the Ethiopian change his skin or the leopard his spots? Then also [in the same way] you can do good who are accustomed to do evil.”

Jeremiah 17:9 “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it?”

Job 14:4 “Who can bring a clean thing out of an unclean? There is not one.”

John 3:3 “Jesus answered him, ‘Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again [or “born from above”] he cannot see the kingdom of God.’”[2]

John 6:44 (emphasis mine) “No one can come to me [Jesus] unless the Father who sent me draws him. And I will raise him up on the last day.”

John 6:65 “And he [Jesus] said, ‘This is why I told you that no one can come to me unless it is granted him by the Father.’”

John 8:34 “Jesus answered them [the Jews who had believed in Him], ‘Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who commits sin is a slave to sin.’”[3]

John 8:47 (emphasis mine) “Whoever is of God hears the words of God. The reason why you [Jews] do not hear them is that you are not of God.”

John 12:37-41 (emphasis mine) “Though he [Jesus] had done so many signs before them, they still did not believe in him, so that the word spoken by the prophet Isaiah might be fulfilled: ‘Lord, who has believed what he heard from us, and to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?’ Therefore they could not believe. For again Isaiah said, ‘He [God] has blinded their eyes and hardened their heart, lest they see with their eyes, and understand with their heart, and turn, and I would heal them.’ Isaiah said these things because he saw his [God’s] glory and spoke of him.”

Romans 3:10-12, 18 (emphasis mine) “As it is written: ‘None is righteous, no, not one; no one understands; no one seeks for God. All have turned aside; together they have become worthless; no one does good, not even one…There is no fear of God before their eyes.’”

Romans 8:7-8 (emphasis mine) “For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God’s law; indeed, it cannot. Those who are in the flesh cannot please God.”

Romans 11:7-8 (emphasis mine) “What then? Israel failed to obtain what it was seeking. The elect obtained it, but the rest were hardened, as it is written, ‘God gave them [left them with] a spirit of stupor, eyes that would not see and ears that would not hear, down to this very day.’”

1 Corinthians 1:18 (emphasis mine) “For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.”

1 Corinthians 2:14 “The natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned.”

1 Corinthians 12:3 “…no one can say ‘Jesus is Lord’ except in the Holy Spirit.”

2 Corinthians 3:4-5 (emphasis mine) “Such is the confidence that we have through Christ toward God. Not that we are sufficient in ourselves to claim anything [including faith] as coming from us, but our sufficiency is from God.”

2 Corinthians 4:3-4 “And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled only to those who are perishing. In their case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.”

Ephesians 2:1-3 (emphasis mine) “And you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience—among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind.”

Colossians 2:13 (emphasis mine) “And you, who were dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made alive together with him, having forgiven us all our trespasses.”

Titus 1:15 (emphasis mine) “To the pure, all things are pure, but to the defiled and unbelieving, nothing is pure; but both their minds and their consciences are defiled.”

Titus 3:3 (emphasis mine) “For we ourselves were once foolish, disobedient, led astray, slaves to various passions and pleasures, passing our days in malice and envy, hated by others and hating one another.”[4]

Unconditional Election (or Sovereign Election)
Job 42:2 (emphasis mine) “I [Job] know that you [God] can do all things, and that no purpose of yours can be thwarted.”[5]

Psalm 22:9-10 “Yet you [God] are he who took me [David] from the womb; you made me trust you at my mother’s breasts. On you was I cast from my birth, and from my mother’s womb you have been my God.”

Psalm 65:4 (emphasis mine) “Blessed is the one you [God] choose and bring near, to dwell in your courts! We shall be satisfied with the goodness of your house, the holiness of your temple.”

Psalm 71:6 (emphasis mine) “Upon you [God] I have leaned from before my birth; you are he who took me from my mother’s womb. My praise is continually of you.”

Psalm 139:16 (emphasis mine) “Your [God’s] eyes saw my [David’s] unformed substance; in your book were written, every one of them, the days that were formed for me, when as yet there were none of them.”[6]

Isaiah 43:10 (emphasis mine) “‘You are my witnesses,’ declares the LORD, ‘and my servant whom I have chosen, that [not because] you may know and believe me and understand that I am he. Before me no god was formed, nor shall there be any after me.’”

Isaiah 45:4 (emphasis mine) “For the sake of my [God’s] servant Jacob, and Israel my chosen, I call you by your name, I name you, though you do not know me.”

Jeremiah 1:4-5 “Now the word of the LORD came to me [Jeremiah], saying, ‘Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you; I appointed you a prophet to the nations.’”

Matthew 20:15 (emphasis mine) “Am I [the master of a house] not allowed to do what I choose with what belongs to me? Or do you begrudge my generosity? So the last will be first, and the first last.”[7]

Matthew 22:14 “For many are called, but few are chosen.”

Matthew 24:21-22 (emphasis mine) “For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been from the beginning of the world until now, no, and never will be. And if those days had not been cut short, no human being would be saved. But for the sake of the elect those days will be cut short.”

Luke 1:14-15 “And you [Zechariah] will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his [John the Baptist’s] birth, for he will be great before the Lord. And he must not drink wine or strong drink, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit, even from his mother’s womb.”

Luke 19:9-10 (emphasis mine) “And Jesus said to him [Zacchaeus], ‘Today salvation has come to this house, since [not so that] he also is a son of Abraham [one of the elect]. For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost [sons of Abraham].’”

John 8:47 “Whoever is of God hears the words of God. The reason why you [Jews] do not hear them is that you are not of God.”

John 10:25-26 (emphasis mine) “Jesus answered them [Jews], ‘I told you, and you do not believe. The works that I do in my Father’s name bear witness about me, but you do not believe because you are not part of my flock.’”

John 15:16 (emphasis mine) “You [the disciples] did not choose me [Jesus], but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide, so that whatever you ask the Father in my name, he may give it to you.”

Acts 13:48 (emphasis mine) “And when the Gentiles heard this, they began rejoicing and glorifying the word of the Lord, and as many as were appointed to eternal life believed [not vice-versa].”

Acts 22:14 (emphasis mine) “And he [Ananias] said, ‘The God of our fathers appointed you [Paul] to know his will, to see the Righteous One, and to hear a voice from his mouth.’”

Romans 8:29-30 (emphasis mine) “For those whom he [God] foreknew[8] he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified.”

Romans 9:11, 14-16, 18-24 “Though they [Jacob and Esau] 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…What shall we say then? Is there injustice on God’s part? By no means! For he says to Moses, ‘I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion.’ So then it depends not on human will or exertion [Greek “not of him who wills or runs”], but on God, who has mercy…So then he has mercy on whomever he wills, and he hardens whomever he wills. You will say to me then, ‘Why does he still find fault? For who can resist his will?’ But who are you, O man, to answer back to God? Will what is molded say to its molder, ‘Why have you made me like this?’ Has the potter no right over the clay, to make out of the same lump one vessel for honored use and another for dishonorable use? What if God, desiring to show his wrath and to make known his power, has endured with much patience vessels of wrath prepared for destruction, in order to make known the riches of his glory for vessels of mercy, which he has prepared beforehand for glory—even us whom he has called, not from the Jews only but also from the Gentiles?”

Romans 11:5-6 (emphasis mine) “So too at the present time there is a remnant, chosen by grace. But if it [the choosing] is by grace, it is no longer on the basis of works; otherwise grace would no longer be grace.”

Galatians 1:15-16 (emphasis mine) “But when he who had set me [Paul] apart before I was born, and who called me by his grace, was pleased to reveal his Son to me, in order that I might preach him among the Gentiles, I did not immediately consult with anyone.”

Ephesians 1:3-6 (emphasis mine) “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. In love he predestined us for adoption through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will, to the praise of his glorious grace, with which he has blessed us in the Beloved.”

Ephesians 1:11-12 (emphasis mine) “In him [God] we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to the purpose of him who works all things according to the counsel of his will, so that [not because] we who were the first to hope in Christ might be to the praise of his glory.”

1 Thessalonians 1:4-5 (emphasis mine) “For we know, brothers loved by God, that he has chosen you, because our gospel came to you not only in word, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit and with full conviction. You know what kind of men we proved to be among you for your sake.”[9]

2 Thessalonians 2:13-14 (emphasis mine) “But we ought always to give thanks to God for you, brothers beloved by the Lord, because God chose you as the firstfruits to be saved, through sanctification by the Spirit and belief in the truth. To this [sanctification by the Spirit and belief in the truth] he called you through our gospel, so that [not because] you may obtain the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ”

2 Timothy 1:9 “Who [God] saved us and called us to [or “with”] a holy calling, not because of our works but because of his own purpose and grace, which he gave us in Christ Jesus before the ages began.”

Hebrews 1:14 “Are they [angels] not all ministering spirits sent out to serve for the sake of those who are to inherit salvation?”

James 2:5 (emphasis mine) “Listen, my beloved brothers, has God not chosen those who are poor in the world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom, which he has promised to those who love him?”[10]

1 Peter 2:8 “…They [those who do not believe] stumble because they disobey the word, as they were destined to do.”

1 Peter 2:9 (emphasis mine) “But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that [not because] you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.”

Limited Atonement (or Definite Atonement)
Isaiah 53:12 (emphasis mine) “Therefore I will divide him [Jesus] a portion with the many, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong, because he poured out his soul to death and was numbered with the transgressors; yet he bore the sin of many, and makes intercession for the transgressors.”[11]

Luke 19:9-10 (emphasis mine) “And Jesus said to him [Zacchaeus], ‘Today salvation has come to this house, since [not so that] he also is a son of Abraham [one of the elect]. For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost [sons of Abraham].’”

John 5:21 (emphasis mine) “For as the Father raises the dead and gives them life, so also the Son gives life to whom he will.”

John 11:52 “And [Jesus would die] not for the nation only, but also to gather into one the children of God who are scattered abroad.”

John 17:1-2 (emphasis mine) “When Jesus had spoken these words, he lifted up his eyes to heaven, and said, ‘Father, the hour has come; glorify your Son that the Son may glorify you, since you have given him authority over all flesh, to give eternal life to all whom you have given him.’”

John 17:9, 20 “I [Jesus] am praying for them. I am not praying for the world but for those whom you [Father] have given me, for they are yours…I do not ask for these only, but also for those who will believe in me through their word.”[12]

John 17:19 (emphasis mine) “And for their [those the Father has given Him] sake I [Jesus] consecrate myself [or “I set myself apart” or “I sanctify myself”], that they also may be sanctified in truth.”[13]

Acts 5:31 “God exalted him [Jesus] at his right hand as Leader and Savior, to give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins.”[14]

Romans 5:9-10 (emphasis mine) “Since, therefore, we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God. For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life.”[15]

Romans 8:32-34 “He [God] who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things. Who shall bring any charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies. Who is to condemn? Christ Jesus is the one who died—more than that, who was raised—who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us.”

1 Corinthians 1:30 (emphasis mine) “He [God] is the source of your life in Christ Jesus, whom God made our wisdom and our righteousness and sanctification and redemption.”

Ephesians 5:25-27 (emphasis mine) “Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her, that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, so that he might present the church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish.”[16]

Titus 2:14 “Who [Jesus] gave himself for us [Christians] to redeem us from all lawlessness and to purify for himself a people for his own possession who are zealous for good works.”

Titus 3:5-7 (emphasis mine) “He [God] saved us [Christians], not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that being justified by his grace we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life.”[17]

Hebrews 2:14-17 (emphasis mine) “Since therefore the children share in flesh and blood, he [Jesus] himself likewise partook of the same things, that through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil, and deliver all those [all those God had given Him, for the context is speaking exclusively of them] who through fear of death were subject to lifelong slavery. For surely it is not angels that he helps, but he helps the offspring of Abraham [the elect]. Therefore [to help the offspring of Abraham] he had to be made like his brothers in every respect, so that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in the service of God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people.”

Hebrews 9:12 (emphasis mine) “He [Jesus] entered once for all into the holy places, not by means of the blood of goats and calves but by means of his own blood, thus securing an eternal redemption.”

Hebrews 9:14 “How much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without blemish to God, purify our [Christians’] conscience from dead works to serve the living God.”

Hebrews 9:15 (emphasis mine) “Therefore he [Jesus] is the mediator of a new covenant, so that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance, since a death has occurred that redeems them from the transgressions committed under the first covenant.”

Hebrews 10:14 “For by a single offering he [Jesus] has perfected for all time those who are being sanctified.”

1 Peter 1:1-2 (emphasis mine) “Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, To those who are elect exiles of the dispersion in Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia, according to the foreknowledge[18] of God the Father, in the sanctification of the Spirit, for obedience to Jesus Christ and for sprinkling with his blood: May grace and peace be multiplied to you.”[19]

1 Peter 1:20-21 (emphasis mine) “He [Jesus] was foreknown before the foundation of the world but was made manifest in the last times for your sake, who through him are believers in God, who raised him from the dead and gave him glory, so that your faith and hope are in God.”[20]

1 John 5:20 (emphasis mine) “And we know that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding, so that [not “because”] we may know him who is true; and we are in him who is true, in his Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God and eternal life.”[21]

Revelation 5:9-10 (emphasis mine) “And they [the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders in Heaven] sang a new song, saying, ‘Worthy are you [Jesus] to take the scroll and to open its seals, for you were slain, and by your blood you ransomed people for God from every tribe and language and people and nation, and you have made them a kingdom and priests to our God, and they shall reign on the earth.’”[22]

Revelation 13:8 (emphasis mine) “And all who dwell on earth will worship it [the beast], everyone whose name has not been written before the foundation of the world in the book of life of the Lamb that was slain.”[23]

Irresistible Grace (or Effectual Grace)
Deuteronomy 30:6, 8 (emphasis mine) “And the LORD your God will circumcise your heart and the heart of your offspring, so that [not because] you will love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul, that [not because] you may live…And you shall again obey the voice of the LORD and keep all his commandments that I command you today.”

Deuteronomy 29:4 “But to this day the LORD has not given you [the people of Israel in Moses’ time] a heart to understand or eyes to see or ears to hear.”

Job 31:4 “Does not he [God] see my [Job’s] ways and number all my steps?”

Job 42:2 (emphasis mine) “I [Job] know that you [God] can do all things, and that no purpose of yours can be thwarted.”[24]

Psalm 22:9-10 “Yet you [God] are he who took me [David] from the womb; you made me trust you at my mother’s breasts. On you was I cast from my birth, and from my mother’s womb you have been my God.”

Psalm 65:4 (emphasis mine) “Blessed is the one you [God] choose and bring near, to dwell in your courts! We shall be satisfied with the goodness of your house, the holiness of your temple.”

Proverbs 16:9 “The heart of a man plans his way, but the LORD establishes his steps.”

Isaiah 45:3-6 (emphasis mine) “I [God] will give you [Israel] the treasures of darkness and the hoards in secret places, that [not because] you may know that it is I, the LORD, the God of Israel, who call you by your name. For the sake of my servant Jacob, and Israel my chosen, I call you by your name, I name you, though you do not know me. I am the LORD, and there is no other, besides me there is no God; I equip you, though you do not know me, that [not because] people may know, from the rising of the sun and from the west, that there is none besides me; I am the LORD, and there is no other.”

Isaiah 55:10-11 “For as the rain and snow come down from heaven and do not return there but water the earth, making it bring forth and sprout, giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater, so shall my [God’s] word be that goes out from my mouth; it shall not return to me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose, and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it.”

Ezekiel 36:25-28 “I [God] will sprinkle clean water on you [Israel], and you shall be clean from all your uncleannesses, and from all your idols I will cleanse you. And I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you. And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes and be careful to obey my rules. You shall dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers, and you shall be my people, and I will be your God.”

Daniel 4:35 “All the inhabitants of the earth are accounted as nothing, and he [God] does according to his will among the host of heaven and among the inhabitants of the earth; and none can stay his hand or say to him, ‘What have you done?’”

Matthew 11:25-27 (emphasis mine) “At that time Jesus declared, ‘I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that you have hidden these things from the wise and understanding and revealed them to little children; yes, Father, for such was your gracious will. All things have been handed over to me by my Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.’”[25]

Matthew 16:15-17 (emphasis mine) “He said to them, ‘But who do you say that I am?’ Simon Peter replied, ‘You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.’ And Jesus answered him, ‘Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven.’”

Luke 8:10 (emphasis mine) “He [Jesus] said, ‘To you [the disciples] it has been given to know the secrets of the kingdom of God, but for others they are in parables, so that “seeing they may not see, and hearing they may not understand.”’”[26]

John 1:12-13 (emphasis mine) “But to all who did receive him [Jesus], who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.”

John 3:7-8 “Do not marvel that I [Jesus] said to you [Nicodemus], ‘You must be born again.’ The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.”

John 3:27 “John [the Baptist] answered, ‘A person cannot receive even one thing unless it is given him from heaven.’”

John 6:37 (emphasis mine) “All that the Father gives me [Jesus] will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never cast out.”

John 6:44-45 (emphasis mine) “No one can come to me [Jesus] unless the Father who sent me draws him. And I will raise him up on the last day. It is written in the Prophets, ‘And they will all be taught by God.’ Everyone who has heard and learned from the Father comes to me.”

John 8:47 (emphasis mine) “Whoever is of God hears the words of God. The reason why you [Jews] do not hear them is that you are not of God.”

John 10:16 (emphasis mine) “And I [Jesus] have other sheep that are not of this fold. I must bring them also, and they will listen to my voice. So there will be one flock, one shepherd.”

John 10:25-26 (emphasis mine) “Jesus answered them [Jews], ‘I told you, and you do not believe. The works that I do in my Father’s name bear witness about me, but you do not believe because you are not part of my flock.’”

Acts 2:38-39 (emphasis mine) “And Peter said to them [men in Judea and in Jerusalem], ‘Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the promise is for you and for your children and for all who are far off, everyone whom the Lord our God calls to himself.’”

Acts 11:18 (emphasis mine) “When they [the apostles and the brothers] heard these things they fell silent. And they glorified God, saying, ‘Then to the Gentiles also God has granted repentance that leads to life.’”

Acts 13:48 (emphasis mine) “And when the Gentiles heard this, they began rejoicing and glorifying the word of the Lord, and as many as were appointed to eternal life believed [not vice-versa].”

Acts 16:14 (emphasis mine) “One who heard us [Christians] was a woman named Lydia, from the city of Thyatira, a seller of purple goods, who was a worshiper of God. The Lord opened her heart to pay attention to what was said by Paul.”

Acts 18:27-28 (emphasis mine) “And when he [Apollos] wished to cross to Achaia, the brothers encouraged him and wrote to the disciples to welcome him. When he arrived, he greatly helped those who through grace had believed, for he powerfully refuted the Jews in public, showing by the Scriptures that the Christ was Jesus.” [27]

Romans 1:1, 6-7 (emphasis mine) “Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God… including you who are called to belong to Jesus Christ, To all those in Rome who are loved by God and called to be saints: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.”

Romans 8:14 “For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God.”

Romans 8:29-30 (emphasis mine) “For those whom he [God] foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified.”

Romans 9:16 “So then it depends not on human will or exertion [Greek “not of him who wills or runs”], but on God, who has mercy.”

Romans 10:20 “Then Isaiah is so bold as to say, ‘I [God] have been found by those who did not seek me; I have shown myself to those who did not ask for me.’”

Romans 11:7-8 (emphasis mine) “What then? Israel failed to obtain what it was seeking. The elect obtained it, but the rest were hardened, as it is written, ‘God gave them [left them with] a spirit of stupor, eyes that would not see and ears that would not hear, down to this very day.’”

Romans 11:29 (emphasis mine) “For the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable.”

Romans 12:3 (emphasis mine) “For by the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned.”

1 Corinthians 1:1-2, 9 (emphasis mine) “Paul, called by the will of God to be an apostle of Christ Jesus, and our brother Sosthenes, To the church of God that is in Corinth, to those sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints together with all those who in every place call upon the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, both their Lord and ours…God is faithful, by whom you were called into the fellowship of his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.”

1 Corinthians 1:22-25 (emphasis mine) “For Jews demand signs and Greeks seek wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles, but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. For the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men.”

1 Corinthians 3:5-7 (emphasis mine) “What then is Apollos? What is Paul? Servants through [not “because of”] whom you believed, as the Lord assigned to each. I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth. So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth.”

1 Corinthians 4:7 “For who sees anything different in you? What do you have that you did not receive [including faith]? If then you received it, who do you boast as if you did not receive it?”

1 Corinthians 15:10 (emphasis mine) “But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace toward me was not in vain. On the contrary, I worked harder than any of them [the apostles], though it was not I, but the grace of God that is with me.”

2 Corinthians 3:4-5 (emphasis mine) “Such is the confidence that we have through Christ toward God. Not that we are sufficient in ourselves to claim anything [including faith] as coming from us, but our sufficiency is from God.”

Galatians 1:15-16 (emphasis mine) “But when he who had set me [Paul] apart before I was born, and who called me by his grace, was pleased to reveal his Son to me, in order that [not because] I might preach him among the Gentiles, I did not immediately consult with anyone.”

Ephesians 1:17-19 “That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you a spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of him, having the eyes of your hearts enlightened, that you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power toward us who believe, according to the working of his great might.”

Ephesians 2:4-7 (emphasis mine) “But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved—and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.”

Ephesians 2:8-10 (emphasis mine) “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this [salvation through faith] is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.”

Philippians 1:29 (emphasis mine) “For it has been granted to you that for the sake of Christ you should not only believe in him but also suffer for his sake.”

Philippians 2:12-13 (emphasis mine) “Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, so now, not only as in my presence but much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure.”[28]

Colossians 2:13 (emphasis mine) “And you, who were dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made alive together with him, having forgiven us all our trespasses.”

1 Timothy 1:12-14 (emphasis mine) “I [Paul] thank him who has given me strength, Christ Jesus our Lord, because he judged me faithful, appointing me to his service, though formerly I was a blasphemer, persecutor, and insolent opponent. But I received mercy because I had acted ignorantly in unbelief, and the grace of our Lord overflowed for me with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus.”

2 Timothy 2:24-26 (emphasis mine) “And the Lord’s servant must not be quarrelsome but kind to everyone, able to teach, patiently enduring evil, correcting his opponents [the unsaved] with gentleness. God may perhaps grant them repentance leading to a knowledge of the truth, and they may escape from the snare of the devil, after being captured by him to do his will.”

Titus 3:5-7 (emphasis mine) “He [God] saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that [not because] being justified by his grace we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life.”

Hebrews 9:15 (emphasis mine) “Therefore he [Jesus] is the mediator of a new covenant, so that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance, since a death has occurred that redeems them from the transgressions committed under the first covenant.”

Hebrews 12:1-2 (emphasis mine) “…let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith….”

Hebrews 13:20-21 (emphasis mine) “Now may the God of peace who brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, the great shepherd of the sheep, by the blood of the eternal covenant, equip you with everything good that you may do his will, working in us that which is pleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen.”[29]

James 1:17-18 (emphasis mine) “Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change. Of his own will he brought us forth by the word of truth, that [not because] we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures.”

James 4:13-15 “Come now, you who say, ‘Today or tomorrow we will go into such and such a town and spend a year there and trade and make a profit’—yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes. Instead you ought to say, ‘If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that.’”

1 Peter 1:20-21 (emphasis mine) “He [Jesus] was foreknown before the foundation of the world but was made manifest in the last times for your sake, who through him are believers in God, who raised him from the dead and gave him glory, so that your faith and hope are in God.”[30]

1 Peter 2:9 (emphasis mine) “But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.”

2 Peter 1:3-4 (emphasis mine) “His [God’s] divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to [or “called us by”] his own glory and excellence, by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that [not because] through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire.”

Jude 1:1 (emphasis mine) “…To those who are called, beloved in God the Father and kept for [or “kept by”] Jesus Christ.”

Perseverance of the Saints (or Preservation of the Saints)
1 Samuel 2:9 (emphasis mine) “‘He [God] will guard the feet of his faithful ones, but the wicked shall be cut off in darkness, for not by might shall a man prevail.’”

Job 15:15-16 (emphasis mine) “Behold, God puts no trust in his holy ones, and the heavens are not pure in his sight; how much less [God puts trust in] one who is abominable and corrupt, a man who drinks injustice like water!”

Psalm 23:6 (emphasis mine) “Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me [David] all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the LORD forever.”

Isaiah 43:1-3 “But now thus says the LORD, he who created you, O Jacob, he who formed you, O Israel: ‘Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you; when you walk through fire you shall not be burned, and the flame shall not consume you. For I am the LORD your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior. I give Egypt as your ransom, Cush and Seba in exchange for you.”

Isaiah 54:10 “‘For the mountains may depart, and the hills be removed, but my steadfast love shall not depart from you, and my covenant of peace shall not be removed,’ says the LORD, who has compassion on you.”

Jeremiah 32:38-41 “And they [the elect] shall be my people, and I will be their God. I will give them one heart and one way, that they may fear me forever, for their own good and the good of their children after them. I will make with them an everlasting covenant, that I will not turn away from doing good to them. And I will put the fear of me in their hearts, that they may not turn from me. I will rejoice in doing them good, and I will plant them in this land in faithfulness, with all my heart and all my soul.”

Matthew 7:21-23 (emphasis mine) “Not everyone who says to me [Jesus], ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’”[31]

Luke 8:13 (emphasis mine) “And the ones on the rock are those who, when they hear the word, receive it with joy. But these have no root; they believe for a while, and in time of testing fall away.”[32]

John 6:37, 39-40 (emphasis mine) “All that the Father gives me [Jesus] will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never cast out…And this is the will of him who sent me, that I should lose nothing of all that he has given me, but raise it up on the last day. For this is the will of my Father, that everyone who looks on the Son and believes in him should have eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day.”

John 6:44 (emphasis mine) “No one can come to me [Jesus] unless the Father who sent me draws him. And I will raise him up on the last day.”

John 10:27-29 (emphasis mine) “My [Jesus’] sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand.”

Romans 5:9-10 “Since, therefore, we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God. For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life.”

Romans 6:15-23[33]

Romans 8:29-30 (emphasis mine) “For those whom he [God] foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified.”

Romans 8:35, 37-39 “Who shall separate us [Christians] from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword…No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

Romans 11:29 (emphasis mine) “For the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable.”

1 Corinthians 1:7-9 “So that you are not lacking in any spiritual gift, as you wait for the revealing of our Lord Jesus Christ, who will sustain you to the end, guiltless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. God is faithful, by whom you were called into the fellowship of his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.”

1 Corinthians 12:3 (emphasis mine) “Therefore I want you to understand that no one speaking in the Spirit of God ever says ‘Jesus is accursed!’ and no one can say ‘Jesus is Lord’ except in the Holy Spirit.”

Ephesians 1:13-14 “In him [Jesus] you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the praise of his glory.”

Ephesians 4:30 (emphasis mine) “And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.”

Philippians 1:6 “And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.”

1 Thessalonians 5:23-24 “Now may the God of peace himself sanctify you completely, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. He who calls you is faithful; he will surely do it.”

2 Timothy 1:12 “…I [Paul] am convinced that he [Jesus] is able to guard until that Day what has been entrusted to me.”

2 Timothy 4:18 “The Lord will rescue me [Paul] from every evil deed and bring me safely into his heavenly kingdom. To him be the glory forever and ever. Amen.”

Hebrews 9:12 (emphasis mine) “He [Jesus] entered once for all into the holy places, not by means of the blood of goats and calves but by means of his own blood, thus securing an eternal redemption.”

Hebrews 9:15 (emphasis mine) “Therefore he [Jesus] is the mediator of a new covenant, so that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance, since a death has occurred that redeems them from the transgressions committed under the first covenant.”

Hebrews 10:14 “For by a single offering he [Jesus] has perfected for all time those who are being sanctified.”

Hebrews 12:28 (emphasis mine) “Therefore let us be grateful for receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, and thus let us offer to God acceptable worship, with reverence and awe.”

1 Peter 1:3-5 (emphasis mine) “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, who by God’s power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.”

1 Peter 1:23 (emphasis mine) “Since you have been born again, not of perishable seed but of imperishable, through the living and abiding word of God.”

1 John 2:19 “They went out from us [from the Christians], but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would have continued with us. But they went out, that it might become plain that they all are not of us.”

1 John 2:25 (emphasis mine) “And this is the promise that he [God] made to us [Christians]—eternal life.”

1 John 5:4 (emphasis mine) “For everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith.”

Jude 1:1 (emphasis mine) “…To those who are called, beloved in God the Father and kept for [or “kept by”] Jesus Christ.”

Jude 1:24-25 (emphasis mine) “Now to him who is able to keep you [Christians] from stumbling and to present you blameless before the presence of his glory with great joy, to the only God, our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, dominion, and authority, before all time and now and forever. Amen.”

——————————————————————————–

[1] All Scripture taken from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version (ESV), copyright 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

[2] Those who deny the doctrine of Radical Corruption hold that once we believe, we are then born again—that faith precedes regeneration. However, this passage shows that until one is regenerated by the Holy Spirit, that person cannot even see the kingdom of God—much less believe it.

[3] Jesus, by calling those who still live lives of sin “slaves to sin,” is saying (by the very definition of “slave”) that sin has them in bondage in such a way that they cannot escape of their own will, but must be set free.

[4] See footnote 3.

[5] This passage powerfully states that no purpose of God can be thwarted, and that must necessarily include His purpose of salvation. In other words, if God intends to elect and/or call anyone to salvation, they will most certainly be saved. Likewise, it follows that if some are ultimately not saved, God neither intended nor worked for them to be saved, since no purpose of His can be thwarted.

[6] Some may suggest the book referred to in this passage merely contains God’s conditional foreknowledge of all of David’s future days. However, the language used in the latter part of the passage seems to suggest otherwise, speaking of David’s days written in God’s book as being formed for him, rather than simply foreknown.

[7] While it is not God who is directly speaking in this passage, it is clearly explained in the context that it is a parable for God’s dealing with salvation in the kingdom of Heaven.

[8] Many people interpret this to mean that God simply predestined to salvation those He already foreknew were going to believe on their own. However, an examination of similar usage of the word “know” in the Bible reveals that it is not a knowledge of some fact about them (such as their future faith), but rather an intimate knowing of the people themselves as his children. For some examples of such use, see Genesis 4:1, Jeremiah 1:5, Nahum 1:7, Matthew 7:23, John 1:10, John 10:14, John 10:27, Romans 11:2, 2 Corinthians 5:21, Galatians 4:9, Philippians 3:10 and 1 Peter 1:20.

[9] Paul here says that their full reception of the gospel is certain grounds for knowing that God chose them. Thus, anyone who genuinely believes the gospel with full conviction does so only because God chose them for such a purpose.

[10] Non-Calvinists generally hold that God’s “election” and “predestination” as referred to in Scripture is an election that is conditioned on faith—that God simply predestined to salvation those He already foreknew were going to believe on their own. However, this passage asserts that the very thing He chose them for was to be “rich in faith.”

[11] This passage asserts that Jesus “was numbered with the transgressors,” and goes on to say that He “makes intercession for the transgressors.” Certainly “the transgressors” is referring to the same group in both instances, and it thus follows that He intercedes for all with whom He was numbered—in other words, all for whom He died. Compare this with John 17:9, 20, in which Jesus says that He is “not praying for the world but for those whom you [Father] have given me,” meaning that He intercedes only for the elect—and when this is seen in light of the former passage’s assertion that He intercedes for all for whom He died, it inescapably follows that He died only for the elect.

[12] See footnote 11.

[13] In this passage, Jesus says He is setting Himself apart for the elect. At first glance, this seems to prove nothing for the doctrine of Definite Atonement, for it does not explicitly say that He is giving Himself only for the elect. However, compare it with the whole chapter, which is speaking exclusively of those the Father has given Jesus.

[14] This passage, says that God appointed Christ to give us repentance. But we know from elsewhere in Scripture that the Father’s part in salvation is election, the Son’s is redemption (at the Cross), and the Spirit’s is regeneration. Thus, since this passage is talking about Christ giving us repentance, it cannot be referring to regeneration (which is the Spirit’s work), from which it must be concluded that the repentance referred to here was purchased at the Cross—yet all are clearly not given repentance, and thus not all were objects of the Cross.

[15] In order to believe in a universal Atonement, one must hold that the work actually done at the Cross on the day of Christ’s death did not actually secure salvation for anyone, but merely made it possible for all—that the Cross made reconciliation possible for all, and that actual reconciliation comes later by faith. However, this passage asserts that Christ’s death actually reconciled us to God while we were sinners, and thus before our faith. With this nature of the Atonement, it clearly cannot be applied to everyone, since not all are ultimately reconciled to God.

[16] In this passage, husbands are instructed to look to Christ’s love and giving of Himself for His own Bride, the Church, as a model for the love and giving of themselves they are to show their own wives. It is clear from elsewhere in Scripture that the covenantal love a husband and a wife have for each other is an exclusive love by nature, and that for the husband to extend that love and giving of himself to anyone but the bride is adultery. Therefore, since Christ’s love and giving of Himself for the Church is the very model from which this marital principle is derived, Christ’s inevitably must be of the same exclusive nature. In other words, as John Owen pointed out in his work The Death of Death In the Death of Christ, for Christ to extend His covenantal love and His giving of Himself to anyone outside the Church would constitute adultery on His part.

[17] This passage clearly shows that Christ’s death actually purchased (“poured out”) the Holy Spirit’s regeneration (the new birth) for all of its objects, thus showing His death to be a wholly effectual and definite redemption for all those it even so much as intended to save.

[18] See footnote 8.

[19] Peter addresses this epistle to “those who are elect…” and then pauses to state the locations of the elect people he is writing to, then proceeds in saying that they are elect according to the Father’s foreknowledge, elect in the Spirit’s sanctification, and elect for sprinkling with Christ’s blood. This passage, then, in addition to explaining the origin (the Father) and means (the Spirit) of the elect’s election, also explains just what it is they are elected for: sprinkling with Christ’s blood. Therefore, if all were sprinkled with Christ’s blood, there would be no election. In other words, the only thing separating the elect from the reprobate is that they were appointed to be sprinkled with Christ’s blood, from which follows that the reprobate were not.

[20] The doctrine of Universal Atonement holds that Christ died for everyone, but that only those who believe are saved. This passage goes beyond simply saying that we are saved through Christ, and asserts that it is even through Christ that we believe. In other words, even our faith itself was purchased at the Cross. Thus, since the Cross is the source to which our faith is traced, it follows that those who do not believe lack faith solely because it was not purchased for them at the Cross. In other words, if we believe because of Christ’s death, and not all believe, then not all were objects of Christ’s death.

[21] See footnote 14.

[22] This passage sheds light on the true meaning of the many passages that say Christ died for “all” or for “the world.” When evaluating the meaning of such words in a particular passage, one must always look at the context of their use, and not assume they are always to be taken in a totally literal way. For further illustration of this principle, see also Genesis 3:20, 6:13, 17, Matthew 10:22, Mark 1:5, John 1:10, 12:19, Acts 2:17, Acts 10:12, Romans 1:8, 2 Timothy 4:17, 1 John 2:15, 5:19, Revelation 12:9 and Revelation 13:3.

[23] A common objection to the doctrine of Definite Atonement (specifically by those who believe the other four points) is that even though Scripture clearly teaches a predestination of some sort, it does not necessarily follow that Christ’s death was reserved solely for those people alone, as their election was—that maybe Christ’s death purchased potential forgiveness for everyone, and God simply predestined who would accept it by faith. However, this passage specifically likens the book of life in which the elect are recorded with the Lamb that was slain, thus directly linking the objects of predestination with those of the Atonement.

[24] See footnote 5.

[25] Also Luke 10:21-22

[26] Also Matthew 13:11, 13

[27] Non-Calvinists generally hold that God gives us saving grace (His part) once we exercise faith in Christ (our part). However, this passage shows that even our faith itself is given to us by grace.

[28] It may be objected that passages such as this are speaking of what God does in Christians who are already saved, rather than of Him producing faith in the unsaved, and are thus irrelevant to the doctrine of Effectual Grace. However, while it is true that it is God’s working in those who are already saved that is being referred to, such passages nonetheless shed light on the general truth of God’s work being the foundation of ours.

[29] See footnote 28.

[30] Non-Calvinists hold that one must first believe in order to receive the benefits of Christ’s death. However, this passage asserts that it is through Christ that we are believers at all. This shatters the notion that our own final decision to believe is what determines whether or not we receive the benefits of the Cross, and confirms rather that the decision of who will be given faith lies within the riches of the Cross itself. It further illustrates that grace, not faith, is the determining factor of our salvation—faith is simply the means by which that salvation comes to be (see Ephesians 2:8-9).

[31] This passage addresses those who, in one way or another, will associate themselves with Christianity on the Day of Judgment as a justification for receiving eternal life. However, Jesus does not emphasize a falling away of theirs, as if they were once in Him, but rather declares that they were never truly saved in the first place. This further confirms the fact that all who ever possess a truly genuine faith in Christ will never fall away.

[32] This passage asserts that those who appear to know Christ, and even think they do, but shortly fall away, actually have no root—in other words, no genuine faith, and thus no true salvation in the first place.

[33] This passage speaks of how we were once slaves to sin, but are now slaves to righteousness. Our being “slaves to sin” shows the truth of the doctrine of Radical Corruption, since the word “slave,” by definition, implies being in bondage in such a way that we cannot escape of our own will, but must be set free. Likewise, by calling us “slaves to righteousness,” Paul implies that our being such is not dependant upon the endurance of our own wills, but is completely in the hands of our Master, Christ.

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Reformed Theology at A Puritan's Mind