OleFitzHi
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Joined: 6/26/2006
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Briefly...Calvinism refers to a belief system followed by John Calvin a French (I think) theologian who lived sometime after the Protestant Reformation. The 5 points of Calvinism can be summarized by the acronym TULIP.
T = Total Depravity...Without Christ, mankind is totally depraved. We are dead, lost, blind, unable to respond to God or seek God. We are sinful and corrupt and there is no good in us.
U = Unconditional Election...God, in His sovereignty, determined before the beginning of time that He would save some people. He knows who those people are. Their names are written in the book of life. This choosing of His people was not done according to merit. There is nothing that can be done to earn it.
L = Limited Atonement...When Christ died on the cross, His death was an effective atonement for for those who had been chosen. I don't really like this one because it seems to contradict John 3:16, but if you think about it, only those people who get saved actually benefit from Jesus' death. So, in a sense, you could say that Jesus died SPECIFICALLY for the people who actually accept Him as Lord and Savior.
I = Irresistable Grace...When God sets His sights on someone that He has chosen, He does whatever is needed to bring that person to repentance and faith in Christ. He will orchestrate events, bring the person low, send witnesses, whatever is needed. Don't make the mistake that God overrides a person's free will. It's just that God reveals Himself in such a way that a person will FREELY choose Him.
P = Perseverance of the Saints...When God brings a person to salvation, He does it in such a way that the person will stay in the faith. You can stumble, but not fall all the way out of the faith. Jesus said that you cannot be snatched from His hand. It's not that you can make a profession of faith and then live like the devil. Upon true conversion, the Holy Spirit will change you from the inside out so that you will want to stay in the faith.
You said brief and this is brief. You could fill a library with all of the books written that examine the subject.
quote:
ORIGINAL: Rolie
Can someone give me a brief discription on Calvinism?
Thank you;
Rolie
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