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Calvinism vs. Arminianism

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What are Calvinism and Arminianism?

With regard to salvation, Scripture presents two essential elements: The sovereignty of God, and the responsibility of man. For lack of better term, Calvinism and Arminianism are two extreme views regarding these. Although neither side can be legitimately seen as heretical, both sides are flawed in that they place an unhealthy emphasis on one of the two elements. Calvinism places a heavy emphasis on the sovereignty of God, whereas Arminianism places far too heavy an emphasis on the responsibility of man.

Both philosophies are complex, yet it is possible to reduce them to 5 key points. For Calvinism, these 5 points form the acronym "TULIP", which stands for:

- Total Depravity

- Unconditional Election

- Limited Atonement

- Irresistible Grace

- Perseverance of the Saints (a.k.a. Eternal Security)

Arminianism, as far as I can tell, does not have its own "official" 5 point acronym, but rather, answers Calvinism's 5 points with the following:

- Partial Depravity

- Conditional Election

- Unlimited Atonement

- Resistible Grace

- Conditional Security

Although the most extreme believers in these philosophies tend to take a very black and white view of each other, saying you are either a Calvinist or an Arminian, the 5-point nature of each means it is possible to reject both. Indeed, many Christians do, and even some believers call themselves 4 point Calvinists/Arminians. For Calvinists, the most commonly rejected point is Limited Atonement, and for Arminians, the most commonly rejected point is Conditional Security. I am tempted to suggest, especially since it corresponds to my own views as a Molinist, that this says a lot about how Biblical those particular points are.

What is Molinism?

Molinism is, in effect, a "middle ground" approach to the issue at hand, giving due attention to both the sovereignty of God, and the responsibility of man, with regard to salvation. Molinism has its own 5 points: The "TRUMP" acronym. These 5 points are:
- Total Depravity
- Resistible Grace
- Unlimited/Unconditional Love
- Middle Knowledge
- Perseverance of the Saints

What is Open Theism?

Open Theism is a heresy that contends God's knowledge of the future would necessarily remove free will, and thus, since we have free will, God cannot be omniscient. This is not how Open Theists would state their position, however. They will claim that God is still omniscient, as He knows all things "that can be known", however, the future, they contend, cannot be known. Much like Calvinism, Arminianism, and Molinism, it is an attempt to address the sovereignty of God and responsibility of man in salvation. It is, however, a truly terrible one, which cannot be reconciled with Scripture. The Book of Isaiah alone not only tells us that God does know the future, but that He even boasts about how He is the only one who does. This fact alone eliminates the claim that a known choice is not a free choice; it is free for the agent who makes it, and indeed, if they were to make another choice, it would only mean God would know that instead.

What is Universalism?

Universalism, put simply, is the heretical belief that all people will eventually be saved, regardless of their deathbed creed. Although it does not directly relate to the sovereignty of God or responsibility of man in salvation, it does feature frequently enough to be mentioned in this section. Because salvation requires one to confess Jesus as Lord, Universalism is literally a different Gospel, and those preaching it are to be considered condemned (Galatians 1:8).

Key articles

All Calvinism articles

Total Depravity (Calvinism)

Unconditional Election

Limited Atonement

Irresistible Grace

Perseverance of the Saints (Eternal Security)

All Arminianism articles

Unlimited Atonement

Conditional Security

All Molinism articles

Total Depravity (Molinism)

Middle Knowledge

Free will

Open Theism

Universalism

Other relevant articles

All relevant articles

For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. - John 3:16 KJV

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