I have appreciation for some Calvinist teachers who have been valuable sources of theological insight. While there are doctrines I agree with them on—such as the Trinity and the Hypostatic Union—there are also significant points of disagreement. For instance, I differ with them on matters of ecclesiology, as many adhere to replacement theology. Additionally, I find their eschatology lacking, as most adopt a faulty hermeneutic and deny doctrines such as the rapture of the church, the future tribulation, and the literal millennial reign of Christ on earth. Although there are aspects of their soteriology I find appealing, their views on election are troubling. What follows is a critical examination of the five points of Calvinism.

1. Total Depravity – Because of sin, people are spiritually dead, not able to come to God or believe the gospel message itself. The strict Calvinists’ view of total depravity translates to total inability. They regard people as totally unable to respond to the things of God; like a corpse. John Frame states, “We can never come to God out of our own resources. We are helpless to do anything to save ourselves. This condition is sometimes called total inability” (italics his).^[1] I. Packer states, “Total depravity entails total inability, that is, the state of not having it in oneself to respond to God and his Word in a sincere and wholehearted way (John 6:44; Rom 8:7–8).”^[2] In other words, total inability suggests that humans, in their fallen state, lack the inherent ability or capacity to choose God, repent, or believe in Him without divine intervention. This perspective views human nature as spiritually dead or corrupt to the extent that individuals are entirely dependent on God’s grace and enabling for any positive response to the call of faith.
2. Unconditional Election – Strict Calvinists believe that people, being totally depraved (i.e., totally unable), will never choose God. Therefore, God has chosen to save some persons, and leaves the majority to perish forever in the lake of fire. According to the doctrine of unconditional election, God’s choice of who will be saved is not based on any conditions or qualifications found within people. Instead, it is solely based on His own purposes, will, and grace. This means that God chooses some individuals for salvation purely out of His mercy and sovereign decision, not because of any inherent goodness or merit in those individuals. Wayne Grudem states, “Election is an act of God before creation in which he chooses some people to be saved, not on account of any foreseen merit in them, but only because of his sovereign good pleasure.”^[3] John Frame states, “Election simply means ‘choice.’ The doctrine of election is that, ultimately, it is God’s choice that determines whether someone will be saved or lost.”^[4] Those whom God has elected to be saved will be called (through the preaching of the gospel), regenerated (i.e., made spiritually alive), and given a special kind of faith that enables them to believe in Christ. This is entirely a work of God and is referred to as monergism.
3. Limited Atonement – This is the view that Christ’s sacrifice on the cross was intentionally and specifically designed for the salvation of the elect—those individuals whom God has chosen for redemption. In other words, the atonement is considered available and effective only for a particular group of people chosen by God, and not for all of humanity universally. Many Reformed theologians prefer the phrase Particular Redemption, which, according to Wayne Grudem, is the teaching “that Christ died for particular people (specifically, those who would be saved and whom he came to redeem).”^[5] They like the phrase Particular Redemption better than Limited Atonement because it communicates a positive statement that Christ’s atoning death is effective for the elect.
4. Irresistible Grace – This is the teaching that God works in the hearts of His elect in a such a way that they will respond positively to the gospel message. The idea is that when God decides to extend His grace to an individual, He does so in a way that ensures the person will respond positively and be drawn into a saving relationship with Him. The grace of God is considered irresistible in the sense that it overcomes any resistance or opposition in the individual’s heart, bringing about their conversion and salvation. Wayne Grudem says that irresistible grace “refers to the fact that God effectively calls people and also gives them regeneration, and both actions guarantee that we will respond in saving faith.”^[6] James Montgomery Boice says irresistible grace relates “only to the elect and inevitably draws them to faith in Christ. Because God is sovereign in their salvation, it is not possible for them permanently or effectively to reject this effectual calling. God’s grace is irresistible and invincible; the Spirit never fails to accomplish his saving purpose in the mind, the heart, and the will of God’s chosen people.”^[7]
5. Perseverance of the Saints – All God’s elect, after being born again, are kept eternally and will persevere in their Christian faith to the end of their lives. According to this doctrine, if an individual has truly experienced God’s saving grace, their salvation is secure, and they cannot lose it. This assurance is grounded in the belief that God’s work of salvation is both sovereign and effective. Proponents of perseverance of the saints argue that the grace of God not only initiates salvation but also ensures its continuation and completion. Wayne Grudem states, “The perseverance of the saints means that all those who are truly born again will be kept by God’s power and will persevere as Christians until the end of their lives, and that only those who persevere until the end have been truly born again.”^[8] The perseverance of the saints lies at the heart of Lordship Salvation. John MacArthur says, “lordship salvation is nothing other than the doctrine of perseverance!”^[9] John Frame affirms lordship salvation, saying, “you cannot accept Christ as Savior without accepting him as Lord. Jesus says that if we love him, we must keep his commandments (John 14:15). To receive Jesus as Lord is to make a commitment to keeping his commandments.”^[10]

Summary of Strict Calvinism

According to strict Calvinism, every person—minus Jesus—has been corrupted by sin and, being spiritually dead, is totally unable to respond to God’s gospel call. But God, in His mercy, elected to save some persons and to leave the majority of humanity to perish forever in the lake of fire. God’s election is based on His unconditional choice and not on anything within the lost sinner. Furthermore, to bring about the salvation of the elect, God sent Christ into the world to die an atoning death only for those whom He elected to save. And, having called His elect, God regenerates them, gives them a special faith to believe, and then works in their hearts in such a way that His call is irresistible and effective to save. Lastly, those who are truly saved, though they may fall into occasional sin, will, nonetheless, persevere in their faith to the end of their lives, and thus prove they were truly one of God’s elect.

A Few Criticisms

First, Calvinism’s view of total depravity is questionable. Their view is that total depravity means total inability. Despite the profound impact of sin on human nature, the Bible does not portray people as entirely incapacitated. Yes, all mankind is “dead” in their sins (Eph 2:1); but death does not mean total inability, but total separation from God, for even those who were dead still “walked according to the course of this world” (Eph 2:2). Mankind is totally depraved in the sense that sin corrupts every part of our being, intellect, will, and sensibility. However, it does not mean that fallen people are unable to respond in faith to the gospel of grace.

The first example of spiritual death in the Bible is found in the Garden of Eden. God had warned Adam and Eve, saying, “from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat from it you will surely die” (Gen 2:17). The warning was that if they disobeyed God, on that very day, they would die. Adam and Eve experienced spiritual death at the moment they disobeyed God. Yet, immediately after the fall, in their state of spiritual death (and death means separation, not cessation), they could sense God’s presence in the Garden, as they “heard the sound of the LORD God walking in the garden” (Gen 3:8). Furthermore, Adam heard God’s voice when He “called to the man” (Gen 3:9), and Adam responded to Him, saying, “I heard the sound of You in the garden” (Gen 3:10a). Though they could not undo their newly fallen sinful state, it did not render them totally unable to perceive God or to respond to Him when He called out to them. And they did respond positively to the Lord when He promised to provide a descendant, a Seed of the woman, who would crush the head of the serpent (Gen 3:15). They also responded positively by accepting God’s provision of clothing after He killed an animal, took its skin, and covered their nakedness (Gen 3:21).

The Genesis 3 passage addresses God’s sovereignty, for He did not have to interact with Adam and Eve. And it addresses His righteousness and justice, for Adam and Eve did experience spiritual death and punishment. And it reveals His grace and mercy, as God promised to provide a Savior through the woman, and He also provided animal skins as a covering for their nakedness. Furthermore, it reveals that Adam and Eve, though fallen and corrupted by sin, could still hear and respond to God, and by faith accept His provisions, which provisions resulted in their salvation. I think Norman Geisler gets it right when he states:

“Clearly a sick person is able to receive a cure, just as a dirty person can embrace cleansing and a person in the dark can accept light. In every case, the sinner is incapable of doing these things by himself (in his own strength); lacking spiritual life, he needs the aid of the grace of God. Total depravity, then, means “total inability to achieve/obtain the solution to our sin by ourselves,” not “total inability to accept it from God.’”^[11]

Second, Calvinism’s view of unconditional election raises serious questions about God’s justice, mercy, and love toward fallen people who have no say over the eternal outcome of heaven or hell. If Calvinism is correct, then His elect will be saved and spend eternity forever in heaven, because God wills it, and the non-elect will be damned forever to suffer in the lake of fire, because God has foreordained it. Any rational thinking person will naturally ask: How is that just? How is that love?

Calvinism teaches that God, though able to save everyone, has sovereignly decided to save only a small portion of humanity, leaving the rest to perish forever in the lake of fire, where He sends them. But this raises the question, if all mankind is born in sin, through no fault of their own, and utterly helpless to save themselves or to respond to God’s offer of salvation (as Calvinists teach), and God has elected to save only a fraction of these lost persons (though He could save all), how then is He just to condemn people to the lake of fire for something over which they have absolutely no option for pardon? That’s like condemning a man with no legs for his failure to compete in a 100 meter race, and then punishing him for coming in last. In an attempt to protect their understanding of God, Calvinists will commonly argue that God is not required to save anyone, and that He is loving and merciful if He elects to save any at all. But again, the question arises, how is it fair to judge and condemn the vast majority of humanity to an eternal suffering when they personally did not choose to be born sinful and had no power to respond positively to God (as Calvinists teach)? That’s like berating a person born blind for not being able to appreciate a Rembrandt painting and then punishing him severely for not describing the artist’s colors accurately.

The Bible teaches that faith in Christ is the sole condition for securing God’s salvation and all attendant blessings (John 3:16; Acts 4:12; 16:31; Gal 2:16; 3:26). Faith does not save; Christ saves. Faith is merely the instrument by which lost sinners receive Christ as Savior. And once we believe in Christ as Savior, we are “justified as a gift by His grace through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus” (Rom 3:24), and “justified by faith apart from works of the Law” (Rom 3:28). Salvation is free, and it is received freely by “the one who does not work, but believes in Him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is credited as righteousness” (Rom 4:5). Our salvation was accomplished entirely by Jesus at the cross when He shed His blood at Calvary, for we are redeemed “with precious blood, as of a lamb unblemished and spotless, the blood of Christ” (1 Pet 1:19). And because our salvation was fully accomplished at the cross, there is nothing left for us to pay. Nothing at all. Salvation is a gift, given freely to us who don’t deserve it. That’s grace, which is unmerited favor, underserved kindness, unwarranted love, unearned generosity, and unprovoked goodness. Scripture reveals, “For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast” (Eph 2:8-9). Salvation is never what we do for God; rather, it’s what He’s done for us by sending His Son into the world to live a righteous life and die a penal substitutionary death on the cross in our place, “the just for the unjust, so that He might bring us to God” (1 Pet 3:18).

Our faith needs to be in Jesus alone. Scripture says of Jesus, “whoever believes in Him will have eternal life” (John 3:15), and “whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life” (John 3:16), and “He who believes in Him is not judged” (John 3:18), and “He who believes in the Son has eternal life” (John 3:36). Jesus Himself said, “Truly, truly, I say to you, he who believes has eternal life” (John 6:47), and “I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in Me will live even if he dies” (John 11:25), and “I am the door; if anyone enters through Me, he will be saved” (John 10:9), and “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me” (John 14:6), The apostle John wrote, “He who has the Son has the life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have the life” (1 John 5:12). These passages emphasize that eternal life is obtained by believing in Jesus Christ. Those who reject Jesus as Savior will spend eternity away from God in the lake of fire, for “These will pay the penalty of eternal destruction, away from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of His power” (2 Th 1:9; cf., Rev 20:15).

To be saved, we must turn to Christ alone for salvation and trust Him completely to rescue us from eternal damnation. We must believe the gospel message, “that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures” (1 Cor 15:3-4). Knowing the good news of what God accomplished for us, we must then “Believe in the Lord Jesus” (Acts 16:31), and trust exclusively in Him, for “there is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among men by which we must be saved” (Acts 4:12). We should not look to ourselves for salvation, for there is nothing in us that can save us. Salvation is by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone.

Third, the Bible teaches unlimited atonement. This is the biblical view that Jesus died for everyone, and though His death is sufficient to save everyone, the benefits of the cross are applied only to those who believe in Him as Savior. Jesus’ atonement for sins is the basis for reconciliation, because God has judged our sins in the Person of Christ who died on the cross in our place. Jesus is “the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!” (John 1:29), and “who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth” (1 Tim 2:4), and “who gave Himself as a ransom for all” (1 Tim 2:6), and tasted “death for everyone” (Heb 2:9), and “is the Savior of all men, especially of believers” (1 Tim 4:10), “For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all men” (Tit 2:11), and “He Himself is the propitiation for our sins; and not for ours only, but also for those of the whole world” (1 John 2:2; cf., 1 John 4:10), and “the Father has sent the Son to be the Savior of the world” (1 John 4:14). Peter wrote of “false prophets” and “false teachers” who “deny the Master who bought them” (2 Pet 2:1).

Because Christ died for everyone, everyone is savable. And though the death of Christ is sufficient to save everyone, only those who believe will benefit from His work on the cross. And when people believe in Jesus, accepting the fact the He died for their sins, was buried, and raised again on the third day (1 Cor 15:3-4), and trust solely in Him as Savior (Acts 4:12; 16:31), they receive “forgiveness of sins” (Acts 10:43; cf., Eph 1:7), and “eternal life” (10:28). Arnold Fruchtenbaum states, “Those who hold to limited atonement do not come to their conclusion based upon the exegesis of Scripture because the fact is that there is no passage anywhere in the Bible that says He died only for the elect…The defense for limited atonement is not based upon exegesis; it is based upon logic.”^[12] According to David Allen:

“Limited atonement is a doctrine in search of a text. No one can point to any text in Scripture that states clearly and unequivocally that Christ died for the sins of a limited number of people to the exclusion of others. Most Calvinists admit this. Alternatively, a dozen clear texts in the New Testament explicitly affirm Christ died for the sins of all people, and another half dozen plus that indirectly suggest it.”^[13]

Fourth, individuals are not coerced or irresistibly drawn against their will. Instead, God’s grace is universally available to all, inviting them to respond willingly. Jesus said, “And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself” (John 12:32). God’s call to salvation is universal, and it means that “everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved” (Rom 10:13). But God’s offer of salvation can be resisted. There are a number of passages that emphasize human volition. Concerning unbelieving Israel, Jesus said, “Jerusalem, Jerusalem, who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, the way a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, and you were unwilling” (Matt 23:37). John said that one is judged eternally, “because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God” (John 3:18b). And when speaking to unbelievers, Jesus said, “You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; it is these that testify about Me; and you are unwilling to come to Me so that you may have life” (John 5:39-40). If someone perishes eternally, it is because they failed to respond to God and His drawing them to Himself. Stephen, when about to be stoned to death, said to his unbelieving attackers, “You men who are stiff-necked and uncircumcised in heart and ears are always resisting the Holy Spirit; you are doing just as your fathers did” (Acts 7:51). All who end up in the lake of fire are there by personal choice—not because God failed to love them or make provision for their eternal salvation.

Fifth, God gives eternal life to those who believe in Jesus as their Savior and preserves them forever. The apostle John wrote, “whoever believes in Him will have eternal life” (John 3:15), and “God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life” (John 3:16). And Jesus pointed others to Himself, saying, “For this is the will of My Father, that everyone who beholds the Son and believes in Him will have eternal life, and I Myself will raise him up on the last day” (John 6:40), and “Truly, truly, I say to you, he who believes has eternal life” (John 6:47; cf., John 10:28). Eternal life is what the believer possesses at the moment of faith in Christ. This eternal life is connected with being in a relationship with Jesus Christ. John wrote, “God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. He who has the Son has the life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have the life” (1 John 5:11-12). At the time of faith in Christ, all Christians are said to be “in Christ Jesus” (1 Cor 1:30), and “Christ in you” (Col 1:27), and “your life is hidden with Christ in God” (Col 3:3). According to Robert B. Thieme Jr., “When anyone believes in Christ, God the Father instantly imputes His own life to that person—‘He who has the Son has the life [God’s eternal life]’ (1 John 5:11–12).”[14] And Merrill F. Unger adds, “This life is nothing less than ‘Christ in you, the hope of glory’ (Col. 1:27). It is likened to a birth from above (John 3:3; 1:13) and is dependent upon receiving Christ as Savior. ‘He who has the Son has the life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have the life’ (1 John 5:12).”^[15]

In summary, God is absolutely sovereign (Psa 10:16; 135:6; Dan 4:35; Isa 46:10; 1 Tim 6:15; Eph 1:11b), and in His sovereignty, He offers salvation to everyone, and saves those who place their faith in Christ (John 3:16; Acts 4:12; 16:31; Gal 3:26; Eph 1:4; 1 Pet 1:1-2). God is righteous and just (2 Ch 12:6; Psa 11:7; Psa 33:5), and judges everyone fairly, for “there is no partiality with God” (Rom 2:11), and He says, “I take no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but rather that the wicked turn from his way and live” (Ezek 33:11a). Peter said, “I most certainly understand now that God is not one to show partiality, but in every nation the man who fears Him and does what is right is welcome to Him” (Acts 10:34-35). And Paul wrote, “For he who does wrong will receive the consequences of the wrong which he has done, and that without partiality” (Col 3:25). Furthermore, God is loving and gracious (Ex 34:6; Psa 86:15), and is described as “the God of all grace” (1 Pet 5:10), who sits upon a “throne of grace” (Heb 4:16), who “gives grace to the afflicted” (Prov 3:34), and provides salvation “by grace” through faith in Jesus (Eph 2:8-9; cf., Acts 15:11; Rom 3:24). Jesus is said to be “full of grace and truth” (John 1:14), and the Holy Spirit is called “the Spirit of grace” (Heb 10:29). And God loves everyone and desires their salvation (John 3:16; 1 Tim 2:4; Tit 2:11; 2 Pet 3:9).

God will provide gospel information to all who are positive to Him and want to know Him. And when people believe in Christ as their Savior, they “receive forgiveness of sins” (Acts 10:43), God’s “gift of righteousness” (Rom 5:17), His gift of “eternal life” (John 10:28), are “reconciled to God” (Rom 5:10), have “peace with God” (Rom 5:1), and are “rescued from the domain of darkness, and transferred to the kingdom of His beloved Son” (Col 1:13). But if people go negative to God and “suppress the truth in unrighteousness” (Rom 1:18), and do “not believe” (John 3:18) in Christ as their Savior, then, by their own choice, they reject His offer of salvation, and “the wrath of God abides on them” (John 3:36). Having rejected God’s offer of forgiveness of sins and eternal live, these will be “thrown into the lake of fire” (Rev 20:15), where they will spend all eternity, forever separated from God, because that’s what they chose. They are judged on the basis of their works (Rev 20:10-14), which do not measure up to the perfect righteousness of God; therefore, they are not eligible to spend eternity with Him, having rejected His gift of righteousness (Rom 5:17; 2 Cor 5:21; Phil 3:9). And God, from His sovereignty, permits this to happen.

Unlike Calvinism, this biblical view preserves the sovereignty of God as well as His righteousness, justice, love and mercy, and makes Him completely fair when He saves those who believe in Christ as their Savior, and condemns the lost for their willful rejection of His offer of eternal life.

Dr. Steven R. Cook

Related Articles:

• The Gospel Explained
• Free Grace Salvation
• Divine Election  
• What is Free Grace Theology? 
• Knowing and Doing the Will of God 
• Total Depravity, Faith in Christ, and Regeneration 
• The Cross & Crucifixion of Jesus
• Two Kinds of Forgiveness with God
• Jesus’ Substitutionary Atonement in Salvation
• Defining Salvation in the Bible
• Who is the One Who Saves?

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^[1] John M. Frame, Salvation Belongs to the Lord: An Introduction to Systematic Theology (Phillipsburg, NJ: P&R Publishing, 2006), 112.

^[2] J. I. Packer, Concise Theology: A Guide to Historic Christian Beliefs (Wheaton, IL: Tyndale House, 1993), 84.

^[3] Wayne A. Grudem, Systematic Theology: An Introduction to Biblical Doctrine (Leicester, England; Grand Rapids, MI: Inter-Varsity Press; Zondervan Pub. House, 2004), 670.

^[4] John M. Frame, Salvation Belongs to the Lord, 177.

^[5] Wayne A. Grudem, Systematic Theology, 596.

^[6] Ibid., 700.

^[7] James Montgomery Boice, Philip Graham Ryken, and R. C. Sproul, The Doctrines of Grace: Rediscovering the Evangelical Gospel (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books, 2002), np.

^[8] Wayne A. Grudem, Systematic Theology, 788.

^[9] John MacArthur, Jr., “Perseverance of the Saints”, The Master’s Journal, 4 (1993), 9.

^[10] John M. Frame, Salvation Belongs to the Lord, 197.

^[11] Norman L. Geisler, Systematic Theology, Volume Three: Sin, Salvation (Minneapolis, MN: Bethany House Publishers, 2004), 126.

^[12] Arnold G. Fruchtenbaum, God’s Will & Man’s Will: Predestination, Election, & Free Will, ed. Christiane Jurik, 2nd Edition. (San Antonio, TX: Ariel Ministries, 2014), 44.

^[13] David L. Allen, “A Critique of Limited Atonement,” in Calvinism: A Biblical and Theological Critique, ed. David L. Allen and Steve W. Lemke (Nashville, TN: B&H Academic, 2022), 71.

[14] Robert B. Thieme, Jr. “Eternal Life with God”,  Thieme’s Bible Doctrine Dictionary, 89.

^[15] Merrill F. Unger, “Eternal Life,” The New Unger’s Bible Dictionary (Chicago: Moody Press, 1988).