Calvinism's Misconception About God's Love and Salvation
Calvinism is built on a foundation of many misconceptions and assumptions. (For examples, see here and here and here.) And a major one of those misconceptions has
to do with the effect that God’s love has on salvation, a misconception which
ends up totally destroying God’s character and Truth.
Calvinism starts with the misconception that God’s love MUST necessarily lead to salvation, that if God really loves someone then it means that person WILL be saved. And therefore, those who are saved (they call them “the elect,” those prechosen by God and predestined for heaven) are the only ones that God truly loves.
Basically, they believe that if God truly loved everyone then He would save everyone. And so since He hasn’t saved everyone (the foundational misconception here is that God decides who gets salvation and who doesn’t, not that we choose), it must mean He doesn’t love everyone the same.
And so to harmonize their misconception (that God only truly loves those He’s predestined to save and only saves those He truly loves) with the Bible’s teachings that God loves “the world,” they dreamed up the idea that God really has two kinds of love.
Calvi-god (their god) has a “Jesus died for you, to save your soul” kind of love for the “elect” (those Calvi-god has predestined to save) and an “I will give you food and water while you’re alive” kind of love for the “non-elect” (those predestined to hell).
Hmm! I wonder … what does the Bible say about God’s love and who He loves and how He shows it?
John 3:16: “For God so loved the world that he sent his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.”
God so loved “the world,” enough to send Jesus to die for us so that we could find eternal life in Him. Seems pretty straight-forward, right? And it's supported in other verses that say Jesus died for all men, for all sins, right? And that God wants all men to be saved, that He wills that none should perish, right?
Yet Calvinists will say “Yeah, but remember there are two kinds of love. And God really meant that He only loved the elect enough to save them. God really meant He wants all the elect to be saved, not really 'all men.' Because if God wants all men to be saved, then all men would be saved. But all men aren’t saved, and so therefore He only meant He wants all the elect to be saved.”
The foundational misconception behind this is that God always forces whatever He wants. This is their idea of how a sovereign God has to act. They can’t possibly accept that God could allow us to make real decisions, even decisions He doesn’t want us to make, or that He could work our decisions into His plans.
Oh no … in Calvinism, God is only God if He always forces everything He wants and controls every move we make.
Yet … I wonder … if God really did predestined people to hell because He wanted people in hell because it “brings Him glory” (as they would say) then how can He honestly say that He wants all men to be saved? If God supposedly always forces the things He wants, then why didn’t He force all men to be saved? Why work against His own desires and contradict Himself and then lie and say He wants all men to be saved, when He really doesn’t?
A Calvinist's answer: “Well, God has two wills, you see. One will – the one He reveals in the Bible - is wanting all men to be saved. But He has a hidden, secret will where He really wants men in hell for His glory and purposes. It’s a mystery and we can’t really understand it, so we just have to accept it.”
Anyone else’s red flags going off!!!
Anyone else thinking the words “cult” and “manipulation” right now!
If you have to add secondary levels of things to what the Bible clearly says, if you have to wrap the Bible’s truths in other layers to make it say what you want it to say, if you have to add “yes, but …” to everything ("Yes, God loves all people, but He has two kinds of love. Yes, God wills that all men be saved, but He has two wills. Yes, God calls us to be obedient and to repent and to believe in Him, but God has already ordained that most people won't. Yes, God calls us to make a choice about whom we will serve, but only those whom God elected will want to choose Him.") ... don’t you think maybe it would be wise to start questioning your theology, to see if you are trying to force God and His Word to fit your misconceptions and assumptions?
Calvinism refuses to accept the truth that God gave us the right to make real choices, to decide for ourselves if we want Jesus as Lord and Savior or not. (They might say that we get to choose, but they'll hide the fact that they believe we can only choose what God has predestined us to choose. How exactly is that "having a choice"?) They refuse to give up their idea that God predestines us to heaven or hell. They refuse to let go of their misconception that "sovereignty" has to mean "causing everything."
And so they have to alter everything to make their misconceptions fit into the Bible, to make God fit into their heresy.
And in the process, they do terrible damage to God’s character, truth, Jesus’s sacrifice, our hope of salvation, God’s love and goodness, etc.
But remember this, Calvi-god is not the God of the Bible. So before you reject God and faith altogether, read the Bible, particularly the New Testament, to see who God really is.
Because Calvinism isn't the Gospel! Calvinism actually does damage to the Gospel. So if you want to reject something, reject Calvinism, not the Gospel!
God doesn't love only a few people. God didn't only love a few people enough to save them. God loves the world and sent Jesus to die for all men so that all men can be saved.
Romans 5:8: “But God demonstrates His own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” (If Christ died only for the elect, are only the elect sinners then? What does that make the unelect?)
2 Peter 3:9: "... He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance." (If God Himself has predestined who will believe in Him and if He causes the elect to believe in Him, then who exactly is He patient with? Himself? Is He patiently waiting for Himself to cause the elect to become believers?)
1 Peter 3:18: "For Christ died for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God." (Calvinists would say "Yes, it says Jesus died for all, but He meant all the elect." Well then ... if Jesus, who was righteous, died for the unrighteous, as this verse says, does that mean the elect are unrighteous? Once again, what would that make the unelect then? Besides, Calvinism says that God credited righteousness to all the elect from before time began, when He "chose" them, and only them. How then can they be called unrighteous, if they were always considered righteous in God's eyes?)
1 Timothy 2:3-6: "This is good, and pleases God our Savior, who wants all men to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth. For there is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a random for all men ..."
I don't know how God could have been much clearer!
Oh wait ... yes I do ...
"For God so loved the world, that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life." John 3:16
No "yes, buts" about it!
Calvinism starts with the misconception that God’s love MUST necessarily lead to salvation, that if God really loves someone then it means that person WILL be saved. And therefore, those who are saved (they call them “the elect,” those prechosen by God and predestined for heaven) are the only ones that God truly loves.
Basically, they believe that if God truly loved everyone then He would save everyone. And so since He hasn’t saved everyone (the foundational misconception here is that God decides who gets salvation and who doesn’t, not that we choose), it must mean He doesn’t love everyone the same.
And so to harmonize their misconception (that God only truly loves those He’s predestined to save and only saves those He truly loves) with the Bible’s teachings that God loves “the world,” they dreamed up the idea that God really has two kinds of love.
Calvi-god (their god) has a “Jesus died for you, to save your soul” kind of love for the “elect” (those Calvi-god has predestined to save) and an “I will give you food and water while you’re alive” kind of love for the “non-elect” (those predestined to hell).
Hmm! I wonder … what does the Bible say about God’s love and who He loves and how He shows it?
John 3:16: “For God so loved the world that he sent his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.”
God so loved “the world,” enough to send Jesus to die for us so that we could find eternal life in Him. Seems pretty straight-forward, right? And it's supported in other verses that say Jesus died for all men, for all sins, right? And that God wants all men to be saved, that He wills that none should perish, right?
Yet Calvinists will say “Yeah, but remember there are two kinds of love. And God really meant that He only loved the elect enough to save them. God really meant He wants all the elect to be saved, not really 'all men.' Because if God wants all men to be saved, then all men would be saved. But all men aren’t saved, and so therefore He only meant He wants all the elect to be saved.”
The foundational misconception behind this is that God always forces whatever He wants. This is their idea of how a sovereign God has to act. They can’t possibly accept that God could allow us to make real decisions, even decisions He doesn’t want us to make, or that He could work our decisions into His plans.
Oh no … in Calvinism, God is only God if He always forces everything He wants and controls every move we make.
Yet … I wonder … if God really did predestined people to hell because He wanted people in hell because it “brings Him glory” (as they would say) then how can He honestly say that He wants all men to be saved? If God supposedly always forces the things He wants, then why didn’t He force all men to be saved? Why work against His own desires and contradict Himself and then lie and say He wants all men to be saved, when He really doesn’t?
A Calvinist's answer: “Well, God has two wills, you see. One will – the one He reveals in the Bible - is wanting all men to be saved. But He has a hidden, secret will where He really wants men in hell for His glory and purposes. It’s a mystery and we can’t really understand it, so we just have to accept it.”
Anyone else’s red flags going off!!!
Anyone else thinking the words “cult” and “manipulation” right now!
If you have to add secondary levels of things to what the Bible clearly says, if you have to wrap the Bible’s truths in other layers to make it say what you want it to say, if you have to add “yes, but …” to everything ("Yes, God loves all people, but He has two kinds of love. Yes, God wills that all men be saved, but He has two wills. Yes, God calls us to be obedient and to repent and to believe in Him, but God has already ordained that most people won't. Yes, God calls us to make a choice about whom we will serve, but only those whom God elected will want to choose Him.") ... don’t you think maybe it would be wise to start questioning your theology, to see if you are trying to force God and His Word to fit your misconceptions and assumptions?
Calvinism refuses to accept the truth that God gave us the right to make real choices, to decide for ourselves if we want Jesus as Lord and Savior or not. (They might say that we get to choose, but they'll hide the fact that they believe we can only choose what God has predestined us to choose. How exactly is that "having a choice"?) They refuse to give up their idea that God predestines us to heaven or hell. They refuse to let go of their misconception that "sovereignty" has to mean "causing everything."
And so they have to alter everything to make their misconceptions fit into the Bible, to make God fit into their heresy.
And in the process, they do terrible damage to God’s character, truth, Jesus’s sacrifice, our hope of salvation, God’s love and goodness, etc.
But remember this, Calvi-god is not the God of the Bible. So before you reject God and faith altogether, read the Bible, particularly the New Testament, to see who God really is.
Because Calvinism isn't the Gospel! Calvinism actually does damage to the Gospel. So if you want to reject something, reject Calvinism, not the Gospel!
God doesn't love only a few people. God didn't only love a few people enough to save them. God loves the world and sent Jesus to die for all men so that all men can be saved.
Romans 5:8: “But God demonstrates His own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” (If Christ died only for the elect, are only the elect sinners then? What does that make the unelect?)
2 Peter 3:9: "... He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance." (If God Himself has predestined who will believe in Him and if He causes the elect to believe in Him, then who exactly is He patient with? Himself? Is He patiently waiting for Himself to cause the elect to become believers?)
1 Peter 3:18: "For Christ died for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God." (Calvinists would say "Yes, it says Jesus died for all, but He meant all the elect." Well then ... if Jesus, who was righteous, died for the unrighteous, as this verse says, does that mean the elect are unrighteous? Once again, what would that make the unelect then? Besides, Calvinism says that God credited righteousness to all the elect from before time began, when He "chose" them, and only them. How then can they be called unrighteous, if they were always considered righteous in God's eyes?)
1 Timothy 2:3-6: "This is good, and pleases God our Savior, who wants all men to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth. For there is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a random for all men ..."
I don't know how God could have been much clearer!
Oh wait ... yes I do ...
"For God so loved the world, that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life." John 3:16
No "yes, buts" about it!
