Leaving Calvinism: Free to Decide

Leaving Calvinism: Free to Decide

September 20, 2020

Free to Decide: Confessions of a Former Calvinist by Brandon Cox

This pastor tells us honestly how he was influenced into Calvinism, how it affected his ministry and pride, and how he came out of Calvinism.

He also shows us how all the points of Calvinism hinge on each other, making it stable in itself but fragile if any one of those points should be disproven. (Calvinism, I believe, hinges on Total Depravity and a wrong view of God's sovereignty. And therefore, they will guard these doctrines with all they've got, which is what gives rise to all their word games, mind games, twisted verses, double meanings, etc..)

I appreciate that he took the time to share his story of how Calvinism gets entrenched, as well as how people can come out of it. (I still have hope for those at my ex-church.)

I think this line says a lot: "Formerly I had sought proof of Calvinism, now I simply wanted God's answers to my deepest questions."

If more Calvinists adopted this principle, a lot more of them would see the light.

(Also read the that first long comment from Dawn at the bottom. It's good.)

For Easy Reference:

Links To Anti-Calvinism Posts

List of Calvinist Preachers, Authors, and Theologians

How to Tell if a Church, Pastor, or Website is Calvinist (simplified version)

Some non/anti-Calvinist websites and preachers I recommend:

Soteriology 101 (Leighton Flowers) (My top choice! And here is the Facebook page and the YouTube channel)

Beyond the Fundamentals

(FYI: I do have some concerns about him and the direction he's headed in, though. And I don't like that he pits himself against Provisionism. I think it's unnecessary, more harmful than helpful. But be discerning about him for yourselves.)

Hoppers Crossing Christian Church (here's their blog)

The Idol Killer (Warren McGrew). (FYI: I think he believes we can lose our salvation, but I do not. And I think he leans towards open theism, but I lean away from it.)

Tony Evans (my all-time favorite, from Oak Cliff Bible Fellowship, click here for his YouTube channel)

Greg Laurie (See note below)

Ralph "Yankee" Arnold (I haven't watched him but my husband recommends his videos against Calvinism)

Billy Graham

Charles Stanely

Andy Woods (a pastor who preaches against Calvinism)

The Church Split (Will Hess)

Faith on Fire (Brian)

Good Berean (Jason Breda)

Great Light Studios (Jordan Hatfield)

The Bible vs. Calvinism: An Overview by Patrick Myers

Andy Woods Series: Neo-Calvinism vs. The Bible

Calvinism Answered Verse by Verse, Subject by Subject (PDF)

Answering Calvinism (a new one to me, and so I haven't had a chance to look into this much)

A word about Greg Laurie:

If Greg Laurie is a Calvinist, he doesn't preach like one, from what I've heard. He seems to not make an issue of it (or just tries to stay in the middle-ground). He seems unconcerned with pushing Calvinism, but greatly concerned with preaching the gospel. So if he is a Calvinist, we don't hear much, if any, recognizable Calvinism in his sermons. (This is why I am okay including his name in the list of preachers I like.) But be aware that his Harvest church says this under the "salvation" heading on their beliefs page: "Before Creation, God chose those who would be saved." Definitely Calvinist-sounding. And yet Greg seems to preach it in a "God chooses anyone who chooses Him, and anyone can choose Him" kind of way. So even if he is a Calvinist at heart (and I'm not saying he is or isn't), he doesn't preach Calvinism. So I say be aware but gracious for now.

About this blog:

This blog is the result of seeing our wonderful Evangelical Free church being taken over by Stealth Calvinism. This led my husband and me to research this issue deeply, to confront the elders about it, and to leave our church in the end (after being there almost 20 years) when they sided with the pastor and deleted a biblical comment I wrote against predestination on the church blog. And so since I couldn't help anyone in our church, I put all that I learned online for anyone who might want it. (So thank you, elders, for not listening to us. This blog would never have been created without you.)

But please know that I am not "ranting" against the average Calvinist. Most Calvinists I know are good, godly, well-meaning Christians just trying their best to live their faith, but they've been manipulated and trapped into Calvinism. These are people I hope to help. (I think if they really thought through what Calvinism teaches and compared it to what the Bible plainly says, many wouldn't be Calvinists anymore.)

My battle is not with the average Calvinist but with the theology of Calvinism (particularly 5-point Calvinism that believes God preplans, causes, and controls all things), against leading Calvinist theologians who spread it, and against dogmatic Calvinist leaders who trap others in it, particularly Stealth Calvinist pastors who sneak into and hijack non-Calvinist churches. These are those whom I "rant" against and refer to when I say "the Calvinist."

And yes, I know the way I write sounds harsh - bluntness can sound harsh - but I deliberately word things in a blunt, bold, strong way for at least four reasons: One: It takes a lot of extra words to soften things, to tip-toe into it, to not forthrightly say what needs to be said because I'm too busy trying to soothe people's bruised feelings and protect them from harsh truths. Two: I don't think we should necessarily be protecting Christians who've bought into false doctrine from the harsh truths. I think we are called to admonish them as respectfully as possible, but as boldly and unapologetically as possible. Three: I think being overly soft and tolerate and soft-spoken is how the Church has gotten into the mess it's in. Calvinism is incredibly deceptive and strategic in how it creeps into churches and takes over, and stealth Calvinists will take every inch we give them and more. There is no room in this issue for being overly tolerate and wishy-washy. It only muddles the issue, confuses people about why this issue matters, and gives Calvinism room to grow. And four: This issue is about God's character, the gospel, people's eternities, and Jesus's sacrifice, His whole reason for coming. These are THE issues! And if there are any issues to be bold about, to speak forcefully on, and to strongly protect, it's these! Everything else is secondary.

And note that when I say that Calvinists use deception, manipulation, shaming, gaslighting, etc. to trap people in Calvinism, I'm not saying that they necessarily intend to do these things (some do) or think they do these things. I think most of them have good intentions and really think it's biblical truth and that they're being humble and godly to spread it. (They themselves have been manipulated and trapped into it.) Their intentions are good, but their methods are not. And I am focused on the effect their methods have, not their intentions. In my mind, good intentions don't excuse bad theology and methods, no matter how nice, sincere, and well-meaning the Calvinist pastor is. (And remember that the Bible even says that teachers are held doubly accountable, which is why I think it's okay and necessary to be doubly-firm with them.)

We have to take firm stands against bad theology and methods while being as gracious as we can with the people. (And I won't always do this perfectly, balancing love and truth, firmness and gentleness. But I try.) Be gracious with people, but mince no words with the bad theology and methods. The gospel, God's character, and people's souls are at stake.

Also, when I say I disagree with "predestination," I mean the Calvinist view of it, not the Bible's view. In Calvinism, certain people are predestined to be believers. But in the Bible, predestination is about what happens after someone becomes a believer, not about who becomes a believer. Anyone who chooses to believe in Jesus (and anyone can) is predestined to glory, to bring God glory, to get an inheritance, and to have their bodies redeemed one day.

And Calvinists also get "election" wrong. They think election is the same as their predestination, that certain people are "elected" to salvation and everyone else is out of luck. But election is about God choosing how to use us in His plans - elected to service - not about God choosing who to save. And all believers (and anyone can believe) are elected/chosen for the roles, responsibilities, and blessings that He has reserved for believers.

These are huge, significant differences! One (Calvinism) closes the door of salvation to most people and takes away our responsibility to believe, to choose Jesus ... and the other (the Bible) opens the door of salvation up to all people and tells us to choose whom we will serve.

Biblically, and contrary to Calvinism, no one is beyond the reach of God's love, grace, and forgiveness! No one is hopeless! God loves us all, Jesus died for us all, and there is hope for us all, if we will choose Him as our Lord and Savior. This is why I must rant against Calvinism. It is a Gospel-destroying, faith-killing, soul-sucking theology which proclaims that most people are hopelessly lost and destined for hell. And this couldn't be further from the truth, from the Gospel, and from what God is really like.

I do not claim to know everything about the Bible or Calvinism. I will make mistakes. I am human. I am still learning. And my view of Calvinism is, of course, based on Calvinists I've encountered or read. It's not meant to represent all Calvinists. (And often when I talk about what the Calvinist "says," I don't mean the words they use. I mean what their theology actually teaches underneath the words they use. Two different things!) But even if I make some mistakes and don't accurately represent all Calvinists, my bottom-line concern is to properly represent the character of God and the Gospel's message.

And FYI, I often call Calvinism's version of God "Calvi-god" so that you know when I am referring to God as they see Him. And I like to capitalize the noun "will," as in "God's Will," to differentiate it from the verb. And if you copy and repost anything I write (I don't mind if you do), I ask that you provide a link back to the original post and that you note if you added or changed anything so that people know which are your words and which are mine. Thank you.

And as always, just because I link to someone else's blog doesn't necessarily mean I agree with everything they believe. So be discerning for yourselves. Run everything they say (and everything I say) through Scripture.

My quick summary of the gospel:

For the record, just because I'm not a Calvinist doesn't mean I'm an Arminian (Arminianist?). I do not agree with them at all that true believers can lose their salvation. I have not studied Arminianism, nor do I intend to. So maybe I'll just describe myself this way: Jesus Freak. (But for the record, Soteriology 101's Provisionist statement of faith pretty much describes my beliefs.)

In a nutshell, here is how I view the gospel, without nit-picking on proper terminology: The Bible is the inspired Word of God. And it tells us that God loves all people, wants all people to seek Him and believe in Him and be saved, offers salvation to all people, and has given all of us the ability to believe in Him. But He leaves the choice up to us. Jesus Christ - God the Son, sinless, born of a virgin - came to earth in a human body, died on the cross to pay the penalty for all of our sins so that we could have eternal life, and then He rose again, conquering the grave/evil and proving Himself to be God. If you believe this (and anyone can believe it!) and confess that you are a sinner and that you need Jesus, willingly accepting His sacrifice for your sins, trusting in His death and resurrection, you will be saved. And then you will be filled with the Holy Spirit who seals all believers for the day of redemption and who helps all believers grow in the Lord. Once saved and sealed with the Spirit, you cannot be unsaved, even if you stumble and fall along the way.

On this blog:

Regarding verses quoted from the NIV: Scripture quotations taken from HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION (registered trademark). Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House.

Regarding verses from the ESV: “Scripture quotations are from The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.”

And FYI, the concordance I use is a Strong's Concordance which includes Vine's Expository Dictionary. But I only refer to it as "my concordance." Just so you know.

And all memes made at imgflip.com.