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Why are calvinists afraid to answer simple straightforward questions?
Read “Calvinists won’t answer straightforward questions”
Read “Calvinists can’t answer straightforward questions”
Read “Calvinists can’t answer any questions”
But they can say, “It’s a mystery!“
Questions for calvinists! Questions for calvinists! So many questions for calvinists – there are just so many questions for calvinists yet it took eight months before just one calvinist finally took up the challenge. Calvinists generally just won’t answer simple straight-forward questions! Why? The answer here is simple: they can’t! I know calvinists read this page – or else the only Christians are non-calvinists – so why not have a go? What have you to lose? The debate maybe? There are 50 question headings below, 50 problems for calvinist heresies. And this is only the tip of the iceberg! (Go to Question 1/. now.) (Note that there are so many questions that calvinists cannot answer that I have now broken up this post into smaller sections.) (And continue with Questions 51 and more at Impossible Questions for Calvinists Part 6.)
Read Questions 1-10 at Impossible Questions for Calvinists Part 1.
Read Questions 11-20 at Impossible Questions for Calvinists Part 2.
Read Questions 21-30 at Impossible Questions for Calvinists Part 3.
Read Questions 31-40 at Impossible Questions for Calvinists Part 4.
Read Questions 41-50 at Impossible Questions for Calvinists Part 5.
Or try even more at Impossible Questions for Calvinists Part 6.
I have asked so many straightforward questions and challenged calvinists to come up with suitable biblical answers but so far only one calvinist has ever been able to be straight-forward concerning their answers. They accuse me of misrepresenting them (but are never able to quote me doing so), or not knowing enough about calvinism (I know more about calvinism than most calvinists) or that I should read more of their calvinist writings (I have read more of their writings than most calvinists, including Calvin who most of them don’t know much about at all). And the challenge yet remains: If I’m wrong, then demonstrate it, or else admit freely that I am right!
Some of you reading this may not be calvinists but instead may be reading this through curiosity, or maybe you have a problem with calvinist conflict at your church.Why not try these questions on them? Also note that just being a calvinist doesn’t necessarily make you lost. Many good Christians have been corrupted by false calvinist heresies, and merely need to get out of those false teachings to come back to biblical doctrines. But, if you are relying on your calvinist gospel to save you, then be aware that only the biblical gospel can save: Whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved! Without the application of the biblical gospel, you are lost! You must choose this day whom you will serve! The God of the Bible will not force you to go to either heaven or hell against your will; He asks you to choose life through Jesus Christ or you will be condemned to hell for refusing to call upon the name of the Lord to be saved.
But the questions concerning the inconsistencies of calvinism persist. I note that in many of their documents they claim that many answers are just not forthcoming; instead they are mysteries, hid in the secret counsels of their allegedly sovereign God. But the God of the Bible has straightforward answers, so how can He know more than the so-called sovereign God of the calvinists? The answer is so simple I’m left wondering why the calvinists themselves just cannot see it. Their God doesn’t know everything but hides instead behind the statement, “I won’t tell you everything!” That is, calvinists don’t know all the answers because their God himself doesn’t know all the answers. Otherwise they’d know more, wouldn’t they? Unless their God knows all things, then he cannot be the God of the Bible – end of story!
If the calvinist God gives eternal life to his elect before they can hear the gospel and be saved by Christ, and the biblical God uses the gospel to bring people to Christ in order that they would receive eternal life, then there are two separate gospels, only one of which can be correct! What does John 5:39-40 say about this order? Is it life through regeneration before salvation through Christ, or salvation through Christ bringing life? And if only one of these gospels is biblically correct, then only one of these Gods is likewise biblical! Which one, calvinists??
It is interesting to observe that the Roman Catholic church for many centuries required that only its priests and leaders be permitted to teach from the Bible. Anyone else who dared read the Bible in order to find out what it really said was deemed a heretic and likely to be tortured and/or burned at the stake. Only the priesthood was permitted to know many of the mysteries of their religion. Other “lesser beings” were to not question them at all. The catholic church used their “mysteries” to control the common masses of their religion. Their beliefs were esoteric (on a need-to-know basis where the more initiated were permitted to know more) much like satanic beliefs such as the freemasons today. So why do calvinists claim so many mysteries that only the more “spiritual” or more “qualified” may understand, if not for the purposes of controlling their congregations? That is, “I’m the pastor and I say so, so don’t argue!” Give me one good reason why I should not accuse calvinism of being an esoteric belief system!
And remember: Silence is the greatest complement that a calvinist can pay to those who oppose him!
However, if they have answers, then explain them to me – from the Bible, of course – after all, that is our standard, isn’t it? The Bible alone – sola scriptura – the catch-cry of all good calvinists! So now to the questions!
1/. Please explain how God can truthfully ask what more could He have done in His vineyard if He has already ordained that they should sin and be rejected? Or else, if He didn’t ordain their sin, then how can they choose to sin without a free will to sin?
Isaiah 5:2-4 – 2And he fenced it, and gathered out the stones thereof, and planted it with the choicest vine, and built a tower in the midst of it, and also made a winepress therein: and he looked that it should bring forth grapes, and it brought forth wild grapes. 3And now, O inhabitants of Jerusalem, and men of Judah, judge, I pray you, betwixt me and my vineyard. 4What could have been done more to my vineyard, that I have not done in it? wherefore, when I looked that it should bring forth grapes, brought it forth wild grapes?
There are only 4 options: (a) God is not telling the whole truth concerning His best efforts to obtain a choice crop. (b) God is a liar. (c) God is incapable of producing what He has promised. Or (d) God, while desiring a better outcome, nevertheless allowed Israel to have a free will to determine for themselves what they would do?
Only (d) is acceptable so why won’t calvinists won’t accept this? It’s because then calvinists would have to accept that man has a free will to choose between good and evil, isn’t it??
For further reading, please try The Oxymorons of Calvinist Doctrine, Point 10.
2/. Jeremiah 32:35 – And they built the high places of Baal, which [are] in the valley of the son of Hinnom, to cause their sons and their daughters to pass through [the fire] unto Molech; which I commanded them not, neither came it into my mind, that they should do this abomination, to cause Judah to sin.
It never came into God’s mind that they should do such a thing? That is, He never considered such a thing? If God has foreordained their rebellion, then it has to have been in His mind that they should do such a thing, so either (a) God is a liar, or (b) He has forgotten what He foreordained, or else (c) He is sovereign God who has given Israel a free-will to choose between serving Him or other gods! (c) is clearly the only biblical option. Can you explain this otherwise?
3/. Here’s another one for you to try to explain. How can God ask His people to choose between life and death, blessing and cursing, if they don’t have free-will? Is God then going to foreordain that they sin and rebel against Him? Then why would He go through the parody of asking them to choose when such a choice is nonsensical?
Deuteronomy 30:19 – I call heaven and earth to record this day against you, [that] I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing: therefore choose life, that both thou and thy seed may live:
Try reading So you think free will isn’t in the Bible? and The free will of man and Foreknowledge and the free will of man
4/. How can a person have eternal life before he believes in Christ, if he cannot see life without Christ?
John 3:36 – He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him.
And yet calvinists have to teach that a person cannot believe in Christ until after he has been quickened (made alive, born again, regenerated) by the Holy Spirit. How can a person have life before he comes to Christ when the Bible clearly says he cannot have life without Christ?
By the way, Spurgeon (who is greatly favoured by calvinists) taught that you had eternal life before you came to Christ for eternal life. He says (in his message “Free Will – A Slave” under the heading “Eternal Life is Given to All Who Come for It”) – There never was a man who came to Christ for eternal life, for legal life, for spiritual life, who had not already received it, in some sense.
For further information, try reading Can you have eternal life before you can get eternal life?
5/. Why do calvinists insist that John 3:3 (Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.) teaches that we must be born again before we can believe in Christ? They say it means “Except a man be born again, he cannot believe in (or “have faith in”) the kingdom of God.” They have to make “believe in” or “have faith in” mean the same as “see”, yet 2 Corinthians 5:7 says we walk by faith, not by sight, thus making faith and sight opposites here. But the Bible says we must believe on the Lord Jesus Christ in order to be saved (Acts 16:31) yet the calvinists say we must be born again before we can believe. How does the Bible support this?
For more, try reading Calvinist heresy using John 3:3 and John 3:3
6/. Why do calvinists teach that John 6:44 proves that all who are drawn by the Father must come, yet Jesus said in John 12:32 that when He was lifted up on the cross, He would draw all (men) to Himself? If all are drawn to Christ on the cross, then why do calvinists teach that only some are drawn by the Father who is of one mind with the Son (John 10:30)? And, if all who are drawn come to Christ and are saved (as calvinists teach), then calvinists have to be teaching universal salvation! But John 6:44 doesn’t actually say that all who are drawn must come, but rather that all who come must have been drawn. All are drawn, therefore all are able to come, but many resist the drawing. Only those who do not resist the drawing of the Father will be saved.
So please explain why you teach that all who are drawn must come and therefore be saved, noting that all have been drawn on the cross! Do you teach that all are drawn and therefore all are saved? Are calvinists universalists?
Also try reading John 6:44 – Does it really prove calvinist teachings? and John 6:44
As a matter of interest, a comment on our church Facebook account says this:
I am a Calvinist and understand why you are offended by this view, but I don’t understand why you feel the need to attack through ignorance. The Bible is very clear to me on this. God ‘draws” all men to Himself and not the other way around. You are very hateful and I don’t see any fruit in your ministry. You may want to work on that.
It is interesting to note that we teach that God indeed draws all people through the cross (John 12:32), not just the saved (as calvinists teach), and that there are many who are drawn yet refuse (by their free wills) to come. However, now here is a self-confessed calvinist actually saying that God draws all men to Himself, and that apparently we are at fault for teaching the other way around (whatever that might be?). But we teach clearly that God does draw all mankind! I fear, though, that this “calvinist” doesn’t know that calvinists are not supposed to believe this. The above writer is a calvinist who opposes calvinist theology because we teach it??? Calvinism says that all who are drawn must come in faith, so if all are drawn (as the above writer states), then will all mankind be saved?
7/. Why do calvinists teach that we must be born again (regenerated) by the Spirit to newness of life before we can believe in Christ if Christ is the only way to the Father (John 14:6)? How can we approach the Father before we approach Christ?
8/. Also, why did Jesus say that He had chosen the 12 disciples and one of them was a devil? If this choosing represents the unconditional election to life and heaven, then do calvinists really believe that devils go to heaven? Or perhaps that not all those chosen actually go to heaven?
John 6:70-71 – 70Jesus answered them, Have not I chosen you twelve, and one of you is a devil? 71He spake of Judas Iscariot [the son] of Simon: for he it was that should betray him, being one of the twelve.
And if Jesus should not lose one of those given to Him (John 6:39), how did He lose Judas in John 17:12?
9/. Calvinists love to teach that we did not choose Christ but He chose us in order to bring forth much fruit.
John 15:16 – Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit, and [that] your fruit should remain: that whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name, he may give it you.
So why did Jesus choose Judas as one of these who should bring forth much fruit?
10/. If God did not use His perfect foreknowledge to determine who would choose to be saved in the future, then why does the Bible clearly say that we are elect (chosen) according to the foreknowledge of God the Father (1 Peter 1:2) and that whom God foreknew He also predestinated to conform to the image of Christ (Romans 8:29)? Why do calvinists deny the clear biblical teaching that both the election and predestination are dependent upon God’s foreknowledge? Note that “foreknowledge” is the Greek word prognosis which a doctor gives as an assessment of your future health. It was used in this way by Hippocrates 2400 years ago and is still used the same way by doctors today. What else can it mean than God’s perfect knowledge of the future before it happens? Then the calvinists will say that foreknowledge is like God peering through the corridors of time into the future. What? Don’t they know that God is present at all points of time simultaneously? (Can they understand “simultaneously”?) God is in the future and the present and the past all at the same time, because He is the eternal I AM. So, calvinists, is your God not eternal, then?? (Read Point 4 of “The calvinist god cannot be eternal“)
Also try reading How does a calvinist know he has eternal life?
11/. Why do calvinists teach limited atonement (that Jesus only died for the sins of those chosen for heaven) when the Bible says His sacrifice was for the sins of the whole world?
1 John 2:1-2 – 1My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous: 2And he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for [the sins of] the whole world.
Some calvinists teach that the whole world only means those who will be saved, yet it must be a larger group than the ones for whose sins Christ is a propitiation! ! “not for ours only, but also for….” Please study this carefully! If “the whole world” means only Christians, then who are that smaller group who have been promised an Advocate in 1 John 2:1?
Some say that “our sins” are the sins of Israel and that it was the recipients of this letter (Christian Jews) who are meant at first. Then only those Christian Jews could be promised an Advocate (1 John 2:1) and just 2 verses earlier in this letter only those Christian Jews could confess their sins and be forgiven? (1 John 1:9 – If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us [our] sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.) Can you explain this huge inconsistency?
Try reading When does the whole world mean only Christians? and 1 John 2:2
12/. If God’s will is that all men should be saved (1 Timothy 2:3-4 – 3For this [is] good and acceptable in the sight of God our Saviour; 4Who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth.) then why would He choose to save some and reject the rest, also by His will according to calvinists? Does the calvinist God have 2 wills? (Some teach that he does indeed have 2 wills, a will of desire and a will of command, or similar terms, although Calvin himself rejected this by saying that what God willed in a right way, man did in a wrong way!) Other calvinists illogically say that “all men” means only Christians! How can they believe such folly? Why do calvinists so often grossly misrepresent the truth of the Bible?
Try reading Does the calvinist God have a dual personality?
13/. If Israel were God’s elect nation (which indeed they were) then how can God then reject them for disobeying Him if the calvinists teach that such rebellion had to be by God’s decree? Did God choose them and then decree that they should rebel such that He would have to reject them? Truly the calvinist God vacillates between one idea and another! And if the calvinist election is explained by Israel’s election as a nation (Romans 9), then what is stopping the calvinist God from also decreeing that the elect today should sin and be rejected like Israel? Truly the calvinist election is untrustworthy indeed!
Of course, the Bible does teach an election of God’s people, a choosing which is recorded in the Book of Life written from the foundation of the world (Revelation 17:8) but it is not unconditional; instead it is an election conditional upon the foreknowledge of sovereign God who sees all things and knows all things from the beginning to the end (1 Peter 1:2; Romans 8:29).
14/. Why did Jesus cry on the cross to His Father to forgive them for they know not what they do (Luke 23:34) yet that good calvinist MacArthur says that Jesus didn’t die for the mob that screamed for His blood (sermon code 62-10)? So just who did Jesus pray forgiveness for? Or did Jesus somehow pray to forgive them but the Father didn’t agree? Calvinists, please explain why Jesus didn’t pray this for the mob that screamed for His blood?
Of course, MacArthur does strongly support the heresies of calvinism.
“Today Calvinism is being subjected to constant attack. Several recent, popular, published critiques have tried to discredit John Calvin the man, or they have unfairly blamed Calvinism for the dubious politics of the Reformation era. But the doctrines of Calvinistic soteriology must stand or fall by the test of Scripture, period.”
(John F. MacArthur Jr.; quoted from, The Five Points of Calvinism: Defined, Defended and Documented; 2nd Edition: David Steele, Curtis Thomas, and Lance Quinn.)
15/. Why does MacArthur condemn freemasonry as a Satanic false religion yet praise the spiritual harvest of his great grandfather Thomas Fullerton who was a high-ranking freemason? In this link MacArthur even acknowledges the spiritual harvest as his inheritance!
How can a calvinist condemn satanism yet praise the spiritual outreach of his ancestor who by MacArthur’s own description worshipped a Satanic false religion?
For more information please read “Is MacArthur a Freemason”.
16/. If the Bible describes eternal life as a gift of God (Romans 6:23), then it cannot be imposed upon anyone but must be received by the person’s free will. Then why do calvinists teach that such a gift must be imposed upon people against their will? Note what MacArthur says (The Doctrine of God’s Effectual Call) that No one is ever saved without being willing. ….. There’s nothing in the sinner to make him willing. ….. It is only when the power of God makes him willing that he becomes willing. …..No sinner has the capacity to be willing. ….. This is what we mean by “total depravity,” the utter inability of the sinner to be willing. ……. When the gospel comes, the sinner is so eager to respond. Either you are willing or else you are made to do it. If you are made to do it, then it is an imposition! How can this imposition of willingness be described as a gift? And how can you force someone to be willing? That’s an oxymoron!
Try reading MacArthur teaches works salvation
17/. Why do calvinists claim sola scriptura (the Bible alone) yet rarely if ever use the Bible to defend their heresies when directly challenged from the Bible?
18/. Calvinists love to use John 10:24-28 to “prove” that the sheep that Jesus died for are the elect of God, unconditionally chosen by Him from the foundation of the world. That is, if you are not one of those elect, you cannot be one of His sheep, and therefore the calvinist Jesus did not die for your sins. So, just how can calvinists say that it is only the elect who hear God’s voice and follow, yet Jesus came to His own (His elect sheep of Israel, obviously) and they didn’t receive Him!
John 1:11 – He came unto his own, and his own received him not.
Yet, aren’t these “His own”, of whom it says: All we like sheep have gone astray (Isaiah 53:6)? Obviously the calvinist god can dispose of his sheep even after declaring them his elect!?? How does this biblical truth apply to the calvinist?
Try reading Oh, the persistent inconsistencies of calvinists!
19/. And while we are looking at this topic, why do calvinists claim that the election of Israel as God’s nation somehow “proves” the unconditional election of the Church? For, if God could simply reject Israel after choosing her, then where does it guarantee the calvinist elect the right to be able to sin (as long as they confess, repent and are restored to fellowship) and still claim guaranteed entry into heaven. In fact, this is what Romans 9 is all about, the condemnation of Israel who thought that because they were God’s chosen people, then they were somehow above the condemnation of the law. They demanded mercy and God simply said that He, not them, would choose to whom He showed mercy. Jeremiah’s potter and the clay picture (Jeremiah 18) clearly explains what Paul is saying in Romans 9. So why do the calvinists ignore such connections? Is it because they, like Israel, think they can sin and still be guaranteed eternal life in heaven?? What arrogance is this!? So, how can Israel’s failed election as a nation prove the unconditional election of the calvinists?
Try reading Romans 9 condemns calvinism to rejection by sovereign God and Romans 9 proves the heresy of calvinism
20/. Why do calvinists, when faced with a difficult question that they cannot answer, either claim that it is a mystery hid in the secret counsels of their god or else just refuse to answer? Why does it seem impossible for calvinists to give a straight honest answer when challenged on questions like the ones above. They claim to be so educated, so scholarly, yet cannot come up with simple answers to these simple questions! However, by their fruit they may be known! I have asked such questions (and more) in the past and have often challenged calvinists to take me on, but they seemingly refuse, probably because they just don’t have a clear biblical answer in the first place! Of course, there may be calvinists out there who believe they do know some of the “difficult” yet simple answers! If so, please feel free to comment on our Comments page. I will be fair and objective as long as the explanations are likewise fair and objective. Genuine scholarship should never be rejected without thorough analysis of points raised, as long as they are supported from the Bible, for that is our measuring stick, our sure foundation in the face of so much trivial comment in the world today.
Try reading Esoteric beliefs and mystery religion and Favourite calvinist defense tactics
21/. I just received a comment (19th Aug 2019) informing me that I had a problem and that apparently 2 Corinthians 13:15 demonstrated that problem. This was a new one to me, that someone would now invent a verse to make their point, noting that this verse does not exist. Please read further on my Comments page. Is making up verses another calvinist heresy?
22/. I was reminded recently of a calvinist who said he prayed for his daughter’s salvation every day for many years. As a calvinist, he also believes that the calvinist God unconditionally chose his elect in the beginning of time, and that no-one may change from one group to the other at any time after that. So what is the point of praying for anyone’s salvation? If his daughter is on the list to go to heaven, then nothing can stop her from going to heaven! And if she is not on that list, then no amount of prayer can ever change that. He could pray for her all his life and it would achieve nothing. According to calvinism, she’ll go where God has already determined to send her! In fact, why would calvinists bother with any prayer at all? If everything is already pre-ordained by God from the beginning, then prayer can not change one single thing!
23/. Some calvinists teach that their God uses the gospel to draw people to himself, yet they also teach that it is impossible for anyone to respond to their God in any way before they are regenerated (that is, born again). If all are dead in trespasses and sins (Ephesians 2:1), then the gospel will fall on deaf (dead!) ears until after they have been born again. Calvinists have to teach that you must have eternal life before you can respond to the gospel of Christ. So why do some calvinists preach the gospel to unregenerate mankind? Why bother with the gospel if one must be born again with eternal life from above before being able to hear and respond to the gospel? Doesn’t this make the biblical gospel irrelevant for calvinists?
For further on this, please read How does a calvinist know he has eternal life?
24/. In Romans 9:3, why does Paul wish that he could be accursed for the sake of his fellow Israelites? If they are lost (that is, non-elect) then Paul would have been giving away his eternal life for the sake of those who could never be saved! And if they were actually of the elect of God, then for what purpose would Paul be throwing his eternal life away if those Israelites were going to heaven anyway? Didn’t Paul know about the unconditional election?? Did the calvinist god forget to explain this to Paul?
Try reading Romans 9 proves the heresy of calvinism
25/. Boettner’s “The Reformed Doctrine of Predestination” is often quoted by calvinists to justify their heresies. (Why not the Bible, I would ask?) He teaches that if you aren’t a calvinist, then you must be an atheist. Some have declared – and rightly we believe – that there is no consistent middle ground between Calvinism and Atheism. (Boettner, The Reformed Doctrine of Predestination, P 244). Many calvinists also teach that God’s elect would believe in calvinism; therefore there is really no such thing as a Christian who opposes calvinism. Can calvinists please explain further?
26/. A W Pink, another calvinist writer much quoted by calvinists today, says of the taking of Jericho in “The Life and Times of Joshua” (Studies in the Scriptures) that The forbidding of “the people” to open their mouths signified that the rank and file of Christians are to have no part in the oral proclamation of the truth―they are neither qualified for nor called to the ministration of the Word. Nowhere in the Epistles is there a single exhortation for the saints as such to engage in public evangelism, nor even to do “personal work” and seek to be “soul winners.”
Does this explain why so many calvinist pastors, like dictators, lay down the law and refuse to be questioned on it? If they teach it, then it must be so? The common masses are to not test all things? Only the leaders are to be able to rightly divide the word of truth? Please explain, calvinists!
27/. If God’s will is the only free will in the universe (as calvinists love to teach), then calvinists must teach that God created / decreed / ordained sin. Calvin in “Concerning the Eternal Predestination of God” said: But the objection is not yet resolved, that if all things are done by the will of God, and men contrive nothing except by His will and ordination, then God is the author of all evils. (P 179) MacArthur wrote in “Vanishing Conscience & Hard to Believe”: Ultimately, we must concede that sin is something God meant to happen. He planned for it, ordained it – or, in the words of the Westminster Confession, He decreed it. (P 113) Piper says in “Does sin have a necessary place in God’s plan for the universe?”: God’s holiness is not the least compromised or impugned by the fact that God wills for unholy acts to take place. And the calvinist Gospel Coalition says in “Why did God allow the fall?”: A world with no fall and no salvation is altogether less God-glorifying than a world with a tragic fall but also a wondrous salvation.
So answer these questions please, calvinists. Did God really create sin / evil, or did man have free will to choose? Is sin a necessary part of God’s plan for the universe? Can holy God will that sin take place yet remain untouched by that sin? Was God’s glory incomplete without sin such that man had to sin and be saved in order for God to be fully glorified? And where in the Bible alone (sola scriptura) does it teach these calvinist beliefs?
Try reading Calvinists teach that their God is the only wilful sinner in the universe!
28/. And here’s one that calvinists absolutely hate to be reminded of! Note these two Bible passages, both written by Paul.
Romans 9:21 – Hath not the potter power over the clay, of the same lump to make one vessel unto honour, and another unto dishonour?
2 Timothy 2:20-21 – 20But in a great house there are not only vessels of gold and of silver, but also of wood and of earth; and some to honour, and some to dishonour. 21If a man therefore purge himself from these, he shall be a vessel unto honour, sanctified, and meet for the master’s use, [and] prepared unto every good work.
They teach that Romans 9:21 proves that God foreordains some people to salvation, and the rest to condemnation. Then please explain, calvinists, why Paul says in 2 Timothy 2:20-21 that vessels of dishonour can be purged to become vessels of honour? It proves that calvinists ignore verses that don’t support them, doesn’t it! Or was it just the dishonourable Roman vessels who couldn’t be purged?
Try reading Romans 9 proves the heresy of calvinism
29/. Calvinists love to claim that they as their God’s elect are the recipients of the grace of their God. This is why they declare their religion to be the doctrines of grace. Then why does Paul teach that God’s grace has appeared to all men?
Titus 2:11 – For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men
Does this mean that all men are the elect of God? Come on, calvinists! Can you explain this from the Bible alone?
30/. Calvinists teach that no-one is able to respond to the gospel until after they have been regenerated (born again). Only the calvinist elect may hear and respond! Non-elect will never be able to respond. (Unless you accept Calvin’s teaching of a temporary faith which he explained as an inferior operation of the Spirit – please see Question 31 below.) Then study the following verses carefully and answer the questions truthfully.
2 Corinthians 4:3-4 – 3But if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost: 4In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them.
Can any calvinist give any rational reason how satan can blind the eyes of those chosen as the elect of the calvinist God? And why would satan blind the eyes of the non-elect if they can never respond to the gospel, if they can never be saved? Is satan so stupid that he can’t see that he’s wasting his time if calvinism is true? Is satan an irrelevancy in calvinist teaching? Or maybe Satan has converted to calvinism?
Try reading Calvinists born again before they are saved and How does a calvinist know he has eternal life?
31/. Calvin taught (in his Institutes Book 3, Chapter 2, Section 11) that his God gave some a temporary faith which he described as “an inferior operation of the Spirit“. Such people could even think they were of the elect, and other elect people could believe they were saved. But they are not of the elect and never will be. Calvin says: Hence it is not strange, that by the Apostle a taste of heavenly gifts, and by Christ himself a temporary faith, is ascribed to them. But their sins are not forgiven and they will not be permitted to go to heaven. Their faith is only temporary! Can calvinists please explain where the Bible alone teaches any of this or else admit that Calvin was a hopeless liar who made up doctrines as it suited him?
Try reading The living-dead calvinist zombies – as taught by Calvin
32/. Here’s an interesting question that calvinists avoid like the plague. How do you know you are going to heaven? They cannot say that they called upon the name of the Lord to be saved, because they say this is works and therefore not permitted. In fact the only evidence that a calvinist can have of assurance of heaven is that their works define them as puritans, therefore they are of the elect of their God. Ask a calvinist for his testimony and he can only say that he is one of the elect because his works demonstrate this to be so. He might say that he was regenerated (born again) by the Spirit. Then ask him when that happened. How long has he been one of his God’s elect? Did his God send him a letter? Or maybe a telegram or email or SMS? How does he know he is actually regenerated? His testimony is his works, nothing else! (And good works alone is insufficient evidence of a new life!) I can say that on a particular day in my life I called upon the name of the Lord to be saved; therefore I know I have eternal life, and I know I am going to heaven (1 John 5:12-13). Calvinists, how do you know you have eternal life, and how do you know you are going to heaven? For further on this, please read How does a calvinist know he has eternal life?
33/. Calvinists claim the perseverance of the saints (that is, God’s elect people are guaranteed entry into heaven for eternity). This is the letter “P” in TULIP. But is there even one calvinist out there who is prepared to claim right now that he or she is guaranteed eternal life in heaven? What if you fall away before the end? Note that calvinism teaches that one must persevere to the end in order to enter heaven. If you fall away before the end, then you were never saved in the first place. This is what Calvin taught, that you could be given a temporary faith, an inferior operation of the Spirit (Institutes Bk 3, Ch.2, Section 11). Is any calvinist brave enough to guarantee that he will not (absolutely not) fall away before the end? John Piper admits the possibility of falling away! (https://www.desiringgod.org/messages/when-is-saving-repentance-impossible) If a calvinist falls away he was never saved in the first place; his God has given him a temporary faith! So how sure are you, calvinist, that you are one of your God’s elect? Can you prove it??
34/. Calvinists teach that their God created/decreed/ordained sin and then blamed Adam for it. They all must agree that Adam could not have sinned of his own free will because that would have required free will and the calvinist God refuses to permit man to have any free will to choose between good and evil. Therefore, if Adam effectively had no free will to choose to obey God, then neither can his disobedience be considered an act of his free will against God! Adam is originally commanded not to disobey God by eating the forbidden fruit, yet it is the calvinist God’s will that Adam should sin by now eating that forbidden fruit. If Adam refuses to eat the fruit because God has previously forbidden it, then he becomes guilty of disobeying God’s command to now eat the fruit. On the other hand, if Adam now obeys God’s command to eat the forbidden fruit, then he is doomed by his disobedience to God’s original law that forbade him to do so. Poor Adam! He just can’t win! The deck is literally stacked against him! Calvinists, why is your God so vindictive? And where in the Bible does it teach this garbage? No-one has ever been able to answer this without depicting the calvinist God as a dictator who can’t take responsibility for his own mistakes.
Try reading Calvinists declare their God to be a liar! and Calvinists teach that their God is the only wilful sinner in the universe!
35/. Calvinists teach that their God requires evil in order to be perfect, according to Jonathan Edwards whom Piper declares “to be the greatest religious thinker America has ever produced.” Edwards says that the calvinist God ordains evil for the perfecting of His glory. He says that evil is necessary for the highest happiness of man who is only truly happy when his perception of God is perfect, and that God can only be perfect when evil is present (so that He can reveal His wrath against sin!). Without sin and evil, God cannot be complete! (https://www.desiringgod.org/messages/is-god-less-glorious-because-he-ordained-that-evil-be) If this is America’s greatest religious thinker, then …..?? Following this logically as any thinker should do requires evil to be as eternally present as God is eternally present. That is, God cannot be God without evil! This therefore makes evil an attribute of the calvinist God. Calvinist, your God is evil, isn’t he?
36/. Calvinists who teach limited atonement are clearly non-biblical (1 John 2:2). It is so absurd that some calvinists declare that they are 4-point calvinists; that is, they can’t accept limited atonement! However, why would the calvinist Jesus die for all people if he has only chosen a limited number for heaven? So, 4-point calvinists, do you realise that an unlimited atonement is ridiculous unless the election is likewise unlimited? Why die for all if only 1% are on the list for heaven? Isn’t that a waste of the calvinist Jesus’ payment? Why pay for all and then prevent most from using it? Isn’t it like buying a meal for 100 people yet only letting one of them actually eat? Don’t you realise that being a 4-point calvinist is stupid?
The Bible teaches that Jesus died for all the sins of all mankind for all time without exception. All are offered the gift of salvation, yet only those who accept by their own free wills may be saved. Free will to choose is biblical!
37/. Calvinists often say that Jesus’ payment was sufficient for all, yet efficient for the few. But, isn’t it the height of absurdity to be able to pay for all yet refuse to do so simply because he didn’t want to? MacArthur says that “God did not intend to save everyone. He is God. He could have intended to save everyone. He could have saved everyone. He would have if that had been His intention. The atonement is limited.” (The Doctrine of Actual Atonement, Part 1) So, calvinists, if your God could have paid for all, then why didn’t he? Is he a cruel despot, a sadist, or was he just unable to raise the finances?
38/. Calvinists, why does your God only choose some for heaven when you claim that he could have paid for the sins of all people. He created most of mankind unable to go to heaven, so he sends them to hell by the good pleasure of his sovereign will. Why does the calvinist God only love his elect, yet hate the rest of the world? How could anyone serve and worship the calvinist God for eternity, knowing that so many had gone to hell simply because he hated them too much to die for them?
Calvinist, would your God rather die than give you what you justly deserved? My God, the God of the Bible did, and not just for a chosen few; He died for all mankind!
39/. Christians are supposed to love their enemies, yet the calvinist God can’t love his enemies. The calvinist God commands Christians to do this, yet disobeys his own commandment? How is it possible that mere man could out-love God? Can a man be more loving, more merciful than God? How does this agree with the Bible which says that God is love?
40/. Because the calvinist God’s will is the only will in the universe, then all things are according to his will, even sin (as calvinist writers affirm). They say that it is for his glory, yet fail to understand that their God is the only one who can choose to sin by his own free will! Doesn’t this mean that in a calvinist world, the only one who must go to hell for his sins is the calvinist God? After all, isn’t he the only one responsible for all sin for all time? How can man without a free will to choose between good and evil be responsible for that which he was ordained (decreed; made) to do?
41/. I have a question or two for someone named Phil Johnson who put the following online (“Does Calvinism Make God the Author of Evil?“) in which he claims that God is not the author of sin nor is He the approver of sin. He says that “God is wholly sovereign and has decreed all things according to the sovereign counsel of his own will (Isaiah 46:9-10); yet He is not to blame for the evil His creatures do.“
Well, Phil, if the God who has decreed all things is not to blame, then who is? Or do you think sin is a random event like your unconditional election? (A choice without conditions = random selection!) Only a fool would declare sin a random event. And, if the calvinist God has decreed all things, then man is only doing what the calvinist God decreed that man should do. And if man should refuse the calvinist God’s decree to do evil and instead do good, is he then, by doing good, being disobedient and therefore evil??
Man cannot be held responsible for choosing evil if the calvinist God has decreed that he should commit evil! But Johnson, like a typical calvinist, quotes the Westminster Confession and Calvin to support his views; how is this compatible with the calvinist claim of sola scriptura (the Bible alone)? Are the Westminster Confession and Calvin’s writings more authoritative than the Bible? Is Phil saying that he cannot rely upon the Bible alone to support such heresy?
In fact, doesn’t calvinism make their God the author of evil? Calvin said “that if all things are done by the will of God, and men contrive nothing except by His will and ordination, then God is the author of all evils.” (“Concerning the Eternal Predestination of God”) Or maybe you can’t give a straight answer (sola scriptura!), Phil??
42/. Can calvinists please explain why free will is effectively any different from free agency? They say that man does not have a free will, yet remains a free agent. No free will means no choice. However, being a free agent means that God does not force man to choose something, but permits him to choose only that which the calvinist God has already chosen for him. That is, you may choose whatever you wish, as long as it is what the calvinist God has chosen for you. Calvinists, isn’t this just another case of verbal gymnastics? How is free will any different from free agency? Isn’t denying man’s free will yet permitting him to be a free agent just saying the same thing disguised as something different? Isn’t this a clear case of deception?
For further reading, try Free will Vs Free agency? What’s the difference??
43/. And here’s one for you, John MacArthur. You claim to be so biblical, yet you seemingly cannot understand simple biblical logic. You say in The Doctrine of God’s Effectual Call “when the call of God came on the life of the apostle Paul, it was a sovereign, divine, gracious, and irresistible summons. He was slammed in to the dirt on the road to Damascus with nothing to do but respond. He is called as an apostle. …… Paul understood that he was just grabbed by the neck by God and awakened to the glory of Christ and saved and made an apostle.” Yet Paul says he was obedient: “I was not disobedient unto the heavenly vision” (Acts 26:19). You say Paul had no choice other than to respond, but Paul says he was obedient (which requires a choice). Can you explain your logic in this matter? Why does Paul disagree with your highly emotive words (much of it invented because the Bible just does not say most of what you say it says here!). If you are so biblical, MacArthur, then will you defend it, or admit your folly by your silence?
44/. You know the saying: “The devil made me do it.” But calvinists, you believe that your God “from all eternity did, by the most wise and holy counsel of his own will, freely and unchangeably ordain whatsoever comes to pass” so, logically, shouldn’t you be claiming that “God made me do it!”??
45/. Is the calvinist God double-minded? Is he unstable in all his ways? James 1:8 says that A double minded man [is] unstable in all his ways. So, if God desires that all men should be saved (1 Timothy 2:4) yet the calvinist God did not choose to save all men, then isn’t the calvinist God clearly double-minded according to the Bible? Thus the calvinist God is unstable in all his ways! Try and demonstrate otherwise from the Bible, calvinists! But you can’t, can you, calvinists, because your God is indeed double-minded, unstable, unjust, unloving, vindictive, unmerciful, ungracious ……. Doesn’t sound like the God of the Bible, does it?
46/. On the Internet calvinist Bryan Liftin says “But then why evangelize anyone if God’s decree is already fixed? The mistake is thinking that we evangelize in order to save people. That is incorrect. ….. The right reason to evangelize is to be obedient.” That’s right, folks, calvinists don’t preach the gospel in order to save people because their God has already chosen who’s going to heaven and who’s going to hell. Evangelising makes no difference at all! Can calvinists please explain why they bother to evangelise the lost when the only ones who can be saved will go to heaven without their preaching?
47/. Calvinists teach that man cannot seek after God, quoting “there is none that seeketh after God.” (Romans 3:11). They ignore the correct interpretation which is that man has no desire to seek after God. They say that because man has no free will to choose to obey God, then it is impossible for man to seek after God.
Then how was it possible for people to choose by an act of their wills to not come to Jesus in Matthew 23:37 – O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, [thou] that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I (thelo) have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under [her] wings, and ye would (thelo) not! where thelo means to will; intend; to purpose; desire; like to do a thing; be fond of doing; take delight in; have pleasure in. thelo is also used for “willingly” in 2 Peter 3:5a (For this they willingly are ignorant). Calvinists, please tell me how they can refuse to come by an act of their wills if they have no free will to respond to God in the first place?
Also, not seeking after God can mean either you cannot, or you will not, that is, either you are unable to do so, or you do not want to do so. Calvinists, can you prove sola scriptura that Romans 3:11 cannot mean “will not”?? If you can’t, then your whole doctrine of total inability goes out the window with the rest of the rubbish!
48/. Calvinists today teach that their God predestines his elect to eternal life, yet did not predestine the non-elect to eternal condemnation. They say that their God just passes over them and lets them go their own way; thus they choose to go to hell. But calvinists, are you so ignorant that you don’t know what Calvin clearly taught on this? He wrote “By predestination we mean the eternal decree of God, by which he determined with himself whatever he wished to happen with regard to every man. All are not created on equal terms, but some are preordained to eternal life, others to eternal damnation; and, accordingly, as each has been created for one or other of these ends, we say that he has been predestinated to life or to death.” Note that the calvinist God chose what he wanted for “every man“! Calvinists, you don’t like such teaching because it makes your God to be a vindictive ogre, doesn’t it? But Calvin taught it, so stop arguing! And if your God just passes over the lost, then how can he be sovereign over them? So calvinists, do you agree with Calvin here, or are you calling Calvin a false teacher?
49/. A calvinist once told me that James White was an outstanding theologian and scholar. This is hard to believe, considering he has difficulty in understanding basic grammatical logic! White says (of John 6:44): all who are drawn are also raised up – the Father draws, and the Son raises up those who are drawn. This assumes no free will, yet Question 47 above demonstrates otherwise. The Father draws all through Christ (John 12:32); none may come unless he is invited. However, not all those invited will come (see Matthew 22:1-14). Note well that John 6:44 doesn’t say that all who are drawn must come, but rather that all who come must have been drawn. If man has free will to resist (and he does), then all are drawn yet only those who accept such drawing will be raised up on the last day. Can calvinists please explain why they should listen to White’s grammatically illogical teachings? (Also see Question 6 above)
50/. Calvinists teach that man is unable to seek after God, quoting Romans 3:11. But Romans 3:11 does not say that man cannot come, but that he does not seek after God. (Can’t you read properly?) Jeremiah 29:13 says And ye shall seek me, and find [me], when ye shall search for me with all your heart. Why would God say this if He knew that man was unable to seek Him? Also see Question 47 above. Total depravity of man is true; total inability of man is a lie. Prove otherwise, calvinists, or else admit defeat by your silence. Remember, silence is the greatest complement that a calvinist can pay to those who oppose him!
So, is there any calvinist sure enough of his beliefs to argue them from the Bible alone? Remember, no comment means no opposition! Silence is always taken as agreement. If your calvinism is worth defending, then defend it. But no defense means nothing worth defending! Does your belief in calvinism dissipate like so much hot air in the face of any reasonable opposition?
So far the silence has been deafening, spurring me on to accuse more and more simply because no reason has been presented to me to not do so. By your silence you are hereby found guilty as charged! If I accuse and no-one defends, then I am free to accuse further. Calvinists, it is in your hands to defend or to acknowledge your guilt!
There are just so many questions calvinists cannot answer that it would be far quicker (and shorter, too) to list all the questions calvinists can answer!
Read Questions 1-10 at Impossible Questions for Calvinists Part 1.
Read Questions 11-20 at Impossible Questions for Calvinists Part 2.
Read Questions 21-30 at Impossible Questions for Calvinists Part 3.
Read Questions 31-40 at Impossible Questions for Calvinists Part 4.
Read Questions 41-50 at Impossible Questions for Calvinists Part 5.
And if you haven’t read enough impossible calvinist questions, try Impossible Questions for Calvinists Part 6.
For further reading also please try the following:
Calvinisms
1/. The calvinist gospel in a nutshell.
2/. Calvinists teach universal salvation.
3/. Calvinists teach that God’s elect have eternal life before they can come to Christ to receive eternal life.
4/. The calvinist god cannot be eternal.
5/. Calvinist salvation is not a gift of God.
6/. Calvinists teach that if we willingly receive this gift of salvation, then that makes the gift imperfect.
7/. The calvinist unconditional election is really a conditional election.
8/. Calvinism does not teach assurance of salvation.
9/. The calvinist god is a dictator.
10/. The calvinist god is the only willful sinner in the universe.
The Oxymorons of Calvinist Doctrine
Oxymoron No.1 – God created sin and then punished Adam for it!
Oxymoron No.2 – Merciful, loving and gracious God predestined most of mankind to go to hell without any other option!
Oxymoron No.3 – Calvinism is the gospel!
Oxymoron No.4 – Be born again before you can believe on the Lord Jesus Christ!
Oxymoron No.5 – Evangelize the world without the gospel?
Oxymoron No.6 – Calvinists claim to be Christians yet are not saved by Christ.
Oxymoron No.7 – The calvinists cry “Christ Alone”, yet leave Him out of the picture until after a person is “saved”.
Oxymoron No.8 – The calvinists cry “The Bible Alone”, yet ignore its truths in favour of Calvin’s teachings.
Oxymoron No.9 – The calvinists cry “Faith Alone”, yet faith is not part of their salvation until after they have been born again.
Oxymoron No.10 – God chose Israel as His special nation, and then ordained that it sin and be rejected.
And here’s another post to check out with a lot of good reading about the bad logic of calvinism and the god they serve.
Try When Calvinism’s “Bad Logic” Traps Good Christians
The author of this post speaks from first-hand experience in defining the evil deception in the calvinism that caused her to leave her church of many years. Why does calvinism (which proclaims the loving goodness of their allegedly sovereign god) cause so much division and heart-ache?? It’s those who have escaped this vile deception who can speak most authoritatively about it. But, be prepared for a long read! Calvinism has so much deception that it just cannot be dealt with in a few sentences!
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