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Thursday, June 19, 2008
Information on Calvinism/Reformed Theology
The issue of Calvinism and Reformation theology is swirling around in our church, and I thought it might be helpful to include a link to some places that explain the theology. This Wikipedia article might be a good start. You can also check out Bethlehem Baptist's statement regarding what they believe about the Five Points of Calvinism. John Piper is the pastor of that church, and he is probably one of, if not the most well-known evangelical preacher in the United States. This Ten Things List might also be helpful. If you have other helpful resources, feel free to post them in the comments.
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5 comments:
I get tired of discussing this topic sometimes. It seems like we,as Christians, are wasting too much time talking about things that do not matter. We should be about furthering God's Kingdom. We shoudl be witnessing to a lost world that is going to Hell. We should be making disciples. Teaching tehm how to witness, study the Scriptures, tithing, being a better spouse and/or parent, etc. I do not care if someone is a Calvanist or not. I would like for people to look past man-made labels and view themselves as followers of Jesus Christ-that's it!!
One thing that I do think is taken out of context in the "Ten Things List" was on John 10:16. The other sheep is referring to Gentiles.
I think that this issue is part of studying the Scripture. Calvinism is, unfortunately, short-hand for a particular understanding of predestination, election, and other matters of soteriology. We cannot study the Scriptures without touching upon these things, and when you touch upon these things, it is not safe to ignore the history of the doctrine. Calvin came to his convictions through grappling with the Scriptures. I have always found him to be a profitable teacher, even when I disagree with him.
As for John 10:16 being taken out of context in the list, I believe that Piper was making the same point you are. He said that his theology gives him "hope to evangelism, especially in the hard places and among the hard peoples." Then he quotes John 10:16. The hard places and peoples that he is referring to are gentiles.
Excellent resources. I found the "Ten things" list to be particularly intriguing--especially #9 which confronts much of the misconception of Reformed theology. Like Piper, I can only marvel (#3). How great a salvation!
Glad to see a Baptist Church in the Albertville area looking at the Doctrines of Grace.
Here are some sites that might be helpful to your congregation-
http://calvinandcalvinism.com - pretty deep for the average lay person but an great resource for those that are willing to struggle through it.
http://www.founders.org - dedicated to returning Baptists to reformed theology.
http://www.aomin.org - James Whites website, He often does debates on Calvinism and Arminianism.
http://www.gty.org/Resources - resource section of John MacArthurs website, lots of good stuff here too.
http://monergism.com - another great site. Check out the book store too.
I hope some of these help.
June 21, 2008 12:24 AM
A defense of Calvinism by Spurgeon-
http://www.spurgeon.org/calvinis.htm
Several links dealing with the Doctrines of Grace-
http://www.reformed.org/calvinism/index.html
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