With a Breaking-Down the Brick Walls cell group meeting today about Calvinism, I wanted to blog about how it has affected how I view God, and my experiences.
I won’t explain all the points/theologies of Calvinism, but some of the main points it stresses is the complete sovereignty of God and the depravity of man.
Both of those points (God’s sovereignty, and man’s depravity) are supported by the Bible. If you want tons of Scripture references of Calvinism see Desiring God’s website (which explains the five points of Calvinism, TULIP). I’m not going to get into that, because the main things I want to say here are why it has worked for me, in my personal experience. (plus, I’m not an expert on it either)
I believe in the depravity of man not only because the Bible talks about it, but also because in my own experience, I find I am completely depraved. Every part of me wants to turn away from God, wants to disobey Him and sin. Many times in the past, I would stray from God, and the only thing that brought me back to Him was His grace. God would use people, brothers/sisters, to wake me up. I am only who I am today because of the place God put me, and the people He put in my life. There are times when I just suddenly understand God’s grace, and can attribute it to none other than the Spirit gradually working and changing me. I can’t boast in anything that I do now, or who I am, because it is all because of Christ alone. If it were not for His relentlessness, I would still be blind and dead, and not able to to desire Him.
Because I believe in the sovereignty of God and my own depravity, I also have hope. If it were up to myself, I just would not be able to trust in my own flesh to do anything good or righteous. But it is God who works in me to will and to work for His good pleasure. I don’t need to despair for my sinfulness, because I know that it’s not because of what I do, but what Christ has done on the cross and continues to do in me through His Holy Spirit.
I think one thing a lot of us struggle with is understanding Christ’s forgiveness (EDIT: and the mortification of sin). We sin, and instead of going to God for forgiveness, we distance ourselves from Him, thinking we aren’t “worthy”. We have to understand that Christ has already forgiven us and that the Spirit is working in us to conform us into Christ’s image. If we just think of how we aren’t “good enough”, or “I’m not doing enough”, “I’m sinning too much”, then we don’t understand that it doesn’t depend on us, but on God to change us. Trust in Him that He WILL finish the work He started in us.
A view and understanding of God’s sovereignty also allows us to not be anxious in anything we do. Whatever happens, no matter the circumstances, we can trust in a God who is almighty and has everything under control. I don’t have to worry about school, fellowship, my own relationship with God, career, etc etc, because I know that no matter what happens, God is King over His creation. He will accomplish whatever brings Him glory and lead us to Him in everything, all for His name’s sake.
Now does that mean we just sit idle? NO… If I believe in a God of such grace and love, how can I not worship and praise Him? How can I just sit there and be content in not actively killing my sin and making disciples! If the Spirit is in me, I believe that He will continue to convict me of my sin and teach and mold me to Christ's likeness in everything. There’s a difference between trying to conform yourself into Christ’s image by your own strength, and just waiting and relying on God to do it. It is both God who works in me and an active effort on my part to accomplish what is to be done.
This view of God’s sovereignty and our depravity also allows me to say that no man is better than another. We ALL fall short of the glory of God, no one is righteous. Any good thing that I see my brother/sister do is not because of his/her own effort, but because of God’s grace.
I think one thing that people (or me at least) have struggled with in the past, is seeing the passion of other brothers and sisters. Sometimes, I look at their passion or what they are doing, and tell myself: “Why am I not doing that? Why am I not desiring God that much?”. It’s good to look up to other godly people in our lives and strive to be like them (though ultimately we strive to be like Christ), but it can lead to despair if we realize we don’t and can’t have that same passion if we rely on ourselves. But if I believe in man’s total depravity and God’s sovereign grace in all of us, then I would understand that the passion and desires that I see in other people are not because they are any better than me, but because it is God working in them. It is completely because of God! And He will work in me to do the same! I need to stop looking focusing so much on what I need to do and how much sin I’m committing and instead look to what Christ has done (not that it’s not good to see to evaluate and examine one’s life and faith, because the Bible tells us to do that, but ultimately our main focus is on God’s love and work in us and not ours).
I believe in God’s complete sovereignty but also that we have free will. I think both can be true (both from the Bible and from my own experience, I’m actively choosing to write this blog aren’t I? But I’ve learnt these things and am only able to write them because of God’s grace).
I also know that with Calvinism comes many other controversial subjects like unconditional election, etc. But this post was more about how it has affected my view on life, etc than an explanation of the points of Calvinsim (because I myself don’t know completely of how I would answer all the possible questions/controversies that could come up).
It’s possible that sometimes we just have a mix up with terms and definitions. Someone who says they are Armenian could also believe in a lot of the same things I’ve pointed but still say they are more Armenian than Calvinist. We believe in the same God, but if He is God, then is it right to limit Him to the confines of the human mind?
EDIT: Armenians also hold to Total Depravity. And I want to note I don’t know enough to say I can conclusively take a side (I lean more towards Calvinism). Neither do I/we need to.
EDIT2:
My Hope is Not in Myself but in Christ - Paul Washer
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OQ941ERut2M
Doesn't depend on us but on God!!
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