Calvinist Confusion

Kevin Responds to comments made by a Calvinist. The Calvinist’s words and phrasing demonstrate how confused Calvinists are about very basic things in Christianity, theology, and the theological terrain.

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Microphone: Shure SM7B
Video Editing Software: Final Cut Pro X
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[SonsofIssac]

Kevin, this is a great video. What you are saying couldn’t be more true. When I was a Calvinist, and I’m not exaggerating, I read probably a couple hundred books if I were to guess; all Calvinist theological type books. I read everything from Sproul and Jmac, John Piper, tons of the puritans, then I started to read a lot of the older Dutch guys from South Africa. I got bored very quickly and started looking for less known theologians like Gordon H Clarke and John W Robbins. I finally realized that no matter how far back in time or what part of the world they are from, all Calvinists are so hung up on the 5 points that they can’t get anything else from scripture except those points. Every verse is somehow routed back to how it relates to the 5 points or how it can be explained away.

After becoming exhausted from looking for a Calvinist theologian with an original thought and fresh insight into scripture, I started thinking what if I’m wrong about this whole Calvinism thing (almost ended up divorced because I became steeped in legalism).
I came across your video on Ephesians 1 and predestination and it was almost like when I got saved, it was a light switch or epiphany.

This sounds strange but learning to think for yourself is quite a journey.

Thank you.

[TrueLifeAdventures]

Calvinism...ugh! Why don't they realize that God is NOT POWERLESS to save you without you believing, but rather God WILLS NOT to save you without believing. Two very, very, very different things.

[kjvacp]

I'm a simple man. I see BTF, i click thumbs up.

[julayalo]

All this is exactly why as I came recently out of Calvinism, talking to my husband who is behind me in the journey, it felt so wrong: we’re used to communicating with each other as persons in love, but with the new theology and paradigm differences, it was as if he couldn’t now understand what the heck I was talking about in a suddenly non-Calvinist way, and immediately went for rivalry.

[lakedays]

“So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.”
‭‭Romans‬ ‭10:17‬ ‭KJV‬‬

[josephsaldivar]

I would love to see you have a discussion with Leighton Flowers and Mike Winger🙂

[dustinpaulson]

The longer I examine the effects of Calvinism on people, the more I see those people as cultists like JWs and WOFrs.

[John.]

It is amazing how much explaining it takes to "undo the Matrix" in the case of a simple meme.

[FreeByGrace]

Absolutely FANTASTIC video Kevin! Totally ON POINT! Love you brother! God bless!!!

[nathanhamilton]

I havent listened to the whole thing yet but, in the first 20 minutes, you have articulated something that I have been trying in earnest to articulate to people around me. Though I have noticed most have a framework or institutional thought that limits their grasp of it. Sharing perspectives, filtering noise to gain a clearer singal, in my opinion is how the early church operated. How edifying that must of been for them.

[busybody]

I know brother Kevin is speaking truth, but why does this all seem so complicated? I'm looking for a simple argument against Calvinism that I can confront them with, hopefully to rebuke them in love and not lead to quarreling... Any recommendations would be greatly appreciated 🙏

[Switchback]

Very well explained!! I grew up in the Reformed tradition and you articulated well the straightjacket I felt I was in. But I never knew there was another way of reading God’s work. Well done, bro.

[jordanandjessicamartin]

Thanks brother! Your channel by far has the best content out there!

[juaneato]

Man, I couldn’t stop thinking about how Paradigmatic thinking is like Walt Disney World. Every world is set up for you to just walk in and live and believe the fantasy and just blindly go about and consume, all the while, it is consuming you.

[capitainegeneral]

I thought you had softened up, as I faithfully follow the book of Acts group study. Then, I saw you talk once more about Calvinism. : ) There are those things that rightly deserve to be hated and denounced.

[R.L.KRANESCHRADTT]

Another great video Kevin. Thanks a million! Shared!

[darrennelson]

Thanks for this! One word: The phrase "sharing their unique perspectives" can easily be misunderstood and should be nuanced. I think I understand what you are driving at, but the world is full of people with unique perspectives who are wrong about reality at a fundamental level. For Christians, truth is the end goal, not simply having a unique perspective. The value of one's perspective is directly related to its degree of correspondence to biblical truth.

[CraigThomas]

Thank you. I am struggling. I thought I was a Calvinist. Until I ran into a Calvinist a couple weeks ago and something seemed off so I tried to discuss the scripture and got bullied with a barrage of scripture so quickly that the individual had note cards on and has been memorizing like a script to deal with Christians like me, that I was unable to even speak. It was as if scripture was being used to attack and beat me into submission so I could not have any say. I have been a Christian all my life, did not understand the depth of Calvinism which led me to the assumption I was one because the "only" alternative was works, which negated Jesus. This is hard because the individual is likely going to be my mother-in-law and her daughter has also accepted the ideology, and I am struggling to decide whether I should walk away.

[brucecummings]

Thank you
I also love Dr. Ruckman

Went to Pbi finished 1978, loved it their

[PotterSpurn]

I came across simulated thinking on a Facebook forum recently. I asked the Admistrator running the forum, who had put up a long Lordship commentary to claim that we must obey God in order to be saved etc., whether she believed that Christ had died for all of her sins. She flat out refused to answer. First she gave out a whole list of proof texts, one after the other hoping that 'impressive' knowledge of scripture would shut me up. It did not. Then I asked her to think for herself and explain why she used these passages. She did not. Then when I pressed her again, after claiming i was rude to ask in the first place, she still didn't answer and just started attacking me personally, demonstrating quite clearly that the 'fruit of salvation' she believed in so highly clearly hadn't amounted to her being patient, humble, forgiving and instead she came across as aggressive, stubborn, antagonistic and in denial.

The way to trap a Calvinist who believes in Peseverence of the Saints is to flat out ask them if they believe that God has died for all their sins. If they say Yes then you explain that Lordship Salvation is irrelevant (the P in TULIP) becaise they no longer have to confess and repent of sins already forgiven if they believe that this behaviour has salvific value (which it would if they believe in regeneration before faith - because they won't know for sure if they are Elect), if they say No then they deny the Gospel message altogether by implying that Christ died on the cross as a necessary but not sufficient way to save you from your sins. Yet in the book of John, Jesus' last utterance was 'It is finished.'

That is the most effective way of outing a Calvinist and showing that they are not truly Christian. If they then try and tie in Lordship with the true Gospel message, congratulate them on learning the skills of word salad and double-speak. Tell them that they won't get to heaven by acquiring that skill.