Union With Christ - A Critical Error In Calvinism | Part 1

In this video I respond to Calvinist comments as well as many prominent Calvinist figures like John Piper, John MacArthur, Steve Lawson and Jeff Durbin who all seem to communicate a somewhat inconsistent and contradictory notion, that in God's mind, the elect have always been "in Christ."

In my videos I often talk about Ephesians 1 and the significance of God’s choice of us being “in Christ" as well as the fact the we can get no "spiritual blessing" outside of Christ or before we have an organic connection to him by faith. A common Calvinist response is to suggest that God has “always seen us as being in Christ” from his “eternal perspective,” and that from our limited perspective, we come to be in Christ at a specific point in time, when we believe.

This sort of response implies that there is somehow a distinction that can be made between being in Christ “in God’s mind” or in “God’s eternal perspective” and being in Christ “actually.” In this video I want to demonstrate why I think that when the Calvinist responds by saying… “from God’s perspective we have always been in Christ” - they are essentially saying… “we have always been in Christ.” Their appeal to being in Christ ACTUALLY when we believe but always being in Christ “in God’s eternal perspective” is ultimately a distinction without any real difference.

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#reformedtheology #soteriology #JohnPiper #noncalvinist #TULIP #Predestination #Calvinism #Provisionism #Calvinist #Salvation #calvinismdebate #christianity

[AnthonyMarcus]

This is probably the most fundamental misunderstanding of Ephesians 1 that the Reformed makes, and you nailed it brother!

[kazamareenkurios]

As someone who frequently gets "lost in the weeds" in this type of discussion...thank you for clarifying so many points that oft confused me. As I learn more, I am so grateful I didn't go down a Calvinistic path. You truly have the gift of teaching. God Bless!

[larrybedouin]

In whom ye also trusted, *after that ye heard the word of truth* the gospel of your salvation: in whom also *after that ye believed* ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise,
{Ephesians 1:13}

[paulmann]

Hello. I am glad you mentioned recociliation. This is an important thing to call to mind regarding the calvinist idea of regeneration before faith. Paul said in Colossians that we were reconciled to him by Christ's physical body on the cross. Here is the problem: If I, even as an elect child of God, was unable/incapable of believing and turning to God through the hearing of the message of the cross, then I would hardly call it a reconciling work. Partial reconciling maybe. But it would be regeneration that truly reconciles, not the cross. How did the cross reconcile me if it is still impossible for me to respond to God until he performs a second act of recociliation? Basically, the cross, on its own, is not sufficient. And it horrifies me just to write these words.
This, for me, is a huge problem in calvinism.

[elaineauo]

Straight FIRE 🔥 Wow! So keep these videos coming!!! How amazing is our God! May the Lord continue to use and bless your ministry. It is not in vain, my brother! Blessings.

[roguesinger]

Another flaw in Calvinism is how they misunderstand the way the term "death" is used by God. When we talk about death, we always usually are referring to the death of our physical body. And Calvinists think of death in those kinds of terms (corpse, unthinking, dead). But whenever God talks about death in the Bible and how it relates to our relationship with Him, it's actually used to mean "cut off from" and "separated" from God.
When we think of death in that way when God talks about spiritual death, the Calvinistic interpretation of spiritual death does not follow.

[primeobjective]

Ephesians 2:12-13

"-remember that you were at the time SEPERATED from Christ, alienated from the commonwealth of Israel & strangers to the covenants of promise, having NO HOPE & WITHOUT GOD in the world. But now IN CHRIST Jesus who were once FAR OFF have been BROUGHT NEAR by the blood of Christ."

There is a time when we are "SEPERATED from CHRIST" & "WITHOUT GOD, " and there's a time where there's a "NOW IN CHRIST".

The Calvinists teaching that we were ALWAYS in the mind of God & IN CHRIST is fallacious as they render the above verses void of any meaning.

[timotay]

Great Light doing an excellent job of shedding light on the Calvinist understanding of "in him"- the question is why they think it? Suspect it might be related to a misunderstanding of the meanings of 'election & chosen'. Looking forward to your part2.

[willwidrick]

Well said brother! This claim from Calvinism has major issues. 1) the Bible doesn’t seem to be making the same claims.
2) scripture pretty much has to be tweaked or out right ignored to make this work.
3) Pride. I can’t think of anything else that could make someone more prideful than the idea that God picked me individually for salvation before creation. I’m not saying all Calvinist are prideful, I’m just concerned that this view can easily make people prideful. Where we are called to be humble like Christ.
Thanks for the video.

[theidolbabblerthedailydose]

Romans 16:7
Greet Andronicus and Junia, my fellow countrymen and fellow prisoners. They are noteworthy in the eyes of the apostles, and THEY WERE IN CHRIST BEFORE ME.

(Capitals are my emphasis)

[mikeschaller]

Though I agree with you, Paul is said to be a chosen vessel prior to being in Him. But that is an election to a calling, not an election to salvation. Think of this. Israel was a chosen nation. If you were born an Israelite you were elect as a part of a chosen nation. Within that chosen nation He chooses servants, the elect of the elect.

Now, when we believe we are reborn into election, like an Israelite being born into election. We are a new creation and part of a new nation(church). A Calvinist would say that just like an Israelite had no input into being born, likewise we have no input being born again.

[jeanbloemhof]

Being 'in him' and one's understanding of predestination are linked

[R.L.KRANESCHRADTT]

A very excellent video, the points are spot on. It's just another illustration of the problems Calvinism creates and with which they are forever 'explaining'. It's all an Augustinian construct based on the false premise that men are born unable to respond positively to God. Once that is accepted the hunt for scripture to try and devise a way for a man to be saved who cannot believe. Like I often say, without the "T" you don't need "ULIP".

[peterfox]

Ephesians 1 seems to say God chose ahead of time that anyone who is "in Christ" will be found holy and blameless.

It doesn't say (in that verse) how or when one becomes "in Christ".

[BlessedLaymanNC]

Your explanation of "in Christ" goes along with my argument against Calvinist salvation and a lot of TULIP. I never addressed "In him" but rather that election is an unbreakable promise, an irrefutable, undeniable position. As you said, the elect are never lost, they are never condemned to hell, they are never at risk of anything. The only thing that changes when a calvinist comes to believe, is that they see the position they have always been in, if of course, a calvinist teaches them. Otherwise, they are blindly following the define decree. Nothing else changed!

[R.L.KRANESCHRADTT]

If they're 'in Christ before the foundation of the world. I don't see them being born hating God... and numbered among the lost whom Jesus came to 'seek and to save'. If they were in Christ all the time, I don't see how God ever 'lost' them? You're 'in', you're 'out', ... you're back 'in' again... at least you 'hope so' 🤔(that pesky evanescent grace is always hanging around)😎.... It's too "Hokey Pokey" for me.

[danielbu]

Finally! I don't hear ANYONE talking about this (union with Jesus). It is through union that we are saved at all (Col 2) and union needs to be maintained (John 14-15, and 1 John).

[TheMaineSurveyor]

We're not in Christ until we believe. God planned to save us before the foundation of the world, just as He planned that Christ would be crucified. Just as Christ was not literally dead since the foundation of the world, we were not literally in Christ until we believe.

[PatMan_]

If it is true that we who believe in Christ have always been in Christ, than according to Romans 8:1, there has never been any real condemnation for us. Or in other words, we were never in any real danger to begin with (since before the foundation of the world we were in Him). So my thankfulness to God is not rooted in saving me from a real threat of condemnation but for choosing me to avoid a condemnation never truly directed towards me but rather solely enforced upon those who are, have never been, and never will be in Christ.

Interestingly though, Romans 8:1 says there is therefore NOW no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, which seems to mean that this is a reality that did not exist prior to whatever is going on in the verse, namely being in Christ.

[mikelyons]

God created time. We have birthday dates & expiration dates. It is apointed once for men to die, then judgement. We receive Christ in time "You must be born again".

Galatians 4:8-9 "But then, indeed, when you did not know God, you served those which by nature are not gods (note: lower case "g") 9, But now after you have known God, or rather are known by God, how is it that you turn again..."

It always gets back to scripture vs man-made theology.