Dr Paul Allen

If we had to reduce Calvinism to one concept, we might be safest to echo Warfield, who said that to be Reformed means to be theocentric. The primary interest of Reformed theology is the triune God, for the transcendent-immanent, fatherly God in Jesus Christ is God Himself. Calvinists are people whose theology is dominated by the idea of God. As Mason Pressly says: "Just as the Methodist places in the foreground the idea of the salvation of sinners; the Baptist, the mystery of regeneration; the Lutheran, justification by faith; the Moravian, the wounds of Christ; the Greek Catholic, the mysticism of the Holy Spirit; and the Romanist, the catholicity of the church, so the Calvinist is always placing in the foreground the thought of God." To be Reformed is to stress the comprehensive, sovereign, fatherly lordship of God over everything: every area of creation, every creature’s endeavors, and every aspect of the believer’s life. The ruling motif in Calvinism is, "In th

James (Jacob) Arminius was uneasy with some of the teachings that had come to be identified with Calvinism . Did God really choose some men to be damned before he created them? Was Christ's death only intended for those who would finally be saved? Does God exercise his sovereignty so fully that man has no choice in his own salvation ? Does regeneration come first and then repentance? As the professor of  theology at Leyden, James had promised to teach only those things which conformed to the confessions of faith of the state church of the Netherlands . These were Calvinist. In his public teaching, Arminius kept his word, but he laid out Scripture readings in such a way as to cast doubt on Calvin's theology (which was heavily indebted to Augustine of Hippo). Arminius believed there was an island of goodness in everybody that could should freely Christ. Nobody believes this anymore if you take sin seriously. In private, James offered a different interpretation of Scripture t

John Calvin (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) Those who proclaim the gospel preach in a graveyard. Lazarus cannot obey Christ 's command until he is given new life , and this is something only God can do (John 11:1-44). When Lazarus is given new life, he immediately responds and exits the tomb . In the same way, the spiritually dead sinner cannot respond to the gospel until he is given new life through the regenerating work of the Holy Spirit . Once he is regenerated, however, he immediately responds, placing his faith in Jesus . He is then justified by God. Those who proclaim the gospel preach in a graveyard Irresistible , or efficacious, grace is not a dry and dusty old doctrine that was invented by curmudgeonly Calvinists . It is, in fact, a glorious biblical doctrine, for without the efficacious work of the Holy Spirit, we would all be without hope in this world and the next. When we come to a full understanding of how serious our situation is as fallen human beings, our perspect

Jacobus Arminius (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) After a lengthy exchange of letters, the curators and burgomasters of Leiden officially appointed Jacobus Arminius Professor of Theology at their university on this day, May 8, 1603. When first proposed for the position, Arminius doubted he would take the job. He had formed loving ties with his flock in Amsterdam . Furthermore, he found theological research a hindrance to his growth in personal sanctity. His working relationship with Amsterdam's authorities was good and he seldom found it necessary to oppose them for the sake of conscience. Most importantly, he had a lifelong contract with Amsterdam which he could not simply break. Arminius was Amsterdam's favorite minister. He had served there fifteen years. Yet the possibility of appointment to Leiden raised the question of his orthodoxy. Calvin and Beza taught that Romans 7 referred to a regenerate man. Arminius held that it was the description of an unregenerate person. Hi