Re: Must God Choose Us Please quit saying that Calvinists believe God created some to be saved and some to be lost. God created all of us to be in relationship with Him, but ALL of us CHOSE to turn away from Him resulting in “lostness”. In His mercy and mysterious plan, God chose some out for salvation and allowed others to have their own way. In order to accurately condemn a belief, you need to know what they actually believe.
Don’t take my word for it. Look up the Five Points of Calvinism, a summary of Calvinist beliefs. They’re often represented by the acronym TULIP.
T stands for Total Depravity (or Total Inability). As a result of Adam and Eve’s disobedience to God — the Fall of Man — sin has extended to all parts of every person’s being: his thinking, his emotions and his will. Thus all men are sinners by disposition and hopelessly separated from God.
U stands for Unconditional Election. This is the Calvinist concept of predestination: that God has divided humanity into two groups. One group is “the elect.” For reasons unknown to mankind God has chosen to make this group knowledgeable about himself. The rest will remain ignorant of God, and the Gospel. They are damned and will spend eternity in Hell without any hope of mercy or cessation of the extreme tortures. God made this selection before the universe was created, and thus before any humans existed.
L stands for Limited Atonement. Calvinists don’t believe Jesus died for the sins of all mankind, but only those He chose to be saved.
I stands for Irresistible Grace. This is their belief that every human whom God has elected will inevitably come to a knowledge of God. The elect cannot resist the call.
P stands for Perseverance of the saints. This is the belief in Eternal Security, or “once saved always saved”.
John Calvin is quoted as having said, “God preordained…a part of the human race, without any merit of their own, to eternal salvation, and another part, in just punishment of their sin, to eternal damnation. “