Category Archives: Questions and Answers

The #1 Reason For Embracing Particular Redemption

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what was the number 1 reason you came to embrace it?

Thanks for your question. You are right in the fact that I have not always embraced the doctrines of grace. Concerning the specific matter of the atonement of Christ, in coming to see the clarity of the Scriptures on this issue, by far the most compelling argument in determining my change of view was this fact: The Arminian understanding of the atonement (which was my former view) undermines the mission, purpose and unity of the Godhead.

That is strong language to be sure, but please allow me to explain:

In Arminian theology three different groups of people are in view:

1. The Father elects those whom He foresaw as believing in Christ (that’s one group).
2. The Son dies for everyone in what we would call a universal atonement (that’s a second group).
3. The Holy Spirit then seeks to woo/draw those who hear the Gospel (still a third group). We should note that there are many who will never hear the Gospel of Christ.

Quite clearly, these are three entirely different groups of people.

Jesus made it very clear that His mission was to do the will of the Father. In John 6 we have His words recorded:

37 All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never cast out. 38 For I have come down from heaven, not to do my own will but the will of him who sent me. 39 And this is the will of him who sent me, that I should lose nothing of all that he has given me, but raise it up on the last day.

Jesus and the Father were never at odds for even a moment. Christ came to do the Father’s will which involved losing none of the ones given to Him by the Father and raising that entire group up to eternal life.

Jesus confirmed this unity of purpose in John 10:30 when He said, “I and the Father are one.” Here we see the Father and the Son in perfect accord, united in will, purpose and mission. What is true of the Father and the Son is also true of the Holy Spirit. The entire Trinity; Father, Son and Holy Spirit are united in purpose and have been from eternity.

In contrast with the fragmented view of Trinitarian redemption found in Arminian theology, I found the consistency of the Scripture revealed in the Reformed view of the cross. As C. H. Spurgeon once said, “Reformed theology is simply a nickname for biblical Christianity.”

Here was the clincher for me. Only in the Reformed view is the unity of the Godhead maintained.

The Father planned redemption for those He chose to save; the Son accomplished redemption for them, and the Holy Spirit applies redemption to them in what we call irresistible grace. All three Persons of the Trinity work in harmony to bring about the salvation of the elect.

So to answer your question, the number 1 argument that convinced me that “Particular Redemption” is the biblical doctrine of the atonement was this; the unity of the Godhead in the work of redemption.

Does 2 Peter 2:1 Deny Particular Redemption?

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questionmarkredstandingDoes 2 Peter 2:1 Deny Particular Redemption?

2 Peter 2:1 But false prophets also arose among the people, just as there will also be false teachers among you, who will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, bringing swift destruction upon themselves.

When someone tells me that they are a 4 point Calvinist, it is almost always the case that their struggle is with the “L” in the famous TULIP acrostic, namely so called “Limited Atonement.” “Definite Atonement” or “Particular Redemption” might be better terms to use (though they destroy the acrostic TULIP into “TUDIP” or even worse, “TUPIP” – hardly good memory devices).

Concerning the letters of Paul, the Apostle Peter was right when he related that some things are “hard to understand” (2 Peter 3:16). Sometimes it takes a good deal of prayer, hard work and study to determine what the Bible is teaching on certain matters. For my part, I have not always been a 5 point Calvinist and have great sympathy for those who struggle with these very vital “doctrines of grace.” I tend to think however that many do not struggle with them nearly enough.

Our traditions can be so strong that we are often blind to them in our own thinking. We all have our blind spots. Part of my own intellectual struggle with the doctrine of Limited Atonement stemmed from a faulty understanding of certain biblical texts. One of them was 1 John 2:2, another being 2 Peter 2:1. For many years, I thought that these verses were irrefutable texts that rejected the idea that Christ died to infallibly secure the salvation of a certain group (His people, His sheep, His friends, His elect – Particular Redemption) and were proof that Christ died for all people, at all times, in every part of the world (Universal Redemption). I wrote an article some time back called “The Divine Intention of the Cross” found here, in which I made a case for Particular Redemption from scripture.

I also wrote a short article on 1 John 2:2, found here, but also wanted to post a few brief comments I came across today made by Dr. James White on 2 Peter 2:1 in a comment section on a blog.

Regarding 2 Peter 2:1, Dr. White writes:

1) Derive soteriological truths from soteriological passages (this isn’t);
2) “Lord” is despotes (sovereign title) not kurios (soteriological title);
3) Is this the Father or the Son? Can it be proven?
4) “bought” (agorasanta) has no purchase price mentioned, which would be the only time that happens in the NT *if* this is a soteriological reference;
5) The passage says the Master did not *potentially* purchase these men, but that He did, in fact, purchase these men (sovereignty, not redemption). Compare Deuteronomy 32:5-6 for parallel use in the OT.
6) Derive the extent of the atonement from Hebrews that discusses it, not from 2 Peter’s reference to false teachers.

Though obviously these six short comments are not full rebuttals to the Arminian understanding of the verse, there is enough here to hopefully whet the appetite for further study.

For anyone interested in a more thorough discussion of 2 Peter 2:1, I would recommend an article written here by Simon Escobido. Of course, John Owen’s “The Death of Death in the Death of Christ” is the classic work on this subject.

Does unforgiveness negate our justification before God?

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questionmarkredstandingQuestion: Pastor John, in Matthew 6:14, 15, Jesus said, “For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you, but if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.”

Is it not the plain reading of the text to interpret these words to mean that our forgiveness from God depends on our forgiving others? If this is the case, is not our ultimate salvation contingent upon our works in some measure? Do these verses teach that a genuine Christian can lose his salvation because of the sin of unforgiveness?

Answer: Thank you for your question. Its a very important one.

We are all prone to read into the text concepts that are not stated by the text. The technical term for this is ‘eisegesis.’ In contrast, what we need to be engaged in is called “exegesis” which is the drawing out of the text what is actually in the text. A failure to do this results in much confusion.

Some have gone as far to say that there are definitely texts that teach what we would call Reformed or Calvinistic theology but that other verses teach Arminian doctrine and therefore the biblical position is somewhere in the middle between the two. The problem with this view is that we are then left with a Bible full of glaring contradictions. Contradiction is not the hallmark of truth but of falsehood. Though there are definite mysteries in the Bible, I do not believe there are any genuine contradictions.

Here’s one example of what I am describing. I believe that the Apostle Paul in Romans 8:30 makes it clear that all truly justified Christians will endure to the end and be saved. The text reads, “those whom he justified he also glorified.” The justified end up glorified (justification being God’s declaration that a person is right with Himself; glorification being the final permanent state of salvation). In contradiction to this is the view that a passage such as the one you quote above means that justified people, if they then refuse to forgive, will be finally and permanently damned.

Which of these concepts is true? Both concepts cannot possibly be true because one is a total contradiction to the other.

Here as elsewhere, rather than choosing one concept over the other, the good student of God’s word seeks to find a harmony between all that God has revealed. Because the Bible is not contradictory, the harmony is there, we just need to seek to find it. This often requires much prayer, thought and study, but the Lord has told us elsewhere to do exactly that. Paul instructed Timothy, “Think over what I say, for the Lord will give you understanding in everything.” (2 Tim 2:7 – see also 2 Tim 2:15).

A vital principle of interpretation is that on any given subject, we should find the passages that are clear and start our thinking there. Then after having ascertained what is clear, we should then move to passages which at first glance are seemingly unclear.

Using the example of Romans 8:30 (above) on the issue of a person declared justified before God, it is clear that he/she will end up glorified (those whom he justified he also glorified). Knowing this, we then take a closer look at the Matthew 6 passage and ask the question, “what does the text actually say?”

Does the text actually say that justified people will lose salvation or be unforgiven by God? No, it does not say that at all. It simply says that the one who does not forgive will be unforgiven.

Here’s what we know. Justification is not by faith plus works. Justification is by faith alone, apart from works (Romans 4:4, 5; Eph 2:8,9). Justification is not by faith and then there is something like a probation period between being declared right before God and then the end of the lifetime, with the hope that no unforgiveness occurs which would forfeit salvation. To teach that would amount to a complete violation of the biblical gospel and would affirm salvation by works, after all. It would place the sinner in the very precarious position of being justified but on probation.

As Christians, we should believe all that Scripture teaches, including Jesus’ words in Matthew 6. Jesus said what He meant and He meant what He said. Those who do not forgive will be unforgiven.

But let us ask this question, “who will forgive?”

When we ask that question, light begins to shine where there was darkness in our understanding. It is the recipients of mercy who will likewise extend mercy to others. Those who are unwilling to forgive, may well not be partakers of mercy themselves. In contrast, those who have received mercy will likewise be merciful.

Scripture is clear that works have no basis in our justification. Works (such as extending forgiveness and mercy to others) are the fruit not the root of our salvation. We are not saved by the fruit of salvation.

Nothing we do contributes to our justification before God. Forgiving our neighbor is one of the fruits of true faith. A refusal to forgive indicates that there is a definite hardening of heart taking place. Is someone in that condition therefore unsaved? Well it could mean that if a person has never first come to faith in Christ. However, if this person is a genuine Christian, it does mean that this sin of unforgiveness needs to be repented of and the attitude changed.

As in this case, when we ask the question, “who will repent of unforgiveness?” the clear answer is that God’s elect will. Just as all the elect will at some point come to faith in Christ (John 6:37; Acts 13:48), all the elect will dispense with unforgiveness. And just as God uses means to achieve His ends with the proclamation of the gospel being the means by which the elect believe, so God will use the strong warning of Matthew 6 in the lives of God’s people as a means to that end.

Who will heed the warning? Who will forgive?

Oh that’s easy. The elect will.

That is not to say that the elect will always walk in love and forgiveness to others all the time. This side of heaven, all the elect are still fallen sinners with a fallen nature. The war between the flesh and the Spirit will rage on until the day we die. However, just as an elect person might hear the Gospel numerous times before he/she responds in faith to the Gospel (irresistibly drawn by the Holy Spirit), so eventually, the same Holy Spirit will so work in the heart of God’s children to cause them to forgive.

Think about this Scripture: “Therefore having been justified by faith we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.” (Romans 5:1)

The peace we have with God is the fruit of our being justified by God. This peace is no mere temporary ceasefire. The true child of God is not put on probation but is accepted in the Beloved, adopted into the family of God and sealed for the day of redemption. What mercy we have received!

Child of God, if you are struggling to forgive someone, think for a moment about how much you have been forgiven. Doing this will allow you to see that what someone else has done to you pales into insignificance compared with what you have done before God. Your sins were like scarlet, yet He has washed them white as snow. Think about that. Ponder that. Think of the great mercy He has shown you. Now hear the word of the Lord:

Eph 4:32 Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.