Do Christians Today Serve Jesus Christ more than John Calvin?

 Many young atheists today have come out of the Reformed Church, a doctrine of Calvinism. Why? Because they were confused by this doctrine.

“For God is not the author of confusion, but of peace, as in all churches of the saints.”

1^st Corinth. 14:33.

A theologian admired by many once wrote, “We may rest assured that God would never have suffered any infants to be slain except those who were already damned and predestined for eternal death.”
— John Calvin, Harmony of the Law Vol. 2, pg.63.

You cannot trust in a man who is contradicting in his theological views.

Jesus said, "Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these." Matt. 19:14.

We should not have our faith defined by a man, but by Christ.

“One of you says, "I follow Paul"; another, "I follow Apollos"; another, "I follow Cephas"; still another, "I follow Christ." 1^st Corinth. 1:12.

Jesus spoke of a future church and said, “At that time many will turn away from the faith and will betray and hate each other, and many false prophets will appear and deceive many people. Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold,” Matthew 24:10-12.

Jesus said, “Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me” John 15:4.

Jesus said, “For I have come down from heaven not to do my will but to do the will of him who sent me. And this is the will of him who sent me, that I shall lose none of all those he has given me, but raise them up at the last day. For my Father’s will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in him shall have eternal life, and I will raise them up at the last day” John 6:38-40.

“If anyone teaches otherwise and does not agree to the sound instruction of our LORD Jesus Christ and to godly teaching, ⁴they are conceited and understand nothing. They have an unhealthy interest in controversies and quarrels about words that result in envy, strife, malicious talk, evil suspicions” 1 Timothy 6:3-4.

Those given to Christ are those whom He foreknew would remain in Him (Romans 11:2).

Referring to the Jews who did not remain faithful, and addressing the Gentiles, Paul states, “Consider therefore the kindness and sternness of God: sternness to those who fell, but kindness to you, provided that you continue in his kindness. Otherwise, you also will be cut off.  And if they do not persist in unbelief, they will be grafted in, for God is able to graft them in again” (v.22). “God did not reject his people, whom he foreknew” (Romans 11:2).

            Read the Bible to see what Christ teaches, and do not read the Bible through a doctrinal lens named after a flawed human.

Thanos and the Christian Doctrine of Calvinism

In the Avengers Infinity War, Thanos sees all humans and humanoids alike as totally depraved, incapable of making the right choice without an all-powerful being coming in to bring order for these depraved wretches. He pities them, and he chooses some by unconditional election to be his children, being taught by him and loved by him. The atonement he makes for the humanoids whom he spares was fully attained by him killing his only beloved child, Gomorrah. This was certainly a limited atonement since he had no intention of sparing all humanoids, obviously. He sees his choice in destroying half of all the life in the universe as a sign of irresistible grace for those whom he has spared. The survivors should be grateful, for after all this would not have ever happened if it was not for him willingly taking the life of his beloved daughter. Now those whom he has spared will persevere and prosper because of the balance he has brought to creation.

Your choice is to either believe in a God like Thanos, or one other. Remember when Doctor Strange was tweaking out, meditating, and somehow, he was able to see every possible future in a universe where he knew people had free-will? Remember when he concluded that there was only one way to defeat Thanos?

This illustration goes in line with your other option; a God who foreknows everything that will, or can happen, and based on His foreknowledge He has predestined those whom He knows will come to repentance (Romans 8:29). However, in this case His beloved child sacrificed Himself willingly, being tempted in every way, and overcoming sin nature to be our salvation and provide us with His example to follow.

What kind of God do you believe in?

Who truly has the free mind, a person who has no knowledge of good and evil, and thus they do not have the mind of God, or those who have the knowledge of good and evil and choose to follow Christ?

Who is the more loving Father? The one who brain washes some into loving Him? Or the one who allows His children to grow, to make mistakes, and to ultimately choose whether they will trust Him or not?

Sin was not created by God, and has no true value. Darkness has no value without light, and surely darkness has no power over the light. What comes out of you after a healthy meal has no value, but is just waste left after you have eaten what is valuable for you to live. We know of sin, and because our flesh is corrupted by this sin we are prone to being brain washed by the devil into believing that what has no value is better than that which is truly of value. Without freewill, the choice to lie or tell the truth, love or hate, forgive or hold a grudge, eat crap or eat what is healthy; without the freedom defined by opposites an understanding of God’s love would be impossible. An appreciation for all Christ endured leading up to the cross and on the cross would not be possible if we were incapable of recognizing how ugly sin is. The Light could not have value for us if there was no darkness to shine through.

Knock down the T and the rest fall like dominoes. So, as God told depraved Cain, “If you do what is right, will you not be accepted? But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must rule over it" (Genesis 4:7). (God was not toying with Cain.)

Was no accident that the devil was thrown down to our world, the serpent did not slip past God into the garden. He had his part to play, based on the choice God knew he would make.

Why did Adam and Eve eat of the tree, (knowledge of good and evil), which God told them not to eat of? Because they were not perfect as God is perfect, and they were still in need of a Savior to provide them with an understanding of the love of God. Those who are truly free and capable of growing in wisdom are those who recognize they are free to do what they are told not to do. There will be natural consequences for the wrong choice, and thus one must choose to trust in the Lord.

Could there have been a better way, without sacrificing our understanding of love and grace, and thus without sacrificing freedom? Obviously not. There is only one way, as Jesus told his disciples, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me" (John 14:6). Readers clearly see the devil was fooled as he unintentionally worked according to Christ perfect plan (John 14: 30-31). The devil was allowed to come for Christ for the world must know His love for the Father and how He faithfully follows His commands (v. 30-31). Accordingly the love of the Father would be known by true believers, for following Christ resurrection the Father would send the Holy Spirit in Christ name to bring peace to His disciples (John 14: 25-29).  

“For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him” (Col. 1:16). Darkness was not created, is nothing of value, but just something people have been fooled into seeing has substance. The food you eat was created, the waste that comes out later was not, so why choose the latter? You are too depraved to save yourself, but you are not so depraved that you are incapable of reasoning with common sense. You are not so depraved that you are incapable of reaching out for a hand that offers you a way out of a raging storm of lies. Free your minds.

Feel free to disagree.

PS.

I am not Arminian or Calvinist, so do not be fooled by politics either. You do not have to be either a Republican or a Democrat, and that’s it. You should not be defined by a doctrine named by a man either. Study God’s Word without a commentary, and let the Scriptures defend the Scriptures. (Thomas Chain Reference Bible is great for this.) Trust in the Holy Spirit and see what you discover. You do not have to always be right. I’m not. (Still stuck in a body made of flesh; still human.) You should accept that you do not have it all figured out though and thus be free to grow. Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness and you will receive more from our gracious God (Matt. 6:33).

Also to see the belief shared here is not Semi-Pelagianism please read https://consulmoore.blogspot.com/2021/05/unchanging-will-of-god-and-human-free.html