Lately, I have been talking to many of you and asking what your thoughts were in regard to election and predestination, in addition to reading various materials--and always going back to the Word of God--hoping to come to a better understanding on this subject. I have come to a conclusion: TULIP, which stands for Total Depravity, Unconditional Election, Limited Atonement, Irresistible Grace, Perseverance of the Saints.

The doctrine of Total Depravity briefly states that because of the fall, man is unable of himself to savingly believe the Gospel. The sinner is dead, blind and deaf to the things of God; his heart is deceitful and desperately corrupt. His will is in bondage to his evil nature; therefore, he will not -- indeed he cannot -- choose good over evil in the spiritual realm. Consequently it takes much more than the Spirit's assistance to bring a sinner to Christ -- it takes regeneration, by which the Spirit makes the sinner alive and gives him a new nature. Faith is not something man contributes to salvation but is itself a part of God's gift of salvation; it is God's gift to the sinner, not the sinner's gift to God.

Even though free and uncoerced, the fallen will has no desire for anything except to indulge the evil tendencies of the heart. As long as a person is inclined only to evil, he chooses only evil. Fallen humanity loves darkness and hates light. So whenever a person is confronted with a choice between darkness and light, he chooses darkness. He chooses what is attractive to him, what his free will desires.

John 3:19-20 says:

A person always chooses according to his inclination. Every member of the human race is bonded to choose what he loves. Where is the bondage in choosing what we want? The bondage comes in the result of the sin he loves, the consequences of which he does not like. In sin, we may get what we want, but we do not want what we get. The sinner wants to live forever. He wants joy, love, peace, but only on his terms rather than God's. The sinner seeks these things, yet hates righteousness.

Zechariah 1:3 says:

Commenting on this verse, the great reformer Martin Luther said, "It is not in your power to turn to God. If you think that it is in your power to turn to God you have missed the whole Reformation and don't understand total depravity. It is not in your power to turn to God. You are a sinner, you're dead, you're eaten up with corruption. Every free choice of yours is evil and not good. So how can we turn to Him who is light, righteousness, holy and good?"

Since all of us are sinners, we have a duty to return to God, but we are unable to do so. We simply do not have the ability. Because we are responsible for our sins before God and are commanded by Him to return to Him in repentance does not mean that we have the ability to do so. Man is a free agent but be cannot originate the love of God in his heart. His will is free in the sense that it is not controlled by any force outside of himself. As the bird with a broken wing is "free" to fly but not able, so the natural man is free to come to God but not able. How can he repent of his sin when he loves it? How can he come to God when he hates Him? Jesus said in John 12:36, "While ye have light, believe in the light, that ye may be the children of light. These things spake Jesus, and departed, and did hide himself from them." Jesus said "believe in the light." Most believers today would say that because Christ commands us to believe, we must have an innate ability to believe. But Scripture does not support this view.

Consider the following verse:

The people described in this passage did not believe because they could not. Scripture clearly teaches that there are some things a lost person cannot do:

• Cannot see - until he first be born again. (John 3:3)
• Cannot understand - until he first be given a new nature. (1 Corinthians 2:14)
• Cannot come - until he first be effectually called by the Father. (John 6:44-45)

Jesus said in John 6:44-45, "No man can come to me, except the Father which hath sent me draw him: and I will raise him up at the last day. It is written in the prophets, And they shall be all taught of God. Every man therefore that hath heard, and hath learned of the Father, cometh unto me."

According to the words of Jesus, a sinner absolutely cannot come to Christ until God first does something in that sinner's nature. That "something" is what the Bible calls the new birth (regeneration), and it is the exclusive work of God the Holy Spirit. He changes your heart: “A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you a heart of flesh (Ezekiel 36:26).” A person has as much to do with being regenerated as he had with being born! In other words, no human being has any part whatsoever in regeneration. A good illustration of this important point can be found in John 11:43. “And when he thus had spoken, he cried with a loud voice, Lazarus, come forth.” Did Lazarus have the ability in himself to obey that command? Of course not, since Lazarus was dead! He had no ability at all. Unsaved, unregenerate people have a duty to believe the gospel, but lack the moral ability. When God commands us to return and promises that if we do He will return to us, we will not do it, for we cannot. Before regeneration we are in bondage to what our sinful nature innately loves, that which is darkness and evil. In this state we reject what we hate, that which is light and goodness and of God. We should be able to turn to God, but cannot because of our inherited sinful nature that came as a result of Adam's sin in the Garden of Eden. In Romans 5:12, Paul goes into this idea more completely. He says, "Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned.”

The very fact that God commands sinners to do that which they are utterly unable to do shows how totally depraved they are apart from the regeneration of the Holy Spirit. And if salvation is going to come at all, it must be applied sovereignly. This overthrows self-confidence and convinces sinners that their salvation is altogether out of their hands, leaving them the only remaining alternative, that is, total dependence on the glorious grace of a sovereign Saviour. Romans 3:10-12 says: "As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one: There is one that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God. They are all gone out of the way, they are together become unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no, not one.”

Many people will admit they are sinners, but not many will admit sin is so serious that no one can be considered righteous or essentially good. They point to unbelievers who do good deeds every day, obeying the law, providing for their families, giving to the needy, etc. Is Paul using hyperbole here? Is he exaggerating to make his point? No, he is not. This is God's judgment on fallen humanity. What is the standard for righteousness, the standard by which we shall all be judged? God's law. Biblically, a good deed is measured in two parts: outward conformity and motivation. We look at outward appearance, but God reads the heart. For a work to be considered good it must not only conform outwardly to the law of God, but it must be motivated inwardly by a sincere love for God. From this perspective it is easy to see that no one does good. Our best works are tainted by our less than pure motives. Renowned British preacher Charles H. Spurgeon once said, "Our best performances are so stained with sin, that it is hard to know whether they are good works or bad works." This is a true statement. God demands perfection, and we do not perfectly do what God commands ever.

Romans 3:11 says, "There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God.” Do you believe that? Have you ever heard someone say, "I am not a Christian but I am searching"? Well, the fact of the matter is that God is not hiding. In the Garden of Eden who hid? God? No. Adam and Eve hid from God. He was looking for them.

In Luke 19:10 Jesus says, "For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost." This passage shows that Jesus is the one seeking and saving. Sinners do not seek God. They might seek after the benefits that God can give them, but they do not seek God Himself.

Romans 3:18 says: "There is no fear of God before their eyes." Men have no fear of the holiness and justice of God. 

Ephesians 2:1-6 says: "And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins; Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience: Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others. But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;) and hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus...”

This passage teaches that we were dead in "trespasses and sins". Dead people do not and cannot make themselves come alive. It is God who makes us alive from spiritual death.

Consider this analogy: A mortally ill man must take the medicine of the gospel to live. The man must make the choice; he must take the medicine.

The problem with this analogy, however, is that the Bible does not speak of people as being mortally ill. It speaks of them as being dead. There is a significant difference between being mortally ill and being dead.

Genesis 2:17 says: "But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die."

Did Adam die when he ate the forbidden fruit? When did he die? He lived physically another 930 years, but he died spiritually the day that he ate it. Humanity is spiritually dead, separated from God. Romans 6:23 says: "For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord."

What kind of death is referred to in this passage? Physical death or spiritual death? It refers to spiritual death. Ephesians 2:5 says we were dead in our sins. Sinners are not mortally ill, they are spiritually dead. There is not one ounce of spiritual life in them.

1 Corinthians 2:14-15 says: "But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned. But he that is spiritual judgeth all things, yet he himself is judged of no man." Natural man is dead and totally unreceptive to the gospel. He must first be given life before he can understand the gospel.

Romans 8:7-9 says: "Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be. So then they that are in the flesh cannot please God. But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his."

There is nothing good in the flesh, therefore it can do nothing good. A man cannot believe the gospel until God gives him life. The teaching of Scripture is that regeneration precedes faith. We must have life before we can believe. The Scriptures clearly show that faith is the evidence of and not the cause of regeneration. 1 John 5:1 says: "Whosoever believeth that Jesus Christ is born of God: and every one that loveth him that begat loveth him also that is begotten of him." Suppose a man who had been dead for many years greeted you on the street one day. Would you conclude that the man had gotten tired of being dead and decided to ask a great doctor to perform a miracle and give him life? I am sure you would instead, exclaim in amazement, "Man, what happened to you? Who brought you back to life?" You would see he was alive because he was walking and breathing, but you would know these were evidences of a miracle having been performed on him from without and not the results of his own power of will. In like manner, when a spiritually dead man begins to perform spiritual acts such as placing faith in Jesus Christ alone for salvation, loving Him, and seeking to live a life pleasing to Him, that shows that the miracle of the new birth has taken place.

Spiritual death brings an insensitivity to the things of God. It is a spiritual slavery, the prisoners of which are helplessly, hopelessly dead. This is what Total Depravity is. It does not mean, as many have misunderstood, that the unregenerate man is as bad as he can possibly be. It means that the man is as bad off as he can possibly be. Salvation does not lie in the exercise of a man's free will. It is due to man's own corrupt will that he is separated from God. We are all destined for eternal condemnation unless God gives us spiritual life and inclines our wills toward Jesus Christ. We must have a Savior who is mighty enough to rescue us from ourselves. Clearly, God must do something. We are hopelessly lost without God's sovereign intervention.

Because of humanity's total depravity, God of necessity, in eternity past, chose certain people to be saved. There was nothing inherently better or different about the chosen people which caused God to choose them (it was unconditional). God was totally free in His decision to show grace and mercy to some sinners who deserved nothing but His wrath. This is, in essence, the doctrine of Unconditional Election.

The basis of God's election is a mystery only known to God. We may not understand how it can be that He is able to elect some while passing by others. But rest assured, everything that God has decided to do is perfect and righteous because He makes no mistakes. Some say that this paints a picture of a God that is capricious and unjust. But this view overlooks the fact that if all humanity received what is just from God, then all would be condemned to eternal death in hell. God is under no obligation to save anyone. He shows mercy by choosing to save some that are condemned to death.

God's election is necessary because of the total depravity of human nature. Every son and daughter of Adam is an ungodly sinner; an enemy of God. None of us have within our nature the desire to choose good and reject evil. All stand guilty before God, deserving of His wrath. But God, in His infinite wisdom and grace chose to elect certain rebellious sinners to be saved. Once He elected these sinners to be saved, He then predestined them to be saved. To elect means to choose; to predestine means to decide the outcome beforehand. The difference between election and predestination is similar to the difference between choice and power. A man could elect another to be saved, but he would not have the power to carry out the results of his choice. In contrast, not only has God made the choice, but He has the power to carry out that choice.

Election and predestination are two different activities of God, but they are inseparable activities. When God elects, He also predestines; when He decides something should happen, He sees to it that it will happen.

Election is God's sovereign choice unto salvation. The sinner is chosen to be saved but is not yet saved. The elect person remains an ungodly sinner until the Father draws him to the Son through regeneration. So the choice of the person's salvation is made in eternity past, but the actual salvation occurs within the lifetime of the person. This is important because it reminds us that we cannot sit back and allow election to run its course. Sinners must still be evangelized and witnessed to, and the Holy Spirit must still convert them.

God has not only determined those who will be saved, but has also chosen the means. Regenerate men are saved by grace through faith. (Ephesians 2:8) "So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God (Romans 10:17).” The gospel "is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth." (Romans 1:16-17) The gospel must be preached, first of all, because God commanded believers to do so (Matthew 28:19-20), and secondly, because it is the means by which God saves His elect.

Some people say that God elected people to salvation on the basis of His foreknowledge. They define God's foreknowledge as His ability to read, or predict, the future. In this view God, using His foreknowledge, knew who would choose to place their faith in Jesus Christ, and elected these people to salvation. Faith is the cause of election, rather than the result. 

This view assumes that human beings have within themselves the ability to have faith in Jesus Christ without God causing that faith. But due to the total depravity of humanity we know that no one is capable of any good thought or action, including faith. Faith is a gift from God. (Ephesians 2:8) If God had not foreordained to give the gift of faith to a person, that person would never come to faith in God.

There is an important problem with this view of God's foreknowledge: The Bible does not teach that God foresees faith. Romans 8:29 says, "For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren." The phrase “For whom he did foreknow” means that he forknows people. 

Ephesians 1:3-14 is perhaps the best place in the Bible that describes the nature of election. Verse four says: "According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love." God chose us in Christ before the creation of the world. He chose us before we were created, before Adam was created. In fact, He chose us before the world was created. We were elected to be saved before we had ever done anything good or bad, before we had the opportunity to choose or reject God.

He chose us to be holy and blameless in His sight. Some people say that He chose us because He knew that we would be holy and blameless. But this verse tells us that our being holy and blameless is a result of His choice, not the cause of His choice.

Verses five and six say: "Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will." Having chosen us, He also predestined us. His choice and predestination are in accordance with His pleasure and will.

John 1:13 says that the saved are those "Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God." The source of election is God's good pleasure. Salvation is determined by God's will, not man's will. The realization of our election by God should humble us. It excludes all self-accreditation, since we had absolutely nothing to do with determining our own salvation. It should lead us to praise His glorious grace.

Grace is the unmerited favor of God. The doctrines of election and predestination should drive home the point that God's favor is totally unearned by us. It is solely God's free choice to elect or not elect, not ours. God's grace emphasizes the fact that salvation is not the result of human endeavor.

Verse eleven says that "we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will." We are made heirs in Christ because God made it so. We have been predestined to this by God. God's plan is not determined by our will, but by God's will. It is very clear from Ephesians 1 that God has freely chosen certain sinners to be saved; and that He made this choice before the foundation of the world. But Ephesians 1 is not the only place that teaches this truth. It is taught in many other passages as well.

Here are some examples:

"For many are called, but few are chosen." (Matthew 22:14)

"And except that the Lord had shortened those days, no flesh should be saved: but for the elect’s sake, whom he hath chosen, he hath shortened those days." (Mark 13:20)

"And shall not God avenge his own elect, which cry day and night unto him, though he bear long with them?" (Luke 18:7)

"And he said, Therefore said I unto you, that no man can come unto me, except it were given unto him of my Father. " (John 6:65)

"And when the Gentiles heard this, they were glad, and glorified the word of the Lord: and as many as were ordained to eternal life believed." (Acts 13:48)

"For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren." (Romans 8:29-30)

"(For the children being not yet born, neither having done any good or evil, that the purpose of God according to election might stand, not of works, but of him that calleth;) It was said unto her, The elder shall serve the younger.'" (Romans 9:11-12) "What then? Israel hath not obtained that which he seeketh for; but the election hath obtained it, and the rest were blinded." (Romans 11:7)

"But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty; And base things of the world, and things which are despised, hath God chosen, yea, and things which are not, to bring to nought things that are: That no flesh should glory in his presence." (1 Corinthians 1:27-29)

"But we are bound to give thanks alway to God for you, brethren beloved of the Lord, because God hath from the beginning chosen you to salvation through sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth:" (2 Thessalonians 2:13)

"Who hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which were given us in Christ Jesus before the world began," (2 Timothy 1:9)

"Therefore I endure all things for the elect’s sakes, that they may also obtain the salvation which is in Christ Jesus with eternal glory." (2 Timothy 2:10)

"Peter an apostle of Jesus Christ, to the strangers scattered throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia. Elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through sanctification of the Spirit, unto obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ: Grace unto you, and peace be multiplied ." (1 Peter 1:1-2)

"Not rendering evil for evil, or railing for railing: but contrariwise blessing; knowing that ye are thereunto called, that ye should inherit a blessing. For he that will love life, and see good days, let him refrain his tongue from evil, and his lips that they speak no guile." (1 Peter 3:9-10)

Election is a free and gracious gift of the Lord. A person is saved only because God chose that person to be His child. You are born again to newness of life, not according to your will, but according to God's will. Your heart should be overflowing with humility, praise, and thanksgiving to God for your salvation. Not even in the least bit can you claim any credit for your salvation. Apart from the elective and regenerative intervention of God, salvation would be impossible. We would be justly and eternally condemned for our sins.

The doctrine of Limited Atonement (or Particular Redemption) is probably the most controversial of the doctrines of grace and most difficult to accept by many believers. Limited Atonement states that Christ's redeeming work was intended to save the elect only, and actually secured salvation for them. His death was the substitutionary endurance of the penalty of sin in the place of certain specified sinners. In addition to putting away the sins of His people, Christ's redemption secured everything necessary for their salvation; including faith which unites them to Him. The gift of faith is infallibly applied by the Spirit to all for whom Christ died, therefore guaranteeing their salvation.

The first thing to consider is the purpose of Christ's death. Hebrews 10:9 says that Jesus came to do the will of the Father. So it follows that the purpose of His death was to accomplish the Father's will. But what was the Father's will in the death of Christ? It was shown from Scripture in the previous section on the doctrine of unconditional election that it was the purpose of the Father to choose some for salvation, not make salvation a potential for all based on the exercise of free will, which is totally corrupted and depraved by sin. If, then, Christ came to fulfill the purpose of the Father; and it was the purpose of the Father to elect some to salvation rather than all; then it logically follows that it was not the purpose of Christ to die for all men.

In the covenant of grace, the Father chose a people, Christ promised to die for them, and the Spirit pledged Himself to apply salvation to their hearts. In Isaiah 53:10-12, speaking of Jesus, says: "Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the LORD shall prosper in his hand. He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities. Therefore will I divide him a portion with the great, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong; because he hath poured his soul unto death: and he was numbered with the transgressors; and he bare the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors."

Christ foresaw the suffering and agony that He would have to endure, and yet, He was content with it, for He realized that by His death, everyone for whom He died would be redeemed from sin. Now if Christ died for all men, and some for whom He died ended up going to hell anyway, then Christ could not have foreseen the suffering and agony of His soul and been satisfied. He would have been disappointed because His efforts would not have been sufficient to save everyone for whom He died. Therefore, the atonement Christ made for the sins of His people was limited in purpose; not in its value, but in its purpose, for it was designed for the elect of God.

The second point to consider is that the purpose of the death of Christ was to save His people from their sins. That is clearly stated for us in Matthew 1:21: "And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins." This passage did not say that He would save the whole world, nor did it say that He should try to save His people; but that He would save His people from their sins. If that was the prophecy given concerning the birth of Jesus Christ and the purpose for which He came, we must surely know that which was determined by the Father was fulfilled by His faithful Son. Luke 19:10 supports this point: "For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost." If that then was His purpose; He accomplished that very thing.

Thirdly, the purpose of Jesus' death was to bring the elect to glory. Romans 8:28-30 says: "And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are called according to his purpose. For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren. Moreover whom he did predestinate, them he also called: and whom he called, them he also justified: and whom he justified, them he also glorified." In John 17 is the prayer of intercession made by the Lord Jesus. In verse 2 He prayed, "As thou hast given him power over all flesh, that he should give eternal life to as many as thou hast given him." Note that eternal life was not for all men, but those that were given to Him by the Father. In verse 9 He continues: "I pray for them: I pray not for the world, but for them which thou hast given me; for they are thine." It would not be reasonable that Christ would limit His prayers to those given to Him by the Father, and at the same time die for all men, knowing very well that many would not be saved. He prayed for those for whom He died, and He died for those given Him by the Father. His purpose then was not to save the entire human race, for if that had been His purpose He would have accomplished it. Christ is the Almighty and accomplishes everything He intends to do. It was His purpose to save only the elect of God the Father, and His purpose was fulfilled.

Christ died for His sheep, and because of this none can be lost. In John 10:10-11 He said, "The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly. I am the good shepard: the good shepard giveth his life for the sheep" And in verse 28 He continues: "And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand." (Notice that He does not offer them eternal life.) Jesus died for the sheep, and He gives eternal life to everyone for whom He died. Christ did not come to attempt to save men; He came to redeem His people. He purged their sins and then sat down on the right hand of His Father. (Hebrews 10:12)

As was stated at the beginning, there are many who find this doctrine hard to accept and so object to it. Nonetheless it is truth that is taught in the Word of God. There are many objections that are raised, and this article will only deal with some of the main ones. One of the first things objectors usually refer to is the use of the word "world" in the Scriptures, and the first passage that is always read is John 3:16: " For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life." John 3:16 simply states that the design of God's love, that all who believe in Christ should be saved by Him. These believers in their unregenerate state are scattered abroad among the Gentiles as well as among the Jews, and so are accurately described by the word "world." Of course, there are those who reject this explanation. They may look to Acts 11:18 for support: "When they heard this, they quieted down and glorified God, saying, 'Well then, God has granted to the Gentiles also the repentance that leads to life." But does this mean that every Gentile has been granted repentance, and that every Gentile will be saved? Of course not. What this passage shows is that repentance has been granted to the Gentiles; it simply means that all those of God's elect among the Gentiles shall be given repentance unto salvation. The Jews are not the only ones to be granted this gift. Jews as well as Gentiles have been given repentance, and so it is the same in John 3:16. It does not have reference to every person in the world, but it has reference to men of all nations.

A passage that illustrates this point well is found in Revelation 5:9: "And they sang a new song, saying, 'Worthy are You to take the book and to break its seals; for You were slain, and purchased for God with Your blood men from every tribe and tongue and people and nation.'" This helps us to understand, in this context, what is meant by the use of the word "world". It means people of every tribe, tongue, and people; that Christ's death was not restricted to the Jews, but that it was for members of the entire human race scattered throughout the earth.

There are several other examples. In John 7:7 the word "world" is used to distinguish unbelievers from believers. In John 12:9 the word "world" is used of a special people. Romans 11:15 uses it to distinguish Gentiles from Jews, and thus so in passages such as John 3:16 and 1:27, I John 2:1 and 2 -- it is used of all the elect of God. Hebrews 2:9 says, "But we do see Him who was made for a little while lower than the angels, namely, Jesus, because of the suffering of death crowned with glory and honor, so that by the grace of God He might taste death for everyone." At this point someone may say, "This is Scriptural proof that Christ died for all men." But the context will explain what it means. "For it was fitting for Him, for whom are all things, and through whom are all things, in bringing many sons to glory, to perfect the author of their salvation through sufferings. For both He who sanctifies and those who are sanctified are all from one Father; for which reason He is not ashamed to call them brethren, saying, 'I WILL PROCLAIM YOUR NAME TO MY BRETHREN, IN THE MIDST OF THE CONGREGATION I WILL SING YOUR PRAISE.'" (Hebrews 2:10-12) When read in context it can be seen that the passage has reference to sons; it has reference to the church; it has reference to the brethren; it has reference to those who are the children of God. So this passage could be understood to say that "Christ has experienced death for every son," for every one that was given to Him by the Father.

One more passage of Scripture to consider is Romans 8:33-34. It is a clear example of Limited Atonement, or Particular Redemption. It says, "Who shall lay any thing to the charge of God’s elect? It is God that justifieth. Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us." How could any for whom Christ died be condemned? The law has been fulfilled, justice has been satisfied, sin has been paid for; and so, the Apostle Paul argues that condemnation is impossible. And since condemnation is excluded by His death, then none for whom He died can be condemned. All for whom Christ died, died in Him; thus the law could not again demand their death.

The renowned 19th century British preacher and evangelist Charles H. Spurgeon had these words to say about limited atonement (from his sermon, "The Mission of the Son of Man"):

"Now, some people love the doctrine of 'universal atonement' because they say it is so beautiful. It is a lovely idea that 'Christ should have died for all men'; it commends itself, they say, to the instincts of humanity; there is something in it full of joy and beauty.

"I admit there is; but beauty may be often associated with falsehood.

"There is much which I might well admire in the theory of 'universal redemption' but let me just tell you what this supposition necessarily involves. If Christ on His cross intended to save every man, then He intended to save those who were damned before He died; because if this doctrine (that He died for all men) is true, He died for some that were in hell before He came into this world, for doubtless there were myriads there that had been cast away.

"Once again, if it were Christ's intention to save all men, how deplorably has He been disappointed! For we have His own evidence that there is a lake that burns with fire and brimstone, and into that pit must be cast some of the very people, who according to that theory, were bought with His blood!

"To think that my Savior died for men in hell, seems a supposition too horrible for me to imagine. That He was the substitute for the sons of men, and that God having first punished the substitute, punished these same men again, seems to me to conflict with any idea of justice. "That Christ should offer an atonement and satisfaction for the sins of all men, and that afterwards, some of those very men should be punished for the same sins which Christ had already atoned for, seems to me, to be the most marvelous monstrosity that ever could have been imputed to Saturn, to Janus, aye, to the god of the Thugs, or the most diabolical heathen demons!

"God forbid that we should ever think thus of Jehovah, the just and wise." In conclusion, the death of Christ is the foundation of the Christian's hope. Jesus is a Redeemer who does deliver His people from sin; not just tries to deliver His people with the possibility of losing some of them. His grace is thoroughly efficacious in saving the elect, for whom He died. And one elected by the grace of God is bound to come to Him, for it would be then natural for him to do so.

In addition to the outward general call to salvation (which is made to everyone who hears the Gospel), the Holy Spirit extends to the elect a special inward call that inevitably brings them to salvation. The external call (which is made to ALL without distinction) can be -- and often is -- rejected; whereas the internal call (which is made only to the elect) cannot be rejected; it always results in conversion. By means of this special call, the Spirit irresistibly draws sinners to Christ. He is not limited in His work of applying salvation by man's will, nor is He dependent upon man's cooperation for success. The Spirit graciously causes the elect sinner to cooperate, to believe, to repent, to come freely and willingly to Christ. God's grace, therefore, is invincible; it never fails to result in the salvation of those to whom it is extended. This describes in a nutshell the doctrine of Irresistible Grace, or the Efficacious Call.

God's call to salvation is unlimited but His redemption is limited to those who believe. (Matthew 22:14) The Holy Spirit's conviction and drawing is what drags us to God. We do not come by our own will, which is utterly depraved and naturally hostile toward God. When the Holy Spirit draws sinners, He literally drags them. Before salvation sinners are dead in trespasses and sins. A dead person is lifeless and not able to do anything. If you wish to move a dead person without any assistance, from one end of a place to another you must drag him. That is exactly what the Holy Spirit has to do to sinners to bring them to salvation. The Holy Spirit regenerates the unregenerate by turning a spiritually dead will that is in rebellion against God to one that is spiritually alive and willingly accepts Jesus as Savior and Lord.

Thus, salvation is all of God and not of man in any way, shape, or form.He deserves all the credit, praise, and glory.

Grace is unmerited favor. We obtain God's approval and favor by His grace through Jesus Christ, which is our unmerited pardon, reprieve, and total forgiveness. He has mercy on us. He forgives us even though we do not deserve it. God imputes the blood Christ in our stead.

On death row, who is in control of the sentence? The convict or the governor? The governor can issue the pardon, but the convict cannot pardon himself. The same is true of salvation. God can pardon us, but we cannot pardon ourselves. Even as a governor elects the convict to a pardon, God elects us to redemption. Ephesians 2:8-9 bolsters this point: "For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast." Salvation is all of God and none of man.

At salvation God forgives our sins, but it's a continuous forgiveness. (1 John 1:5-2:1) Even after we are saved we sometimes will slip into sin, but we cannot remain there. God will continually forgive us when we confess and repent. We do not lose our salvation, but we do lose the joy of our salvation and fall out of fellowship with God when we sin. Even as grace is irresistible in salvation, grace is irresistible after salvation. God will drag us back to Himself when we stray. He will not allow us to stay in sin and enjoy it. He will chastise us. (Proverbs 3:11-12; Job 5:17; Hebrews 12:5-8, 12) God will chasten us and not allow us to remain in sin. His grace in forgiving our sins after salvation is just as irresistible.

In John 6:44 Jesus said, "No man can come to me, except the Father which hath sent me draw him: and I will raise him up at the last day." Clearly those who do come, come because they have been enabled to do so. Furthermore, Jesus continues in this verse to affirm that, He "will raise him up at the last day." There is no room in this passage to allow for the possibility that all who are enabled will make a decision to refuse the offer. Jesus has made that clear with His pronouncement in the second half of this verse. Moreover, to suggest that at this point those who are enabled to come can decide not to, is to destroy the natural reading of this verse. No, all those who come, are indeed only those who have been enabled to do so. And all those who are enabled to do so, are saved. That is grace with power to save; grace that is irresistible!

The Apostle John speaks of those for whom some would make the claim that they were drawn and yet refused this offer of grace. He says of them in 1 John 2:19, "They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would no doubt have continued with us: but they went out, that they might be made manifest that they were not all of us." What is one thing we learn from this passage? It is that genuinely born again people, drawn to Christ by the Father, never fall away. They remain. But those who refuse God's grace by turning from Him, no matter how authentic they may have appeared, prove that they were never truly born again to begin with.

Perseverance of the Saints states that all who are chosen by God, redeemed by Christ, and given faith by the Spirit are eternally saved. They are kept in faith by the power of Almighty God and thus persevere to the end.

Perseverance of the Saints first needs to be properly understood. This doctrine does not mean that all those who merely appear to have faith (i.e., said a certain prayer, walked down the church isle, joined a church, were baptized, etc.) will be kept by God and will therefore persevere to the end. There are many people who profess to be believers but then later fall away. Instead, Perseverance of the Saints means that all those who have a genuine faith in Christ will be kept by God forever and will persevere to the end. There are many professing Christians who trust in their own works, goodness, merits for their salvation. These people are trusting in their own righteousness, instead of Jesus' blood, and do not have true faith in Jesus Christ. Therefore, later on they may get discouraged and decide to leave the faith and no longer be a Christian. This does not prove that they were saved and then lost their salvation, but simply that they deserted the Christian religion because they had only a said faith rather than a genuine one. The Apostle John clearly described such people in 1 John 2:19.

Another important point that must be made is that the doctrine of Perseverance of the Saints in no way permits believers to live a lazy and rebellious Christian life. Some opponents to this doctrine say that it teaches a license to sin with an open door to heaven. This is grossly untrue, and a complete distortion of what Perseverance of the Saints actually teaches. Jesus said in John 14:15, "If ye love me, keep my commandments." Since the Christian is born again by the Holy Spirit, he loves Jesus and so naturally desires to keep His commandments. The change of heart that the Holy Spirit makes in regeneration, as well as the indwelling presence of the Spirit in the believer, ensures that the believer will continue to love Christ. Of course, the amount of love for Christ varies with the individual. A more mature Christian no doubt has a deeper love for Christ than a "baby Christian." Nevertheless, all of God's children have a love for their Saviour. Thus, true believers strive each and every day to please Him. They strive each and every day to keep His commandments. This is not done in order to obtain salvation, or even to maintain salvation, because that would turn salvation by grace into salvation by works. Rather, Christians keep His commandments out of love and gratitude for the One who shed His precious blood for their redemption. Therefore, those who believe in Perseverance of the Saints do not say that Christians can live like any way they want and still expect to get into heaven. They say, "Do you really love Christ? Then keep His commandments!" Even though believers have a great love for the Lord, and strive to obey and please Him, human imperfection, the sinful flesh, causes a fall into sin from time to time. No one on earth is sinless. But God will keep His saints. He will see to it that all those He elected, died for, and regenerated will be glorified.

Here are several Scriptural passages that teach the doctrine of Perseverance of the Saints. Jesus said in John 6:39-40, "And this is the Father’s will which hath sent me, that of all which he hath given me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up again at the last day. And this is the will of him that sent me, that every one which seeth the Son, and believeth on him, may have everlasting life: and I will raise him up at the last day." Here we are told that the Father's will for the Son is that the Son lose none of those that were chosen and given to Him. So in order for an elect person to be lost, the Son would either have to disobey the Father's will, or be impotent in His power to prevent the loss of those given to Him by the Father! It would be a sin for the Son to disobey the Father's will; and if Jesus lacks the power to keep those whom the Father had given to Him, then perhaps He is also unable to make good the many other promises He made to believers. So the only way a believer could be lost is for the Son of God to sin or be powerless to keep them. Needless to say, that will never happen. In John 10:27-29 Jesus says about the elect sheep in verse 27, "My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me.” Notice that it is the nature of sheep to follow the Divine Shepherd. If anyone fails to follow the Shepherd, that person was never really a sheep. In the verses 28-29 He continues, "And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. My Father, which gave them to me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father’s hand."It is sometimes argued that although nothing can take a believer out of the Father's hand, a person might take himself out of the Father's hand. However, the verse does not say that the believer is holding tightly to the Father's hand. It says that the Father is holding tightly to the believer. To illustrate, whenever an earthy father is holding his child's hand while crossing a busy highway, he holds tightly onto the child's hand. Even if the child releases his grip the father does not release his. He does not leave the safety of the child up to the child. He does not merely hold out a stick and tell the child to hold on to the other end of it and just leave it up to the child's decision as to whether to let go and wander into traffic or not. In the same way, God is a good Father, and He holds us tightly in His hand. We will never be able to get loose from His grip and perish because He promises that we will “never perish". How could He make that promise if it were possible for us to get loose from His grip and perish? It is not possible. In John 17:24 Jesus said, "Father, I will that they also, who thou hast given me, be with me where I am; that they may behold my glory, which thou hast given me: for thou lovedst me before the foundation of the world." It is Christ's desire for the ones whom God has given Him to be with Him and behold His glory. Christ is the sovereign God. He will get what He desires. Romans 8:35-39 says: “Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? As it is written, For thy sake we are killed all day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter. Nay, in all these things were are more than conquerors through him that loved us. For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

Sometimes it is argued that Satan may be successful in separating the believer from God and His love. However, Satan is a created thing, and the promise is that no created thing will be successful in separating us. If Satan could separate a believer from God and cause him to be unsaved, then that would make Satan more powerful than God!

It is also argued from time to time that even though the believer is safe from adversaries outside of himself, he is not safe from destroying himself. However, it needs to be remembered that even the believer himself is a created thing, and the promise is that no created thing will ever separate us from God. Philippians 1:6 says, "Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ." God is not a God who fails to complete the tasks He begins. He is never defeated in anything He sets out to do. If He has really begun a good work in an individual, He will be successful in completing it. We can be confident of that. 1 Corinthians 1:8 says, "Who [Jesus] shall also confirm you unto the end, that ye may be blameless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ." 1 Thessalonians 5:23-24 says, "And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly; and I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. Faithful is he that calleth you, who also will do it." Here the Apostle Paul assures believers that God will preserve them in a blameless (justified) state. 2 Thessalonians 3:3 says, "But the Lord is faithful, who shall stablish you, and keep you from evil.”

Since it is God's will that the Son lose none of those that were given to Him, the believer can be sure that He will successfully guard him from the attempts of Satan to destroy him and separate him from God. 2 Timothy 1:12 says, "For the which cause I also suffer these things: nevertheless I am not ashamed: for I know whom I have believed, and am persuaded that he is able to keep that which I have committed unto him against that day."

Sometimes people say that God would definitely like to make our ultimate salvation a certainty but that He is not able to because that would interfere with our so-called free will. But the Bible teaches that He is able. Jude 24-25 reaffirms this when it says, "Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy, to the only wise God our Saviour, be glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and forever. Amen." This passage does not teach that God is able to keep us from stumbling and stand blameless before Him if we continue to do our part, for then, salvation would be dependent on our own ability, our own efforts. No, it is God who keeps the believer from stumbling; it is God who makes him to stand before Him justified.

There are several doctrines which demonstrates Perseverance of the Saints. One of them is Predestination. The Bible teaches that God predestines certain people to be saved. Ephesians 1:5 says that "Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will. " To be adopted as a son is to be saved. God also predestines us to be conformed to the image of Christ. Now, everyone whom God predestines to be saved and conformed to Christ's image will eventually be glorified in heaven. Romans 8:30 says that those “whom he did predestinate, them he also called: and whom he called, them he also justified: and whom he justified, them he also glorified." Here we see that predestination is an unbroken golden chain. Paul says that the ones who get predestined are the ones who get called. The ones who get called are the ones who get justified. The ones who get justified are the ones who get glorified. If you get the first part of salvation you get it all. It is an unbreakable chain. All those who get the first part of salvation get the last. All those whom God predestined to be saved will be glorified in the end. And how could it be otherwise? How could the Sovereign God predestine a thing to occur and it not occur? It is impossible!

Another doctrine that demonstrates Perseverance of the Saints is Salvation by Grace. In Ephesians 2:8-9 Paul said, "For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast." Notice here that salvation is "the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast." Some people believe that a believer can lose his salvation. They believe that the only reason some people are able to keep their salvation and others fail to do so is because some are simply able to endure. Perhaps one person has more strength than another, or maybe he does not lose his determination, or perhaps he has some innate ability to remain in Christ that others do not have. One of the problems with this, however, is that this leaves room for boasting. Let's say Christ did die for both men, and the Spirit did regenerate both of them, but one went to heaven while the other did not. Why? Because he had the strength to endure. So when he gets to heaven, he will have a lot to boast about. He could boast about his ability to persevere, or for even being sensible enough to make the right choice in accepting Christ as his Savior.

According to the Bible, however, there is no room for boasting at all. God chose us before the foundation of the world, not because of anything we did. Jesus Christ died on the cross, and His blood covered all our sins. Then the Spirit brought us out of our spiritual death and into life; and God is holding us in His hand and guarding us from the evil one. He is keeping us forever. Salvation is totally of God and His grace. Therefore, we have nothing to boast about, and we will give God all the praise and glory. This view gives God all the glory for his salvation. Those who hold to the opposing view is logically compelled to accept a part of the glory for himself. Surely any understanding of salvation which leaves room for man to boast and divides the glory for salvation between God and the sinner cannot be the biblical understanding of salvation.

Another thing which proves that the believer is eternally secure, is the fact that scripture says that our life is eternal. Consider John 3:16: "For God so loved the world, that he gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life." If there is any possibility that some who believe in Him will at some future time lose their salvation, then how could Christ have made this promise? He said they will have eternal life. If someone is promised eternal life but loses it after twenty years, did he have eternal life? No. That person only had 20-year life. Christ promises that all believers will have eternal life. For the Son of God to make such a promise, He must know that it will come to pass. If the Son of God makes a promise like that, He will do everything to make sure it occurs, including putting us in the Father's hand. And the Father is greater than all, so no one can snatch us out of His hand.

Another thing which demonstrates the doctrine of Perseverance of the Saints, is that when Christ died on the cross, He purchased the church. Acts 20:28 says, "Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock, over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed the church of God, which he hath purchased with his own blood." Jesus purchased those people for whom He died. The church is Jesus Christ's possession. We are His. How then can we ever belong to another? How then can we ever lose our salvation and not belong to Christ anymore? Who would ever succeed in taking something away from the Creator of heaven and earth unless that person was greater than God? No, believers are securely in God's hand, and we know that God does not plan for any believer to be lost.

We truly are saved by grace through faith, and that not of ourselves, for it is the gift of God, lest anyone should boast. We have no reason to boast about anything. Not even for making a decision for Christ. We serve a gracious and merciful God who chose us before the foundation of the world; who shed His precious blood which covered our sins; who changed our hearts so that we would willingly serve Him for all of eternity; who gave us the faith we need; and who holds us in His hand now and forever. To Him be all glory and praise forever and ever!

In Christ, Wai

Scriptural Support for Total Depravity: Genesis 6:5, 8:21; Numbers 15:37-39; 1 Kings 8:46; Job 15:14-16; Psalms 14:1-3, 51:5, 94:11, 130:3; Proverbs 4:23, 20:9; Ecclesiastes 7:20, 8:11; Isaiah 6:5, 53:6, 64:6; Jeremiah 10:14, 13:23, 17:9; Matthew 7:11, 15:19; Mark 10:18; Luke 17:10; John 2:24, 3:36, 6:44, 15:5, 16; Acts 3:16, 16:14; Romans 1:18-2:16, 3:9-20, 23, 5:12, 7:18-20, 8:7; 1 Corinthians 2:14, 12:3; 2 Corinthians 3:5, 4:3, 11:3; Ephesians 2:1-6, 4:17-19; Colossians 2:13; 1 Timothy 2:25, 6:5; 2 Timothy 3:8; Titus 1:5; James 2:10, 3:2, 8; Revelation 9:20, 16:9.

Scriptural Support for Unconditional Election: Deuteronomy 7:6-10, 15, 9:5, 29:4; Psalms 65:4; Isaiah 45:4; Mark 13:20; John 1:13, 6:44, 65, 15:16, 17:2; Acts 2:39, 9:1-18, 11:17, 16:14, 18:27; Romans 8:28-30, 9:10-26, 10:20, 11:5; Ephesians 1:1-11; 1 Corinthians 1:1; 2 Corinthians 4:6; Philippians 1:29; 1 Thessalonians 1:2-4; 2 Thessalonians 2:13; 2 Timothy 1:9, 2:10, 19, 25; Titus 3:5; Hebrews 9:15; James 1:18; Jude 1.

Scriptural Support for Limited Atonement: Exodus 4:21, 14:4, 8, 17; Deuteronomy 2:30, 9:4-7, 29:4; Joshua 11:19; 1 Samuel 2:25, 3:14; 2 Samuel 17:14; Psalms 105:25; Proverbs 15:8, 26, 28:9; Isaiah 53:11; Jeremiah 24:7; Matthew 1:21, 11:25-27, 13:10-15, 44-46, 15:13, 20:28, 22:14, 24:22; Luke 8:15, 13:23, 19:42; John 5:21, 6:37, 44, 65, 8:42-47, 10:11, 14, 26-28, 11:49-53, 12:37-41, 13:1, 18, 15:16, 17:2, 6, 9, 18:9, 37; Acts 2:39, 13:48, 18:27, 19:9; Romans 9:10-26, 11:5-10; 1 Corinthians 1:18-31, 2:14; 2 Corinthians 2:14-16, 4:3; Galatians 1:3; Ephesians 2:1-10; Colossians 2:13; 2 Thessalonians 2:9-14; 2 Timothy 2:20, 25; Titus 2:14; Hebrews 1:3, 14, 2:9, 16 (cp. Galatians 3:29, 4:28-31), 9:28; 1 Peter 2:8; 2 Peter 2:7; 1 John 4:6; Jude 1, 14; Revelation 13:8, 17:8, 15-18, 21:27.

Scriptural Support for Irresistible Grace: Genesis 20:6, 35:5; Exodus 34:23; Deuteronomy 2:25, 30:6; Judges 14:1-4; 1 Kings 4:29; 1 Chronicles 22:12, 29:18; Ezra 1:1, 5, 6:22, 7:27; Nehemiah 1:11, 2:8, 12; Esther 2:17, 4:14, 6:1-4; Ezekiel 36:25-32; Psalms 33:10, 65:4, 139:16; Proverbs 21:1; Isaiah 44:28; Jeremiah 10:24; Haggai 1:14; Luke 24:16, 31, 45; John 6:37, 45, 10:3, 4, 27; Acts 11:18, 13:48, 16:14, 17:26; 1 Corinthians 3:5, 12:13, 15:10; 2 Corinthians 8:16; Galatians 2:8; Ephesians 2:1-6, 3:7; Philippians 2:13; Hebrews 13:20; James 4:13-15.