Theological Briefing: 10 Short Questions & Answers
Recently, one of our church’s Life Groups sent me a barrage of theological questions. These were the (slightly edited) questions and answers touching on a host of various topics. Enjoy!
1. What is Reformed Theology?
Reformed Theology simply means the theology stemming from the Protestant Reformation in the 16th century and beyond. In Presbyterian circles, Reformed theology is often associated with the name of John Calvin.
The best succinct expression of Reformed theology in its historical context is to acknowledge the “five solas” of the Reformation [solas = Latin for “alone”]. Salvation is by grace alone (sola gratia) through faith alone (sola fide) based on the finished work of Christ alone (solus Cristus) as revealed by Scripture alone (sola Scriptura) to the glory of God alone (soli Deo gloria).
2. The five points of Reformed view of salvation (The 5 Points of Calvinism) have historically been summarized by TULIP: Total Depravity, Unconditional Election, Limited Atonement, Irresistible Grace, and Perseverance of the Saints. What’s the difference between a 3-point, 4-point, or 5-point Calvinist?
Historically, many good Presbyterians would say: “There’s no such thing as a 3-point Calvinist!” That’s a bit tongue-in-cheek, but it gets at the point that the whole interconnected theology of salvation expressed in election/sin/cross/grace/glorification are intimately and organically connected to one another. In addition, we are living in super-duper Arminian times such that people are automatically programmed to believe by our culture that “I am the master of my fate; I am the captain of my soul”. That sounds well and good…but does it make for good biblical doctrine?
Reformed theology politely pushes back: “That’s a great classic line of poetry, but it makes for terrible theology.” The Bible is our baseline.
In my experience, most Presbyterians do not have any real issues with Total Depravity. The Bible calls us all “slaves of sin” (Rom 6:20) based on the truth that “None is righteous, no, not one; no one understands; no one seeks for God. All have turned aside; together they have become worthless; no one does good, not even one” (Rom 3:10-12). Our Savior indicates that the entirety of our flesh is enslaved to sin (John 8:34). The effects of sin is total – affecting every faculty of the human – the heart, the soul, the mind, the emotions, and the will.
Most Presbyterians celebrate the truth of Irresistible Grace. Jesus says: “For as the Father raises the dead and gives them life, so also the Son gives life to whom he will” (John 5:21). That’s grace. Jesus says: “All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never cast out” (John 6:37). That’s grace. Jesus says: “No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him. And I will raise him up on the last day” (John 6:44). That’s grace. The apostle Paul writes: “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast (Eph. 2:8-9). The Father draws to the Son by the Spirit of God anyone who is given the gift of God’s irresistible grace. The Holy Spirit regenerates anyone whom the Father choose to save, enabling them to believe in Christ for salvation.
Perseverance of the Saints is a comforting doctrine that communicates God will bring you to your eternal home. Paul communicated the truth like this: “being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus” (Phil 1:6). The so-called “Golden Chain of Salvation” in Rom. 8:29-30 assures us that there is an intimate link between the beginning and the end of our salvation because God is the author of salvation from first to last: “For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified” (Rom. 8:29-30).
Yet, in the modern era, two points of TULIP have become contested in the uber-Arminian age that that live in: Unconditional Election and Limited Atonement.
For Unconditional Election, see my blog post on election and the sermon entitled “The Father’s Purposed” based on Ephesians 1:4-6.
Instead of “Limited Atonement”, most Reformed theologians prefer the moniker Particular Atonement. This brief 500-word essay on Particular Atonement by Kevin DeYoung provides a helpful overview of the doctrine from the classic Reformed understanding.
Another helpful resource which provides helpful definitions (of both Reformed and Arminian positions) and a plethora of scriptures is entitled “T.U.L.I.P., The Canons of Dort”.
3. Can you join Trinity Wellsprings Church as a Covenant Partner and be less than a 5-point Calvinist?
Of course! Becoming a Covenant Partner at Trinity is solely tied to confessing Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. We are a Christ-centered church, Gospel-saturated church that likes to keep “the main thing, the main thing” – Jesus lived the life I could never live and he died the death that I deserved.
4. What is the role of free will in the salvation of a person?
First, read the sermon on election exegeting Ephesians 1:4-6 entitled “The Father’s Purpose.”
Second, in summary: You are free to sin but you are not free to “choose God” salvifically out of your own free will. Why? Because you were dead in your sins and trespasses (Eph. 2:1: “And you were dead in the trespasses and sins”). How can a dead man choose life?
God, not your free will, made you alive: “But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ – by grace you have been saved, and raised us up with him and seated us with him the heavenly places in Christ Jesus” (Eph. 2:4-6).
You no can no more choose God in the deadness of your sin than you can resurrect your own body at the end of your life after death.
All of our human faculties were affected by original sin and the Fall in Genesis 3. Humans are fallen in body, mind, spirit, heart, emotions, affections, desires, and yes, even “the will” – that from which you choose – was also affected by the Fall. In his little book entitled The Bondage of the Will, Martin Luther convincingly argued that even the will is “bound” by the Fall and unable to choose God. I highly recommend it!
5. Why do we baptize babies, who are too young to understand Jesus?
Short answer: because Presbyterians believe in Covenantal theology.
Short answer: it’s a beautiful portrait of the gospel of grace.
For the best long answer essay, see Dr. Gregg Strawbridge’s article entitled Infant Baptism: Does the Bible Teach It?
6. The practice of baptizing infants…does it lead to a sense of false belief that someone is “saved” when they have not actually professed Christ or accepted God’s free gift of grace?
No. Because in healthy churches that teach the doctrine with clarity, neither the church nor the parents let the children assume that they are “saved” because of their baptism but faithfully raise them up in the fear and admonition of the Lord so that one day they will confess Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior thereby confirming their baptism.
7. Can I lose my salvation?
No. Paul Washer once said that if anyone could lose their salvation, everyone would lose their salvation. God will always bring you home in glory.
The saints – chosen by God and sustained by God – are always brought home by God. The Golden Chain of salvation (Rom. 8:29-30) is unbreakable. God holds tightly on to you unto eternity, bringing you to your final glorification.
8. Is there a good teaching on egalitarian ministry from a biblical perspective, the doctrine that holds that both men and women can serve in ministry as elders/pastors?
In 2017, Rev. Dr. Jim Singleton taught on egalitarian ministry at the ECO National Gathering here.
9. What is happening to the mainline Presbyterian denomination that Trinity Wellsprings Church left in 2012?
The Presbyterian Church (USA) has been experiencing a precipitous decline in church membership: between 2000 and 2015, it lost over 40% of its congregational membership and 15.4% of its churches.
Theologically, you be the judge with this recent prayer to “The God of the Pronouns” from a PCUSA pulpit in Iowa. Yes, Iowa!
10. Does Trinity believe the scriptures are the authoritative, inspired, and infallible Word of God?
Yes, that’s exactly what Trinity Wellsprings Church believes as well as our denomination ECO: A Covenant Order of Evangelical Presbyterians.
See my blog post entitled The Word of God – S.C.A.N. where I briefly describe and summarize the Sufficiency, Clarity, Authority, and Necessity of the Word of God.
With respect to the Word of God, ECO’s Essential Tenets of Faith declares:
We glorify God by recognizing and receiving His authoritative self- revelation, both in the infallible Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments and also in the incarnation of God the Son. We affirm that the same Holy Spirit who overshadowed the virgin Mary also inspired the writing and preservation of the Scriptures. The Holy Spirit testifies to the authority of God’s Word and illumines our hearts and minds so that we might receive both the Scriptures and Christ Himself aright.
We confess that God alone is Lord of the conscience, but this freedom is for the purpose of allowing us to be subject always and primarily to God’s Word. The Spirit will never prompt our conscience to conclusions that are at odds with the Scriptures that He has inspired. The revelation of the incarnate Word does not minimize, qualify, or set aside the authority of the written Word. We are happy to confess ourselves captive to the Word of God, not just individually, but also as members of a community of faith, extending through time and around the globe.
Happy reading! That should keep you busy as a theological bee can be!