So now the New York Times has picked up the Calvinist current tearing across the Church in America today: http://www.nytimes.com/2014/01/04/us/a-calvinist-revival-for-evangelicals.html?_r=0.
In general, the article is illuminating. The writer identifies some of the key figures in the Calvinist resurgence, notes the age demographic that is shifting the most dramatically (young adults), and find an able, Arminian critic of Calvinism, though the attention paid to church politics rather than the actual theological dispute is not so helpful.
In an otherwise decent article, the only big drawback is the irrelevant and factually incorrect remarks by the professor of Union Seminary at the end of the article. In trying to claim Calvin for theological liberals, she claimed that Calvin believed that civic engagement was the primary form of obedience to God. Wrong. She also says that Calvin did not read Scripture literally. If by literal, she means that he didn't fall into the twentieth century trap of identifying locusts with Soviet helicopters, then she is correct. Otherwise, she is not only wrong but dramatically so. She also claimed that Calvin misquoted Scripture and made up verses that didn't exist. That's a weighty contention to make against a historical figure who is very highly regarded as an exegete by many a theologian, regardless of tradition.
All that said, much of the media attention paid to this Reformation wave highlights the appeal of honestly dealing with hard truths. In the article, the writer mentions two of the doctrines that make-up the acronym TULIP--total depravity and unconditional election--and immediately follows with his only one-liner in the article: "The acronym gets to cheerier from there."
What this writer and so many others miss about the beauty of Calvinism is that it is not simply rooted in a refreshing honesty about biblical truth, it is rooted in the amazing, eternal love of God. Some of you might be dubious about this contention, especially when you consider TULIP in its fullness.
Total depravity conveys the idea that man in inherently sinful and corrupt, even from birth (Ps. 51; Rom. 3).
Unconditional election conveys the idea that God has already decided who He will save, regardless of what they do (Eph. 1; Rom. 9).
Limited atonement conveys the idea that Christ didn't die for the whole world, but only for His people (John 10).
Irresistible grace conveys the idea that if God wills to save someone, he/she will not persist in rebellion but will indeed believe and be saved (John 6).
Perseverance of the saints conveys the idea that once someone is saved, he/she is always saved and there is no chance of falling away (Rom. 8).
If man is totally depraved, and he is, then apart from God's love he is damned. God is altogether holy and righteous and will not suffer rebels to dine at His table. He is also perfectly just, which means He will not let sin go unpunished. He is perfectly merciful, but mercy does not afford much hope in and of itself if it is still conditioned in any part on man's obedience, since man is totally depraved (and if man played in role in His salvation, then it wouldn't truly be mercy).
Unless God's salvation of sinners is entirely of His choosing and unconditioned in the least by man's efforts, then man is damned. But if man's obedience is in no way the ground for his salvation, then what is? God's love. We cannot speak of unconditional election without speaking of God's unconditional love for His people in Jesus Christ. He chooses people from the beginning of time in accordance with His own will and for His own glory. And this choice, according to Ephesians 1, is rooted in love.
God's unconditional love and unconditional election go hand in hand, and from this ground grows forth the beautiful truths of the Gospel, in which justice and mercy kiss upon the cross and the Son of God becomes a willing sacrifice for God's beloved people.
In an age is which God is often treated as a cosmic boyfriend, we must turn the page and again think of Him as He taught us to pray, "Our Father, who art in heaven." For the child cannot earn the love of his father, but only be the grateful beneficiary of it.
If man is totally depraved, then He is totally damned...unless God is totally loving and willing and able to save the damnable.
In reality, millions of people across the country, especially the young, are simply learning an age-old truth: It is not that we have loved God, but that He has loved us.
It is love that burns in their hearts and is casting its flame across the countryside, the very flame of the Lord.
