The Protestant Reformation recovered a truth long obscured: that salvation belongs to the Lord — wholly the work of God’s sovereign grace from beginning to end. Reformers such as John Calvin, Ulrich Zwingli, and others proclaimed that no human effort, will, or worth contributes to salvation. God alone elects, redeems, and preserves His people.
Yet, in the generations that followed, a theological movement arose that sought to adjust this emphasis. Known as Arminianism — after Jacobus Arminius — it retained Protestant convictions about Scripture and grace, but reinterpreted the relationship between divine sovereignty and human responsibility. This shift, though often subtle, changed how many Christians began to understand salvation, assurance, and the nature of God’s enduring love.
To see why this matters, we must consider the five points of Calvinism — and how they fit together — before contrasting them with Arminian teaching.
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The Five Points of Calvinism (TULIP)
The “Five Points of Calvinism” were not originally Calvin’s own summary, but a response formulated at the Synod of Dort (1618–19) to the “Remonstrance” — five statements offered by the followers of Arminius. These five points form a logically connected system expressing how salvation is the gracious work of God alone.
1. Total Depravity
Calvinism teaches that humanity is not merely weakened by sin but spiritually dead (Ephesians 2:1). Because of Adam’s fall, every part of human nature — mind, will, emotions, and spirit — is corrupted. Therefore, no one can choose God or contribute to salvation apart from divine grace. The sinner’s only hope is God’s intervention.
Arminian difference: Arminians affirm that humanity is fallen and in need of grace but teach that God gives prevenient grace to all — an enabling grace that restores enough free will for each person to decide whether to accept or reject Christ. This preserves human responsibility but softens the total inability stressed by the Reformers.
2. Unconditional Election
Calvinism proclaims that God chose, before the foundation of the world, those whom He would save — not based on foreseen faith, merit, or good works, but according to His sovereign will and purpose (Ephesians 1:4–5). Election is unconditional because it depends entirely on God’s mercy, not on human response.
Arminian difference: Arminians teach conditional election — that God elects individuals based on His foreknowledge of who will freely choose to believe. This preserves human choice but makes God’s decree, in effect, reactive to future human decisions.
3. Limited Atonement (Definite Atonement)
The Reformed teaching of limited atonement holds that Christ’s death was intended to actually secure salvation for the elect — not merely to make salvation possible for all. The atonement is sufficient for all but efficient only for those whom God has chosen (John 10:11, 26–29).
Arminian difference: Arminians teach universal atonement — that Christ died for all people equally, and each individual’s acceptance of that grace determines whether the atonement is effective. This broadens the scope of the cross but makes its saving power dependent on human choice rather than divine purpose.
4. Irresistible Grace
Calvinists affirm that when God calls His elect to salvation, His grace effectively accomplishes its purpose. The Spirit enlightens the mind, renews the will, and draws the sinner irresistibly to Christ (John 6:37, 44). This does not mean coercion but liberation — the will is freed to respond joyfully to God’s call.
Arminian difference: Arminians believe that God’s grace can be resisted. The Spirit calls all people, but each individual retains the power to either respond or reject that call. Grace makes salvation possible, but does not guarantee its effect.
5. Perseverance of the Saints
In Calvinist thought, those whom God has chosen and redeemed will be kept by His power until the end (Philippians 1:6; John 10:28–29). Salvation cannot be lost, because it rests entirely on God’s faithfulness, not human strength.
Arminian difference: Classical Arminianism teaches conditional perseverance — that true believers must continue in faith to remain saved and that a person who willfully turns away can fall from grace. Salvation thus depends partly upon sustained human faithfulness, not solely God’s preserving hand.
Why the Five Points Hold Together
Each point of Calvinism fits together as part of one coherent picture of divine grace:
- If humanity is completely unable to save itself (Total Depravity),
- Then salvation must depend on God’s unconditional choice (Unconditional Election).
- Christ’s atonement must therefore effectively secure salvation for those chosen (Limited Atonement).
- God’s grace must succeed in bringing them to faith (Irresistible Grace).
- And God must ensure that they are kept to the end (Perseverance of the Saints).
If you remove or reverse one point, the entire structure shifts. Elevating human will even slightly redefines grace as cooperation rather than pure gift. The tension seems small, but its implications are profound — it places the final weight of salvation, in some measure, back upon man rather than resting wholly upon God.
What Changes When We Redefine Grace
To move from Calvinism to Arminianism is not to step outside the faith — many Arminians are deeply devoted followers of Christ. Yet the shift changes how we perceive our security in God’s love. If God’s saving choice depends upon our response or continued faithfulness, assurance becomes fragile. Our confidence rests partly in ourselves — in the quality of our believing, enduring, and remaining obedient.
This subtle re-centering of human effort often leads to anxiety: Have I truly believed? Am I faithful enough? Could I fall away? The joy and rest found in the promise, “He who began a good work in you will bring it to completion,” becomes tinged with uncertainty. From there, some believers drift toward performance — trying to maintain God’s favor through effort, emotion, or obedience. Yet that performance orientation is the very self-reliance the gospel frees us from.
The Apostle Paul reminds us, “By grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God — not of works, lest anyone should boast” (Ephesians 2:8–9). To boast, even subtly, in our decision or perseverance is to shift glory from God to man. The Reformation cry was precisely the opposite: Soli Deo Gloria — to God alone be the glory.
Conclusion
The historic Reformers understood that the security of our salvation lies not in the strength of our grip on Christ, but in His unbreakable grip on us. Calvinism’s five points are not abstract doctrines — they are the spine of a gospel that gives all glory to God and all rest to weary souls.
When that foundation is softened — even with the well-meaning desire to protect human freedom — we risk losing some of that assurance and drifting back toward dependence on our own performance.
The good news remains what it has always been: salvation is of the Lord. From election to glorification, grace reigns. That truth humbles the proud, comforts the broken, and magnifies the amazing mercy of God who saves us — not because of who we are, but because of who He is.
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