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Christianity Today, February, 2008 |

TULIP Blooming

Southern Baptist seminaries re-introduce Calvinism to a wary denomination.

Ken Walker | posted 1/17/2008 09:09AM

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"The totality of history shows the vast majority of Baptists have not been [Calvinists], so why go back to the founders?" Page said. "I think we need to go back to the Bible."

Related Elsewhere:

Previous articles about Calvinism and Southern Baptists include:

Family Feud | Roger Olson calls for a ceasefire in a long-running theological civil war. (January 12, 2007)

Young, Restless, Reformed | Calvinism is making a comeback—and shaking up the church. (September 22, 2006)

It's All About God | A brief summary of Calvinism. (September 22, 2006)

Free to Be Creatures Again | How predestination descended like a dove on two unsuspecting seminarians, and why they are so grateful. (October 23, 2000)

Southern Baptists: Calvinism Resurging Among SBC's Young Elites | As conservatives were winning the "battle for the Bible," another movement began emerging: a resurgence of Calvinistic doctrine (October 6, 1997)

Christian History & Biography has a helpful glossary of terms and an outline of the origins of Arminianism and TULIP, as well as issues on key theologians such as John Calvin, Dwight L. Moody, Jonathan Edwards, Charles Finney, and Charles H. Spurgeon.

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February 2008, Vol. 52, No. 2

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Displaying 1 - 3 of 41 comments.

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Jim	Posted: January 24, 2008 2:13 PM

It sems an odd fear that the SBC will lose its "evangelistic" approach if it embraces Reformed theology. A lot of SBC churches use Evangelism Explosion, the most successful evangelistic curriculum of the past few decades. It was written and its ministry built by Dr. D James Kennedy, a Reformed pastor in the PCA. Raised a Southern Baptist, I find that there is a lot of fear in the SBC not truly because Reformed theology leads to a false "certainty" (as Robert proposes) or to antinomianism (as Leslie contends), but rather that it requires Christians to believe the Bible and that God meant what He said when He said "I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy" and Jesus, when He said "You did not choose me, but I chose you." I've met many SBC'rs who practically believe that the assurance of their faith comes not, ultimately, in God's grace, or Christ's work on the Cross, but in their own personal confession of Christ, which is a work. They stumble on Mt 7:22-23 and a lot else.

Ally K

Posted: January 23, 2008 1:11 PM

What Robert said! I am not Baptist, but I attended a Southern Baptist college. I won't say that while I was there, Calvinism grew like a cancer, but that's a pretty close analogy. It was the most divisive thing I have ever seen. As an Arminian, I was told that if I had truly "studied and shown myself approved", there was no way I could remain an Arminian. I was also told that as an Arminian, I did not believe that God is sovreign. These comments prompted further study of the scriptures and of Calvinism. I am more sure than ever that God created us as free will agents and that our destination for eternity is our choice, and that God can remain fully sovreign while giving us that choice.

PW	Posted: January 22, 2008 8:15 PM

If one desires to understand issues surrounding Arminianism, Calvinism, TULIP, Election and Predestination, etc. from opposing theological perspectives, I strongly suggest “The Potters Freedom” (TPF) by James R. White for the conservative Calvinist view and “Chosen But Free” (CBF) by Norman Geisler. White’s “TPF” was written as a rebuttal to Geisler’s “CBF”. Both extensively lay out their cases with pertinent verses we’ve all seen used and debated. To me, Geisler’s “Moderate Calvinism” (by far) makes the most sense while remaining balanced and Scripturally defensible – it AFFIRMS God’s SOVEREIGNTY as well as MAN’S RESPONSIBILITY while also exposing the heresies of both “Extreme Calvinist” views AS WELL AS THOSE OF ARMINIAN ONES. The updated version of CBF directly responds to White’s TPF most convincingly. Geisler provides perspectives of historical church fathers, key theologians like Spurgeon and Sproul as well as an EXHAUSTIVE examination of relevant Scriptures.

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