A Comparative Analysis of the Three Views
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A Comparative Analysis of the Three Views Extreme Calvinism Mediate Salvation Theology Arminian Theology God's Sovereignty is Exhaustive God's Sovereignty is Self-Limited, God's Sovereignty: Self-Limited God has determined everything which He has complete Foreknowledge. God has limited the exercise of His will take place in the universe by his God has limited the exercise of His sovereignty sovereignty by creating angels and decrees in past eternity ~ including by creating angels and humans as autonomous humans as autonomous moral beings who will be saved and who will be moral beings and progressively delegating and progressively delegating authority condemned in hell (reprobation). authority and responsibility to them. However, and responsibility to them. In the God still has foreknowledge of all future events extreme Arminian doctrine of Open and intervenes when He desires. Theism, God has no foreknowledge and is continually surprised by man's decisions. TOTAL DEPRAVITY means total Depravity in the Mediate View is defined as There are diverse views of depravity. extensive corruption, but not total inability. All Some do not emphasize the full impact inability. Human spiritual death is mankind became totally corrupt and fallen of Adam’s sin. God has given defined in an extreme way as a total through Adam’s disobedience, but retains the prevenient (preceding) grace to all inability to please God in any way, image of God, which requires a sharper mankind through the cross to enable including inability to repent and definition of spiritual death. Although we are sinners to repent, believe, and do good believe the gospel of Christ. People unable to please God by works, we are able to works. are seen as spiritual corpses. repent and believe the gospel message. UNCONDITIONAL ELECTION CONDITIONAL ELECTION CONDITIONAL ELECTION God foreknows those who by repentant faith Election is conditioned on Before we were even born, God has will become the “elect.” God then regenerates foreknowledge of faith plus decided and decreed who will be and sets these individuals apart as His “choice” perseverance in good works. saved and who will go to hell apart people. Our only election is “in Christ,” which is from anything we do or can do. His probably corporate. basis for this choice is an unrevealed mystery. LIMITED ATONEMENT GENERAL PROPITIATION & RANSOM GENERAL REDEMPTION Christ's substitutionary death provided a Christ died for all mankind but not as a Christ died only for the “elect,” who perfect satisfaction and ransom for the sins of substitute for sinners. It was to restore were sovereignly chosen in past every human, but its application in liberation- God’s honor and restore His eternity. God does not really love the redemption and reconciliation is limited to those government over the human race. “non-elect.” Many say that He hates who trust Christ. Others say it is only to wash us from our them. sins. IRRESISTIBLE GRACE RESISTIBLE GRACE RESISTIBLE GRACE People continuously resist God’s grace and Prevenient grace enables sinners to The “elect” are directly and irresistibly only those who repent and believe will be believe, but they must themselves regenerated before they believe, declared righteous and be born again. People respond. since they cannot first exercise must themselves respond to the gospel. saving faith. PERSEVERANCE OF THE SAINTS ETERNAL SECURITY CONDITIONAL SECURITY Every truly born-again believer can never be Believers may know that they are saved We cannot really be sure we are lost again, although many backslide, badly at now, but ultimate salvation is among the “elect” unless we times. Those who depart from the faith were conditional upon continued faith and persevere until the end. We must counterfeits, so self-examination is important, good works. There are diverse views constantly search our hearts to make but not continuously. about whether one can be saved again sure we are not counterfeits. after losing salvation. .