Why is Calvinism so dangerous? #7 (Hard hearts)

-

 [In this series, I'm breaking the long post "Why is Calvinism so dangerous?" into bite-sized pieces.]




7.
The Bible (and the concordance) says ... That when God "hardens" hearts, it is retribution for first hardening your own heart, for resisting God for so long even after He's been patient and long-suffering with you.


But Calvinism says ... God arbitrarily chooses whose hearts to harden against Him (non-elect) and whose to turn to Him (elect), with no input/responsibility on our parts.


Romans 9:18: "Therefore, God has mercy on whom he wants to have mercy, and he hardens whom he wants to harden."  [Calvinists say "See, God hardens whomever He wants.  We have nothing to do with His choice of whom to harden and whom to elect."  But in the concordance, "hardens" is retribution for first hardening your own heart, for resisting God.  And so, yes, we do have something to do with whether we are hardened or not.  God further hardens those who choose to resist/reject Him.  He confirms their decision and then uses it for His purposes.  Plus, and this is critical, Romans 9 is about Israel as a nation, about God handing them over to their hard-hearted rejection of Jesus and giving the Gospel to the Gentiles instead, because the Jews didn't want it.  But then the Jews cried "not fair!" because they thought the Gentiles shouldn't get salvation.  They thought the Jews were the "special" ones and should get God's favor and salvation just because they were Jews.  That's what Romans 9 is about.  God is telling them that He can give the Gospel/offer salvation to whomever He wants to, to whomever is willing to receive it (and the Gentiles were), and that He can take it away from (and punish) anyone, even Jews, if they resist/reject it.  But if you let Calvinists convince you that Romans 9 is about God choosing individual people for salvation or hardening individual people for hell, you will be a Calvinist.  Examine the worm!]

And notice the order of unbelief in John 12:37-39 - "they would not believe" resulted in "they could not believe."  Because they would not believe in Jesus, God hardened them so that they could not believe.  But they chose to not believe first.  And so God gave them what they wanted, what they chose: a hard heart.  

And in Ezekiel 20:21-25 and Romans 1:21-24, the people rebel against God, so He lets them become hardened and defiled, handing them over to their own sinful rebellion.  They earned their hard-heart by choosing first to rebel against God.

A simple study of what the Bible says and what the concordance says about many of the words Calvinists hinge Calvinism on will defeat Calvinism.


Such as, Calvinists always use God hardening Pharaoh's heart as "evidence" that God chooses whom to harden, without any influence on our parts.  But a simple reading of the early chapters of Exodus shows that early on and through the first several plagues, Pharaoh hardened his own heart.  And then eventually God made Pharaoh's self-chosen hardness permanent (retribution for first hardening his own heart).  God knew Pharaoh would harden his heart, and so God made a way to incorporate Pharaoh's hard heart into His plans.  But God did not harden Pharaoh's heart apart from Pharaoh choosing to willingly harden his own heart first.      

However, to make it fit Calvinism (after I brought this up in a letter to the elders), my ex-pastor tried to explain it this way in his sermons: "Yeah, I know it says that Pharaoh hardened his own heart, but it was really that God hardened it first, before Pharaoh hardened his own heart." 

Me: "Really!?!  Tell me more things that are NOT in the Bible!"

(Note: See #88 in "The Calvinist ESV: New verses Added #60-88" for a look at how the KJV, which is usually the most accurate, mistranslates Exodus 7:13, making it sound Calvinist when it's really not.)  


On a different note, let's consider 2 Peter 3:9 for a moment.  This verse says that God is patient with us, not wanting anyone to perish but wanting all to come to repentance. But what's patience for if He Himself hardens the hearts of the non-elect so that they cannot believe and if He Himself determines/controls when the elect believe?  Who is He patient with?  Himself?  Does this make sense!?!

And notice in Romans 11:4-5 how God "chooses" His people.  "... 'I have reserved for myself seven thousand who have not bowed the knee to Baal.'  So too, at the present time there is a remnant chosen by grace."  The people chose whether they would serve Baal or not.  Then God chose those who did not worship Baal.  The people's choice of whom they worshipped affected whether God chose them or not.  (But what did He choose the 7000 for?  If you go to 1 Kings 19:14-18, you see that He chose them, reserved them, not to be believers, but to be spared from death so they could be prophets alongside Elijah.  Election is about God choosing someone for a job, a task, not about Him predestining individual people for salvation.)  

And for further biblical proof that we choose to harden our own hearts, see Zechariah 7:11-13: "But they refused to pay attention; stubbornly they turned their backs and stopped up their ears.  They made their hearts as hard as flint and would not listen to the law or to the words that the Lord Almighty had sent by his Spirit through earlier prophets.  So the Lord Almighty was very angry.  'When I called, they did not listen; so when they called, I would not listen,' says the Lord Almighty."

Umm, yeah, does anyone hear "God controls/causes everything people do" in these verses?  

I didn't think so!

And why would Calvi-god get angry with them when he himself caused them to resist him?  That's just silly.  So he causes people to do things and then he gets angry about it?  He "patiently waits" for people to come to him when he himself decides if and when they come to him?  


In order to be a Calvinist, you have to look right at a Bible verse that clearly, plainly says one thing and go, "Oh, but it doesn't really mean that!  There's a secret layer of meaning that only we Calvinists know, and it changes what the verse is really saying."

Yep, sounds legit to me!  Sign me up for this "knowledge of the secret layers" so that I too can understand what God meant to say when He wrote the words that He didn't really mean!

[No, I am not nice and tolerant about Calvinism!  Not at all!  I am nice and tolerant when it comes to the people trapped in Calvinism, but not when it comes to the theology or those who trap others in it.  How can we be nice and tolerant about a theology that uses God's Word against God, that does such damage to God's character and truth and people's eternities while trying to appear like it actually upholds God's character and truth!?!  If Calvinism is a lie, like I believe it is, then who is the father of those lies?  That's right: Satan.  May we never be nice and tolerant about a satanic lie infiltrating our churches and destroying God's Truth and character, about a theology that shuts the door of heaven on most people, declaring them un-save-able.  Tolerating Calvinism or being soft on it will look like compromising with it, which will make it appear more acceptable, which will encourage its spread, which will eventually destroy the church from the inside out.  Be nice and tolerant with people who are trapped in Calvinism, but not with Calvinism itself!  I mean, if this issue - at the heart of the gospel and God's Word - isn't worth fighting back against, then nothing is.]


Most Popular Posts of the Week:

Alana L. on how to recognize (and defeat) Calvinism (series intro)

-
Image
Introduction Here's a great new video from Alana L.:   5 Signs Your Loved One is Becoming a Calvinist    I've been wanting someone to make a video like this for awhile now - to help people recognize Calvinism when they hear it, to help them realize it's a big deal that they should take seriously and research, and to help them know why it's wrong and how it spreads. Those who've studied against Calvinism know how very tricksy it is.  But those who  don't know anything about it, or how to recognize it, or how it takes over, or how it sounds like it's teaching one thing when it's  really  teaching something totally different, or how it twists or misinterprets Scripture... well, they  are sitting ducks, fish in a barrel, who become easy targets for a Calvinist pastor (especially a stealth Calvinist pastor) who slowly and strategically indoctrinates them into this twisted theology, before they ever see it coming.   [Note: I am not judging the hearts of Calvin
Read more

List of Calvinist Preachers, Authors, Theologians, Websites, etc.

-
I  found a lot more names to add to my list of known Calvinists (found in my various  "How to Tell if a Church, Pastor, or Website is Calvinist"  posts).  But instead of adding this huge list to all those posts, I am going to put it here, and I'll just provide a link on those posts to this one.  [FYI: I added a note at the bottom of this post on May 5, 2021.] So here it is, a "master list" of known Calvinists to help you be careful and discerning about who you listen to and where you get your theology from.  There are plenty more Calvinists out there, but these are just the names that I ran across the most.   These are either definite, self-professed Calvinists or "most likely Calvinist," in my estimation.  (I haven't heard of most of them, but it's good to know their theology before I do.)   After finding these names in various places online, I looked up each person to see if they are Calvinist.  If they did not self-identify as a Calvinist, I
Read more

Be Wary Of The Christian Post

-
(Written 6/15/18)  Occasionally, I check in with the Christian Post to see what's going on in the world that specifically relates to Christians.  And generally, I've never really had any red flags go up about this website ... until now. A recent article by Stoyan Zaimov, with a title that starts "Christian Lesbian rock star ..." goes on to share this woman's story about being assaulted by a male priest when she was young.   However, I don't think the reason for this article is to talk about the abuse she suffered and her courage in speaking up.  I think this is a deliberate attempt to affirm Christian homosexuality.  The very fact that they put "Christian" and "lesbian" in the title makes it sound like it's indeed possible to be a Christian and a practicing homosexual who sees no need to change. And it seems to me that this article paints her in a heroic light, as though she is in the right and should be applauded and e
Read more

Sermons by Tony Evans (repost)

-
(I recently fixed the broken links as well as I could, had to switch some out for others) Tony Evans is my all-time favorite pastor.  He always gives messages that convict, challenge, and comfort.  Here are some sermons that I have listened to or am going to listen to.  For more, simply go to his website by clicking here .  There are so many great ones to choose from. You can't go wrong with any video of his.  I found him to be the most biblically-accurate preacher (especially as I researched Calvinism and found out how wrong it is), who is also great at helping us practically apply God's truths to life. Reversing Anxiety Consequences Keeping the faith when life gets hard Trusting God in a storm How to have strength in your struggles How to overcome your worry How to Get Your Prayers Answered Trusting The God You Believe In God knows what He is doing How the enemy tries to distract you from God's plan Grab your sword The Secret to Powerful Prayer Spiritual Warfare playl
Read more

"But predestination!" (16B: sin, evil, suffering)

-
Image
In this series, I'm examining some things that Calvinists (especially my ex-pastor) say about predestination.   Here's the whole series on my other blog:  the pastor's sermons  ("When Calvinists say 'But predestination!'"), and my comments  1-4 (election)  and  5-6 (Romans and sovereignty)  and  7-9 (depravity, Book of Life, predestine)  and  10-11 (shaming tactics, Feb. 2015)  and  12-14 (dead, regeneration, born again)  and  15 (total depravity, manipulation)   and  16A (God's Will, babies)  and  16B (sin, evil, suffering)  and  17 (double-speak and the gospel) . Sixteen B (I broke #16 up into two halves, so picking up where we left off in the last post...) And now, moving on from the bulk of my comments to the bulk of the Calvinist quotes, showing you Calvinism in its full glory.  (And you thought you were almost done, that you already read the bulk of the Calvinist quotes.  Oh, no, we're just getting started.) Buckle your seatbelts, ladies and
Read more

Feminism Nonsense (repost)

-
Image
(Oh, how we love nonsense in our country!) We women are fighting so hard to be like men, to downplay femininity, to be perceived as more masculine, to overtake any "men's realm" we find.   Because it’s “cool” and “progressive” and “strong.” But do we not realize that we are not “leveling the playing field” so much as we are destroying ourselves , the things that make women special? Women can be strong, too.   And they don’t have to be like men to do it.   Trust me, I know.  I've had four children, one by c-section and three by natural, drug-free homebirth (with over 15 hours of labor for each one).  And then I work in the home every day, all day long.  No pay.  No vacation time.  No weekends off.  No bonuses.  No overtime pay. But I do it because my family and I value my position, my role.  Even if the world doesn't. W e women can be strong and capable and accomplished in our own ways. We can be strong in our feminine grace.   We can be confi
Read more

An Open Letter to Christian Churches Doing Yoga

-
We haven't set foot in a church for a Sunday service since we left ours in 2019.  We were just so burned out on churches after dealing with the Calvinism that took over ours (and discouraged about how much it's spreading to many churches) that we simply stayed home and watched Tony Evans' sermons online (and we met with another family for Bible study for over a year, until they found a church to attend).   But recently, we decided to check out a church, just to see.  And it was good.  Not perfect, but good.  We're not necessarily looking to make a church home out of it, but we just need a little something right now.  And this was good enough.  But on the way out, I saw a flyer for upcoming events at their church, and one thing they offered was a "Christian Yoga" class.  That, to me, is a huge no-no, something Christians should not engage in.  But they do.  All over the place.  With no sense of it being wrong.   In fact, at our last church, one of the female
Read more

And Yet Again - 21 More Anti-Calvinism Memes

-
Image
I giggle making these.  Helps me blow off steam. Only if you're elected ... So you're a Calvinist? Except for you ... "I love being a Calvinist" First I'll tell them ... Said Jesus Never! We Calvinists say ... The bookcase Researching John Calvin Snap Out Of It The Pro-Calvinism Meme Absolutely Sure ... Calvinist Lunatic If you want people ... Another Predestination Sermon It's called "Calvinism" Lucky Dude "All" Means "Some" God "In Control" "Total depravity" (AKA "Total Inability" - a concept NOT found in the Bible anywhere!) It's be
Read more

Should "Satan" Be Capitalized?

-
(reposted from my other blog)             I’ve read a lot of things lately where Christian people won’t capitalize the name “Satan.”   They say it’s because they don’t want to give him that much credit or attention.               And while I can appreciate that sentiment, why do I still capitalize his name?             Because the inspired Word of God does.   "Satan" is a name, not an adjective or a common noun.  But a name.  And names get capitalized.  And so if the Bible capitalizes his name, identifying him as an actual being, who  am I to act like I know better?             One author in particular said he barely talks about Satan because he doesn’t want to focus on him in any way.   He doesn’t want to give Satan that much “air-time.”               But the Bible talks about Satan and evil all the time.   It warns us about him, cautions us about him, tells us how to defend ourselves against him and his attacks.      
Read more