Today, when most people think of Calvinism, their minds turn to matters that to many seem rather grim: a harsh, severe God who serves up salvation for some and damnation for others for no other reason than that he has decided to do so. For those who have a better understanding of Reformed thought, however, it may be the so-called five points of Calvinism that come to mind. These five points are helpfully arranged so as to be summed up in the acrostic TULIP, derived from the teaching of the Synod of Dort.1 This was a meeting of church leaders from a number of European countries that convened in the Dutch city of Dordrecht in 1618–1619. The major claims of that synod are summarized in the TULIP acrostic. The different letters of TULIP stand for Total depravity, Unconditional election, Limited atonement, Irresistible grace, and the Perseverance of the saints. Let us consider each of these tenets in more detail.
Total depravity is sometimes misunderstood. The idea isn’t that all human beings are completely depraved, or as wicked as can be. Rather, the thought is that all human beings are in a morally corrupt state as a result of sin, so that they are incapable of living a life pleasing to God without divine grace. One doesn’t have to be a Christian to see the truth of that claim.
Unconditional election is the idea that God chooses or ordains the salvation of the particular number of human beings that he does before the foundation of the world. In other words, in eternity past, God chose those whom he would save from sin by the work of Christ. There are no conditions placed on this divine choice. It is not as if God chose the most handsome people, or the most intelligent, or even the most obedient. He does not choose on the basis of foreseen faith, either. Instead, as Ephesians 1 tells us, he predestined us according to his good pleasure and will, nothing more, and grants those so predestined the gift of faith. For some Christians this is a liberating doctrine, because it means there is nothing we can do to place ourselves in God’s good graces. Our salvation does not depend on our works, so to speak, so we cannot earn a place in God’s favor. For others, this is a strange and repulsive notion, as if God chooses certain people for salvation on a whim, much as one might choose chocolate ice cream over pistachio, though you have no particular preference for either.
Limited atonement is, very roughly, the idea that God intends that Christ’s work of salvation atones for the sins only of those whom God has eternally ordained will enjoy everlasting life. It is not intended for those who will reject God and who are passed over by divine grace. Calling this a “limited” atonement may be a rather unfortunate choice of words. It is not so much “limited” as “particular” or “definite”—being the consequence of God’s definite decision to save a particular number of fallen human beings through Christ’s work, and them alone. But, whether we call it “limited,” “particular,” or “definite” atonement, the result is the same: Christ’s work of salvation is intended only for the elect, and it saves only the elect. (Of course, if the definite number of those saved turns out to be all, or almost all, of humanity, then the moniker “limited” would seem rather less apt than “definite,” though, of course, it would still be “particular”! This is a matter we will return to in chapter four.)
Irresistible grace is just that: the notion that God’s grace is irresistible just as the gravitational pull toward the earth is irresistible for satellites or spaceships whose orbit around the earth is too low. The satellite in the grip of gravity will inevitably plummet to the earth. Similarly, the person in the grip of God’s grace will inevitably be drawn toward him. In the case of the satellite, the result is its destruction as it enters the earth’s atmosphere and is burnt up, the remnants
