Dealing with the "Arminian" Texts – Part 3

This is the third in our series of posts looking at a number of so-called "Arminian" texts—texts often cited by opponents of Reformed theology in the belief that they somehow undermine or refute Calvinism.

John 3:16

For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.

This is probably the best-known verse in the entire Bible. The Arminian view is that “world” means everyone without exception—God loves you, no ifs or buts. In addition, they typically point to “whoever” as meaning that anyone and everyone has the power to believe if they choose. The Arminian view of John 3:16 can be summarised as God loves you—no exceptions, Christ died for you—no exceptions, and it’s up to you if you believe in him or not.

There are serious flaws in this view from the Calvinist viewpoint.

The basic problem with the Arminian claim is that in the Bible, “world” (kosmos in Greek) has a range of different meanings, and usually does not refer to everyone without exception. I believe that “world” here has two meanings. First, it refers to the humanc race in the sense of all peoples (not all individual people), namely Jews and Gentiles. And second, it also in John’s writings has a connotation of humanity in rebellion against God. I would summarise the combined meaning as “sinners from all the nations”. 

I am also clear that the open-ended term “sinners from all the nations” could refer to everyone without exception as Arminians and some Calvinists maintain but it need not do so. It can as easily refer to all without distinction. I am convinced in the wider context, the "world" so loved connotes to those whom God has chosen for salvation, not least since the next verse, John 3:17, states plainly that Christ came to save the same world that God loves in verse 16. We know from elsewhere in John’s Gospel that Christ will lose none of what the Father gives him, but will save them all (see John 6, John 10). 

Therefore, John 3:16 simply means that God does not love only the Jews, but all the nations so that not just the Jews, but “everyone who believes” or literally “every believing one” (both better translations than “whoever” or “whosoever” believes) will be saved. This interpretation makes much more sense in the context of Jesus’ conversation with the Jewish leader Nicodemus and with the Old Testament parallel Jesus mentions of the serpent on a pole back in Moses’ day. Just as everyone who looked on the serpent was healed, so everyone who believes in the Son will be saved, and distinctions of race or nationality do not come into it. But the verse certainly need not be interpreted in the Arminian manner and does not override plain passages which speak of predestination or election (e.g. Ephesians 1, Romans 9, etc.)

Acts 7:51

You stiff-necked people, uncircumcised in heart and ears, you always resist the Holy Spirit. As your fathers did, so do you.

This verse from Stephen's speech prior to his martyrdom is used by Arminians to argue that God's saving purposes can be thwarted by sinful human beings, and by implication, Arminians suggest there can be no decree or decision of God that determines salvation. The phrase used to argue this was is "resist the Holy Spirit." The Arminian argues this refers to God's will to save everyone without exception.

The Calvinist argues on the contrary that this "resisting the Holy Spirit" does not refer to God's decree (God's decretive will or God's secret will) but to God's preceptive will or God's revealed will. We believe the reference is to the people of Israel disobeying God's commands in Scripture, which of course comes from the Holy Spirit through inspiration. 

The immediate context surrounding verse 51 backs this interpretion up. In the following verse Stephen talks about the people opposing and killings God's prophets—those who brought God's message tudio the people, those who foretold of the coming of the Messiah. In verse 54, Stephen gives the context of what "resisting the Holy Spirit" amounts to: "you who received the law as delivered by angels and did not keep it."

Therefore, I believe that Acts 7:51 clearly refers to the people rejecting God's law and promises, but this has nothing to do with God's will of decree which cannot be thwarted (see Job 42:1, "I know that you can do all things, and that no purpose of yours can be thwarted" and Isaiah 46:9-10, " I am God, and there is none like me, declaring the end from the beginning and from ancient times things not yet done, saying, ‘My counsel shall stand, and I will accomplish all my purpose'.")

Hebrews 2:9  

But we see him who for a little while was made lower than the angels, namely Jesus, crowned with glory and honour because of the suffering of death, so that by the grace of God he might taste death for everyone.

This verse from Hebrews is often cited by Arminians as evidence against the Reformed doctrine of particular redemption. The argument is that since the verse says that Christ "might taste death for everyone" how can it be true that Christ died only to save the elect?

To begin with, we need to be clear that the word translated "everyone" is the Greek word pantos meaning "all". The phrase could be translated "he might taste death for all."

This helps slightly because we can then ask, which "all" is in view here? Though we could also ask which "everyone" is in view? 

The Arminian reads it as "everyone" or "all" without exception. Yet given the way the Bible refers to the atonement as accomplishing salvation and not merely making salvation provisionally available, this is deeply problematic. If "all means all" as the Arminian argues, this would imply universalism given the way the Bible speaks of the atonement. 

In the following verse, it refers to Christ "bringing many sons to glory" not "all sons". This would suggest there is also a limitation on the "all" of verse 9 to those who are saved. Similarly, in verse 11 it refers to those who are sanctified or made holy and that they "all" have their source of sanctification in Christ. The context here teaches that "all" does not always mean "all" "all" the time.

An alternative Calvinist interpretation would be that although Christ died to save only the elect, nonetheless, his death was sufficient to save everyone and that everyone called to faith and offered salvation without exception and in this sense Christ could be said to taste death for everyone, though he did not intend to redeem everyone and save them.