It's important to recognise that there is not only one way to interpret many texts in Reformed theology. There is a breadth within Reformed theology that leaves enough room for each person to have room to explore their own views while being on the inside of the circle of Reformed theology.
One important example of this that I've had in mind for some time are the Reformed approaches (plural) to the interpretation of a well-known verse such as John 3:16.
We need hardly quote what is surely the most famous verse in the whole Bible, but it reads of course, something like this:
"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life" (John 3:16, ESV).
There are broadly two main Reformed approaches to this verse. My view, explored in some length in my book, The World of John 3:16 could be considered the more restrictive Calvinist view. I interpret the word "world" to mean "sinners from all nations" (i.e. Jews and Gentiles) and that it refers by extension to God's elect from the nations. One of the reasons for taking this view is that the love of God mentioned in this verse seems to me to be the highest type of love in God, his redeeming and electing love that achieves its aim of saving "the world" (see John 3:17). This is the view of many Calvinists—many older Calvinists it is probably fair to say, such as John Owen, Francis Turretin, Samuel Rutherford, John Gill and Arthur W. Pink.
However, I recognise that my interpretation may be incorrect and that there is a second broad interpretation which is every bit as Reformed. The other view interprets "world" as meaning "the human race" or "all of humanity". This view shares with our Arminian brothers and sisters the view that the world is all-inclusive, meaning every human being without exception. However, in this view, the love of God for the world is not the highest type of electing, saving love that God has for his people, but a more general benevolence encompassing everyone, and showing them that he is a God of compassion with what D. A. Carson calls "a salvific stance" towards everyone.
This simply means that his revealed will shows that God has some kind of intent towards the salvation of everyone who hears the gospel on the condition that they would believe. This is the view of many modern Calvinists, but also people in history, arguably John Calvin himself, Thomas Boston and the Marrow Men, and contemporary Calvinists such as R. C. Sproul, John Piper, D. A. Carson, and John MacArthur as far as I can make out.
There are some good arguments for this wider view, though I am not personally convinced by them. That's not to say I deny that other parts of Scripture do indeed teach that God takes no pleasure in the death of the wicked and would have everyone who hears the gospel accept it and be saved in accordance with his revealed or preceptive will, though not in the sense of it being God's decree or we would need to be universalists. It's only that I do believe that John 3:16 is correctly viewed as a text of this type.
Similar arguments could be applied to a number of other texts about which Reformed Christians may take different views. These include what might be called the "Arminian" proof texts such as Matthew 23:37, 1 Timothy 2:4 and 4:10, 1 John 2:2, and 2 Peter 3:9. On all these some Calvinists interpret them in a more restrictive sense, others accept the wider sense, yet deny that they undermine the doctrines of grace taught in Calvinism.
The Reformed Faith is not a monolith. And I believe it is all the richer for it.
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