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I have gone on record being a fan of John Calvin, which in itself could be construed as somewhat provocative. Why, you ask? Well, generally there are two reasons. 

  1. The Michael Servetus incident 
  2. The Theological System of Calvinism (popularly defined by the acronym TULIP) 

I will deal with the Servetus incident next week, but in this blog post I will attempt to shed light on the theological system of Calvinism. 

To begin, Calvinism is normally synonymous with the acronym TULIP.

What is TULIP? 

T----Total Depravity

U----Unconditional Election

L-----Limited Atonement

I-----Irresistable Grace

P-----Perseverance of the Saints 

But did John Calvin come up with this acronym? No, this is one of the myths about Calvin. 

The truth is that its origin should be placed on the followers of Jacob Arminius (the “founder” of the theological system, Arminianism), who presented the five Remonstrances (which were constructed to oppose the teachings of Calvin’s followers and the Dutch church), at the Synod of Dort in 1618-1619. Furthermore, it is crucial to understand that this synod was roughly 8-9 years after Jacob Arminius died and 54 years after Calvin died. 

Then, because of the challenge of the followers of Arminius, the followers of Calvin responded to their “five points”, which began the “germinating process” (pun intended) of the infamous TULIP.

If this is true, then when and where did the actual acronym TULIP originate? It is hard to say.

Richard A. Muller states,

“As far as we know, both the acrostic and the associated usage of “five points of Calvinism” are of Anglo-American origin and do not date back before the nineteenth century. It is remarkable how quickly bad ideas catch on. When, therefore, the question of Calvin’s relationship to Calvinism is reduced to this popular floral meditation —did Calvin teach TULIP? —any answer will be grounded on a misrepresentation. Calvin himself, certainly never thought of this model, but neither did later so-called Calvinists. Or, to make the point in another way, Calvin and his fellow Reformers held to doctrines that stand in clear continuity with the Canons of Dort, but neither Calvin nor his fellow Reformers, nor the authors of the Canons, would have reduced their confessional position to TULIP.”

Interesting. Very interesting. 

But does any of this matter? Well, yes it matters, to some degree.

But you might say, "I don't care about theological systems. I care about the Bible." 

I like that. I am with you. And honestly,  one of the signs of Christian maturity is greater knowledge and consistent application of God's word, not theological systems. 

And so, I leave you a word of caution at this point. If you would rather not go down this rabbit hole of Calvinism (or an intense study of any theological system), don't click on this link. 

But for those that want to go down this "hole", I offer a few disclaimers. 

Disclaimer #1: Auberry Community Church (ACC) does not adhere to any particular theological system. Rather we simply teach the Bible, the inspired revelation of God. As it is stated, on our website:

We believe the Bible, based upon the original manuscripts, both the Old and New Testaments, to be the only inspired, inerrant, infallible, and authoritative written word of God.

Disclaimer #2: Even if I (Pastor Clint) hold or prefer a theological system, this again is NOT the position of the leadership of ACC, nor is this the position of ACC. The doctrinal beliefs of ACC is written in our constitution and within it, there is no mention of any theological systems. 

Disclaimer #3: If you click the link, read the post all the way to the end.

This is not meant to be click bait. The Bible is the God's word. Theological systems only have value when they accurately systematize the teachings of the Bible. 

I leave you with the words of Paul in 2 Timothy 3:16-17. 

2 Timothy 3:16-17

All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.