Calvinism and Arminianism
Calvinism and Arminianism grew from the same soil. Both arose within the Reformed church, both confessed the authority of Scripture and the necessity of grace, and both claimed the Reformation as their own. Yet they part company at nearly every point in the doctrine of salvation, and the parting always traces back to one question: whether the decisive cause of a sinner's salvation lies in God's choice or in man's response. The table below sets the two systems side by side.1 For the history of the controversy, see Arminianism.
| Calvinism | Arminianism | |
|---|---|---|
| Original Sin | Total depravity, with guilt inherited from Adam. | Weakness inherited from Adam. |
| Human Will | In bondage to sin. | Free to do spiritual good if willing. |
| Predestination | Rooted in God's eternal decree. | Rooted in God's foresight. |
| Atonement | Christ's death is a penal and substitutionary sacrifice. | Christ's death is a sacrifice God benevolently accepted in place of a penalty. |
| Extent of Atonement | Intended only for the elect. | Intended for all. |
| Application of Atonement | By the power of the Holy Spirit according to the will of God. | By the power of the Holy Spirit in response to the will of the sinner. |
| Grace of God | Common grace given to all; saving grace given to the elect. | Enabling grace given to all; saving grace given to those who believe; persevering grace given to those who obey. |
| Regeneration | Monergistic: the work of God alone. | Synergistic: the cooperation of God and man. |
| Order of Salvation | Election, predestination, union with Christ, calling, regeneration, faith, repentance, justification, sanctification, glorification. | Calling, faith, repentance, regeneration, justification, perseverance, glorification. |
| Perseverance | All the elect persevere by the grace of God. | Perseverance depends on obedience. |
The Calvinist sought to see God's dealings with mankind from the vantage of eternity. The Arminian gave his attention chiefly to human freedom. Beneath every row of the table lies a disagreement about what Adam's fall did to his children. The more devastating the fall is judged to be, the more salvation must rest on divine grace rather than human initiative. Arminians held that God's determinations followed what He foresaw of man's response to grace. Calvinists answered that such a view made God's election depend on the creature, and so denied His sovereign will to choose.
Sources
1. Table T5 and the summary beneath it are adapted from John D. Hannah, Charts of Reformation and Enlightenment Church History (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2004), chart 20, “Calvinism and Arminianism: A Comparison.” ↩︎
