Romans 8: Secure Salvation
“For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brethren; and these whom He predestined, He also called; and these whom He called, He also justified; and these whom He justified, He also glorified.”
Romans 8:29-30 NASB1995
Following on to the splendid foundation of God’s faithfulness and working all things for good in Romans 8:28, Paul now leads us into very challenging theological waters. I have to admit up front that this has been, so far, one the most difficult devotionals to write and have a coherent message.
When I went to research Romans 8:29-30 I was led on the ultimate “bunny trail” for a few hours, plunging into articles about Calvinism versus Arminianism and seeing an acronym, TULIP, that I had never heard of before, but apparently it is a foundational description of the doctrines of grace for reformed theology (more on TULIP later). What I realized in doing this research (that led to some wakeful moments last night along with weird dreams of trying to reconcile this stuff), is that humans take the mysteries of God’s plan and sovereignty and turn it into warring factions of philosophy and control, which are still going on in a “Cold War” sense in the internet world. All you have to do is read about the bloodshed and terror during the Reformation wars like the Thirty Years War, for example (which resulted in forced conversions back to Catholicism in some regions of Europe and the triumph of Lutheranism or Calvinism in other regions) or the persecution of Catholics under the Tudors in Britain and the subsequent reverse persecution under the Stuarts (leading to the English Civil War), to know that Towers of Babel are built many times in human history. God speaks and we always want to speak louder and “explain”, or even contradict, what He says.
I was raised in a Lutheran church and now attend a non-denominational church, but only nominally paid attention to the story of Martin Luther in my youth (enough to pass Catechism class), so my understanding of the Reformation and its history is sketchy at best. Needless to say, these verses of Paul are one of the justifications for the doctrine of predestination (along with Romans 9) that was elaborated as early as the writings of St. Augustine and continued into Calvinism. God chooses many times in the Bible who benefits from His sovereign plan (the younger Jacob versus the older Esau, for example), so the plan is established and the elect are supposedly known from the beginning to God through His mercy and not due to any other attributes of the elect. This seems like a good time to tell you about TULIP, the doctrines of grace from Calvinism (excerpts from a Wikipedia article):
The central assertion of TULIP is that God saves every person upon whom he has mercy, and that his efforts are not frustrated by the unrighteousness or inability of humans:
Total depravity (also called radical corruption or pervasive depravity) asserts that as a consequence of the fall of man into sin, every person is enslaved to sin. People are not by nature inclined to love God, but rather to serve their own interests and to reject the rule of God. [T in TULIP]
Unconditional election (also called sovereign election or unconditional grace) asserts that God has chosen from eternity those whom he will bring to himself not based on foreseen virtue, merit, or faith in those people; rather, his choice is unconditionally grounded in his mercy alone. God has chosen from eternity to extend mercy to those he has chosen and to withhold mercy from those not chosen. Those chosen receive salvation through Christ alone. Those not chosen receive the just wrath that is warranted for their sins against God. [U in TULIP]
Limited atonement (also called definite atonement or particular redemption) asserts that Jesus's substitutionary atonement was definite and certain in its purpose and in what it accomplished. This implies that only the sins of the elect were atoned for by Jesus's death. Some Calvinists have summarized this as "The atonement is sufficient for all and efficient for the elect." [L in TULIP]
Irresistible grace (also called effectual grace, effectual calling, or efficacious grace) asserts that the saving grace of God is effectually applied to those whom he has determined to save (that is, the elect) and overcomes their resistance to obeying the call of the gospel, bringing them to a saving faith. [I in Tulip]
Perseverance of the saints (also called preservation of the saints; the "saints" being those whom God has predestined to salvation) asserts that since God is sovereign and his will cannot be frustrated by humans or anything else, those whom God has called into communion with himself will continue in faith until the end. Those who apparently fall away either never had true faith to begin with (1 John 2:19), or, if they are saved but not presently walking in the Spirit, they will be divinely chastened (Hebrews 12:5–11) and will repent (1 John 3:6–9). [P in TULIP]
Well, that certainly makes things clearer, doesn’t it? Arminianism (named after Jacobus Arminius, a Dutch reformationist) counters the predestination aspect of this doctrine by inserting more free will and synergy on the part of humans in the equation. So you can see the bigger picture, Calvinism is found in Congregationalist and Presbyterian churches (among others) and in the writings of religious thought leaders like John MacArthur, John Piper and Charles Spurgeon; it seems to drive most of the Precept Austin selections for their Bible studies, which I do find very useful and I admire many of these writers. Arminianism is found in Methodist and Free Baptist types of churches and in the writings and preaching of thought leaders like Billy Graham and C.S. Lewis; I’m also a huge C.S. Lewis fan and admire the legacy of Billy Graham. Lutheranism falls in between Calvinism and Arminianism and Catholicism recognizes some aspects of predestination as written by St. Augustine. Non-denominational churches, like the one we’re now attending, usually pick the best from the buffets of these doctrines, with emphasis on mercy, grace, redemption and justification/sanctification.
So where does that leave us? I believe God does have a sovereign plan and knew me before I was formed in the womb. When I walked away from faith for quite a few years, that implies a free will choice. But I must admit that I probably never had the Holy Spirit in me in my younger, comfortable Lutheran days and Steve was very nominally Catholic as a boy. Both Steve and I were guided (sometimes very strongly) back to faith and we find it irresistible to learn and grow. If some (and not all) are pre-destined, we don’t know who they are, hence it is crucial to continue to evangelize and bring them to truth. This is one of God’s mysteries that will be revealed in time.
My next devotional will examine Romans 8:31-32: God is For Us.