Questions tagged [reformed-theology]
A branch of Protestantism emphasizing the sovereignty of God and his covenants with humanity. Also known as Calvinism.
362
questions
8
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1answer
259 views
What arguments were made against William Carey's missions efforts?
I am aware that William Carey's efforts to form a missions society and travel overseas as a missionary were opposed by some of his Calvinist (or hyper-Calvinist) Baptist peers.
I'm vaguely aware of ...
9
votes
1answer
194 views
According to reformed theology, who or what will the saints reign over during the millenium?
Regarding the 1000 years, Revelation 20:6 states:
Blessed and holy is the one who takes part in the first resurrection.
The second death has no power over them, but they will be priests of
God ...
3
votes
2answers
378 views
Election, Gods Sovereignty and Is Cain Saved?
Does Calvinism (and those who believe in Unconditional Election) teach that Cain was elected to Salvation?
This is my source for defining Unconditional Election.
Unconditional Election:
God does ...
6
votes
1answer
439 views
According to Reformed Baptist theology when did the Church begin?
According to Reformed Baptist theology, when did the Church begin? In the Old Testament or in the New Testament?
4
votes
0answers
126 views
How did Aquinas and Reformation-era Protestants disagree on God's will?
Thomas Aquinas distinguished between God's antecedent and consequent wills. Meanwhile, the Reformed confessions (eg Westminster Confession) distinguished between God's decretive and revealed wills. ...
3
votes
1answer
155 views
Did any actual Puritan congregations impose scarlet letters on adulterers?
Nathaniel Hawthorne's (fictional) book, the Scarlet Letter, in my opinion, has seared a characterization in people's minds that Puritans were dour, hypocritical, legalistic, and shame-driven ...
4
votes
1answer
220 views
Does the Westminster Confession affirm or deny Luther's predilection for Paul's writings?
My understanding is that the Westminster Confession is the official defining document of "Reformed theology". That is, if someone is "Reformed" then they agree completely or almost completely with the ...
3
votes
2answers
407 views
According to Calvinism, if Catholicism might lead to salvation, why to remain a Calvinist? (Henry IV story)
In his 1786 book, "The History of Heresies and Their Refutation", (saint) Alphonsus Liguiri wrote:
I think the danger of eternal perdition, by dying separated from the Church, should be a ...
7
votes
1answer
11k views
What is the Calvinist Perspective on the Tribulation
What view of the tribulation do Calvinists generally tend to take?
I am aware of the eschatology espoused in the Westminister Confession , but I don't see anything related to the tribulation there.
...
1
vote
1answer
184 views
How is the atonement sufficient for salvation according to Calvinists?
Because there is not a single verse in the Bible that explicitly states that Christ laid down his life only for believers (the elect), Calvinists typically defend their doctrine of limited atonement ...
5
votes
2answers
361 views
Are foster children considered covenant children in Presbyterianism?
Foster children are on the one hand a part of the household but on the other hand not legally adopted and may be ultimately reunited with their birth parents. So do Presbyterians of a confessional ...
4
votes
1answer
480 views
According to Reformed Theology, what is the doctrinal basis for belief in New Testament tithing?
Most Reformed churches refer to "tithes and offerings" as an understanding of the giving structure in church. Reformed Theology as a theological framework is careful about ensuring there is a biblical ...
13
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4answers
5k views
How do “once saved, always saved” advocates explain the Parable of the Sower?
How do advocates of a strict perseverance of the saints doctrine explain the Parable of the Sower? That is, how does someone explain it who believes that once someone is saved they cannot lose that ...
5
votes
1answer
276 views
How do Arminians interpret God's reserving of a remnant in Romans 11:4?
Much has been written about Romans 9 and the differing Calvinist/Arminian interpretations of it. However, Arminians (and I consider myself an Arminian) usually argue that, read in context with the ...
12
votes
1answer
1k views
Origin of the Reformed “Marks of the True Church”
In Reformed Theology, "the marks of a true church" are often delineated, to the effect of:
Church discipline
Teaching/preaching
Administration of the sacraments
(These are the marks often denoted in ...
1
vote
1answer
210 views
Do conservative Presbyterians accept 4-point Calvinists?
I realize that many conservative Presbyterian churches (PCA, OPC, etc.) have fairly basic standards for membership, not requiring much more than baptism and a basic affirmation of faith, although ...
2
votes
1answer
213 views
From a Calvinist perspective, if Adam refused the fruit what would happen to their descendants?
And the woman saw that the tree was good to eat, and fair to the eyes, and delightful to behold: and she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave to her husband who did eat. Genesis 3:6
What ...
0
votes
1answer
138 views
“Holy man / saints” in the point of view of God according to the Calvinist?
I was in the middle of a discussion in a Christian Forum, where the Calvinist member say that : "holy man / saint" can only exist only after Jesus died. Before Jesus died, all the OT people are ...
5
votes
3answers
371 views
For those who deny the Immaculate Conception, why did Jesus not have original sin?
The Westminster Confession (8:2) says Jesus is of the substance of Mary:
The Son of God, the second person of the Trinity, being very and eternal God, of one substance and equal with the Father, ...
5
votes
2answers
329 views
If Christ had a complete human nature, how come his human nature wasn't totally depraved as ours is?
I understand the reformed doctrine of total depravity to be that the human nature is such that it is utterly unable to choose to follow God. Another way I've heard it put is that men are by nature ...
0
votes
1answer
115 views
Who is “you” in Genesis 3:15 according to the Calvinist?
I have a "connected" question before in here. And I think I made a mistake to ask a question like that directly.
So, I will start here first :
Genesis 3:15 I will put enmity between you and the ...
4
votes
2answers
424 views
Does evanescent grace remove all assurance of salvation? [closed]
The symptoms of evanescent grace and real grace seem to be indistinguishable.
yet experience shows that the reprobate are sometimes affected in a way so similar to the elect, that even in their own ...
2
votes
0answers
108 views
The word “faith” in Matthew 17:20, Matthew 21:21 according to Reformed?
Matthew 17:20
And He said to them, "Because of the littleness of your faith; for
truly I say to you, if you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you
will say to this mountain, 'Move from here ...
6
votes
2answers
550 views
Did John Calvin observe Christmas?
In some strands of Reformed theology, the regulative principle of worship is understood to mean that "church holidays," not specifically established in the Bible, should not be recognized in public ...
3
votes
0answers
213 views
In what sense do Presbyterians consider Christ's sacrifice “perfect”?
This question concerns in part the following quote heard regularly by Presbyterian Pastors:
“Catholics deny the sufficiency of Christ’s redemptive work on the cross and by doing so, forfeit their ...
3
votes
1answer
2k views
How are the Decretive, Preceptive, and Permissive wills of God defined?
I've heard people talk about the Decretive, the Preceptive, and the Permissive wills of God, but I don't entirely understand them. What do they mean and what makes them distinct from each other?
0
votes
1answer
166 views
Is “You cannot love your neighbour unless you love yourself” a form of antinomianism?
The second great commandment, "You shall love your neighbour as yourself," is often turned into "You cannot love your neighbour unless you love yourself." Is this a form of antinomianism? If not, how ...
4
votes
0answers
107 views
Reformed Theology [closed]
Can anyone point me to a scholarly article or book that clearly, definitively, and authoritatively defines what qualifies a person or denomination as "reformed"? I've heard Presbyterians claim that ...
9
votes
2answers
3k views
What is the Calvinist view of God's sovereignty?
I have many Calvinist friends, and when we discuss matters of theology or doctrine, almost inevitably, the conversation turns to them saying something like "That's because of God's sovereignty," or "...
-1
votes
1answer
250 views
Who does John 6:40 refer to according to Reformed theology? [closed]
For my Father's will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in him shall have eternal life, and I will raise them up at the last day.
—John 6:40 NIV (emphasis mine)
Does the bold ...
4
votes
2answers
690 views
What does John 3:16 mean according to Calvinism?
John 3:16
For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.
I originally believed the sentence above is like an ...
17
votes
5answers
3k views
How are the Calvinist, Arminian and Lutheran conceptions of Total Depravity different?
I'm quite sure I understand the concept of Total Depravity, but I'm not sure it's viewed exactly the same in different doctrinal frameworks that support it. I've spent a lot of time among Lutherans, ...
3
votes
0answers
185 views
How do monergists respond to Bible verses that support the doctrine of synergism?
How do Lutherans, Calvinists and other protestants that believe in monergism respond to biblical passages that seem to support synergism such as these?
For example:
"Be perfect, therefore, as ...
10
votes
2answers
797 views
Reformed View of Titus 2:11 and Irresistible Grace
Titus 2:11 says
For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men...
How does this fit with Irresistible Grace? From my understanding of Irresistible Grace, when God's grace ...
5
votes
1answer
217 views
From reformed perspective, what does the oil in the foolish virgin's lamp represent?
This question is related to the question: How do "once saved always saved" advocates explain the parable of the wise virgins?
Many of the answers explain that the foolish virgins never had oil, ...
4
votes
1answer
2k views
What is the distinction between Justification and Salvation? (Reformed point of view)
As a practicing Christian, my only hope is for salvation through Jesus Christ. I note that scripture addresses salvation from a variety of perspectives and analogies, but also I find that in Paul's ...
1
vote
1answer
84 views
How would a Reformed theologian distinguish his or her view of atonement?
The term 'limited atonement' has been used, and I wonder how the Reformed is differing by definition from the Evangelical view of atonement. Further, what Scriptures do the Reformed base this view ...
9
votes
3answers
1k views
What is the Calvinist perspective on regeneration?
When do Calvinists consider an elect person to be regenerate?
If it is at birth, then is it odd that someone who is "regenerate" is living in sin, up until the point of faith in Christ?
And if it is ...
1
vote
1answer
179 views
How does reformed theology reconcile the universal resurrection with limited atonement
When reading about the Reformed doctrine of limited atonement I can follow the logical flow as follows:
Hell is punishment for sin, the outpouring of the wrath of God
Heaven is being with God in the ...
5
votes
2answers
105 views
According to Reformed theology are the Psalms suitable preaching/prayers/songs for Christians?
In other words, are the Psalms considered Jewish-specific or deemed equally useful as prayers and songs for Christians? For example, is the first Psalm a Christian Psalm as well as a Jewish Psalm?
...
3
votes
1answer
97 views
How does the Reformed tradition understand Philippians 2:6-9 as it regards the Hypostatic Union?
Philippians 2:6-9
(A) Though he was God, he did not think of equality with God as
something to cling to
but (B) emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being
born in the ...
1
vote
2answers
160 views
According to Calvinism, when and what happen during the Lord's Passover in the time of Moses?
Exodus 12:11
This is how you are to eat it: with your cloak tucked into your belt,
your sandals on your feet and your staff in your hand. Eat it in
haste; it is the LORD's Passover.
From the ...
2
votes
1answer
84 views
According to Calvinists, Luke 22:8 what date did it happen?
Luke 22
(7)Then came the day of Unleavened Bread on which the Passover lamb
had to be sacrificed. (8)Jesus sent Peter and John, saying, "Go
and make preparations for us to eat the Passover."
...
7
votes
1answer
404 views
Is Jonathan Edwards's view of “philosophical necessity” compatible with the Westminster Standards?
Jonathan Edwards (1703–1758) was a major 18th century theologian who, though rooted in Reformed theology, innovated in some important ways. According to J. V. Fesko, in The Theology of the ...
6
votes
2answers
281 views
In Reformed Covenant Theology, why does the covenant sign of circumcision pass away but the Abrahamic covenant of which it was the sign of does not?
Galatians 3:16-18 denies that the Mosaic covenant annulled the promises of the Abrahamic and proceeds to argue the Christian gospel on the basis of the Abrahamic covenant against the idea of salvation ...
3
votes
1answer
473 views
According to Reformed theology, what is an infant's first sin?
From what I understand, every human that has ever lived is "born into sin", which means we all carry a "sin nature". Saul says:
"For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God" Romans 3:23
...
2
votes
2answers
514 views
According to Reformed theology, is teaching a false Trinitarian concept considered blasphemy?
There are several people that do not understand the trinity. I hear things such as "God is like water. He is liquid, steam, and solid". This analogy actually comes with a longer explanation about how ...
2
votes
1answer
234 views
According to Trinitarian theology of Calvinism, was the Word (2nd person of the Trinity) missing from heaven when He (the Word) incarnated on Earth?
What I mean with "missing from heaven" is something like this :
A. Only the first and the third persons of the Trinity were in heaven because the second person was on Earth.
Example:
Q : Where is ...
2
votes
1answer
189 views
According to Reformed Theology, why do unbelievers deserve punishment?
I read this quote from John Calvin on some website:
"...we allow that man has choice and that it is self-determined, so that if he does anything evil, it should be imputed to him and to his own ...
3
votes
3answers
249 views
According to Reformed - 1 Corinthians 11:29-30, the words [weak, sick, died] literal or not?
1 Corinthians 11:29-30
(29) For if you eat the bread or drink the cup without honoring the
body of Christ, you are eating and drinking God's judgment upon
yourself. (30) That is why many of ...
