On Phil Johnson's "Quick-and-Dirty Calvinism"
I just got finished reading Phil Johnson's new post, "Quick-and-Dirty Calvinism" on his new blog, PyroManiac...Right on! In just a few short paragraph's Phil distilled the recent polarizing trends on the web (possibly reflecting views in the real world, but who knows?) in a very convincing fashion. I was saved early in 2000; coming from a background where when I heard the term "Calvinist" I thought of separatist, harsh, unthinking, religious prudes. Then, within weeks after my conversion from fruitless and sin-indulgent religiosity to Christianity, I was exposed to the doctrines of grace at my first church East Valley Bible Church Gilbert. At first, I am very ashamed to say, I took my new-found knowledge and "shared" it with everyone...in all actuality my old pastor, Walter Crutchfield, probably characterized me best as Barney Fife with "Calvinism" as the one bullet in my gun: "I shouldn't have been trusted with it for fear of accidentally shooting myself or an innocent bystander." Somehow I was deceived by the unthinkable, that the fact that I had nothing to do with my salvation, that I was so dead in my trespasses as to be unable to even respond to a glorious message of salvation, and that even now in my sanctification I was powerless apart from the willing of God...that in the knowledge of all of that I became proud. At the discovery of the most humbling message around, I became boastful, proud, and arrogant, even harsh. I became to a degree the very characterization that I had applied to Calvinists. Thankfully, being exposed to the godly lives of my two mentors in the faith--Walter Crutchfield (who began to really temper me by giving me his very marked-up copy of Spurgeon v. Hypercalvinism) and Daryl Ridgely--the teaching of so many Godly men who thankfully did not characterize those traits, men like John Piper, C.J. Mahaney, Al Mohler, John MacArthur, Tom Shrader and others, and now to the shepherding of my amazing elders my life was transformed. My Calvinism became humbling; no longer was it a systematic theology to be merely refined and debated. My understanding of the doctrines of grace as expressed in the Bible (not in tradition) help me understand my conversion--not it defines my conversion. It makes me sure that God loves me, loves me personally, not just mankind generally. It makes me gracious. It drives my sanctification. It fuels my understanding of the cross. It thrusts me to my knees. It leaves no room to "play church" or to "play Christianity."I was graciously surrounded by so much of the humility and graciousness of what I will describe "true Calvinism" that I became oblivious again to the presence of the Calvinist-bashers. How could anybody hate such a sweet doctrine? How could anybody miss such a profound and clear (not simple or easy-to-understand, but clear) teaching of Scripture?
So now on to Phil Johnson's topic: For years I frequented Rob Schläpfer's DiscerningReader. After reading a book recommendation, I almost never disagreed with his comments. I looked forward each month to his newsletters (the archive is here, but they've taken down all of the newsletters that they wrote in their former days). I bought every book recommendation. Then, I got a newsletter called "Ugly Calvinism." Right on, Rob. This is what I had needed a few years before; a reminder certainly couldn't hurt (See this blog for some of those sweet reminders); I'm ok with this. Then I get a recommendation for a book describing, "Why Evangelicals Must Embrace Postmodernity." I bought the book expecting the normal high quality reviews. I kept reading...junk, pure junk! What happened?
Phil Johnson describes it perfectly. It all of a sudden became "cool" to bash Calvinists. It all of a sudden became cool to bash true evangelical Christianity. One of best "true calvinist" sites on the web quickly flipped to an "anti-calvinist site". Instead of calling sinful Calvinists like me to bear fruits that match their doctrine, it became cool to stereotype all of us as: "judgmental, self-righteous, and arrogant." That is what Phil Johnson first chronicles in his excellent blog post. (It might be interesting to note that at the same time as this flip on reformed theology was taking place an almost-complete loss of all judgment all "discernment" began. Not only did the guys who once published the Postmodern Times to expose the lies of postmodernism turn into "A Christian Bookshop for the Postmodern Times", but now they even sell market the TNIV among the only five different Bible translations that they sell, see the Statement of Concern About the TNIV Bible. Then finally they fell for and are advocating the terribly dangerous "New Perspective on Paul" as represented by N.T. Wright and others (To end the discussion of DiscerningReader, I would like to point those looking for an alternative to monergism books).
Then I began to see all kinds of gross distortions of Calvinism on the web, a hypercalvinism like even Spurgeon had never seen. Apparently, Phil Johnson had seen those too as he references some of the same sites as I saw, which are not even worth linking to here. Phil does a great job of balancing then, the tendency on the web to fly off the handle in either direction, either:
- Turning into Calvinist vilifiers and bashers (Painting caracitures of Calvinists and then destroying them--this is a prime example--in a way that could not stand up if the real, Biblical position were accurately portrayed)
- Turning into ugly Calvinists (Being proud in their "knowledge" of an intrinsically humbling truth).
Seeing as how this blog is not the most popular stop on the web, this essay has been written primarily for my own benefit in keeping with the purpose of this blog. I need to constantly remind myself of these things. Therefore, I end with the following reminder to myself and to any others who may feel enticed to join in fruitless doctrinal battles:
Remind them of these things, and charge them before God not to quarrel about words, which does no good, but only ruins the hearers. Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth. But avoid irreverent babble, for it will lead people into more and more ungodliness, and their talk will spread like gangrene...But God's firm foundation stands, bearing this seal: "The Lord knows those who are his," and "Let everyone who names the name of the Lord depart from iniquity"....Have nothing to do with foolish, ignorant controversies; you know that they breed quarrels. And the Lord's servant must not be quarrelsome but kind to everyone able to teach, patiently enduring evil, correcting his opponents with gentleness. God may perhaps grant them repentance leading to a knowledge of the truth, and they may escape from the snare of the devil after being captured by him to do his will.
So I will not swerve from my doctrinal position. The doctrinal distinctives--which I believe are wholly Biblical and, although often hard to swallow, best represent what God has chosen to reveal about Himself to us in His Word--to which I hold as reformed / Calvinist / whatever-you-want-to-call-it I believe lead to me to behold God as He is, to love him more, to be humbled, to be sanctified, to worship Him, to share the wonderful news of Christ, to pray with confidence, to stand in trial, and to hope.
