IS MIKE GENDRON A CALVINIST?

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1 IS MIKE GENDRON A CALVINIST? As was explained at Saturday s Great Lakes Conference, Sep. 12, 2015, evangelist Mike Gendron was disinvited to speak owing to his Calvinistic view of election. Many people have written me and asked for more information on this matter and more importantly, Is Mike Gendron a Calvinist? I have decided that I would comment on this because most people do not recognize Calvinism and owing to its extreme popularity and propagation, think that Calvin s teaching represents the Bible s teaching on election. There are three views of the biblical term election in the Bible and not just two, as most people think. These views are: Calvinism, Biblicist, and Arminian. Calvinism and Arminianism are polar opposites, teaching that God either elects one to heaven (Calvinism) or one is able to choose freely of his own will to go to heaven and potentially free to lose it (Arminianism). Both ignore the fact that in addition to the New Testament use of elect with respect to church age believers, the Bible also calls the nation of Israel the elect and those righteous angels that chose not to rebel with Satan against God are also called the elect. Any definition of biblical election must encompass all three biblical references: elect angels, elect nation of Israel, and elect of the Church Age (Acts 2 to the catching up of all true believers at the Rapture). The Biblicist view reflects a common definition for all three groups, maintains God s sovereignty, reflects man s free will, demonstrates God s preservation of the saved for eternity, and offers a clear understanding of God s grace. I have explained the Biblicist position in my booklet, An Alternative View of Election, available from our website, What follows is a series of comments based upon Mike s article and are offered for two purposes: first, to better explain why I believe Mike is wrong and second, to help others to see that if one holds to Mike s view of election, one is proclaiming Calvin s teaching. Therefore, one is either knowingly or unknowingly a Calvinist. Sadly, many say they are not Calvinists but actually hold Calvinistic views. It is my hope that this analysis is accepted as an attempt to show the Calvinistic teaching in Mike s article. Prior to Mike s article and my analysis is the notice that Mike sent out about the conference, to serve as an explanation of my analysis Mike Gendron newsletter, Proclaiming the Gospel, September For anyone who was planning to hear Mike Gendron speak at the Great Lakes Prophecy Conference in Appleton, WI, Sept , please be advised that he has been disinvited. The reason for canceling Mike's appearance was because of an article he wrote: Why Evangelize If God Has Already Chosen? Pastor Dwight Douville said, "As you explain your doctrine of election, I see the main points of Calvinism throughout...right now in our Calvary Chapel movement this is a hot topic and therefore I am sorry but we cannot have you as a speaker." For 25 years of ministry Mike has pointed people to the supreme authority of God's inerrant, infallible Word for knowing truth and exposing error. He has never encouraged people to embrace John Calvin or "Calvinism." Instead he exhorts people to be good Bereans and to test every man's teaching with Scripture. Roman Catholic apologists want Evangelicals to read and embrace the "early church fathers" because many of their Catholic dogmas cannot be found in Scripture. For the same reason it would not be judicious for us to point people to Calvin or any of the Reformers. Our theology must be established and defended by the Word of God alone. Tragically, the church continues to be divided over the sovereignty of God in salvation. Human pride has an intense dislike of the notion that God controls and rules over everything He has created. 1

2 Opponents of divine election teach that man has the free will to choose God and come to Him for salvation. Yet God's Word declares that unbelievers are held captive by Satan to do his will (2 Tim. 2:26). It was Jesus, not Calvin, who said, "No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him" (John 6:44). It was Paul, not Calvin, who wrote: "no one seeks God" and "the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ" (Rom. 3:11; 2 Cor. 4:4). It was Paul, not Calvin, who wrote: "The natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned" (1 Cor. 2:14). God is most glorified in salvation when we recognize salvation is all of Him from beginning to end (Phil. 1:6). The only thing man contributes to his salvation is his sin, which nailed our sinless Savior to the cross. It is our Sovereign Lord who chooses, predestines, calls, draws, brings to life, grants repentance and faith, justifies, forgives, redeems, glorifies, and secures all of His elect. As trophies of His sovereign grace, each of His adopted children will sing His praises throughout all eternity. God alone is worthy of all praise and glory and honor! We welcome your comments after watching Mike's message on DVD or reading his article Why -- Evangelize If God Has Already Chosen? The following is my analysis and comments to his article. Why Evangelize if God Has Already Chosen? Written by Mike Gendron. [Items in red are comments added by Robert Congdon] This engaging question has prompted many discussions and debates over God's sovereignty and man's free will. In answering the question, I am aware of the stricter judgment that awaits me if I mishandle the word of God (Jas. 3:1). My passion is to always honor and glorify God and never misrepresent His character. Mike clearly does this in his ministry and knowingly never seeks to misrepresent God s character. Scripture reveals that our sovereign Lord not only chose to save certain sinners, but He also ordained the means by which He will convert them. It is certainly debatable that Scripture reveals that God chose to only save certain sinners, or else we would not be discussing the issue and there would not be three historical views; views held by many respected Bible teachers. God established His eternal decree to save His people when they hear and believe His Word (Rom. 10:13-17). For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher? And how shall they preach, except they be sent? as it is written, How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace, and bring glad tidings of good things! But they have not all obeyed the gospel. For Esaias saith, Lord, who hath believed our report? So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. Romans 10:

3 We should note that Mike says God decreed, to save His people a true Calvinist belief rather than the biblical whosoever shall call. As one Calvinistic professor taught at the seminary that I attended, whosoever is really God s way of saying only the elect or His people. Other professors at the same school and we cannot agree. Whosoever is not limited to the elect by the definition of the word. In the original, the first word of the sentence is whosoever (literally two words: all and who. ) In the Greek, the first word of a sentence gives added stress to that word. Hence the stress is all or every and modifies the pronoun, who. All is translated from the Greek as all, any, total, whole, every kind of. 1 To completely ignore the of every kind understanding is required if one is to limit it to the elect. All of every kind precludes limiting this offer of salvation only to the elect, as Calvin defines elect. We agree with Mike that this passage defines God s decreed method of receiving the Gospel of salvation: i.e., hearing the Word of God. We would add, that the Holy Spirit s task is then to convict the sinner of the truth of the Word of God and the sinners need to respond to the conviction (John 16:8; 1 Cor. 2:12) It is for this reason the Lord of the Harvest commissioned His church to proclaim His Gospel. Every Christian has been given the awesome responsibility and highest privilege to call people to repent and trust Jesus Christ alone for salvation. God Promises Success in Evangelism As an evangelist, I have come to love the doctrine of election. There is a sense of relief knowing, that when I evangelize, the eternal destinies of souls are not dependent upon my persuasive ability to convert them. This paragraph seems to say that the doctrine of election removes the awesome responsibility of the previous paragraph. We certainly agree that persuasion is NOT God s method. Sadly many evangelists do not understand this and it is a common technique of many. Again, the evangelists are to proclaim the Word of God so sinners can hear it (issuing a the call of God) and the Holy Spirit can work in them to convict them of their need of Christ. God guarantees success whenever His elect hear His Gospel. Jesus promised, "All that the Father gives me shall come to me" (John 6:37, 65). Not some, not most, but all. This sovereign act of God will eventually result in the conversion of those He has given to the Son. This occurred when Paul proclaimed the Gospel to the Gentiles in Antioch - "as many as had been appointed to eternal life believed" (Acts 13:48). First of all, notice the conditions that occurred; Mike left off the first phrase of Acts 13:48, and when the Gentiles heard this the announcement of salvation to the Gentiles; step 1-they must hear and then they believed no mention of elected here. Secondly, the word appointed can mean, assigned, caused to be; command; suggest; give oneself to. 2 The origin of the English use of appointed here is a translation from the Latin of the Latin Vulgate. Many translators believe the phrase should be as many as were disposed or gave themselves to believe. 1 James A Swanson. (DBL Greek) Dictionary of Biblical Languages with Semitic Domains Greek, entry DBL Greek

4 The elect will come to Jesus as Christians proclaim the voice of the Good Shepherd. He promised that when His sheep hear His voice, they will follow Him (John 10:27). Whenever Christians sow the imperishable seed of God's living Word, He promises to bring forth life when the seeds fall on fertile soil (1 Cor. 3:7; 1 Pet. 1:23). Success in evangelism is therefore guaranteed by God's sovereign decree. Guaranteed? We agree that God s Word and the convicting of the Holy Spirit is what brings a person to accept or reject God s gift of salvation. Fertile soil is that which readily receives what it is given. The context of 1 Corinthians 3 emphasizes that it is not the one proclaiming the Word that causes the salvation, but that they are only ministers of the Word the media communicating it and when one accepts God s gift it is God that does it. There is no mention of election in this passage. 1 Peter 1:23 says that you are born again the same term used of regeneration, by the word of God and this is the word which by the gospel is preached. These passages do not guarantee success by a decree but emphasize the method of offering God s gift. Further, regeneration is a work of the Spirit when and not before one is born again (John 6:63; Titus 3:5). What an encouragement it is to know that God causes those whom He has chosen to come to Him (Psalm 65:4). Man can never thwart God's predetermined plan and purpose. Doctrine of Election Election, as defined in Scripture, tells us that God, in eternity past, before all things were created, chose specific individuals to be saved by His unmerited grace. He chose them according to the sovereign good pleasure of His own will. Paul wrote, "God has chosen you from the beginning for salvation through sanctification by the Spirit and faith in the truth" (2 Thes. 2:13). We will use this reference to once again emphasize that from the beginning God chose you (note the you is plural) to be saved by (1) sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth. The truth is the word of God. The Spirit sanctifies those He indwells. Based upon the idea that God decreed before the foundation to create a Bride for His Son. Like any Bride she must choose to accept the Groom. Once accepting Him God plans to sanctify her through His Spirit and the Word so that she may present herself to Him at the marriage (Eph. 5:26-27, Revelation 19:7). This is why wherever the term election is used in the New Testament it refers to people as plural, i.e., the Bride as a whole or group. Notice in the great passage of the Bride as the Church (Eph.5) she is spoken as a single group, not of individuals. When election is used in the Old Testament it is used of the nation of Israel and certainly not all Israelites were saved. It is also used of the angels a group that choose not to rebel. Election is used always in the plural of a specific group that is to serve her Lord and not of individuals. (See my book Alternative Election.) In another epistle Paul said, "He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world" (Eph. 1:4). Note: plural us again. 4

5 The Father chose His elect to be justified and totally glorified (Rom. 8:29-30). In a general sense God desires all men to be saved (1 Tim. 2:4). However, He decreed to save only some, and then He wrote their names in the Lamb's Book of Life (Rev. 17:8). If the choice were left up to man, no one would choose God. Paul makes this clear without exception, "There is none who understands, there is none who seeks for God" (Rom. 3:11; Ps. 14:2-3). Clearly, rebellious sinners could never choose Christ on their own free will; they choose Christ because He first chose them (John 15:16). Why does God choose some and pass over others? His purpose is hidden in the secret counsel of His will (Eph. 1:11). God's purpose has been established, and He will accomplish it all for His good pleasure (Isa. 46:10). Man's Inability to Choose God Scripture presents a clear contrast between God who is able to save and man who is unable. Man's inability is due to the corruption of his nature and his rebellion and hatred of God (Heb. 7:25; Rom. 8:7; Eph. 2:1-7). God includes everyone in His invitations, but sinners exclude themselves because of their enslavement to sin. Their bondage to sin keeps them from coming to God. Are the elect not enslaved also? Calvin required a pre-faith/belief regeneration to enable one to recognize his belief or faith. The Bible teaches that we are all born spiritually dead with a sin nature that corrupts our senses and limits our "free will." Opponents of divine election deny this and teach that man has the free will to choose God and come to Him for salvation. Yes we are all born spiritually dead or separated from God and all have a sin nature. It is a false generalization that this nature limits our free will. God in His sovereignty chose to allow man a free will and to reject Him. Adam certainly demonstrated this. But God in His sovereignty allows man to freely respond to the Word of God and the working of the Holy Spirit, all to God s glory. However, Scripture proves this is humanly impossible. We cannot know God (Mat. 11:27); we cannot please God (Rom. 8:8); we cannot see the light of the Gospel (2 Cor. 4:4); we cannot understand spiritual truths (1 Cor. 2:14); we cannot hear the Words of Christ (John 8:43); and we cannot come to Jesus (John 6:44). Notice in 2 Corinthians 4:4, we cannot see light because we are spiritual blind but this does not prevent a blind man from hearing the Word of God. So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. Romans 10:17 The unregenerate man lives in the lusts of his flesh, indulging the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and are by nature children of wrath (Eph. 2:3). Only when God causes the spiritually dead to come alive [Calvinist regeneration] in Christ can they see, hear, know and understand the Gospel, and thus, come to Jesus in faith (Col. 2:13). No one can become a child of God by their own will or by the will of their flesh (John 1:13). There is nothing man can do on his own to be adopted into God's family. Only by God's will can anyone be brought forth through the word of truth (Jas 1:18). "So then it does not depend on the man who wills or the man who runs, 5

6 but on God who has mercy" (Rom. 9:16). Sovereign election underscores not only the inability of man but also the freedom of God to save sinners according to His own purpose and grace (Titus 3:5; 2 Tim. 1:9). Those who are not recipients of His grace will remain in bondage to sin, captive to their own fleshly desires and hostile towards God (Rom. 8:7). A Doctrine Hotly Contested Although divine election is clearly presented throughout Scripture [true], it remains one of the most hotly debated doctrines in church history. Problem is not that election is in the Bible, problem stems from the definition of election and limiting it to people of the Church Age. Christians who reject the biblical doctrine of election do so for one of the following reasons: 1) pride - they believe man has the free will to release himself from the bondage and power of sin, and then come to Jesus; 2) man-centered evangelism - they enjoy taking credit for persuading people to "accept" Jesus; 3) fear - they refuse to accept that their loved ones may not belong to the elect; and 4) a distorted view of God - they say God is unjust by choosing to save some while passing over others. These are the standard characteristics listed as attributed to those who are not Calvinists. Sadly, some believe these things, but any true student of the Bible who carefully studies it, will give God the credit because it is His Words, His Works, and His Son s action on the Cross that saves a man. Man merely opens himself to accept God s gift. The four reasons Mike gives are primarily a result of the weak teaching and example of many evangelists. Paul anticipated these objections when he wrote, "Who are you, O man, who answers back to God...Does not the potter have a right over the clay, to make from the same lump one vessel for honorable use, and another for common use?" (Rom. 9:19-23). Is man so prideful that, as a depraved sinner, he has a better plan than an infinitely holy and eternally righteous God? Scripture soundly rebukes this foolish idea! "'For My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways My ways," declares the Lord. "For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts'" (Isa. 55:8-9). Those who deny election are usurping God of His absolute control over His creation and the right to choose His own family. They wittingly or unwittingly rob God of His glory, which is a dangerous position to take. God does not treat everyone the same, but He does treat everyone justly. Some receive justice, which they deserve, and some receive mercy, which they don't deserve (Rom. 9:15). Election does not mean that God chose some for heaven and some for hell. Every passage of the Bible that reveals divine election deals with it in the context of salvation, not damnation. Nowhere is anyone elected for hell. The only support for such a view is human logic, not Scripture. Clearly, all of us deserve the eternal fires of hell as the just punishment for our sin. People end up in hell because they rebelled against their Holy God and Creator. It is not man's love for God that is the motivating factor behind anyone being saved but God's amazing, unfathomable love for fallen man (Rom. 5:8;1 John 3:1). We must never forget that God is glorified both when His righteous justice is executed on sinners as well as when His mercy is graciously bestowed on the elect. "Who will not fear, O Lord, and glorify Thy name? 6

7 For Thou alone art holy...for Thy righteous acts have been revealed" (Rev. 15:4). Divine Sovereignty and Human Responsibility God is sovereign, but He made man responsible for his actions. To some, this appears to be a paradox. Yes, God is sovereign and can decide to allow man to have the freedom of choice when it is presented to him. Unlike Adam in the Garden, each individual can chose to be part of the Bride of Christ. This is not a draft like the army but a signing up of a person who freely desires Christ based upon the Word of God, which he hears, and the conviction of the Holy Spirit. Once saved, we are now members of Christ, in Christ and God has predetermined that this elect group is to grow in His grace and knowledge and serve the Son in eternity. The two subjects are often set in opposition to each other rather than harmonized together. Both are true and both are found in the Word of God. We see that all men are held responsible for what they believe. "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have eternal life...he who does not believe has been judged already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God" (John 3:16, 18). Yet we also hear Jesus saying, "You do not believe because you are not my sheep" (John 10:26). Once again, whosoever is limited to the elect, because according to the Calvinist, they are the only ones regenerated and capable of following Him. This brings us to a question for Calvinist. If God elects one because He gives them regeneration before belief, then does the Holy Spirit indwell them before belief? (John 14:17; Romans 8:9, 11; 1 Cor. 3:16; cf. 6:19) The harmony of these two subjects are hidden somewhere in the infinite mind of God. They stretch man's ability to comprehend the perfect purpose of God (Ecc. 11:5). This is good, since it gives us a greater desire to know Him and, in turn, it causes us to dig deeper into His Word. We must praise God for who He is and honor Him for His sovereign grace. Motivations to Proclaim the Gospel We must be diligent in proclaiming the Gospel because God is pleased to save those who believe it as His Spirit works in their hearts. The faithful Christian knows that God is in control and He moves us to do the work He has prepared for us. We evangelize because we are sent by God to reconcile the world to Himself through Christ. What a royal privilege it is to represent the King of kings as His ambassadors to a lost and dying world. Like Paul, we must "endure all things for the sake of those who are chosen [literally: the called ones, i.e., the ones responding to God s call through the Word and the Spirit.], that they also may obtain the salvation which is in Christ Jesus and with it eternal glory" (2 Tim. 2:10). It is true we do not know who the chosen ones are, but we do know this: "Whoever will call upon the name of the Lord will be saved" (Rom. 10:13). We also know that people will believe the Gospel as the Spirit of Truth reveals it's glory and illuminates the Word to them. 7

8 The answer to "why evangelize?" is very simple - obedience! True if Calvinistic election is true but false if our reason is that we want to share the love of God so others can join in and become part of the Bride and share the inheritance. We reach out to the unsaved because we care about their eternal destiny and want to the share the love of our God. Our motivation is not obedience to a command but a caring heart to see others have what we have in Christ. God has commissioned His saints to call the lost sheep to the Shepherd. No longer thundering from the mountain or from the burning bush, He uses Christians to accomplish His task of getting His Word to the elect. In closing, let us be motivated with this encouraging thought: Divine election is like a net cast into the sea - it does not drive the fish away, but draws them in. This should inspire us all to cast out the Gospel net more faithfully for God's glory! A final thought. Election is never discussed in the Bible outside of the church (the Bride), the nation of Israel, and the elect righteous angels. Why? What about the people before Israel, the people of the Tribulation, the people of the Millennium? Calvinism lumps them all into an all-inclusive church and does not see a separate national Israel and Church, which the Bible clearly teaches. Further, it does not answer the purpose of the creation of the non-elect, if they are to be created to suffer to God s glory. These questions must be answered and we seek to do this in our booklets. What we have presented here is a brief discussion of this very important subject. Wherever Calvinism and New Calvinism takes hold of a church, we have seen evangelism and evangelism missionaries removed from that church. After years in Europe, we have witnessed this effect in countless fundamental dispensational churches that turned to Calvinism. The pattern is always the same. Mike may say he is not a Calvinist, but his words, the teaching of this article, and the idea that obedience is what drives his evangelism are solidly based upon Calvin s definition of election and a Calvinistic mindset. It is my prayer that Mike, like I once was, will realize there is an option to both Calvinism and Arminianism. That option results in evangelism based upon love and care for those unsaved, and a desire to glorify God by proclaiming His Word of salvation and allow God to receive the glory as one respond to the Word and the Spirit and accepts Jesus Christ as their Savior. But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name: John 1:12 This analysis is offered in Christian love to all, who like me once held to Calvinistic election, that you might examine the Scriptures and the character of God and come to an understanding of His grace. 8