Killing Calvinism - How to Destroy a Perfectly Good Theology

Because I gravitate to Reformed theology, I re-read this book frequently.



Killing Calvinism on Amazon by Greg Dutcher

Here are some passages I highlighted:

"I realized that God’s love for me was so great that he had my eternal well-being deep in his eternal heart long before I came on the scene. I also came to see that my sinfulness was so horrible, so debilitating to all of my faculties, that without God outright saving me, apart from any cooperation on my part, I was doomed to everlasting judgment." 

"We desperately need more Christians who know how to think along clear, biblical lines. But we cross a line when we are more focused on mastering theology than on being mastered by Christ." 

"Although Jesus’ grasp of theology was infinitely perfect in every way, what stands out the most about him is how he lived and what he did." 

"More often than not, though, zealotry untempered by wisdom is just obnoxious and obsessive—whether your passion is computing or theology." 

"Paul paid a high personal price, suffering hardship and spending himself to bring the gospel and preach the gospel to people who were already certain to be saved! Why? Because the saved are the means God uses to reach the lost." 

"A shared secret—whether a trivial bit of nonsense, a shameful slab of gossip, a stock tip, or a lewd joke—is just one of several ways by which people join together to form 'in' crowds. An especially powerful and enduring form of the 'in' crowd involves a shared passion, like for a sports team, a method of brewing coffee, or a theological system. What they all have in common is special knowledge coupled with passion that others do not share. Combine that with the capacity for raging pride that we all have lurking in our hearts, and any kind of special knowledge can quickly lead to an attitude that says, 'We get it, and you don’t.' " 

"If our Calvinism has become a platform from which we look down upon others, we desperately need God’s grace to convict us that this is sinful." 

"As one who ministers mostly to those who don’t see themselves as Reformed, I ask you to trust me when I say that letting go of a worldview can be like letting go of a loved one. For the typical evangelical in the West, what helps him or her make sense of the world is a kind of unexamined “Arminianism lite,” absorbed by osmosis from the broader Christian culture, tainted as that culture is by humanism and postmodernism and whatever else. For many of these genuine believers, this perspective is Christianity, however vague and ill-formed it may seem from our side of the theological fence. They love it and feel they need it. To let go of something you have cherished in this way often requires a period of grieving."

Total Depravity
Sin controls every part of man. He is spiritually dead and blind, and unable to obey, believe, or repent. He continually sins, for his nature is completely evil.
Unconditional Election
God chose the elect solely on the basis of his free grace, not anything in them. He has a special love for the elect. God left the rest to be damned for their sins.
Limited Atonement
Christ died especially for the elect, and paid a definite price for them that guaranteed their salvation.
Irresistible Grace
Saving grace is irresistible, for the Holy Spirit is invincible and intervenes in man’s heart. He sovereignly gives the new birth, faith, and repentance to the elect.
Perseverance of the Saints
God preserves all the elect and causes them to persevere in faith and obedience to the end. None are continually backslidden or finally lost.

Drew Barry - Unseen Biology

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Four Critical Leadership Qualities

Pilots have checklists. Some are referenced on every flight. Some are for emergencies. And a few are so critical that they must be committed to memory perfectly - or you just might die.

Pilots call these checklists "Critical Action Procedures" or CAP's for short. A while back I discovered that leaders need CAP's - whether they know it or not.

For military pilots, CAP's are the steps that must be taken, in perfect order and without delay, when the safety of an aircraft is in jeopardy. When pilots undergo the periodic simulator evaluations required to be rated to operate specific aircraft, the Instructor Pilot running the show always tests all the CAP's for that particular jet. Mistakes are not tolerated. No exceptions.

How seriously do pilots take these CAP's? Beyond the simulator evaluations, Air Force F-16 pilots are required to write out their CAP's – in ink, perfectly – at least once a month or they are grounded pending additional training. When the experience level of a squadron is relatively low, commanders routinely require completion of a written CAP's test every week. Failure to speak or perform the CAP's perfectly in a simulator evaluation results in a permanent black spot on the pilot's record and reputation.

As the Commander of a fighter outfit, I gave my leaders another set of CAP's – Leadership CAP's. My Leadership CAP's were adapted from an idea on loan from the book The Leadership Challenge. There are dozens of qualities that can be valuable to a leader. But exhaustive, worldwide, cross-cultural research has clearly identified four qualities every human being wants in a leader they will follow willingly. Those four qualities became my Leadership CAP's.

1. Honest
2. Competent
3. Inspiring
4. Forward Looking

Kouzes and Posner (the authors of The Leadership Challenge) elaborate on those four qualities and many other valuable insights. Their findings are profound.

May I make a suggestion? Study the life of Jesus of Nazareth in light of these leadership qualities. He employed them perfectly.