I am a Primitive Baptist, and we believe in election, grace, and predestination.  This is clearly spoken of in the Bible; I was wondering what your views are on this?

Sincerely,
Primitive Baptist

Dear Primitive Baptist,

We here at AYP firmly believe in election, grace, and predestination because they are all terms clearly mentioned in the Bible.  The important questions to ask are:

1. How are we elected?
2. Who receives grace?
3. What is predestined?

Many false doctrines have been created because people failed to ask these questions.  Calvinism (a very popular false doctrine that has infected many churches) teaches that people are elected by God without any conditions and that it is impossible to choose to serve God; it is all up to God.  It also teaches that grace can never be lost and that it is impossible to fall away even if you become an axe-murderer or live a homosexual lifestyle.  Calvinism also teaches that God predestined specific people throughout history to be saved and that only those specific individuals will go to heaven – everyone else is lost by default.  (For further information on Calvinism, please read “Calvin And Sobs”.)  We mention this only to point out that the words ‘election’, ‘grace’, and ‘predestination’ have been abused when we didn’t clarify their biblical meanings.

God teaches that He has elected certain people to be saved.  John 6:44-45 says that God draws people to Him through the Bible.  When we listen to what the Bible says, we are called by God.  2 Thess 2:14 makes it even clearer when it says that we are called through the Gospel. ‘Called’ is another word for ‘elected’.

Those who turn to Christ will receive grace.  ‘Grace’ means ‘unmerited or undeserved favor’; grace is a gift you haven’t earned… in this case, it is the gift of salvation.  We receive grace when we live by faith (Eph 2:8).  Jesus died and paid a price none of us could ever pay – the price of our sins.  When we walk according to His teachings, His blood cleanses us from sin (1 Jn 1:7).  A faithful life isn’t a perfect life, but it is a life that is guided by God’s Word (Rom 10:17).

The Bible also teaches that God predestined something to be saved.  ‘Predestined’ means ‘to set the limits’.  Before God made anything, He set the limits of who would be saved and who wouldn’t (Eph 1:5).  God said that those in Christ will be saved (2 Tim 1:9).  Everyone who is washed in the blood of Jesus will be saved – He is the only way to God (Jhn 14:6).  God predestined only a certain group of people to be saved – the church (Acts 20:28).  The question we must all ask ourselves is: am I a part of God’s church?

The argument is made that Paul never mentioned Mary, Joseph, Calvary, Pilate, Bethlehem, the virgin birth, the tomb, etc. because these gospel stories had not yet developed.  His Christ was a celestial being of a Platonic formula and not a literal historical Jesus figure.  How would you answer that?

Sincerely,
Don’t Drop The Details

Dear Don’t Drop The Details,

It is important to note that any time someone makes a claim that is contrary to what the majority of historians teach, the responsibility is on the person making the claim to prove their case.  That would be the first answer we would give to the argument.  You can’t just say that Paul taught Jesus as a celestial being and not a legitimate historical figure – you have to prove it.  In fact, history teaches Jesus was a real person.  Even the secular writers Josephus and Tacitus mentioned Jesus as a real, flesh-and-blood person.

Secondly, we would point out that Paul does mention some of the things on that list.  In Rom 6:1-4, Paul mentions Jesus’ death and resurrection from the tomb.  In 1 Tim 6:13, Paul notes that Jesus stood before Pilate.  Php 2:8 (amongst many others such as Col 1:20-24, Eph 2:16, Gal 6:14, 1 Cor 1:18) clearly states that Jesus was crucified (which implies the location of Calvary and Golgotha).  Paul was aware of the story of Christ’s life and mentioned those details when appropriate.  In fact, one of the writers of the four Gospels was Luke – Paul’s traveling companion.

Is it the case that the ideas of the Christ and salvation were not taught exclusively by Paul since he himself said that he only wanted to preach in places that had not yet heard the Gospel?  Plus, there were others such as Aquila and Priscilla, Apollos, etc.  He also said that there were those who taught another Jesus or gospel, others who relied on other people such as Cephas, and even those who believed only in Christ without any preachers.  Or was it the case that he was the leader of the entire movement because he was the one who claimed a revelation… whereas others had received traditions?

And is this the reason he never mentions Gospel stories or even mentions Mary, Pilate, Calvary, Golgotha, or Herod?  And when he mentions the apostles who knew Jesus in person, why does he not express any special reverence or awe for them at all?

Sincerely,
Passionate About Paul

Dear Passionate About Paul,

Paul was only one of thirteen different apostles teaching Christianity and only one of countless preachers and teachers.  You are right that Paul taught in new territories that others hadn’t reached (Rom 15:20), and the Lord chose to use Paul’s letters for a large portion of the New Testament canon, but that doesn’t make Paul the primary preacher of Christianity.  In fact, the first sermon was preached by Peter (Acts 2:14), and Paul didn’t even begin to preach until several years later.  Paul was originally opposed to Christianity (Acts 26:10) and wasn’t converted until the Lord spoke to him on the road to Damascus (Acts 9:1-5).  Paul’s letters don’t contain every detail of Christ’s law because Paul didn’t write all of Christ’s law!  Paul’s letters were written to already established congregations that were aware of the story of Christ’s life and didn’t need him to reiterate every detail.  As far as Paul’s lack of reverence for the other apostles – the other apostles didn’t want reverence; as Peter said, “I, myself, am also a man.” (Acts 10:26).

Can you tell me something about generational curses?  Aren’t they a special kind of curse and not for everybody?

Sincerely,
Checking The Family Tree

Dear Checking The Family Tree,

Children pay for the choices their parents make.  People pay for the sins of those who have gone before.  If your father was an axe murderer, it would affect you, your children, maybe even your grandchildren (Ex 34:7)… but eventually he would be forgotten, and the consequences of his behavior would dissipate.  That is what the generational curse is – that children must live with the repercussions of their parents’ choices.  Everyone has baggage and troubles that are brought on them by the generations that have gone before.

However, every person has the God-given gift of free will (Matt 7:13-14).  In spite of what the generations before have done, we all have the ability to work out our own salvation and change our lives (Php 2:12).  Our physical lives are often dictated and controlled (at least partially) by the choices of those around us, most notably our parents, but the state of our soul is our own responsibility.  Each of us must seek God (Col 3:1) and serve Him regardless of what previous generations have done.

Why did God tell David that He would have given him more wives if He had intended for men to only have one wife?

Sincerely,
Monogamous

Dear Monogamous,

Polygamy is never expressly condemned in the Bible.  It is also never treated as the standard… only the exception.  There are scores of examples of monogamy being God’s preference for man:

1. Adam & Eve were designed monogamously (Gen. 2:24).
2. No polygamy existed until seven generations after Adam (Gen 4:19).
3. Noah, the last righteous man of his day, had only one wife (Gen 7:13).
4. It is a qualification for an elder (Tit 1:6).
5. It is a qualification for a deacon (1 Tim 3:12).
6. It is a qualification for a worthy widow (1 Tim 5:9).
7. Every New Testament command for a husband or wife assumes monogamy in the commandments (Mk 10:12, 1 Cor 7:3, Eph 5:33, etc.).
8. The comparison of Christ and the church to a husband and wife relies on a monogamous design for marriage (Eph 5:22-23).
9. God clearly states it as His design for marriage in the New Testament (1 Cor 7:2).

On the same hand, there are multiple examples of the pitfalls of polygamy:

1. Sarah and Hagar fought (Gen 16:4).
2. Rachel and Leah fought over Jacob (Gen 29:30-31).
3. Hannah and Penninah’s rivalry (1 Sam 1:2-6)
4. Solomon’s idolatrous wives (1 Kings 11:4)

God allowed polygamy in the Old Testament because the Old Testament was a tutor designed to lead people toward a better and more permanent covenant (Gal 3:24-25).  David lived in a time when God allowed polygamy even though it wasn’t His long-term preference for mankind.  In the New Testament, we are told God desires for marriage to be between one man and one woman (1 Cor 7:2).