Thoughts on sovereignty and love.

As a Calvinist, I have heard many criticisms and attacks on my interpretation of Scripture. I have heard that it’s the ”Theology of Hell,” I have been called a cop-out, a sell out, an idiot, and that I’m teaching people to sin without regard. I’ve even heard that Calvinists are heretics and blasphemers.

Insults aside, I think the most common criticisms pertain to God’s love. I hope to address some of them in a clear way as I can best understand. Let’s be clear, I do not claim to have all the answers to how God works, but I will say that if Calvinism is in any way right, people who use the word “heresy” could very well be insulting the God of the Universe. Save that word for the cults.

A major mistake that people make is to somehow put themselves in the position to determine how God should act according to what their finite minds expect of Him. Any real attempt a defining His love is an exercise in futility. All I can do, we can do, is look to the Bible and go by what it says about Him.

How can God love all people if He only predestines some to eternal salvation?

Anytime unconditional election is mentioned, the automatic rebuttal is that this cannot be true because “God is love” (1 John 4:16). I think it’s key to understand, above all else, that we cannot and do not love or understand love as God does. As I said, any real attempt a defining His love is an exercise in futility.

I do not believe that God doesn’t love the non-elect, per say. As a matter of fact, “He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust” (Matthew 5:45) and “He is kind to the ungrateful and the evil” (Luke 6:35). We cannot make the assumption that the phrase ”God is love” is an overarching, broad stroke, plain-as-day statement. We cannot look in Scripture and say that God’s loving character restrains Him to only act a certain way toward everyone. In Joshua 11:18-20, God hardens the hearts of the Cannanite kings so that they would “receive no mercy but be destroyed” at the hands of the Israelites. We can only come to two conclusions:

1. God loved even the Canaanites in a way that we cannot comprehend.
2. God’s loving character is only directed at His elect accomplishing His will.

I’d lean towards the latter, but either conclusion is acceptable. What we cannot deny is that God doesn’t always act in a way that benefits everyone equally. Yes, the Canaanites got a raw deal in our eyes, but God showed absolute love to His people.

John 6:65 and John 10:26, among a plethora of other passages, clearly state that only God saves and only His people respond to His call. Consequently, those who He does not save and those who are unable (by His choice) to hear Him, do not receive eternal life. In light of this, we see that God’s love cannot be restrained to a universally singular form of love for everyone. Some would argue that those condemned to Hell were shown this universal love but that they did not choose Him, leaving His hands tied. Two major problems arise with this idea:

1. Nowhere in the Scripture does God exhibit love for those either in Hell or destined for it. Actually, Jesus goes so far as to speak in parables so that some would not “turn and be forgiven” (Mark 4:12).
2. It wouldn’t be a stretch to say that God’s love has to be aimed at only His elect in order to give them the highest blessing and bring higher praise and glory to Himself.

“What if God, desiring to show His wrath and to make known His power, has endured with much patience vessels of wrath prepared for destruction, in order to make known the riches of His glory for vessels of mercy, which He has prepared beforehand for glory?” (Romans 9:22-23).

God, at the end of the day, shows love to whom He pleases (Romans 9:15). God is love, yes. As the Sovereign King of Creation, we cannot determine to whom or to what God gives His love. Love that we cannot comprehend at any level.

How can God command us to love our enemies if He doesn’t love His enemies?

Good question, one I’ve pondered myself. Here’s the truth: God does indeed show a certain love to His elect, a love that we cannot actually give. Man cannot save nor make any eternal decision about another man’s soul. That’s it, end of discussion.

Now, as far as a more general form of love and welfare, I think God Himself is an example of this. Again, I refer to the most obvious statements in Matthew 5:45 and Luke 6:35. Here, He shows the same kind of patient love and mercy that we should toward our enemies. Again, though, this is the only love we can show. In Romans 9:3, Paul yearns for the lost to be saved, but the rest of the chapter shows that only God can perform that sort of grace on someone. There are different levels and abilities of love and grace. Some are universal for both God and man, and some are restricted to God Himself.

How can we love God freely if He predestines us to love Him? Isn’t real love a mutual choice?

Yes, it is a mutual choice for us to an extent. My girlfriend must love me in return in order for us to agree on marriage. However, if you are truly in love with a woman, you know that there is nowhere else you’d rather go. As marriage is so often mirrored with Christ and His Church, I think we see our love for God working the same. Hebrews 2:3 begs the question, “How shall we escape if we neglect such a great salvation?” This is not so much a warning of Hell as it is the question, “Where else would you go?” His sheep hear His voice (John 10:26) and no one can snatch them out of His hand (John 10:28). We aren’t going anywhere, we know our Shepherd.

However, we tend to look at relationships from a finite human point of view and attach it to God. We think that because we love someone, we deserve to be loved in return. As with God, we think that He owes everyone the same level of love and affection. Scripture, however, refutes this idea. It sounds wonderful to our prideful minds, but it is not Biblically accurate. Certainly, no one deserves a thing from God, but He extends Himself to some in spite of that.

We should not be upset that God elects according to His purpose (Ephesians 1:11, Isaiah 55:11). Quite the opposite, I believe. We should be absolutely thankful and joyous that God chose any of us. This, my friends, is love. Chosen, particular love. Not because you deserve it, but by the grace He gives (Ephesians 2:8-9).

You did nothing to earn it, He just loves you that much! Rejoice!