The Calvinists, Arminiusts, and Me

            The Calvinists and the Arminiusts are two different groups of Christians debating the concepts of free-will, God’s sovereignty, predestination, grace, belief, and faith. Both parties believe that Jesus is God incarnate, that He sacrificed His life, that He conquered sin by rising from the dead.  They both believe that Jesus is the ONLY way to Heaven and that the Bible is God’s inerrant Word. Of course, there are extremists on both sides that may be contradictory to what God has said, but that is an entirely different topic.

            As for me, I am neither Calvinist nor Arminiust; yet, I have received far more ridicule from the pro-Calvinist camp. The reason for this may be that about 75% of what I believe in contrary to that of Reformed Theology. Although numerous arguments have been set before me, there is one that seems to be more common than others. Allow me to reiterate the argument addressed to me whenever discussing my beliefs concerning choosing Jesus Christ as my personal Lord and Savior:

            “If one is saved by choosing to believe in God, he cannot claim that he was saved by grace; rather, he has saved himself.”

            I believe this argument to be completely illogical. Consider this analogy which represents my understanding of choosing Jesus Christ:

      There once was a man walking in the desert. The relentless heat began to take its toll. He yearned for water. Thirst overcame him, and he began to hallucinate great pools of water, crisp cool streams, and trees providing shade and shelter from the sun. And yet, he could not grasp these beautiful apparitions. His legs finally giving out, he collapsed to the ground, slowly losing strength and hope. Suddenly, a traveler appeared. He approached the dying man and asked, “Are you in need of water?”

     The dying man responded, “Yes, I am dying, and I am in need of water. Will you save me?”

   “Of course,” the traveler replied, “I have water that will save you…all you need to do is ask.”

   The dying man cried out, “Please give me water that I may live!”

            So the man gave him water, which quenched his thirst, and saved his life.

            My dear friends, allow me to explain this analogy. The man in the story is a non-believer, and the desert is the world that seeks to devour us. Thirst is the emptiness that all non-believers feel and which the Lord uses to draw us towards Christ. The hallucinations are the false hopes, dreams, and realities that we create to sustain us for a moment, but inevitably break us in the end. When the man finally collapses on the ground he has hit rock bottom. The traveler is Christ and the water is His blood. When He asks the man if he is in need of water He is presenting the Gospel and the dying man’s response is his confession… in need of salvation.

            You see, the man no more saved himself than looking at a glass of water will quench one’s thirst. Without the water, there is no salvation. And if the man rejected the water, he would have dammed himself. He had to ask for the water and then drink it to be saved.

            Consider another example of this: The very act of asking for forgiveness from others (or the Lord). Just as the man did not save himself by asking for water, so we are not forgiven by simply asking for forgiveness. Asking to be forgiven does not rid us of the wrongs which we have done; instead, forgiveness must be given by the one who we have wronged. Asking for salvation does not save us; instead, it is God’s grace. Still, one must ask in order to receive.