Theology is the study of God. Some religions think that God is too complicated for the simpleton or needs to go through a priest to bring it down to us dullards. Fortunately, God has made our salvation simple, but the rest of our doctrination requires a little study; to further complicate matters, the great “wisemen” of old decided that they needed to replace simple doctrines with big words so that, like any other club, you either know the words or acronyms or you are an outsider. I have felt like an outsider because I didn’t immediately grasp those words. I am going to make it easy for you so that you can learn the words as if you’ve always been a part of the Club of God.
Timothy writes: “All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instructions in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work (2 Timothy 2:16, 17). He didn’t warn us that religious leaders would attempt to complicate everything. I’ll put the words in alphabetical order so as to throw out the entire sequence of events. With God’s discernment, you’ll be able to figure it out. It is also necessary to understand that there are critical doctrines and non-critical doctrines; the critical doctrines are the ones needed to get to heaven, and the non-critical doctrines are the ones every domination argues about but doesn’t bar your way through TSA of the Pearly Gates. Think of them as carry-on baggage.
Election, as with predestination, God’s choice was for us inn eternity’s past to receive eternal life and the blessings associated with it. It is God’s foreknowledge of electing or choosing us before creation.
Glorification is the final phase of redemption when we are resurrected with a glorified body. We have been living in a corruptible body, and as Christians, we are given a glorified body at resurrection. Corruption shows on our bodies as we grow older.
Justification is the exchange of our sins for Jesus’ righteousness. We cannot hope to be justified before God without Jesus bearing our sins. Without Christ, our wages of sin is death.
Predestination is God’s design for us. God offers His hand to us and we just need to reach out and accept His plan for us. God has chosen us; we now need to choose Him back.
Propitiation is being satisfied with the blood offered by Jesus rather than the blood sacrifices that were needed to remove sin in the Old Testament. Jesus covers us with His own blood.
Reconciliation is ending the war between us and Satan and God reconciles us into Him. Jesus paid the price and we just have to step forward and receive it. It is there for the asking.
Redemption is the notion that we are born into the world of sin. We are a slave to our sins, but God has bought our salvation and we redeemed, purchased out of our sin.
Sanctification means to be set aside by God for a special purpose. We are three parts being made of body, soul, and spirit. When we are resurrected, we will have a new body that will be pure from the corruption of our old bodies. Our souls will be removed from Satan’s domain into God’s domain. The Holy Spirit will be within us and we will no longer be chained to our own spiritual corruption.
In the competition of complicating our faith, two camps arose: Calvinism and Arminianism.
Calvinism: The five points of Calvinism are represented by the acronym TULIP.
Total depravity affirms that all humans inherit sin from Adam and cannot save themselves—though this doesn’t mean humans possess no goodness whatsoever, but rather that we lack the capacity for self-redemption.
Unconditional election asserts that God selects certain people for salvation according to divine will alone, independent of any human condition or foreseen faith.
Limited atonement maintains that Christ’s atoning work applies only to the elect and does not extend to those who remain in sin.
Irresistible grace teaches that God’s electing grace cannot be resisted.
Perseverance of the saints affirms that God completes the saving work in the elect, who cannot fall away from faith. Logos AI
Arminianism: The core distinction between Arminianism and Calvinism centers on how salvation unfolds. Calvinists hold that God’s choice to save individuals causes them to repent and believe, whereas Arminians locate the ultimate reason for belief in human free will. This fundamental disagreement branches into five major doctrinal areas.
Regarding human capacity, Calvinists affirm total depravity—not that people are maximally wicked, but that sinners lack the ability to choose salvation1, while Arminians maintain that despite humanity’s sinful nature, people retain the capacity to accept salvation. On election, Calvinists believe God eternally selects the saved from his own pleasure, whereas Arminians contend that God foresees who will believe and elects those individuals accordingly.
The scope of Christ’s death divides them further: Calvinists teach particular redemption, meaning Christ’s death was specifically for the elect and secured their faith, while Arminians affirm unlimited atonement, holding that Christ died for all people and that salvation belongs to those who trust in him. Regarding grace’s power, Calvinists believe in irresistible grace—not that resistance never occurs, but that God overcomes the resistance of those he has chosen, whereas Arminians hold that God’s grace can be resisted and rendered ineffectual. Finally, Calvinists teach that all God has chosen will persevere eternally in faith1, but Arminians believe believers can forfeit their salvation.
Importantly, both traditions affirm divine sovereignty, though they understand its expression differently, and both insist that grace is absolutely necessary and that salvation comes through faith alone apart from human merit. The debate is fundamentally framed by the concept of freedom—the tension between God’s sovereign prerogative and humanity’s capacity to determine its own destiny. Logos AI
We humans, find ourselves complicating our religion. The bottom line is that God is greater than our ability to understand Him, but salvation is so simple that even in our attempts to clutter up our faith with nonessential doctrines, Jesus saves. When we are all called to heaven, maybe then our theology will become better aligned.
Many of us find ourselves as Calvinistic Arminians. We will find both in Heaven, where once and for all, we will learn how closely we came to the truth.