All Articles
Each doctrine begins with its cornerstone study, followed by focused passage studies and essays. The complete recommended order is available without JavaScript; the controls below narrow or reorder what is already on the page.
7 studies shown
Total Depravity
Does Scripture teach that fallen humanity is incapable of any positive response to God, or does spiritual death describe alienation, corruption, and condemnation rather than the complete destruction of the ability to hear and respond to God's gracious call?
Unconditional Election
Is election individual and unconditional — God choosing specific persons — or is it corporate, with God choosing a people "in Christ" and individuals participating through faith?
Limited Atonement
Did Christ die for the sins of all humanity, or did He bear the punishment due for the sins of the elect alone? Does universal provision entail universal salvation?
Irresistible Grace
Does God give selected individuals an inward saving call that necessarily changes their desires and infallibly produces faith, or does God graciously call, reveal, convict, and enable people in a manner they may still resist?
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Start here: cornerstone study
John 6:44: What Does It Mean for the Father to Draw People to Christ?
John 6 makes coming to Christ depend on the Father’s drawing. The disputed issue is whether this drawing is effectual regeneration or grace operating through teaching and learning. -
Acts 7:51: What Does It Mean to Resist the Holy Spirit?
The interpretive hinge is whether Acts 7 itself distinguishes the resisted prophetic call from a second inward call that necessarily succeeds. -
Luke 7:30: What Does It Mean to Reject God’s Purpose?
Luke 7:30 says that the Pharisees and experts in the law rejected God’s purpose for themselves by refusing John’s baptism. -
John 12:32–40: Drawing, Unbelief, and Judicial Hardening
John 12:32–40 joins Jesus’ drawing of all people with persistent unbelief and Isaiah’s language of judicial hardening. -
Ezekiel 36:26–27: What Does God Promise in the New Heart Passage?
Ezekiel 36:26–27 is one of the most powerful Old Testament promises of divine renewal. -
Philippians 2:12–13 and Monergism: What Does It Mean to Work Out Salvation?
Philippians 2:12–13 is one of the most frequently cited passages in debates about divine sovereignty and human responsibility. -
Matthew 23:37: Did Jesus Want to Gather People Who Refused Him?
Matthew 23:37 records Jesus lamenting over Jerusalem: He often wanted to gather her children as a hen gathers chicks under her wings, but they were not willing.
Perseverance of the Saints
Does Scripture teach that God guarantees every genuine believer will continue in faith to the end, or do its warning passages describe a real possibility of final apostasy? Does assurance rest on Christ alone, or must it include evidence of perseverance?
Terminology
How should contested Calvinism terms and labels be used with enough precision to avoid caricature?