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Pastor John MacArthur has been preaching God’s Word for more than 50 years at Grace Community Church in Sun Valley, California. And while most of his teaching is sound, a couple ideas he promotes are rejected by many discerning followers of Christ. MacArthur's controversial teaching on Lordship Salvation has been addressed by numerous people over the years, myself included. The prominent pastor also espouses the disturbing theory of limited atonement, which states that Jesus did not die on the cross for everyone, but only for believers. During a Q&A three years ago, a woman asked Pastor MacArthur, “Did Jesus die...

When it comes to which of the five points of Calvinism that irk non-reformed Christians the most, my money is on limited atonement. The doctrine of limited atonement teaches that Christ's redeeming work on the cross secured an actual salvation for only the elect of God.If this causes you to grind your teeth in irritation, stop. I’m going to show you why you probably already believe in limited atonement and then provide what I believe to be the definitive argument that puts the issue to bed once and for all.Welcome to the clubUnless you’re a universalist, you already believe in...

The Trouble With Calvin – Pt. 3 In my last two blog posts, we examined the first two of the “five points” of Calvinism popularly known by the acronym, TULIP, which represents 1. Total Depravity 2. Unconditional Election 3. Limited Atonement 4. Irresistible Grace 5. Perseverance of the Saints (“once saved, always saved”). In this post, we will tackle the third point:Limited AtonementNo Christian that I know of would deny that some doctrines are more or less clear than others in Scripture. When it comes to the atonement of Christ, the Scriptures are most clear: Jesus Christ died on the...

[1]“For all” to “for many” Of all the changes in the new translation, two small words used by the priest at the consecration are evoking the most questions. Those two words are “for many.”Currently, the priest refers to Jesus’ blood as having redemptive value “for all”:“This is the cup of My blood, the blood of the new and everlasting covenant. It will be shed for you and for all for the forgiveness of sins…”But as of November 27, the new translation replaces the words “for all” with “for many.”Some have raised concerns that the words “for many” limit the...

The question considered in this study of the Bible is, "For whom did Christ die?" Some answer, "For all." Others answer, "Only for the elect." What sayeth the Scriptures? Those known as Arminians hold that Christ's death was for all men alike, and that it secured for everyone a measure of common grace whereby all are able to believe if they will. This Arminian view is not the subject of this investigation; only the differences among Calvinists are here being examined. Those who consider that Christ died only for the elect can for convenience be referred to as limited redemptionists....

This is a complete article from the Saviour series by Preston Eby MAN IS A FREE MORAL AGENT Just What Do You Mean ... MAN IS A FREE MORAL AGENT! ONCE I read a story about the so-called "free will of man," and it goes something like this. A certain infidel was reported to have raised his hand and dared God, if there be a God, to bring it down. Now the case was such, the story goes, that the infidel was bald, and there was a fly buzzing around which at that very moment landed on this bald pate...

Seemingly Universal Atonement and Free Will Vocabulary by Dr. Ken Matto God predestines and then elects the believer for salvation. However, there are two words which seem to indicate that the atonement of Christ was universal in nature and not just for the elect. The main one is "pas," (pas) and the second one is "hostis" (ostis) These words are used so many times in the Bible that it would be impossible to look at every verse. "All" is used a total of 5621 times in 4664 verses in the entire Bible. It is used a total of 1245 times...

We say Christ so died that he infallibly secured the salvation of a multitude that no man can number, who through Christ's death not only may be saved, but are saved, must be saved, and cannot by any possibility run the hazard of being anything but saved. ---Charles Haddon Spurgeon There was a time when I called myself a "four-point Calvinist." There are a lot of people who use that term, and, almost all the time, the one point of the five that they reject is the terrible, horrible, "L". Limited atonement. There is just something about the term that...

Calvin's Error of Limited Atonement ©by Rev. D.A. Waite, Th.D., Ph. D Table of Contents LIMITED ATONEMENT DEFINED LIMITED ATONEMENT REFUTED BY THE SCRIPTURES Isaiah 53:5-6 Refutes Limited Atonement Matthew 11:28 Refutes Limited Atonement John 1:29b Refutes Limited Atonement John 3:14 Refutes Limited Atonement John 3:18 Refutes Limited Atonement Romans 5:6 Refutes Limited Atonement 2 Corinthians 5:19 Refutes Limited Atonement 1 Timothy 2:5-6 Refutes Limited Atonement Hebrews 2:9 Refutes Limited Atonement 2 Peter 2:1 Refutes Limited Atonement 1 John 4:14 Refutes Limited Atonement 1 John 2:2 Refutes Limited Atonement LIMITED ATONEMENT REFUTED BY THE BIBLE'S TERMS FOR RECEPTION OF SALVATION...