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Wednesday, December 12, 2018

Are Arminians “Saved,” reprise

In 2006 I created a brief post, Are Arminians “Saved”?. It included a link to a website called Outside the Camp. Apparently that link is not good any longer. For that reason, I am posting some material from an article on that site – “Three Reasons Why Arminians are not Saved,” by Christopher Adams. This is a good example of the flavor once available on “Outside the Camp.”
One of the most important issues faced by those who profess to believe the doctrines of grace (commonly called “Calvinism”) is how to relate to professing Christians who reject the doctrines of grace. Should they be approached as brothers in Christ? Should we take their “conversion experience” at face value? In answering these questions, the writer would like to submit the following “Three Reasons Why Arminians Are Not Saved.”
Reason Number One: Arminians are not saved because they worship an idol. By an idol, I mean “a god who cannot save.”...Arminians have fashioned a god in their own image. They are no more saved than the Jews who had done exactly the same thing.
Reason Number Two: Arminians are not saved because they do not believe the truth. This is related to the previous reason but has more to do with the evidence of a person’s salvation.
Any Calvinist who defends the salvation of Arminians must explain 2 Thessalonians 2:12, which says, “That they all might be damned who believe not the truth...”...Again, a saved sinner may not necessarily use all the same words that I have used here, but he will never believe the opposite of these doctrines, nor will he ever oppose them when confronted with them (1 Cor 2:12).
Reason Number Three: Arminians are not saved because they hate the truth. This reason also has more to do with the evidence of a person’s salvation...
The very fact that there is any debate over this issue indicates that the majority of professing Calvinist churches are not true churches at all.
The fact that Arminians are unsaved also leads us to a few conclusions:
1. We must not fellowship with Arminians...2. We must treat them as unsaved...3. We must be willing to exercise church discipline on those who turn out to be Arminians or consider Arminians to be their brothers in Christ...
These “Outside the Camp” people even come to the conclusion that “Calvinists” who think “Arminians” are saved, are not themselves children of God!

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