The Lighthearted Calvinist

English teachers everywhere are fanning themselves having read that title, eh?

Our friends of a different theological bent, known in the vernacular as the “wrong” bent, are fond of using the term “free will” whenever any discussion comes up concerning predestination, election, God’s omniscience, whether the Lions should draft Suh and so on.  One objection to the Calvinist teaching is that if God intervenes to change someone’s will to incline it in such a manner that the person necessarily loves God and could not choose otherwise, then that love for God is not real.

Our friends would most likely say that for love to be real, the person doing the loving has to have the same ability to love as to not love.  That, they say, is what makes the the preaching of the Gospel a true, valid, “well-meant offer”. (One could (and should, in fact) make the point that such is no “offer” at all, but a command to be obeyed with dire consequences for disobedience, which a mere “offer” does not entail.)  This “offer” is given to people (mankind) who has the equal ability to say “Yes” or “NO,” with no inclination one way or the other in making their choice beforehand.  Also, subsequent to saying “Yes,” the person must then still have the ability to love or to not love – if not, then that love is not a true love but a forced, compulsive love, which our friends would say is no love at all.

The objection our friends bring forth to the Calvinist doctrine on is that the Calvinist says that the Spirit of God will enable the saint to keep on loving God and that this work of the Spirit will necessarily continue throughout the entirety of the life of the elect.  Such love, they say, is not true love because there isn’t a possibility for the saint to decide to not love God.

Which brings us to the dilemma such a view engenders: if that’s the case, is God’s love for His people true love?  God cannot decide to not love His people, can He?  If so, how can His love be true love if He can’t decide to not love them?  How about this dilemma: upon glorification, the saints will be unable to not love God.  All they will do is love God without the taint of sin that affects their love in this present life?  Is the love of the glorified saint in the New Jerusalem true love for his God even though he can’t choose to not love his God?

Just asking.