What Love is This? Calvinism's Misrepresentation of God

by Dave Hunt

Many sincere, Bible-believing Christians are "Calvinists" only by default. Thinking that the only choice is between Calvinism (with its presumed doctrine of eternal security) and Arminianism (with its teaching that salvation can be lost), and confident of Christ's promise to keep eternally those who believe in Him, they therefore consider themselves to be Calvinists. It takes only a few simple questions to discover that most Christians are largely unaware of what John Calvin and his early followers of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries actually believed and practiced. Nor do they fully understand what most of today's leading Calvinists believe. Although there are disputed variations of the Calvinist doctrine, among its chief proponents (whom we quote extensively in context) there is general agreement on certain core beliefs. Many evangelicals who think they are Calvinists will be surprised to learn of Calvin's belief in salvation through infant baptism, and of his grossly un-Christian behavior, at times, as the "Protestant Pope" of Geneva, Switzerland. Most shocking of all, however, is Calvinism's misrepresentation of God who "is love." It is our prayer that this volume will enable readers to examine more carefully the vital issues involved and to follow God's Holy Word--not man. "The first edition of this book was greeted by fervent opposition and criticism from Calvinists. In this enlarged and revised edition I have endeavored to respond to the critics." --Dave Hunt

Genres: Theology, Christian, Nonfiction, Christianity, Religion

573 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2002

About the author

Librarian’s note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.

Dave Hunt was an American Christian apologist, speaker, radio commentator and author. He was in full-time ministry from 1973 until his death. A prolific best-selling author, international lecturer, and Bible teacher, his writings have been translated into at least 50 languages. More than four million copies of Dave’s books have been sold. For nearly a decade, Dave also co-hosted a weekly radio program, Search the Scriptures Daily, broadcast on over 400 stations in the U.S. and worldwide.

Reviews

[Clare · Rating 5 out of 5]

Blistering demolition of Calvinism - demonstrates why it is such a repulsive doctrine.

[Janice · Rating 1 out of 5]

A former pastor handed me this book to try and deter me "off my Calvinist cliff", as he called it. I read it thoughtfully and took a ton of notes. Sadly, Hunt refused to actually deal with the doctrines of grace accurately, despite his high intelligence. I suspect his emotions and staunchly held world view kept him from approaching the subject with any kind of objectivity. Right from the beginning, his objections were straw man imaginations, often presenting silly caricatures of Calvinist beliefs instead of accurate details. Thus, when he refuted each detail, he was refuting something that was essentially his own imagination. For instance, early in the book he tries to suggest that Spurgeon wasn't really a Calvinist by taking a small portion of his sermon out of context and ignoring the very next paragraph. For another, while he was more charitable regarding the Servetus controversy than most Arminian commentators, he still largely ignored many important points. A little more research on the subject would have been helpful, but would have worked against the arguments he was trying to make. It is a shame that he had his heels dug in so deep, but I rejoice in knowing that, now in heaven he is fully celebrating God's sovereignty.

Dr. James White co-authored "Debating Calvinism" with Dr. Hunt, which is a more balanced approach. For any who really want to understand Calvinism, I highly recommend R.C. Sproul's "Chosen by God", and for deeper consideration, Sam Storms' "Chosen for Life".

[Caspar Bonfig · Rating 5 out of 5]

Dave Hunt masterfully shows why Calvinism is heresy and misrepresents God. A must read for all Christians.

[Steve Presswood · Rating 4 out of 5]

The history of Calvin has been varnished so as to improve the credibility of the doctrines which now bear his name. Hunt has done the work to research his history and presents the unvarnished Calvin and it's not pretty. His behavior alone would call into question anything he has to say about Christianity but the doctrines themselves are also an ugly portrayal of a truly loving God. Christians often avoid the doctrines that are hard, this (predestination, Calvinism, Reformed theology) being one of them, in favor of the easier "work" of church attendance and fellowship. I have no doubt that this is one of Satan's ploys to keep Christians ineffective. What we believe affects what we do. If you've bought the line that says, "All the real scholars are Calvinists," or, "You're either a Calvinist or an Arminian," do yourself a favor and read this book. The careful treatment of the points of Calvinism (TULIP) are fair and balanced and should give you pause. I side with Hunt. "Calvinism's" God is not a God of love but of capricious "grace" for some and capricious wrath for the rest. Further, and more importantly, the God portrayed by the doctrines of Calvinism is not the God portrayed in the Bible.

[Brandon Vaughan · Rating 2 out of 5]

Let me preface this review by saying I am not a Hyper-Calvinist. That being said, while I believe Dr. Hunt and the Berean Call have done some great things for the cause of Christ, this book isn’t one of them. I have never read another theology book that so grossly misrepresents the other side as this one does. And although I share many of Dr. Hunts sentiments about the full blown implications of Hyper-Calvinism, this book reads more like a triggered rant than a scholarly work. He spent over 100 pages trying to assassinate the character of Augustine and Calvin before he even got to the doctrines themselves. I have no problem exposing flaws but it’s obvious that he was trying to poison the well. The same could be done with Mark and Peter. Also, He cherry picks quotes from several Calvinist authors of which I have read and takes them out of context to try to prove his point. He even attempted to make Spurgeon look like he really wasn’t a Calvinist. Also, the straw men are too many to count. For example, on page 370 he attempts to explain how Calvinists believe the elect can be saved without the Gospel and even without faith bc of predestination. I’ve never met a Calvinist that believes that. Also in his chapter on perseverance of the Saints he claims that Calvinists are trusting a works based salvation for assurance. That’s ridiculous. Lastly, the final two chapters are nothing but a sappy fictitious story about a couple named Al and Jane whose faith was destroyed by reading books by Calvinist authors. If u must read this book please don’t let it be the only one that you read on the subject.

[Jacqueline · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have a lot of respect for Dave Hunt, a Christian apologist/theologian. This book is impeccably researched and written in a very straightforward, matter-of-fact tone, yet he does not hold back in pointing out inconsistencies in Calvinist/Augustinian doctrine when compared to Scripture. There is a lot of useful and interesting historical context and I am learning a lot as I read - including important events in the history of the Christian/Orthodox/Catholic church, how other religions have come into play, the Protestant Reformation, and comparisons of different translations and interpretations of the Bible.

[Charles · Rating 1 out of 5]

A better subtitle would be "Dave Hunt's Misrepresentation of Calvinism." When I read this I was looking for a good, scholarly Arminian tome that would provide some good counter arguments to a reformed soteriology. This is not that book, as it's arguments are very repetitive and many straw men are burned to death.

[Bill Beatty · Rating 5 out of 5]

If I could I'd give it six stars. I always knew Calvinism had serious flaws, but until I read this book, I didn't know just how insidious it was. The late brother Hunt, has once again done discerning believers a great favor.

[Nikolas Larum · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a masterful exposition of Scripture regarding the love of God and the ways in which the Calvinist TULIP stands in contradiction to it. With all due respect to my Reformed brethren, this book is worth your honest investigation. You may find it liberating.

[Vince Dorn · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a fantastic book detailing the heresy of Calvinism, and contrasting that with what the Bible says. It is VERY thorough, often repetitive, but does a great job covering every angle of the Calvinist belief system. I highly recommend it.

[Nathan · Rating 1 out of 5]

Basically, it's Dave Hunt's misrepresentation of Calvinism.

[Mary · Rating 4 out of 5]

This may be more than a beginner would want to swallow, but this is a well researched and important book on the subject of human will. The aim of the author is to illuminate the rigid systems of some branches of Christian theology that stress God’s sovereignty in such a way that human choice is effectively denied and drained of any meaning. Hunt emphasizes, using much Scripture, that choice is necessary for real heart change, and that this is not “giving man the upper hand,” as some fear, but rather is a hallmark of God’s patient love.

[Adam Maloney · Rating 5 out of 5]

A must read if you have questions about Calvinism.

A very good book for anyone who wants to know the truth about Calvinism. It's thorough and informative. I will be recommending this book to many in the future.

[youMUSTbebornagain john 3.16-21 · Rating 5 out of 5]

MUST read for anyone who calls themself a Christian.

[Leslie Fanchon · Rating 5 out of 5]

My heart lept for joy reading this book as it confirmed so much of the disturbing things about God I'd heard listening to the followers of John Calvin. It was pretty wordy and so I chose to read it 'devotionally' -- a little bit at a time.
I recall hearing the late Dave Hunt speak years ago, and didn't find him a very engaging speaker. This book however, is thoroughly documented and he took great care to be accurate and fair when quoting from the different 'levels' of Calvinistic adherents.
Having been a Mormon for a short time before coming to faith in Christ, I found several parallels between the LDS and Calvinism:
* Both hold one man in high esteem.
* Both have another book.
* Both have a different God from the one I've come to know in the Bible.
* Both teach another gospel.
* Both esteem and cling to the words of their current leaders.
* Both tend to pluck scriptures out of context to support their theology.
* They each have their own lingo or jargon.
* They each seem to talk more of their religion than they do the Lord or the Word of God.

THIS IS THE GOOD NEWS that the Apostle Paul received from the Lord Jesus Christ:
"I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures..." - 1 Corinthians 15:3-4

THIS IS THE GOOD NEWS according to the Apostle John who walked with Jesus:
"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made... He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, and the world did not know Him. He came to His own, and His own did not receive Him. But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name: who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God." - John 1:1-3, 10-14


14 And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.

[John · Rating 3 out of 5]

If you're looking for the most detailed refutation of Calivinism you can possibly find, then this book should fit the bill nicely. If, however, like me, you don't find all that predestination stuff even remotely convincing to begin with, then reading this book in its entirety amounts to nothing less than extreme overkill. The topic is interesting, but Hunt is a fairly lackluster writer and thorough almost to a fault. Hunt doesn't just beat a dead horse: he beats it, skins it, smokes it, chews it up, spits it out, buries it, digs it back up, stomps on it, brings it back to life, and beats it again for good measure. After reading the first two hundred pages, I said, "You know, Dave, I think I get the point," and then I put the book back on the shelf.

[Jesse Broussard · Rating 1 out of 5]

Apparently I believe that God damns even those that desperately love Him but don't know how to be saved. That's odd. Hunt's criticisms of beliefs are all true, but no Calvinist that I've met holds to the beliefs. So, I agreed with the entire book, save where he blithely asserts what we believe. I had hoped for better.

[Eladio]

I am currently reading this book at a snails pace because there is so much info to devour, but it is an excellent book when it comes to refuting the heresy of Calvinism. I wish they had it on the kindle because it is over 500 pages!

[Shantel · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have to admit, I wouldn't have read this book if it was a requirement for completing Bible Institute. That being said, I learned a lot about Calvinism and it's false teachings.

I would recommend reading the more condensed version because this version tended to repeat itself a lot.

[Judith Walker · Rating 5 out of 5]

dave hunt was a true berean..

[Jacob O'connor]

I've been running in Reformed circles for a few years now.  The name "Dave Hunt" has come up a few times.  Never in flattering terms.  Funny, but listening to Calvinists rail against him, I would reflect fondly on a "Dave Hunt" I read as a younger man.  Hunt was a curmudgeonly old Christian who loved eschatology and wrote hit pieces against the Catholics and Muslims.  Surely not the same guy.  Well...same guy!  I recognized Hunt's bald dome on the back cover immediately!  Small world.  


Calvinists are universally annoyed with Hunt.  I can see why.  In "What love Is This", Hunt uses the same skewering tactics as he did against the Catholics.  It's fun reading, but it won't change any minds.  Ultimately, I found What Love to be a mixed bag.  It's often unfair, sometimes fallacious, but other times thought-provoking.  If my reformed brothers can look past the crabby tone, Hunt raises some legitimate concerns.  



Notes:


Personal note: Calvinists are universally annoyed with Hunt. Is he fair? Does he accurately represent calvinism? 


"It is not possible to be a Calvinist and hold logically and consistently to less than all five points" (28)


The misrepresentation Hunt is concerned with is reprobation (46)


Personal note: Entire chapters devoted to character assassinations of Calvin and Augustine. No wonder Calvinists complain Hunt is stacking the deck 


"isn't Calvinism guilty of both absurdity and Injustice by declaring man to be incapable of repentance and faith and then condemning him for failing to repent and believe? (114)


"Man's problem is not inability but unwillingness" (120) 


Hunt's proof passages for the ordo salutis (124)


"presented in gospel. He that believeth...shall be saved.... (Mark 16:16).Then cometh the devil, and taketh away the word out of their

hearts, lest they should believe and be saved.... (Luke 8:12) Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved...(Acts 16:31)

. I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believet....(Romans 1:16) Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel...by which also ye are saved...unless ye have believed in vain (1 Corinthians 15:1-2). For by grace are ye saved through faith.... Ephesians 2:8)...hem which should hereafter believe on him to life everlasting (I Timothy 1:16) (124)


"Can God sincerely offer salvation to those for whom Christ did not die and whom he predestined to eternal torment?" (129)


Personal note: What Love is a mixed bag of uncharitable characterizations while pointing out valid concerns with Calvinism


"Not showing Mercy to all when all are equally guilty is a perversion of Justice. Mercy can only be shown to the guilty on a righteous basis; and if not, then justice has been corrupted" (145)


Personal note: Traditionalists should press the free will point. I listened to a debate between James White and Hunt while reading this. White won the day, but the deck was stacked against Hunt (he never should have agreed to the debate under those terms). White used an analogy. In it he said that God owes no one rescue. The ones he does rescue are deserving of death. I agree, but Calvinists are vulnerable here. Problem is "Compatiblist" freedom.  They hold that God decrees the motivation from which man acts. Personal note: Analogy on compatiblism. My daughter loves when I push her on the swing set. I push, and she enjoys. She concurs with the force of my push, and we are in alignment with her will. But there is no sense in which she is in control. No matter how simpatico our wills, I am in charge. If something goes wrong, and she falls, everyone would rightly blame me. 


"No man can be held accountable for failing to do what is impossible for him to do." (165)


"or numia acton linj choices between good and evil. Each of us must come to his own conclusion based upon Scripture 

What Scripture Says About Free Will The words "will," "free-will," "willing," "freewill," "free will," along with related words such as "voluntary," "choose," etc., are found nearly 4,000 times in Scripture. The requirement of willing obedience from the heart is

a theme that runs all through the Bible: "If ye be willing and obedient (Isaiah 1:19), "If any man will do his [God's] will..." (John 7:17), "If thou believest with all thine heart" (Acts 8:37), eto God wants our hearts, and the very concept of "heart" used through out Scripture is meaningless without free will. That "the king's heart is in the hand of the Lord, as the rivers of water: he turneth it whithersoever he will" (Proverbs 21:1) does not say that the king has no choice as Calvinisrm insists. At the least, this is Solomon's declaration of submission as Israel's King to God; and at the most, it says that God can turn any king's heart when He so desires. But it does not declare that everything any king thinks, speaks, and does is according to God's will and by His pre-ordination. That proposition, again, would make God the author of evil.  The phrase, "freewill offering" is found nine.times (Leviticus 22:21 3: Numbers T5:3; Deuteronomy 16:10; 23:23; Ezra 1:4; 3:5; 7:16

8:28), and "freewill offerings" is found seven times (Leviticus 22:18 8; Numbers 29:39; Deuteronomy 12:6, 17; 2 Chronicles 31:14, Psalm

119:108). Those numbers, however, do not tell the full story. There were countless freewill offerings as the following indicates: "And Kore the son Imnah the Levite... was over the freewill offerings of God, to distrib- he oblations of the LORD, and the most holy things (2 Chronicles

31:14). The phrase “willingly offered" is found five times, such as "the People willingly offered themselves" Judges 5:2). Both phrases are even said together: "willingly offered a freewill offering unto the LORD (Ezra 3:5), Could the fact that gave why-be stated more clearly?

od gave man free will-and a major reason


Personal note: does God have two wills, a will of decree and a will of desire? If God is sovereign, then why can't he have what he desires? What is restraining him so that he can't decree what he desires? (254)  "odd, indeed, considering the emphasis Calvinists put on sovereignty, that God doesn't sovereignly fulfill his own desire " (299)


Personal note: Calvinists will be annoyed at the lack of exegesis. I'm about halfway through the book, and Hunt doesn't break down many passages 


"God is not in any way obligated to provide salvation for anyone" (258). Personal note: Calvinists rightly point out that if God allowed everyone to die in their sins, that would be perfectly just. I agree. The problem is the abundance of scripture that seems to indicate God's desire to save everyone. Limiting atonement doesn't call God's justice into question so much as His integrity. 


"Surely the 'all' in 'all we like sheep have gone astray' must be the same as the 'all' in 'for the Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all' Isaiah 53:6 (261)


Spiritually dead corpse can not accept Christ. True. Neither can it reject Him (278)


Personal note: I don't think Hunt's interpretation of predestination as simply referring to concomitant blessings goes through (287)


The sinner's acceptance of Christ no more gives the blood of Christ saving power then the son's acceptance of the one million would give it monetary value (297)


"A merchant advertises, 'Giant sale! All merchandise half price.' Eager customers, however, discover that certain items are excluded from the sale. When they complain that the ad read 'all merchandise', the merchant says, ' I didn't mean all without exception, but all without distinction. All kinds of products are indeed on sale, but not every item of every kind.'"


"Preterition": passing over The non elect (331)


A take on the "strengthening" argument. Pharaoh hardened his heart, and then God hardened his heart. The former meaning that God 'strengthened" it so that pharaoh would have the courage to carry out his plans (334)


"If pharaoh was totally depraved, why did God have to harden his heart?" (335)


Great point against White's interpretation of "all men". Acts 22:15. Ananias had in view "all kinds of men"? Leads to absurdity. 


Hunt misunderstands the Calvinist understanding of the gospel. For the Calvinist, monergistic regeneration of the elect prior to faith IS the gospel 


Personal note: At least two things going on. (1) Hunt is being uncharitable. He's not dealing with the best reformed arguments cast in the best light. (2) he may be revealing some blind spots. We get so used to our interpretations that we stop challenging them


Hunt stumbles in his exegesis of John 6 (420)


Genetic fallacy. Even if Hunt succeeds in defaming Calvin, it doesn't advance the discussion (440)


Book could have been shorter and tighter with better editing. Hunt repeats himself, circles back to the same topic over and over, arguments are unfocused


Good section on persuasion (475)

[Jeremy Wilson · Rating 1 out of 5]

Hunt fails to grasp the basic understanding of the view of Calvinism. The book open with ad hom arguments that can be summarised with "John Calvin was bad, so he must be wrong". He continues to describe the Calvinist view using bad faith arguments. He frequently states that the concept of TULIP is nowhere in the Bible, but doesn't attempt to debate verses that Calvinists use to back up their view. For example, in the chapter titled "Total Depravity", Hunt asserts that James White doesn't cite scripture to back up the point that "no man can come to Christ except the Father draw him". Either Hunt is acting in bad faith or simply hasn't read John 6, since that it's almost a word for word reading of John 6:44 & 65. His theological and philosophical approach to the arguments are poor, and show extremely poor logic. His emotional arguments can be disproven by Romans 8-9.

[Michael Kenan Baldwin · Rating 1 out of 5]

Fallacies abound, from straw man to poisoning the well.
Embarrassingly, I found this thoroughly convincing when i was a teenager, but I have since come to see how deceptive his rhetoric is. Avoid this like the plague.

[Brandon · Rating 1 out of 5]

half-truthed Propaganda. Check out the endorsements for a good laugh.

[J. Brandon · Rating 1 out of 5]

One of the worst refutations (?!?) that I have read. I give one star because I cannot give less.

[Joshua Foote · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great anti Calvinism book

this book even though very long is a great treatise on the evils of predestination and the theology it creates

[Some Christian Lady · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent analysis of Calvinism, which explains in depth why the Bible is not in agreement with it.

[Jonathan Kirby · Rating 5 out of 5]

I would give this book 10 stars, if I could. I’ve interacted with the Calvinists in America during my visits to that country. They call themselves Reformed and act as if they have the sole monopoly of the truth. They’ve infiltrated the Baptist churches, and call themselves Reformed Baptists. What struck me about these Reformed/Calvinists was their total absence of Life (not just Love)! They prided themselves on their suffocating doctrines.

Their pernicious doctrines have spread all around the world. TULIP is a travesty of God’s truth. Total Depravity=Total Inability? So why does God command people everywhere to repent, when they can’t repent? Even worse, Calvinists call themselves the elect, those chosen beforehand for salvation; they believe the Atonement was done only for them. What about ‘God so loved the world’? What about 1 John 2:2? And 1 Tim 2:4? 2 Pet 3:9? 2 Cor 5:14, 15? Ezek 18:23, 32?

And I’ve spoken to poor fellows who believe they are ‘predestined to go to heaven’, even when, clearly, they are not born again! Wow!

Dave Hunt on Arminius. How these Calvinists have vilified the poor man! (And I know nothing about Arminianism, which slur Calvinists keep throwing at me on social networking sites.)
Westminister Confession of Faith. Never knew it was so Calvinistic!
Calvin’s total reliance on Augustine, rather than reliance on God’s Word.
Calvin’s murderous treatment of Servetus. Unforgivable.
Spurgeon. His unnecessary comments on Calvinism, which have fuelled controversy and confusion.
Calvin, the dictator ruling Geneva. In what way was he better than the Antichrist Pope?

Calvinism is a virus that has corrupted Evangelical Christianity.
Can God’s Word be encapsulated into a five-point doctrine called TULIP? What temerity!
How many Christians are choked to spiritual death by HyperCalvinism!
Who are Sproul, Piper, Packer, James White, MacArthur? More like the five lords of the Philistines! Calvinism is Philistinism! Remember Genesis 26; the Philistines choked the wells of Abraham with earth (human reasoning, Greek philosophy, intellectual soulishness rather than true spirituality). (MacArthur is a better man, just straitjacketed by Calvinism.)

The fact that these Calvinist Philistines have launched a concerted attack on Dave Hunt shows that they are utterly blind to the truth, and will stop at nothing to defend their cultish doctrines. Don’t you see, Calvinists worship Calvin and not Christ!

I still have to read many more chapters of this excellent book. But the Calvinist fiends have brought down the rating to 3.7, by their onslaught against this very revealing book. Shows how the whole Christian world is deceived. Christians don’t realize that Calvinism is the antithesis of the Bible.

P.S. There’s nothing to admire in Augustine either.
P.P.S. To set your path right, I suggest you read The Pilgrim Church by EH Broadbent. The line of the true church existed even before the Reformation.

[Julie Ruch · Rating 2 out of 5]

Needs a good editor

This is not a review of theological conclusions, it is simply a review of the presentation format.

After reading How Close Are We? by Dave Hunt, I was very much looking forward to another book by this author. I found the first book an exciting read, its points easily accessible and memorable.

This book, however, felt like it was written by a different author, and, more than anything, it begs the attention of a good editor. I found it to be almost impossible to follow, due to the format.

Hunt quotes extensively from other sources, who are often quoting other sources themselves. From paragraph to paragraph, it is difficult to discern who is speaking. Meaning that after reading halfway through a page, I had to go back and start over again. Again and again.

I am a voracious reader, rarely having trouble understanding any level of intellectual argument. And I was an honors student in college, receiving top marks in the honors liberal arts classes. I don't say this to brag, but to make the point that if this book was over my head, it may be inaccessible to many other readers.

I noticed, from the book listing at the end of this book, that Hunt has at least two other books out on this topic. I am going to try one of them next, hoping to get a better grasp of his argument.

[Mark Reeder · Rating 5 out of 5]

I knew there were a lot of problems with Calvinism. I've actually been online with people who claimed that the "whosoever" in John 3:16 wasn't in the original Greek (which then raised two questions of its own: why isn't the word italicized in the KJV, and why does every English translation -- including, interestingly enough, the Jehovah's Witness version -- include the word?)

What I didn't realize until reading the book was just HOW bad it was. It is nothing short of a total perversion of the Bible, written by a humanist-trained lawyer who supposedly left Catholicism, yet incorporated much of its beliefs into his writings (and somehow stayed on a parish payroll after having two family members kicked out wrongly, and then for an entire year after "leaving" the church). It requires an understanding of the Bible previously unknown for 1500 years (and which the apostles apparently didn't learn from Jesus either) and a theological degree to fully comprehend (so much for the simplicity of belief).

Truthfully, given that Calvin believed his Catholic infant baptism was the basis of his salvation, I can't see how those who support believer's baptism could ever think his theology is sound. Given that the Bible teaches how the "natural man" cannot truly understand spiritual matters (I Corinthians 2:14), I would argue that Calvin may be "as lost as a goose" and that right there should junk his entire theology as heresy.

Of all the books I've written I recommend this one in my top three.