Turn to 1 Timothy if you would, chapter two. 1 Timothy chapter two and verse number one. And I trust you'll pray that God will speak to me and speak to you. And this message tonight is just an introduction really to a series I feel led to bring. 1 Timothy chapter two. It is the responsibility of a pastor to lead, to feed, and to protect. Those are the responsibilities of a shepherd, and the word pastor and shepherd are the same Greek word, poimen. So tonight I want to do some warning. I want to do some protecting. I want to do some exposing of some errors that are very prevalent in our churches today. And if you've studied church history, you know there've always been waves of error that the church had to face. And for many years, it's been the doctrine of the Bible itself. It's been under attack for many years. There are times, for example, when the doctrine of the deity of Christ is attacked, or the doctrine of the Trinity, and various other doctrines. But the doctrine that we discussed tonight is growing by leaps and bounds sadly and it's a very false and dangerous doctrine. And we'll put it to the test of scripture as we should all teachings. What does the Bible say? That's what matters. First Timothy two. Verse one, I exhort therefore that first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks be made for all men, for kings and for all that are in authority that we may lead a quiet and peaceful life in all godliness and honesty. For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who will have all men to be saved and to come into the knowledge of the truth. For there's one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself a ransom for all to be testified in due time. Notice the Bible says in verse four, please, who will have all men to be saved. Then verse six says, who gave himself a ransom for all. I'm entitling this series of messages, Yes, Jesus Loves Me. Yes, Jesus loves me. I don't know how many messages there'll be, but that's the title for the whole series. Did God predestinate millions of people before they were ever born to spend eternity in hell? with no choice whatsoever on their part? I wanna repeat the question. It's the foundation of everything I'm gonna say. Did God actually determine beforehand that millions of people, most people by far, who've ever lived, are living or ever will live, did God determine ahead of time, without any choice on their part, that they would spend eternity in hell? Our minds actually revolt at such an idea. But there's a group of people who think so, and I'm gonna call them Calvinist. There are other names I could use, fatalist, Augustinians, other names, but I'll just use the word Calvinist. This is a very diverse group. It represents a number of denominations. and I'll probably mention some in the days to come. But they take their name from a man named John Calvin. John Calvin, who as we shall see, was very unchristian, both in his behavior and in his doctrine. Now I hope you'll listen on purpose tonight. Maybe you can help somebody. I'll give many personal illustrations and things you've never heard, things the devil don't want you to know. but this movement is taking over this country. It is literally taking over, not just far away, but there'll be people who hear this message on the radio who are personally affected in their own churches. So it is important. John Calvin was a Roman Catholic for years, and like 99% of all Protestants, he never fully left the many false doctrines of the Roman Catholic Church. He was a Roman Catholic. He'd only left the church for two years when he wrote his famous institutes, which are really foundational to Calvinism. He was a good Catholic. In fact, he could have been the Pope. He was invited to be a Cardinal after he left the church. So bear in mind that he was a Roman Catholic for many years. Calvinism is perhaps the fastest growing religious era in our day. It's not just dangerous, it's deadly, lethal to all it touches. At its heart, Calvinism is fatalism. It's like Islam. Islam and Catholicism and Calvinism all have a lot in common. Muhammad, who started Islam, was a student of Augustine, who was John Calvin, I'm telling you a whole lot of, I'm just introducing the subject tonight, then we'll go back later and look a bit more slowly. Maybe you're surprised tonight that Islam has a lot in common with Calvinism, but indeed they do. The Quran says that some are predestinated to hell by God's irrevocable decree. with no choice on their part. It says that in the Quran, Muhammad got that from Augustine and John Calvin also got it from Augustine. So it's fatalistic. In other words, Calvinism says that God determines everything that's gonna happen beforehand and that it's all his will, whether it's good or evil. So if that's true, if God determines everything that happens, then we have no free will, we have no ability to choose ourselves. Calvinism denies man's free will. As incredible as that seems and therefore blames God for everything that happens, including sin. You heard me right. I think you'll come to a conclusion somewhere along the line that their God and our God are two different people. They even blame God for the sin of Adam. Of course, in Mormonism, Adam was God. Ridiculous, isn't it? Well, Calvinism insists that God's picked out a few to be saved, not many, a few, a precious few, and they can't say no, and the rest of the people can't say yes. The errors of Calvinism are being spread today by so-called study Bibles. The Geneva study Bible, the New Geneva rather. And the MacArthur study Bible promoting Calvinism. Saying that God picked out a few to save and he hates everybody else and he wouldn't save them if they asked him to a million times because he hates them. That's the God of Calvinism. I'm quoting the study Bible say that Calvinism is quote, pure Christianity, unquote. John Piper, very famous Calvinist of our day says that Calvinism is the biblical gospel. Quote, cherished for centuries. That's the gospel. That's the gospel? That God hates just about everybody, but he's gonna pick out a few and they don't even have a choice? He saves them before they can even believe? That's the gospel? That's what they say. He uses the letters T-U-L-I-P, TULIP, to summarize their teachings. It's not a doctrine, it's a whole system. John Piper's book recently on sale called Five Points, The Five Points of Calvinism, T-U-L-I-P. He's one of the, I'm reading here from the advertisement for John Piper's book, Five Points, one of the Christian leaders at the forefront of this movement. In this book, John Piper offers his explanation in defense of Calvinism. So I'm quoting them, I'm not making up anything, and they're not ashamed of what they believe as we shall see. Incredibly, if you were to talk to these people, and I've talked to thousands of them personally, thousands. They call their system of theology the doctrines of grace. Well, I just pause to say there's not much grace in that. That's a code phrase, by the way, doctrines of grace. I don't preach Calvinism. I believe that every man makes his own choice. I believe if you go to hell, it's your own fault, But according to them, I'm not preaching the gospel. According to them, I'm not even a Christian. And according to them, neither are you. If you say I heard the gospel, I believed and I got saved, you're not a Christian. That's the wrong order to them. That's not how it happens. So we're not talking about people who are a little bit different. We're talking about major doctrinal differences here. They're wrong on the who of salvation, the when, how, where, and the why. We're talking about an entirely different gospel tonight. They say that Calvinism is Christianity. Well, if you're not a Calvinist, then you're not a Christian. And as one of them said to a preacher friend of mine, maybe you'll get it one day. But the Bible is very plain that you believe the gospel and then you get saved. Ephesians 1.13 tells us that you receive the spirit of God after you believe, after the word is in there, after you believe, not before. But they don't believe that. I'll tell you more about that in a moment. So we're gonna put Calvinism to the test and I'm gonna get some hate mail and you pray for me and the devil is gonna fight because if Calvinism gets you, you're a worthless Christian from then on. I just wanna leave you with one truth tonight about Calvinism. One way I know it's false, number one, it is a new doctrine. And anything that's new is not true. If they've come up with it since the Bible was written, it's not true. And they admit that, they have to admit that. One of their own historians, Bishop Davinot, who was there at their famous council of Dort, said that no one had ever even dreamed. That's the word he used. No one had ever even dreamed of such teachings as this for the first 300 years of church history. So I'm not saying their doctrines are new. They're admitting that they're new. They're not in the Bible. They're made famous in the fourth century. Yes, the fourth century by Augustine. who was the Bishop of Hippo in North Africa in the fifth century and died 429 AD. Augustine, you'll hear his name a lot. He's their hero. You take him away, the whole thing's gone. Take away Augustine, also you wouldn't have a Roman Catholic Church either. He's one of the fathers of the Roman Catholic Church. They have his feast day sometime in August, very close now. And you'll hear me say a lot about him. Augustine taught many eras and heresies. All the Catholic church teaches, worshiping Mary, praying to Mary, purgatory, confessing to a priest, the mass, et cetera. Augustine taught all that. But a thousand years later, here comes a man named John Calvin who quotes Augustine as his highest authority and 400 times. In his institutes, Mr. Calvin says, it must be true, that's what Augustine said. So we're talking about people here who started their own religion. We're talking about new ideas and new teachings. And if it's new, it's not true. In Calvinism, you're saved by unconditional election. That means God picks you and you can't say no and there's no faith required on your part and no understanding whatsoever. In fact, in Calvinism, you're sovereignly regenerated before you believe. You get saved before you believe. Sounds mighty new to me. Here's one of their writers. I'm not making this up. He's praising Augustine. Augustine was one of the greatest theologians of the early church. Sure he was. Some have the idea that they were born again because they repented and believed in Christ. Not so. Repentance and faith are the result of the new birth. You get saved and then you repent and believe, he says. Is that backwards? That's backwards. He says it again on, that's page 24, McNeil's book, 107. He says, faith and repentance come as the result of the new birth. One could not believe in Christ if he were not first born again. Calvinism says, God picks you out. God saves you. You have nothing to do with it. It might happen in your sleep. and after God sovereignly regenerates you, after you get saved, then you repent and believe the gospel. None of them deny that. I say tonight, that's heresy. That is a lie. I was talking to Calvinist one day, I remember going to his home. And reading, he said he didn't believe. He said, why are you at my home? I said, I'm inviting you to church, inviting you to Jesus. He said, are you trying to steal God's glory? I said, what are you talking about? He said, nobody should ever witness to anybody else. God's done decided who's gonna get saved. No need for any preaching, no need for any praying. I said, is that right? He said, that's right. He said, if God wants to save you, he will, and you can't stop it, and if he hadn't picked you, you can't be saved. I said, are you a Christian? He said, yeah, one day, he said, I was walking down to the mailbox, and he said, I saw some people in the car driving to church, and he said, just right then, God sovereignly regenerated me while I was walking to the mailbox. Wasn't even thinking about God. And he died with that profession. I think of another Calvinist I was talking to one day. Are you a Christian? Yes. Well, tell me about it. He said, well, one day I was arguing with my wife. He said, and for just a split second, I didn't want to look at the angry look on her face. I looked down at the carpet and just right there, just out of the blue, God sovereignly regenerated me and saved me right there while I was arguing with my wife. I said, my soul. but that's what they believe, that's what they have to believe. And if you said to them, I'm a Christian because I heard the gospel and the spirit of God drew me and I came to an old-fashioned altar and asked Jesus to save me, they'd say, you're not a Christian. So you see tonight, I'm talking about a new doctrine. You say, how many people believe this? Billions, billions in our world tonight. Probably half the population of the world. It's an invention of men. It's a new doctrine, they admit it. So you mean God forces you to be saved? He forces you? Oh yes. One of their favorite poems says God, quote, forced us in, unquote. That's a new doctrine. And just like in all man-made religions, if you got all the Calvinists together, they disagree with each other. Some of them say there's five points, some of them 10. Read Sproul, Piper, Palmer, Edward Palmer says there's thousands of points. Wow. Most of them say five and he says there's thousands. I don't know what the thousands are, but they disagree with each other. In Calvinism, God loves a few, hates everybody else. I say to you, that's not our God. They say, God, if you're not one of the elect, God does not love you. So, in fact, they don't even let their children sing, Jesus loves me, this I know. Because they say, maybe he doesn't love you. If you're not one of the elect, he doesn't love you. They don't let their children sing that. because they don't believe that. You mean God would make millions of people and deny from them the opportunities? You mean God would send non-elect babies to hell by the millions and hate them? That's their God. That's the God of Calvinism. They don't try to hide it. In J. Adams' book on counseling, He says when you're counseling people, don't ever tell them that Christ died for them because maybe he didn't. I just don't know what kind of good news this is. What kind of gospel is this? What kind of God is this? I quote John Calvin, some are predestinated to salvation and others to destruction. Not my God. I'm saying it's a new doctrine, therefore it's false. They know that what we believe is diametrically opposed to what they believe. They know somebody's wrong. They know if we're right, they're wrong. That's why they hate us and have killed us by the millions through the centuries. John Calvin called Baptists stupid. That's the word he used. He said, you Baptists believe that all means all and that whosoever means whosoever, you're stupid. John Calvin, their hero. You can have John Calvin. I'll take John the Baptist who said, behold the Lamb of God who taketh away the sins of the world. and you might be proud that you're one of the frozen chosen, but I just believe God so loved the world. They don't even believe that Jesus died for everybody. That's the L in their tulip, T-U-L-I-P. Total depravity, they put a new definition to depravity. Unconditional election, limited atonement, Jesus only died for a few. I is irresistible grace and peace, the perseverance of the saints. And because they've put a new definition to all and whosoever and grace and perseverance, In depravity, I disagree with all five points. The whole thing's a bunch of baloney. They hate us. John Calvin said, badness should be tortured with cruelty. That's his phrase, with cruelty. And millions have been. Baptist Hubmeyer burned at the stake, but Calvinist in Zurich, three days later, they took his wife, tied a stone around her neck, threw her over the bridge. And that story could be repeated millions of times. I'm not talking about nice people here. I'm talking about people who have gained control of governments, instituted state churches, and tortured, harassed, and murdered millions of people like you and me. John Calvin was not a Christian. He never claimed to be a Christian. In all of his writings, he never said, I'm a Christian. I dare you to find it. In fact, I'll read to you his testimony one night where he said his hope of heaven was his baptism by his Roman Catholic priest. John Calvin was not a Christian. You know, what's amazing to me, here's what's amazing to me, and I'm trying to help you and I'm trying to do my job as a preacher and warn you of some things. I know people in my own family going to hell because of Calvinism. It's not a funny thing. If you're gonna be a Calvinist, at least be honest about it. Don't put Baptist on your sign out there if you're gonna be a Presbyterian. John Calvin taught John Knox, who started the Presbyterian church. So if you're gonna be a Presbyterian and preach Calvinism, then at least be honest about it. Can you imagine a church teaching Baptist doctrine, Bible doctrine, and out front putting a Catholic church sign, saying we're Catholic, but we're teaching Baptist doctrine? Well, what's the difference of all these Baptists? And many of them are hearing my voice. Hear me on the radio every day. I appeal to you, my brethren. You are teaching Catholic doctrine in your church, but you still got Baptists out there on the side. At least be honest about it. If you're gonna preach Catholic doctrine, call yourself a Catholic. That's dishonest. They deny free will. These people are not saved. They can't understand baptism. They can't understand prophecy. They deny free will. Can you imagine that? I mean, free will, that's a Bible phrase. It says it in the Bible 17 times. free will, free will offerings. Voluntarily, freely, no force. I don't care what they say, man has a free will. To blame God for everything, that's a new doctrine. That's a false doctrine. Bible says right here, how much plainer can something be who will have all men to be saved? They say, well, that doesn't mean all. Without exception, that just means all without distinction. Oh, well, that really sounded big, didn't it? See, John Calvin was a lawyer, and he appeals to people because he uses a lot of big words. And he tells you all doesn't mean all. Had a friend of mine, went to a church, and they said to him, all doesn't mean all. It just means some. That bothered him. He said, well, when it says in the Bible that the blood of Christ cleanses us from all sin, does that not mean all either? Folks, all means all. And whosoever means whosoever. And the Bible's plain enough, I'm almost done. for tonight, I'm just introducing my subject. You gotta believe for yourself. Much as God wants you saved, he's not gonna make you get saved. You gotta repent for yourself. Nobody can eat for you, nobody can sleep for you, nobody can drink for you, nobody can learn for you, nobody can be saved for you. It's your own personal choice and responsibility. I thank God that John 3, 16 is true. And I'm glad that we can sing and let every voice of Adam's race proclaim it. Yes! Not maybe and not no, but yes, Jesus loves me! The Bible tells me so! Jesus loves all the children, red, brown, yellow, black and white, their precious in His sight. Jesus loves all the children of the world. I believe that, but most people don't. Most religions say, oh no, not so. He's picked out a few, and he hates. Can you imagine a God who tells me to love my enemies, but he hates his enemies? You mean God expects me to be more high and holy than he is? I'm sorry, you got the wrong God. The God of Calvinism is not the God of the Bible. He's a Roman Catholic invention of Augustine and Calvin. So Calvinism is a new doctrine, strike one. Next time I'll show you strike two, then strike three, and then Calvinism will strike out twice before we get done. The old preacher said we should always leave church saying, oh, what a sinner we are. But oh, what a savior Jesus is. You tell me how you could love a God who hated your children. You tell me how you could serve a God who only made your children to send them to hell and wouldn't save them under no circumstances whatsoever. Don't tell me that's the God of the Bible. That's not, you say you're hurting people's feelings. Let God be true and ever man alive. Romans 3 verse 4. As Jerry Vine said, this is a doctrine that cannot be ignored. It's taking over, it is killing Baptist churches. If Calvinism is true, there's no need to ever pray another prayer. or teach another class, sing another song, or preach another sermon. In fact, as they say, you're just getting in God's way. I don't believe that. Don't believe that. I believe when it's all said and done, that everybody that's in heaven will have to say, I'm here because Jesus saved me, I wanted to be saved and he saved me, and everybody in hell will have to say, it's my own fault. It's on my own head. My own choice. Thank you for your attention tonight.