Calvinism and Stoicism (And Why They Are Not the Same Thing)

Calvinism and Stoicism are not the same, but they are often confused. Even by Calvinists.  Stoicism is the idea that all things are fated by God (not the Christian God, but a pantheistic sum of all things), and therefore we should face them with resignation.  The idea is that God wants His people to be tough and sends hard circumstances so they will be strong and self-contained and able to face hardship.  This is not the Calvinist position.

Quite the opposite.  Scripture teaches us that God sends adversity so we may learn we cannot handle it ourselves, but must trust God through it (Proverbs 3:5,6; Psalms 46:1-11; Isaiah 40:29-31).  These two approaches can end up having the opposite effects.  The correct approach leads to humility, and the opposite can build pride, which is a real spiritual danger (Proverbs 16:18; Luke 14:7-11; 1 John 2:16).  Yet I know for myself how easy it can be to slip from trusting God to trusting in myself and my inner strength.  Let us watch ourselves in this regard.

It is easy to get two similar ideas confused, but in this case we need to be clear on the difference.  The difference is the fall and redemption. The Stoic believes the world is how God intended it to be and we need to be tough to fit in to it.  The Bible says the world is a fallen one in rebellion against God and we, as part of it, are sinners (Romans 8:19-23; 1 John 2:15-17; Isaiah 64:6) and God has rescued us from it (Romans 5:6-8; 1 Peter 2:24-25; 2 Corinthians 5:21).  So we must trust the One who has rescued us from sin and death to bring us through the difficulties of life (Philippians 4:6,7; Matthew 6:33; Romans 8:18). This makes a fundamental difference in how we look at the trials we face.

The Bethesda Factor

Does God always heal if we just have enough faith? Jesus came to the Pool of Bethesda and found a crowd of sick people (John 5:1-17).  But Jesus approached and healed only one of them.  There is no indication that this individual had any high degree of faith (he was looking to be healed by being dipped in the pool). But Jesus only approached this one man. Now there are cases where it says Jesus healed all the sick brought to Him (Matthew 8:16; 12:15; Luke 4:40), but it is clearly speaking of those who happened to be there at that day and time.  But as Bethesda shows, Jesus could also be selective. We see this even more clearly in the case of the Apostle Paul.  Paul had a consistent record of praying for people and having them be healed (Acts 19:11,12), and he continued to do so at least till the near end of the book of Acts (Acts 28:1-10) and most probably beyond it.  Yet he could not obtain healing for himself (2 Corinthians 12:7-10) or Epaphroditus (Philippians 2:25-30), or Timothy (1 Timothy 5:23), or Trophimus (2 Timothy 4:20). 

Therefore, God does not heal in every case nor has He ever healed in every case.  Now many who believe healing has passed away at the present time seem to believe that in New Testament times, God did always heal, and now He has ceased doing it.  But I would suggest that while God still heals today (and I see no basis in Scripture for believing He does not), He never healed in every case. Now it is true that faith is a factor in whether an individual is healed (Matthew 13:58; 9:22; Mark 2:5).  Though the one case where the disciples failed to accomplish a miracle (it was casting out a demon rather than a healing), Jesus rebuked the disciples for lack of faith, not the demonized boy or his father (Matthew 17:14-20).  He then cast out the demon based on the father's shaky faith (Mark 9:14-29).  But though faith is a factor, it is also clear that there is in healing a matter of God's will, and to assume that God will heal everyone if they only have enough faith is simplistic. Therefore, we should pray to God that He will heal people but be willing to accept the fact that there may be cases where it is God's will not to heal. And we should avoid jumping to the conclusion that if someone is not healed it is because of their lack of faith.

The Old Knight and the Young Knight

An old knight and a young knight met when riding through the forest.  The young knight had the newest innovations in his armor.  His sword had a special power point, and from his belt hung the newest of electronic gadgets.  His armor was covered with bright colors meant to impress and attract those of a neutral persuasion to join themselves to his side.  The older knight had more subdued armor, encrusted with the discreet ornaments of legalism.  His sword was old and battle worn, touched with the rust of archaic usage.  But both wore the helmet of salvation and the breastplate of righteousness, so they met as servants of the King and not as sworn enemies.

"I have not seen you around here before," said the old knight.  "New in the area?"

"I just graduated from Knight School,"  replied the young knight, "where we learned the newest techniques.  Just looking at your outfit, you could use a brush-up."

"I've been around the forest a lot of years.  I reckon this old armor will take care of me like it always has."

"Maybe," remarked the young knight, "but it looks too worn-out to take a serious testing."

They parted and rode off in opposite directions, each shaking his head at the other.  As the young knight rounded a grove of trees, he was startled by a loud roar.  He turned his head and saw the huge yellow form of a lion streaking toward him. He reached for his sword, but was not able to bring it to play before the weight of the lion rammed his horse and sent him flying through the air.  He was sitting on the ground, grasping his shield, as the lion charged.  While he did not have time to rise to his feet, he was able to bring up his shield to deflect the charge.  He twisted his shield back and forth, warding off the lion's claws and teeth.  One swipe from a claw got around the shield, but was turned back by his breastplate. The young knight was beginning to tire when he heard the sound of approaching hoofs.  Before the lion could turn a sword swung down, instantly severing his head from his body. 

"That's a good shield you have there," said the old knight, for such was his rescuer.  "I'm not sure mine would have held up that well after such a battering."

"It's nothing," replied the young knight.  "You really must teach me that sword stroke."

And they rode off together, laughing.

Staking Our Claim

One thing that prospectors do is stake claims.  The rest of us have a tendency to do the same thing.  We stake claims to various things as belonging to ourselves.  Yet can we really stake a claim to anything when everything we have comes from God (Job 1:21; Matthew 6:25-34)?  Also, as C. S. Lewis points out in "The Screwtape Letters," there are various senses of the word "my".  It can range from "my God" to "my country," "my church," "my wife," and all the way down to "my boots."  According to Lewis, Satan's strategy is to reduce everything to the level of "my boots."  Something that belongs to me that I can do whatever I feel like with. Sometimes we can be very spiritual about this.  We can speak of "my ministry" (as opposed to other people's ministries), "my Bible study group" (as opposed to other people's Bible study groups), "my church" (as opposed to other congregations) or "my denomination" (even if the differences between it and other denominations are Biblically minor).  Therefore we can promote our ends while claiming to be spiritual. 

Yet God takes the opposite approach.  He says we should put other people before ourselves (Philippians 2:1-4; Romans 12:9-21).  He even set the example by giving up His rights in order to redeem us (Philippians 2:5-11; Romans 5:6-8; John 3:16).  And if we have been redeemed, we not only belong to God because of His creating us (Psalms 139:13-16), but also because He has redeemed us (1 Corinthians 6:20).  Therefore we should stop staking claims to things, but offer everything we have, including ourselves (Romans 12:1,2), to live for Him.

Do You Have to Be Cold-Hearted to Be a Calvinist?

Do you have to be cold-hearted to be a Calvinist? Or does it just help?  To deal with this we first need to ask, What is the point of Calvinism?  As I see it, this is that though we were sinners and in rebellion against God so that we would not have come to Him if left to ourselves (Romans 3:10-12; 8:8; John 6:44), God chose to bring us to Himself (Ephesians 1:4-11; Acts 13:48; Romans 8:29,30).  The point of this is the greatness of God's grace and the realization that there is absolutely nothing we could do to contribute to our salvation.  Far from being a reason for pride, it is a reason for humility, and the description given of those He chooses is hardly a basis for boasting (1 Corinthians 1:26-31).  Therefore, it should cause us to have compassion on those still enmeshed in the darkness of sin.

But there is a danger here of making God's choosing into an abstraction totally divorced from the fact of the fall and the price of redemption and of seeing God as choosing between people as casually as a socialite chooses outfits.  We need to recognize that God is beyond our understanding (Romans 11:33; 1 Corinthians 3:18; Isaiah 55:9), and we cannot fully comprehend how God's sovereignty fits with human responsibility or  how or why God chooses.  But He did not have to save anyone, and He paid an enormous price to do it (Romans 5:6-8; 8:32; John 3:16).

Calvinism can be confused with Stoicism, which says life is tough and God made it that way because He wants us to be tough. Rather, the Christian says life is tough, so we need to realize we cannot deal with it ourselves, but must trust God.  (Note that the original Stoicism had no clear idea of a Fall, which distorted their idea of God and the world.)  Calvinism is also confused with psychological determinism, which says our behavior is completely the result of our heredity and environment. But it is one thing to say our behavior is controlled by a personal God and another to say we are merely the result of background influences.  Psychological determinism leaves us in doubt as to whether we can know anything at since all our thoughts are the result of irrational causes.  It also can leave us looking at other people as just mechanisms determined by their programming.

All these misconceptions can influence Calvinists or be read in by opponents. Also, Calvinism in our culture, and in some parts of the Christian church, carries with it a considerable stigma.  Therefore, only those who have or who develop considerable determination and strength of conviction can hold to it.  Such people may be perceived, fairly or unfairly, as cold-hearted.  Sometimes you produce what you perceive in people.  But to be kept in perspective, predestination must be considered in connection with the Fall and redemption.

Aletheia Rolls On

There was a great vehicle built by the All-Sufficient One before the dawn of time.  She had huge treads made to move mountains and strong armor to defect flaming darts, but there was no lock on the door and it opened to all who would come (though it was said you only came if driven aboard by the Breath of the All-Sufficient One).  She was painted with the colors of the rainbow, the colors of grace, and held together by the blood of the Lamb.  She was powered by the Breath of the All-Sufficient One, which was said to be one of the forms of the All-Sufficient One Himself.  She was dubbed Aletheia, though she was also know as Euangelion or Soteria. She rolled forth into the world with the full blessing and power of her Master.

While she had traveled since ancient times, she rolled out into the full light of history in obscure places.  A feeding trough for cattle, a fisherman's boat, a place of execution, and a tomb strangely missing its occupant.  When she reached public attention it was with a blaze of mighty words and mighty works, and she was immediately opposed.  Many of those on board were harassed and killed, but they lost only their physical lives and reached their destination quicker.  And Aletheia rolled on.

 Later, she became popular, and many lauded her and extolled her beauty.  Even those who would not come on board applauded her approach and cheered as she passed.  But many both on board and off fought to control her, though only her Master had access to the cockpit.  They tried to obscure her colors of grace and to use her to make profit and justify many shady schemes.  But Aletheia rolled on.

 Then came the great wars of control when many fought over who would possess her.  Those on board all huddled together in their little cliches in various parts of her passenger area.  And many built their own imitations of her and traveled off in their own directions. And many both on and off  board feared, hated, and even killed those of the other cliches.  And Aletheia rolled on.

Then came the time when many rejected her;  they hated her and avoided her and argued against her.  Those who were on board were shunned and sometimes even tortured and killed.  They were demeaned as stupid and uneducated for staying aboard such an obsolete vehicle.  Those on board responded  to the criticisms with logic and persuasion, and some were convinced to come on board, but many stayed off to follow the crowd.  Some of those on board became seriously concerned and took up clubs and fought those off board in order to protect the vehicle.  Many came back beaten and bruised, but those who did not proclaimed victory and said the safety of the vehicle was their doing.  But Aletheia rolled on.

One might almost suspect she knew where she was going.

Satan's Self Portrait

Satan is the father of lies (John 8:44). Nowhere does this show up more than in how he pictures himself and his minions. Much of what people think they know about Satan and his demons comes not from Scripture but from sources like Hollywood and Medieval tradition.  One of Satan's chief ploys is, of course, to convince us he does not exist.  But the other false pictures can contribute to this by saying if we cannot believe in them, we cannot believe in him.  

One of Satan's other strategies is to portray himself as more powerful than he actually is.  This worked very effectively in the Middle Ages, producing great fear and ultimately encouraging people to lash out at those who were in some way painted as Satan's agents.  Today in many forms of media we have the demonic shown as powerful, and good as marginal and barely competent.  This need not involve direct reference to demons but to other powerful supernatural beings. It can end up making evil look empowering and liberating and good as hopeless.  If Satan can even get well-intentioned people to feel overwhelmed and helpless, he has won a victory.  But Scripture teaches he is a defeated foe (Colossians 2:15; 1 John 4:4), who should treated with caution but not cowered before (1 Peter 5:8,9; Ephesians 6:10-13).

His opposite move, though, is to picture himself in a crude, simplistic way--even a silly way. He becomes the guy in red tights with horns and a tail or the blatant huckster who forthrightly asks, "Want to sell your soul?"  If this does not get people to dismiss the whole thing as silly, it presents evil as obvious and easily avoided.  It also can cause people to see demonic forces as easily dealt with and their plans as easily foiled.  Even the common idea (which has no basis in Scripture) that Satan and his minions are currently torturing the lost in hell can make it seem he is off the scene on earth.  But Scripture pictures him as a clever schemer who can disguise himself and his followers as promoters of good (2 Corinthians 11:13-15; 2:11) and who is in control of this present world (2 Corinthians 4:4; Hebrews 2:14,15).  We need to be careful of underestimating Satan, but should trust in God's power to deal with him (James 4:7). But we also need to avoid taking Satan's pictures of himself as the truth.