That is not an answer to my question. My question was, "Is Salvation available to all mankind?" Do you believe that God predestined each and every particular person to eteranal life or eternal damnation and theree is nothing that individual can decide to change that destiny? A lot of Calvinists believe this, but Calvin wrote (paraphrasing) that every man has been given sufficient grace to understand the message of the Gospel.
An arrogant pastor is a terrible thing. But I don’t know why you say Calvin was particularly arrogant.
You never heard of his involvement in the murder of Servitus?
Do you believe Calvin was a Christian? If not, why not. If so, you should not attack him on such a personal level. We should love one another.
I cannot judge the state of his salvation. I find that theologians who delve in minutia rather that the plain meaning of the Bible miss the message of the Bible by a wide margin. Thank God one does not have to half an in depth understanding of Calvinism to have eternal life, and I understand it far better than most.
Of course it is. Even without the Scriptures no man is without excuse because the world and all of life attest to the sovereignty of the Triune Creator of heaven and earth.
The fact remains, however, that God does not give all men eyes to see or ears to hear or a new heart with which to believe. If He did, all men would believe and be saved. And obviously, they're not.
All men do what they want to do. The natural man has not been given the ability to know the things of God, and therefore he willingly refuses to believe, according to his fallen and corrupted nature. Those whose minds have been renewed by the Holy Spirit, according to the will and purpose of God, will understand and believe the truth of the risen Christ.
But ye believe not, because ye are not of my sheep, as I said unto you. My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me: And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand." -- John 10:25-28"Jesus answered them, I told you, and ye believed not: the works that I do in my Father's name, they bear witness of me.
I wouldn't call the understanding that salvation is an unearned, free, merciful gift of God to whom He will, and not something we achieve for ourselves, with or without help, "minutia."
I understand it (Calvinism) far better than most.
I'm sorry. You've said that many times, but it is demonstrably not true.
God to save him, or of opening the way to God to save him. No question of anything but "I am a sinner, and all my hope is in God, my Saviour!" This is Calvinism, not just something like Calvinism, or an approach to Calvinism, but Calvinism in its vital manifestation. Wherever this attitude of heart is found and is given expression in direct and unambiguous terms, there is Calvinism. Where this attitude of mind and heart is fallen away from it however small a measure, there Calvinism has become impossible. " "The Calvinist, in a word, is the man who sees God. He has caught sight of the ineffable Vision, and he will not let it fade for a moment from his eyes - God in nature, God in history, God in grace. Everywhere he sees God in His mighty stepping, everywhere he feels the working of His mighty arm, the throbbing of His mighty heart....Calvinism is just Christianity. The super-naturalism for which Calvinism stands is the very breath of the nostrils of Christianity; without it Christianity cannot exist...Calvinism thus emerges to our sight as nothing more or less than the hope of the world." ~Dr. Benjamin B. Warfield"Calvinism is evangelism in its pure and only stable expression, and when we say evangelism we say sin and salvation. It means utter dependence on God for salvation. It implies therefore, need of salvation and a profound sense of this need, along with an equally profound sense of helplessness in the presence of this need, and utter dependence on God for its satisfaction. Its type is found in the publican who smote his breast and cried, "God be merciful to me a sinner!" No question there of saving himself, or helping
“”Is Salvation available to all mankind?””
If any man repents of his sin and trusts in Christ, he is saved. ANY man. So I think it is fair and true to say yes, it is.
This does not deny the election and predestination taught in Scripture.
“You never heard of his involvement in the murder of Servitus? “
I have heard conflicting accounts about the death of Servitus. I do not hold a fast position on it. I don’t think we have enough information to condemn or clear Calvin on it, honestly. It was apparently done in a lawful manner, but whether those laws were just is another question. While no excuse, the fact is that death for heresy was commonplace at the time. Calvin made have been murderous, or he have made a sinful error, or he may have actually been correct.
I don’t think murderous is quite fair, though, because a murderous person tends to murder frequently. No one has charged Calvin with this. So I think he either made a dreadful, sinful error, or a difficult but correct decision. I am not certain.
“I cannot judge the state of his salvation.”
Well, ultimately, we don’t know any man’s heart. But he did frequently and effusively profess Christ and was a pastor for many years. I doubt he kept up a wearying pretense all that time.