Now, even TULIP doesn't really explain it? How many books will it take to explain it?
And further by these, my son, be admonished: of making many books there is no end; and much study is a wearisome to the flesh (Ecc.12:12)
You mean like most churches today?
There were "5 points of Arminianism" before there were the "5 points of Calvinism" that refuted them: Here are the 5 points of Arminianism. This was a system of thought contained in the "Remonstrance". It was submitted by the Arminians to the Church of Holland in 1610 for adoption but was rejected by the Synod of Dort in 1619 on the ground that it was unscriptural.
THE 5 POINTS OF ARMINIANISM:
1.) Free Will or Human Ability.
Although human nature was seriously affected by the fall, man has not been left in a state of total spiritual helplessness. God graciously enables every sinner to repent and believe, but he does not interfere with man's freedom. Eadch sinner possesses a free will, and his eternal destiny depends on how he uses it. Man's freedom consists in his ability to choose good over evil in spiritual matters; his will is not enslaved to his sinful nature. The sinner has the power to cooperate with God's spirit and be regenerated or to resist God's grace and perish. The lost sinner needs the Spirit's assistance, but he does not have to be regenerated by the Spirit before he can believe, for faith is man's act and precedes the new birth. Faith is the sinner's gift to God; it is man's contribution to salvation.
2.) Conditional Election.
God's choice of certain individuals to salvation before the foundation of the world was based on his foreseeing that they would respond to his call. He selected only those whom he knew would of themselves freely believe the Gospel. Election therefore was determined by or conditioned on what a person would do. The faith which God foresaw and upon which he based his choice was not given to the sinner by God (it was not created by the regenerating power of the Holyspirit) but resulted from man's free will, cooperating the Spirit's working. God chose those whom he knew would, of their own free will, choose Christ. In this sense God's election is conditional.
3.) Universal Redemption, or General Atonement.
Christ's redeeming work, made it possible for everyone to be saved but did not actually secure the salvation of anyone. Although Christ died for all people and for every person, only those who believe on him are saved. His death enabled God to pardon sinners on the condition that they believe, but it did not actually put away anyone's sins. Christ's redemption becomes effective only if a person chooses to accept it.
4.) The Holy Spirit Able To Be Effectually Resisted.
The Spirit calls inwardly all those who are called outwardly by the Gospel invitation; he does all that he can to bring every sinner to salvation. But inasmuch as man is free, he can successfully resist the Spirit's call. The Spirit cannot regenerate the sinner until he believes; faith (which is man's contribution) precedes and makes possible the new birth. Thus man's free will limits the Spirit in the application of Christ's saving work. The Holy spirit can draw to Christ only those who allow him to have his way with them. Until the sinner responds, the Spirit cannot give life. God's grace, therefore, is not invincible; it can be, and often is, resisted and thwarted by men.
5.) Falling From Grace.
Those who believe and are truly saved can lose their salvation by failing to keep up their faith.
Not all Arminians agree on this point; some hold that believers are eternally secure in Christ - that once a sinner is regenerated, he can never be lost.
Here are the 5 points of Calvinism. This system of theology was reaffirmed by the Synod of Dort in 1619 as the doctrine of salvation contained in the Holy Scriptures. The system was at that time formulated into "five points" (in answer to the five points submitted by the Arminians) and has ever since been known as "the five points of Calvinism".
THE 5 POINTS OF CALVINISM
1.) Total Inability or Total Depravity
Because of the fall, man is unable of himself to savingly believe the Gospel. The sinner is dead, blind, and deaf to the things of God; his heart is sinful and desperately corrupt. His will is not free, it is in bondage to his evil nature, therefore he will not - indeed he cannot - choose good over evil in the spiritual realm. Consequently it takes much more than the Spirit's assistance to bring a sinner to Christ -- it takes regeneration by which the Spirit makes the sinner alive and gives him a new nature but is itself a part of God's gift of salvation. Salvation is God's gift to the sinner, not the sinner's gift to God.
2.) Unconditional Election
God's choice of certain individuals to salvation before the foundation of the world rested solely in his own sovereign will. His choice of particular sinners was not based on any unforseen response or obedience on their part, such as faith, repentance, etc. On the contrary, God gives faith and repentance to each individual whom he selected. These acts are the result, not the cause, of God's choice. Election therefore was not determined by or conditioned on any virtuous quality or act forseen in man. Those whom God sovereignly elected he brings through the power of the Spirit to a willing acceptance of Christ. Thus God's choice of the sinner, not the sinner's choice of Christ, is the ultimate cause of salvation.
3.) Particular Redemption, or Limited Atonement
Christ's redeeming work was intended to save the elect only and actually secured salvation for them. In addition to putting away the sins of his people, Christ's redemption secured everything necessary for their salvation, including faith, which unites them to him. The gift of faith is infallibly applied by the Spirit to all for whom Christ died, therefore guaranteeing their salvation.
4.) The Efficacious Call of The Spirit, or Irresistible Grace
In addition to the outward general call to salvation, which is made to everyone who hears the Gospel, the Holy Spirit extends to the elect a special inward call that inevitable brings them to salvation. The external call (which is made to all without distinction) can be, and often is, rejected; whereas the internal call (which is made only to the elect) cannot be rejected; it always results in conversion. By means of this special call the Spirit irresistibly draws sinners to Christ. He is not limited in his work of applying salvation to man's will , nor is he dependant on man's cooperation for success. The Spirit graciously causes the elect sinner to cooperate, to believe, to repent, to come freely and willingly to Christ. God's grace, therefore, is invincible; it never fails to result in the salvation of those to whom it is extended.
5.) Perseverance of the Saints
All who are chosen by God, redeemed by Christ, and given faith by the Spirit are eternally saved. They are kept in faith by the power of Almighty God and thus persevere to the end.
The source for both the 5 points of Arminianism and the 5 points of Calviniam is: "Charts of Christian Theology and Doctrine" by H. Wayne House