Why Calvinist, Evangelical Calvinist?

Why Calvinism? I thought I would, briefly, share my road to self-identifying as an Evangelical Calvinist; my personal salvation history. I was born into a Conservative Baptist pastor’s home (not only was my dad a pastor, but a gifted Evangelist). I was exposed to the Gospel in the womb. By time I was 3 years old the Lord had touched my heart for Him, and I responded to His gracious offer of love and mercy. I continued to grow up, and had an intimate role in the church-life of the church my dad pastored. By time I was 5 I had led my first person to Jesus, and I continued on in my Evangelist ways. My dad was saved and trained in a Conservative Baptist church and Bible College, and then of course ordained CB. Accordingly, the doctrine that I was exposed to and taught was what can be called: Free Grace (like the kind Zane Hodges has articulated, but  a little less extreme than Hodges), classic Dispensation, pre-Tribulational, pre-millennial, Keswick spirituality Theology. I basically carried this “kind” of doctrinal baggage around with me all the way through Seminary. In Seminary I was exposed, via Dr. Ron Frost, to what he called Affective Theology. This view of Theology really and self-consciously pressed Trinitarian themes about who God is (a la Richard Sibbes and Colin Gunton), it pressed Positive Theology — or Theology that “started,” methodologically, with Christ as God’s self-Revelation (instead of Negative Theology, which most of Evangelical-Reformed Theology flows from [even the Free Grace I mentioned]), and it pressed Affective soteriological themes — meaning that salvation was seen as loving and reciprocating response to God, based on God loving man first (this is versus framing salvation through juridical or “Law-based” constructs like classic Arminianism/Calvinism and Free Grace/Lordship Salvation typically do). This was my first step into a “Calvinistic” mind-set. Affective Theology was still “Calvinist,” but it jettisoned the TULIP as a legitimate frame of reference. I was pretty much disposed towards this kind of thinking, alone, until I first came across Thomas F. Torrance and “Scottish Theology” back in about 2006-7. At that point I picked up Thomas Torrance’s “Scottish Theology” (thanks to some spurring by Travis McMaken — he had mentioned “Scottish Theology” once, in regards to Torrance, so I found Torrance’s book on that topic), I read it; and it totally resonated with me. In that book he labeled the development of Scottish Calvinism that he was highlighting through certain Scottish Theologians as Evangelical Calvinism. I continued to be intrigued by this kind of Calvinism (a “kind” that I would venture to say almost nobody knows anything about), continued to read Torrance; and then once again my friend Travis (he studies at PTS) alerted me to an essay written by Myk Habets called The Doctrine of Evangelical Calvinism: T. F. Torrance as a Case Study (Irish Theological Quarterly). This essay helped to concretize some things for me, in regards to what Thomas Torrance was getting at in his book “Scottish Theology.” So, of course, theo-blogger that I am, posted an excerpt from Myk’s essay at my blog; and wouldn’t you know it, but Myk Habets himself commented on that post. I was encouraged by that, and it was at that point that enough time and theology had converged in my mind and heart that I realized that I had finally crossed the threshold into a full-fledged Calvinism; albeit a full-fledged Evangelical Calvinism. I started a blog that was to be solely dedicated to promulgating Evangelical Calvinism, and shortly thereafter Myk contacted me and asked if I would like to co-edit/author a multi-author book dedicated to Evangelical Calvinism; the rest is history (we have most of our chapters in for the book — I’m still working on mine — then some formatting, then publication [out sometime in late 2011]).

I say all of this, to explain my roots. My roots still influence me. And I only claim the name of Evangelical Calvinist, really, as a place-holder for asserting: “this is where I stand, I can do no other!” 😉 I used to go by Biblicist, Reformed, and now, Evangelical Calvinist (I like to think the first two have led to the latter designation). Ultimately, I am a Christian! That’s how I plan on being know for all eternity, but while I am a member of the church militant; then Evangelical Calvinist will do. If you’re unsure what I am talking about exactly, then just click here and you can read about some of the ‘Themes’ that Evangelical Calvinism holds to.