State of theology survey - by Ligonier.org

State of theology survey. Our comments in bold.

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Ligonier is a Calvinistic website, and their survey unfortunately reflects this bias. Although most questions are about generic theology, some of them are actually testing peoples' attitudes about Calvinism.

We are a little surprised that these largely unimportant doctrines would be a matter worthy of including in a theology survey.

In our blog we have discussed Calvinism at length.

Here are  those questions.

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This is a matter of the Ordo Salutis (the order of salvation). Calvinists believe that being born again is a prerequisite for salvation. Their reasoning is that sinners do not have the ability to "make a decision" for Christ because they are completely sinners ("Total Depravity" is the first item in the Calvinistic acronym TULIP). Thus the need to be born again first.

In our opinion being born again is synonymous with salvation. 

1Pe. 1:23 For you have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring word of God.

Born again is eternal life. 

There is no biblical basis for asserting an intermediate stage where one is born again but not saved. Yet this idea is a question in their survey.

Next:

Once again the survey isn't testing theology per se, it's testing Calvinism. This is a question about predestination ("Unconditional Election" is the second item in TULIP). The Elect are those who God chose in advance to be saved.

Election is a doctrine that descends out of a misinterpretation of of various Scriptures like John 6:44; Ephesians 1:4-5, 11; Romans 8:29; and others.

Paul was clear when we were saved: 

Ep. 1:13 And you also were included in Christ when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation.

We therefore find this doctrine to be problematic as well. That means the survey question doesn't test knowledge, it tests agreement with Calvinism. 

Next:

This is perhaps more subtle, because Calvinists believe in predestination to the point that they believe God's foreknowledge requires Him to control everything. This would mean we don't actually choose at all because He predetermined everything and makes it all happen. Choice, therefore, is an illusion because He already decided it.

And the last one:



Another survey question that may have more subtle undertones than one would expect. Calvinists believe that our sinful state is a debt owed to God. So Jesus paid for our sin on the cross, removing our penalty by paying our debt. However, Jesus did not pay our debt, He washed us clean. 

There is no penalty for anyone to pay, because we were already condemned:

Jn. 3:18 Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son.

Judgment has already been rendered, and the lost have already been condemned. They only escape condemnation by faith in Jesus:

Ro. 8:1 Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus...

It seems to us that the survey was done partly to ascertain how well Calvinism is entrenched. In each of these examples there is no crucial Bible principle at stake, no matter of a salvific nature involved, and none of these have anything to do with living a godly, obedient Christian life.