Calv_Arm
CALVINISM & ARMINIANISM REVIEWED
Introduction: Before when get into all the questions & debates from what may arise from these teachings are, we first need to lay the ground work and just try and understand what the Calvinist believe. Then we can try and analyze & then come to some conclusions. My goal tonight is to present it to you so you can understand what the positions are first, before you already take a position, and say I agree or disagree first I just want you to understand it & where the Calvinist is coming from.
§ Ephesians 1:4-5—So when we are dealing with Calvinism & Arminianism we are primarily looking at “what does it mean to be” predestined, elected before the foundation of the world, the fact the God has chose us, and so on (Eph.1:4-5).
§ Nevertheless, these are Biblical doctrines that are not hidden in Scripture, but are taught & come up quite frequently, therefore, we need to work through them & try and understand them.
What I want to do is to try and set out the parameters of these issues which on the one hand:
(1) Calvinism which stresses the Sovereignty of God totally excluding mans free will and the other side
(2) Arminianism which stresses mans free will.
To speak of Calvinism is to speak of the Reformed faith.
The term Reformed is today basically synonymous with Calvinism and historically distinguishes the Calvinistic churches from the Lutheran and Anabaptist traditions. The theology of Calvinism or the Reformed faith finds its roots in the writings of John Calvin, particularly as expressed in the Institutes of the Christian Religion. Calvin’s theology centers on the sovereignty of God, the other doctrines being tied to that premise. The theology of Calvin is restated in the form of many confessional statements that have been adhered to over the centuries in Europe, Britain, and America.
The Synod of Dort
In the Netherlands a conflict arose between the followers of Jacobus Arminius and the Calvinists. Calvinism was attacked for its teaching of predestination and reprobation as well as for other issues. The States General called a synod (a council or assembly) in 1618 to settle the issue, but the Arminians did not come as equals. Rather, the Remonstrants (One of the Dutch Arminians who, in 1610, formally stated the grounds of their dissent from strict Calvinism), were summoned to present their doctrines, which were subsequently condemned. The synod reaffirmed the Heidelberg and Belgic Confessions. The following points were affirmed at Dort and are given here in synthesized form.
1. Of divine predestination—All men sinned in Adam and lie under the curse, but God made provision for salvation through the death of Christ. The fact that some and not others receive the gift of faith stems from God’s eternal decree of election and reprobation. Election is unconditional, not based on God’s foreknowledge; before the foundation of the world and purely out of His grace and according to His sovereign good pleasure, God chose some to salvation. The non-elect are left to condemnation, yet God is not the author of sin.
2. Of the death of Christ—While the death of Christ is of infinite value and sufficient to save the whole world, His atoning death extends to the elect only.
3. Of the corruption of man and his conversion to God—Man was created in the image of God, but through the sin of Adam all mankind is corrupted. Sin has passed to the human race so that all people are born in sin and are children of wrath. But while man is incapable of saving himself, God accomplishes salvation for elect individuals through the operation of the Holy Spirit. Those whom He has chosen in eternity, He calls effectually in time. The faith that realizes salvation is itself a gift.
4. Of the perseverance of the saints—Whom God calls, He also delivers from the dominion and slavery of sin. Since God is faithful, He preserves those who believe to the end.
The Five Points of Calvinism
Calvin Did Not Author The So-Called “Five Points Of Calvinism.” They originated at the Synod of Dort (1619) and are also a result of affirming the distinctives of Calvinism over the centuries since. God as sovereign was central in the theology of Calvin, and that is reflected in the five points. The five points emphasize God in His sovereignty and grace but also man in his depravity and sin. The five points are popularly named: total depravity; unconditional election; limited atonement; irresistible grace; and perseverance of the saints. (Theologians have nicknamed these points “tulip,” a popular acronym based on the first letters of the doctrines.)
These Five Concepts Are Arranged Logically And Are Contingent Upon One Another. If man is totally depraved, then he is unable to make an initial response to God; God must call man to salvation through unconditional election. God also makes provision for those whom He calls to salvation by the death of Christ; He secures their salvation by the effectual call of the Holy Spirit and keeps them secure in order that they might receive the eternal life He has promised them.
The Sovereignty of God: Foundational To The Entire System Of Calvinism Is The Doctrine Of The Sovereignty Of God.
1. Calvinism Asserts That The Sovereignty Of God Is Supreme; that He has absolute and indisputable authority over all creation, that nothing can lie outside of or be viewed as not being subject to the sovereignty of His will, that He is not only the Creator and Upholder but the Disposer of all events from the beginning of time to its close.”
2. Calvin Himself Taught That God’s Providence Is Manifested In Three Ways: (1) God sustains all creation in its being—apart from Him it would be dissolved; (2) God daily bestows life and ability to all things as it pleases Him—apart from Him nothing could have life and existence; (3) God guides all things to their appointed end. Calvin further taught that even though God sustains and guides the whole world and every individual, His providential care is particularly focused on the church, where He manifests His divine purposes.
3. Calvin Maintained, However, That Divine Sovereignty Does Not Abolish Man’s Responsibility. God instilled man with reason and with a will, and people are held responsible for their decisions. On the other hand, man’s responsibility does not dethrone God from His sovereignty. God does not simply wait to see what man’s decision will be before He moves to action; rather, God subdues the actions and decisions of men to accomplish His purpose. In a word, God is not governed by any circumstances outside of Himself, but only by His own good pleasure. God thereby determines the result of all people, events, and things.
4. The result of God’s sovereignty is that His purpose will be achieved. Nothing can thwart His plan; history will be worked out according to the predetermined will of God.
Quote From George L. Bryson
For more that a decade I was the host of a Christian talk show called “Scripturally Spreaking.” On many different occasions the topic of Calvinism in general, and the Five Points of Calvinism in particular, was introduced either by me, and in-studio guest, or a caller. I can clearly remember one discussion in which a Calvinist guest was debating with an Arminian caller over the question of whether or not predestination was taught in Scripture. When the question before us was simply a matter of affirming or denying predestination, I appeared to be on the side of my Calvinist guest. The caller expressed surprise at my agreement with my guest because he incorrectly thought that I must have been a Calvinist because of this agreement. When I explained to him that I was not a Calvinist, the caller’s surprise then turned to confusion.
My guest then admitted that he was also surprised, if not confused, for he too wrongly assumed I was a Calvinist because I agreed that predestination was taught in Scripture. The mistake both my Calvinist guest and Arminian caller had made was to assume that the distinctive of Calvinism is the Calvinist’s affirmation of predestination. However, it is not the Calvinist’s affirmation of predestination that distinguishes them from other Evangelicals. Rather it is the Calvinists definition of predestination that distinguishes them from other Orthodox and Evangelical believers.
To understand the Five Points as Calvinists do, you must see them as the expression of the Calvinistic definition of predestination. The Calvinistic definition of predestination must in turn be viewed as the basis of the Calvinistic doctrine of salvation.
R.C.Sproul— Predestination has something to do with the relationship of our ultimate destination and that something is done about that destination by somebody before we arrive there “When I call my travel agent to book a flight, the question is soon raised: “What is your destination?” Sometimes the question is put more simply: “Where are you going?” Our destination is the place where we are going. In theology it refers to one of two places; either we are going to heaven or we are going to hell. In either case, we cannot cancel the trip. God gives us but two final options. One or the other is our final destination”… heaven or hell, is decided by God not only before we get there, but before we are even born.
Option Means: 1. the act of choosing; choice; 2. the power of freedom to choose. Having an option implies there is a choice in the matter which means “a will.”
What predestination means, in its most elementary form, is that our final destination,
Calvin Defined Predestination As Follows: “Predestination we call the eternal decree of God, by which he hath determined in himself what he would have to become of every individual of mankind. . . . eternal life is foreordained for some, and eternal damnation for others. Every man, therefore, being created for one or the other of these ends, we say he is predestinated either to life or to death.”
In other words, YOU WILL BE SAVED OR DAMNED FOR ALL ETERNITY BECAUSE YOU WERE SAVED OR DAMNED FROM ALL ETERNITY
A. The TULIP System
T – Total Depravity – Among Calvinist there are basically two schools of thought with regard to “total depravity” the “Hard View” & “Soft View.” However, the difference between authentic Calvinists (as it related to depravity) is one of degree and not kind.
1. The Soft View: The unregenerate man is sinful in every area of his life, but not necessarily as sinful as he can be. The whole of mans being has been affected by sin, the corruption extends to every part of man, his body and soul: sin has affected all (the totality) of man’s faculties, his mind, will, etc. Another author says that: no matter how much each of us has sinned, we are able to think of worse sins that we could have committed. Even Adolph Hitler refrained from murdering his mother.
2. The Hard View: Other Calvinists see the soft view of Total Depravity as a compromise. Another author says that: man by nature in all his existence, with all his heart and mind and soul and strength, has become a servant of sin, and that he is entirely incapable of doing good and inclined to all evil.
3. The Inoperable Will of Man: What we cannot do because of Total Depravity from a Calvinistic perspective, is of course very important to a Calvinistic definition of Depravity, especially as it relates to a gospel presentation directed at the unregenerate.
a) Ephesians 2:1: The Unregenerate Are Not Only Unable To Do Good (as well as unable to refrain from doing bad) spiritually in a general sense, but more specifically, they are unable to respond to God or the Gospel (to any degree) while in an unregenerate state or before being born again. The unregenerate man (in so far as responding to God, the Gospel, etc. is concerned) is dead and therefore inoperable.
1) Spiritually Death to a Calvinists Means: the elimination of all human ability to understand or respond to God, not just a separation from God. According to the Calvinists, the unregenerate man is unable to receive Christ as Lord and Savior, believe in Christ or the Gospel when preached to him, or do anything to accept the free gift of eternal life offered to him and be saved.
b) The Response To Ephesians 2:1: Death in the Bible is a strong expression meaning that fallen beings are totally separated from God. As Isaiah put it, “But your iniquities have separated you from your God (Is.59:2). Death does not mean a total destruction of all ability to hear and respond to God, but a complete separation of the whole person from God.
1) The Unsaved Persons Can Perceive the Truth of God (Romans 1:18-23)
2) Adam and Eve Heard & Understood the Words of God After the Fall (Gen.2:15-17; 3:10)
3) The Image of God in Fallen Man is Effected but Not Erased (Genesis 9:6)
(a) I believe that even after the fall of man, even in our sinfulness, we are still made in the image and likeness of God, but that image was effaced by the fall but not erased, the image and likeness of God has definitely been shattered and affected. This is why murder (Gen.9:6) and even cursing (James 3:9) other people are sins. But yet there’s something still residing within man, that’s not the ability to save, or even an ability to say: “oh I get it, now I will receive Christ.” There is still something there that when God brings revelation to a person that he is still able to respond, not on his own but only by the Spirit of God working.
U – Unconditional Election – When God elected He did not consider mans will in the process He sovereingly chose to save people, & He Sovereinly chose to condemn or bypass others.
1. If Total Depravity says that the unregenerate cannot believe the Gospel or receive Christ, or in any way respond positively to God in his unregenerate state, Unconditional Election says that this does not matter (for the unregenerate elect).
2. For God has, from all eternity, elected some to be saved unconditionally.
3. Calvinistically speaking, faith in Christ is therefore not a condition for the salvation of the lost but a consequence of regeneration for the elect. In other words, faith in Christ is not a requirement for being born again, but a result of being born again.
1. Spiritual Birth Before Saving Faith:
a) A Man Must Be Born Again First In Order To Believe In Christ: only after spiritual birth can you have and exercise saving faith in Jesus Christ. A certain author says: A Cardinal point 0of Reformed theology is the maxim: “Regeneration precedes faith.”
b) The Point Is That You Can Go From Death To Life Without Faith In Christ. Faith in Christ from a Calvinistic perspective comes with that life but is neither needed nor possible before that life begins.
R.C. Sproul goes on to say: “Without rebirth we have no desire for Christ. Without a desire for Christ we will never choose Christ. Therefore we conclude that before anyone ever will believe, before anyone can believe, God must first change the disposition of his heart”.
Look at Romans 5:10—the Bible is definitely clear as to the fact that man is spiritually depraved and spiritually dead he has no goodness in him, he doesn’t seek after God he’s actually God’s enemy. We must take a careful look at some other things to consider.
c) Cornelius Acts 10:1-4,24,44—Cornelius is a Roman Centurion & yet he is searching for God He had come from the Pagan roots of Romanism or from Rome with all of its many gods and has probably been introduced to Judaism to the Idea of One God.
1) This man knows nothing about Jesus Christ, he’s not saved because Peter is going to come and preach and he is going to get saved later on. So he is definitely not a Christian here.
2) Now if he is totally depraved then he would not be able to receive anything spiritually from an angel either. So here is a man who seems to be doing some spiritual good but he’s not saved but God receives this as a memorial, God took not of this. God didn’t say “hey your spiritually dead and I wont receive anything from you.”
3) So here we have an unbeliever doing something that shows something of the image and likeness of God in this man. So there is a possibility for man to do good, not for salvation, but to give indication that his heart is open to the truth of the gospel. And because he did this God sent further revelation to him.
4) Now, when God gives a man revelation & he closes off to that, God is under no obligation to give him any more detail. Its not a matter of not having enough facts, its closing off to the facts that God is trying to communicate to you. Evidently this guy was bent in the right direction, was he still under God’s wrath at and deserving of eternal death at this point, absolutely. But there is something in him, that God took notice of.
2. What About the Unelect?
a) Reprobation-Double Predestination-Created For Damnation: If the implication of Depravity for the unregenerate elect (i.e., a dead and inoperable will) is answered by Unconditional Election (i.e., it does not matter), then Unconditional Election for the unelect says, “Tough Luck.”
1) The Softer View—While God elects to save some, He does not elects to damn the rest. Charles Spurgeon says:
Your damnation is your own election, not God’s. We are lost willfully and willingly, lost perversely and utterly, but still lost of our own accord, which is the worst kind of being lost… From the Word of God I gather that damnation is all of man, from top to bottom…He that perishes chooses to perish…It is the will of God that saves; it is the will of man that damns
R.C. Sproul says:
The Reformed View teaches that God positively or actively intervenes in the lives of the elect to insure their salvation. The rest of mankind He leaves to themselves.
2) The Harder View—God Actively intervenes or elects some for Hell just as He elects some for Heaven. John Calvin said:
Many professing a desire to defend the Deity from an invidious charge admit the doctrine of election, but deny that any one is reprobated… This they do ignorantly and childishly, since there could be no election without is opposite reprobation. God is said to set apart those whom he adopts for salvation. It were most absurd to say, that he admits other fortuitously “happening by accident or chance,” with no implication as to the desirability of the outcome” or that they by their industry acquire what election alone confers on a few. Those therefore whom God passes by he reprobates, and that for no other cause that he is pleased to exclude them from the inheritance which he predestines to his children.
b) Faith – Not A Factor: God and not man decided who would be reprobated just as He decided who would be elected. And according to Calvinism, He did this without regard to the question of faith in Christ or the sinfulness of man. Therefore, Calvinistic Election says:
1) To The Unregenerate Elect, “Don’t Worry, you depravity is no obstacle to salvation,”
2) To The Unelect, “Too bad, you have not been predestined for salvation but damnation” & I am going to actively work to keep you in that state
Quoting John Calvin Again
By predestination we mean the eternal decree of God, by which he determined with himself whatever he wished would happen with regard to every man. All are not created on equal terms, but some are preordained to eternal life, others to eternal damnation; and, accordingly, as each has been created for one or the other of those ends, we say he is predestinated either to life or to death.”
It seems to me that in God judging the world that He’s holding people accountable for something that they should have done, or could have done or had the possibility to do but chose not to.
L – Limited Atonement – This is sometimes referred to as definite or particular atonement. That is to say that Christ died for some (i.e., the elect) and not for others (i.e., the unelect).
1. Logically, since Calvinists believe that God only intended to save the elect, only the elect would need Christ to die for them.
2. God never intended many in the world (i.e. the unelect) to be saved, they see ho reason or purpose fro Christ to die for them.
3. Therefore, what Christ did for the elect—providing the basis for salvation, including the propitiation for and forgiveness of sins—He did not do for the unelect; nor did He ever intend to.
a) Refuting Limited Atonement: John 1:29; 3:16; Luke 9:10; 2 Corinthians 5:19; 1 Tim 2:3-4; 2 Peter 3:9; 1 Jn 2:2; 4:14; Acts 17:30; Accountability: Matt 11:20-24
I – Irresistible Grace – According to Calvinism, the unregenerate elect cannot respond to the Gospel or appropriate by faith what Christ did for them on the cross. Therefore, God must also make provision for the elect, give them a new and spiritual birth (regeneration), and then give the newly regenerate person the faith to appropriate that provision. In other words, God’s grace is invincible; it never fails to result in the salvation of those to whom it is extended… God makes your will willing.
1. The Divine Tease
a) Make Them an Offer They Can’t Accept: Calvinistically speaking with regard to the unelect, we Christians are to “invite the unelect in” but they cannot accept that invitation… The rub is that:
1) While we are promising “salvation to all who repent and believe,” we are supposed to know that many of them cant and are not supposed to repent and believe.
As a bird with a broken wing is “free” to fly but not able, so the natural man is free to come to God but not able.
R.C.Sproul Says: The Calvinist view of predestination teaches that God actively intervenes in the live of the elect to make absolutely sure that they are saved… Of course the rest are invited to Christ and given the opportunity to be saved if they want to…
b) Can God’s Grace & Holy Spirit Be Resisted? Yes!
1) 2 Thessalonians 2:10 says, They perish because they refused to love the truth and so be saved
2) John 3:18: We are not condemned because we have no opportunity to be saved, but a person is condemned because he makes a choice not to believe.
3) In John 5:40 Jesus said, “But you are not willing to come to Me, that you may have life.”
4) Matthew 23:37; Jesus clearly acknowledges the fact of human resistance and rejection (John 12:46-48)
5) Clearly, God's grace can either be resisted or received by the exercise of human free will (Acts 7:51; Rom.10:21; Heb.10:26,29).
6) The unsaved are “without excuse” (Romans 1:20).
c) The Conclusion of Irresistible Grace: God appears to offer salvation to all—i.e., the general and outward call—but only intends to save some (the elect), and insures that the some He intends to save—without regard to the faith or willingness of the elect.
1) the elect cannot help but believe and be eventually saved &
2) the unelect cannot help but not believe and be ultimately damned.
P – Perseverance of the Saints – Those that are elect, God will cause to persevere to the end. A true believer will not fail to persevere because he cannot fail to persevere. The saved will persevere in holiness and faith to the end of their life on earth, thereby proving they are among the elect. Those who do not persevere in faith and holiness until the end have proved they were never saved and therefore not among the elect.
B. The Five Points of Arminianism
I – Election Based on Foreknowledge
1. 1 Peter 1:2 what does foreknowledge mean?
a) God Knew You Were Going To Get Saved So He Chose You: See how simple that is. It was His foreknowledge that is why He chose you. The problem of using this passage of Scripture on the term foreknowledge.
1) What Does Foreknowledge Mean? Foreknowledge means all of the knowledge that God possesses. Based on that He has made a decision or choice. Now is there room for including that He knew you were going to make that choice? O.K. there is a possibility, but this Scripture doesn’t limit itself to that. And this is where I believer the weakness of this theology comes in.
2) The Arminian comes to this passage and says, “God knew you were going to choose Him so He chose you. And that’s limiting the foreknowledge of God to one specific act about your life. I do not think this is what Peter had in mind here. It’s much broader than a specific thing God knew about me that would take place in my life. It is everything that He was wanting to do in this universe throughout all eternity. Instead if saying foreknowledge we could say the knowledge of God, because all of the knowledge of God is foreknowledge.
II – Unlimited Atonement—Jesus paid the sin debt of the world
III – Natural Inability – This relates to total depravity in Calvinism. Natural inability says, sin has come in and effected mankind but he still made in the image and likeness of God and has the ability as God’s Spirit would work on him to draw men into a relationship with God.
1. He cant do it on his own so it’s a natural inability, he cant determine to say, “I am going to seek God” because there is none who seek Him (Rom.3).
2. But if God by His Spirit convicts man and draws him, through the grace of God then he has the ability to respond to that. There is still something left in mankind of the image and likeness of God.
IV – Prevenient Grace – Grace that goes ahead of grace. This means that when Jesus died on the cross, there was a grace that was distributed to all of mankind. In one sense it didn’t overturn Adams sin upon us but, it elevated mankind to a point that now when he hears the gospel he actually has a choice. Because it’s a grace that goes ahead of saving grace.
V - Conditional Perseverance – Man could be lost. There is a possibility that he can lose his salvation. In Arminias’ writing he wasn’t really strong on that he spoke of it as a possibility. This is also where some people get messed up because they say that if you believe there is a possibility of losing your salvation then you must be an Arminianist. But what you have stressed here is mans will the ability to choose.
C. A Look at Total Depravity
When a Calvinist uses the term total depravity, they mean that man's nature is corrupt, perverse and evil, throughout. The word total is used to emphasize the fact of man's total being (not actions) has been affected by sin. It's not that a man can't do anything positive but the fact his body, soul and spirit has been corrupted by sin. Man is now totally unable to do anything spiritually good due to his inborn corruption. This fact predominantly relates to the fact man is not able to do anything pertaining to salvation. The natural man is completely unable to save himself or prepare himself for salvation because he is enslaved to sin, a child of the devil, rebellious towards God, and unable to comprehend spiritual truths. "In short, the unregenerate man is DEAD IN SIN, and his WILL IS ENSLAVED to his evil nature.
The truths of Scripture point out that man was not created in this state, but in the image and likeness of God. Adam was under no compulsion to do evil and there was no evil in his nature. But as he chose to disobey God spiritual death came upon him and all of his decedents. That one action hurled the entire human race into a state prohibiting them to be able to make correct choices in spiritual matters. Each man still has a will to make choices or correct responses, but that will is corrupted and does not have the ability to choose spiritual good over evil. This has caused man's will to be in bondage to his evil nature and is no longer free from the dominion of sin.
The Westminster Confession of Faith gives a clear and concise definition of this first point of Calvinism..
"Man by his fall into a state of sin, hath wholly lost all ability of will to any spiritual good accompanying salvation; so as a natural man, being altogether averse from good, and dead in sin, is not able, by his own strength, to convert himself, or to prepare himself thereunto."
Here Are The Points They Use To Prove It:
A. All men are born in sin and are by nature spiritually dead; therefore, there needs to be a new birth in order for man to become God's Child.
1. Adam was warned not to eat of the tree or there would be an immediate spiritual death (Gen. 2:16-17).
2. Adam willfully disobeyed this direct command and ate (Gen. 3:1-7) and brought spiritual death, not only upon himself but upon the entire human race.
3. David confessed that he and all other men were born in sin.
a. Psalm 51:5
b. Psalm 14:1-3, 53:1-3
4. Since all men are born in sin and spiritually dead they must be born again.
John 1:12-13, 3:3; Romans 3:23; Isaiah 59:1-2
B. The fall has caused men to be blind and deaf to spiritual truth, their minds are darkened by sin and their hearts are evil.
· 1. Gen. 6:5 5. Mark 7:21-23 9. Eph. 4:17-19
· 2. Gen. 8:21 6. John 3:19 10. Eph. 5:8
· 3. Eccl. 9:3 7. Rom. 8:7-9 11. Titus 1:5
· 4. Jer. 17:9 8. 1 Cor. 2:14
C. Men are children of the devil and slaves to sin until they are regenerated by the Spirit of God.
· 1. Jn. 8:44 4. 1 Jn. 3:10 7. Rom. 6:20
· 2. Eph. 2:1-2 5. 1 Jn. 5:19 8. Titus 3:3
· 3. Eccl. 9:3 6. Jn. 8:34
D. This corruption of sin is universal and there are none who are righteous.
· 1. 2 Chron. 6:63 5. Prov. 20:9 9. Is. 64:6
· 2. Job 15:14-16 6. Eccl. 7:20 10. Rom. 3:9-12
· 3. Psalm 143:2 7. Eccl. 7:29 11. James 3:2, 8
· 4. Psalm 130:3 8. Is. 53:6 12. John 1:8, 10
What About Those Who Have Never Even Heard Of The Gospel Or The Name Of Jesus Christ?
When someone looks up into the heavens and sees the stars and says, “how did I get here, how did all of this get here, there must be a greater being than I who is all wise,” this is like coming up as alms before God, then the God of heaven will start putting in the heart of someone to go there and witness to this person (Acts 8:26).
This Is My Conclusion On the Matter
First of all, we must remember that when an evangelist says once you come to God He will right you name in the book of life, that is incorrect. Revelation says it has been written there before the foundation of the world.
1. Ephesians 1:5,9—first it does not start with man, but with God (1:9) He purpose in Himself. So, whatever you believe you need to start with God. God is not the responder of man, but man is the responder of God.
2. Romans 11:33-35; Deut 29:29; 2 Tim 1:9; 1 Peter 1:2; Rom 8:28-30.
We just do not have all of the knowledge to say this is why God did this.
