TULIP Christians

Second Timothy 3:16 says, “All Scripture is God-breathed [God-spoken] and is profitable for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness.” As I was growing up, my parents taught me the word of God, rebuked me when I did what was wrong, corrected me, and trained me in doing righteousness. And as a result, this is a church that preaches the gospel. Second Timothy 4:2 says, “Preach the Word!” No matter who preaches, we preach the word of God. A church that does not preach the word of God is a synagogue of Satan. Many churches do not preach the gospel. They exist only to entertain people and tell them how to make more money so that the preachers can get more money. We are not interested in more money here. We just give it away.

We were children of the devil (John 8:44). Now we are children of God. What a miracle! So we are going to preach about TULIP Christians. TULIP is Reformed theology summarized.

1. T Stands for Total Depravity

We were children of the devil. All people, all of Adam’s descendants except Jesus Christ, are, by nature, children of the devil. Whom you obey is your master. Adam and Eve obeyed the devil. We must know theology to understand this correctly.

T stands for total depravity. As we read in Romans 3:9–18:

What shall we conclude then? Are we any better? Not at all! We have already made the charge that Jews and Gentiles alike are all under sin. As it is written: “There is no one righteous, not even one; there is no one who understands, no one who seeks God. All have turned away, they have together become worthless [Pastor’s translation: garbage. And what do you do with garbage? Throw it out!]; there is no one who does good, not even one.” “Their throats are open graves; their tongues practice deceit.” “The poison of vipers is on their lips.” “Their mouths are full of cursing [cursing especially Jesus] and bitterness.” “Their feet are swift to shed blood; ruin and misery mark their ways, and the way of peace [the way of salvation] they do not know.” “There is no fear of God before their eyes.”

This is total depravity. All people sinned except Jesus Christ. What is the proof that Jesus never sinned? His resurrection from the dead.

2. U Stands for Unconditional Election

Election is on the basis of grace. Few people, by the will of God, are chosen from all the damned people to be children of God. In Romans 8:29 Paul begins, “For those God foreknew . . .”  “Foreknew” means “foreloved,” according to Professor John Murray. When did God foreknow us? In eternity past. That is why I do not worry, because God is for us. Unconditional election means God’s love. Paul continues, “He also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters.” Do you know that we will be like Jesus, our oldest brother? Glorification will bring about this miracle.

In Romans 9:13 we read, “Just as it is written: ‘Jacob I loved, but Esau I hated.’” Both were sinners, but only one was elect. I do not understand election, but I glory in it. We were children of the devil, but God chose us, a few people, to be children of God.

Few people are elect. But when these few people hear the gospel, they will believe it and will persevere to the end. Therefore, every person who walks away from a true church is eternally damned. Here we preach the true gospel. There are few churches throughout the world where you can hear the true gospel.

3. L Stands for Limited Atonement

Christ’s atoning death is limited to the elect. Few are elect, as we read in Matthew 7:13–14. The elect are people that God the Father gave to the Son to make atonement for them.

So what does limited atonement mean? Does it include the whole world of people?  No. First John 5:19 says, “We know we are children of God and the whole world is controlled by the devil.” Most people in the world are not elect.

So L stands for limited atonement. Christ’s atonement is limited to God’s elect. Jesus himself taught this. In John 17:2 he said, “For you granted him [the Son] authority over all people that he might give eternal life to all those you have given him.” In eternity past, God the Father gave us to the Son to save us. (PGM) We sinned, and he died. “The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord” (Rom. 6:23).

In John 17:6 Jesus said, “I have revealed you [the Father] to those whom you gave me out of the world. They were yours; you gave them to me, and they have obeyed your word.” Jesus Christ became the author of eternal salvation to all who obey him (Heb. 5:9). If you are not obedient to God, you are eternally damned. This is the true gospel. Jesus said God’s people have obeyed God’s word; the whole Scripture is God’s word.

In John 17:9 Jesus began, saying, “I pray for them.” What a blessing! Jesus Christ is praying for us, and the Father listens to his prayers. Additionally, he always prays in the will of God. If God is for us, who can be against us? So Jesus said, “I pray for them. I am not praying for the world, but for those you have given me, for they are yours.” When did we become the Father’s possession? In eternity past. And in John 17:24 he said, “Father, I want those you have given me to be with me where I am, and to see my glory, the glory you have given me because you loved me before the creation of the world.” When did the Father choose us? Before creation. In Jesus Christ, and we are given to him to redeem us, to make an atoning sacrifice.

Atonement is limited to the elect, not to the whole world. Many have witnessed to unsaved family members, but those relatives refuse to listen. They are eternally damned. There is election of those who receive eternal life and election of those who receive eternal damnation. It is called double election.

The elect are God’s gift to the Son. Election took place before the creation of the world. In Romans 9:13 we see this double election. Paul writes, “Just as it is written: ‘Jacob I loved, but Esau I hated.’” Esau and Jacob had the same father and mother, but only one was elect to eternal life. Most sinners receive wrath and destruction, but those who are elect will receive mercy and glory. In Matthew 25:46 we read about those who receive eternal life and those who receive eternal punishment. This is double election: election to hell and election to heaven. Make sure that you are elect to go to heaven, that you are elect to receive eternal life.

In Romans 9:22–24 we again read of this double election. Paul writes, “What if God, choosing to show his wrath and make his power known, bore with great patience the objects of his wrath—prepared for destruction [in eternal hell]? What if he did this to make the riches of his glory known to the objects of his mercy, whom he prepared in advance for glory.” Praise God! We who are elect will be glorified that we may dwell with God in the new heaven and new earth forever, where is no sin but only happiness and fellowship with God. Make your calling and election sure. The elect will believe in the gospel.

So we read, “What if he did this to make the riches of his glory known to the objects of his mercy, whom he prepared in advance for glory—even us, whom he also called, not only from the Jews but also from the Gentiles?” And in Romans 9:27 we read, “Isaiah cries out concerning Israel: ‘Though the number of the Israelites be like the sand by the sea, only a remnant will be saved.’” We are the remnant. We are saved. We are given eternal life. Hallelujah! Few are elect—the remnant. We may not make the most money, but we have eternal life.

4. I Stands for Irresistible Grace

We can resist God’s saving us, but in the end, God wins. He will touch our hip, as he did to Jacob in Genesis 32:35. Jacob was fighting with God, God touched Jacob’s hip, and all of a sudden, all resistance was over. Oh, we can resist, but God wins. Hallelujah. I stands for irresistible grace. God’s will be done.

Paul resisted God’s will at first. In 1 Timothy 1:15–16 Paul says, “Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners—of whom I am the worst. But for that very reason I was shown mercy so that in me, the worst of sinners, Christ Jesus might display his unlimited patience as an example for those who would believe on him and receive eternal life.” We are blessed people.

In Acts 9:1–9 we read about Paul’s resistance and Christ’s arresting him:

Meanwhile, Saul was still breathing out murderous threats against the Lord’s disciples. He went to the high priest and asked him for letters to the synagogues in Damascus, so that if he found any there who belonged to the Way, whether men or women, he might take them as prisoners to Jerusalem. As he neared Damascus on his journey, suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him. He fell to the ground and heard a voice say to him, “Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?” “Who are you, Lord?” Saul asked. “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting,” he replied. “Now get up and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do.” The men traveling with Saul stood there speechless; they heard the sound but did not see anyone. Saul got up from the ground, but when he opened his eyes he could see nothing. So they led him by the hand into Damascus. For three days he was blind, and did not eat or drink anything.

We can resist all we want, but God’s will must be done. So in Acts 9:22, 26 we read, “Saul grew more and more powerful and baffled the Jews living in Damascus by proving that Jesus is the Christ. . . . When he came to Jerusalem, he tried to join the disciples, but they were all afraid of him, not believing that he really was a disciple.”

5. P Stands for the Perseverance of the Saints

This is Reformed theology. The Bible teaches us that we gain perseverance through sufferings. In Romans 5:3–4 Paul writes, “Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope.” We do not like sufferings, but sufferings produce perseverance; perseverance produces character; and character produces hope of the glory of God.

What type of sufferings might we undergo? Paul tells us in 2 Corinthians 11:23–27 of some of the things he suffered:

I have worked much harder, been in prison more frequently, been flogged more severely, and been exposed to death again and again. Five times I received from the Jews the forty lashes minus one. Three times I was beaten with rods, once I was stoned, three times I was shipwrecked [oh, you don’t want suffering? It is going to come to you], I spent a night and a day in the open sea, I have been constantly on the move. I have been in danger from rivers, in danger from bandits, in danger from my own countrymen, in danger from Gentiles; in danger in the city, in danger in the country, in danger at sea; and in danger from false brothers [I can share danger from the false brothers. They pretended they were elect. They became damned. They went out of this church where the gospel is preached. False brothers]. I have labored and toiled and have often gone without sleep; I have known hunger and thirst and have often gone without food; I have been cold and naked.

Oh, you say that you do not like suffering? God does not ask our permission. He gives us what is good for us. In Hebrews 12:1 we read, “Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.” The Christian life is a race, and we do not take everything with us when we run. And in James 5:11 we read, “As you know, we consider blessed those who have persevered. You have heard of Job’s perseverance.”

I said we are TULIP Christians. If you are a TULIP Christian, rejoice! And if you have not trusted in Jesus, trust him today. “Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved” (Acts 4:12).

Good soil people are regenerate people. They will persevere in Christ’s church where the word of God is preached, and they will produce fruit—thirty, sixty, and hundredfold. They are the elect who receive eternal life., They are the elect, and they will be rich in good works of love.

God chose few to receive eternal life and many to receive eternal punishment. May we trust in Jesus Christ alone and be saved. Amen.