Famous Calvinists Of The Past & Present
(Teachers & Preachers Of The Bible Doctrines Of Election & Predestination)
Introduction
In this article we have catalogued the names of many famous Calvinists – Christians who believed and taught the five points of Calvinism, abbreviated as T.U.L.I.P. and also known as “The Doctrines Of Grace”. One important point we wish to make in this article is that all these godly and scholarly Bible teachers believed that what is known today as Calvinism, was and is in fact the true Gospel, the true teachings of the Bible regarding election, predestination and the sovereignty of God in salvation. And their views on these doctrines were the accepted views of what was considered “orthodox” – as compared to “unorthodox” or heretical – teaching regarding salvation. It is only in the past 150 years or so, and most predominently in the past 50 to 100 years, that the opposing view (Arminianism, also known as the “Free-Will” gospel) has spread like wildfire in the churches to the point where Calvinism is now considered heresy by many professing Christian teachers and preachers. It was Arminianism and the free-will gospel that was once called heresy and labeled such at the Synod of Dort back in 1618. Things have greatly changed in the Church in 400 years. — RM Kane
T – U – L – I – P (The 5 Points Of Calvinism) Summarized
T stands for Total Depravity
U stands for Unconditional Election
L stands for Limited Atonement (also known as Particular Redemption)
I stands for Irresistable Grace
P stands for Perseverance Of the Saints (also known as Preservation Of The Saints)
Please check out our material on Predestination & Free Will for some extremely insightful articles and Bible studies on these intriguing and controversial subjects.
Famous Calvinists Of The Past:
- Arthur W. Pink: 1886-1952 (Bible teacher, theologian and author of “The Sovereignty Of God” and other excellent books)
- Augustus Toplady: 1740-1778 (author of “Rock Of Ages” and other hymns)
- B. B. Warfield: 1851–1921 (principal of the Princeton Theological Seminary)
- Benjamin Keach: 1640-1704 (primary author of the 1689 Baptist Confession)
- Loraine Boettner: 1901-1990 (author of “The Reformed Doctrine Of Predestination”)
- B.H. Carroll: 1843-1914 (founder South Western Theological Seminary)
- Charles Hodge: 1797–1878 (Presbyterian theologian and principal of Princeton Theological Seminary)
- Charles Spurgeon: 1834-1892 (famous Baptist preacher in England)
- Cornelius Van Til: 1895–1987 (Christian philosopher and Reformed theologian at Westminster Theological Seminary)
- Francis Schaeffer: 1912-1984 (author of “How Shall We Then Live” video series)
- George Mueller: 1805-1898 (Christian evangelist and orphanage director)
- George Whitefield:1714-1770 (evangelist, preacher and one of the founders of Methodism)
- Isaac Watts: 1674–1748 (hymn writer, theologian, pastor)
- J.C. Ryle: 1816-1900 (writer, pastor, evangelical preacher)
- J.P. Boyce: 1827-1888 (founder Southern Baptist Theological Seminary)
- John Bunyan: 1628-1688 (author of Pilgrim’s Progress)
- John Calvin: 1509-1564 (preacher & Bible scholar)
- John Gresham Machen: 1881–1937 (American Presbyterian theologian at Princeton Seminary, founded the Orthodox Presbyterian Church, founded Westminster Theological Seminary)
- John L. Dagg: 1794-1884 (Baptist theologian)
- John Foxe: 1516-1587 (author of Foxe’s Book Of Martyrs)
- John Gill: 1697-1771 (renowned theologian and Bible commentary author)
- John Knox: 1513-1572 (founder of Presbyterianism)
- John Newton: 1725-1807 (wrote the hymn “Amazing Grace”)
- John Owen: 1616-1683 (theologian and author)
- Jonathan Edwards: 1703-1758 (evangelist, preacher, author of “Sinners In The Hands Of An Angry God”)
- Martyn Lloyd-Jones: 1834-1892 (pastor and theologian)
- Martin Luther: 1483-1546 (Protestant Reformer)
- Matthew Henry: 1662-1712 (famous Bible commentary author)
- Roger Williams: 1603-1683 (founded the first Baptist church in America)
- Ulrich Zwingli: 1484–1531 (a leader of the Protestant Reformation in Switzerland)
- William Carey: 1761-1834 (missionary to India)
- William Wilberforce: 1759-1833 (slavery abolitionist in England)
- Zacharias Ursinus: 1534–1583 (Reformed theologian in Germany)
Click HERE to see our list of quotes by famous Calvinist preachers and teachers.
Contemporary Famous Calvinists:
- D.A. Carson – Distinguished Emeritus Professor of New Testament at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School and president and co-founder of the Gospel Coalition
- D. James Kennedy – Presbyterian pastor, evangelist, Christian broadcaster, author and former pastor of Coral Ridge Presbyterian Church in Fort Lauderdale, FL
- J.I. Packer – evangelical theologian, cleric and writer in the low-church Anglican and Calvinist traditions
- James Montgomery Boice – Reformed theologian, author, speaker and pastor of Tenth Presbyterian Church in Philadelphia, PA
- James White – Baptist theologian and the director of Alpha and Omega Ministries in Phoenix, AZ
- John F. MacArthur – pastor of Grace Community Church of Sun Valley, CA, president of Master’s Seminary and founder of Grace To You ministry
- Joshua Harris – pastor of Covenant Life Church, the founding church of Sovereign Grace Ministries, in Gaithersburg, MD
- Albert Mohler – evangelical theologian and the ninth president of The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, KY
- R.C. Sproul – Reformed theologian, pastor in the Presbyterian Church in America, founder and chairman of Ligonier Ministries
- Steve Lawson – pastor of Trinity Bible Church of Dallas and founder of One Passion Ministries
- Voddie Bauchham – pastor, author, educator and Dean of Theology at African Christian University in Lusaka, Zambia
- Wayne Grudem – author and professor of theology and biblical studies at Phoenix Seminary in Phoenix, AZ
Preachers Guilty Of Greatly Spreading The False “Free Will” Gospel:
- Bill Bright – founder of Campus Crusade for Christ ministry
- Billy Graham – founder of Billy Graham Evangelistic Association
- Charles Finney – Presbyterian minister and leader in the Second Great Awakening movement in the U.S.
- Dwight L. Moody – founder of Moody Bible Institute
- Chuck Colson – founder of Prison Fellowship ministry
- Chuck Smith – founded the Calvary Chapel movement
- Dave Hunt – Christian apologist, author, speaker, radio commentator and producer of “The Berean Call” newsletter
- David Cloud – founder and director of Way of Life Literature ministry
- your pastor perhaps?[1]
[1] – most preachers nowadays preach free-willism
VIDEO: Calvinism Is The Gospel
by Jerry Johnson
Additional notes about Calvinism:
- What Is Neo-Calvinism?
Neo-Calvinism is a form of Calvinism initiated by the Dutch theologian Abraham Kuyper.
- What Is New-Calvinism?
New Calvinism is not so much a belief as it is a movement. New Calvinists believe in the five points of Calvinism. It is just that they are also accepting of things that many Calvinists have not historically embraced and that includes the “sign gifts”, such as speaking in tongues. For example, there is a group called “Sovereign Grace Ministries” that falls into this category. New Calvinists tend NOT to adhere as strictly to the Three Forms of Unity and other Reformed confessions of faith as do traditional Calvinists.
- What Is Hyper-Calvinism?
While there are various opinions on what constitutes Hyper-Calvinism, most calvinists would define the term hyper-calvinism to mean the belief that there is no need to preach to anyone in order for a person to be saved by God and that salvation is entirely an act of God, even apart from a preacher. However this belief is erroneous in light of Romans 10:14 and other Bible passages. See our article about Primitive Baptists – True Hyper-Calvinists for a more in-depth discussion of hyper-calvinism and why it is most definitely unbiblical.
Is True Biblical Salvation Synergistic Or Monergistic?
The true Gospel of salvation in Jesus Christ is monergistic. As scripture says in Jonah 2:9 “Salvation is of the Lord”. True salvation does not require the spiritually dead sinner to do anything. God regenerates without the sinner’s cooperation or acceptance or participation of any kind whatsoever. This type of salvation is “one-way” (where only one party – God – is at work) therefore it is referred to as monergistic, with God being the AUTHOR and FINISHER of our faith. This view is in stark contrast to a two-way salvation (God doing His part and man supposedly doing his part), which is a synergistic – and unbiblical though very popular – view. If a person ever truly comes to God, the God of the bible, it is because GOD has already taken out their heart of stone and given them a heart of flesh (Ezekiel 36:26-27).
Related Material On Calvinism, Election, Predestination & Free-Will:
- Video: Does God Love Everyone? by Robert Morey
- Video: Short Sermon On Election by John MacArthur
- Monergism Vs. Synergism — Which View Is Correct?
- Ages Software’s Reformed books on CD-ROM
- Answers to Arminian Arguments
- Arthur Pink’s book “The Sovereignty Of God” on-line
- Other articles by Arthur Pink
- Arthur Pink Collection
- Doctrines of Grace Categorized Scripture List
- Greg Elmquist’s articles on election and predestination
- John Gill (a biography)
- Doctrines Of Grace Overview At BannerOfTruth.org
- Loraine Boettner articles on Calvinism, election, etc.”
- Various authors and articles pertaining to reformed theology