Acts 14:1
In Iconium they entered the synagogue of the Jews together, and spoke in such a manner that a large number of people believed, both of Jews and of Greeks.
Question: What was the “manner” in which Paul had spoken?
Answer: It did not refer to “cleverness of speech” since Paul himself stated: “For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel, not in cleverness of speech, so that the cross of Christ would not be made void.” (1st Corinthians 1:17) The reason why a large number of people believed was not because of cleverness of speech, but because Paul faithfully presented the Gospel, and the “power” of the Gospel (Romans 1:16), that is, the “living and active” word of God (Hebrews 4:12), through which we are made “born again” (1st Peter 1:23), did what the Bible says that it does, which is to deliver faith to those who hear it preached. Romans 10:17 states: “So faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ.”
In contrast, Calvinism teaches that the only way anyone can believe is if they were eternally drafted into an alleged, eternal flock of the Father, so that at the appointed time, they are preemptively regenerated and unilaterally made Born Again with Irresistible Grace in order to believe. Others are said to have been denied this (Preterition), and hence they are abandoned to their inherited depravity:
John Calvin: “Since the whole human race is blind and stubborn, those faults remain fixed in our nature until they are corrected by the grace of the Spirit, and that comes only from election. Two people may hear the same teaching together; yet one is willing to learn, and the other persists in his obstinacy. They do not differ in nature, but God illumines one and not the other.” (Acts: Calvin, Crossway Classic Commentaries, p.229, emphasis mine)
Acts 14:1 is a difficult passage for Calvinism because it makes the “large number of people” converted, a direct result of the “manner” in which Paul “spoke” the Gospel, rather than being a direct result of the Irresistible Grace of preemptive regeneration by unilateral and involuntary, secret new birth. Note how John Calvin suggests that what Paul “so spake” had nothing to do with the salvation of the large number of Jews and Greeks according to Acts 14:1:
John Calvin: “They knew that many people’s hearts were converted not so much by their voice but by the power of the Spirit; they were also undoubtedly reassured by this that they were being protected by God’s outstretched hand.” (Acts: Calvin, The Crossway Classic Commentaries, p.233, emphasis mine)
Calvinist, William MacDonald: “The Spirit of God accompanied the word with such power that a great number of Jews and Gentile proselytes accepted the Lord Jesus.” (Believer's Bible Commentary, p.1624, emphasis mine)
With “such power,” of course, that it included Irresistible Grace. That’s what they really mean.
Laurence Vance: “It is here that we see the real plan of salvation according to the Calvinistic system. If men are unable to believe on Jesus Christ, yet God has elected some to salvation and atoned for their sin, then the only way any of them can and will be saved is by quietly waiting for God to overpower their will so they can believe the Gospel.” (The Other Side of Calvinism, p.476)
Question: Would it make sense to say that Paul spoke in such a manner that it resulted in the Holy Spirit getting involved?
Answer: Calvin essentially contradicts Acts 14:1 and says that it had nothing to do with how they “so spake.”
John Calvin: “Too much honour would be paid to a mere mortal if it were said that he had power to regenerate us.” (Calvin’s New Testament Commentaries: Romans and Thessalonians, p.233, emphasis mine)
Man does not regenerate himself. That’s a diversionary tactic. Regeneration is performed by the Holy Spirit alone, and He does this for the believer. (Ephesians 1:13)
he Calvinistic paraphrase of Acts 14:1: “In Iconium they entered the synagogue of the Jews together, and [the Holy Spirit inwardly] spoke in such a manner that a large number of people [were regenerated and thus believed], both of Jews and of Greeks.”
John Calvin: “Certainly the human voice cannot by its own power penetrate the soul.” (Calvin’s New Testament Commentaries: Romans and Thessalonians, p.233, emphasis mine)
John Calvin: “The light of faith also is too exalted to be able to be conferred by man.” (Calvin’s New Testament Commentaries: Romans and Thessalonians, p.233, emphasis mine)
When the lost hears you preach the faith-producing Gospel (Romans 10:17), with their ears they may hear your voice, but in their heart, they feel Jesus knocking. (Revelation 3:20) Indeed, when you preach the supernatural Word of God, it certainly does penetrate the soul: “For the word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart.” (Hebrews 4:12)
Dave Hunt: “So spake? Isn’t that misleading? Calvinism says that the listener’s salvation had nothing to do with the apostles’ preaching but with God sovereignly regenerating and giving faith to believe. In hundreds of places the plain words of Scripture must be changed to accommodate a man-made theory.” (Debating Calvinism, p.315)
Acts 14:1 is yet another proof of how Calvinism is purely the product of human philosophy, founded upon the sovereignty speculations of those whose personal ideals trump the plain words of Scripture.
