What is generalism?

The general 'call' or invitation by the gospel, in contradistinction from those that are 'chosen.' Matt. 20:16; Matt. 22:14.

The doctrine you refer to is widely spread enough. Zwingle held it, all the Wesleyans hold it, and most of the national professors of Christianity. But it is founded on a want of depth and truth in the foundations, denying that we are all lost. The best answer is the very plain statements in the Epistle to the Romans, though these are confirmed by many others. But there is always a want of conviction of sin in these cases; man is not lost, not dead in trespasses and sins, and that is, I am not; for if I have deserved condemnation, it is no difficulty to think we all have. Hence grace, sin, the Lord's death, all lose their import and value; and the real way of meeting it morally is to deal with the conscience of the individual. "So to live that he might be saved" at once shews ignorance of the ways of God in grace — in fact of the gospel — as regards Christ's work.

Another truth enunciated in this type is, that salvation must be an individual, personal matter; between the soul and God. Every man has to bring his own half shekel. One of the devices of Satan at the present day--and it is spread far and wide--is the way in which he obscures this truth, by inducing whole communities to believe they are Christians; made such, either by baptism, or by some formal profession of religiousness; and placing, in the lips of thousands, "Our Saviour," and "Our Father"; and thus beguiling them into the thought that they are included in a general redemption of mankind, which affects the whole human race. Constantly, therefore, in speaking to persons, we find the reply: O yes, we are all sinners: and Christ has died for us all.

The reason Christians feel a difficulty as to the doctrine of election to eternal life, is because they do not see the extent of the fall of man, and his utterly lost condition. Were it not for election, and the prevailing grace that follows it, not one would be saved. Christ died for all, and the gospel is proclaimed to all, Rom. 3:22; Heb. 2:9; but alas, except for the election and grace of God, none would respond. Luke 14:18. God must have all the glory.

It is this principle which renders the Gospel of John so different from the other three, for it begins with the universal rejection of Christ, and must then proceed to present Christ in relation to the elect. Yet no one affirms more fully and boldly Christ being for the whole world than John; for election does not mean that there is not as full a provision made for those who are lost as for those who are saved; nor does it mean that salvation is not as free to the one as to the other; neither that the lost are not as responsible to repent and believe the gospel as the saved; it means, as already said, that when man had set at naught all that infinite love could do and had done for him, God had further resources of grace for the fulfilment of His purposes and the filling up of His house.

First, this election is not merely arbitrary, as though God was choosing one to be blessed, another to be cursed, without proper knowledge of all the issues involved. For it is 'according to the foreknowledge of God the Father.' Election is not merely foreknowledge, but it is consistent with the fact of God's foreknowledge. Does this not involve His previous knowledge of the entire future, of the persons so chosen, and of everything concerning them? We have no such knowledge, and we must give Him credit for a wisdom and love that has taken into full consideration all of these things beforehand, so that there is no possibility of mistake. It is not therefore any matter of heartless ignoring of those who are not among the elect. For the message of Divine grace is sent in good faith to all mankind: 'For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.' John 3:16. There is no right reason why every soul under Heaven should not repent and believe the Gospel. One cannot dare to say that because he was not one of the elect, therefore he could not repent: for the real fact is, not that men could not repent, but that they would not. Consider Matthew 23:27.

Some will be saying, "This is not right doctrine." But look at 2 Thess. 2:13 — "We are bound to give thanks to God always for you, brethren, beloved of the Lord, because God has from the beginning chosen you to salvation through sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth." This is the divine and human side of the effect — namely, of God's having chosen you to salvation. It is not a question of you "brethren, who love the Lord," but of "brethren beloved of the Lord." "God has from the beginning chosen you to salvation." Now you will say, "There is election coming in — that dreadful thing election. You don't believe that Christ died for all?" Indeed I do, because God says so. "Then what is election?" It is a family secret, and you must be in the family of God to understand it.

There is a continual tendency in the different classes, even of believers in Christendom, to ignore one or other of these truths. Take for instance those zealous that the gospel go out to every creature. It is notorious that most of these habitually deny God's special favour to the elect. They overlook or pare down any positive difference on God's part toward His own children. They hold that a man throughout his course may be a child of God to-day and not to-morrow. This destroys substitution. They hold propitiation, and there they are right, and quite justified in preaching the gospel unrestrictedly to every creature, as the Lord indeed enjoined. But how their one-sidedness enfeebles the proper portion of the saints! They cannot but reduce to a minimum the rich unfoldings of divine love in the settled relationships of faith, as He has revealed in the apostolic Epistles generally, whence they try to cull out appeals to the unconverted, or attenuate what is meant for God's children, if they do not dangerously extend their privileges to the unsaved.

What a pity to fall under these systems of men, as one may call the peculiarities of Calvinists or Arminians! For one only blames their peculiarities, not the truth which they hold as Christians. There are dear saints of God among both; but they both suffer not a little, from the Arminian not giving sufficient glory to God's grace in life eternal, and from the Calvinist not leaving sufficient value to communion, which is often followed by uncertainty about his own election. As one of them said, "If you do not doubt about yourself, I doubt about you." Their tendency is to slur their sins or to set up a school of doubt. It was a pious man who so spoke, and he wrote many hymns; and I can but hope the hymns are better than the doctrine. For such doubting is abominable, unworthy not only of a Christian but of Christ still more. It practically denies the gospel, which proclaims salvation by God's grace, and calls for our peaceful enjoyment of it. Hence in point of fact Calvinists generally, though with bright exceptions, are weak as to the gospel. They are occupied with election, rather than with God's love to the world, to say nothing of the provision of grace for their own souls. Election has a too absorbing place in their creed, which makes it a sort of servant-of-all-work. But all this falls miserably short of God's grace and truth. In Christ there is room for everything true that both Calvinists and Arminians hold, and for a good deal more which neither holds. It is a pity that saints of God do not drop these partial schemes of doctrine, cleaving only to God's revelation, accepting it wholly, and eschewing every substitute for it. Christianity has ample room for the widest feeling and for the soundest judgment, and in short for everything that faith is bound to receive from God, or that love is free to achieve for His glory.

"There is a continual tendency in the different classes, even of believers in Christendom, to ignore one or other of these truths. Take for instance those zealous that the gospel go out to every creature. It is notorious that most of these deny God's special favor to the elect. They overlook or pare down any positive difference on God's part toward His own children. They hold that a man throughout his course may be a child of God today and not tomorrow. This destroys substitution [seen in the live goat led away]. They hold propitiation [seen in the blood of the other goat as presented before God], and there they are right, and quite justified in preaching the gospel unrestrictedly to every creature, as the Lord indeed enjoined, But how their one-sidedness enfeebles the proper portion of the saints!