Does your church teach the doctrine of Total Depravity? The idea that you (and every other human being) is so totally depraved that we do not have the ability to choose to do good - including the inability to choose God's gift of salvation?
If so then, whether your church publicly acknowledges it or not, it is basing its theology (understanding of God) on Calvinism. And the theory of Total Depravity is the foundation on which the rest of Calvin's theology is built. If Total Depravity is true, then the rest of the TULIP acronym falls into place.
However, the theory of Total Depravity is not a biblical or a Christian belief. It has its roots in Gnosticism which was rejected by the early church. The Gnostics believed the flesh was inherently evil and denied that Jesus was truly human. This teaching was rejected by the earliest Christ-followers as heresy.
#1: It wasn't until Augustine, who was heavily influenced by Gnosticism, that the idea of Total Depravity made its way into accepted 'Christian thinking' about 500 years ago. John Calvin then developed Augustine's theories even further - devising a theology that completely strayed from what Jesus, the disciples and the early church fathers taught.
#2: Christ's humanity - if human beings are totally depraved by nature from birth this would mean that Jesus was totally depraved and sinful - which was obviously not the case. And, if we have a 'totally depraved' nature and Jesus did not then He was not actually like us in every way which directly contradicts Heb 2:17. Further, if someone claims that Jesus did not have the same nature as us, if they deny any part of His humanity, then they are promoting anti-Christ teaching according to 2 John 1:7.
#3: The theory of total depravity elevated man by excusing his sin - if we are incapable of choosing good then it logically follows that we cannot be justly held responsible for our evil. We choose to be sinners through our actions. The Calvinist view teaches that God makes people evil with no ability to do good, and then punishes them for being that way!
Consider the opposite of total depravity. What if we are not totally incapable but totally capable? Consider the implications...this is a much lower view of man because it means we are literally without excuse.
As a result, as followers of Jesus, we must completely reject the concept of Total Depravity just like the earliest Christians did. It should have no place in 'Christian thinking' as it is not Biblical. And, if Total Depravity is not true then, because Calvinism is built on human logic, the rest of Calvin's theories crumble.
If, as Jesus, his disciples and the earliest Christians taught, we are able to choose between good and evil and are able to accept God's gift of salvation then this means that it is not all up to God. God extends the gift with outstretched arms, it is up to us to reach out and accept it.
http://lhim.org/blog/2014/02/06/three-arguments-against-total-depravity/#comment-1126212
