An Evangelistic Five Point Calvinist is Possible
Posted by John L. Rothra on March 11, 2009 under Theology | 
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George Whitefield: Calvinistic evangelist during the First Great Awakening
A few months ago I was talking to a fellow student at seminary about the ongoing debate over Calvinism and its relationship to evangelism. Last fall a conference was held in order to discuss this very question. As we talked, my friend told me that an evangelistic five point Calvinist is uncommon. Without doing in-depth research, it is hard to say if he is factually correct, but his view does reflect what I believe is a very common perception: a five point Calvinist cannot be evangelistic. The very phrase is an oxymoron!
Before addressing this perception, I must briefly explain what this all means. Five point Calvinists accept all five doctrines expressed in the acronym TULIP: Total depravity, Unconditional election, Limited atonement, Irresistible grace, and Perseverance of the saints. To be evangelistic means to support and strive to actively practice personal evangelism. For many, it is inconceivable that someone who believes in unconditional election, limited atonement, and irresistible grace can be evangelistic since the two seem incompatible.
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