Making A Distinction

 

The Unconditional Grace Paradigm

This paradigm teaches that humans are incapable of accepting the message of God's grace because we are born wholly inclined to do evil. That God has arbitrarily preselected certain individuals to receive His grace. That God send the Holy Spirit to reprogram the hearts of those individuals whom God has preselected.

This paradigm makes the believer completely dependant upon whether God has preselected him or her. The believer can not even become a genuine believer unless they have been preselected.

The authority paradigm teaches that God has preselected Jesus as the vehicle through which believers are transported to the predetermined destination of heaven. Just as airlines predetermine destinations for their airplanes and just as most airline passengers are incapable of flying the airplane or bringing it safely to its destination, so also the believer is dependant upon Gd.

The authority paradigm teaches that just as Joshua did not earn or merit the fall of Jericho's walls and just as Naaman did not earn or merit the cleansing of his leprosy that the believer is also incapable of effecting his own salvation. God gave Joshua and Naaman the mighty deed which God did on their behalf as a free gift from Him because they were submissive. In like manner, God gives the believer all spiritual blessings in Christ Jesus as a gift if they are submissive to God's will and authority. To learn more about this aspect of the Authority Paradigm visit the "Salvation Is For All" webpage

Examples of the Unconditional Grace Paradigm include
All Calvinist Groups including the Reformed Denominations and the Presbyterian Denominations.

Back to Other Paradigms.