Calvinism's Claims About John 6


J.C. Thibodaux



  A passage of scripture commonly used to back up the 'Reformed' claims of unconditional eternal security and irresistible grace is John 6:37-39, 44-47, and 65. Frankly, I don't really see why many Calvinists consider this such a great proof-text for their doctrine. Let's look at the text itself.

"All that the Father giveth Me shall come to Me; and him that cometh to Me I will in no wise cast out. For I came down from heaven, not to do Mine own will, but the will of Him that sent Me. And this is the Father's will which hath sent Me, that of all which He hath given me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up again at the last day. And this is the will of Him that sent Me, that every one which seeth the Son, and believeth on Him, may have everlasting life: and I will raise him up at the last day." "...No man can come to Me, except the Father which hath sent Me draw him: and I will raise him up at the last day. It is written in the prophets, And they shall be all taught of God. Every man therefore that hath heard, and hath learned of the Father, cometh unto Me. Not that any man hath seen the Father, save he which is of God, he hath seen the Father. Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on Me hath everlasting life." ...And He said, "Therefore said I unto you, that no man can come unto Me, except it were given unto him of My Father."

John 6:37-39, 44-47, 65



  Clear so far. Calvinists will often pull this one out and throw it at other Christians like it's a doctrinal doomsday weapon and expect you to flee in stark terror at the supposed credibility it lends their doctrine. My general strategy is to sit there waiting for them to explain exactly how this passage is clear evidence for their claims. That's where it gets a bit sticky for them.


Claim 1: "All that the Father giveth Me shall come to Me..." and "It is written in the prophets, And they shall be all taught of God. Every man therefore that hath heard, and hath learned of the Father, cometh unto Me" are proof of Irresistible Grace and also imply Unconditional Election;

Hardly. These passage are simply saying that the chosen or 'elect' (those given to Christ) will come to Christ. Nothing in them indicates that that believers are irresistibly drawn to Christ, nor is any unconditionality or lack thereof in being given to Christ (elected) implied therein. Some would contend that God's knowledge of our conversion necessitates that it be irresistibly ordained by Him, else He could not know it for certain, but such an argument is clearly flawed. These portions of scripture are strong evidence for election, not unconditional election.


Claim 2: The saying "...him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out" is irrefutable proof of unconditional security

  Not even what the passage was addressing. Christ was saying that no matter who came to Him, such a person would not be rejected (whether woman, man, Jew, Gentile, slave, free, etc), which has been a consistent theme of the gospel message (see Romans 10:12, Galatians 3:28, Colossians 3:11). Further proof is in the fact that Christ Himself says a few chapters later that the casting out of those unfit for the kingdom is what God the Father does, not the Son.

"I am the true vine, and My Father is the husbandman [vinedresser]. Every branch in Me that beareth not fruit He taketh away: and every branch that beareth fruit, He purgeth it, that it may bring forth more fruit. Now you are clean through the word which I have spoken unto you. Abide in Me, and I in you, as the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in Me. I am the vine, ye are the branches: he that abideth in Me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without Me you can do nothing. If a man abide not in Me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered; and men gather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned. If ye abide in Me, and My words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you. Herein is My Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; so shall ye be My disciples. As the Father hath loved Me, so have I loved you: continue ye in My love. If ye keep My commandments, ye shall abide in My love; even as I have kept My Father's commandments, and abide in His love."

John 15:1-10



It is God the Father who casts out rebels and apostates, not Christ. So to say that Christ not casting anyone out is a guarantee of unconditional security is badly taking the Lord's words out of context.


Claim 3: "And this is the Father's will which hath sent Me, that of all which He hath given me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up again at the last day. And this is the will of Him that sent Me, that every one which seeth the Son, and believeth on Him, may have everlasting life: and I will raise him up at the last day." is proof that God will not allow His elect to fall away

  Notice the passage does not say that God will not allow His chosen to fall away, but that He does not will for it to happen. Accepting the Calvinist model of unconditional security from this passage requires that one accept their model of determinism (i.e., nothing can go against the will of God, effectively eliminating free will). But the scriptures indicate something different altogether. Is it possible to violate the will of God? Depends on what you mean. Some things that God has ordained are obviously immutable. For instance, no matter the efforts of men or angels, Christ's words will never pass away (Matthew 24:35, Mark 13:31, Luke 21:33). That is an immutable point of God's decree that is unaffected by men's choices or actions. At other times, there are examples the Bible gives of men violating the will of God directly. Note that they can violate them not because God is unable to stop them, but because He grants us a measure of free will to exercise within the confines of what He will accept. Some notable examples are:

The Pharisees rejecting God's will for them.
"But the Pharisees and lawyers rejected the counsel [will] of God against themselves, being not baptized of him [John]."

Luke 7:30



Jerusalem's rejection of Christ, contrary to the will of God.
"Jerusalem, Jerusalem, which killest the prophets, and stonest them that are sent unto thee; how often would I have gathered thy children together, as a hen doth gather her brood under her wings, and ye would not!"

Luke 13:34



In a similar vein:
Oh that My people had hearkened unto Me, [and] Israel had walked in My ways!

Psalm 81:13



"...But the thing that David had done displeased the LORD."

2 Samuel 11:27



It is rather difficult to imagine God being displeased by anything if everything that happens is His perfect will, yet people have done it many times (see also, Genesis 38:10, Numbers 11:1, Zechariah 1:2). The only possible solution then is that human actions are confined to God's acceptable will (what God is willing to accept), but do not always conform to His perfect will (what God ideally wants). Another good example from the New Testament comes from 1 Thessalonians:

"For this is the will of God, [even] your sanctification, that ye should abstain from fornication..."

1 Thessalonians 4:3


I think it would be a very difficult case to argue that no person who has previously been redeemed has ever committed fornication. Though it is directly contrary to the will of God, men in their stubbornness do so anyway. And yes, before you go flipping through your Strong's, the word for 'will' in 1 Thessalonians 4:3 is the same word used for 'will' in John 6 ('thelema'). There is then, no evidence from the passage in question that the perseverance of the saints is an immutable decree from God, especially with so many warnings against apostasy (Hebrews 6:4-7, Revelation 22:19, Romans 11:16-22, etc).


Claim 4: The sayings, "No man can come to Me, except the Father which hath sent Me draw him" and "...no man can come unto Me, except it were given unto him of My Father." are proof that men do not have free will as far as salvation is concerned

  Actually, it is only evidence that free will is limited. The fact that men are naturally depraved and cannot believe the truth about Jesus Christ without being drawn by God the Father is not incompatible with the idea of free will. It is true that we cannot simply choose to follow Christ of our own accord, for it is impossible to believe unless we hear the word of God and are drawn by Him. This blows ideas like unlimited free will and Pelagianism right out of the water, but is no evidence that men cannot exercise free will in such ways as:



  When going after doctrinally inept evangelicals who have never studied, much less understood the doctrines of election and predestination, this passage might seem like a real zinger (which it is, if you believe in things like unlimited free will or do not believe in predestination). But for those who have read and understood the Biblical doctrines of limited free will, election according to foreknowledge, and conditional security, it is simply another piece of the Bible's consistent teaching on salvation.


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