John Calvin stated that "the word of the Lord is the only seed of spiritual regeneration." Let's see what kind of word Calvin is actually talking about. He says, "we deny the power of God cannot regenerate infants," which I agree, but not in the way he means, for baptism of infants does not save them, nor does being born into a Christian family. Rather, because ALL children have not reached the age of accountability, not just Calvinist children. He affirms, "faith, cometh by hearing, the use of which infants have not yet obtained" so Calvin assumes they are saved in another way, "not that where the apostle makes hearing the beginning of faith, he is...not laying down an invariable rule..."

A child baptized or not (who dare call this real baptism!?) has not even begun to possess what Calvin admits is "the only seed of spiritual regeneration." As a devout Roman Catholic, Calvin retained throughout his life this unbiblical view of baptism that he learned from Augustine. As a result of that error, baptism became a substitute for faith in Christ through the gospel, which Christ and His apostles declare so plainly is the essential to salvation or the new birth. His own baptism as an infant was the only "born again" experience we know of for John Calvin. According to Scriptures this is not the new birth for receiving eternal life.

Calvin's unbiblical ideas led to this astonishing heresy: children of believers are automatically among the elect and thus already regenerated from the womb. That false assurance has probably led multitudes astray! Millions are baptised (falsely), confirmed (falsely), married (falsely), and buried (falsely) by state churches, and that is all they know of God and Christ. Listen to Calvin:
The children of believers are not baptised in order that...they may then, for the first time, become children of God, but rather are received into the Church by a formal sign, because in virtue of that promise, they previously belonged to the body of Christ."
Is it not very strange the phrase "perseverance of the saints" by works rather than "preservation of the saints" by the "keeping power of God." A Calvinist declares, "the children of believers, as long as they do not manifest the contrary, are to be reckoned among God's elect." Behavior rather than faith in Christ becomes a Calvinist's assurance of salvation-a deadly error, considering the undeniable capacity of the unsaved to live seemingly good lives.

It gets weirder. If a child of one of the "elect" is by that fact alone also among the elect, then his or her children would also be among the elect, and grandchildren and so on. Is this not a logical conclusion? Why don't leading Calvinists today, instead of praising Calvin's Institutes, warn of this error?

Why should a Calvinist child who reaches the age of accountability need to concern himself with the gospel, for he has been declared to be one of the elect anyway? What need is there even to preach the gospel since the non-elect can't believe it and the elect are regenerated without it? Calvin managed to rationalize this problem in his interpretation of John 1.13 and James 1.18:
Faith...is the fruit of spiritual regeneration; for the Evangelist [of Calvinism] affirms that no man can believe, unless he is begotten of God.... No man can believe who has not been renewed [reborn in Calvinism] by the Spirit of the God [of Calvinism].
John 1.13 says "who were born, not of blood [physically] nor the will of the flesh [human passion] nor the will of man [man's planning], but of God [it is God's idea]" and James 1.18 reads, "of his own will [God does it] he brought us forth [He effects it] by the word of truth that we should be a kind of first fruits of his creatures." God does the saving, not man, is the essence of these two verses, but the condition is placed before man (John 1.12): "But to all who receive him, who believed in his name, he gave power to be children of God."

Nothing in James or John teaches according to Calvinism that "non man can believe, unless he be begotten of God." Rather, it is through believing "the word of truth" that one is regenerated. Receiving Christ and believing on His name are required by God for Him to regenerate the sinner. This is how God has designed His creation and provided man made in His image the enabling opportunity for all, whosoever is willing, to be saved through His redemptive design which sadly, the Calvinist rejects for a cultic atmosphere and puffed up idolatry teaching to self-exalt themselves above God of the Bible.

Is a person saved if they assume they are regenerated as Institutes teaches which "precedes faith" of the Calvinism-type? Of course not, for where is the humility in coming to the cross as helpless sinners to receive the Lord Jesus as Savior? It is the belief in total depravity that keeps one from accepting Christ; or to put it another way, it is is the unwillingness to receive Christ authentically that one incorporates the teaching of total depravity. Total depravity does not exist in Scripture, for the Bible teaches we all remain in God's image after the fall. Amen.