Since you seem to be implying that you can consciously choose to believe things, perhaps you can help me. I have never been able to consciously choose any of the beliefs that I have and I would like to be able to do that, I wonder if you might explain how you do it. What do you do at the last moment to instantly change your one state of belief to another? What is it that you do that would allow you to say, "OK, at this moment I have a lack of belief that ‘x’ exists or is true, but I choose to believe that ‘x’ exists or is true and now instantly at this new moment I do believe that ‘x’ exists or is true?
Maybe you could use something like leprechauns to demonstrate your technique. According to the Encyclopedia Britannica, a leprechaun is "a fairy peculiar to Ireland, who appeared in the form of an old man of minute stature, wearing a cocked hat and a leather apron" and who stores away his gold in a pot at the end of a rainbow, and If ever captured has to grant three wishes to the person who captures him.
So, assuming that you don’t already have a belief in them, how about right now, while you are reading this, believe - be convinced without a doubt - that they exist. Now that you believe in leprechauns, my question is, how did you do it? How did you make the instantaneous transition from lack of belief to belief?
Calvinism is built on axioms, not exegesis.
Once the axioms are set (“Total inability,” “Irresistible grace” et cetera), every verse must be forced to fit them.
You’re defining belief as an instantaneous mental flip, as if faith were the ability to conjure conviction out of thin air. That is not what belief is. Scripture presents belief as assent to truth when confronted with evidence, conviction, and the illumination of the Spirit.
No one can “choose” to believe in leprechauns because there is no truth to respond to. But when the Spirit illuminates the gospel, a man can respond in faith.
Belief is not imagination; it is the will responding to truth. And Scripture consistently teaches that belief is a human act.
The Bible repeatedly commands people to:
Believe (John 3:16)
Repent (Acts 17:30)
Receive (John 1:12)
Come (Matthew 11:28)
Choose (Joshua 24:15)
This pattern is not isolated. It is woven throughout Scripture:
“Choose you this day whom ye will serve.” (Joshua 24:15)
“I have set before you life and death… therefore choose life.” (Deut. 30:19)
“Turn ye, turn ye from your evil ways.” (Ezek. 33:11)
“Come unto me.” (Matt. 11:28)
“Ye will not come to me, that ye might have life.” (John 5:40)
“Be ye reconciled to God.” (2 Cor. 5:20)
These commands only make sense if man can actually respond.
If belief cannot be consciously chosen, then:
God commands the impossible
Man is judged for what he cannot do
The gospel call is meaningless
Responsibility collapses
Moral agency disappears
This is why Calvinistic determinism always drifts toward fatalism.
It denies the very thing Scripture affirms, that man is a genuine moral agent who can respond to the truth when confronted with it.
