This fits Calvinism to a T. Interesting that you would post it (unless you have renounced Calvinism).
BUT THERE BE SOME THAT WOULD TROUBLE YOU
Surely many have been troubled by the question of whether they are one of the elect for salvation, or one of the elect for damnation. That would trouble simple souls, who would then have to take their eyes off Christ, and focus on themselves. Whether or not they merited salvation.
AND WOULD PERVERT THE GOSPEL OF CHRIST
TOTAL DEPRAVITY -- perverts the Gospel truth that sinners may be saved through the hearing of the Gospel under the convicting and convincing of the Holy Spirit..
No. Quite the opposite.
It is in agreement with scripture. Not the philosophy of people who think they save themselves by an act of their own will.
John 6:44 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.
Well, why not? According to those who worship their own free will all they have to do is hear someone preach and then start believing by an act of their own will. "Whosoever will" they love to quote.
But the Lord Jesus says the opposite here. The Lord Jesus actually teaches total depravity.
John 15:5 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 ye can do nothing.
When you say that the tenets of Calvinism are a perversion of the gospel you are actually arguing against the Lord Jesus Christ. You are arguing against scripture.
The TRUTH of the Gospel is that we are saved by Grace through Faith and not by our works. It is the Gift of God. Not an act of anyones will or good choices.
Just ask yourself a couple of simple questions. What was the CAUSE of me hearing that GREAT GOSPEL WORD that I needed JUST AT THE RIGHT MOMENT in order for me to Come to Christ and believe and be Saved?
What was the CAUSE of me CONTINUING to Abide in Christ and study and MAKE SURE of my Salvation that was PURELY THE GIFT OF GOD???
If your answer was "My free will and the goodness that is inside of me" then you need to continue to study. Maybe focus on Ephesians 1 for awhile and see if you come up with something.
PERSERVERANCE OF THE SAINTS
-- perverts the Gospel truth that we are kept by the power of God, and that our salvation is secure because Christ Himself is our salvation.
You must not understand what Perseverance of the Saints is. You just defined it and then said your own definition was a perversion of the Gospel.
Perseverance is given by God to the saints. It is by Gods Power that we are saved and it is by Gods Power that we stay saved.
Anything else would be a contradiction of Total Depravity. Which you also don't understand.
Not surprising since you don't seem to understand any of the tenets of Calvinism.
Or maybe you really do understand the tenets of Calvinism and what you REALLY don't like is that it attacks the myth that people can summon up the goodness inside of them to respond to God by an act of their own free will.
Keep studying Ephesians 1. I think you will begin to understand who you are arguing against when you call the 5 points of Calvinism a perversion of the Gospel.