Calvinism

In Sunday school, we are studying reformed theology, specifically the five points of Calvinism represented by the acronym TULIP.  My conversion to Calvinism began the summer before my junior year of college and was complete by the end of the following summer, with limited atonement being the last and most difficult pill to swallow; that was six years ago.  Now as I’m teaching my class about Calvinism and defending its five points, I find some of the things coming out of my mouth not sitting well with me anymore.  Maybe I swallowed the pills too quickly.  Let me make an aside.  I am still a five point Calvinist.  As a philosophical and theological system, it’s basically right.  However, on a more biblical and historical level, some nuance is required.  Here’s what I mean.  The problem I have is with how we understand covenant and election.  Who does the Bible include under the label “elect”?  Traditionally, the elect are those unconditionally chosen by God, for whom Christ died, to whom life is given by the Spirit, and whom God will preserve to the end.  Calvinism is a theological system that is rigid and makes a lot of sense.  My contention, though, is that the Bible is less rigid and more historical when it speaks concerning “the elect”.  That is, the church is the elect; this entity which exists in time and space, made up of baptized people.  This historical community is what the Bible calls the body of Christ, for whom Christ died, who received a measure of grace from the Spirit, and ultimately made up of some who will not persevere to the end.  This, I believe, is a more biblical view of the church.  Rather than ignoring the covenant community for the sake of “the elect”, it defines the elect in terms of the covenant.  This is just a brief summary of my thinking.  A lot more could be said.  I will try to post other relevant materials in the future.