This is declaring only God has a say about one's eternal destination. "However, God would not have chosen blatant sinners to be his elect" (The Pilgrim's Religious Beliefs). Predestination was a key belief in Puritanism.
Puritans basic beliefs form an acronym known as "TULIP" (Reuben 1). "This stands for total depravity, unconditional election, limited atonement, irresistible grace, and perseverance of the saints" (Mendolia). "Total Depravity means through Adam and Eve's fall, every person is born sinful" (Reuben 1). This means that every person is born sinful by nature. "Unconditional Election is that God saves those He wishes" (Reuben 1). So this means that God chooses those He wants. It is completely up to him and the elected have nothing to do with it. Limited Atonement means that Jesus died for the chosen only, he did not die for everyone (1). This again states that he only cares for a select few. "Irresistible Grace is God's grace is freely given, it cannot be earned or denied. Grace is defined as the saving and transfiguring power of God" (1). This means that we do not have a choice when it comes to God's grace. "Perseverance of the saints is those elected by God have full power to interpret the will of God and to live uprightly" (1). Only the elect have the power to please God. The Puritans belief system is based on TULIP.
The Puritans had four main convictions for English reformation. "Personal salvation was entirely from God and the Bible provided the indispensable guide to life, that the church should reflect the express teaching of scripture, and that society was one unified whole" (Elwell p.898). This showed that humankind was dependent on God for salvation and that God gave the bible as a guide for people to learn how to live together. .
Puritans had several covenants or contracts with God. The three main covenants were the Covenant of Works, Covenant of Grace, and the Covenant of Redemption.
