In Acts 19:9 Luke records that "some became stubborn and continued in unbelief, speaking evil of the Way before the congregation."  The context is Paul's preaching in the synagogue of the Jews in Ephesus.  Paul had just seen the power of God fall on the disciples of John the Baptist (Acts 19:1-7) and now he is heading into the Jewish synagogue to reason with them about Jesus being the Messiah and the way of salvation (Romans 10:1-4).

And yet I find it interesting that Acts 19:9 says that some of the Jews were stubborn and would not believe the gospel.  Acts 19:8 says that Paul was speaking boldly, reasoning and persuading them about the kingdom of God.  And yet despite Paul's great abilities, Luke records that some of the Jews were stubborn and remained in their unbelief.

Calvinism holds that these Jews would have been predestined for such unbelief.  Calvinists theologians point to passages such as Romans 9:11-13 or Romans 9:18 as proof texts that God is sovereign in salvation and He alone chooses who will be saved and He passes over the non-elect.  Some Calvinists even teach that God doesn't just pass over the non-elect but that He created them to be vessels of wrath to His own glory and purposes (Romans 9:22-23).

We Arminians obviously disagree.  Arminians point to passages such as Acts 19:9 and point out that the text doesn't say that God made them stubborn or that He made them continue in their unbelief.  In fact Luke lays the blame at the very people that he is writing about.  Luke says that they remained stubborn and continued in their unbelief.  He doesn't say one thing about their election or non-election.

Calvinists in turn will point to Acts 13:48 (a passage John Piper said was the single greatest support passage for the Calvinistic view of unconditional election in the Bible) as a text that would balance Acts 19:9.  Those who are appointed to believe will believe.  Those not appointed will not believe.  See Philippians 1:29 as well.

The Arminian reply is that people become believers by believing the gospel.  Salvation is conditioned upon faith in the Lord Jesus (Acts 20:21; Ephesians 2:8-9) and only those who believe in Jesus are the elect of God (1 Timothy 4:10).  Jesus died for all to be saved in Him (John 3:15-18; 1 John 2:2) but those who refuse the gospel do so out of disobedience to God Himself (Acts 17:30-31).  Just as salvation is based on faith so election is based on faith.  Damnation is based on unbelief in the gospel (Romans 1:16-17; 2 Thessalonians 1:8-9).

There can be no doubt that as we preach the gospel there are all kinds of soils as Jesus pointed out in Matthew 13:18-23.  Our duty before the Lord is not to decide who is what soil but to preach the gospel to the lost and allow the Holy Spirit to do His work of saving souls (Acts 1:8).  God is the one who saves sinners who believe the gospel (1 Corinthians 1:21, 30-31).  We can trust that God will take the gospel that is proclaimed to sinners and He will save souls for His own glory (1 Corinthians 3:5-9).  We will encounter people such as those found in Acts 19:9 but let us be faithful to be like Paul and continue to preach the gospel no matter what.