Follow the link to view part 7 of distinguished New Testament scholar Scot McKnight’s personal testimony of coming out of Calvinism for a more biblical evangelical view and his discussion of the warning passages in Hebrews: http://www.patheos.com/blogs/jesuscreed/2011/12/16/calvinism-my-history-7/ .
Salvation
On the Ordo Salutis and Colossians 2:13, As Presented by Brian N. Daniels
The following is taken from a larger essay, exegeting Colossians 2:13, by Brian N. Daniels1, a Ph.D. student at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary, and a four-point Calvinist.
“Of the many issues that divide Arminians and Calvinists, one of the more interesting has to be the relationship between regeneration and faith. The question may be put like this: which comes first and grounds the other, new life given by the Spirit or belief in Christ? This question is important because of its connection to many other points of soteriology. One’s answer generally reveals much about what he believes regarding the nature of grace and depravity, as well as the more difficult issue of election and predestination.
The Fallacies of Calvinist Apologetics – Fallacy #10: Wait, Now Faith is a “Work?”
Related Fallacies: Equivocation Category Mistake “[Arminianism] denies sola fide (faith alone) by changing the character of faith so that it is basically a work.” (Rev. Richard Phillips [Alliance of Confessing Evangelicals], Is Arminianism a Biblical…
A Quick Response To A Bad Question
Normally, we do not like to respond to poorly-articulated Anti-Arminian arguments when they come up, even when presented by respected scholars or writers, because a) there are sadly too many of them; and b) we…
Do the Scriptures Explicitly Teach What Is Necessary for Salvation?
This question is a bit of a problem for Catholics, because their councils come along over a thousand years after the writing of scripture and require you to believe some things not explicitly taught in…
God and the Miners
As reported by CNN International, all 33 of the Chilean miners were rescued from their desperate plight. Most of the survivors were released from the hospital yesterday afternoon, 14 October 2010. This event reminded me…
Robert Hamilton: Can You Do Anything to Gain God’s Acceptance?
Hamilton addresses works salvation, faith, and repentance. Click on pdf to view article. Can You Do Anything to Gain God’s Acceptance
Robert Hamilton: Assurance – How Can I Know that I Am Saved?
Robert Hamilton addresses the topic of assurance. What is assurance? How can we gain assurance? What are obstacles to assurance? Click on the attachment to view the article. Assurance-How Can I know that I am…
Robert Hamilton: Can Arminians Be Assured of Their Salvation?
An essay on the topic of Arminianism and assurance. Hamilton compares “Biblically-defensible Arminian theology”, that salvation is conditioned solely on faith in Christ, and the distortion of Arminian theology where salvation is based on the…
Steve Gregg on Calvinism
The full title of the attached file, compiled and arranged by Steve Gregg, is “God’s Sovereignty and Man’s Salvation: Calvinism: Comparative Charts for Evaluating the Biblical Basis for Calvinist and Non-Calvinist Theological Constructs”. Please click…
The A Priori of Particular Grace
If it were not for a priori, the Calvinist would be an Arminian. If that statement brought a smile to your face, then you are most likely in the Arminian camp (or at least label yourself a “non-Calvinist,” not that “non-Calvinist” is a legitimate title, mind you). If, however, you felt your blood pressure rise, then you are most definitely a Calvinist.
Does the Atonement Actually Save Anyone?
Calvinist James White insists that the message Christians should give to the lost is that Jesus does not “merely try” to save them but that He “saves them perfectly” (Youtube video link, beginning at 28:15).…
Ephesians 2:13; A Devotional
But now, in Christ Jesus, you, being once distant, have become close by Christ’s blood. It is important to remember that Paul’s primary concern in the book of Ephesians is dealing with the Gentile believers…
Mission Possible: A Response to Shai Linne
The following is an edited response to Shai Linne’s Limited Atonement rap song, “Mission Accomplished.” The original version was posted by “Murray” in the comments at the Gadgetry, Thoughts, Unleashed! blog. What is in brackets…
Ephesians 2:11-12; A Devotional
Therefore, remember that at one point you — the Gentiles in terms of flesh, the ones called “foreskin” by those called “the circumcised”, a handmade thing of flesh — that at that time, you were…
Ephesians 2:8-9; A Devotion
For you see it is from grace that you have been saved through faith; not from yourself. This is a gift of God, not from works so that none may boast. Ah yes, we are…
Some Basic Thoughts on “Decisional Regeneration” From an Arminian Perspective
Someone asked a while back in the comments thread to one of my blog posts what I thought of “Decisional Regeneration”. Since this is a rather new label being thrown around mostly by Calvinists in a seeming attempt to mock a view of salvation conditioned by faith, it is important to address. Rather than write a new post I will just quote my initial response to the question below:
- I think “decisional regeneration” is a hard phrase to pin down and is just thrown around as a slander by Calvinists towards those who do not believe that regeneration precedes faith or that regeneration is irresistibly and unconditionally given to the “elect” alone. But there can be much more to it and so I wanted to be clear as to what your specific concern was.
Scholarly Resources Added – Steve Witzki
We have added several new scholarly resources on the topics of faith and perseverance. These have been written and / or compiled by Arminian Steve Witzki. Be sure to check them out! Arminianism–The Conditional Preservation…
The Simplicity of Salvation
The Simplicity of Salvation — by Christopher Skinner We cannot save ourselves from God’s wrath but God has provided salvation for us. It is easy to be saved. Numbers 21:4: And they journeyed from mount…
John Calvin on Limiting Our Understanding of God to His Self-revelation in Scripture
“Let us beware lest our words and thoughts go beyond what the Word of God tells us…We must leave to God His own knowledge,…and conceive Him as He makes Himself known to us, without attempting…
Recent Posts
Why Does God Deny the Opportunity of Choice for or Against Him to Young Children Who Die and the Mentally Impaired?
Mark K. Olson, “Wesley’s ‘Warmed Heart’ at Aldersgate – What Really Happened?”
Adam Roe, “The Crucial Thread of Prevenient Grace: A Wesleyan Perspective on Divine Drawing”
Video: Joel Korytko, “How Romans 9 Doesn’t Support Calvinism”
