Prevenient Grace
The Fallenness of Man, the Will and the Workings of Grace: An Exposition on Historical Arminian Theological Thought
This exposition discusses the earliest, historical beliefs of the Arminian theological tradition regarding the effects of the fall upon man, the nature of the will of man and the mode of grace in salvation. The primary source writings of the earliest and most influential Arminian writers such as Jacobus Arminius, Simon Episcopius and John Wesley were examined in light of both Arminian and non-Arminian secondary source material and thus exposited according that general understanding.
Several points of interest were found, including:
Ben Witherington, "The Reformed View of Regeneration vs. the Wesleyan Theology of Prevenient Grace"
Submitted by SEA on Mon, 11/21/2011 - 7:32amFollow the link to view distinguished NT scholar Ben Witherington, "The Reformed View of Regeneration vs. the Wesleyan Theology of Prevenient Grace" (http://www.patheos.com/blogs/bibleandculture/2011/11/18/the-reformed-vie...).
Quotable Quotes - Tozer on Prevenient Grace
Submitted by Matthew Murphy on Tue, 09/20/2011 - 12:27pm"Christian theology teaches the doctrine of prevenient grace, which briefly stated means this, that before a man can seek God, God must first have sought the man.
"Before a sinful man can think a right thought of God, there must have been a work of enlightenment done within him; imperfect it may be, but a true work nonetheless, and the secret cause of all desiring and seeking and praying which may follow.
"We pursue God because, and only because, He has first put an urge within us that spurs us to the pursuit. "No man can come to me," said our Lord, "except the Father which hath sent me draw him," and it is by this very prevenient drawing that God takes from us every vestige of credit for the act of coming. The impulse to pursue God originates with God, but the outworking of that impulse is our following hard after Him." [1]
God's Proactive, Enabling, Sufficient, Prevenient Grace
Submitted by WilliamBirch on Tue, 09/06/2011 - 12:04pmSince the Arminian believes, like the Calvinist, in Total Depravity and Total Inability, but disagrees with the Calvinistic implication that this fact necessitates a doctrine of Unconditional Election or Irresistible Grace, what, then, in Arminian theology is needed in order for a totally depraved (and a totally, spiritually-incapacitated) individual to trust in Christ Jesus for salvation? In other words, if every sinner is saved by grace through faith (Eph. 2:5, 8), what does "grace" entail? (I want to very briefly address Enabling, Sufficient, Prevenient Grace and not what is known as Common Grace.)
Randal Rauser, “The Day the Arminian Pride Parade Came to Geneva”
Submitted by SEA on Wed, 08/10/2011 - 8:02amA Brief Overview of Arminian Theology (A Presentation to the SharperIron Community)
Submitted by Godismyjudge on Thu, 07/14/2011 - 9:59pmThe SharperIron website (SI) recently contacted SEA regarding presenting Arminianism to the SI community. The motivation for this request is quite valid and a point not often made - many people oppose Calvinism without providing a formed view of their own thoughts on salvation. Below is a response (written by Dan Chapa of SEA) which is also posted on SI with the intent of generating discussion. (link )
Arminius's Doctrine of Grace
Submitted by WilliamBirch on Thu, 06/30/2011 - 2:39pm
Often erroneously accused of Pelagianism or semi-Pelagianism, Arminius and his followers have historically suffered -- and continue to suffer -- one misrepresentation after another by their theological opponents. Usually, the caricature of Arminian theology comes from the pens of Calvinists who have never read primary material from Arminius or his followers the Remonstrants, or have never read secondary material regarding Reformed Arminianism either by Arminian scholars or objective, "non-Arminian" authors (though there are, thankfully, always exceptions).
Resistible Grace or Sinless Perfection? A Call For Theological Precision in The Calvinist Accounting of Monergistic Conversion
Submitted by Ben Henshaw on Tue, 06/14/2011 - 10:49amA recent question in the ??Questions?? thread reminded me of an issue I raised long ago [1]. I thought it would be beneficial to raise this question again in more detail and maybe get some feedback from any Calvinists out there that may be able to come up with a satisfying answer.
Paul Washer’s – “Doctrine” of Election: An Arminian Critique
Submitted by Ben Henshaw on Fri, 06/10/2011 - 12:51pmI have been frequently referred to Paul Washer’s video discussion, “Doctrine” of Election. I found the video transcript and decided it would be beneficial to interact with this apparently influential accounting of Calvinist election. The sections of the transcript are marked by indentation with my comments in between. A copy of the transcript can be found at: http://www.scribd.com/doc/21411721/Paul-Washer-Video-Transcript
Nelson’s Dictionary of Christianity Gets it Wrong: Examining the So Called "15 Major Tenets of Arminianism"
Submitted by Ben Henshaw on Wed, 06/08/2011 - 12:46pmAbout a year ago I engaged in a conversation with someone who kept misrepresenting Arminian and Wesleyan teaching while insisting that his claims were “historical facts”. This person kept making reference to the “15 Major Tenets of Arminianism” to back up his claims. I had no idea what this could be a reference to since I was not familiar with any document written by Arminius or the Remonstrants that went by such a name. As it turns out, the so called “15 Major Tenets of Arminianism” is a sub-title given under the heading “Arminianism” in Nelson’s Dictionary of Christianity. Below is a critique proving that these 15 tenets are far from representative of Arminian theology.
The 15 Major Tenets of Arminianism are:
1. Human beings are free agents and human events are mediated by the foreknowledge of God.
