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Where I have a problem with Calvinism
Posted on February 1, 2012 by rogereolson
One commenter has raised a question about my statement that I have no problem with Calvinism in confessionally Reformed circles (churches, denominations, etc.). I made that statement in my previous post about my public conversation with Mike Horton.
So, let me clarify that.
First, by “no problem with” I don’t mean “agree with!” What I mean is, I don’t object to Reformed folks holding to their Calvinism within their own ecclesiastical settings that are confessionally bound. The same is true of many other doctrines with which I disagree in other confessional traditions (or non-confessional but with unwritten or supposedly non-binding statements of faith).
Does God repent? - Bible Answer Man clarifies
Submitted by drwayman on Wed, 02/01/2012 - 9:38amThe classic King James Version of the Bible says, “It repented the Lord that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart” (Genesis 6:6). Elsewhere, God says, “It repenteth me that I have set up Saul to be king for he is turned back from following me, and hath not performed my commandments” (1 Samuel 15:11). If God is perfect, how could he repent?
First, the Bible unequivocally teaches that God is perfectly good and thus incapable of doing evil (Psalm 5:4–5; James 1:13; 3 John 1:11). As such, God’s repentance must not be understood as entailing moral guilt. Indeed, the moral perfection of the Creator sets him apart from his sin–tainted creation (Leviticus 11:44–45; 19:2; 20:7; 1 Peter 1:15–16).
Appalling Examples of Evil that Imply the Incoherence of Calvinism # 3: The Satanic Power of Pornography
Submitted by SEA on Tue, 01/31/2012 - 7:35amHere is a quote from Calvinist Al Mohler provided by Calvinist Justin Taylor on "The Satanic Power of Porn"(http://thegospelcoalition.org/blogs/justintaylor/2012/01/23/the-satanic-...).
- Russell Moore (http://www.russellmoore.com/2012/01/23/should-i-marry-a-man-with-pornogr...):
Pornography is a universal temptation precisely because it does exactly what the satanic powers wish to do. It lashes out at the Trinitarian nature of reality, a loving communion of persons, replacing it with a masturbatory Unitarianism.
And pornography strikes out against the picture of Christ and his church by disrupting the one-flesh union, leaving couples like our prehistoric ancestors, hiding from one another and from God in the darkness of shame.
And pornography rages, as Satan always does, against Incarnation (1 Jn. 4:2-3), replacing flesh-to-flesh intimacy with the illusion of fleshless intimacy.
Calvinist doctrine leads to the conclusion that there is no sin in the world
Submitted by drwayman on Mon, 01/30/2012 - 8:26amThomas Taylor (1738-1816) writes, in his seminal work, “A Solemn Caution Against the Ten Horns of Calvinism" (1819):
“There is no such thing as sin in the world. Everything is just going on as he would have it to be; all are acting in the department of life which is appointed. Therefore, go, ye jolly drunkards, and jovial song-singers; proceed, ye numerous tribes of profane swearers and Sabbath-breakers; curse on, ye horrid blasphemers and swarms of liars; ye murderers, plunderers unclean profligates, ye are all doing the will of God, answering the great ends for which you were made.”
Taylor continues:
The Westminster Confession of Faith: Handwaving
Submitted by drwayman on Fri, 01/27/2012 - 8:50amRandolph Sinks Foster, in his book, Objections to Calvinism (1852) writes:
[The Confession of Faith states,] "God, from all eternity, did, by the most wise and holy counsel of his own will, freely and unchangeably ordain whatsoever comes to pass; [and now your disclaimer,] yet so as thereby neither is God the author of sin, nor is violence offered to the will of the creature."
But this disclaimer [God is not the author of sin] by no means relieves my embarrassment -- it greatly increases it, by placing you [Calvinist brother] in the attitude, to my mind, of believing a palpable contradiction, namely, that God did cause all things, sin included, yet in such a way that he did not cause sin.”
Scot McKnight, Roger Olson on The Five Conundrums of Calvinism
Submitted by SEA on Wed, 01/25/2012 - 10:38amFollow the link to view Scot McKnight's description of Roger Olson on "The Five Conundrums of Calvinism" (http://www.patheos.com/blogs/jesuscreed/2011/12/26/the-five-conundrums-o...)
World Means World: Even a Child Understands This
This is a great commercial that was broadcast recently during an NFL game half-time show. It shows that World means World. Listen to the words of these children as they accurately quote and interpret God's Word: Focus On The Family, "John 3:16"
Another Appalling Example of Evil that Implies the Incoherence of Calvinism
Submitted by SEA on Mon, 01/23/2012 - 3:49pmHere is another post from Calvinist leader Justin Taylor that leaves one baffled at how Calvinists can hold to exhaustive determinism: 'The 200 Million “Missing” Girls':
- A new documentary, "It’s a Girl! The Three Deadliest Words in the World," explores the systematic gendercide taking place in India, China, and other areas of South Asia.
Ram Mushru of The Independent, reviewing the film, writes: “The trailer’s most chilling scene is one with an Indian woman who, unable to contain her laughter, confesses to having killed eight infant daughters.”
Reponse to White's Critique of Olson on 1 Tim 2:4
Submitted by nbanuchi@gmail.com on Fri, 01/20/2012 - 8:52amThe following is a response to James White's critique of Dr. Olson's book Against Calvinism. The Author, Nelson Banuchi, is a respected member of SEA.
Scot McKnight, A Brief Response to Some Calvinistic Views of the Warning Passages
Submitted by SEA on Thu, 01/19/2012 - 11:55amIn a blog post entitled, “Warning Passages Ahead: Brief Response,” (http://www.patheos.com/blogs/jesuscreed/2012/01/16/warning-passages-ahea...) top notch Arminian-ish New Testament scholar Scot McKnight has responded to the view of top notch Calvinist New Testament scholar Peter O’Brien on O’Brien’s view of the warning passages in Hebrews (O'Brien has written a major commentary on Hebrews). In the comment section on the post, McKnight also responds very briefly but incisively to the view of Calvinist New Testament scholars Thomas Schreiner and Ardel Caneday (see comment numbers 5 and 8).
