A common question that Calvinists pose to the Arminian is “If Jesus died for all, then why aren’t all saved?” John Owen popularised this argument with his “triple dilemma” or “triple choice” where he said…
Arminianism
Friday Files: JOHN WESLEY AND JONATHAN EDWARDS ON RELIGIOUS EXPERIENCE: A COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS
Robert Doyle Smith’s articles JOHN WESLEY AND JONATHAN EDWARDS ON RELIGIOUS EXPERIENCE: A COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS, summarizes the similarities and differences between John Wesley and Jonathan Edwards. Of course they disagreed on Calvinism/Arminianism. But they strongly agreed that the beginning of conversion is realizing that you are a sinner in need of God’s grace and both of their preaching styles reflected that ideal. Interestly, both men struggled with assurance of salvation early in life. They disagreed on the topics of the imputed righteousness of Christ and also entire sanctification.
Is There Trauma in Sovereignty? A Response to James Swan by Brennon Hartshorn
Arminians and other Libertarians are concerned with determinism, the proposition that all of our actions are made necessary by God in some way. We are concerned because determinism seems to make God the author of sin.
The compatibilist wants to show that we can still be free and responsible for our own actions and they can be determined. David Hume, a skeptic philosopher, tried to show this is the case on a naturalistic framework. Theist determinists adopt some of Hume’s arguments and augment them in order to argue that it is possible that all our actions have been pre-determined, but we freely do those actions and are therefore responsible for them. There have also been other attempts at trying to show that this is possible.
We Have All the Volumes of Daniel Whedon’s Commentary on the NT!
We just added volumes 1 and 2 of Daniel Whedon’s commentary on the New Testament to the site, and so now have all 5 volumes . A link to each volume can be found on…
Provisional Atonement Part 3: The Integrity and Justice of God in the Gospel Offer
In this post we will defend the premise that only a universal provisional atonement view can maintain the integrity of God in the gospel offer and the universal command to repent. The Bible is clear…
Provisional Atonement Part 2: Provision is Consistent With Foreknowledge
As we noted in our last post [Part 1] Arminians see the atonement of Jesus Christ as being provisional in nature. Not only is the atonement provisional but it is more specifically provisional in Christ…
Provisional Atonement Part 1: Dealing With John Owen’s Arminian Dilemma
I lifted this from Jeff Paton’s website . He gives an answer based on his commitment to the “sacrificial” view of the atonement, which allows him to bypass the force of Owen’s argument. As I…
Infralapsarian (Moderate) Calvinism’s Doctrine of Unconditional Election
from The Arminian site. Did God create some souls for hell and others for heaven, as John Calvin1 insisted? Calvinist C. H. Spurgeon, quoted from Kenneth D. Keathley, Professor of Theology and Dean of Graduate…
Conflating Arminianism and Secularism
Calvinist Southern Baptist pastor Mark E. Dever, having reviewed Richard A. Muller’s 1991 book, God, Creation, and Providence in the Thought of Jacob Arminius, notes, in his concluding remarks: Personally, as a pastor with Reformed…
Calvinism and Arminianism Compared
In 1824, James Nichols wrote a two volume book called: Calvinism and Arminianism Compared in Their Principles and Tendency. In his Introduction he states that Arminianism has “been frequently (and I may add purposely) misrepresented…
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).…
Some Excellent and Concise Comments on Free Will, the Bondage of Sin, and Prevenient Grace
Overall, the following comments by F. Leroy Forlines are an excellent representation of the Arminian viewpoint: “Freedom of will is a freedom within a framework of possibilities. It is not absolute freedom. Man cannot be…
Addressing a Boettner Quote About Limited Atonement
If you surf the Calvinist blogoshpere, you will have probably seen the following quote by Loraine Boettner. It it is frequently used to argue for Limited Atonement: “Let there be no misunderstanding at this point.…
Arminianism vs. Calvinism: The FACTS vs. TULIP Acronyms
One of the most frustrating aspects of the Arminian and Calvinist debate is the amount of misunderstanding that goes on about the two positions. We have found that caricatures of both sides seem to be more common than honest descriptions. This site has been devoted to bringing clarity as to what defines the Arminian position, and promoting the position while being fair to Calvinism.
We have just set up a new primary link that gives a detailed comparison between the Arminian and Calvinist sides. You will find it under An Outline of the FACTS of Arminianism vs. the TULIP of Calvinism
Retraction Concerning Some Improperly Used Quotes of Calvin
We recently ran a blog post entitled “Some Chilling Quotes of John Calvin” (http://evangelicalarminians.org/SEA.march-2010.some-chilling-quotes-of-John-Calvin) that used two of three quotes improperly, and we apologize for the error. Someone alerted us to a response he put together (www.corkfpc.com/chill.html) demonstrating that, out of context, one of the quotes gave the wrong impression of Calvin’s meaning, and that another quote was actually Calvin quoting an opponent’s characterization of Calvin’s view for the purpose of denying that to be his view. However, the SEA member who provided the quotes to us has written a response explaining that he did not intend to quote improperly and detailing why the quotes remain chilling in light of Calvin’s theology and other things he said: http://examiningcalvinism.blogspot.com/2010/03/clarification-on-chilling-quotes.html. There was no problem with use of the third quote from that post; it remains chilling without qualification.
Calvinist Scholar Finds: “The Remonstrants Clearly Were Not Pelagians”
“The Remonstrants clearly were not Pelagians.” You would think that such a statement comes from the lips or pen of an Arminian scholar or pastor, but it originally came from Reformed Baptist scholar Mark A.…
Friday Files: Audio File of Dr. Pinson on the Albert Mohler Show
On SEA’s links and books page, there is an interview with Drs. Matt Pinson and Mark Dever discussing Calvin and Calvinism (link). The moderator is a Calvinist and it shows at times, but overall he…
Ben Witherington – Hebrews 6
On Wed, February 13, 2008, Dr. Ben Witherington posted “Christian Apostasy and Hebrews 6” on his blog. It is an excerpt from a book he would later publish entitled The Indelible Image. Witherington is Professor…
Messianic Jew David Stern and the Security of the Believer
Article compiled by Steve Witzki. Below is the intro, click on the PDF link for the complete article. “David Stern is a Messianic Jew who believes that Yeshua (Jesus) is the Messiah. He has written…
Friday Files
Shortly after the death of James Arminius in 1609, his followers summarized his views into the five points of the remonstrants. At Dort, the Calvinists requested a clarification of the remonstrants views. Lead by Episcopius,…
Recent Posts
Roy Ingle, “Calvinism and the Atonement”
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”
