The doctrine of the unconditional election of a part, necessarily implies the unconditional reprobation of the rest. I know some who hold to the former, seem to deny the latter; for they represent God as…
Author/Scholar Index: Calvinist
Augustine’s Evolving Views on God’s Sovereignty (Part 2)
We have been examining Augustine’s changing views on faith, free will, and God’s sovereignty. His original views on these topics evolved from a synergistic model (where God and man cooperate in coming to faith) to…
Augustine’s Evolving Views on God’s Sovereignty (Part 1)
In a previous post we examined Augustine’s changing views on free will. His original view regarding free will and faith mirrored that of the other early church writers and theologians. But later, Augustine articulated views…
Ben Witherington and Roger Olson, “Roger Olson’s Arminian Theology – Part 4”
BEN: On p. 55, you talk about Wesley’s treatise on divine sovereignty compared to Calvin’s view. Would you say that while Wesley agrees with Calvin that God is sovereign, absolutely so, and could do what…
Rich Davis, “What’s Not Wrong with Jerry Walls’ Argument Against Calvinism”
In a guest post (here) on James Anderson’s blog Analogical Thoughts, Daniel Johnson, Associate Professor of Philosophy and co-editor of Calvinism and the Problem of Evil, claims that a invalid argument lies at the heart…
Joe Dongell and Jerry Walls Dismantle the Famous Churchill Analogy Used by Some Calvinists
Arminian scholars Joe Dongell and Jerry Walls respond to Calvinist scholar Bruce Ware’s use of an analogy involving Winston Churchill at a debate between Dongell and Walls (Arminian side) vs. Ware and Thomas Schreiner (Calvinist side)…
“Tactics And Total Depravity”
A recent article stated: “Millennials leaving the church in droves, study finds.” We could say, “oh, that’s just young people these days”, or “it’s a sign of the times!” Or, perhaps we should consider that…
Jonathan Sheehan, “Teaching Calvin in California”
Please click on the link to view this opinion piece that appeared in The New York Times on 9/12/16 by a professor of history and a co-director of the Berkeley Center for the Study of…
The Arminian Conundrum
John Owen, seventeenth-century Calvinist theologian who insists that Arminians are “tares in the field” of God’s kingdom, emissaries and mouthpieces of Satan, who “by their words, which are smoother than oil, [an individual can] taste…
Rich Davis, “Clary’s 10 Concerns”
In my “The ‘C’ in Calvinism?” (reproduced here), I set out three difficulties for Calvinistic choice. In his “Calvinism and Choice,” historical theologian Ian Clary lists ten points at which my thinking is in need…
Can God Love All People?
Calvinist John Piper answers the question he himself frames and thus poses: “Why can’t God eternally love those who don’t believe in Him?” (link) Is there not at least one obvious and inherent flaw in…
Steve Sewell: Response to John Piper: “How Do Arminians Pray?”
John Piper video clip: How Do Arminians Pray? In Piper’s words, Arminians praying to God for someone’s salvation: “Arminians don’t believe that He has the right and authority and power to save anybody. Do they?…
The Practical Implications of Free Will
In the follow-up post to “A Beginner’s Guide to ‘Free Will’,” entitled “Six Practical Reasons ‘Free Will’ Matters,” John Piper expounds upon the practicality of Free Will. After all, he states, “It is a great…
A Beginner’s Guide to Free Will
Free Will regards the ability to make choices — choices that were not necessitated and brought into reality by a proactive and eternal decree of God — choices that lead to belief systems resulting in…
Steve Sewell, “Rebuttal to Maverick Victor Witlouw” [Prevenient Grace vs. Irresistible Grace]
Maverick Victor Witlouw, of Sovereign Grace Messianic Blog, wrote a response to my article, “Why Irresistible Grace Doesn’t Work, and Why Prevenient Grace Does” [Responding to Steve Sewell’s Presentation of Prevenient Grace]. He happened to…
Joshua Woo Sze Zeng, “James Arminius on the Significance of John Calvin’s Works”
I came across this interesting statement wrote by James (or Jacobus) Arminius, the founder of Arminianism: “After the holy scriptures, I exhort the students to read the Commentaries of Calvin… for I tell them that…
Perhaps Compatibilistic Calvinism is the Answer … Perhaps Not
Relatively recently, Arminian scholar Jerry Walls has engaged Calvinist responses to his 2011 article, “Why No Classical Theist, Let Alone Orthodox Christian, Should Ever Be a Compatibilist.” Steve Hays, of Triablogue, attempts to undermine the…
Leighton Flowers Interview on 1 John 5:1 and Acts 13:48 with Dr. Brian Abasciano
Leighton Flowers interviewed Brian Abasciano on his “Soteriology 101” podcast to address James White’s response to a previous interview with Abasciano concerning the Greek of 1 John 5:1 and the order of faith and regeneration. The…
The Calvinist Conception of God on Trial
A Calvinist named Jared responds to an Arminian post entitled “The Devious and Duplicitous Mind of the Calvinist God,” and entitles his response “God on Trial,” which I think is quite the misnomer. God is…
Brian Abasciano, “A Reply to James White on 1 John 5:1 and the Order of Faith and Regeneration”
Leighton Flowers interviewed me on his “Soteriology 101” podcast about the claims of James White concerning the Greek of 1 John 5:1 and the order of faith and regeneration. The podcast episode can be found here and on “Soteriology…