Determinism

Do Calvinists Seek the Specific Will of God?

, , Comment Closed

This was a comment made by Rebekah Reinagel in regards to the nature of prayer within the Calvinist system. She gave us permission to publish it here.

Calvinists pray, even though they “know” that God has everything decreed in advance. But here’s what I was wondering about: Do Calvinists seek the specific will of God?

And what I mean by that is that Arminians, in addition to following God’s moral law (i.e. Do not murder), also seek God’s will in specific situations in which it isn’t clear which way to go. For example, praying about whether to take a job or not. This presumes that God knows which is the better option, and it is an attempt to seek His will in the matter.

Read Post →

Calvinistic Determinism and the Thoughts of Demons

, , Comment Closed

Pointed questions from one of our members in our private discussion group regarding Calvinism’s doctrine of exhaustive determinism: “What about the thoughts of demons? Did God ordain those too? If, literally, everything is subject to…

Read Post →

Is Faith a Work Created by Man?

, , 1 Comment

Here are some edited comments by one of our members posted in our private discussion group concerning the Calvinist claim that the Arminian view of faith makes faith a work created by man: When they…

Read Post →

Assuming Determinism to Disprove Free Will

, , No Comment

Phil Johnson of John MacArthur’s Grace to You has authored a post entitled “The Problem for Arminians”. Quoting Phil:


If God knows every detail of the future with infallible certainty, then (by definition) the outcome of all things is already determined. And if things are predetermined but God did not ordain whatsoever comes to pass, then you have two choices:

1. A higher sovereignty belongs to some being (or beings) other than God. That is idolatry.
2. Some impersonal force did the determining. That is fatalism.

Read Post →

The Freedom of God

, , No Comment

“But our God is in the heavens; He does whatever He pleases” (Psalm 115:3 NASB). The Psalmist follows this declaration of the sovereignty and capability of God with the inferior and impotent nature of idols:…

Read Post →