In the comments on Austin Fischer’s reply to John Piper’s criticism of his book,Young, Restless, and No Longer Reformed, a Calvinist named Clayton Hutchins got into a discussion with Fischer that is helpful for laying out…
Will of God
Dr. Jerry Walls, “Clive (C.S.) Lewis and the Pious Calvinist Confusions of John Piper”
Dr. Jerry Walls speaks about John Piper’s recent book, Does God Desire All to Be Saved?. From the video’s YouTube page: Dr. Jerry Walls gives his critique of Calvinism, and more specifically, John Piper’s written…
Austin Fischer, “Conversations with the Damned”
Over the next few weeks, I’ll be responding, directly and indirectly, to some questions and thoughts surrounding the book [ed. note: the author’s book, Young, Restless, No Longer Reformed]. In the next couple of posts,…
Are The Sovereignty of God and Free Will Incompatible?
“If God is all sovereign then free will is impossible. If people have free will then God is not sovereign” is what one Calvinist said to me once. I’ve heard this complaint a few times…
Calvinism on the Horns: The Problem of Divine Foreknowledge in Calvinism and Why You Should Be an Arminian
Calvinists often lead the charge against Open Theism and traditional Arminians agree that Open Theism is Biblically problematic. However, Calvinists often seem to hide the unfortunate implications of their own view of foreknowledge. Open Calvinism?…
Something For Calvinists to Chew On
I’ve been reading the latter part of the Old Testament and something really interesting occurred to me. God spends so many chapters complaining about all the evil that Israel and Judah have been doing and…
Romans 9 in Context (John F. Parkinson)
Click the link below to see John F. Parkinson’s solid and concise interpretation of Romans 9 from a non-Calvinist perspective. Please note that while Mr. Parkinson seems to approach Romans 11 from a pre-trib dispensational…
Evil: Sometimes the Human Explanation is Better than the Divine Explanation
Evil: Sometimes the Human Explanation is Better than the Divine Explanation written by Ryan Ragozine “Everything happens for a reason.” How many times have you heard this short, pithy saying echoed in response to tragedy?…
Dr. Michael Brown vs. Pastor Bruce Bennett on Who Makes The Final Choice in Salvation…God or Man?
Here is the debate between Arminian and SEA member Dr. Michael L. Brown with Calvinist Pastor Bruce Bennett at Grace Reformed Baptist Church in Merrick, Long Island, on May 11, 2013. Note: The video contains the whole debate,…
Dr. Michael Brown vs. Dr. James White on Predestination, Election, and the Will of God
Here is the debate between Arminian and SEA member Dr. Michael L. Brown and Calvinist Dr. James White at Southern Evangelical Seminary, February 14, 2013. You can also order the debate on high-quality DVD here.…
Two Wills in God?
The following comments (slightly edited) are taken from a SEA member while discussing the subject of the problem with the Calvinist “two wills” view and the suggestion that the Arminian position must likewise adopt essentially…
Michael Brown/James White Debate CD
Arminian scholar and SEA member Dr. Michael Brown debated with Calvinist scholar and apologist James White on predestination, election, and the will of God at Southern Evangelical Seminary on February 14, 2013. To order the…
Robert Hamilton: The Wills of God
Does God have contradicting wills? Hamilton presents an Arminian perspective on the “two wills of God”. He argues that this is a question that presents problems for both Calvinism and Arminianism. Click on the link…
The Practical Implications of an Unlimited Atonement
The Practical Implications of an Unlimited Atonement written by SEA member, Roy Ingle On a more personal level, what are the implications of an unlimited atonement when it comes to ministry? I believe there is…
Predestination Second
This article is written by Howard A. Snyder. Although not a member of SEA, this entry typifies the Arminian view on predestination. PREDESTINATION SECOND—LOVE FIRST! Have this clearly in mind: Salvation is not based on…
A Very Brief Explanation of Jacobus Arminius’ Doctrine of the Twofold Will of God
Calvinism posits that in God there exists a distinction of wills; the will of revelation and the will of sovereignty (i.e. the revealed will and the secret or sovereign will). However, Arminians posit that the problem with this theory of two wills is that when one is put into effect then the other is put to naught. Let me make an example of this.
It is often said by Calvinists in Genesis 50:20 that God has commanded that it is unlawful to do ill to one’s family (in this instance, kidnapping). This is said to be the revealed will of God. And yet, allegedly in this Gen. 50:20 circumstance, Calvinists believe that you can also discern the operation of the sovereign or secret will of God working through the sin of Joseph’s brothers to a good and godly end.
John Piper: Are There Two Wills in God? A Response
John Piper’s chapter, “Are There Two Wills in God?”, found on his website Desiring God, and in the book Still Sovereign: Contemporary Perspectives on Election, Foreknowledge, and Grace (Grand Rapids: Baker Books, 2000), seeks to…
James Arminius On the One Will of God
There is a connection between the Understanding of God and His Will that is overlooked or neglected by those who hold to a two wills in God theory. In this post we will discover what Arminius believed about God’s Knowledge or Understanding, and its relation to the one Will of God, with its various distinctives.
THE UNDERSTANDING OF GOD
Paul Copan, “Divine Exasperation”
Please click on the link to view Paul Copan, “Divine Exasperation”, which surveys biblical passages that express God’s exasperation with sinful, human resistance to his grace, revealing “God’s legitimate expectation of spiritual fruitfulness, repentance, or obedience.…
John Calvin on Limiting Our Understanding of God to His Self-revelation in Scripture
“Let us beware lest our words and thoughts go beyond what the Word of God tells us…We must leave to God His own knowledge,…and conceive Him as He makes Himself known to us, without attempting…
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”
