It’s the second-week-of-Advent edition of The Friday Files, our weekly stack of links: We highlight older SEA posts, and highlight stuff from around the Arminian and non-Calvinist blogosphere. Names in green indicate SEA members.
Inclusion isn’t necessarily approval or endorsement. (Some articles actually come from Calvinists!) We offer these links because they’re thought to be of potential interest to those interested in Arminian/Calvinist issues. Blame K.W. Leslie for the brief summaries.
From the SEA archives:
• “Free will in heaven?” [22 Jun 12] How one can have a free will, yet not sin.
• “Why does one person accept Christ, while another rejects him?” [28 Jun 12] Determinism simply can’t answer the question why Adam and Eve, and the rogue angels, fell.
Andrew Dragos, Seedbed: “John Wesley on assurance: Can you know you’re saved?” [5 Jul 12] If we have a continuous, growing relationship with God, even with our lapses and weakness: Sure.
Austin Fischer, My Evangelical Arminian Theological Musings: “Re: The new Calvinism and preaching.” [20 Jun 12] Calvinist preachers win people over because they sound so certain in an uncertain world.
Roger E. Olson, My Evangelical Arminian Theological Musings: “A new book on justification and some questions about Calvinism and heavenly rewards.” [15 May 12] About Alan J. Spence’s “Justification: A Guide for the Perplexed”—and the oddness of God rewarding people for doing what he deterministically made them do.
Randal Rauser: “Allowing is not commanding.” [25 Jun 12] If they’re the same, there’s no moral difference, meaning any evil in God’s universe is God’s doing. And that’s crazy.
Howard A. Snyder, Seedbed: “Predestination second—love first.” [12 Jul 12] First we’re saved. Then we’re predestined. Calvinists get it the other way round.
John Starke (Calvinist), The Gospel Coalition: “You’re a Calvinist, right?” [25 Jun 12] Starke respects Wesleyan theologian Fred Sanders so much, he wants to know why Sanders can’t just make the leap to Calvinism.
Justin Taylor (Calvinist), The Gospel Coalition: “A conversation with my favorite Wesleyan theologian.” [26 Jun 12] Taylor likes Fred Sanders too.
Calvinism:
Michael Butler (Calvinist), Pulpit and Pen: “John Piper and Arminianism—Part III of a biblical review of Desiring God.” [8 Dec 17] Because John Piper dares state that, in the New Testament, eros and agape have the same functional meaning… it therefore means Piper’s an Arminian. Wait, what?
J.D. Hall (Calvinist), Pulpit and Pen: “James White’s Mere Christianity checklist and shady litmus test for brotherhood.” [11 Dec 17] James White considers SEA member Michael Brown a brother in Christ, ’cause he’s orthodox. Which simply isn’t enough for Hall, who insists HE gets to define orthodoxy. (Apparently by anything which doesn’t makes him angry.)
Chris Larson (Calvinist), Ligonier Ministries: “Dr. R.C. Sproul, called home to the Lord.” [14 Dec 17] Popular theologian Sproul died peacefully at the age of 78.
Sinners in the Hands of an Angry Blog (Calvinist): “The Arminian cage stage.” [11 Dec 17] Calvinists don’t have a monopoly on misbehaving towards Christians with whom we disagree.
Arminianism:
K.W. Leslie, Christ Almighty!: “Why skipping church messes us up.” [12 Dec 17] When we evade the communion of saints, we’re dodging the Holy Spirit, who wants to minister to us through fellow Christians.
• “The danger of looking back.” [11 Dec 17] Scripture warns us of the consequences of looking, turning, and going back.
• “Lot’s wife looked back.” [12 Dec 17] Jesus warned us to remember her: God wants us to escape his wrath, not go back towards it.
• “The children of Ephraim turned back.” [13 Dec 17] Why people might be tempted to turn back.
• “Demas went back.” [14 Dec 17] We face persecution and temptation, but Jesus said those who endure to the end will be saved.
Reminder: Feedreaders!
SEA members have blogs! And the best way to keep up with a regularly-updating blog or website is with a feedreader or news aggregator—like Digg Reader, Feeder, Feedreader, Feedly, G2Reader, Inoreader, NewsBlur, and The Old Reader. Find your favorite site’s RSS or Atom feed, put it in your feedreader, and stay up with the latest.
Or tune in next Friday. It’ll then be only 3 days till Christmas, but we’ll still be around.
