by Roger E. Olson
Below is a rather lengthy essay I have written. I welcome you to pass it around. It is not copyrighted, but please keep my name and blog address attached to it when you send or post it. [Editor’s Note: The following essay may also be found as a downloadable pdf attachment at the end of this post.]
ARMINIANISM IS GOD-CENTERED THEOLOGY
In this essay Robert Hamilton argues that deliberate sin erodes faith by gradually hardening one’s heart. Click on the attachment: Deliberate Sin Erodes Faith
An essay by Robert Hamilton on grace, assurance and sanctification. “How can a Christian have any reasonable assurance that he will in fact persevere in the faith, not to mention experience consistent victory over deliberate…
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.…
Some Calvinists wisely warn other Calvinists about making Calvinism into another gospel. In one particular dialogue, the following conversation took place. Unfortunately, the entirety of the dialogue has been lost since the webhost had taken…
Please click on PDF link to view article:
The following post can be found on Rachel Held Evans’ site. It has been authored by her, and makes for a good follow-up to Roger Olson’s recent post here, What The Calvinism I Oppose Is…
Please click on the attachment to view Brian P. Irwin, “Yahweh’s Suspension of Free Will in the Old Testament: Divine Immorality or Sign-Act?” Tyndale Bulletin 54.2 (2003) 55-62.
The author’s summary:
Several passages in the Old Testament portray Yahweh as behaving in
ways that seem unfair or immoral. Two such narratives are the
episodes describing the hardening of Pharaoh’s heart and the spirit
dispatched to deceive Ahab. In each of these two cases, careful
attention to the literary context and the final form of the MT shows that
Yahweh’s behaviour is best understood as a sign-act directed toward a
specific end.
by Roger E. Olson Just for the record, I want to explain as clearly as possible why I am opposing a certain kind of Calvinism, and what that Calvinism is that I am opposing. For…
Click on attachment to view PDF:
My recent discussions of heterodoxy vs. orthodoxy and the schisms inherent in any such discussion surfaced a common pattern I have observed among our Calvinist brethren. They seem to exhibit a narrow, almost myopic opinion…
I have for years found the Calvinist use of the phrase “Doctrines of Grace” to be offensive to the Christian body. Perhaps it is because of the lack of any real set of doctrines derived…
Dr. Dan Wallace’s comments against the corporate election model have been referenced many times on the internet by various Calvinists as an authoritative critique of the view. Because of this we have asked our very…
I was asked the following question by a Calvinistic Christian and want to answer his question in the following post. My initial argument was that for Calvinism, at least with regard to the doctrine of Unconditional Election, an explanation must be given how God is displaying His love towards those whom He has not unconditionally elected unto salvation. I insist that Calvinism dishonors God’s character in this regard, and was asked “why” or “how so” by this individual. I was also asked to demonstrate my answer from Scripture.
Over the past several years, I cannot begin to number the times I have responded or interacted with the Calvinist argument that the new creation in Christ was made through a secret regeneration that preceded…
by Roger E. Olson I rarely post other people’s writings, but this sermon by Bill Smelvoe (preached in chapel at Regent College, Vancouver) especially expresses my belief about God’s grace. I couldn’t have said it…
Under our link for joining our society we have written: “If you agree with our statement of faith and our recognition of Calvinists as fellow brothers and sisters in Christ, and you are committed to…
by Roger E. Olson
The second fatal flaw that I will describe here in (at least some) Calvinism is worse than the first because it touches not only logic but God’s reputation.
Many Calvinists claim that God loves all people. The only way to make this work within the TULIP system is to redefine love so that it loses all meaning. The crucial question facing Calvinism is why God does not save everyone rather than “pass over” many, damning them to eternal suffering forever (when he could save them because election to salvation is unconditional). As Wesley said, “love” such as this makes the blood run cold. There is no sense whatsoever of “love” compatible with being able to save the loved one from eternal loss and suffering and not doing it.
by Roger E. Olson Recently I wrote about flaws and fatal flaws in theological systems. All have flaws. Some also have fatal flaws. One I mentioned that I see in the Calvinist system (as articulated…
by Roger E. Olson Recently I argued that every theological system has flaws that should be acknowledged so that the entire system is held somewhat lightly and open to revision. One problem is when a…
