A gadfly is a “persistent irritating critic; a nuisance.” (link) The late Anglican priest John R.W. Stott comments that the Church needs gadflies to “sting and harry us into action for change,” even though gadflies…
Recent Posts
Arminius the Gadfly
This Week in Arminianism
Roy Ingle, of Arminian Today, posts “So the Lord Changed His Mind,” and encourages us, “Don’t Use Evil to Destroy Another.” Matt, of A Theology in Tension, is “Clotting a Wound with Spiritual Platelets.” Evan…
A Concise Description of Prevenient Grace from a Surprising Source (spoiler: it’s John MacArthur)
In a Q&A, when asked whether regeneration precedes faith, he answered (in part): Why not say that the Spirit of God can move him along even in his unregenerate state to an understanding and can…
The Motive for Arminius’ Theology
What we must first understand about Arminius’ theological thought process is his positional biblicistic framework. Calvinist theologian Richard A. Muller confesses as much: “Had Arminius been a biblicistic pietist,” i.e., a devotional writer, “promulgating a…
Steve Sewell, “Calvinism’s Unsound Interpretation of John 6:37, 44-45”
All Scripture quotations are from the 1901 American Standard Version unless otherwise noted. John 6:44-45 44 No man can come to me, except the Father that sent me draw him: and I will…
The Unjust Persecution of the Arminians
After the death of Arminius in 1609 the Remonstrants petition the States for protection and safe conduct. Why? Why would the early Arminians fear for their physical safety? By the era of Arminius’ death in…
This Week in Arminianism
Andrew, of Beyond Calvinism, posts: “Questions to Ask as You Approach Romans 9.” Leighton Flowers, of Soteriology 101, asks: “Justified by Faith, Yet Judged by Works?“ Kingswood Hart, of The Predestination Station, comments on Romans…
A. Chadwick Thornhill, “Election, Paul, and Second Temple Judaism”
Few issues exist in the interpretation of the New Testament which can become as contentious as questions of “sovereignty” and “free will.” Various terms like “election,” “predestination,” “foreknowledge,” etc., get thrown around in these discussions.…
Denying Double Predestination
“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…
Steve Sewell, “Get God’s Character Right, You’ll Get His Sovereignty Right”
Get God’s character right, and you’ll get His sovereignty right. God’s character defines His sovereignty, not the other way around. What separates Calvinists and Arminians, primarily, is our view of God. Calvinists are determinists. There…
The Five Points of Arminianism
If not for the early Dutch Reformed Arminians rejecting five tenets of Calvinistic ideology, there would be no TULIP today, as TULIP is merely a reaction to Arminian theology. After the death of Arminius, in…
This Week in Arminianism
Amazon.com is now selling Rustin E. Brian’s Jacob Arminius: The Man from Oudewater at a very nice price! Also, you can get a new copy of Grace for All: The Arminian Dynamics of Salvation, edited…
What if God Were the Only One Who Loved You?
Is that an odd question: What if God were the only one who loved you? If you have ever experienced the feeling of being unloved, even if from a cognitive distortion, you more fully identify…
Leah E. Hartman, “God’s Sovereignty Doesn’t Mean What You Think it Means”
My husband, Caleb, and I met in college and the rest, as they say, is history. Except that’s not what happened. After college graduation and before the engagement, we decided to take one of those…
Ben Henshaw, “Grace For All: The Arminian Dynamics of Salvation (Book Review)”
John D. Wagner has produced an updated and expanded version of “Grace Unlimited”, originally edited by the late Clark H. Pinnock. This updated version is called “Grace For All: The Arminian Dynamics of Salvation.” This…
Reward and Punishment Necessitate Libertarian Freedom
As is stated in previous posts on this site, libertarian free will is assumed throughout the tenor of the entire Bible, and determinism is exposed as not merely flawed but erroneous and damaging to the…
This Week in Arminianism
Kevin Jackson, of Wesleyan Arminian, posts “The Ghost at Epworth,” a true-to-life haunting ghost story in the life and household of John Wesley. Asbury’s Seedbed offers Ken Collins’ “John Wesley: Satan’s Devices,” and Leah E.…
Steve Sewell, “If Christ Died Only for “The Elect” …
… then faith only applies to “The Elect.” Jesus said, “Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the…
David L. Hatton, “Saving God from Philosophical Determinism”
In Bible College, I took a philosophy course where a heated discussion erupted about the conflict between a Calvinistic view of predestination and the philosophical position of free will. I believe my professor, a Calvinist,…
Matt O’Reilly, “Common Grace vs. Prevenient Grace: What’s the Difference?”
The question was put to me over lunch earlier this week and not for the first time. So I thought it worthwhile to post here a few reflections on the difference between the Reformed doctrine…
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”
