General
Brian Abasciano’s response to a review of his book on Romans 9:10-18
Submitted by drwayman on Wed, 05/16/2012 - 6:58amBrian Abasciano’s response to a review of his book on Romans 9:10-18
by Roger E. Olson, PhD
I don’t normally do this at my blog, but friend Brian Abasciano of Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary, a leading evangelical Arminian, has written an important book on Romans 9-11 from an Arminian perspective. An early review appears to misrepresent some ideas of the book and Brian has asked me to post his response here. If you know someone who has read the review in question, please see that they read Brian’s response.
Here is the response:
How Prevenient Grace Shapes Our Missional Presence
Submitted by drwayman on Mon, 05/14/2012 - 7:53amHow Prevenient Grace Shapes Our Missional Presence
Written by Andrew Dragos
In his sermon, “On Working Out Our Own Salvation” John Wesley spelled out a principle that underlies one of his most important theological themes. “Since God works therefore you can work,” and “God works therefore you must work.” Although in context it offers commentary on the work of sanctification found in Phil. 2:12-13, it is a helpful way of viewing the nature of prevenient grace as understood by Wesley (John 5:17). Prevenient grace is the work of a God who refused to simply allow the world he created to continue on its destructive path, and so blesses humanity both with the ability and task of doing good here on earth.
Theologians Explain Why the Chicken Crossed the Road (Humor)
Submitted by Kevin Jackson on Tue, 05/08/2012 - 7:29amGreg Boyd: It's a possibility that the chicken crossed the road.
Rick Warren: The chicken was purpose driven.
Mark Driscoll: The chicken crossed because of the rooster's leadership.
Rachel Held Evans: We're talking about chickens here, not pigs.
Pelagius: Because the chicken was able to.
John Piper: God decreed the event to maximize his glory.
Irenaeus: The glory of God is the chicken fully alive.
C.S. Lewis: If a chicken finds itself with a desire that nothing on this side can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that it was created for the other side.
Billy Graham: The chicken was surrendering all.
Pluralist: The chicken took one of many equally valid roads.
Universalist: All chickens cross the road.
Recent responses to Against Calvinism
Submitted by drwayman on Fri, 05/04/2012 - 8:05amRecent responses to Against Calvinism
By Roger E. Olson, PhD
Here I post two e-mails that typify responses I’ve received from individuals about Against Calvinism.
I’m not going to comment on them, just reproduced them here. I’ll let you, my faithful readers, decide what you think and comment on them. I’ve removed anything that would identify their authors.
The One Purpose of Prayer
Submitted by drwayman on Tue, 04/24/2012 - 7:40am"Now, the whole thought in prayer is to get the will of God like that done in our lives and upon this old earth. The greatest prayer any one can offer is, "Thy will be done." It will be offered in a thousand different forms, with a thousand details, as needs arise daily.
But every true prayer comes under those four words. There is not a good desirable thing that you have thought of that He has not thought of first, and probably with an added touch not in your thought. Not to grit your teeth and lock your jaw and pray for grace to say, "Thy will be endured: it is bitter, but I must be resigned; that is a Christian grace; Thy will be endured." Not that please. Do not slander God like that.
A primer on prevenient grace
Submitted by drwayman on Mon, 04/23/2012 - 7:19amOne of John Wesley’s finest contributions to theology was his understanding of prevenient grace. Broadly speaking, this is the grace that “goes before”—that grace which precedes human action and reflects God’s heart to pursue his creation. It testifies to God’s being the initiator of every relationship with him. While prevenient grace is an orthodox teaching held by the historic church, it becomes distinctly Wesleyan in its reach and scope. For John Wesley, prevenient grace is available to all, such that there is no “natural man” left in a purely fallen state without a measure of God’s restorative grace. Furthermore, prevenient grace is salvific in direction. This means the Spirit of God works not just to restore certain faculties of humanity or to limit human sin, but ultimately directs people to the work of Christ. This is one of the marks that sets Wesley apart from Augustine and John Calvin.
Another Round in the Theodicy Debate (This Time Involving Bob Dylan!)
Submitted by drwayman on Fri, 04/20/2012 - 12:14pmRoger E. Olson, PhD writes:
“Theodicy”–The attempt to justify the ways of God in the face of the problem of evil.
A friendly correspondent sent me this URL to an article in today’s Chronicle of Higher Education:
http://chronicle.com/article/The-Naked-Truth-at-Stanford/131428/
The article is entitled The Naked Truth by Ron Rosenbaum (author of Explaining Hitler). It states the classical theodicy problem very powerfully–using an obscure line from an obscure Bob Dylan lyric.
In a nutshell, the author’s argument is that, in light of the holocaust, people must give up believing in God.
Would I Worship A Calvinist God?
Submitted by Martin Glynn on Thu, 04/19/2012 - 8:00amThis question was once posed to Dr. Roger Olson, and I've been thinking it over: if I became convinced beyond a shadow of a doubt that God really did govern the way that Calvinists claim He governs, would I still worship Him? It is an interesting question.
First of all, I want to state that I agree with Olson that if God governs the way in which Calvinists claim He does, then He would be immoral by His own standards. I recognize that Calvinists don't believe that God is immoral, but they are simply being inconsistent on this point IMO. So my understanding of the question is this: could I worship an immoral God?
The answer is yes and no. It is important to note that worship is not simply giving thanks and showing affection. It is also veneration to a recognized authority. Because God is God, and God is king, He deserves that veneration; that worship.
Roger Olson on “judging God’s morality” (snippet)
Submitted by drwayman on Wed, 04/18/2012 - 7:42amThis is a brief snippet from Dr. Roger Olson's post: "About judging God's morality"
Recently, an acquaintance asked me if I am guilty of “judging God’s morality.” He explained that his reason for asking is my answer to my student’s question, “If it were revealed to you in a way you could not doubt that God is as Calvinism says, would you still worship him?” My answer was “No.”
Apparently this response caused my acquaintance some consternation. I responded that I didn’t see why. He further explained that it seemed to him inappropriate to judge God. “But, I said, I’m not judging God. God is worshipful; I worship him. How is that judging God?”
Focus on the Family's John 3:16 video
Submitted by Martin Glynn on Fri, 04/06/2012 - 8:03amIn celebration of Good Friday and Easter, we felt it best to review a well known text from some young, insightful exegetes.
