Author Archives: Dan C.

Book Review–“Why I Am Not an Arminian”

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“Why I Am Not an Arminian”, by Robert A. Peterson and Michael D. Williams was written as a response to “Why I Am Not a Calvinist, by Jerry Walls. My understanding is that the authors would really have liked to call it “Why I am a Calvinist”, but went with the above title at the request of those who wanted to highlight the contrast with the previously written Jerry Walls book.

Nevertheless, I now have the book and have finished reading it. It might be the best and most gracious explanation of the differences between both theological systems. I’ve read and collected a lot of material discussing both systems and this might be the most thoughtful and easy to understand source I have come across to date!

Here is the Amazon summary and a short review:

From Amazon.com:

“Arminian theology is sweeping through the evangelical churches of North America. While most Arminians are good, sincere, orthodox Christians, authors Robert A. Peterson and Michael D. Williams contend that aspects of Arminian thought are troubling both biblically and theologically. In particular, they argue, Arminians have too lofty a view of human nature and an inadequate understanding of God’s sovereign love in Christ.

‘Why I Am Not an Arminian’ explores the biblical, theological and historical background to the Calvinist-Arminian debate. The irenic nature and keen insight of this book will be appreciated by lay people, pastors and scholars alike.”

Another review offered:

“Peterson and Williams write with a grace which goes far deeper than their commendable style. The authors’ Arminian conversants are fairly represented from their best literature and answered with impeccable arguments which are scripturally compelling, philosophically and historically exacting, and gracefully irenic. ‘Why I Am Not an Arminian’ is a book that you can get your head and your heart around–and be graced!”

The authors, Robert A. Peterson and Michael D. Williams are both on the faculty at Covenant Theological Seminary in St. Louis, MO.

The Power of God in Salvation

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15 So I am eager to preach the gospel to you also who are in Rome. 16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. (Rom 1:15-16, ESV)

In his letter to the church in Rome, Paul expressed his eagerness to personally visit Roman believers and preach to them the gospel face-to-face. He then explains why he so eager, because (for) the gospel is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes.

The above passage poses to us two questions, 1) What is the gospel?, and 2) What is this “power of God” of which Paul speaks?

The answer to the first question, ‘What is the gospel?’ is really simple, since Paul defined it, and very specifically, in his first letter to the Corinthian church;

“1 Now I would remind you, brothers, of the gospel I preached to you, which you received, in which you stand, 2 and by which you are being saved, if you hold fast to the word I preached to you—unless you believed in vain.

3 For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, 4 that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures. . .” (1 Cor 15:1-4)

As to the second question, What is the power of God for salvation?

First of all it is for, or unto salvation, meaning that it’s a power that unfailingly moves an unbeliever to repent of sin and believe in Christ, and then carries the new believer all the way to ultimate glorification and eternity in the presence of God, and his Son. Why do I say this? Because of what Paul tells us later on in the same letter to the Roman church:

“28 And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. 29 For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters. 30 And those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified”.(Romans 8:28-30, ESV)

Note that in the above passage Paul first tells us that everything works together for the ultimate good of the those who love God and have been called according to his (God’s) purpose. Most of are familiar with, and love that verse. We also tend to separate it from what follows – the WHY of Paul’s argument. With the use of the preposition ‘for’, Paul tells us how all the ‘stuff of life’ works for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose.

Secondly, this salvation pertains to a group of people he calls ‘foreknown’ ones. God foreknew them, not what they might do at some point in their lives. The text is unmistakably clear. It’s the same ‘knowing’ expressed concerning the prophet Jeremiah, of whom God said “before you were in your mother’s womb, I knew you”. And on behalf of all those whom God foreknew, he demonstrated his mighty power in

It’s predestining, or predetermining power. We are told that God determined beforehand that a certain group of people would be conformed to the image of his Son, not that he would create the possibility to be conformed to the image of Christ. If you are thinking that salvation is not in view here, think again. Does being conformed to the image of Christ require salvation, or not? if the former is predestined, so must be the latter.

It’s calling power. It’s a call that produces the desired results, each and every time it goes forth. Jesus didn’t ask dead, stinking Lazarus if he would consider coming out of the grave, He commanded, “Lazarus, come forth!” If God’s call of the guilty sinner is ‘for salvation’, guess what is going to happen?

It’s justifying power. When God justifies, he declares the sinner perfectly righteous IN Christ, although not a one of us will die completely free of sin in our mortal selves. Who is IN Christ? All those who have been predestined to be conformed to Christ and called by God to repent of sin and believe in Christ.

And finally, it’s glorifying power. Just as Christ was resurrected and glorified in the presence of God, at whose right hand he now sits, all who were foreknown, predestined, called, and justified, were also glorified. Note the past tense used on our Romans passage. It’s important. It’s a done deal in the mind of God! We have yet to see it, but God has decreed it!

You might have noticed that sanctifying power is not mentioned in our Romans passage. I would like to suggest that sanctification is undeniably implicit in God’s having predestined those he foreknew to be conformed to the image of his Son,  We would all agree (Reformed and non-Reformed) that being conformed to the image of our Savior is the very definition of progressive sanctification,

In concluding this article, I ask you one thing. Do you think, even for a moment, that the power of God for salvation that is described herein could be thwarted by any other power?

Dear Lord, we pray that those who are already yours will be greatly humbled in the face of your power to save. We pray also that wherever there are those in need of salvation power, you would open hearts to hear the gospel, and send messengers to share that gospel.

The Glory of God and the Purpose of the Church

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The first question asked by the Westminster Shorter Catechism is, “What is the chief end of man?”. Some of us know the answer, “Man’s chief end is to glorify God and enjoy him forever.” In the Catechism itself, there are nearly a dozen passages of scripture provided to support the answer.

If you visit many of today’s evangelical churches, or even visit their websites, you might come away thinking that the chief goal of most believers is to fine one’s special purpose, dream destiny, or most fulfilling life while occupying planet earth. If you doubt my assumption, just listen to some of the sermons from the most popular broadcasters on Christian television, or visit church websites. Listen to almost any sermon/sermon series and what hear is all about you. Even when scripture is used to support a lot of these sermons, they still end up being all about you instead of expositing/exegeting/explaining the actual text of scripture.

And then there are church web site ‘vision statements’. I can’t tell you how many vision statements I’ve seem that set as a goal of the church to help you find your ‘purpose’, or discover your ‘destiny’ on earth. While you might find a ‘What We Believe’ section with sound statements of belief, sometimes you have to dig deep to find them. The church vision statement is often boldly stated on a home page while a belief statement is several layers deep. The church vision is clearly a higher priority than the core beliefs of the church. I suggest that what we believe is far more important than a ‘vision statement’.

While the find your purpose/dream destiny goal sounds great and definitely attracts people, is it a biblical goal for the church? What does the Bible have to say about priorities in the life of the church and in the lives of individual believers?

Interestingly enough, we have a particular passage that dates back to Pentecost, when 3,000 heard the gospel proclaimed, repented and believed in Jesus as the Messiah (were ‘saved’).

Acts 2:42 describes the principle activities of these new believers;

“And they continued steadfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, and in breaking of bread, and in prayers.” (KJV)

“And they devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers.” (ESV)
“They were continually devoting themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.” (NASB)

Note the three activities of these new believers ‘continued steadfastly in’ or ‘were devoted to’:

  1. The apostles’ doctrine/teaching
  2. Fellowship
  3. Prayer

Is it a stretch to assume that all three of these activities glorify God? The purpose of the church, made up of individual believers, is described in Ephesians, Chapter 4:

11 And he (God)gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers, 12 to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ,

13 until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ, 14 so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes. 15 Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, 16 from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love.

We are told that God gifted the church with apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers (sometimes called the five-fold ministry) for specific reasons:

“…to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, until we all (saints/believers) attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood,to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ” (emphasis mine).

Note for whom the gifts are given; “the saints”, believers in Christ. Note also that the gifts given to the church are “for the work of the ministry, for the building up of the body of Christ.” There is nothing here, or anywhere else in scripture (trust me) about the church existing for non-believers. There is also nothing here, or elsewhere in scripture, that even remotely suggests that those with the aforementioned gifts are to help folks in the pews (or theater seats) have their best lives now, discover special purposes, or achieve dream destinies.

Would it be a stretch to assume that the purpose of those so gifted might be to teach the ‘doctrine of the apostles’, the object of devotion for the new believers in Acts? I think not.

How does that translate to today – the apostles’ doctrine? A no-brainer? It must refer to what is contained in scripture, that which was inspired (breathed out by God)!

So, getting back to the chief end of man and the purpose of the church. When the subject matter being taught by evangelical leaders becomes all about you, who exactly is being ‘glorified’? I’ll leave it right there.

Oh, there’s one other little thing. Something that Jesus said:

“Then Jesus told his disciples, ‘If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me’.” (Matthew 16:25)

I’ll leave that one there too. Any questions?

_________________

P.S. If you don’t know much about church catechisms, here is a link that lists some, along with additional links to the actual texts.

For What "Good" Is God Working All Things Together?

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by Jeremiah Johnson at GTY.org

Here’s one example—a devotional reading from Joel Osteen. Romans 8:28 appears to be one of the prosperity preacher’s favorite verses—this is just one of the many entries he’s written on it, titled “When Life Isn’t Fair.”

Everyone goes through things that don’t seem to make sense. It’s easy to get discouraged and wonder, “Why did this happen to me?” “Why did this person treat me wrong?” “Why did I get laid off?” But we have to understand, even though life is not always fair, God is fair. And, He promises to work all things together for good for those who love Him.

I believe the key word is this verse is “together.” In other words, you can’t just isolate one part of your life and say, “Well, this is not good.” “It’s not good that I got laid off.” “It’s not good that my relationship didn’t work out.” Yes, that’s true, but that’s just one part of your life. God can see the big picture. That disappointment is not the end. Remember, when one door closes, God has another door for you to walk through—a better door. Those difficulties and challenges are merely stepping stones toward your brighter future. Be encouraged today because God has a plan for you to rise higher. He has a plan for you to come out stronger. He has a plan to work all things together for your good so that you can move forward in the victory He has prepared for you! [1]

With some variation, that represents many believers’ general understanding of what Paul meant in Romans 8:28—“Don’t let life get you down. God’s going to make everything better!”

Of course that oversimplification goes beyond the original intent of Paul’s words. There’s no biblical basis for Osteen’s promise that God always has a better door for us to walk through. In fact, His Word promises that life won’t always be happy, rich, and full—sometimes we’re meant to suffer (1 Peter 4:12).

It’s in the midst of that suffering that Romans 8:28 is most often deployed. We want to trust that God is working, even through our trials, to bring about His will. And there’s plenty of biblical evidence to back up that hope. The story of Joseph in the Old Testament is one of the clearest examples.

Joseph was severely beaten and sold into slavery by his brothers. He endured the illicit advances of his boss’ wife, and was thrown into prison after she made false accusations against him. He lingered in prison for years before he was released and brought in to council Pharaoh himself. He was given a position of leadership, in which the Lord used him to spare Egypt and countless surrounding communities—including his own family—from famine. At the end of his story, as he reconciles with the brothers who kick-started all his suffering, he acknowledges God’s sovereign hand working through it all: “As for you, you meant evil against me, but  God meant it for good in order to bring about this present result, to preserve many people alive” (Genesis 50:20).

Stories like Joseph’s give us confidence that God is always working behind the scenes to bring about His will. But He might not have such monumental purposes for our suffering. Sometimes it’s simply for our own spiritual growth that the Lord allows us to suffer through trials (James 1:2). The Spirit’s refining, sanctifying work is often painful, but the spiritual fruit it bears is well worth the struggle.

In his commentary on Romans, John MacArthur explains that God is working out

our good during this present life as well as ultimately in the life to come. No matter what happens in our lives as His children, the providence of God uses it for our temporal as well as our eternal benefit, sometimes by saving us from tragedies and sometimes by sending us through them in order to draw us closer to Him. [2]

A Certain Eternity

In the immediate context of Romans 8, Paul is not dwelling on our current suffering, but looking forward to eternity. In verse 18, he mentions the “sufferings of this present time,” but only to say that they cannot compare to “the glory that is to be revealed to us.” From there he explains how creation groans to be free from the curse of sin (Romans 8:19-22), and how believers likewise long to see the fulfillment of their faith (vv. 23-25). Then he describes how the Spirit intercedes on our behalf according to God’s eternal purposes (vv. 26-27).

The theme continues in the verses immediately following:

For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brethren; and these whom He predestined, He also called; and these whom He called, He also justified; and these whom He justified, He also glorified. (Romans 8:29-30)

In the context of the believer’s eternal glorification, we need to understand the “purpose” for which God is working all things together as not merely our temporal good, but our eternal good. In that sense, Romans 8:28 isn’t merely a promise that God is watching out for us in this life; it’s a guarantee that He is working out all aspects of our lives toward His ultimate goal of our future glorification. It’s a promise that our eternity with Him is secure.

In a sermon on this passage called “Groanings Too Deep for Words,” John MacArthur explains that powerful promise this way:

The point is this: Because of the plan of God and the provision of Christ and the protection of the Holy Spirit through His intercessory ministry, God is causing all things to work together for our final, eternal, ultimate good. Not everything in this life works out for good—far from it. Oh, you might draw a good lesson from it. You might draw a good outcome from it. You might be drawn to the Lord. It might increase your prayer life. It might strengthen you. It might give you patience. It might perfect you, mature you. It might make you able to counsel other people and strengthen them because . . . you’ve been comforted by God in the same struggles.

All of those are wonderful realities, but that’s not the good that’s being spoken of here. The good that dominates this passage is that ultimate, final good that is the glorification of true believers. We are secured to that final good, that which is the best.

In His providence, God is sovereignly orchestrating all events according to His will, for His glory and our good. But we’re not guaranteed that all our struggles will be turned into blessing. Sometimes He will rescue us from tragedies; other times it’s our suffering that brings about His desired result. Our perspective on His sovereign goodness cannot be bound to our own circumstances—if Joseph had remained in the Egyptian jail for the rest of His life, would God be any less good, or His will less than perfect?

What we are guaranteed in Romans 8:28 is that regardless of what we have to endure in this life, our eternity with Him is unassailable. Nothing can stand in the way of His plans for our future glorification.

And in the midst of life’s struggles, what better promise could we cling to?

Sneakers & Evangelism

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Did Colin Kapenick influence Nike’s decision to pull the Betsy Ross themed new sneakers? Some say yes, including CNBC, Wall Street Journal, and just about every news outlet on the planet.

The WSJ reported:

“Nike Inc. is yanking a U.S.A.-themed sneaker (the “Air Max 1 USA”) featuring an early American flag after NFL star-turned-activist Colin Kaepernick told the company it shouldn’t sell a shoe with a symbol that he and others consider offensive.”

One Radio Station reported that:

“Nike Pulls Shoes Featuring Betsy Ross Flag Over Concerns About Racist Symbolism”

Here is Nike’s first official response:

“Nike has chosen not to release the Air Max 1 Quick Strike Fourth of July as it featured an old version of the American flag,” Nike told CNBC in a statement.

Given the reports of the world’s news outlets, only a very few people (those with ‘asparagus’ level intellects?) will buy Nike’s first official response. Later in the day yesterday Nike responded again:

“We regularly make business decisions to withdraw initiatives, products and services. NIKE made the decision to halt distribution of the Air Max 1 Quick Strike Fourth of July based on concerns that it could unintentionally offend and detract from the nation’s patriotic holiday.

Well, Nike, CK and news outlets aside, I couldn’t help but think about how interesting it would be to write a similar article about much of today’s Christian evangelism. It could be titled,

“Evangelical Leaders Remove ‘Sin’ and ‘Repentance’ from the Gospel Message Because the Terms Might be Offensive”

Although there is a general similarity in the theme that something that might “offend” someone in both cases (sneakers and the gospel), there are significant differences between the two.

1. Nike made its decision just this week and received a ton of backlash. Evangelicalism’s removal of ‘sin’ and ‘repentance’ in the gospel message is nothing new, and can be traced back to the late ‘80’s, if not further in the past.

2. Due to the removal of ‘sin’ and ‘repentance’ from the message of the gospel occurring sometime in the past (a book by noted psychologist Carl Menninger “Whatever Became of Sin?” was published in 1988), whatever backlash that might have been received is mostly in the past.  There might have been strong opposition early on, but slowly the thought that we could win people to Christ just talking about how much he loves us became firmly entrenched in modern evangelical thought.

3. Finally (for now), the genuine gospel message IS a matter of offense to the unbeliever!

“For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.” (1 Cor 1:18)

Because sinners love their sin and darkness (and all of us are sinners), it takes a sovereign act of God to open a sinful heart to pay attention to the gospel message that addresses man’s sinfulness. But since God is really good at opening hearts to hear the gospel (see Acts 16 and the story of Lydia). Hearts ARE opened, the true gospel is preached, and sinners are saved!

And that’s what the whole Nike/Colin Kapernick/Betsy Ross sneakers issue got me thinking about.

My question to you is this:

“What’s worse, caving in to cultural demands for inoffensive sneakers, ot sending people to hell with a false gospel?

Food for thought……………………………

Heaven’s War

Posted by Dan C. on

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Trapped between worlds! After a terrorist bomb explodes, US senator Jonah Thomas is forced into an epic battle fought somewhere between life and death, Heaven and Hell.

While FBI agents and terrorists fight for his life in one world, angels and demons wage war for his soul in another. Will Jonah learn the truth and find his way home before it’s too late?
“One of the most powerful presentations of the gospel ever produced in film.”
– Tim Utekal, Secondly Magazine
“Awesome! A supernatural thriller that beautifully presents the gospel.”
– Jonathan Falwell, author, pastor of Thomas Road Baptist Church
“A powerful story of the spiritual battle that rages around us for every human soul.”
– Edwin L Carpenter, Dove.org

General Observations:

The movie tackles the problem of sin and the reality of hell. In fact, at one point we see screaming people falling into a flaming hell, inducing corrupt politicians..

The truth that everyone will one day stand before the Judgment and give account for all deeds done in this life is well presented.

The power of prayer is presented mainly through Jonah’s dying mother and his wife.

The movie presents the message that Christ died for the sins of the world. The archangel Gabriel presents John 3:16 to Jonah Thomas while they are in the spiritual realm where Gabriel, with a little help from his friends, does battle with demons, over Jonah’s soul.

Jonah finally sees the truth (Gabriel’s goal) and surrenders to Jesus, giving his life to the Savior.

Spiritual warfare over the souls of men is the overarching theme of the movie. Some might think the spiritual warfare theme, complete with ‘battle’ scenes and CGI effects overshadow Jonah’s giving his life to Jesus.

There is a happy ending of course, with Jonah, his wife and daughter walking off into the distance and shining sunlight, the“light of Christ”.

The final narrative quote was interesting. As the trio are walking away into the light, we hear the narrator say:

“But for those who do the will of God, they will one day have every tear and every sorrow wiped away and they will live forever in the glory and love of our Lord Jesus.”

Personal Observations:

I purchased the DVD because I kept getting ads on Facebook (must be an algorithm). But rather than pay the full ‘sale’ price, I bought 4 DVDs. Other short reviews might follow this one. We actually watched one of the other DVDs first.

As with other contemporary ‘Christian’ films, I watched this one wondering whether there would be a clear presentation of the gospel. Oftentimes it’s missing. By that I mean a gospel message that included the issue of sin, the need for repentance, and the solution of Christ’s death for sin. For that, the film gets high marks. Christ’s death for the sins of the world was clearly presented. That Christ’s death was for the sins of the whole world, without further clarification, is typical when the intent is to communicate that Christ died for all of the sins of all men, a matter of debate between Calvinists and Arminians.

The film clearly communicated that Christ’s love can breach any obstacle to believing in his sacrifice for sins. And although final judgment is depicted, along with unbelievers being cast into hell, the fact that Jesus is both savior and judge seemed to be blurred. While Christ’s love is clearly presented, Jesus is not presented as presiding at the final judgment. Nevertheless, judgment for sin is clearly presented.

At the end of the day, salvation is presented as the result of Jonah’s free will decision, thus making human decision the determining factor in salvation, which is probably the prevailing opinion of the vast majority of evangelicals.

While salvation is rightly presented as a ‘free gift’, the final narration could communicate that final salvation is conditioned on ‘obedience to the will of God’, possibly conflating law and grace. Here again is the ending:

“But for those who do the will of God, they will one day have every tear and every sorrow wiped away and they will live forever in the glory and love of our Lord Jesus.”

The film seems to teach that although salvation is a free gift to be received by ‘giving one’s heart to Jesus”, living for eternity in the presence of Christ depends on human obedience.

It is my belief, from scripture, that genuine salvation unfailingly produces a life of obedience to the will of God, and naturally results in eternity with Christ. Perhaps the film’s producers also believe that, but it just could have been better communicated.

All in all, it was much better than most of today’s Christian film offerings, which are mostly adventures in missing the point of the gospel message.