War and Peace – Part 3 – True Lies and Tom Clancy

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When I hear many Americans discussing the appropriate contexts for the use of deadly force, I have noticed that there are some pretty key assumptions underlying the discussion that rarely–if ever–get examined. While I don’t want to get into the chicken-egg question of which causes which, I would suggest that popular entertainment may give us a useful window onto some important fallacies. Although I believe … Continue reading War and Peace – Part 3 – True Lies and Tom Clancy »

War and Peace – Part 2 – Life and Death Decisions

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Wisdom can be found in many places, not all of them holy. In The Lord of the Rings, the great J.R.R. Tolkien made a profound observation: “Many live that deserve death. And some that die deserve life. Can you give it to them? Then do not be too eager to deal out death in judgement. For even the very wise cannot see all ends.” (Fellowship … Continue reading War and Peace – Part 2 – Life and Death Decisions »

God’s foreknowledge as a result of his sovereignty

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In my last post I criticized Greg Boyd’s otherwise-excellent arguments in “God of the Possible” as giving insufficient attention to God’s sovereignty as an important key to understanding his foreknowledge. I suggested that while Boyd correctly answers his objectors toward the end of the book, by saying that the Open View of God does not diminish–and may in fact enhance–the view of God’s authority, he … Continue reading God’s foreknowledge as a result of his sovereignty »

The Sovereignty of God

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I’ve just finished Greg Boyd’s lay treatise on the Open Theism entitled “God of the Possible.” In the main I think Boyd has laid out an excellent perspective that conforms far more closely to my understanding of Scripture and my observation of the world, than does the classical view that God has exhaustive foreknowledge of a settled future. I definitely recommend the book. However correct … Continue reading The Sovereignty of God »

Insight from Boyd on Bringing Our Presuppositions to Scripture

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I’m in the middle of Greg Boyd’s excellent book “God of the Possible,” an introduction to the “Open View of God” which I find quite compelling, but which I’m sorry to say some of my Evangelical friends have flatly rejected as heresy. I’ll address the Open View in future posts, but for now I wanted to share a point he makes regarding our interpretation of … Continue reading Insight from Boyd on Bringing Our Presuppositions to Scripture »

Eternal destiny, part 4: What about those who’ve never heard?

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The second element of the question put to me was as regards the eternal state of those who have never heard the gospel, and consequently have never had the opportunity to accept or reject Christ. This is a problematic concept when we try and break it down logically, and I readily admit this. However the uncomfortable reality is that Scripture is nearly silent on the … Continue reading Eternal destiny, part 4: What about those who’ve never heard? »

Eternal destiny, part 2: Begging the Question

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The clearest finding I come to from this study was something I had already suspected, but I was still surprised by the preponderance of evidence that came through. This is that the concept of hell and condemnation is used in the New Testament primarily as a warning to those who claim to believe, or who claim God’s privilege. It is not used as a warning … Continue reading Eternal destiny, part 2: Begging the Question »

Eternal destiny, part 1

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Note: The source New Testament study on which this series is based is now available here I’ve already posted about my aversion to statements of faith in general, and to specific points in the commonly-accepted evangelical doctrinal statements. In the next several posts I want to take on one specific point in Evangelical doctrine that I believe is seriously misguided–the subject of eternal condemnation/hell. As … Continue reading Eternal destiny, part 1 »