Book Review: Arminian and Baptist by J. Matthew Pinson

When you hear the words Baptist and Arminian, what do you think of? Quite possibly it is the debate within the Southern Baptist convention (link) over whether it will promote Arminian (an interview with Roger Olson) or Calvinist (link from Desiring God) views on how one is saved (aka soteriology).

J. Matthew Pinson, President of Welch College, (blog) is not coming from the SBC but rather the General Baptist and Free Will Baptist tradition, which is more strongly rooted in ArminianBaptistBookthe Arminian tradition. In his book Baptist and Arminian (amazon), he explores the theological views held by the founders and prominent theologians of the early General Baptist movement and argues that both they and Arminius are very Reformed in their theological outlook. This view point is often called Reformed or Classical Arminianism. Continue reading

What Jesus might write in a Letter to the 21st Century Church

On Friday the SCOTUS, in a 5-4 decision, made same-sex marriage the law of the land expanding the right beyond the 36 states in which it was already legal (link). We should not be surprised. When a nation, governed as “we the people”, is comprised of a such a diverse group of people, not all of which are Christians, why should we expect it to adopt laws that model Christian ethics? Continue reading

Grace for All: Grace is Personal

The essay … The Spirit of Grace, was originally written by William G. MacDonald (link) and was edited by John D. Wagner. 415xXkjORGL

The authors present a challenge to any theologian, one that is probably not considered often enough.

The most complicating factor for system building in theology is the personhood of God. … A force, idea, or principle is far more consistent and controllable in thought than a living personality …

It is not possible, the authors contend, to fully understand grace unless we first grapple with God as One who is living and dynamic.

The concept of the grace of God is grounded in the doctrine of God’s holy Self, his personhood

The authors challenge the “working definition” of grace, Continue reading