Category Archives: People

Doctrine

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J. Gresham Machen, in his classic 1923 book, Christianity and Liberalism (ch 11), notes a commonly-held objection to doctrine: creeds (it is often said) are merely the changing expressions of a unitary Christian experience, and insofar as they express that experience they are equally good.

But, replies Machen, this objection will not stand.  After all, liberalism itself has its doctrines, as tenaciously held as those embraced by orthodox believers.  Such, for example, are the liberal doctrines of the universal fatherhood of God and the universal brotherhood of man. …

Faith

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What do people mean by ‘faith’?

The word ‘faith’ is used in a bewildering variety of ways at the present day:-

  1. The sceptical view is that it is ‘blind trust’.  According to Dawkins, ‘faith is the great cop-out, the great excuse to evade the need to think and evaluate evidence.  Faith is belief in spite of, even perhaps because of, the lack of evidence…Faith is not allowed to justify itself by argument.’
  2. The popular view is that it is ‘a certain obstinate optimism’ (Packer, God’s Words, p129). 
…

Has science eliminated God?

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The best short summary and discussion that I have seen of Richard Dawkins’ view that science has ‘eliminated’ God is that of Alister McGrath in an article published the journal Science and Christian Belief.

Although published in 2005, and not interacting directly with Dawkins’ The God Delusion, the article nevertheless takes account of the opinions of Dawkins as they have developed from 1977 (The Selfish Gene) onwards.

McGrath expresses admiration for Dawkins’ scientific writing, but notes that when he touches on the subject of God, evidence-based reasoning seems to have been left behind, to be replaced by over-simplification and, not infrequently, misrepresentation.…

Do atheists exist?

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Self-confessed atheists are likely to be infuriated by the suggestion that there is really no such thing as atheism.  But the idea that everyone, at heart, believes in God is a soundly biblical one.

To be sure, we should offer unbelievers sound reasons for the existence of God.  But we should resist the idea that their professed unbelief is as deep-seated as they might have us suppose.

As has often been pointed out, the Bible never tries the prove the existence of God. …

Flavel on guidance

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John Flavel (1628-1691) offers much in very few words:-

If therefore, in doubtful cases, you would discover God’s will, govern yourselves in your search after it by these rules:

1. Get the true fear of God upon your hearts; be really afraid of offending him.

2. Study the Word more, and the concerns and interests of the world less.

3. Reduce what you know into practice, and you shall know what is your duty to practice.…

Love for Christ

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The love that a Christian has for Christ is a practical, as well as an emotional thing.  It has its own distinguishing marks.

J.C. Ryle expressed it very well, I think:-

1.  If we love a person, we like to think about him. We do not need to be reminded of him. We do not forget his name or his appearance or his character or his opinions or his tastes or his position or his occupation.…

Carson on open theism

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I’m going to summarise a helpful review of open theism given by D.A. Carson in the following lecture:-

Openness of God Theology

1.  Definitions and key people

Leading figures in this movement include Clark Pinnock, Greg Boyd, and John Sanders.

According to Sanders, there are no-risk and risk views of divine providence.  The no-risk (or classical) view is that God ordains everything.  But this would mean that God ordains evil, including suffering and death.  Open theism takes a ‘risk’ view of providence.…

Motivational appeal in evangelistic preaching

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In an recent edition of Themelios, D.A. Carson suggests that there are a number of possible motivations that preachers might appeal to, especially when addressing unbelievers.  I summarise:-

1.  Fear.  Although the gospel promises deliverance from fear (Heb 2:14-18), Christ and the apostles did not shrink from warning people of the consequences of unbelief (Mt 10:38; 13:30; 16:26; 22:10-13).  It is a dreadful thing to fall into the hands of the living God (Heb 10:31).…

A major publishing event in reformed theology

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‘The Theology of B.B. Warfield: a systematic survey‘, by Fred G. Zaspel, IVP/Apollos, 2010.

I acquired most of B. B. Warfield’s writings (in their Presbyterian & Reformed editions) over thirty years ago. ‘The Person and Work of Christ’, for example, was given to me by my fiancee (soon after to become my wife) in 1977; ‘Calvin and Augustine’ was snaffled up while on holiday in Lochgilphead, Scotland, in 1979.

I have always been impressed by Warfield’s lucidity, versatility, spiritual warmth, and biblical faithfulness.…

Is God the Ultimate Boeing 747?

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In chapter 4 of The God Delusion, Richard Dawkins attempts to demonstrate that the existence of God is extremely improbable.  He gives pride of place to his ‘Ultimate Boeing 747 gambit’.  This argument, he says, is ‘the big one’.

The starting-point is the comment attributed to Fred Hoyle that the probability of life originating on earth by chance is no greater that a tornado in a junk-yard asembling a fully-functioning Boeing 747.  Theists often like to say that that the universe is so complex that only God could have brought it into being.…