...Summary of the Chapters In chapter one of Evangelism and the Sovereignty of God, J.I. Packer doesn’t waste time explaining the general truths. He already expects his readers to know that God is sovereign over His world. He is the author and source of all things, therefore, our prayers do not force the Lord of all to do anything. Packer wants his audience to realize that because the God is sovereign, we cannot save ourselves. Our salvation comes through Him and in Him; it is nothing we did ourselves. Packers gives two examples, that he believes can prove that God is sovereign in salvation. The first, he argues that we (Christians) thank God for our salvation. By doing so we acknowledge that God is solely responsible for our salvation. We do not thank ourselves for being saved, do we? No, because we know that it is God who is in control. The second way we acknowledge that God is sovereign in salvation, is that we pray for the conversion of non-believers. Packer defends his reasoning by saying, “Do you limit yourself to asking that God will bring them (non-believers) to a point where they can save themselves, independently of Him?”[1] Again, by praying to God for the salvation of others we practice the act of acknowledging God is sovereign. Proven now, that God is sovereign, in chapter 2 the author explains what an antimony is and how to deal with hardships that come along with it. An antimony is an appearance of a contradiction between conclusions which seem equally...
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...Bible- Book review In his book, Evangelism and the Sovereignty of God J. I. Packer argues the purpose of evangelism in terms of God’s sovereignty. There are two main points that the reader can easily find in his book. The first is found within the first few pages which is, God is sovereign and rules the entirety of all things. He precisely argues that all Christians give in to a degree of sovereignty especially when it comes to prayer. The second being, even as God is sovereign this should not stop believers, but should persuade them to carry out the command of the Great Commission. In his book, Evangelism and the Sovereignty of God Packer shows that Christians should not abandon the call to evangelize simply because God has power over all salvation. In other words, Packer argues that...
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...Youngblood Chapter 2: Sovereignty Tracy Christiansen Professor Brown Crown College March 8, 2016 The principles of sovereignty can be defined by the following aspects: To be sovereign is to possess supreme power and authority so that one is in complete control and can accomplish whatever he pleases. “Our God in heaven; he does whatever pleases him” (Psalms 115:3). It is God's world, his creation and He alone is sovereign over it. More so, the existence of the universe or any creation is from God and nothing or no one else. Thus, the entire history, present and future of the world everything that happens in our world happens either because He directly causes it, or he consciously allows. Nothing enters into history or even exists outside history that doesn't come under God's complete control. In this paper I will define God’s sovereignty, providing evidence and examples to support this truth. I will demonstrate the sovereignty of God applies in the world today just as it did in the Old Testament “Whatsoever the LORD pleased, that did he in heaven, and in earth, in the seas, and all deep places (Psalms 135:6). Genesis One tells the story of creation and God the Creator. According to Youngblood (1998), the word “create” in the Old Testament only and always refers to God and never a human...
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...surgeon is a qualified expert creates a sense of peace and confidence for the patient. Who is this God we should trust? The more we know of God's character, the more we are open to trusting Him during our trials. God wants us to trust Him, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and do not lean on your understanding.” Proverb 3:5 This lesson focuses on three pertinent characteristics of God: His Sovereignty His Wisdom His Goodness God’s Sovereignty Definitions of sovereignty: “Supreme and independent power or authority in a state.” “Sovereignty of God, his absolute right to do all things...
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...Does man have free will? This question has been asked within the church since its inception. If man’s will is free then in a sense there is a part of creation that exists outside of God’s control, bringing His sovereignty into question. If man does not have free will his significance as the height of the created order is lessened. The question is further clouded by the fact that the Bible seems to support both ideas; that man is free and wholly responsible for his actions and that God is sovereign over every action within his creation. Paul Tillich describes the issue writing, “The question is whether the moral imperative is dependent on the divine grace for its actualization, or whether divine grace is dependent on the fulfillment of the moral imperative.”[1] This debate has been the cause of much disagreement throughout the history of the church. Brought to the forefront of debate by Augustine, arguing for the sovereignty of God, and Pelagius, arguing for the free will of man, the discussion over the relationship between God’s control and man’s ability has continued to this day. Later, during the reformation, Calvinists and Arminians continued the debate over the role man plays in the salvation process. This disagreement has caused Roger E. Olson to write, “We need to shoulder the responsibility of choosing between Calvinism and Arminianism. That does not mean choosing between Christianity and something else. It means choosing between two respectable interpretations...
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...February 9, 2014 Themes (Messages) of the Pentateuch 1) The Sovereignty of God “sovereign” - ruler, leader “sovereignty” – leadership, authority This is the first theme (or the first thing that is emphasized) in the Pentateuch. a) Genesis 1-2: assumes the preexistence and eternality of God * God created the universe with no assistance from anyone * God created the universe out of nothing, “ex nihilo” (will be tested) * Genesis 1 clearly establishes God’s sovereignty (authority) over His creation b) This is further demonstrated with God’s dealings with people like Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph and Moses. * God always assured them of his presence, protection, and guidance c) God’s sovereignty over Egypt * Helping the Israel’s out of Egypt (the most advanced and sophisticated nation of the time) * The 7 plagues – demonstrated that God was the ruler, not only of Egypt, but all over the earth. * Exodus 19 – God appears at Mount Sinai; presents 10 commandments to Moses. This portrayed that God’s sovereignty had no geographical boundaries. 2) History The writings of religions such as Confucianism and Buddhism express their theology (study of the nature of God) through myths in which those events took place beyond time and space. But, in the Old Testament, God created history and worked and through its events: * Genesis 1:5, 9-10 – God talks about Day and Night; the ocean, sky and land. So, the Old Testament...
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...BAPTIST THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY NORTHERN CALIFORNIA CAMPUS DIVINE SOVEREIGNTY AND HUMAN FREE WILL IN REFORMED THEOLOGY, OPEN THEISM AND MOLINISM AN EXAMINATION OF THE VIEWS OF PAUL KJOSS HELSETH, GREGORY BOYD AND WILLIAM LANE CRAIG A RESEARCH PAPER PRESENTED TO PROFESSOR RODRICK K. DURST IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY II, L-1212-11 BY ROBERT MCNAIR BOX # 685 MILL VALLEY, CALIFORNIA MAY 9, 2014 Contents Introduction 1 Paul Kjoss Helseth and the Reformed (Calvinist) Position 3 Gregory Boyd and the Open Theism Position 7 William Lane Craig and the Molinist Position 12 Conclusion 17 Bibliography 22 DIVINE SOVEREIGNTY AND HUMAN FREE WILL Introduction Scripture presents two seemingly irreconcilable concepts that are both expressly affirmed in the Bible as co-existent and true: divine sovereignty and human free will. That Scripture teaches the doctrine of divine providence cannot be denied. The very act of creation was the result of God’s providence, as the created order resulted solely from His will and power. Simply, the world did not have to be; it came to be as a matter of divine choice. As a result, our world is contingent; it has no independent existence, but exists “moment to moment only in and through and unto God (Neh. 9:6; Ps. 104:30; Rom. 11:36; Heb. 1:3; Rev. 4:11).”1 In other words, the world and everything in it is entirely dependent on God for its being as God actively “works all things according to the counsel of his will”...
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...different from the New Testament and should not be consider irrelevant when compared to the New Testament. The nine themes include monotheism, sovereignty, election, covenant, theocracy, law, sacrifice, faith and redemption. The first theme of Youngblood’s book is Monotheism. A basic understanding that makes the reader aware that God is ‘…God, and there is no other” (Isaiah 45:22). Youngblood sets the foundation that God is the only living God. “The true Christian could never deny the existence of God in theory and ought to never deny the relevance of God in practice.” (Pg. 9) As much as people want to deny God, they all still believe in some existence of a high power. Youngblood’s story further on develops on with Israel’s awareness of God and their temptations. Israel was always tempted to sin and copy their neighbors who worshipped God by acknowledging God as being more than one thing creating things such as idols. But Youngblood states that God is eternal and he created everything and all matter making him above everything. Nothing can be compared to what God is. No theories such as materialism, pantheism or polytheism. Youngblood explains clearly that the Old Testament places God as the supreme and sole power above everything. Sovereignty is the next theme Youngblood talks about. God is the highest authority over every dimension of life. “Our God is in heaven; he does whatever pleases him” (Psalm 115:3). Youngblood talks about this theme because it is a major theme of the structure...
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...The law of the Islamic Republic of Iran hinges on the state constitution called the Qanun-e Asasi which received approval after a national referendum in December 1979. As expressed in Article four of that body of law, the standards for Islamic judgment or decisions must be in accordance with the Qanun-e Assai. The Iranian House of parliament, or the Islamic Consultative Assembly, a body of law makers charged with the responsibility of drafting Islamic laws for the Islamic Republic, must only draft laws compatible with Islamic standards. Arguably, the Council of Guardians, as an Islamic watch group, has ultimate control over the Islamic laws the assembly passes. Because of the complex nature of the law that governs the Islamic Republic of Iran, it is necessary for criminal justice professionals in the United States to understand the principles of justice as related to Islamic law, its basic concepts, and the foundation on which such body of law rests. According to Mehran (2001) “Muslims agree that the establishment of an Islamic state requires the implementation of Islamic principles and laws” (p. 1). In the Islamic Republic of Iran, the supreme leader, Ayatollah Khomeini, and his followers made clear doctrinal justifications for unchallenged Islamic rules to guarantee strict political command and with many specified standard of authority. ‘By emphasizing communal interest in legislation and establishing an extensive institutional mechanism of legal control, the clerics gradually...
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...associate the term “election” with the teachings of John Calvin, this doctrine began long before Calvin crafted Institutes of the Christian Religion. The topic of election is in Bible, and can be found in the Old and New Testaments. In the Old Testament, the book of Deuteronomy explains how Israel’s personal relationship with God began. For you are a holy people to the LORD your God; the LORD your God has chosen you to be a people for His own possession out of all the peoples who are on the face of the earth. “The LORD did not set His love on you nor choose you because you were more in number than any of the peoples, for you were the fewest of all peoples, but because the LORD loved you and kept the oath which He swore to your forefathers, the LORD brought you out by a mighty hand and redeemed you from the house of slavery, from the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt” (Deut. 7:6-8). This Hebrew word in verse six for chosen, bachar, means “to choose, elect” or “decide for” (Strong’s 323). Paul explicitly speaks of God electing those whom he loves in II Thessalonians 2:13: “ 13 But we should always give thanks to God for you, brethren beloved by the Lord, because God has chosen you from the beginning for salvation through sanctification by the Spirit and faith in the truth.” Here,...
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...have the free will to love/obey God or hate/deny him, and there are those who believe that God, in his sovereignty, has predetermined who will be saved and who will not be saved and neither group is willing to budge. Both sides claim to have the support of Scripture, and both have specific verses they will undoubtedly point to as an "I told you so." The problem is that both sides appear, on some levels at least, to be right. The question that can be answered from a comparison of these two views is this: Which one of these positions offers the more sensible, biblical account? Let’s look at a simple syllogism that sums up the argument of the Arminian (free will advocate). Premise 1: God desires that all men be saved. Premise 2: All men are not saved. Conclusion: Man, by exercising his will, has interfered with God's desire. Calvinists agree with the first premise, and even the second premise. But they come to a very different conclusion. Here is what the Calvinist argues: Premise 1: God desires that all men be saved. Premise 2: All men are not saved. Conclusion: It is not God's chief desire that all men be saved; he has another desire which is stronger, and that is to only save some. This simply does not work logically. Whereas the Arminian’s conclusion is consistent with their starting premise, the Calvinist’s conclusion is contradictory to their starting premise. Their argument starts with "God desires that all men be saved" and ends with "God does not desire that all men be...
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...John Austin, in his Lectures on Jurisprudence writes : The notion of sovereignty and independent political society may be expressed concisely thus : ‘If a determinate human superior not in a habit of obedience to a like superior, receives habitual obedience from the bulk of a given society, that determinate superior is sovereign in that society: and the society (including the superior) is a society political and independent’. Laws are defined simply as the command of a superior to an inferior. In Austin’s words : ‘Law is the aggregate of rules set by men as politically superior, or sovereign, to men as political subject’. The chief reason for the bulk of a given society rendering habitual obedience to a determinate human superior is the power it possesses ‘to put compulsion without limit on subjects or fellow subjects’. As to what is the core nature of law, Austin's answer is that laws (“properly so called”) are commands of a sovereign. He clarifies the concept of positive law (that is, man-made law) by analyzing the constituent concepts of his definition, and by distinguishing law from other concepts that are similar: • “Commands” involve an expressed wish that something be done, combined with a willingness and ability to impose “an evil” if that wish is not complied with. • Rules are general commands (applying generally to a class), as contrasted with specific or individual commands (“drink wine today” or “John Major must drink wine”). • Positive law...
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...of God written by authors that were given divine purpose to write the book in order that we will know of God sovereignty. When we study the book of Genesis we must also be conscious and be enrich in the understanding that the massage of Genesis is foretelling of one big huge story therefore we must be conscious of the art of the ancient Hebrew storyteller. 2) Explore the historical background of the book: When we study the book of Genesis it is of importance to know the time Genesis was written in order to fully understand the historical processes behind the different stages of the production of the book. However Genesis was written as a part of the Old Testament time period so having a specific date might be of difficulty but however we should still look at Genesis as a book of value and not just a typical historical book of evidence but rather a means of stories that has far deeper values that will enlighten us of the past. It’s a book that we can look up stories of Abraham and the future of Israel and of the Creation to name a few historical event. 3) Reflect on the Theological Teaching of the Book: The full focus of the bible is not its theological message but rather it is to capture God’s love for us and our relationship with him. It’s his self-revelation to his people the Israelites that he is the One and only God but his also our God in the modern era because he has adopted us to his family. The book of Genesis strive/ strain to us the revelation of who God is and...
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...LIBERTY UNIVERSITY THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD AN ESSAY SUBMITTED TO DR. MATT SANDERS FOR MASTER’S OF THEOLOGICAL STUDIES PROGRAM BY MARCUS CAMPBELL MAY 2013 I. Introduction 2 II. Categories of Attributes 2 III. Incommunicable Attributes of God 5 A. Sovereignty 5 B. Aseity 7 C. Immutability 7 D. E. Eternity (Eternality) 9 F. Omnipotence 10 G. Omnipresence 11 H. Infinity 11 I. J. IV. Communicable Attributes of God 12 A. Holiness ...
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...Justice and Judgment While overlapping with the theme above, but still distinct is the theme of justice and judgment. Both the prophetic books of Nahum and Jonah include pronouncements of judgment against Nineveh (Jon. 3.4; see esp. Nah. 3.1). As Phillip Cary notes concerning Nahum’s pronouncement against Nineveh, “The justice of the LORD in toppling empires and vindicating the oppressed is a thing to be celebrated.” Cary suggests that the book of Nahum “provides the background we need to understand Jonah’s attitude toward Nineveh.” God’s judgment concerning evil is good. But Jonah (and Israel) already knew that. The unexpected twist after Jonah’s pronouncement is that “when Nineveh repented, God relented.” The fact that God had the right...
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