In what follows, you will read an “academic paper” in which I explore some elements of open theism (the link is to a brief introduction to open theism).  This is a view of God’s foreknowledge that is controversial, but still in the evangelical family of belief.  The most well known Christian leader who holds to this view is Greg Boyd.  This will be a nine part series.

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Why This Discussion Matters

Discussions about free will and sovereignty often lead to theological abstraction and argumentation, which rightfully leads one to wonder: What’s the point?  Why talk about what God may or may not know?  Why create more division over forms of Calvinism and Arminianism?  Do we not remember that it is discussions like these that lead to church splits? While these questions represent my initial instincts, I have become convinced that these issues truly matter for the people of God.  “The binding of God” offers a test case for thinking about God’s knowledge of how events will turn out, and his reliance on people who willingly choose to carry forward his mission through their obedience.  This leads to the primary practical application that God’s openness yields.

The Problem of Evil

Suffering in the world is perhaps the greatest mystery that any person, culture, or nation has to face.  No one is exempt from the reality that our world is broken.  Shalom is a distant hope, but certainly not a lived experience.  As we observed earlier, shalom was lost because humans freely chose to rebel against God’s original ordering of the world.  Freedom created a crisis that has not relented.  Through Abraham God began the work of responding to the brokenness in creation and through Christ’s resurrection and eventual return, shalom will be realized once again.  But between now and then, we must deal with the problem of evil in a concrete fashion. C.S. Lewis, in his book The Problem of Pain states the following about evil in the world: [Read more...]