Who Is an “Evangelical” and Who Gets to Decide? This question (or two) has been discussed almost to death over my adult lifetime among evangelicals. Many years ago I began to attend a then relatively new “society” of evangelical scholars that met annually. I remember three annual meetings during which panelists and members of the audience talked about who is an evangelical and who gets to decide. No consensus emerged. It was frustrating. In the last moment of the third… Read more

The Prophethood of Every Believer “Prophecy” means many different things to different people. Here I mean by “prophet” someone who speaks God’s truth to God’s people and to people with power. Often this includes making people uncomfortable by pointing out their sins—personal and social. The Bible describes certain people as called by God to be prophets and to prophecy. From the earliest extra-biblical writings we know there were prophets among late first century and early second century Christians especially in… Read more

Billy Graham as “Pope” of Evangelicalism Roger E. Olson   *Note: This essay was presented at a symposium of the Institute for the Studies of Religion at Baylor University on November 7, 2018–the 100th anniversary of Billy Graham’s birth. You may respond, but please do not react. Reactionary (negative, hostile) comments will not be approved and will not appear here in the comments section. (Also, I am not including a picture here because there are few, if any, in the… Read more

Calvinism and Arminianism Compared by Roger E. Olson *Note: The below is not copyrighted material, but I would appreciate it if you pass it on or use it in any form you include my name as its author. This is intended for use in Sunday School classes, church or small group Bible studies, etc. Use it however you wish without altering it. Thank you. What is Calvinism? A) Belief that God foreordains and renders certain everything that happens without any… Read more

Follow Up to My Recent Blog Post about American Men I wish I had seen this mini-documentary about “What’s Killing America’s White Men?” before writing and posting my immediately preceding post about what’s wrong with men in America. I happened across it by accident while looking for something else on Youtube. The mini-documentary was created and broadcast by the BBC (British Broadcasting Company) not very long ago. I have not found the exact date of its creation or broadcast. In… Read more

Thoughts about Men in American Culture Believe me, I’m not trying to start a new battle of the war between the sexes. The so-called war between the sexes has been going on as long as I’ve been alive. I remember a popular radio song in the 1950s that featured a duet between a man and a woman. The first lines were “Anything you can do, I can do better! I can do anything better than you” Followed by “No, you… Read more

What about “Death Bed Conversions?” Are They Valid? Recently a very experienced pastor and seminary professor asked my opinion about so-called “death bed conversions;” do I think they are valid? Now, let me remind my readers that this blog is for evangelical Christians and those who want to understand evangelical Christianity better. This blog post assumes a general, broad, evangelical spiritual-theological ethos. If you do not share that, please feel free to ask a question for enlightenment and understanding, but… Read more

Again with “Good God” and Calvinism Throughout the years of this blog (and before and outside of it) I have wrestled with people objecting most strenuously to my contention that true, historical, consistent Calvinism undermines the goodness of God. If God foreordains some people to hell when he could save them because grace is irresistible and election is unconditional, then God is not good. The common response is “You are imposing on God your own standard of ‘goodness’ and God… Read more

A Magnificent Resource for Arminian Evangelicals: “John Wesley’s Teachings” (Zondervan) Why should John Wesley matter to anyone who’s not a Methodist? Somehow over the years most people have come to limit Wesley to Methodism. What I mean is that IF someone expresses real appreciation for Wesley people assume he or she must be a Methodist. But why? People don’t assume that all admirers of Martin Luther are Lutheran. Yes, Wesley was the most important founder and leader of early Methodism,… Read more

What Is a Postconservative Evangelical?   This is how I describe myself and many others who think in a way similar to my way—about being “evangelical.” For a fuller explanation see my books Reformed and Always Reforming: The Postconservative Approach to Evangelical Theology (BakerAcademic) and How to Be Evangelical Without Being Conservative (Zondervan). Not many theologians I know want this label slapped on them. However, N. T. Wright accepted it and named me in his book Justification. I thought I… Read more