Thank God for Non-Fighting Fundamentalists Recently here I complained about fundamentalist Calvinists and stated that I have no particular problem with non-fundamentalist Calvinists—of which there are many and I have worked and worshiped with them over the years. I won’t rehearse here what I said in that post. Suffice it to say that I was rather hard on fundamentalism and fundamentalists. Without taking back anything I said there, here and now I want to say “Thank God for non-fighting fundamentalists”... Read more

With the publisher’s permission I am posting an excerpt from Austin Fischer’s new book Young, Restless, No Longer Reformed here. Please buy the book. In fact, buy two copies–one for yourself and one to give to a friend who isn’t sure if being a Calvinist is right for him or her. Young, Restless, No Longer Reformed by Austin Fischer Introduction: Black Holes   Gravity When a big star dies, a remarkable thing happens.[i] Its own gravity crunches it until it... Read more

The Most Pernicious and Pervasive Heresy (within American Christianity) It’s not what you expect. In fact, most people would never even recognize it. It’s so pervasive (at least in American Christianity) that it’s hardly ever noticed. I suspect, however, that if a first century apostle or second century church father came among us it would be one of the first things they would notice—and condemn—about our “Christianity.” It’s not a formal heresy like “Arianism” or “Pelagianism.” It’s a mostly unconscious... Read more

Is the Problem Calvinism or Fundamentalism (or the Combination)? According to a recent article in the New York Times I am the leading opponent of Calvinism (or the New Calvinism) in America today. I don’t know where the writer (Mark Oppenheimer) got that idea. Certainly not from me. Someone else must have said that to him. If it’s true it’s only because there are very few people with a public platform speaking out against it. It was never my intention... Read more

Where in the Devil is Satan (in Modern Theology)? Recently I spoke on the phone with a thoughtful, reflective evangelical Christian who read my new book The Journey of Modern Theology: From Reconstruction to Deconstruction (InterVarsity Press, 2013). I had sent him a copy but hardly expected him to read it—especially so quickly. The man has no degrees in theology but has read a lot of theology over the years and is more knowledgeable about the Bible and theology than... Read more

http://peterlumpkins.typepad.com/peter_lumpkins/2013/06/what-is-wrong-with-the-young-restless-and-reformed-movement-an-interpretive-essay-by-dr-paul-owen.html Absolutely a must read for anyone interested in the Young, Restless, Reformed Movement and its leaders. Read more

Austin Fischer, author of the excellent new book Young, Restless, No Longer Reformed (Wipf & Stock, 2014) has opened his new blog at www.purpletheology.com. Here is his first blog post:   A Purple Proposal   By Austin Fischer Primary Colors   Life explodes with color—the blazing orange of sunrise, the dusty brown of a potato, the quiet black of midnight. You open your eyes, you get out of bed, and each day is a new show. Today you will see... Read more

Is the Growing Gap between Rich and Poor Prima Facie Evidence of Injustice? Yes. In the world today the richest one percent hold more wealth than the poorest forty-eight percent. And gap is widening. In the United States today the richest ten percent hold more wealth than the poorest forty-three percent and the gap is the largest in over thirty years and growing. The problem isn’t just the gap; the problem is that the richest of the rich are growing... Read more

What Does the Bible Mean? Is the Holy Spirit Necessary for Biblical Interpretation? I know two kinds of Christians—those who think what the Bible “really means” is necessarily illuminated by the Holy Spirit such that ordinary, scholarly, rational exegesis alone does not yield its “true meaning” and those who think the “true meaning” of the Bible is discovered exegetically such that anything going beyond that is not its true meaning but its “significance” or application. To the former I ask... Read more

Some Notes on My Article Summarizing Arminian Theology/the Biblical Doctrines of Grace Using the Acronym FACTS by Brian Abasciano I just wanted to share some brief notes about my article, “The FACTS of Salvation: A Summary of Arminian Theology/the Biblical Doctrines of Grace,” recently published at the website of the Society of Evangelical Arminians and on this blog. It comes to about 25 pages and is a summary of Arminian theology with substantial scriptural support using the acronym FACTS. It... Read more