People often talk about the Five Points of Calvinism, under the anacronym TULIP Total Depravity Unconditional Election Limited Atonement Irresistible Grace Perseverance of the Saints The Five points actually were put together some time after Calvin at the Synod of Dort, a council called by the Dutch Reformed Church to respond to Arminianism. There is… Continue reading Limited Atonement?
Author: faithrootsdw
Getting our thinking about answered and unanswered prayer right
Last week, I mentioned my concerns about the “Eternal Wall of Answered Prayer” which is planned for a site at Coleshill, just outside Birmingham. There was another concern that I had with the project and this was to do with how the organisers would decide about what counted and what to include in their wall/database.… Continue reading Getting our thinking about answered and unanswered prayer right
Intentional Interruptions
We live in an age of constant, persistent, intrusive interruptions. Smart phones with their apps and notifications rather than being controlled by and used by us seem to master and enslave us instead as we become addicted to them and the affirmation and attention we receive through likes and responses. Jonathan Thomas’ book Intentional Interruptions… Continue reading Intentional Interruptions
Seeing what we want to see
Well, what a few days it was for weekend soldiers and armchair generals. I suggested when Yevgeny Prigozhin started his mutiny that he may find himself like the revolutionaries in Les Miserables, isolated with no one else rallying to his banner and so things turned out. I warned that he might end up like the… Continue reading Seeing what we want to see
Returners of the lost ark
1 Chronicles 15 The Ark returns (1 Chronicles 15) The Ark still matters …. Correction (v1-15) A house and a tent[1] Levites only Holiness important (“consecrate yourself” v12, v 14) Getting it – why the Lord “broke out” Worship (v 16-28) The Levites’ responsibility is not just for carrying the Ark but for the worship… Continue reading Returners of the lost ark
Abraham’s heirs
Galatians 3 finishes by describing the church, Jews and Gentiles alike as “Abraham’s heirs”. This is an important principle that we find in Romans 9-11 as well. The Jews saw themselves as God’s chosen people because they could trace their ethnic lineage back to Abraham, the recipient of the Covenant. They saw themselves as heirs… Continue reading Abraham’s heirs
Russia Today
Last night Yevgeny Prigozhin, the head of Wagner (a Russian, private military organisation) announced that he had 25,000 combatants ready to march on Moscow. He claimed that this was not a coup but “a march for justice”, that his target was the heads of the Russian military. He denounced both strategy and tactics in terms… Continue reading Russia Today
What does the Law do?
Paul insists that the Law is unable to make us right with God. He also insists that the original promises to God’s people were about faith and not Law. Does this mean that Law and Faith or Law and Grace are in competition? A look at the text Read Galatians 3:23-29 So, does the Law… Continue reading What does the Law do?
The ideal wife?
Sometimes in discussions about the roles of men and women, especially with regards to the debate about complementarianism and egalitarianism, Proverbs 31 is cited as significant. How relevant exactly is this passage to the debate? That will depend on the purpose of the passage. There are three options. The Proverb is intended as a hymn… Continue reading The ideal wife?
Binding
Crucial to Paul’s argument in Galatians is that God does not change his promises or go back on his word. The idea that Gentiles can be admitted to the covenant is not a novel one or plan B but has always been God’s purpose. A look at the text (read Galatians 3:15-18) Covenants are binding… Continue reading Binding
