TULIP or BEERS: Irresistible Grace

Irresistible Grace
The grace that God extends to the elect cannot be refused. God puts into the hearts of the elect an irresistible desire to turn to Him and accept His salvation. This implanted desire is so overpowering that it cannot be resisted or refused. This irresistible desire insures that everyone who has been elected will [...]

TULIP or BEERS: Limited Atonement

Limited Atonement
God limited His atonement to only those who are elect. When Jesus died on the cross, He did not die for the sins of the whole world; He only died for those He wanted to go to Heaven.  Christ died to atone for specific sins of specific sinners. He did not atone for all [...]

TULIP or BEERS: Unconditional Election

Unconditional Election
God has chosen some people to go to Heaven and other people to go to Hell. This choice is not based on any qualities of the person being elected. This selection is not based on God’s foreknowledge of who will “get saved” in the future.  God has elected some for glory and others for [...]

TULIP or BEERS: Total Depravity

Total Depravity
When man fell, sin permeated his entire being. This fall was so complete that man had no desire for God and righteousness. Man is so totally enslaved by sin that he can only choose evil; he cannot choose good. He is incapable of choosing God and His salvation. Man is totally blind and deaf [...]

Doctrines of Grace

Many thanks to my friend Bill for the ideal image for this series of posts!
After Tom suggested in the previous comments that I was leaning toward Calvinism (not that there’s anything wrong with that), I looked up the five “doctrines of grace.”

Total Depravity
Unconditional Election
Limited Atonement
Irresistible Grace
Perseverance of the Saints

I am leaving town for the weekend, [...]

Distortion

“My experience of His furious love often fills me with a fury as well when I hear well-known preachers and televangelists distorting Abba’s image.”
“His invitation to intimacy is startling, contrary to all the pontifications of certain religious leaders and champions of deuteronomic morality. Their unbending rule-keeping petrifies His furious compassion.”
- Brennan Manning, The [...]

The OPT-OUT Theory

I believe that we all should be in a lifelong process of working out our theology. A recent tweak in my theology has intrigued me. Real theologians have likely covered this ground and have established doctrines and terminology for the things that I am about to describe.
In my terms, [...]

Q and A with Frank Viola

In promotion of his book From Eternity to Here, Frank put together a blog tour.
In previous posts I expressed my appreciation for the ideas presented in this book. However, there are multiple pages in my book with question marks on them, and this seemed like a good opportunity to ask Frank those questions.
Because he [...]

Random

Like many people, our family is shifting gears from school schedule to summer schedule. Which for me mainly means coming up with reasons why my kids should be out of bed before noon and pitch in a bit with the house and yard work without sounding like I’m nagging.
My girls should have been done [...]

Yep, It’s All About Me

From Bob Hyatt’s review of The Furious Longing of God by Brennan Manning:
It’s just that in the drive to reduce everything down to “God loves you!” I can’t help but feel some important nuances are lost…Is God jealous for His own glory at all? Or is He simply all about ME?
I’ve been chewing on this [...]