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It might help contribute to this discussion if you can explain a little bit more what you mean. What specific views do you believe are wrong and why? It's easy to just assert that a view is wrong, but I hope that in this discussion people will be willing to reason with us from the Scriptures...

Felipe, thank you so much for pointing people to Molinism. Of the various explanations of God's foreknowledge, I think that Molinism, or something close to it, is the one most likely to be true. Because the Bible does not give much detail about God's foreknowledge, I think that any explanation...

Yes, it does seem arbitrary to me. If one arbitrarily chooses which flavor ice cream to eat, that's just fine. But it's hard for me to understand how anyone who is good could arbitrarily choose to save some if He could have saved all. This is one of many strong arguments against Calvinism...

Thanks for sharing some thoughts. This may seem like a minor point, and it is admittedly only tangentially related to our main topic, but is bothers me when people speak of Hell as being something people choose. It's true that their choice to reject God's truth results in their being cast into...

There is nothing wrong with asking difficult questions. If I understand this question, you are basically asking "Why are some people willing to accept God and other are not? What is different about them? What are the underlying reasons?" I don't think there is a simple answer to these types...

Do you believe God predestined Adam to and Eve to commit the first sin and fall? This is an honest question. I think (but I'm not sure) that most knowledgeable Calvinists do include Adam and Eve's fall in what is predestined.

I appreciate your honesty and candor. At least you are being logically consistent. I honestly don't see how any person who believes in Calvinism can logically also believe that God loves all people. Based on what Calvinists themselves say, I can't see anything in the following description...

A good and fair question. Here are several Bible translations of Gal 5:22 CSB Galatians 5:22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faith, ESV Galatians 5:22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness...

They are helped by God's common grace and wooed by His powerful love initiated by Him and then they choose to receive what is freely offered to them. Or in one word: "faith".

I believe that one of the verses you are referring to this verse: John 1:13 children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband's will, but born of God. Based on this verse, alone, taken out of it's immediate context and the broader context of John's gospel and the whole...

I agree that there are more than two options! That's an important point.

JamesL, that is a fair question. Of course I didn't exactly say we "can't know". I said "we can't say for sure". The position I describe is the one which I believe is most likely correct. Why even discuss it if I feel it is only "most likely to be correct"? I think that seeing the...

In the opening post I focus on two passages which directly discuss predestination and foreknowledge. However, I also believe that conditional election is a much better fit with passages which do not directly address predestination and foreknowledge, but which do explicitly state that God...

You're simply asserting that. In the OP I gave a specific explanation, based on two passages of Scripture, of why I believe the most accurate way to understand the biblical explanation of predestination is conditional election. You have yet to give any evidence to support your assertion.

Thanks for replying. How do you know that the meaning of foreknowledge you give above is correct? If what you are saying is correct, than it is hard for me to see any difference between foreknowledge and predestination or foreknowledge and election. But this doesn't seem to fit Romans 8:29-30...

I want to let you all know that I have started a thread which I admit is somewhat similar to this one, but which focuses more specifically on the relationship between foreknowledge and predestination as seen in two passages, namely Romans 8:29 and 1 Peter 1:1-2. If you want to read my OP feel...

Most Christians sooner or later struggle with questions about predestination. Many Christians don’t like the idea of predestination because it feels unfair. I think the problem is not with predestination itself, but with a lack of understanding about how predestination is related to...

If anyone desires to try to share the good news with a Muslim friend, if you let me know, I'll pray for you and for her/him. Either post a comment or send me a personal message.

This Thursday evening (August 31, 2017) is the beginning of the Islamic holiday of Eid Al Adha. This holiday provides an excellent opportunity for you to share the gospel with your Muslim friends, neighbors, and coworkers. Muslims receive friends (including non-Muslim friends) for several weeks...

Thanks for writing the article about Dunkirk (see link above).