Dr Paul Allen

English: Icon of Jesus Christ (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) Decretum horribile. That's what John Calvin called the doctrine of reprobation (Institutes 3.23.7). It means the "awe-full decree." We've seen in the previous five parts of this series that our Triune God in His amazing grace has elected or predestined some of fallen humanity to salvation. In this final post, the question we are faced with is what of the rest of humanity? Reformed theology typically confesses what is known as double predestination . The Canons of Dort (CD) define this doctrine as "the express testimony of sacred Scripture that not all, but some only, are elected, while others are passed by in the eternal decree" (CD 1.15). This is a very serious confession. Let me focus our hearts on the biblical teaching before addressing two practical struggles this doctrine can bring up. Is this Doctrine Biblical ? I begin with whether this doctrine is biblical because Scripture is the fou...

English: John the Baptist baptizing Christ (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) The chief and primary means by which the Holy Spirit communicates the grace of God to us is the preaching of the gospel. It is by preaching, first of all, that He creates faith within us. As Paul says, " Faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ " (Rom. 10:17). The "word of Christ," which is the preached word of the gospel, is the means through which the Holy Spirit gives faith to faithless sinners. But do not think preaching is only for unbelievers. It is also the means whereby the Lord gives His people faith that they might continually trust Him and His promises. This is why we call preaching the primary means of grace. The Belgic Confession says the Holy Spirit "kindleth" faith in us (Art. 22), and that it is "wrought in man by the hearing of the Word of God and the operation of the Holy Ghost" (Art. 24). When the powerful Holy Spirit accompani...

Nederlands: De Dordtse synode (1618). Gravure uit 1729 van B. Picarthttp://www.kennislink.nl/publicaties/heilige-arbeid-aan-een-verheven-openbaringsdocument (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) But as you may know, there's no more surefire way to create awkward silence among family and friends than to say, "Hey everyone, let's talk about predestination ." We all know how offensive this doctrine is to the sensibilities of unbelievers and even believers. But I don't want you to have that awkwardness. I want you and me to be effective witnesses for Jesus Christ . We need more than knowledge of the truth; we need to grow in the wisdom of speaking the truth in love (Eph. 4:15). That's why you need to know and be prepared to communicate several things before talking about predestination. Imagine that this doctrine is as a beautiful painting. But before you can even begin to apply the paint, you need to have a canvas. Predestination is the paint. We don't begin with t...

Image via Wikipedia The End of the World According to Harold Camping   Author: Robert Godfrey . If you were to drive the freeways of southern California, you would see from time to time billboards proclaiming the Judgment Day on May 21, 2011 and declaring that the Bible guarantees it.  Presumably these billboards may be seen in many other parts of the country as well. Who is responsible for these signs and what do they really mean theologically? The signs have been placed by Harold Camping and his followers to warn people that the end is at hand. To understand these signs we must know something of the history as well as the theology of Harold Camping.  I am in a somewhat distinctive position to write on this subject since I first met Camping in the late 1950s. I learned a great deal from him then, and so I find what follows a very sad story. I pray for him that the Lord will deliver him from the serious errors into which he has fallen. Christian Reformed ...