Scattered Thoughts on Theology and Ministry…
For many evangelicals Eastern Orthodoxy is compelling, if not for its seemingly evangelical convictions (contrasted with “Rome”), but for the fact that for many it remains a rather mysterious entity. Thus, introductions to Orthodoxy written for Protestant or evangelical audiences abound. [Sidenote: Why aren’t more of these kinds of introductions being written about Roman Catholicism?]Continue reading “Review: The Victory of the Cross – Salvation in Eastern Orthodoxy by James R. Payton Jr.”
“Penal substitution is more than unjust, it is by definition impossible!” This line of thought represents an important objection leveled against penal substitutionary atonement (PSA) by some philosophers of religion. The key to this objection lies in a widely held definition of punishment. According to a number of philosophers of law, like Joel Feinberg andContinue reading “Can Legal Philosophy Help Us Make Sense of Penal Substitution? (TGC Canada)”
Penal substitutionary atonement, the doctrine according to which Christ died to pay the penalty for our sins, is crucial to good news of the gospel. It is so central to the good news that Christians around the world proclaim it weekly by singing hymns like Stuart Townend and Keith Getty’s “In Christ Alone My HopeContinue reading “Jonathan Edwards on Penal Substitution”
An article I wrote defending a version of penal substitutionary atonement just came out in “Neue Zeitschrift für Systematische Theologie und Religionsphilosophie.” It’s a constructive model I call the “penal-consequence view.” It’s not necessarily the view I hold to but it’s a view that I think might be helpful to some who want to defendContinue reading “Do We Believe in Consequences? Revisiting the “Incoherence Objection” to Penal Substitution”
In recent years a number of scholars have increasingly pointed out the relationship between participating in Christ’s death and changing sinners’ status before God. Two passages that are especially relevant to this conversation are Galatians 2:15-21 and Romans 6-7. What’s unique about both of these passages is their use of the term, “systauroo” or “co-crucify.”Continue reading “Dying with Christ & Justification”
The following is a summary/notes of Mark Murphy’s article, “Not Penal Substitution but Vicarious Punishment.” (Faith and Philosophy, 26.3, 2009) Summary: PSA fails for conceptual reasons. Punishment is an expressive action so it is not transferable. A relative of PSA, VP, is conceptually coherent. Under VP, the guilty person’s punishment consists in the suffering ofContinue reading “Not Penal Substitution But Vicarious Punishment”
I just picked up the 2nd edition of William Lane Craig & J.P. Moreland’s Philosophical Foundations for a Christian Worldview (PFCW) – I immediately flipped over to the chapters dealing with philosophical theology – and in some cases what I would call Analytic Theology. The chapter I gravitated towards first was the chapter on Atonement.Continue reading “A Penal Substitutionary Doctrine of Atonement (Philosophical Foundations for a Christian Worldview Pt. 1)”
It is well known that some of Edward’s followers, sometimes known as the New Divinity, advocated for a view of atonement known as the “governmental theory” or according to Oliver Crisp, penal non-substitution. This view (in its orthodox form) was first proposed by Hugo Grotius. He suggested that Christ acted as a penal example, demonstratingContinue reading “Jonathan Edwards on the Atonement (Review)”
Christ has a fallen human nature. That is the claim that Daniel Cameron, adjunct instructor at Trinity Christian College wants to defend in his short book titled: Flesh and Blood: A Dogmatic Sketch Concerning the Fallen Nature View of Christ’s Human Nature. According to many Christians, that statement is not only wrong, but it seemsContinue reading “(Review) Flesh and Blood: A Dogmatic Sketch Concerning the Fallen Nature View of Christ’s Human Nature”
The atonement is the subject of intense interest among not only theologians, but Christians in general. This may be due to the fact that for most of Christianity atonement stands at the center. In some stands of Christianity, atonement itself is the gospel. However some people want to argue that the atonement is not onlyContinue reading “Sacrifice and Atonement”
CWoznicki Think Out Loud 