Author: C. L. Bolt
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Are choices arbitrary?
Those who wish to defend libertarian free will over against a position like Calvinism often attempt to do so upon the basis of a strictly philosophical rather than exegetical basis. It is often asserted that determinism of any kind (which for the sake of argument includes Calvinism) precludes free will such that if we possess free will then indeterminism must be the case. Since there is libertarian free will indeterminism is true (and Calvinism is false).
Note that the inconsistency between libertarian free will and determinism is assumed. The assumption may be granted as definitional. Note also that libertarian free …
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Expert Apologist
Negatively…
The expert in apologetics is not necessarily the one with the best philosophical arguments. The expert in apologetics does not necessarily know all of the relevant facts. The expert in apologetics does not necessarily always have an intellectually satisfying answer on hand. The expert in apologetics is not constantly trying to defend his or her own name. The expert in apologetics is not constantly after opportunities to make his or her name known. The expert in apologetics does not withhold knowledge from others. The expert in apologetics does not use language no one can understand. The expert in apologetics …
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Eternal Sonship, Incarnational Sonship, Church History and Apologetics
Donald Macleod asks, “Granting, however, that there is a real personal distinction between the Father and the Son, is the sonship eternal?” (Macleod 127)
The answer to the question is “Yes”. Those who are new to doctrinal discussions concerning the Trinity and Jesus Christ may sometimes find it difficult at first to understand how Jesus, the Son of God, has always been the Son. The issue is by no means a new one.
…It was the rise of Arianism that forced the issue into prominence, because it called in question not so much the sonship of Christ as his eternal