Open Theism
How do you respond to Galatians 3:8?
Category: Q&A
Tags: Open Theism, Q&A
Topics: Open Theism
Verse: Galatians 3
“And the scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, declared the gospel beforehand to Abraham, saying, ‘All the Gentiles shall be blessed in you.’” God has never wanted “any to perish”: he’s…
How do you respond to 2 Thessalonians 2:3–4?
Category: Q&A
Tags: Open Theism, Q&A
Topics: Open Theism, Responding to Objections
Verse: 2 Thessalonians 2
“Let no one deceive you in any way; for that day will not come unless the rebellion comes first and the lawless one exalts himself above every so-called god or object of worship, so that…
How do you respond to 1 Timothy 4:1–3?
Category: Q&A
Tags: Open Theism, Q&A
Topics: Open Theism, Responding to Objections
Verse: 1 Timothy 4
“…in the later times some will renounce the faith by paying attention to deceitful spirits and teachings of demons, through the hypocrisy of liars whose consciences are seared with a hot iron. They forbid marriage…
How do you respond to 2 Timothy 1:9–10?
Category: Q&A
Tags: Open Theism, Q&A
Topics: Open Theism, Responding to Objections
Verse: 2 Timothy 1
“…this grace was given to us in Christ Jesus before the ages began, but it has now been revealed through the appearing of our Savior Christ Jesus…” Those who hold that the future is eternally…
How do you respond to 1 Peter 1:1–2?
Category: Q&A
Tags: Open Theism, Predestination, Q&A
Topics: Providence, Predestination and Free Will, Responding to Objections
Verse: 1 Peter 1
As I read it, I Pet 1:2 is the thematic statement for the whole chapter. As I will show in a moment, the rest of the chapter unpacks this statement, so the rest of the…
How do you respond to 1 Peter 1:20?
Category: Q&A
Tags: Open Theism, Q&A
Topics: Open Theism, Responding to Objections
Verse: 1 Peter 1
“[Christ] was destined before the foundation of the world, but was revealed at the end of the ages for our sake. Through him you have come to trust in God…” This passage reveals that God…
How do you respond to the book of Revelation?
Category: Q&A
Tags: Open Theism, Q&A
Topics: Open Theism, Responding to Objections
“The revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show his servants what must soon take place…” (1:1). Because many modern evangelical readers consider almost everything in the book of Revelation to be a…
Why do you espouse Open Theism?
Category: Q&A
Tags: Open Theism, Q&A
Topics: Open Theism What it is and is not
Open Theism refers to the belief that God created a world in which possibilities are real. It contrasts with Classical Theism which holds that all the facts of world history are eternally settled, either by…
Why do you claim that everybody, whether they know it or not, believes that the future is partly open?
Category: Q&A
Tags: Open Theism, Q&A
Topics: Free Will and the Future
Whatever a person may theoretically believe, they act like the future is partly open. For, as a matter of fact, there’s no other way to act. Think about it. Every time we deliberate between options…
Is the open view the only view that is compatible with the Incarnation?
Category: Q&A
Tags: Incarnation, Jesus, Open Theism, Q&A
Topics: Christology, Defending the Open View
Question: You have said that the Open view of God is the only view that squares with the Incarnation and the only view that truly exalts God’s greatness. On what basis do you say this?…
What is the significance of Genesis 2:19 ?
Category: Q&A
Tags: Open Theism, Q&A
Topics: Open Theism
Verse: Genesis 2
“So out of the ground the Lord God formed every animal of the field and every bird of the air, and brought them to the man to see what he would call them; and whatever…
What is the significance of Genesis 6:5–6?
Category: Q&A
Tags: Open Theism, Q&A
Topics: Open Theism
Verse: Genesis 6
Seeing the wickedness of the whole human race which preceded the great flood, the Bible says, “The Lord was sorry that he made humankind on the earth, and it grieved him to his heart.” If…
What is the significance of Genesis 22:12 ?
Category: Q&A
Tags: Open Theism, Q&A
Topics: Open Theism
Verse: Genesis 22
Abraham passed God’s “test” (vs. 1) by being willing to sacrifice his son. The Lord says “…now I know that you fear God, since you have not withheld your son…” If the classical understanding of…
What is the significance of Exodus 3:18–4:9?
Category: Q&A
Tags: Open Theism, Q&A
Topics: Open Theism
Verse: Exodus 3
The Lord tells Moses that the elders of Israel will heed his voice (vs. 18). Moses says, “suppose they do not believe me or listen to me…” (4:1). God performs a miracle “so that they…
What is the significance of Exodus 4:10–16?
Category: Q&A
Tags: Open Theism, Q&A
Topics: Open Theism
Verse: Exodus 4
Immediately after convincing Moses of his ability to [somehow!] convince the elders of Israel to listen to him, Moses says, “O my Lord, I have never been eloquent…I am slow of speech and slow of…
What is the significance of Exodus 13:17?
Category: Q&A
Tags: Open Theism, Q&A
Topics: Open Theism
Verse: Exodus 13
The Lord didn’t lead Israel along the shortest route to Canaan because Israel would have had to fight the Philistines. The Lord wanted to avoid this, “Lest the people change their minds when they see…
What is the significance of Exodus 16:4?
Category: Q&A
Tags: Open Theism, Q&A
Topics: Open Theism
Verse: Exodus 16
The Lord commands the Israelites to gather only enough bread for one day while in the wilderness. “In that way,” the Lord says, “I will test them, whether they will follow my instruction or not.”…
What is the significance of Exodus 32:14?
Category: Q&A
Tags: Open Theism, Q&A
Topics: Open Theism
Verse: Exodus 32
The Lord states his intention to destroy Israelites because of their wickedness: “Now let me alone,” he says to Moses, “so that my wrath may burn hot against them and I may consume them” (vs….
What is the significance of Exodus 32:33 ?
Category: Q&A
Tags: Open Theism, Q&A
Topics: Open Theism
Verse: Exodus 32
The Lord says “I will blot out of my book” all those who persist in rebellion against him. If everything is eternally foreknown by God, one wonders why he would have recorded in his “book”…
What is the significance of Exodus 33:1–3, 14?
Category: Q&A
Tags: Open Theism, Q&A
Topics: Open Theism
Verse: Exodus 33
“The Lord said to Moses, ‘Go, leave this place, you and the people whom you have brought up out of the land of Egypt, and go to the land of which I swore to Abraham,…