Q&A
Was Noah’s flood global or local?
Category: Q&A
Tags: Bible, Old Testament, Q&A
Topics: Biblical Reliability
Though many regard the biblical story of a great flood in the days of Noah to be an ancient legend, evangelical Christians affirm it as historical fact because Scripture presents it as such. However, a…
What are the main principles of the warfare worldview?
Category: Q&A
Tags: Q&A, Spiritual Warfare, Warfare Worldview
Topics: Spiritual Warfare, Cosmic Conflict
In my book God At War (IVP, 1997) I flesh out what I call the “warfare worldview” of the Bible. This is the view that the world is a battle ground between God and good…
Why have you consistently stressed the need for the Western Church to learn from the African Church?
Category: Q&A
Tags: Church, Diversity, Q&A
Topics: Ethical, Cultural and Political Issues, The Church
Question: I’ve heard you argue that the white Western church has a lot to learn theologically from African cultures. What is it specifically that you’re referring to? Response: I do strongly believe that the western…
In your Anabaptist view, should Christians get involved in politics at all? Do you think they should even vote?
Category: Q&A
Tags: Politics, Q&A, Social Issues
Topics: Ethical, Cultural and Political Issues
Ultimately, each person must follow their conscience when it comes to whether or not they vote, how they vote if they decide to vote, and the extent to which they should involve themselves in the…
What do you think of the classical view that God is impassible?
Category: Q&A
Tags: Classical Theism, God, Open Theism, Q&A
Topics: Attributes and Character
The classical view has historically held that God is impassible, meaning he is above pathos (passion or emotions). The main reason the church came to this view was that, following the Hellenistic philosophical tradition, they…
Do you believe God is pure actuality?
Category: Q&A
Tags: Classical Theism, God, Open Theism, Q&A
Topics: Attributes and Character
The basis of the classical view of God as pure actuality (actus purus) is the Aristotelian notion that potentiality is always potential for change and that something changes only because is lacks something else. So,…
What do you think of Thomas Aquinas’ view of God?
Category: Q&A
Tags: Classical Theism, God, Open Theism, Q&A
Topics: Attributes and Character
Question: You have written (in Trinity and Process) that the relational God of the Bible is the antithesis of the immutable God of Thomas Aquinas. Could you explain this? Answer: Aquinas and much of the…
What is omni-resourcefulness?
Category: Q&A
Tags: Free Will, God, Open Theism, Predestination, Q&A
Topics: Attributes and Character
Question: What do you mean when you refer to God’s omni-resourcefulness? Can you support this with Scripture? Answer: I and others use the term omni-resourcefulness to highlight a feature of God in Scripture that the…
Is Free Will compatible with Predestination?
Category: Q&A
Tags: Free Will, Predestination, Q&A
Topics: Free Will and the Future, Providence, Predestination and Free Will
Question: Isn’t “freedom” simply our ability to do what we want? And if this is so there seems to be no incompatibility between saying that a person is “free” on the one hand, but predestined…
Did God use Satan to test Job?
Category: Q&A
Tags: Bible, Old Testament, Problem of Evil, Q&A
Topics: Spiritual Warfare, Cosmic Conflict, The Problem of Evil
Question: In Job 1:21 and 2:10, Job seems to accept “adversity” from God while continuing to trust him. Job blames his troubles on God (i.e. “He shattered me” [16:12], “He breaks me down on every…
How can we determine what is and is not “open” about the future?
Category: Q&A
Tags: Open Theism, Q&A
Topics: Free Will and the Future
Question: You believe that the future is partly open. You’re writing has pretty much convinced me this is true, but I’ve still got some serious questions about it. For example, how does anyone determine what…
In a democracy, don’t Christians have a responsibility to participate in politics?
Category: Q&A
Tags: Politics, Q&A, Social Issues
Topics: Ethical, Cultural and Political Issues
Question: You’ve argued that Christians shouldn’t try to gain power in government on the grounds that Jesus didn’t try to gain power in the political system of his day. But his government didn’t allow for…
What is your perspective on the classical view that God is above time?
Category: Q&A
Tags: Classical Theism, God, Open Theism, Q&A
Topics: Attributes and Character, Open Theism
In a major strand of hellenistic (Greek) philosophy, change was seen as being an imperfection. This idea was adopted by many early Church fathers and eventually became almost an assumed dogma of the Church. It…