Thomas Watson and the Fear of Not Being Elect

In a previous post, I shared a quote from Thomas Watson concerning God's decree. Watson is strikingly brief, able to turn a phrase expertly and illustrate vividly. He was not only a scholar (educated at Emmanuel College, Cambridge), but he was also pastoral in his approach (he pastored 16 years at St. Stephen’s, Walbrook). This …

“You Didn’t Exist”: God’s Eternal Purpose of Election, Execution of the Decree in Time, and Leighton Flowers

TLDR: God's eternal purpose/decree concerning individuals is not negated or overturned by the creatures' temporality. God can chose people who do not yet exist. Leighton Flowers confuses the decree and the execution of that decree in time. God's election is eternal in its decree but temporal in its execution. The elect did not exist eternally, …

Thomas Watson, the Decree of God, and Salvation & Reprobation

My (preorder) copy of The Works of Thomas Watson arrived yesterday. This is the 7-volume edition recently published by Reformation Heritage Books. It is a handsome set which will look great on my book shelves. Once more I find more and more encouragement and benefit from Puritan thinkers. There is a depth in these works …

Samuel Rutherford on Libertarian Free Will and the Divine Decree

In the opening letter "To the Godly Reader" in Influences of the Life of Grace by Samuel Rutherford, Rutherford offers several points as "preface" to the work. Point 7 is a rather noteworthy consideration of the logical consequences of pressing a libertarian will for humans. Here is the point in modernized form: It is impossible …

Thomas Manton on God’s Decree and Compulsion

Commenting on Isaiah 53.10, Thomas Manton affirms that all that fell upon Christ in His sufferings came about as the result of the decree of God. Nothing happens in God's world except God works it since God's will and counsel is the ground of all things. This includes the sinful acts of Judas and Pilate …

Anthony Burgess Responding to an Objection of Christ’s Particular Intercession

Anthony Burgess was an influential English Puritan theologian and preacher in the 17th century. He is best known for his contributions to Reformed theology and his role as a member of the Westminster Assembly. One of his contributions is a massive work of 145 sermon on John 17 (Christ's Prayer Before His Passion) which he …

“Humans are More Free than God”: A Christological Response

As previous mentioned, there is an objection circulating in both casual and philosophical discussions of divine sovereignty runs as follows: since humans are able to sin while God is not, humans possess more free will than God. Let me put this in the active voice: Humans possess more free will than God since humans are …

“Humans are More Free than God”: A Biblical Response

It happened again just the other day. The other day I was listening to someone advocating “libertarian free will” and this time they really put their foot in it. They claimed, “Humans have more free will than God because humans can choose to sin and God cannot.” From a biblical perspective, this claim rests upon …

Human Will, New Causes, and Ephesians 1.11

The other day I was listening to someone advocating “libertarian free will” who listed four “characteristics” which were actually more like axioms. One of these axioms was as follows: “Humans can initiate new chains of causes based on their choices.” From a biblical perspective, the statement “Humans can initiate new chains of causes based on …

Responding to Ought Implies Can

Someone recently expressed to me their disdain for for the doctrine of total depravity, particularly the Calvinistic understanding of it. "I know the Bible says 'No one seeks for God,'" he said, "but there are dozens of places where God commands people to seek Him." He stated this as if the matter were settled, the …