I am hard pressed to imagine something more important for our lives than fulfilling the covenant that God has made with us for our final salvation. John Piper, Future Grace (1995 edition), 249. Resources How To Subscribe To Heidelmedia Resources On The . . . Continue reading →
john piper
Understanding The New Calvinists: Neither New Nor Calvinists
The New Calvinist movement is probably about 20 years old or so. Collin Hanson’s Young, Restless, and Reformed appeared in 2008, just before Recovering the Reformed Confession. Whether it is Reformed is a matter to be debated. In recent years, however, the movement has certainly shown itself to be restless. One prominent figure in the movement has publicly abandoned the Christian faith. Three prominent figures, James MacDonald, C. J. Mahaney, and Mark Driscoll, have been either been removed from their churches or resigned amidst scandals. One might think of them as elephants in the YRR/New Calvinist room. Continue reading →
Piper’s Sea Shell Sermon Illustrates How Far The YRR Movement Was From The Reformation
So I am listening to the latest episode in the Christianity Today podcast series, “The Rise and Fall of Mars Hill.” Like the others it is illuminating, compelling, and frustrating simultaneously. Continue reading
Heidelcast 188: What Must A Christian Believe? (6): God The Father Almighty
We start this episode by thinking a bit about an audio clip in the intro. If you are one of those who skips the intro 😮 please go back and listen for context. See also the show notes below for more. I . . . Continue reading →
Yes, He Really Does Teach Final Salvation Through Works
John Piper has been teaching “final salvation through works” (his language) at least since the publication of Future Grace (1995). Continue reading
In By Grace, Stay In By Works Is Not Good News
God’s verdict of not guilty and his imputing of his own righteousness to us at the beginning of the Christian life is by faith alone… that’s how we get started. James is answering the question ‘does the ongoing and final reckoning of . . . Continue reading →
Piper’s Doctrine Of Final Salvation Through Works: The Reformed Brotherhood Understands Your Pain
Does John Piper teach a two-stage doctrine of salvation wherein the initial stage is said to be justification by grace alone (sola gratia), through faith alone (sola fide), on the basis of the imputed righteousness of Christ but in which final salvation . . . Continue reading →
John Piper, Future Grace: The Purifying Power of the Promises of God, rev. ed. (New York: Multnomah, 2012)—A Thorough Review
Pastor John Piper is well-known for his role in sparking the “young, restless, and Reformed” movement, mainly through his emphases on God’s sovereignty and serious expository preaching. There are no doubt numerous present members of Reformed churches who ended up there because of initial investigations of Reformed theology that began with hearing or reading John Piper. Personally, Piper was my first exposure to a thorough and biblical explanation of predestination in some of the appendices of the 2003 edition of Desiring God, which I was told to read shortly after becoming serious about my faith. Continue reading →
Piper’s New Book Is Edwardsian
The major—and expected—exception is Jonathan Edwards, whose view of faith no doubt stands behind Piper’s approach to this issue. Edwards believed that love is at the heart of faith: “That even faith, or a steadfastly believing the truth, arises from a principle . . . Continue reading →
Warfield On Faith Contra The Edwardsian Definition
Kim Riddlebarger, who did his doctoral research on Warfield, has a nice set of quotations from him on the nature, character, and definition of faith in the act of justification. Continue reading
A Debtor’s Ethic
John Piper has complained that the historic Reformed understanding of the Christian faith and life produces what he calls a “debtor’s ethic.” The assumption is that a “debtor’s ethic” is something that we are supposed to reject out of hand. I have . . . Continue reading →
Charles Stover Discovers The Reformed Confession
It was my first staff meeting serving as a youth intern in my hometown church. My pastor, who had graciously allowed me to test my gifts in the pulpit before I went off to Bible college, wanted to know where I stood . . . Continue reading →
Regarding Piper’s Notion Of Justification And Love
But surely that is a progressive response of sanctification. It is not definitive, but justification is a once-for-all act of divine declaration “Righteous!” I am certainly more satisfied with Christ today than I was sixty years ago when I first believed, but . . . Continue reading →
Guy Waters Reviews & Critiques Piper on the Nature of Faith in the Act of Justification
But it must be also said that WSF’s thesis that saving faith is essentially affectional, and the arguments advanced in support of that thesis, are unable to sustain the weight of Piper’s Reformational convictions. We may see this dynamic by pursuing two . . . Continue reading →