The Need for an Effectual Call (Hoekema)

 I really like these reflections by Anthony Hoekema on the effectual call of God.  Hoekema first gives an objection, then a clear answer and an illustration.  This post is a bit longer than my usual ones, but it's not too tough to read/follow - and it's comforting! A final objection which could be raised is…

Eight Points: A Critique of Dispensational Premillenialism

(This is a re-post from September, 2014) Anthony Hoekema (d. 1988) wrote a helpful critique of dispensational premillennialism in his excellent book, The Bible and the Future.  Because I think they are helpful, I’m going to summarize and edit them below.  I strongly recommend reading the entire 20-page chapter for the full discussion – along…

Grace Efficacious, Grace Unlosable (Hoekema)

 God's saving grace is sovereign grace. That means so many things!  It means that election is gracious rather than meritorious (Eph 1:6); election is unconditional because it is all of God's gracious good pleasure.  Regeneration is gracious: we were dead in sin, but God graciously gave us new life in Christ (Eph. 2:5).  Justification is…

The Man of Sin Sitting in the Temple of God

2 Thessalonians 2:4 - a statement about the Man of Sin - is no easy verse to interpret: "He will exalt himself and defy everything that people call god and every object of worship.  He will even sit in the temple of God, claiming that he himself is God" (NLT).  There are various explanations of…

The Necessity of Effectual Calling (Or: We Need a Miracle!)

This is a very helpful discussion of effectual calling/regeneration: If you believe that the natural state of human beings today is that of moral and spiritual neutrality, so that they can do good or bad as they please (the Pelagian view), you will not even feel the need for an effectual call or for regeneration.…