Tag Archives: Repentance

Depravity: Total, Partial, or None at All?

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Depravity: Total, Partial, or None at All? by Jack Cottrell (Notes) on Friday, October 2, 2009 at 1:26pm A QUESTIONER ASKS, what Scriptures disqualify (I take this to mean disprove) Total Depravity in human beings? And if Total Depravity is ruled out, does that mean we are PARTIALLY depraved? MY REPLY: Depravity as such has to do with the sinfulness of our human nature, i.e., having a nature that has been infected with sin like the body can be infected with disease. It means having a sinful, evil, spiritually diseased or dead nature. The first issue is WHETHER a sinner’s … Continue reading →

Forgiveness in the Old Testament

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Forgiveness in the Old Testament by Jack Cottrell (Notes) on Wednesday, September 30, 2009 at 1:32pm HERE’S A QUESTION ABOUT FORGIVENESS: In your Romans commentary (Vol. I, p. 264) you say that the sins of OT saints were not just “rolled back” until Jesus’ crucifixion, but that the certainty of Jesus’ propitiatory sacrifice enabled God to forgive the sins of OT saints even during the OT era. What, then, is Isaiah referring to when he says in 22:14: “Till your dying day this sin will not be atoned for.” What is the sin? Why was it not forgiven during their … Continue reading →

Are We Arminian , Pelagian, or Whatever?

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Are We Arminian , Pelagian, or Whatever? by Jack Cottrell (Notes) on Wednesday, September 30, 2009 at 12:45pm HERE IS ANOTHER QUESTION: How does the Restoration Movement compare with Calvinism and Augustinianism? I am assuming that we are of an Arminian persuasion, but I would flatly deny the doctrine of total depravity and original sin, which many Arminians claim to believe. So, does that make me a Pelagian or semi-pelagian? HERE IS MY ANSWER: Not all Arminians affirm total depravity and original sin. Even those who say they do (mostly Wesleyan Arminians) have a device called “prevenient grace” that nullifies … Continue reading →

What about Norman Geisler’s Systematic Theology?

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What about Norman Geisler’s Systematic Theology? by Jack Cottrell (Notes) on Wednesday, September 16, 2009 at 1:47pm Someone asked me for my opinion of Norman Geisler’s four-volume systematic theology. My opinion of Geisler in general is that he is a much better apologist than theologian. I like his works in the area of apologetics quite a bit and have made use of them often. I don’t agree with him on some things, e.g., his attempt to explain the presence of evil in the world (without evil we could not appreciate the good). Still, I don’t use any of his apologetics … Continue reading →

How can 1 Kings 15:5 say David did not sin except in Uriah’s case?

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How can 1 Kings 15:5 say David did not sin except in Uriah’s case? by Jack Cottrell (Notes) on Thursday, September 17, 2009 at 8:41am An inquirer asked about 1 Kings 15:5, which reads (in the ESV), “David did what was right in the eyes of the LORD and did not turn aside from anything that he commanded him all the days of his life, except in the matter of Uriah the Hittite.” Verse 3 could also be noted, which says that David’s heart was “wholly true to the LORD his God.” This seems to say that David never sinned … Continue reading →

“Once Saved, Always Saved????”

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“Once Saved, Always Saved????” by Jack Cottrell (Notes) on Wednesday, September 9, 2009 at 2:54pm Someone told me that he is in discussion with an elder in a local church who is caught up in the “once saved, always saved” doctrine. He asked if I can give some help. On this subject I recommend an OOP book by Guy Duty, “If You Continue”; and Robert Shank’s “Life in the Son.” I also have dealt with it a bit in my “The Faith Once for All,” in the chapter on “Assurance of Salvation,” and in my new book on grace, “Set … Continue reading →

“Second Work of Grace”

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“Second Work of Grace” by Jack Cottrell (Notes) on Wednesday, September 9, 2009 at 2:06pm I HAD A REQUEST about Wesleyanism: “The Wesleyan church believes there are two forms of grace. I don’t understand this. Their doctrine is similar to the Christian Church. Can you help me understand this?” MY REPLY: Wesleyanism includes those groups growing out of John Wesley’s teaching: Methodist churches, Holiness churches, and many Pentecostal churches. This theological school is similar to the Christian Church (Restoration Movement) in one main way: it is non-Calvinist, or Arminian; it accepts truly free will in human beings. In many other … Continue reading →

Calvinism summarized

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Calvinism summarized by Jack Cottrell (Notes) on Wednesday, September 9, 2009 at 1:15pm Someone writes, “I have been following the modern reformed church for some time now as a means for modeling a church plant. I see great success in converts and in the growth and life of the church through modern reformed preaching and practices (not to be confused with emergent church). The one thing I am struggling with is [how to] pick between the theological schools of thought called Calvinism and Arminianism. Can you clarify the key differences, or point me to a book that would be helpful … Continue reading →

Answering a false interpretation of Acts 2:38

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Answering a false interpretation of Acts 2:38 by Jack Cottrell (Notes) on Saturday, August 15, 2009 at 12:56pm I am adapting my “Tyranny of the Paradigm” essay for a Christian Standard article (next year); this is one small part of it: Finally, an absolute, a priori commitment to the sola fidei paradigm leads to an irrational distortion of NT texts that relate baptism to salvation. One example is a rather common twisting of Acts 2:38. It is an argument that attempts to separate baptism from forgiveness through a blatantly faulty analysis of the Greek forms in this verse. E.g., Cal … Continue reading →

Acts 2:38 in the NIV

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Acts 2:38 in the NIV by Jack Cottrell (Notes) on Friday, August 14, 2009 at 2:01pm In the original version of the NIV (1973), Acts 2:38a was translated thus: “Peter replied, ‘Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ so that [eis] your sins may be forgiven.’” Here the Greek word “eis” is given its natural meaning, “so that, in order that, for the purpose of.” In the next edition of the NIV (1978) this was changed without notice: “Peter replied, ‘Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus … Continue reading →