Election, or predestination, is the belief or doctrine that God has chosen some persons for the gift of salvation. It is not to be confused with providence, that is, God’s governance of all things, nor with Fate or philosophical determinism. An important teaching in...
The doctrine of sanctification has been a bone of contention in the church through the ages. Among areas of controversy are the interdependence of sanctification and justification; the relation of faith and love; the interplay of grace and works; the role of the...
The Reformed tradition has always contained a virulent idea of sin. Having entered the human condition by “original sin,” sin renders human existence both tragic and miserable and takes on a life of its own. Most often the tradition regards sin as the human...
The Good Creation fell into sin. This is the story of original sin. We confess it but cannot explain it. For we must start where the Bible starts. It reveals the historical beginning of sin and evil but not its behind–the–scenes origin. Yet Christian thinkers struggle...
Justification The doctrine of justification by grace through faith alone is central to the teaching of the Reformation. It stood as a key to Martin Luther’s own exegetical insight at the beginning and wellspring of the Reformation. The importance of this biblical and...
