In Salvation and Sovereignty, Kenneth Keathley asks, “What shall a Christian do who is convinced of certain central tenets of Calvinism but not its corollaries?” He then writes, “I see salvation as a sovereign work of grace but suspect that the usual Calvinist understanding of sovereignty (that God is the cause of all things) is not sustained by the biblical witness as a whole.”Aiming to resolve this matter, the author argues that just three of Calvinism’s five TULIP points can be defended scripturally and instead builds on the ROSES acronym first presented by Timothy George (Radical depravity, Overcoming grace, Sovereign election, Eternal life, Singular redemption). In relation, Keathley looks at salvation and sovereignty through the lens of Molinism, a doctrine named after Luis Molina (1535-1600) that is based on a strong notion of God’s control and an equally firm affirmation of human freedom.
Salvation and Sovereignty
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About the Author
Kenneth Keathley is professor of Theology and dean of Graduate Studies at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary in Wake Forest, North Carolina, where he earned his M.Div. and Ph.D.
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39 of 41 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
A very consistent argument for both Divine sovereignty and free will
January 3, 2010
Format:Paperback
Salvation And Sovereignty: A Molinist Approach
by
Kenneth Keathley
Kenneth Keathley is professor of Theology and dean of Graduate Studies at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary in Wake Forest, North Carolina.
Keathley is a man who found himself struggling with traditional Calvinist reasoning regarding TULIP (Total depravity, Unconditional election, Limited atonement, Irresistible grace, Perseverance of the saints), yet was also convinced of many good points that are made by Calvinists. What would he do? After all, he agreed with three points out of five,but did not agree with limited atonement or irresistible grace. Not only that, but he couldn't totally embrace T,U, or P as they are presented by Calvinists.
The choice was to be inconsistent in many ways, or to find a way to be both consistent and Biblical. Keathley chose the latter, and has built upon the ROSES acronym. Radical depravity, Overcoming grace, Sovereign election, Eternal life, Singular redemption.
Keathley then sought to place all of this in a molinist perspective. Molinism (Named after Luis Molina) posits that God is indeed in control, and yet affords man free will. "Molinism teaches that God exercises His sovereignty primarily through His omniscience, and that He infallibly knows what free creatures would do in any given situation." (pg 5) This allows for God to indeed be sovereign, but it also allows for man to be truly free in that his choices truly are his own, and count as something other than a necessary response to Divine stimuli. Because God knows all things He knows all possibilities as well as which possibilities are feasible. In other words, God not only knows what could happen, He knows what will happen in any given circumstance, and He chooses to create the world in which all circumstances and choices bring the most glory to His name. In the world that God chose He both knows all things and man is free to make his own choices. Thus God is sovereign and man is free.
Keathley uses the Molinist perspective to set forth the following: God is both good and great, so He wants to save all and does save all who believe; human freedom is derived and genuinely ours, so it is not absolute, unlimited, or autonomous; God's grace is both monergistic and resistible, so salvation is totally of grace, but grace can be scorn and refused; God's election is both unconditional and according to foreknowledge, because "God's sovereign choice is informed by foreknowledge but not determined by it." (pg 11);the saved are both preserved and will persevere; and Christ's atonement is both unlimited in its provision and limited in its application, so we can indeed say that Christ died for each individual, but only believers enjoy the benefits of Jesus' sacrifice.
While it may take a while for it all to soak in (Indeed, I plan to go back and read portions of the book again to gain a better understanding of the issue.), this perspective is a very reasonable one. It is the one toward which I had already found myself moving, but was unable to ariculate.
This book is not deep philosophy, or difficult doctrine. It is a well written book that will be a great blessing to anyone struggling with the inconsistencies of Calvinism or Arminianism.
I highly recommend it.
by
Kenneth Keathley
Kenneth Keathley is professor of Theology and dean of Graduate Studies at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary in Wake Forest, North Carolina.
Keathley is a man who found himself struggling with traditional Calvinist reasoning regarding TULIP (Total depravity, Unconditional election, Limited atonement, Irresistible grace, Perseverance of the saints), yet was also convinced of many good points that are made by Calvinists. What would he do? After all, he agreed with three points out of five,but did not agree with limited atonement or irresistible grace. Not only that, but he couldn't totally embrace T,U, or P as they are presented by Calvinists.
The choice was to be inconsistent in many ways, or to find a way to be both consistent and Biblical. Keathley chose the latter, and has built upon the ROSES acronym. Radical depravity, Overcoming grace, Sovereign election, Eternal life, Singular redemption.
Keathley then sought to place all of this in a molinist perspective. Molinism (Named after Luis Molina) posits that God is indeed in control, and yet affords man free will. "Molinism teaches that God exercises His sovereignty primarily through His omniscience, and that He infallibly knows what free creatures would do in any given situation." (pg 5) This allows for God to indeed be sovereign, but it also allows for man to be truly free in that his choices truly are his own, and count as something other than a necessary response to Divine stimuli. Because God knows all things He knows all possibilities as well as which possibilities are feasible. In other words, God not only knows what could happen, He knows what will happen in any given circumstance, and He chooses to create the world in which all circumstances and choices bring the most glory to His name. In the world that God chose He both knows all things and man is free to make his own choices. Thus God is sovereign and man is free.
Keathley uses the Molinist perspective to set forth the following: God is both good and great, so He wants to save all and does save all who believe; human freedom is derived and genuinely ours, so it is not absolute, unlimited, or autonomous; God's grace is both monergistic and resistible, so salvation is totally of grace, but grace can be scorn and refused; God's election is both unconditional and according to foreknowledge, because "God's sovereign choice is informed by foreknowledge but not determined by it." (pg 11);the saved are both preserved and will persevere; and Christ's atonement is both unlimited in its provision and limited in its application, so we can indeed say that Christ died for each individual, but only believers enjoy the benefits of Jesus' sacrifice.
While it may take a while for it all to soak in (Indeed, I plan to go back and read portions of the book again to gain a better understanding of the issue.), this perspective is a very reasonable one. It is the one toward which I had already found myself moving, but was unable to ariculate.
This book is not deep philosophy, or difficult doctrine. It is a well written book that will be a great blessing to anyone struggling with the inconsistencies of Calvinism or Arminianism.
I highly recommend it.
27 of 31 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
I recently became a Molinist, but hadn't found a book that I could fully understand until this one. I am a huge William Lane Craig fan, but so many times I find myself having to go back and reread the same paragraph several times before I understand it. As you may or may not know, Dr. Craig is one of the most prolific thinkers of our time, and is a self proclaimed Molinist. His works are great, but sometimes hard to fully comprehend. Kenneth Keathley steps in and makes Molinism more understandable. Although it is not void of difficult ideas to understand, it is, I believe, written more for the laity.
Dr. Keathley begins by defining several terms associated with this field, and continues to do so as new ones arise. He goes on to show that not only is Molinism biblically supportable, but that it is also logically consistent. He sets forth many arguments that Calvinists need to think about and reply to. He notes the subtle dangers of accepting determinism and compatibilism and challenges his readers to seek the truth. He explains how soft libertarianism honors Scripture best by affirming both God's sovereignty and man's freedom. I don't want to give too much away, so I will stop here, but I highly recommend this book. It should be noted that Keathley is coming from the reformed tradition, so it is NOT anti-Calvinist (too much literature these days is). However, like he says in at the beginning of the book, the Reformed tradition and its TULIP have some problems that must be dealt with. I believe Dr. Keathley provides a biblical response to some important questions raised by any truth seeking Christian. Even if you are not convinced of Molinism, this book will still provide some valuable insights into God's relationship to humankind as well as challenge the way you think.
Keathley's crisp thinking and clear writing style will keep you so interested that you won't want to put the book down (of course, if you're like me, the subject alone does that). He uses numerous sources so that you can go and research further. This fact adds to the books appeal. This truly is an excellent read!
Dr. Keathley begins by defining several terms associated with this field, and continues to do so as new ones arise. He goes on to show that not only is Molinism biblically supportable, but that it is also logically consistent. He sets forth many arguments that Calvinists need to think about and reply to. He notes the subtle dangers of accepting determinism and compatibilism and challenges his readers to seek the truth. He explains how soft libertarianism honors Scripture best by affirming both God's sovereignty and man's freedom. I don't want to give too much away, so I will stop here, but I highly recommend this book. It should be noted that Keathley is coming from the reformed tradition, so it is NOT anti-Calvinist (too much literature these days is). However, like he says in at the beginning of the book, the Reformed tradition and its TULIP have some problems that must be dealt with. I believe Dr. Keathley provides a biblical response to some important questions raised by any truth seeking Christian. Even if you are not convinced of Molinism, this book will still provide some valuable insights into God's relationship to humankind as well as challenge the way you think.
Keathley's crisp thinking and clear writing style will keep you so interested that you won't want to put the book down (of course, if you're like me, the subject alone does that). He uses numerous sources so that you can go and research further. This fact adds to the books appeal. This truly is an excellent read!
15 of 20 people found the following review helpful
By Dave
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
I got this book because I wanted to read a Baptist theologian's perspective on molonism. I knew when I got the book that the author embraces molinism and I knew that he was somewhat anti-calvinist but that didn't stop me (a reformed baptist) from getting the book because I wanted to read about molinism and how it could fit in with Baptist beliefs and theology. I was quite dissappointed because this book is nothing about molinism but completely a work written against Reformed theology and Calvinism. Molonism is only briefly discussed in the introduction and first chapter and then alluded to throughout the rest of the book.
Not enough scriptural evidence was produced to support molinism and middle knowldege in my opinion - though the author did do a good job exegiting the few texts that were provided. The propblem that I have with the exegis however is that it did not necessarily prove or support the concept of counterfactual existences nor did it support molinism. The author also did not take into account the possibility of hypotheticals in scripture.
But as already stated most of this book is nothing more than an effort to disprove or discount Calvinism. The author goes after every Reformer that you can think of - from Luther and Calvin to Edwards to Piper and Sproul. Very little effort in this book is given to supporting and presenting molonism - every effort is given to to debunking Calvinism. Molinism is just one small tool used in this book to debunk Calvinism.
I will say this in regards to Dr. Keathley's approach to disprove Calvinism. It is by far the best I've seen presented to date. There is absolutely no comparison between this book and others (such as Geisler's "Chosen But Free"). I would say that this is one book that could give us Calvinists a run for our money. Though I remain unconvinced by Keathley's arguments I must say I impressed by them non-the-less.
Having said that - the problem with this book is that it is not presented as a response to Calvinism but as a molinist approach to salvation and sovereignty. Surely such a presentation could have been made more thoroughly and without trying to disprove calvinism with every turn of a page. It is for this reason that I had to go with three stars on this book and not higher.
Not enough scriptural evidence was produced to support molinism and middle knowldege in my opinion - though the author did do a good job exegiting the few texts that were provided. The propblem that I have with the exegis however is that it did not necessarily prove or support the concept of counterfactual existences nor did it support molinism. The author also did not take into account the possibility of hypotheticals in scripture.
But as already stated most of this book is nothing more than an effort to disprove or discount Calvinism. The author goes after every Reformer that you can think of - from Luther and Calvin to Edwards to Piper and Sproul. Very little effort in this book is given to supporting and presenting molonism - every effort is given to to debunking Calvinism. Molinism is just one small tool used in this book to debunk Calvinism.
I will say this in regards to Dr. Keathley's approach to disprove Calvinism. It is by far the best I've seen presented to date. There is absolutely no comparison between this book and others (such as Geisler's "Chosen But Free"). I would say that this is one book that could give us Calvinists a run for our money. Though I remain unconvinced by Keathley's arguments I must say I impressed by them non-the-less.
Having said that - the problem with this book is that it is not presented as a response to Calvinism but as a molinist approach to salvation and sovereignty. Surely such a presentation could have been made more thoroughly and without trying to disprove calvinism with every turn of a page. It is for this reason that I had to go with three stars on this book and not higher.
Most Recent Customer Reviews
4.0 out of 5 stars
Solid
Great overview not only of the molinist position, but many of the ones it is trying to interact with or correct. Read more
Published 1 month ago by johnb.
1.0 out of 5 stars
Intellectual, but not Biblical
Salvation and Sovereignty makes many false assumptions about those who hold to the tenants of Calvinism, such as ignorance and a lack of evangelistic zeal. Read more
Published 2 months ago by H. R. Skyles
5.0 out of 5 stars
Most Insightful
I am a pastor of a Southern Baptist Church. However, I have never been comfortable with the approaches of either Calvinism or Arminianism in regard to man's free will and God's... Read more
Published 4 months ago by Michael T. Slaughter
5.0 out of 5 stars
fantastic explanation of predestination/God's sovereignty
The Molinist approach to predestination is firmly grounded in the sovereignty of God without the unnecessary and inaccurate short comings of other explanations, Keathley presents... Read more
Published 5 months ago by S. Murray
5.0 out of 5 stars
If you want to understand molinism, this is the book!
If you're in the middle of the debate between Calvinists and Arminians, and you hear the same arguments over and over again, give yourself a refreshing break by picking up... Read more
Published 5 months ago by Patrick S
1.0 out of 5 stars
A Calvinist by any other Name Is Still a Calvinist.
Please understand that I am fully aware of the significant philosophical pleasure some evangelical theologians have received in taking another look at Molinism in order to solve... Read more
Published 12 months ago by J. WHITE
5.0 out of 5 stars
A must read for those exploring Molinism's stance on sovereignty.
This is a good explanation of the theological implications of Molinism. Whether one is a Molinist or not, it does a great job of providing this position's views on sovereignty. Read more
Published 12 months ago by SacraPhilosophica
5.0 out of 5 stars
Salvation and Sovereignty: A Molinist Approch
I learned of this book while working on a Disaster Relief project in Maryland in September, and ordered it from Amazon.com soon after returning. Read more
Published 17 months ago by N. Jones
4.0 out of 5 stars
God cannot quite escape liability
I am a Methodist. I enjoyed reading the book. Compared to other books on similar topic, it is more readable and interesting. Read more
Published 20 months ago by Enoch
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Great Critique of Calvinism, But Not Sold on Molinism
The battle has been raging for hundreds of years over whether or not humans have a form of free will or if every single event in human history has and is rolling out exactly as God... Read more
Published 23 months ago by Tom Farr
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