This Week in Calvinism - December 30, 2016

• Westminster Theological Seminary is offering a free ebook containing he best articles by Carl Trueman and G.K. Beale published in the Westminster Theological Journal.
  
  
• Anti-Calvinist straw man arguments debunked.
  
  
• "Roman Calvinism"?
  
  
• John O'Keefe believes doctrine to be a detractor from the divine.
  
  
• Tim Challies offers a review of his blog's most popular articles over the past year.
  
  
• And Ligonier is sponsoring the last Free Stuff Friday of 2016.
  
  
• David Mathis explains why and how you should read the Bible.
  
  
• The Contemporary Calvinist hopes to blog more frequently in 2017. We'll see what happens.

This Week in Calvinism - December 9, 2016

• Paige Patterson, president of Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, weighs in on the remarks made by chapel speaker Rick Patrick about Calvinism being a "Trojan Horse."
  
  
• Shane Vander Hart discusses the tension that exists within the SBC regarding Calvinism.
  
  
• Kent Brandenburg thinks that Calvinists, on the whole, "talk too much about Calvinism." However, he has not concluded that he "could not fellowship with a Calvinist."
  
  
• Can Calvinism make you happy?
  
  
• Win some free stuff from smallgroup.com.
  
  
• Continually washed by the gospel.
  
  
• It's "Radio Free Geneva" on the Dividing Line with Dr. James White.

This Week in Calvinism - November 25, 2016

• Benjamin Corey is "starting to think that Calvinism probably shouldn't be classified and grouped under the Christian umbrella." He believes "the Calvinist doctrine of God is far closer to Islam than Christianity."
  
  
• Yes, John Calvin loved his wine.
  
  
• Calvinism debates shouldn't divide us.
  
  
• One blogger is analyzing the growth of Neo-Calvinism/Reformed theology in the Evangelical Free Church of America. And he doesn't think it's a good thing.
  
  
• Rumor has it that President-elect Trump's pick for education secretary has "deep ties to the Christian Reformed community."
  
  
• Zen Calvinism?
  
  
• Free Stuff Fridays at Challies.com is sponsored by Reformation Heritage Books.
  
  
• $5 Black Friday deals from Ligonier.

This Week in Calvinism - November 18, 2016

• Steve Hays and Jerry Walls debate Calvinism.
  
  
• D. A. Carson on how to read a Bible full of promises.
  
  
• $5 Friday deals from Ligonier.
  
  
• Enter to win some free stuff from Missional Wear.

This Week in Calvinism - November 11, 2016

• Dr. Richard Land is a 3 1/4-point Calvinist.
  
  
• Dr. Land also addresses the question: "Why is it that such a high percentage of the Evangelical 'Never Trumpers' are Calvinists?"
  
  
• Some sweet Kindle deals for Christians.
  
  
• $5 Friday at Ligonier.
  
  
• Never let up on killing sin.

This Week in Calvinism - November 4, 2016

• James W. Gunter attempts to vindicate Calvinism.
  
  
• As the Pope visited Sweden, a newspaper article offered five brief facts about the Protestant Reformation.
  
  
• There are some things Stephen Altrogge would like to tell his younger self about Calvinism.
  
  
• Hinder missions? Calvinism fuels missions!
  
  
• Want some free stuff from Ligonier Ministries?
  
  
• John Piper on how a Christian relates to the state.

This Week in Calvinism - October 28, 2016

• What is Calvinism?
  
  
• Calvinism's foundational experience.
  
  
• Dr. Thomas Talbott asks, "Is God properly described as 'Love' in the theology of John Calvin?"
  
  
• Semper Reformanda. You keep using that term. I do not think it means what you think it means.
  
  
• Contrary to what Roman Catholics might say, the Bible is our sufficient authority.
  
  
• Christians, Halloween is our night.
  
  
• Enter to win some free kids' books from New Growth Press.

This Week in Calvinism - October 21, 2016

• Matt Moore: Accidental Calvinist.
  
  
• Robert Pate asks, "Who can trust in the unjust, unmerciful, unrighteous God of Calvinism?" Not me, since our God is none of those things.
  
  
• It seems we Calvinists have a "tendency to see all as black, that salvation is impossible, whatever efforts we make–despite the Gospel saying that with God all things are possible–that depression is our life."
  
  
• This election season, let us embrace the gift of God's judgment.
  
  
• What kind of example do you set in your conduct?

This Week in Calvinism - October 14, 2016

• Dr. Jeff Hagan discusses the verse that made him a Calvinist: Romans 8:1.
  
  
• Here's what happens when everyone else in your family goes from cage stage Calvinism to hyper Calvinism.
  
  
• Randal Rauser reviews Calvinism and the Problem of Evil.
  
  
• I'm not sure what Calvinism has to do with Donald Trump, but Joseph Loconte tries to make the link.
  
  
• John Piper on what grumbling says about God.
  
  
• You, me, and the ESV.

This Week in Calvinism - October 7, 2016

• John Samson dismantles five big myths about Calvinism.
  
  
• Spencer Toy has an open question for presuppositionalists.
  
  
• Ronnie Rogers presents a "dilemma" for Calvinism.
  
  
• What's wrong with Jerry Walls' argument against Calvinism? Dan Johnson explains.
  
  
• For John O'Keefe, Calvinism's core problem is that it is "self-centered." Because, apparently, any theology that emphasizes God's sovereignty is, by definition, self-centered.

This Week in Calvinism - September 30, 2016

• Jonathan Dorst discusses the verse that made him a Calvinist (John 6:44).
  
  
• For David Bordy, that verse was Romans 1:30.
  
  
• John Anthony Dunne shares his journey into Calvinism.
  
  
• The Andrew Fuller Conference at the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary delved into the lives of Puritan theologians Richard Baxter, John Owen, and William Kiffen.
  
  
• John Piper discusses how to test our interpretations of the Bible.
  
  
• James Pate reviews Calvinism and the Problem of Evil.

This Week in Calvinism - September 23, 2016

• Messages from Ligonier's 2016 fall conference, "The Dawn of the Reformation," are available to watch online.
  
  
• What you need to know about the Calvinism-Arminianism debate.
  
  
• Apparently, the God of Calvinism is like a father who smokes while telling his kids to avoid tobacco.
  
  
• Roger Olson defends Calvinists against misrepresentation.
  
  
• Michael Heiser, in an interview about his new book, The Unseen Realm, had this to say about young Calvinists:

  I think once they awaken to the fact that hardline Calvinism requires that God either wants evil to happen or needs evil to make his plan work, they get rightly offended at the character of God or see him as a lesser being unworthy of loyalty. Why would God decree what he doesn't want to happen? Why does he need suffering to make things work out? Isn't he smart enough to find a better way than those options? If he is, then he must enjoy the suffering he has caused or was clever enough to bring about so he gets his way. I don't see why anyone would love a being whose character is like that. We wouldn't behave that way and feel love for ourselves.

  Straw man much?

This Week in Calvinism - August 19, 2016

• Which joy rules your heart?
  
  
• The city of Steinbach in Manitoba gets its first Reformed church.
  
  
• Jesse Morrell doesn't like Calvinism because "any theology which is inconsistent with evangelism, or hinders the zeal thereof, cannot be a biblical God-glorifying Christ-centered theology." Come on, anti-Calvinists. You're still sticking with that tired argument?
  
  
• We can take comfort in knowing that Roger Olson considers "most Reformed-Calvinist Christians as evangelical."
  
  
• Dr. James White deals with anti-Reformed rhetoric on The Dividing Line.
  
  
• It's a G3 Conference giveaway, courtesy of Tim Challies.

This Week in Calvinism - August 12, 2016

• Ever wonder how to argue against the wicked heresy of Calvinism? Here are seven tips.
  
  
• Chris Dunn doesn't wear Calvinism on his sleeve.
  
  
• The Rio Olympics and Calvin's mission.
  
  
• Frank Morgan takes issue with the notion that man cannot choose good:

  According to Calvinism, man does not have free will; he cannot choose good over evil under any circumstances. The Bible does contain verses such as Isaiah 64:6, Jeremiah 13:23, Jeremiah 17:9, etc., but these are referring to man in his unregenerate state.

  Well, exactly. Unregenerated man cannot choose good. It would appear you have accepted the first point of Calvinism. Only four more to go!
  
  
• Plan now to die well.
  
  
• Ladies, are you looking for the perfect gift for that special Calvinist man in your life? Check out the latest products from Bath, Body, and Soul.

This Week in Calvinism - July 29, 2016

• Nathan Vogt is grateful that our Constitution and other founding documents are secular. This guards against those evil Calvinists, who "are intolerant of every other faith and killed or jailed people suspected of witchcraft."
  
  
• So, you think the Bible teaches Calvinism? You must be reading it while wearing your super Calvinist glasses.
  
  
• The marrow of Calvinism.
  
  
• Dr. Bob Hadley attacks the crux of Calvinism, which he sees as the idea that regeneration precedes faith.
  
  
• In blaming evangelical support for Donald Trump on the "prosperity gospel," Chris Lehmann links it back to "dour Calvinism" and a the eventual "revolt against Calvinist fatalism."
  
  
• HuffPo's John Carl blames the Calvinist Puritan's for America's unforgiving prison culture.
  
  
• John Piper on how to rise when we fall into sin.
  
  
  
• Registration has begun for Ligonier's fall conference, "The Dawn of the Reformation."

This Week in Calvinism - July 22, 2016

• Does the story of Cain and Abel overthrow Calvinism?
  
  
• John Piper dismantles "one-point Calvinism."
  
  
• "The Dirty Christian" talks Calvinism and Josh Feuerstein.
  
  
• Why is my delight in God so short-lived?
  
  
• Tim Challies discusses how to pray when your soul is bone dry.
  
  
• Check out this week's $5 Friday deals from Ligonier.
  
  
• Roger Olson announces an upcoming series of blog posts on why he is an evangelical, Arminian Christian.

This Week in Calvinism - July 8, 2016

• Dr. Tim White isn't looking forward to the Les Lanphere's documentary Calvinist.
  
  
• Neither is Jeff Amsbaugh. He criticizes Les for asking for people to contribute financially to the production of the film: "There is no appeal for us to appeal to God. There only is an appeal for us to give of our human resources to advance a documentary that emphasizes how God works independently of human resources." Seriously?
  
  
• "Calvin was much more than a proponent of salvific particularism," writes Rev. Roger Salter. "His theological efforts are vast and beneficial and his views on sin and grace are disciplined within the context of the saving work of Christ which he describes with expertise and attractiveness."
  
  
• Chris Cole tries to make the Presbyterian case for infant baptism, beginning with I Corinthians 7:14.
  
  
• In response, Andrew Taylor tries to make the Lutheran case for infant baptism.
  
  
• Apparently, "Pagan Calvinism" is a thing.
  
  
• Dr. Michael A. Cox finds evidence against Calvinism in the book of Colossians.
  
  
• Carrie Dedrick wants to see Calvinists and Charismatics get along.

This Week in Calvinism - July 1, 2016

• Calvinists drinking beer, smoking stogies, and getting tattoos? Well, we can't have any of that, can we?
  
  
• It seems that Calvinism robs Israel of being in the forefront of God's glory. After all, "Israel is God's foreknown people, not uncircumcised heathen Gentiles!"
  
  
• J. D. Greear wants to make it clear that Calvinism isn't to blame for declining baptism numbers in the SBC.
  
  
• Check out Ligonier's $5 Friday this week for a variety of teaching series from R. C. Sproul.
  
  
• Tim Challies is giving away some free stuff from Moody.
  
  
• Good news! The FDA has just approved Ritalin for the treatment of chronic hyper-Calvinism in adults and teenagers.

This Week in Calvinism - June 24, 2016

• Even many professing Christians shy away from the doctrine of total depravity, "Which is a shame," writes Tony Petersen, "because, if anything, the Bible is harsher on the question than TULIP."
  
  
• Calvinism found in John 3.
  
  
• Ennis Pepper gives nine reasons why Calvinism is illogical (and cruel, and abusive, and responsible for the Holocaust, etc.). Each point has been refuted countless times over the years, but for some reason they still persist.
  
  
• Benjamin Corey may be on his way to becoming a Calvinist. Three points down (UIP), only two to go!
  
  
• More pleas for Calvinist and non-Calvinist Southern Baptists to get along.
  
  
• Tim Challies explains why he is not dispensational.
  
  
• Whatever happened to beauty in worship? "Modern churches tend to look like prefabricated warehouses," writes R. C. Sproul, "or they're designed to be functional music halls so that the production of music may have center stage."

This Week in Calvinism - June 10, 2016

• If you missed ReformCon last week, you can watch the videos at Apologia Studios' YouTube channel.
  
  
• Dr. James White dismantles Molinism. Again.
  
  
• Norm Fields thinks TULIP is a lovely flower, but a lousy doctrine.
  
  
• One redditor asks a question about Calvinism: "[I]s there any worth in this theology? I have only see it cause harm for the people that cling to it the closest."
  
  
• The essence of the Calvinistic life.
  
  
• Michael F. Bird predicts "that there is about to be a miniature civil war among conservative Calvinist Complementarians about Trinity and gender."
  
  
• Check out the $5 Friday deals at Ligonier.
  
  
• Free stuff from Tim Challies: the God's Word For You series.

This Week in Calvinism - June 3, 2016

• William Thornton hopes the upcoming SBC election isn't about Calvinism. But nominee Steve Gaines seems to be focusing on that topic.
  
  
• Is atheistic determinism similar to Calvinism?
  
  
• "In Calvinism," writes William Birch, "God did not merely foreknow acts of evil, but He concocted evil acts in His mind to be carried out by certain persons, He decreed them from eternity past, and He then brings them into reality by His own secret methods." So, naturally, if we cannot read God's mind and know exactly why he decreed certain evil acts, then God cannot possibly have a reason decreeing certain evil acts, therefore Calvinism is wrong.
  
  
• Jon Bloom writes, "You don't have to know God's will if you are confident in God's word."
  
  
• For whom did Christ die?

This Week in Calvinism - May 27, 2016

• A former cage-stage Calvinist himself, William Birch lays the blame for the enabling of cage-stagers at the feet of men like R. C. Sproul and John Piper: "These Calvinist teachers enable young and impressionable Calvinist converts toward demeaning, objectifying, and condemning Arminians and other non-Calvinists, and maintaining a superior attitude that is most unChristlike." While Mr. Birch may try to assure us that "[t]here is no category as a cage-stage Arminian," I do find it interesting that the most vocal anti-Calvinists seem to be former Calvinists themselves.
  
  
• Peter Lumpkins presents evidence suggesting "that Baptists of the south were not as forged into strict, confessional Calvinism as many Southern Baptist Calvinists claim."
  
  
• SBC presidential nominee Steve Gaines on teaching Calvinism: "I do believe that our students need to know about Calvinism. I don't mind our seminaries teaching about Calvinism, but it should not be the exclusive theological position taught in any of our schools."
  
  
• This week's Free Stuff Fridays giveaway is sponsored by Missional Wear. And don't forget to claim your free sticker!
  
  
• The Calvinism debate between Dr. James White and Steve Tassi has been postponed.

This Week in Calvinism - May 20, 2016

• Tim Challies explains why he is not an atheist.
  
  
• John Piper on how to hate your life.
  
  
• Mary A. Kassian discusses the issue of women teaching men in the church.
  
  
• Richard Bushey responds to Eric Lounsbery regarding Calvinism and Luke 8:12.
  
  
• You might think that Arminian William Birch doesn't have any Calvinist friends:
  

  That is not so. I do have Calvinist friends that I love, cherish, and highly respect. I think they hold to egregious theological errors. My hope is that they will, like me, abandon those errors and glorify the Lord by maintaining a proper hermeneutic that informs us rightly regarding the character and integrity of our sovereign God.

This Week in Calvinism - May 13, 2016

• Colby Bonham responds to a self-proclaimed "destroyer of Calvinism."
  
  
• Trevin Wax argues that "it is problematic to claim that a move away from Calvinism necessarily entails a move toward theological liberalism."
  
  
• Jared Longshore responds to Trevin Wax.
  
  
• Another response.
  
  
• Benjamin L. Corey finds John MacArthur's statement about reaching the Spanish-speaking world with the gospel "racist" and "paternalistic."
  
  
• Jared C. Wilson troubleshoots the celebrity pastor problem.
  
  
• Ronnie Rogers eschews the Calvinist view of compatibilism and instead embraces extensivism.

This Week in Calvinism - May 6, 2016

• "The doctrine of Calvinists should not trouble us," writes Jack Wellman, pastor of the Mulvane Brethren Church in Mulvane, Kansas. "Debating over something that is not essential to salvation leads to the ruin of the hearers." While I agree that a belief in Calvinism is not essential to salvation, I disagree that a loving debate over the doctrines of grace is harmful. As Dr. James White so often points out, "theology matters."
  
  
• Timothy George of First Things takes a look at Mark Dever and Capitol Hill Baptist Church in his article "Puritans on the Potomac."
  
  
• Good living is rooted in good theology.
  
  
• Tom Nettles discusses Calvinists and non-Calvinists in the SBC.
  
  
• The free stuff featured today at Challies.com is sponsored by Westminster Theological Seminary.

This Week in Calvinism - April 29, 2016

• Tracey Rowland sees the potential for a Catholic revival in Scotland: "It can't be all that difficult to compete with liberal Calvinism and garden-variety New Age paganism when one has the full treasury of a sacramental Catholicism..."
  
  
• Arminian William Birch lists five reasons why New Calvinism is worth rejecting.
  
  
• Carol Howard Merritt, a feminist who embraces "marriage equality," proudly dons Calvin's mantle, despite being against everything he stood for.
  
  
• Dr. Jeff Hagan offers a concise summary of Arminianism and Calvinism.
  
  
• "But the horror genre also shows us how Puritan Calvinism was intimately entwined with witchy folktales," writes Kathryn Reklis, in her review of the film The Witch. "The fear of witches went hand in hand with the Calvinist God whose inscrutable will predestined some to hell."
  
  
• Dr. Vern Charette ponders God's goodness in light of what many Calvinists would consider a false assurance of salvation.

This Week in Calvinism - April 22, 2016

• Mark Driscoll is back, and he answers the question: is the God of Calvinism cruel?
  
  
• Let's avoid hyper-Calvinism when we preach.
  
  
• Jeffrey K. Jue gives five reasons why the New Calvinism is worth supporting.
  
  
• Calvin, Basil, and heathen learning.
  
  
• Most of the talks from this month's T4G Conference are available online.
  
  
• Jesse Johnson addresses the issue of using sermon illustrations from movies.
  
  
• Do we participate in our own salvation?

This Week in Calvinism - April 15, 2016

• Cole Brown begins discussing some common misconceptions about Calvinism.
  
  
• Ronnie Rogers continues his series on Calvinism's view of the origin of sin and God's offer of salvation.
  
  
• Jarvis Williams gives us six reasons that we should find joy in the doctrine of particular atonement.
  
  
• Calvinism and corruption: Louisiana College's real story.
  
  
• An "Arminian slave" to Calvinism?
  
  
• Calvinism for dummies.
  
  
• It just isn't Friday without some free stuff from Tim Challies.

This Week in Calvinism - April 8, 2016

• Gerry T. Neal thinks Calvinist theologians value Calvinism over orthodoxy.
  
  
• Ronnie Rogers offers his take on the "Calvinism makes God the author of sin" argument.
  
  
• Drew Koehler describes his journey to Calvinism.
  
  
• Dr. Michael Bruening, associate professor of history and political science at Missouri University of Science and Technology, will be traveling to France to study the detractors of John Calvin during the Protestant Reformation.
  
  
• Tim Challies recalls the time he discussed Twitter with John Piper over a plate of guacamole at Chili's.
  
  
• John Piper discusses sanctification and complete assurance for incomplete people.

This Week in Arminianism - April 1, 2016

• The Seeking Disciple offers a short rant on devotions, praying, and posting.
  
  
• A page from an Arminian comic book.
  
  
• Calvinist James White is changing his last name to avoid accusations of "white privilege."
  
  
• Francis Asbury: Arminian hero.
  
  
• Tim Challies presents the top 10 books on reconciling divine sovereignty and man's free will.

This Week in Calvinism - March 25, 2016

• Tired of the Catholic church, one person asks how to convert to Calvinism.
  
  
• Jim Babka thinks the oversimplification of blaming Islam for terrorism is akin to blaming Calvinism for the antics of Westboro Baptist Church.
  
  
• Steven Sewell exposes the "senselessness of the Calvinist view of salvation."
  
  
• Calvary conquers the fear of death.

This Week in Calvinism - March 18, 2016

• Roger Olson, who has held a personal grudge against John Piper for a long time, responds to Piper's claim that Arminianism is self-centered.
  
  
• In the comments section of that same post, Olson restates his belief that making God the author of sin "is the clear result of what high Calvinism teaches."
  
  
• Stand to Reason provides a helpful list of short apologetic videos.
  
  
• The whole Bible in one meal.
  
  
• William Birch insists that Christ "died for all people without distinction (2 Cor. 5:14-15), since no distinction is given anywhere in Scripture."

This Week in Calvinism - March 11, 2016

• 22% of Australians claim no religious affiliation. "So why is it that a sizeable minority (around 30%) of Australians oppose gay marriage, blame the poor for their own plight, and treat drug usage as a moral issue?" John Wilkins blames what he calls "secular Calvinism."
  
  
• Three gifts we need, but hate to receive: obstacles, suffering, and everyday irritation.
  
  
• Why do so many non-Calvinists identify as Calvinists? I'm sure Ronnie Rogers will tell us.
  
  
• Let's pack it in, fellow Calvinists. I just found out that there is no real scriptural support for Calvinism.
  
  
• How can sinful creatures please a holy God?
  
  
• Hurry! It's $5 Friday at Ligonier!

This Week in Calvinism - March 4, 2016

• Director Robert Eggers discusses his horror film The Witch: "The real world and the fairytale world were the same thing in the early modern period. That's really the most shocking thing: to understand the mindset in 17th century English Puritan Calvinism."
  
  
• Steven Anderson once again rants against Calvinism. Did you know the word "sovereign" doesn't appear in the Bible? Well, at least not in the one "true" Bible, the KJV.
  
  
• Jimmy Needham discusses how the doctrine of election saved him from depression.
  
  
• R. C. Sproul asks, "Is your Jesus too small?"
  
  
• Roger Olson believes in free will, but, "One thing all Christian agree about is that true freedom, the freedom of obedience and conformity to the image of Christ, is a gift of God’s grace that will only be complete in our heavenly glorification."

This Week in Calvinism - February 26, 2016

• An Irish priest writes, "...Calvinism, with its bleak, dour and limited outlook, is not the Gospel of Jesus Christ." Seems like an impartial assessment to me.
  
  
• I'm not sure why someone is asking, but can you answer this question: How is existentialism any different from Puritanism or Calvinism?
  
  
• "Wondering Eagle" analyzes the growth of Reformed theology within the Evangelical Free Church of America. Looks like the SBC isn't the only denomination being infiltrated by Calvinists.
  
  
• Melinda Penner at Stand to Reason reviews the movie Risen.
  
  
• Felix the (Calvinist) Cat.
  
  
• John Piper explains the source of biblical love.

This Week in Calvinism - February 19, 2916

• (Straw man) Calvinism carried out to its "logical" conclusion.
  
  
• Roger Olson writes, "Evangelicals can and do disagree about whether individuals' inclusion in God's elect people involves any level of free will, but all agree that the existence of the people of God is not dependent on human choice." "All agree"? Really?
  
  
• Pastor Ronnie Rogers attempts to "decode" Calvinism.
  
  
• Scottish politician Kenny MacAskill loves how secular his country has become, and he doesn't miss the "stultification and suffocation brought about by undiluted Calvinism."
  
  
• David A. Robertson, Moderator of the Free Church of Scotland, responds: "Perhaps we should ask: what have the Calvinists ever done for us? Apart from being catalysts for education, democracy and the Enlightenment?"
  
  
• Tim Challies on the character of the Christian.
  
  
• Jon Bloom on resting in the Prince of Peace.

This Week in Calvinism - February 12, 2016

• Roger Olson is pleased with the revised, enlarged, and re-published edition of William Klein's book about "corporate election," finding it "completely compatible with classical Arminian theology."
  
  
• David Murray on the impact of Calvinism on education.
  
  
• A poem by Calvinist Snoopy.
  
  
• Pastor Danny is a bit confused about what Calvinism teaches, but it's nice to hear a sermon against Calvinism that isn't delivered by some insulting, hot-tempered preacher.
  
  
• Get 50% off R. C. Sproul's booklet series Biblical Answers to Life's Crucial Questions. Offer ends February 16.

How to provoke your children to anger

As fathers, we don't need any help coming up with ways to make our children angry or resentful. It sort of comes naturally to us. Mark Altrogge offers a pretty inclusive list of what some of those things are. We can provoke our children to anger:

• By constantly criticizing them and not encouraging them. When they feel they can never please us enough.
  
• By having double standards – Do as I say, not as I do. Expecting them to do things we don’t do, e.g. ask forgiveness, humble themselves, etc.
  
• By anger and harshness
  
• By a lack of affection
  
• By telling them what to do or not do without giving Biblical reasons (e.g., Do it because I said to do it, or because it’s just wrong).
  
• By being offended at their sin because it bothers us, not because it offends God.

Take a moment to read the rest here. And remember that we fathers are sinners too.

This Week in Calvinism - February 5, 2016

• "Dear non-Calvinist..."
  
  
• Mitch Bogen discusses Bob Dylan's "beautiful Calvinism."
  
  
• Calvinism as an apologetic.
  
  
• Roger Olson writes, "'Reformed' is a spiritual-theological identity not tied to 'five point Calvinism' and certainly not tied to complementarianism or belief in biblical inerrancy."
  
  
• Richard Mouw reflects on Abraham Kuyper's words regarding the mingling of church and state.
  
  
• The impact of Calvinism on culture.
  
  
• From Christianity Today: "American Christians apparently aren't Calvinists when it comes to football." True. Even though I know the outcome of the game is predetermined, I still cheer like an Arminian.
  
  
• Writes Arminian William Birch:

  Calvinists evoke mental images of an impersonal and analytic God who cares primarily about rescuing numbers -- objects -- instead of caring about and loving helpless sinners in need of His grace and mercy. We are presented with a calculated God who gives people cancer, like John Piper's God (link), and who has decreed that people suffer, while they evoke their myriad passions during the suffering He has brought about, while He shows no passion whatsoever.

  When all else fails, create a straw man.

This Week in Calvinism - January 29, 2016

• Kelly Martinez describes four ways in which Calvinism differs from Lutheranism. Note to Ms. Martinez: do some research on a topic before writing an article. I think you confused the two in a couple of paragraphs, and the tenets of both are a bit more complex than the descriptions you provide.
  
  
• Calvinist Batman tweets: "Can Jesus be kicked out of the Trinity? If you've been united with Christ, why do you think that God would throw you out of the family?"
  
  
• The Pastor with No Answers welcomes as guests Chris Date from the Rethinking Hell Podcast and Leighton Flowers of Soteriology 101. Makes sense.
  
  
• Jon Bloom of Desiring God discusses how to have intimacy with God.
  
  
• Are you up to a reading challenge? Perhaps you can keep pace with Tim Challies. He has already read 11 books so far this year. Yeah, I'm a bit behind.

This Week in Calvinism - January 22, 2016

• Isaiah 5:4 turned out to be the stumbling block that caused one forum member to turn away from Calvinism. But if you can prove to him, using Isaiah 5 alone, that this passage does indeed teach determinism, he's willing to reconsider his position. I'm reminded of a quote from Jonathan Swift: "It is useless to attempt to reason a man out of a thing he was never reasoned into."
  
  
• Regarding the hardening of Israel spoken of in the book of Deuteronomy, Jay Guin writes:

  In short, for Israel to be hardened, God need only let them be their natural selves. He doesn't have to override their free will and force them to reject him.
  
  Now, this sound suspiciously like election, except that God never forces anyone to accept him. If we don't really choose God, then our love isn't real. For us to truly love God, we must be free not to love God. And so some of us will inevitably make the foolish choice to reject God.

  There isn't a Calvinist I know who would say that those who have had their heart of stone replaced by a heart of flesh (Ezekiel 36:26) don't really choose God.
  
  
• Why do so many evangelicals support Donald Trump? Adele M. Stan puts the blame on "Calvinism's veneration of the rich and damnation of the poor." Trump is a billionaire, so he is obviously one of God's elect. Yeah, that's exactly how Calvinists think.
  
  
• Roger Olson has a bone to pick with John Piper (shocking, right?) regarding that whole "Christian hedonism" thing, namely, the following statement by Piper: "It is unbiblical and arrogant to try to worship God for any other reason than the pleasure that is to be had in him" Dr. Olson concludes:

  I worship and service God because, in the inimitable lyrics of my colleague Terry York he is "worthy of worship, worthy of praise." I do look forward to the joy that comes from worshiping and serving God, but that is no part of my motive.

  Remember, this is the same Roger Olson who once admitted that he would not worship God if it were proven that Calvinism is true, since "[s]uch a God would be a moral monster."
  
  
• Tim Challies discusses eight ways to grow in the fear of God.

This Week in Calvinism - January 15, 2016

• There can be times when it isn't a good idea to try to convince someone of the doctrines of grace.
  
  
• Calvinism isn't cool.
  
  
• Will Graham writes, "We are brothers and sisters in Christ—whether we be Calvinists or Arminians—so, as we continue preaching the Word of God together, let us love one another, serve one another and glorify our great God and Saviour together with all of our strength."
  
  
• Sanctification is not passive.
  
  
• Why does Satan exist? For Christ's glory and our joy.
  
  
• Tim Challies presents amazing one-star reviews of great books, such as The Holiness of God and the ESV Study Bible.
  
  
• Rich Pierce reviews James White's debate with Leighton Flowers on Romans 9.

This Week in Calvinism - January 8, 2016

• God of Calvinism = god of Islam? Seriously?
  
  
• Arminian Daily Affirmation, courtesy of Stuart Smalley.
  
  
• Biblical predestination: Double or single?
  
  
• According to S. Sweitzer at NewsMax, here are five denominations that follow Calvinism. I was surprised to see the United Church of Christ listed, but, then again, I know very little about the UCC.
  
  
• Dr. David Anders discusses a verse he found difficult to deal with when he was a Calvinist.
  
  
• One theology forum poster wants to make it clear that he is not an "Arminianist," while also making it clear that Calvinists are heretics that preach a "powerless gospel."
  
  
• 12 promises for perseverance in Bible-reading.