Lennox - Determined to believe?: the sovereignty of God, freedom, faith, and human responsibility

DETERMINED TO BELIEVE?

Lennox is no fool. Nor does he rush in, though he bravely explores ground where angels may fear to tread. And the overall debate about freedom is an argument for the sake of heaven that no Christian should duck because it bears on our view of the character of God, of human dignity, of moral responsibility, and therefore on our mission and public witness. Gracious, patient, tenacious, persistently biblical, and eschewing argument by labels, Lennox is a model of how to handle issues that are divisive but important. It is up to each of us to read, study, think, pray, and decide for ourselves. The heart, face, and voice of our faith are all at stake in the answers we give.

O S G UINNESS , author of Impossible People

Professor Lennox raises serious biblical, theological, and philosophical questions about theological determinism the belief that God has foreordained and rendered certain all that happens including who will be saved and who will not be saved. Anyone curious about this belief must read Determined to Believe?

R OGER E. O LSON , Foy Valentine Professor of Christian Theology and Ethics, George W. Truett Theological Seminary, Baylor University

With grace, humility, wisdom, and boldness, John Lennox offers a readable, biblically-informed guide that tackles important questions about freedom and fatalism, salvation and sovereignty, faith and foreordination, regeneration and reprobation. This book will be a help for those perplexed by and even pressured into accepting a theological system that strikes them as undermining genuine moral responsibility and calling into question the assurance of salvation.

P AUL C OPAN , Professor and Pledger Family Chair of Philosophy and Ethics, Palm Beach Atlantic University and author of An Introduction to Biblical Ethics and A Little Book for New Philosophers

John Lennox is widely recognized as one of the top Christian intellectuals of our time. Yet he is also rightly admired for his uncanny ability to get right down to the basic issues in a discussion and to write about them with a simple clarity that still exemplifies depth and range of treatment. And, as one would expect, Determined to Believe? is a model of these virtues. This is no ordinary rehash of old debates about Calvinism vs. Arminianism, Gods sovereignty vs. free will and moral responsibility, and so on. In fact, the real brilliance of the book lies in Lennoxs insistence that we set aside old labels and try a fresh approach with new eyes to the topics related to the acceptance or non-acceptance of theological determinism. As a result, this is a treasure trove of clear, easy to understand biblical exegesis, helpful definitions of key terms like foreknowledge and predestine, and coverage of theological determinism as it relates to the human condition, the nation of Israel and the hardening of Pharaohs heart, and the assurance a believer may rightly claim regarding ones salvation. I highly recommend this refreshing and helpful book.

J. P. M ORELAND , Distinguished Professor of Philosophy, Talbot School of Theology, Biola University, La Mirada, California, USA

John Lennox, one of todays finest evangelical minds, treats the reader to a well-argued position on this controversial contemporary debate among evangelicals. Scriptural in content, philosophical in argument, comprehensive in scope, and irenic in tone, it rescues the debate from much of partisan rhetoric so often found in books on the same subject. Finally, a book that avoids a proof-texting approach placing the discussion in the context of the entire JudeoChristian narrative crafted with exegetical integrity and intellectual rigor. Reading it is like having a stimulating conversation with a good friend.

B RUCE L ITTLE , Senior Professor of Philosophy, Southeastern Baptist Theology Seminary

In this wide-ranging book that is sure to garner much interest, the polymath and apologist John Lennox turns his attention to issues of long-standing debate within Christian theology: freedom and necessity, sin and grace, predestination and perseverance. In his characteristically insightful and winsome way, Lennox offers probing but charitable criticisms of popular views and suggests a way forward. This book will be helpful in many ways even (and perhaps especially) for those inclined to disagree with its conclusions.

T HOMAS H. M C C ALL , Professor of Biblical and Systematic Theology, Director, Carl F. H. Henry Center for Theological Understanding, Trinity Evangelical Divinity School

Determinism, whether biological, emotional or even spiritual, may have shattering effects at all levels, including faith. I have been eyewitness of the shipwreck caused by its influence on some peoples lives. In an age prone to extremisms, even in Christian circles, Determined to Believe? is a wise and profoundly biblical demonstration that Gods truth cannot be a source of despair or frustration, but a spring of abundant life in Christ. John Lennoxs work comes as a necessary and excellent vaccination against the dangers of determinism on the life of faith.

P ABLO M ARTNEZ , psychiatrist, author and Bible teacher

ZONDERVAN

Determined to Believe?

Copyright 2017 by John C. Lennox

Originally published by Lion Books, 2017

ePub Edition February 2018: ISBN 978-0-3105-8981-5

Requests for information should be addressed to:

Zondervan, 3900 Sparks Dr. SE , Grand Rapids, Michigan 49546

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Names: Lennox, John C. (John Carson), author.

Title: Determined to believe?: the sovereignty of God, freedom, faith, and human responsibility / John C. Lennox.

Description: Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, [2018] | Includes bibliographical references and indexes.

Identifiers: LCCN 2017057639 | ISBN 9780310589808 (softcover)

Subjects: LCSH: Free will and determinism--Religious aspects--Christianity. | Providence and government of God--Christianity.

Classification: LCC BT810.3 .L46 2018 | DDC 233/.7--dc23 LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2017057639

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Extract from The Humanitarian Theory of Punishment in The Twentieth Century: An Australian Quarterly Review 1970 C. S. Lewis, reprinted by permission of The C. S. Lewis Company Ltd.

Extract from Why I Am a Christian 2003 J. R. W. Stott, reprinted by permission of IVP.

Extract from On Original Sin in International Journal of Systematic Theology 2015 Oliver D. Crisp, reprinted by permission of John Wiley and Sons Limited.