Systematic Theology (Volume 3 of 3)Strong, Augustus Hopkins
Religion
Systematic Theology (Volume 3 of 3)
Strong, Augustus Hopkins
Baptists -- Doctrines; Theology, Doctrinal
Royce, World and Individual, 2:374—“God does not temporally
foreknow anything, except so far as he is expressed in us finite
beings. The knowledge that exists in time is the knowledge that
finite beings possess, in so far as they are finite. And no such
foreknowledge can predict the special features of individual deeds
precisely so far as they are unique. Foreknowledge in time is
possible only of the general, and of the causally predetermined,
and not of the unique and free. Hence neither God nor man can
foreknow perfectly, at any temporal moment, what a free will agent
is yet to do. On the other hand, the Absolute possesses a perfect
knowledge at one glance of the whole of the temporal order, past,
present and future. This knowledge is ill called foreknowledge. It
is eternal knowledge. And as there is an eternal knowledge of all
individuality and of all freedom, free acts are known as
occurring, like the chords in the musical succession, precisely
when and how they actually occur.” While we see much truth in the
preceding statement, we find in it no bar to our faith that God
can translate his eternal knowledge into finite knowledge and can
thus put it for special purposes in possession of his creatures.
E. H. Johnson, Theology, 2d ed., 250—“Foreknowing what his
creatures would do, God decreed their destiny when he decreed
their creation; and this would still be the case, although every
man had the partial control over his destiny that Arminians aver,
or even the complete control that Pelagians claim. The decree is
as absolute as if there were no freedom, but it leaves them as
free as if there were no decree.” A. H. Strong, Christ in
Creation, 40, 42—“As the Logos or divine Reason, Christ dwells in
humanity everywhere and constitutes the principle of its being.
Humanity shares with Christ in the image of God. That image is
never wholly lost. It is completely restored in sinners when the
Spirit of Christ secures control of their wills and leads them to
merge their life in his.... If Christ be the principle and life of
all things, then divine sovereignty and human freedom, if they are
not absolutely reconciled, at least lose their ancient antagonism,
and we can rationally ‘_work out our own salvation_,’ for the very
reason that ‘_it is God that worketh in us, both to will and to
work, for his good pleasure_’ (_Phil. 2:12, 13_).”
2. Objections to the Doctrine of Election.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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