“The Heart of the Church”

In his book, A Half Century of Theology, G C Berkouwer has a chapter on "The Heart of the Church" (Chapter 4). In this chapter, he is concerned to emphasize the importance of the doctrine of election: "If we take seriously the conviction that election lies at the cor ecclesiae, at the heart of the …

Berkouwer on "Divine Election"

In his discussion of the 'pre' element in predestination, Berkouwer insists that "he who speaks of God's counsel in terms of human categories will have to be aware of the inadequacy of his words" (Divine Election, p. 152). In this respect, Berkouwer closely follows Bavinck who, in his discussion of predestination, insists that "one cannot …

G. C. Berkouwer On “Election And The Hiddenness Of God”

In his discussion, "Election and the Hiddenness of God" in Divine Election (Chapter Four, pp.102-131), G. C. Berkouwer emphasizes that God's hiddenness is not to be set over against His salvation. He rejects a concept of God's hiddenness which "separates the God of revelation from our lives and mitigates the absolute trustworthiness of that revelation" …

Jesus died for us …

What do we mean when we say, "Jesus died for us"? Who are the "us" for whom Jesus died? A number of years ago, I read a paper, written by Dr Alan C. Clifford. It was entitled, "Atonement for all, salvation for  some." It had the sub-title: "Authentic Calvinism: A Clarification." In this paper, Dr …