Salvation and Sovereignty: A Molinist Approach Paperback – January 1, 2010

I like the survey and the discussion, Molina is unknown to me, but the theology makes sense . It’s good to know there are more than two options in the doctrine of salvation.This book is helpful for Sunday school teachers, or parents trying to explain assurance to kids.

I must say that I went in to reading this book already a Molinist, so I can't say that Dr. Keathley converted any of my school-of-thought [per se]; however, I can comment as an insider looking back in on my own system. I had been in touch with Dr. Keathley prior to the publishing of the book seeking more sources when he shared that his own work was being published. I was excited to gain some more insight to the issue as well as being able to [somewhat] provide critical feedback.Keathley begins by introducing and summarizing the issues of classic reformed theology (particularly the Calvinist TULIP) followed by an introduction to the Molinist paradigm. He initiates his case for Molinism at an appropriate place by asking if the whole thing is even biblical. Great question! As a Molinist myself, I often run in to objections stating that none of this "stuff" is in the Bible nor can you have a "halfway point" between Calvinism and Arminianism (Hey, why not both?). The biggest hurdle is the issue of divine middle knowledge to which Keathley provides ample explanation in an easy-to-understand format. Honestly, it took me about two years to really understand middle knowledge. If I had his summation I could have easily expedited that learning process. Perhaps the most important preliminary comments in this work is when he clarifies that middle knowledge and Molinism isn't a philosophical grid being laid over Scripture, rather, it's a derivation of a commitment to certain principles already obtained from Scripture (cf. p. 19).I don't want to explain the whole book in this review so I'll keep it brief. On the issue of depravity I stand shoulder to shoulder with Dr. Keathley in that man continues to have a soft libertarian freedom while still maintaining an appropriate distance from semi-Pelagianism (I had a professor label Molinism as this and it was something I've actually been accused of by peers since then). Keathley's chapter on election is a fine work. I recognized it the moment I started reading it as a paper he had presented to an earlier conference at Building Bridges (I believe). It also may have very well been that he took that presentation from his work on the book, anyways, it's still a piece you should not pass over! As already noted in the book, the issue of the atonement is perhaps the most divisive one when it comes to the TULIP and as Keathley notes, if you hear of a "four-point Calvinist" then you can probably guess which letter was dropped. Keathley makes the distinction between limited and unlimited/general atonement as well as recognizes the importance with each view. I went in to the book committing myself as a fellow of the "L." I didn't see too much of an issue with actually holding to what the doctrine actually claimed. I had summarized my position in an earlier paper I had written stating that the atonement is for and offered to everyone [unlimited] but it is only efficacious [limited] to those who are the elect/respond affirmatively to the Gospel message. It may seem that he is trying to make this doctrine go down the center of the road but he makes an important note so that it still affirms freedom in that it's not determined of fatalistic in any way. That may sound convoluted or ill explained, which is why you may just need to read the book. On the issue of grace, Keathley really helped me understand a consistent model of monergism and soft-libertarianism. I really appreciated this chapter and his advocacy of the ambulatory model. After reading the chapter I had to close the book and respond to God in prayer and worship for overcoming my wicked rebellion and not giving up on me and being patient with me. God's grace is amazing in that He gives me the breath to blaspheme His name and yet He relentlessly pursues me and overcomes my rebellion. The last issue of perseverance is a good model, something I may need to clarify my own personal opinions on, but is something worth embracing. When ask if a Christian can lose their salvation I always answer, "You can... but you won't" which seems to me like a fair assessment (and you'll know what I mean after you read the book!).In the end Dr. Keathley gives a fair representation of the other sides being discussed with ample footnotes and references to double back on. I highly recommend this book and I will certainly keep it in my personal library for years to come and I already know that it will be cited in my graduate work any time now. I anticipate a response or two to it so we can witness some peer review on the issues and get some more light. In summary, for those who have no idea what I just said, if you're tired of the Calvinism-Arminianism debate, try Molinism. Molinism actually accomplishes and affirms what the other schools want to appear to have done. Please buy this book.

Salvation and Sovereignty: A Molinist Approach attempts to outline a mediating approach to the growing debate surrounding the Sovereignty of God and the free will of man. The traditional positions in the debate are well known. Calvinism is a system which places the emphasis on God’s sovereignty while Arminianism is a system which places the emphasis on man’s free will. Dr. Keathley proposes a third option called Molinism.Molinism traces its history back to Luis de Molina, a 16th century Jesuit theologian/philosopher of the Counter-Reformation. It was almost forgotten until a fairly recent resurgence in popularity (thanks in large part to William Lane Craig and Ken Keathley). In its simplest form, Molinism proposes the theory that God sovereignly elected, in eternity past, those who would be saved based on His omniscient knowledge of man’s free choice rather than overriding man’s free choice with His omnipotence. So instead of arbitrarily choosing who would and would not be saved (i.e. Calvinism), God exercised His “middle knowledge” (His knowledge of any possible decision that a human could make in any possible circumstance) to choose to create a world in which free creatures would freely choose Him. This differs from Arminianism (which basically says that “[God’s] will has nothing to do with much that happens”) in that God freely chose which set of circumstances to create which would bring free creatures to freely choose Him. (Please understand that these definitions are very short and simplified versions of very long and complex arguments).Dr. Keathley spends the first chapter explaining the basics of Molinism and laying out his Biblical case for that theological framework. Chapter two examines the various views of whether or not God desires the salvation of all people (Keathely’s view is that God does). The remaining five chapters are spent on explaining a parallel but alternative framework to the Calvinist’s TULIP. Here Keatley borrows from Timothy George’s acronym ROSES.Total Depravity becomes Radical Depravity- Explores how the Fall effected man’s ability to choose freelyUnconditional Election becomes Sovereign Election- Explores the way in which God chose who would be savedLimited Atonement becomes Singular Redemption- Explores the extent of Christ’s atonement to mankindIrresistible Grace becomes Overcoming Grace- Explores the roles of God and man in Regeneration and FaithPerseverance of the Saints becomes Eternal Life- Explores the possibilities of Assurance and ApostasyAll of his chapters seem to be very thorough and are certainly thought provoking! He is careful to interact with opposing viewpoints, as any scholar should, and give them a fair treatment. One of my favorite chapters was the one on “Eternal Life.” I honestly did not realize that there were so many minutia of opinions concerning whether a Christian can or cannot apostatize! He examines eight different viewpoints. While he was explaining each of these, I found myself trying to formulate my own understanding of the Biblical teaching, and by the time I read the presentation of his view I realized that we agreed very closely, if not completely.I found myself agreeing with his conclusions many times throughout the book, although I remain unsure of Molinism itself. As a possible, philosophical explanation, Molinism works well. But I need to do some more research of all sides before I am convinced that it is thoroughly Biblical. The Molinist framework aside, Keathley’s adaptation of the ROSES acronym was very close to my own understanding of Soteriology. I would definitely recommend this book if you have tried to come to terms with the relationship between free will and sovereignty but are unconvinced by either Calvinism or Arminianism- or if you are just curious about Molinism. Salvation and Sovereignty successfully outlines a mediating position between the two, more popular systems of theology. It is up to you to decide if you believe it is a Biblical system.

Ce livre réponds à énormément de questions. En tant qu'ancien Calvinisme, j'avais énormément de questions au sujet de la souveraineté de Dieu ainsi que de notre responsabilité. Comment puis-je être coupable si je n'ai simplement pas reçu la grâce de surmonter le péché? Comment arrêter la logique que Dieu est la cause de tout, même du mal? Avec une vision molinisme, nous sauvegardons la pleine souveraineté de Dieu, ainsi que la pleine responsabilité de nos choix.Cette question n'est qu'un exemple des difficultés de la sotériologie que je croyais depuis des années. Le livre est clair et présente également toutes les options des autres visions sotériologique lorsque l'auteur présente la sienne.Pour changer le TULIP des Calvinistes qui pose beaucoup problème, l'auteur utilise l'acronyme ROSES.R (Radical Depravity): La dépravation radicaleO (Overcoming Grace): La grâce qui surmonteS (Sovereign Election): La souveraineté souveraineE (Eternal Life): La vie éternelleS (Singular Redemption) : La rédemption singulièreLisez ce livre pour découvrir de quoi il s'agit! :)