"As the very first commencement of every good thing, so likewise the progress, continuance and confirmation, nay, even the perseverance in good, are not from ourselves, but from God through the Holy Spirit" — James Arminius
Defense of Indeterminism (Libertarian Free Will) and Critique of Compatibilism
3 thoughts on “Defense of Indeterminism (Libertarian Free Will) and Critique of Compatibilism”
Hey Guys,
Thanks for sharing Bob’s essay on free will and compatibilism. It is a very good article. Bob’s got lots of good stuff on his website /ARMINIAN THEOLOGICAL RESOURCES (you guys may be particularly interested in his articles on John 6, Romans 9, as well as his article on the two wills of God concept, all good stuff and well argued). You guys are sharing some great stuff lately keep up the good work.
Robert
Hi Ben,
Thanks for pointing me to this article by Robert Hamilton. I particularly liked his proposal explaining the relationship between one’s character and contra-causal free will (starting at the bottom of page 21). He seems to suggest that young children are not totally depraved as they possess a LFW but as they act upon their inherited predisposition toward sin, they become conditioned toward sin and their LFW is diminished, to the point of total depravity. He points to Romans 1 (given over) and Romans 6 (slaves to sin) as descriptive of this process of regression. While not his objective, I wonder if this provides an explanation for age of accountability. We are born with a disposition but not inherited guilt, so an infant who dies still needs a savior to be healed from that condition, but does not need justification in the same sense as a guilty sinner.
I wonder too if there is room in his proposal for a middle ground with age of accountability? Is there an age at which a child is able to know right from wrong and is thus accountable for her actions but is not yet able to fully understand the gospel? Might there be room in God’s justice for dealing with this middle ground child who dies holding her accountable in some sense without damning her to eternal hell?
His view also seems to allow for a progressive LFW. The more we exercise LFW to sin, the less LFW we maintain. The more we exercise LFW to do right, our LFW to continue doing right expands. I may be misunderstanding him, but this appeals to me because it seems to account for the progressive nature of both our drawing prior to regeneration and our sanctification after regeneration. I’m curious what you think.
Hope you are doing well.
In Christ,
Dana
Hey Dana. I have not read this in quite some time so it is hard for me to comment on it. I will have to revisit t when I get some time.
Arminian Perspectives 
Hey Guys,
Thanks for sharing Bob’s essay on free will and compatibilism. It is a very good article. Bob’s got lots of good stuff on his website /ARMINIAN THEOLOGICAL RESOURCES (you guys may be particularly interested in his articles on John 6, Romans 9, as well as his article on the two wills of God concept, all good stuff and well argued). You guys are sharing some great stuff lately keep up the good work.
Robert
Hi Ben,
Thanks for pointing me to this article by Robert Hamilton. I particularly liked his proposal explaining the relationship between one’s character and contra-causal free will (starting at the bottom of page 21). He seems to suggest that young children are not totally depraved as they possess a LFW but as they act upon their inherited predisposition toward sin, they become conditioned toward sin and their LFW is diminished, to the point of total depravity. He points to Romans 1 (given over) and Romans 6 (slaves to sin) as descriptive of this process of regression. While not his objective, I wonder if this provides an explanation for age of accountability. We are born with a disposition but not inherited guilt, so an infant who dies still needs a savior to be healed from that condition, but does not need justification in the same sense as a guilty sinner.
I wonder too if there is room in his proposal for a middle ground with age of accountability? Is there an age at which a child is able to know right from wrong and is thus accountable for her actions but is not yet able to fully understand the gospel? Might there be room in God’s justice for dealing with this middle ground child who dies holding her accountable in some sense without damning her to eternal hell?
His view also seems to allow for a progressive LFW. The more we exercise LFW to sin, the less LFW we maintain. The more we exercise LFW to do right, our LFW to continue doing right expands. I may be misunderstanding him, but this appeals to me because it seems to account for the progressive nature of both our drawing prior to regeneration and our sanctification after regeneration. I’m curious what you think.
Hope you are doing well.
In Christ,
Dana
Hey Dana. I have not read this in quite some time so it is hard for me to comment on it. I will have to revisit t when I get some time.