All Posts

Philippians 2:6-11 is a well-known hymn in the New Testament, clearly affirming Christ’s divine nature. The hymn tells the story of the descent of Christ from heaven to earth, followed by his death, resurrection, and exaltation back into the heavens. What is Paul’s purpose behind it? When read on its own, one may think it is to argue for Christ’s divinity and his dual nature. Reading the passage apart from its literary context, however, misses Paul's broader point. From the s

A raised eyebrow. A scratching of the head. A looking down the nose. A stare. That is what I often get from Christians in the American church. Sure, I know it’s weird to have five degrees (especially a PhD in philosophy) and serve as a pastor, but I evidently underestimated the respect and honor that such weirdness required. “Why do you need those degrees? The apostles didn’t have any, and in fact, they never went to school. They were dumb fishermen.” So goes the lullaby as

The Book of Job has challenged generations of Christians with one of the most difficult questions in life. Why is there suffering in the world? Why do good people go through hardship? The Book of Job is unique for its approach to these questions, as compared to the rest of the Wisdom books—Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Song of Songs. Unlike the rest of the wisdom literature, which mostly present a black and white view of good and evil, the Book of Job presents an often

The internet has been buzzing with a hypothetical: Could 100 men defeat a fully grown gorilla in a fight? As a former MMA fighter and coach, I’ve seen the limits of human strength—and the power of teamwork. I’ve trained with Olympic medalist wrestlers and UFC champions. Based on that experience, I’m convinced that 20 heavyweight, Olympic-caliber wrestlers or UFC champions could bring down a gorilla. Not because they’re stronger pound-for-pound, but because they’re strong eno

Sometimes people ask really good questions that deserve really simple answers. Recently, someone asked this: “Even if we have libertarian free will (LFW), we still hold false beliefs. We don’t know which ones are false. So how can we ever be justified in thinking our beliefs are true?” It was a great question, and I realized it came from someone who had recently been exposed to two of my main arguments: the FreeThinking Argument and the Deity of Deception Argument . Both

Dr. Alan Rhoda recently published a blog post listing seven serious objections to Molinism. While I respect Alan and appreciate his philosophical rigor, I believe that each of his objections either misunderstands core distinctions, rests on controversial assumptions, or misrepresents what Molinists actually affirm. In this response, I will address each of his seven critiques in turn, defending the coherence and theological power of Mere Molinism. 1. Internal Inconsistency? N

In recent days, I’ve found myself in the crosshairs of both Calvinists and Open Theists . And honestly? I consider that a good sign. When two opposite extremes are each trying to pull you in their direction, there’s a decent chance you’re standing on a solid middle high ground. That middle high ground, for me, is Mere Molinism. What Is Mere Molinism? Mere Molinism affirms just two key claims: The omniscient God possesses middle knowledge —that is, knowledge of what any pos

My friend recently shared a common defense of Irresistible Grace (the "I" of TULIP), quoting Philippians 1:6: "Being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ." She concluded that if God begins to draw someone, He must irresistibly finish that work. That sounds reassuring at first glance. But there are some significant theological and philosophical issues that must be addressed. In this blog post, I

Let me begin with sincere thanks to my good friend Warren McGrew (aka Idol Killer ) for his recent video response to my blog, Does Molinism Collapse into Determinism? A Friendly Response to Idol Killer . Warren is one of the most thoughtful and articulate critics of Calvinism and divine determinism on YouTube today. I absolutely love his material, even though he occasionally takes friendly shots at Molinism. Most importantly, Warren is a godly man, a brother in Christ, and

Introduction Romans 3:23 is one of the Bible’s most memorized—and most sobering—verses, displaying the depth of sin in humanity. But is that all there is to Romans 3:23—just bad news? Or is there a glimpse of hope buried deep in it? Romans 3:23 encapsulates Paul’s discourse from 1:18-3:20 <1> ; Paul writes in Romans 3:23, “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God”. Paul uses this verse to capture the point that all people, both Jews and Gentiles, are

“If God loves His enemies, does He love the devil?” That’s what one of my friend’s kids asked her recently—and I think it’s one of the most profound theological questions I’ve ever heard. For many Christians—especially those shaped by deterministic frameworks like EDD-Calvinism—this question feels confusing. Some theologians (like Arthur Pink) argue that God does not love all people. He only loves the elect—those predestined for salvation. Others insist that God’s love is on

This weekend, the community I call home in Central Nebraska was rocked by an unspeakable tragedy. Though I currently live in Kearney, Holdrege is my hometown. It’s where I was raised. It’s where my parents, my sister and her family, my sister-in-law and her family, my aunt and uncle, my cousins, and many of my closest lifelong friends still live. I was just at church in Holdrege yesterday. This is more than news to me—it’s personal. Over the weekend, in nearby Johnson Lake, J

One of the basic principles atheistic scientists live by is that science is based on evidence and religion is based on faith. I scarcely have to provide examples of atheistic scientists telling us that for something to be scientific, it must be evidence-based, and it must rely on the time-honored methods of scientific inquiry. Nor do I need to provide examples of them telling us there is no scientific evidence for the existence of God or miracles, and that all religious doctr

“I believe in Christianity as I believe that the sun has risen—not only because I see it, but because by it I see everything else.” — C.S. Lewis “I believe in Christianity as I believe that the sun has risen—not only because I see it, but because by it I see everything else.” — C.S. Lewis Similarly, I believe in perfect being theology as I believe that the sun has risen: not only because I see the maximal greatness of God, but because by it I see everything else. That lens ha

Why I Traded a Beautiful Sig for a Glock—and What It Taught Me About Faith, Evidence, and Epistemic Integrity “I believe in Christianity as I believe that the sun has risen—not only because I see it, but because by it I see everything else.” “I believe in Christianity as I believe that the sun has risen—not only because I see it, but because by it I see everything else.” — C.S. Lewis Ever since I first saw Han Solo draw his blaster with confident swagger, I’ve been hooked. No

“Congratulations. You Are Being Rescued. Please Do Not Resist.” May the Fourth is widely known as Star Wars Day . And as a lifelong fan of the franchise— with a love/hate relationship that many of you know well—I can’t resist taking this opportunity to reflect on one of the saga’s most memorable moments and the powerful theological truth it helps illustrate. In Rogue One: A Star Wars Story , there’s a scene where the droid K-2SO and a group of rebels go to rescue Jyn Erso. B

There was a time, back in 2017, when I wrote a blog article that stirred up some controversy — especially among my Calvinist brothers and sisters. It was called “ A Revised Free Thinking Argument: Two Birds with One Stone .” At the time, I wasn’t yet a PhD or trained to have philosophical precision. I was an eager apologist, deeply convinced that both naturalistic determinism and theological determinism posed serious problems for rationality. What I lacked in philosophical p

There was a time, back in my “cage-stage Calvinist” days, when I didn’t think Catholics were really Christians at all. In fact, I was quick to label the Catholic Church as little more than a cult. I had been told (and believed) that Catholics worship Mary and the saints, that they pray to human beings rather than to the Creator of the universe. From where I stood at the time, it seemed obvious: this was idolatry. This was not Christianity. But the more I studied—especially a

I can still remember the first time I saw those now-famous words scroll across the screen: “A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away…” I was four years old. And 1977 was a life-changing year for me—not just because of Star Wars, but because it was also the year I made the most important decision of my life: I asked Jesus to be the Lord of my life (one of my first memories). In fact, these two stories—one fictional and one true—were woven together in my heart and imagination

Author's Note : The blog we are revisiting was originally published in 2017 after I was first introduced to the work of compatibilists John Martin Fischer and Mark Ravizza. Since then, I’ve earned a PhD in theology and read their book, Responsibility and Control, twice. I’ve also developed several formal arguments that further clarify and reinforce the ideas explored here. While this piece remains accessible and full of Star Wars analogies, I’ve updated a few sections to ref