As Berkouwer's thought moved
from abstract concept towards the person and work of Christ in whom the
grace of God is clearly revealed, he found that he was not denying the
free sovereignty of God but rather recognizing its character as the free
sovereignty of grace (A Half Century of Theology, p. 102). He described
the direction of his thought thus: "the reconsideration of election has
tended ... not in the direction of a double decree that merely waits to
be executed, but in the direction of grace as the nature, the character
of election" (A Half Century of Theology, p. 102). He gave this summary
of his understanding of election: "anyone who expects salvation from
grace rather than works is set immediately within the sphere of
election; but he need not encounter alongside or over election in grace a
decision that was made in a hidden decree" (A Half Century of Theology,
p. 102).
In this post, I will draw comparisons between Arminius and Berkouwer. * Bangs points out that the historical situation in Holland was not a simple one - Calvinism coming in, Arminius nearly ruining it and the Synod of Dort restoring it: “The earliest Dutch Reformed leaders don’t seem to be Calvinists at all. They rise out of the soil, here and there, nurtured by the old Dutch biblical piety, not seized by dogmatic insights, but steadily pressing toward a purified life of faith according to Scripture” (p. 21). This emphasis is similar to Berkouwer’s insistence that election is not a special gnosis for the theological elite. Rather, it is a confession of faith, arising from the hearts of those who have come to know the grace of God ( Divine Election (DE), p. 216). * Bangs observes that Arminius’ theological method is “practical and through faith”: “For the Theology which belongs to this world, is practical and through faith: Theoretical Theology belongs to the o...
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