Greg Koukl in Ottawa, and how to get his last debate

My readers in Ottawa, Canada may be interested in hearing Greg Koukl from Stand to Reason speak at the Metropolitan Bible Church on Sunday morning and Sunday night.

Here is some more information about it.

Schedule:

  • 9 AM – Greg speaking on “Ambassadors for Christ: The Essential Skills”
  • 11 AM – Greg speaking on “Ambassadors for Christ: The Essential Skills”
  • 6 PM – Greg speaking on “Truth is not Ice Cream, Faith is not Wishing”
  • 7 PM – Greg speaking on “The Columbo Tactic”

There will be a book table and refreshments after that.

Greg Koukl vs Michael Shermer debate

And you may also be interested in getting the audio version of the amazingly awesome Koukl-Shermer debate that occurred on the Hugh Hewitt show recently. The transcript is blogged here. You can get the audio version of the debate by donating to Stand to Reason this month.

Is God the cause of human evil in Calvinism?

Wes over at Reason to Stand thinks so.

The problem:

A Calvinist friend of mine recently asked me the difference between “unwilling” and “unable” and why I consider the two to be mutually exclusive when talking about mankind’s ability to sin or not.

And here is his reply to his friend:

If I am unable I cannot be unwilling because my inability precludes my willingness either way.

[…]If I am unable then I am no better off than a robot preprogrammed to run a certain course and as such I cannot rightly be held accountable for that which I have no control over.

On the other hand, if I am unwilling then I logically have the ability to act in a manner other than that which I choose.

If I am unable to not sin then I cannot logically be held accountable or responsible for choices that are, by definition, beyond my control.

If I am unwilling to not sin then I am not only responsible for my choice but, in light of the holy standard of God, I am unable to bridge the gap I freely created.

[…]The bottom line is that we are either free and responsible or else we are not free and therefore not responsible.

And William Lane Craig and Alvin Plantinga also like middle knowledge. Hmmmn. Wes and Bill Craig and Alvin Plantinga are pretty smart guys.

Related posts

Obama administration modifies report by experts

Story here at Fox News. (H/T ECM)

Excerpt:

The seven experts who advised President Obama on how to deal with offshore drilling safety after the Deepwater Horizon explosion are accusing hisadministration of misrepresenting their views to make it appear that they supported a six-month drilling moratorium — something they actually oppose.

The experts, recommended by the National Academy of Engineering, say Interior Secretary Ken Salazar modified their report last month, after they signed it, to include two paragraphs calling for the moratorium on existing drilling and new permits.

[…]In a letter the experts sent to Salazar, they said his primary recommendation “misrepresents” their position and that halting the drilling is actually a bad idea.

The oil rig explosion occurred while the well was being shut down – a move that is much more dangerous than continuing ongoing drilling, they said.

They also said that because the floating rigs are scarce and in high demand worldwide, they will not simply sit in the Gulf idle for six months. The rigs will go to the North Sea and West Africa, possibly preventing the U.S. from being able to resume drilling for years.

They also said the best and most advanced rigs will be the first to go, leaving the U.S. with the older and potentially less safe rights operating in the nation’s coastal waters.

Unbelievable. The Obama administration consulted with experts and then disregarded their policy recommendations! And the Democrats are actually setting us up for another disaster. Not to mention higher gas prices because of the reduction in supply.

Why are we not drilling in Alaska? That is much safer than offshore drilling anyway. Nuclear power would be safer still.