Beyond the Bounds: Open Theism and the Undermining of Biblical Christianity

by John Piper (Editor), Justin Taylor, Paul Kjoss Helseth (Editor)

"Everyone who believes in God at all believes that He knows what you and I are going to do tomorrow."
–C. S. Lewis This understanding of God's foreknowledge has united the church for twenty centuries. But advocates of "open theism" are presenting a different vision of God and a different view of the future. The rise of open theism within evangelicalism has raised a host of questions. Was classical theism decisively tainted by Greek philosophy? How should we understand passages that tell us that God repents? Are essentials of biblical Christianity–like the inerrancy of Scripture, the trustworthiness of God, and the Gospel of Christ–at stake in this debate? Where, when, and why should we draw new boundaries–and is open theism beyond them? Beyond the Bounds brings together a respected team of scholars to examine the latest literature, address these questions, and give guidance to the church in this time of controversy. Contributors "We have prepared this book to address the issue of boundaries and, we pray, bring some remedy to the present and impending pain of embracing open theism as a legitimate Christian vision of God. . . . As a pastor, who longs to be biblical and God-centered and Christ-exalting and eternally helpful to my people, I see open theism as theologically ruinous, dishonoring to God, belittling to Christ, and pastorally hurtful. My prayer is that Christian leaders will come to see it this way, and thus love the church by counting open theism beyond the bounds of orthodox Christian teaching."
–From the Foreword by John Piper

Genres: Theology, Christian, Christian Non Fiction, Nonfiction, Christianity, History

395 pages, Paperback

First published January 30, 2003

About the author

John Piper is founder and teacher of desiringGod.org and chancellor of Bethlehem College & Seminary. For 33 years, he served as senior pastor at Bethlehem Baptist Church, Minneapolis, Minnesota.

He grew up in Greenville, South Carolina, and studied at Wheaton College, Fuller Theological Seminary (B.D.), and the University of Munich (D.theol.). For six years, he taught Biblical Studies at Bethel College in St. Paul, Minnesota, and in 1980 accepted the call to serve as pastor at Bethlehem.

John is the author of more than 50 books and more than 30 years of his preaching and teaching is available free at desiringGod.org. John and his wife, Noel, have four sons, one daughter, and twelve grandchildren.

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See this thread for more information.

Reviews

[Douglas Wilson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really good.

[Jared Daugherty · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great challenge to those who think that God is not Sovereign or in control of our destiny. Hard and tough, but a definite for personal library and preparation for battle with open theists.

[Ian Hodge · Rating 5 out of 5]

The outburst of Open Theism into the Christian community was bound to stir many responses. What can you expect when Christian authors suggest that in order to maintain genuine free will, God has to curtail himself. In Christian theology God was always the one in who there was no unrealized potentiality, and therefore he was unchangeable in his being and wisdom.

Open Theism rejected that view of God and replaced it with a God of potentiality, one who does not know the future, always adjusting to the "free will" decisions made by his creatures. Yes, he may know all the possible choices you might have, but he doesn't know which one you'll choose until you've made the choice. In this view, God is becoming the God of orthodox Christianity, and on the day there are no more human choices to be made, that is the day God will reach his full potential.

Why Open Theists expect people to pray to a God who makes mistakes, does not know everything, is temporally located is a challenge to the best of minds. If their view of God is correct, how can we know if God is within hearing distance when we pray?

The authors seek to address these issues, and others from Open Theism. The chapter "God's Self-Revelation in Human Likeness-A Biblical Theology of God's Anthropomorphic Self-Disclosure" by A.B. Caneday is alone worth the price of book.

[Steven H · Rating 5 out of 5]

A SERIES OF ESSAYS CRITIQUING THE "OPEN THEISM" PERSPECTIVE

This 2003 book collects eleven essays critiquing various different aspects of Open Theism; contributors include Bruce Ware ('God's Lesser Glory: The Diminished God of Open Theism'), Wayne Grudem, John Piper, etc.

John Piper wrote in his Foreword, "It remains one of the most stunning things in evangelicalism today that so many leaders can treat as optional what C.S. Lewis... called 'mere Christianity'... We have prepared this book to address the issue of boundaries and, we pray, bring some remedy to the present and impending pain of embracing open theism as a legitimate Christian vision of God."

One essayist suggests that nothing takes God by surprise because "he has ordered---or 'ordained'---every event from before creation." (Pg. 79) He then proposes "compatibilism": "that someone's choice to stop and aid a sick homeless woman is free and morally significant as long as it is voluntary and thus neither physically forced not psychologically coerced." (Pg. 82)

Another essayist deplores the fact that Christianity Today magazine treats Open Theism "as an evangelical option," offering both editorials that praise its proponents and links to the official open theism website. (Pg. 111) He admits, however, that Open Theism offers "serious exegetical studies that labor to take the words of Scripture seriously." (Pg. 116)

An essayist asks pointedly, if one denies that God is able to know future contingencies, then "how does one explain how God can KNOW that these prophecies will truly come to pass?... then how would one also affirm that Scripture is an infallible and inerrant revelation on all areas that it touches, including the prophetic realm?" (Pg. 267)

This collection is a broad and detailed examination of Open Theism, and is a very significant contribution to the ongoing debate.

[Bryan McWhite · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a biblical and thorough refutation of the perspective known as Open Theism that not only identifies the theological, philosophical, and (most importantly) biblical flaws of Open Theism, but also draws attention to the disastrous implications of Open Theism for pastoral care.

[Joshua · Rating 2 out of 5]

Yeah, yeah, I should actually read it before I criticize it, and I certainly shouldn't call it "stupid," because that's immature and totally unhelpful.

Anyway, this book is stupid. It makes lots of good points that we should address, but it basically misunderstands the contention of open theism and simply talks past it (as far as I can tell from skimming it).

Consider: if open theism is false, then God is making me write this review in the way that I am writing it. You can say that I'm "mysteriously" also responsible, but that's just a fake and arbitrary definition of freedom and responsibility. If God foreknew as an ontological reality (whatever that phrase means; I just mean that if he "looked into the future" and saw this as an actual component of the single possible course of history rather than simply having (perhaps complete) confidence that it would happen based on my character and circumstances) that I would express this incorrect opinion, well, things couldn't have been otherwise. And who's the creator of reality here, God, or me? God is the one forcing me to call him evil and insecure in his sovereignty here; I'm not a truly independent agent coming to this conclusion on my own.

But, of course, God isn't actually evil, because determinism is such obvious nonsense. (The phrase "you'd have to be intellectually disabled to believe it" comes to mind, but that's mean, so I won't say it.) My writing this wasn't an essential part of his creation, I don't think. And if I'm wrong, well, I had no real choice in the matter.

This all just provides further evidence that if Calvinism is true, then I am reprobate, and I guess I just have to be OK with that.

"John Piper wants to put me away/'Cause I believe in possibilities and that's not OK"

(Wed 04 May 2022 1:56:25 AM CDT)

[Brett Simpson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I had never heard of Open Theism until I saw a reference to this book in the puritan forum. Though I had heard various liberal preachers occasionally talk about how the Crucifixion of Christ was a complete surprise and having read the gospels a few times I knew that was a lie, but this sounded much like Open Theism. Once I heard and understood the position along with the arguments, I could very clearly see that Open Theism is heresy. It amazes me to the lengths some people will go to redefine terms to deny God knows everything that occurs in the future just to maintain libertarian free will.

[Parker · Rating 4 out of 5]

The authors in this volume make an excellent case for the hermeneutical weakness, doctrinal incoherence, and ruinous implications of the openness position. This book is entirely worth reading for anyone looking to understand exactly what is at stake in this debate.

I will note that the book is, at times, redundant. Too often its contributors offer overlapping summaries of open theism. This is, however, a relatively small nitpick for what is overall a compelling and helpful work.

[Aidan Scott · Rating 1 out of 5]

You know a work is bad when you find multiple logic errors within the first page, but with John Piper, I've found it within the first fucking paragraph.

An absolute joke of a work. John Piper might be the dumbest, or most dishonest, theologian alive.

[Kim · Rating 5 out of 5]

So far, so good. Part 1 of the book was hard for me to understand but now that I'm on Part 2 it is much more readable. I myself was caught up in Open Theism - the belief that God doesn't know the future and lives in time - back in the '80s and it really messed me up. What I am currently reading in Part 2 seems to say that Evil, Pain and suffering are what causes men to turn to Open Theism and in my opinion to Universalism as well. The last chapter by John Piper, "Grounds for dismay: The error and injury of Open Theism" was my favorite and very helpful. I learned how faulty my thinking was and came to a new and beautiful awareness of God's sovereignty! "The testimony of the suffering saints for centuries has been: believing that from all eternity God sees our pain coming, strengthens us for it, joins us in it, and designs good by it is comforting - and biblical." --John Piper

[Matt · Rating 4 out of 5]

This entire book is written in opposition to the Open Theist theological viewpoint on divine providence. The book is made up of various essays and articles written by scholars/theologians such as John Piper, Paul Kjoss Helseth, Mark R. Talbot, Wayne Grudem, and more.

The sections in this book, each of them about Open Theism, include:

-Historical Influences
-Philosophical Presumptions and Cultural Context
-Anthropomorphisms, Revelation, and Interpretation
-What is at Stake in the Openness Debate?
-Drawing Boundaries and Conclusions

[Garey · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well written book. Essentially numerous authors writing in response to the book "The Openness of God."

[David Smiley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great book on the subject! However, I did not like the harshness of some of the authors.