Philosophy of the plan of salvation.: A book for the times.

by James B. Walker

This is a reproduction of the original artefact. Generally these books are created from careful scans of the original. This allows us to preserve the book accurately and present it in the way the author intended. Since the original versions are generally quite old, there may occasionally be certain imperfections within these reproductions. We're happy to make these classics available again for future generations to enjoy!

288 pages, Paperback

First published May 9, 2008

About the author

James Barr Walker was a Congregational minister and author. He was was President of Grand Traverse College and Professor of Intellectual and Moral Philosophy at Wheaton College.

Reviews

[Andy]

Walker's "Philosophy of the Plan of Salvation" is an interesting read, no doubt. It is a work of apologetics and that is why it is interesting. It is clearly written from the 'Evidentialist' school of apologetics, but it proceeds must like it were written by a person of the 'Presuppositionalist' school of apologetics. This is due to the fact, that, being written in the 19th century, its audience could fairly be assumed to accept the truth and authority of Scripture, and would be swayed by arguments appealing to the history of God's people in the Scriptures.
As a piece of 'Evidentialist' apologetics, it bears all the weaknesses of that position, mainly the undermining of the authority of Scripture by ceding the opponent's arguments. The strength of the book is that it proceeds on a 'Presuppositionalist' framework: presenting the case for the plan of salvation with the full authority of Scripture, never for a moment entertaining the notion that his opponent might not be under the authority of God and therefore subject to the revelation of God's will in Scripture.
The observations on the 10 Plagues are among some of the best material in the book. His descriptions of the fitness of the plagues to specific Egyptian religious rites are quite enlightening.

In the close of the book, he argues the absolute insufficiency of natural revelation to save:

“Man is a being of Conscience; but the character of conscience is determined by faith. Unless faith sees God in truth, conscience will not enforce it on the soul. But it will enforce whatever faith dictates as the character and will of God, whether right or wrong.
Faith is in itself blind. It does not know truth from error; and reason has never had power without revelation to correct its false afiirmations. The highest effort of reason is to produce doubt. It cannot substitute truth for falsehood.
“Conscience is blind. It is a potential force, but it follows faith right or wrong, and when faith is false it enforces falsehood in the soul. Both faith and conscience look to God for authority; and until faith sees God in Truth, Conscience will not convict the soul of guilt for disobedience.
“Hence, in the moral culture of the soul, everything depends on the revealment of truth. But this truth must come to the soul, not as human opinion, or as the utterances of philosophy, but as Truth which Faith and Conscience recognize as rendered obligatory upon man, by the will and authority of God. Without revealed Truth, Reason has no data, Faith is false, and Conscience is corrupt. The erring nature of man's moral powers, without Revealed Truth, requires a revelation from the Maker. As there can be no moral culture with a false faith and a corrupt or dead conscience, hence a revelation of objective Truth, rendered efficient by the perceived presence and authority of God, is a moral necessity in order to the culture of the human soul.” James B. Walker, The Philosophy of the Plan of Salvation

[Tyler Jarboe · Rating 5 out of 5]

Top pick. Sound speculation into the ways and means of God in redemptive history.