“Dr.
John M.
Frame is an American philosopher and a Calvinist
theologian especially noted
for his work in epistemology and presuppositional
apologetics, systematic
theology, and ethics. He is one of the foremost
interpreters and critics of the
thought of Cornelius Van Til (whom he studied under
while working on his B.D.
at Westminster Theological Seminary). An outstanding
theologian, John Frame
distinguished himself during 31 years on the faculty
of Westminster Theological
Seminary and was a founding faculty member of WTS
California. He is best known
for his prolific writings including ten volumes, a
contributor to many books
and reference volumes, as well as scholarly articles
and magazines.
For
his
education, Frame received degrees from Princeton
University (A.B.), Westminster
Theological Seminary (B.D.), Yale University (A.M.
and M.Phil., though he was
working on a doctorate and admits his own failure to
complete his
dissertation), and Belhaven College (D.D.). He has
served on the faculty of
Westminster Theological Seminary and was a founding
faculty member of their
California campus. He currently (as of 2005) teaches
Apologetics and The
History of Philosophy and Christian Thought at
Reformed Theological Seminary in
Orlando, FL. He is appreciated, by many of his
students, for his charitable
spirit and fairness to opposing arguments (although,
he fairly demolishes them
nonetheless).” - Sources: Wikipedia, RTS website,
and John Frame
Books
written, a short list:
The
Doctrine of God (2002)
The
Doctrine of the Knowledge of God (A Theology of
Lordship) (1987)
Apologetics
to the Glory of God: An Introduction (1994)
Systematic
Theology: An Introduction to Christian Belief
(2013)
The
Doctrine of the Christian Life (A Theology of
Lordship) (2008)
Worship
in Spirit and Truth (1996)
Salvation
Belongs to the Lord: An Introduction to
Systematic Theology (2006)
The
Doctrine of the Word of God (Theology of Lordship)
(2010)
A
History of Western Philosophy and Theology (2015)
No
Other God: A Response to Open Theism (2001)
Contemporary
Worship Music: A Biblical Defense (1997)
Cornelius
Van Til: An Analysis of His Thought (1995)
Apologetics:
A Justification of Christian Belief (2015)
Medical
Ethics: Principles, Persons, and Problems
(Christian Perspectives) (1988)
Perspectives
on the Word of God: An Introduction to
Christian Ethics (1990)
No
Other God: Publisher Comments:
“The
theological
movement known as open theism is shaking the church
today, challenging the
Reformed doctrines of God's sovereignty,
foreknowledge, and providence. In this
timely work, John M. Frame clearly describes open
theism and evaluates it’s
biblically. He addresses questions such as: How do
open theists read the Bible?
Is love God's most important attribute? Is God's
will the ultimate explanation
of everything? Do we have genuine freedom? Is God
ever weak or changeable? Does
God know everything in advance? Frame not only
answers the objections of open
theists but sharpens our understanding of the
relationship between God's
eternal plan and the decisions or events of our
lives.”
What
others are saying:
“A
devastating
critique of the concept of human freedom as
articulated in the 'open theistic'
view.” - Roger Nicole, visiting professor of
Theology, Reformed Theological
Seminary, Orlando Campus
“Open
theism is
bad news. The appearance of this book is good news.
Precisely because God is
closed and not open to the nullification of his
purposes (Job 42:2), he has
opened a future for believers that is utterly secure
no matter what we suffer.
The key that would open the defeat of God is
eternally closed within the
praiseworthy vault of His precious sovereignty. John
Frame delights to show
when it is good to be closed and when it is good to
be open. And the Bible is
his criterion.” - John Piper, Bethlehem Baptist
Church, Minneapolis
“This
book is
something both to read and to give away... both
needed and effective.” - D. A.
Carson, Emeritus Professor of New Testament, Trinity
Evangelical Divinity
School; Editor, Pillar New Testament Commentary
series
“We
have known
that John Frame was a superb theologian. In this
book, we discover that he is a
superb polemicist. In it he responds to one of the
most alluring trends in
modern evangelicalism. He does so thoroughly,
fairly, and, most of all, by
presenting a convincing alternative. He builds the
biblical case for a God whose
sovereignty is not a thing to be avoided, but to
cherish.” -William Edgar,
Professor of Apologetics, Westminster Theological
Seminary
A
Review:
“No
Other God: A Response to Open Theism” by John M.
Frame is a comprehensive and thought-provoking
critique of the Open Theism
movement. In this work, Frame presents a
well-structured and well-reasoned
argument against Open Theism, focusing on the key
theological issues that
separate it from the Reformed tradition.
In
Chapter One, Frame identifies key components of
Open
Theism:
“The
Main
Contentions of Open Theism…
1.Love
is
God’s most important quality.
2.Love
is
not only care and commitment, but also being
sensitive and responsive.
3.Creatures
exert
an influence on God.
4.God’s
will
is not the ultimate explanation of everything.
5.History
is
the combined result of what God and his creatures
decide to do.
6.God
does
not know everything timelessly, but learns from
events as they take place.
So God is dependent on the world in some ways.”
Frame,
John M..
No Other God: A Response to Open Theism (p. 23).
P&R Publishing.
In
Chapter Nine, Frame exposes another dangerous
aspect
of open theism, namely, Is God in Time?
“Another
important
plank in the open-theist platform is the temporality
of God. Open
theists reject the traditional view that God is
supratemporal, “outside” or
“above” time. They reject supratemporalism as a
product of Greek philosophy
rather than Scripture. Indeed, the Greek
philosophers Parmenides, Plato, and
Plotinus did understand “eternal” reality to be
timeless—beyond or outside
time—and their teaching may well have influenced
Christian thought on the
subject. But they did not consider eternity to be
the dwelling place of an
infinite, personal God.”
Frame,
John M..
No Other God: A Response to Open Theism (p. 143).
P&R Publishing.
Three
significant points that Frame addresses in the
book
are:
1.The
Biblical
Interpretation of Open Theism:
Frame argues that Open Theism's interpretation of
the Bible is flawed, as it
tends to overlook the broader context of Scripture
and the consistent theme of
God's sovereignty and foreknowledge. He points out
that Open Theists often take
passages out of context and rely heavily on human
reasoning rather than a
thorough exegesis of the text. This leads to a
distorted understanding of God's
character and attributes, which ultimately
undermines the authority of
Scripture.
2.The
Importance
of Love in God's Attributes:
Frame emphasizes the significance of love in God's
character and how it relates
to his other attributes, such as his sovereignty,
foreknowledge, and
providence. He argues that Open Theism's emphasis on
love as a primary
attribute of God leads to a diminished view of God's
other attributes. In
contrast, Frame presents a balanced view of God's
love in relation to his other
attributes, demonstrating that they are all equally
important and
interconnected.
3.The
Relationship
Between God's Eternal Plan and Human Decisions:
One of the central issues in the debate between Open
Theism and the Reformed tradition is the
relationship between God's eternal
plan and the decisions or events of our lives. Frame
addresses this issue by
arguing that God's eternal plan and our decisions
are not mutually exclusive
but rather work together in a mysterious and
harmonious way. He contends that
God's sovereignty and foreknowledge do not negate
human freedom and
responsibility but rather provide a framework for
understanding how God's plan
and our choices interact.
In
conclusion:
“No
Other God: A Response to Open Theism” by John M.
Frame is a valuable resource for anyone interested
in understanding the
theological differences between Open Theism and
Reformed theology. Frame’s book
is a treasure trove of Scriptures. Moreover, Frame's
clear and logical
presentation of the issues, along with his thorough
analysis of Scripture,
provides a strong case against Open Theism. While
the book may not convince all
readers to abandon Open Theism, it offers a
thought-provoking critique that is
sure to stimulate further discussion and reflection.
“Study
to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that
needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word
of truth.” (2 Timothy
2:15)
Mr.
Kettler has previously published articles in
the Chalcedon Report and Contra
Mundum. He and his
wife, Marea, attend the Westminster, CO, RPCNA
Church. Mr. Kettler is the
author of 18 books defending the Reformed Faith.
Books can be ordered online at
Amazon.