Product Description

What is the role of the will in believing the good news of the gospel? Why is there so much controversy over free will throughout church history? R. C. Sproul finds that Christians have often been influenced by pagan views of the human will that deny the effects of Adam's fall. In Willing to Believe, Sproul traces the free-will controversy from its formal beginning in the fifth century, with the writings of Augustine and Pelagius, to the present. Readers will gain understanding into the nuances separating the views of Protestants and Catholics, Calvinists and Arminians, and Reformed and Dispensationalists. This book, like Sproul's Faith Alone, is a major work on an essential evangelical tenet.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #177279 in Books
• Published on: 2002-04-01
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 224 pages

From the Back Cover
What is the role of the will in believing the good news of the gospel? Why has there been so much controversy over free will throughout church history? Willing to Believe is a major work on the Protestant doctrines of man's total depravity and God's effectual grace. R. C. Sproul traces the free-will controversy from its formal beginning in the fifth century, when Augustine took up the pen against Pelagius, to the present. By the time you finish this historical tour, you will understand the nuances separating the views of Protestants and Catholics, Calvinists and Arminians, the Reformed and Dispensationalists. You will also see how this debate colors our view of our humanity and shapes our understanding of God's character.

About the Author
Dr. R.C. Sproul has served the church as a seminary professor, preacher, and author for more than forty years. He is the founder and chairman of Ligonier Ministries and can be heard teaching daily on the radio program Renewing Your Mind, which broadcasts on more than 300 radio outlets in the United States and throughout 50 countries. Dr. Sproul has written more than 60 books and serves as Senior Minister of Preaching and Teaching at Saint Andrew's Chapel in Sanford, Florida. [updated 7/31/06]

Customer Reviews

Ammunition against your local Arminian
Sproul in his usual philosophical approach, compares and contrasts the various Arminian, Pelagian, Semi-Pelagian, and Calvinist views on soteriology and sanctification. A very concise and easy to understand presentation, though obviously he is rooting for the Calvinist side from the get-go. Still, it provides the reader with a solid historical basis for evaluating the ongoing arguments concerning the role of man's free will in a sovereign God's universe.

Excellent Book...!
This is by far the best work so far by this great author Dr. Sproul...(just as the Bondage of the Will was Luther's greatest work).

Be sure to read this one! The chapters on Luther and Calvin alone are worth the entire book!

Willing To Believe R.C. Sproul?
As an historical sketch of the age old theological debate, this was an exciting read for me when I began studying this subject. I have since earned an M.A. in Theological Studies and decided to read it again to see what I've learned. One thing is that, the controversy is not as important as it used to be. Second, I appreciate that Sproul provides prime source texts (from the historical figures themselves). There are so many actual quotes, and not only a couple lines spattered here or there but entire paragraphs from Turretin, Calvin, Luther, Finney, etc., it can almost be titled a reader. Thirdly, I appreciate the logic of Sproul's position and his professionalism. Calvinism is a very formative and logical system. It is utterly cohesive. Nietzsche understood this to be the same as he said (literally) that Christianity is a system, a whole of things; and when you pull a main concept out of it, nothing necessary remains. You will appreciate some of that when you read through Willing to Believe.

This book is still good after so many years and one thing that I see that I enjoy now more than before is that you don't have to dig through to Turretin or Luther or Pelagius to get a good sense of what they believed concerning this subject.