Theo 351 - Reading Reflection 7 - Pinnock - Part 1

The following post is a reflection on chapter six of the book Flame of Love: A Theology of the Holy Spirit by Clark H. Pinnock. Chapter six is entitled “Spirit and Universality.”

After reading chapter six in Flame of Love it is evident that Pinnock is wrestling with the questions, “Can those who have never heard the Gospel be saved?” and, “Does God work in other religions?”  It is a rather confusing article to read. Pinnock first gives the impression that he believes that all will be saved, only to eventually state that he does not believe in universalism. He then gives the impression that he believes that people can be saved through other religions, only to later firmly state that he does not. I will illustrate with some examples:

“Theology has not found it easy to handle biblical universality. It has tended to place so much emphasis on the uniqueness of the work of Christ that it has often left the impression that most members of the human race are without hope of salvation. Many people think that unless persons become Christians and church members, they are going to hell through no fault of their own, and there is no remedy. Even though such a notion does little justice to God’s desire that all receive his love and be saved . . . .”[1]

This is the tone of the first five pages of the chapter, but then on page six Pinnock writes:

“There are two errors to avoid when we think of the gospel’s universality: one is to say dogmatically that all will be saved, and the other is to say that only a few will be. The first error, called universalism, is widespread in mainline churches; the other, called restrictivism, plagues traditionalists.”[2]

Pinnock is not a universalist, he is against “restrictivism.” Pinnock defines restrictivism as "the doctrine that non-Christians will all be damned, whether they hear the gospel or not."[3]  Regarding other religions Pinnock writes:

“God is drawing the nations, and religions supply occasions when people can respond to him.”[4]

“Spirit, who is at work everywhere, is at work in the history of religions, and religions play a part in the history of grace, as the Spirit moves the world toward the kingdom. The world is being prepared for the gospel as redemptive bridges are built in human cultures. No wonder we find saintly people and signs of truth in world religions. They may provide a window of opportunity for the Spirit to engage sinners, without diminishing the importance of Jesus, the fulfillment of all such aspirations.”[5]

“Though Jesus is not named in other faiths, Spirit is present and may be experienced.”[6]

But, Pinnock also writes:

“However many positive elements are found, non-Christian religions lack the knowledge of God’s reconciling act in Jesus Christ.”[7]

“Rahner goes too far with his category of ‘lawful’ religion. He goes beyond admitting, as I do, the possibility of the Spirit’s speaking to people of other faiths to say that religions are valid as temporary means of salvation before evangelization.”[8]

Ultimately, Pinnock believes that the majority of humanity will be saved. Those who actively and knowingly reject God’s grace will not be, but they will be the minority. God is at work throughout the entire world drawing people into salvation. That is, people can participate in salvation whether they are within or outside the church. Knowing Jesus or being part of the church on earth is not the criteria for salvation; salvation has to do with living out good behaviour in-line with how Jesus would want us to live. As such, those who have never heard the gospel, or never come into physical contact with the church can be, and most likely will be, saved.

 

Pinnock is rightfully concerned that the universality of God’s grace be championed. His fuel for doing so, however, appears to be the Calvinist doctrine of double predestination.[9] At times his arguments do not seem to take into account those who hold to universal grace, but not limited atonement. Nevertheless, Pinnock's theological basis for what I summarized in the above paragraph is his doctrine of the Holy Spirit. To this I will turn in my next post.

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[1] Clark H. Pinnock, Flame of Love: A Theology of the Holy Spirit (Downers Grove: IL: InterVarsity Press, 1996), 186.

[2] Ibid., 190.

[3] Ibid., 191.

[4] Ibid., 201.

[5] Ibid., 203-204.

[6] Ibid., 204.

[7] Ibid., 206.

[8] Ibid., 207.

[9] Ibid., 191.