Are people
basically
GOOD?
• Believed in
“Predestination”: one’s
salvation or damnation
was decided by God at
the beginning of time
• Also believed that man is
responsible for their own
actions
• Therefore, he argued that
people could demonstrate
and honor their salvation
by accepting Christ as
their savior and throwing
themselves on God’s
mercy
Jonathan
Edwards
• Was a strict and stern
preacher who became
known as a charismatic and
energetic leader
• He started the “Great
Awakening”; a religious
revival that lasted about 15
years
• The Puritan church had been
fading in its faith and loosing
its congregation
• The Puritans believed that
comfort led to complacency
and complacency led to sin
and damnation
• Instilled the fear of eternal
life in hell
“Sinners in the Hands of an Angry
God”
• Uses strong figures of
speech (list examples in
your notes as we read)
• When reading the sermon,
imagine the fire and
brimstone, the heat of hells
flames; picture the rising
water and the buildup of
pressure