Archive for February, 2009
God’s Trinity: How Ancient Creeds and Dead Men Define Our Belief
**Part of the Thoroughly Painless Guide to the Doctrine of God’s Trinity series.**
If you haven’t figured it out yet, we are building a head of steam towards a definitive guide to the doctrine of the Trinity.
I know you so care.
Regardless, far from being a rather pointless piece of theological speculation…the doctrine of the Trinity is grounded directly in the complex human experience of redemption in Christ.
That’s why I saw it as of paramount importance to explore 10 inadequate views, 4 historical approaches and early Church fathers idea of the Trinity.
Today were going take a quick journey back to the 3rd and 4th centuries where the universal church affirmed–through creeds and councils–that the doctrine of the Trinity was normative for all believers.
Then let’s discuss the prickly problem of ancient dead men defining our modern mode of worship. Let’s go.
Apostle’s Creed: Odd Origins
The Apostle’s Creed–one of the earliest creeds–pointed to the Trinity in its three “I believe” statements: I believe in God the Father, Jesus His Son and the Holy Spirit.
The basic point behind the creed was to defend the Gospel of Christ and refute Gnosticism.
The creeds name comes from the 5th Century legend that after Pentecost, the 12 Apostles dictated part of it. That’s why it’s traditionally divided into twelve sections.
Athanasian Creed: Visualizing the Obscure
The Athanasian Creed, appearing possibly after the first Council of Nicaea in 325, is the first creed to establish equality in the Trinity:
Nothing is before or after, nothing is greater or less: but all three persons coeternal, together and equal.
Early experiments–were talkin’ 12th Century here– in symbolizing the Trinity as a visual device produced the Shield of the Trinity. You can see the diagram on the knight’s shield in the image above.
The Shield of the Trinity was used as a device from which the Athanasian Creed can be read. Kind of like a rosary. But not really.
Council of Constantinople: Condemning and Confirming
And the great ecumenical Council of Constantinople in A. D. 381 declared this statement as a norm for orthodoxy.
It did this by:
1. Confirming the original Nicene Creed.
2. Developing a statement to combat the heresy Pneumatomachi.
3. Expanding the 3rd article of the Nicene creed to establish that the Holy Spirit must be of the same being as God the Father.
4. Condemning Arianism.
What Do You Think?
Do creeds even matter? Are they too formal? Too limiting? Too stifling?
Besides, “Why should we suppose that early churchmen,” quoting Andrew Perriman, “who had their own presuppositions and prejudices, were in a position to provide a definitive summary of the faith for all time?”
Or are they important because they define the boundaries within which Christians operate?
I’d love to hear your thoughts. Drop them in the comments. Brutal and all.
What Can Leo Tolstoy Teach You About God’s Jealousy?
**Part of The Nature of God: A Quick and Dirty Guide series.**
In 1880, Russian writer Leo Tolstoy published a short novel called The Kreutzer Sonata–a plain but ruthless story about the violence of jealousy.
90 Pages in 45 Seconds
A young Russian man, Pozdnyshev, meets and marries his young wife.
During their marriage they alternate between periods of love and fierce fights. She bears children. Then goes on a contraceptive.
Pozdnyshev complains, “The last excuse for our swinish life–children–was then taken away, and life became viler than ever.”
His wife eventually falls in love with a violinist. The two perform Beethoven’s Kreutzer Sonata, a piece Pozdnyshev says is powerful enough to seduce people.
Pozdnyshev buries his jealousy and leaves on a trip. When he returns he catches his wife with the violinist. Pozdnyshev stabs her with a dagger. He then turns on the violinist, but allows him to flee.
Pozdnyshev says, “I wanted to run after him, but remembered that it is ridiculous to run after one’s wife’s lover in one’s socks; and I did not wish to be ridiculous but terrible.”
What Is Jealousy?
Jealousy is that gnawing suspicion that a rival may rob us of the one we love–or the peculiar uneasiness that he has already done it.
Dryden said jealousy is like being full of competition. This was true in Pozdnyshev’s case.
However, if Pozdnyshev were not jealous toward his wife and rival, he would not have been morally stable.
What do I mean by that? Jealousy involves the exclusiveness of marriage. A man who did not defend his own bed–but allowed a rival to enter his home and sleep with his wife–is hardly regarded as a jealous man. You wonder if he has a soul.
In the same respect, God’s jealousy is seen as a zeal to defend and protect his relationship with his people. If he weren’t jealous, you wonder if He cared about you.
The Nature of God’s Jealousy
No one in their right mind would imagine God to be a jealous God. Scripture, on the other hand, gives us a different picture:
For you shall not worship any other god, for the LORD, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God. Exodus 34:14
What does God mean when he says his name is “Jealous”? The Old Testament describes God’s relationship with Israel like a marriage covenant. His zeal for protecting that covenant–his marriage partner–is fierce.
For the LORD your God is a consuming fire, a jealous God. Deuteronomy 4:24
God demands utter and absolute loyalty from those whom he’s redeemed and saved. Those whom are adulterous, he seeks to justify his claim for them and punish them for their arrogance. As Tertullian said, “The shamelessness of an age, which ought to have repented, had to be avenged.”
God’s ultimate objective as set out by the Bible is three-fold: Vindicate his rule, redeem his people and receive love from them.
Now, the consequence of offending this passion and zeal in God is two-fold:
1. God judges and destroys the idolatrous.
2. God restores his people after they’ve been disciplined and humbled.
The point? We are to stand in both fear of and faith in God.
Using Human Language to Explain God’s Jealousy
God is personal, so he speaks to us in our terms. This makes it easy to understand him. But don’t grab the wrong side of the stick.
We have to remember that man is not the measure of God. We can’t project our image on him. Thus, we won’t find the counterpart corrupting elements of human passion in God.
God’s jealousy is not a compound of frustration, envy and spite, as human jealousy so often is, but appears instead as a praiseworthy zeal to preserve something supremely precious.
Man’s jealousy is grinding envy or uncontrollable anger. It inflicts misfortune. God’s jealousy carries the feelings of anger, fury and wrath. But it inflicts justice.
He vents on images, idols, other gods and other sins–objects that spurn his attention. In the same way we should copy that jealousy–whether it’s in defending God’s honor or fretting over the idolatry of a believer.
“There is a kind of wrath in the human soul,” William G. T. Shedd said, ” that resembles the wrath of God, and constitutes its true analogous….That kind of anger is commanded in the injunction ‘Be ye angry and sin not.’”
The Deceptively Simple Nature of Evil
Our rejection of his infinite mercy and infinite grace is infinitely evil. That’s why Martin Luther can say about God:
For Him who once drowned the whole world in the Flood and sank Sodom with fire, it is a simple thing to slay or to defeat so many thousands of peasants. He is an almighty and terrible God.
When we insult God, we insult the majesty of the incomprehensible. And our insult is an abomination to God.
In his seventy-second epistle, Cyprian said, “It is a good soldier’s duty to defend the camp of his general against rebels and enemies. The Lord thy God is a jealous God.”
How Should We Respond to God’s Jealousy?
Simple: be zealous for God. His concern for us is great. Ours for him should be great. We call that zeal–or jealousy.
Zeal in religion burning desire to please God, to do His will, and to advance His glory in the world in every possible way….If he is consumed in the very burning, he cares not for it–he is content.
Look at Jesus for an example. In a storm of fury he drove out the temple merchants. The disciples were right to remember, “zeal for your house will consume me.”
Now, if we lack this zeal, the jealousy of God threatens us. Martin Luther said, “Fear, that we provoke not God to anger, or work his displeasure.”
To the complacent church of Laodicea Jesus said, “Be zealous therefore, and repent.”
But if we repent, we need not fear the terrible jealousy of God. As J. I. Packer said, “Revive us Lord, before judgment falls.”
Your Turn
Ever felt jealous over a rival- in high school or college? That kind of single-minded obsession should square on Christ. Are you there? I’m not.
Leave your thoughts in the comments. Brutal and all.
I Am Orin Scrivello, Sadistic Blogger
Last night I got a great comment on this post Know the Difference Between Religion and the Gospel?:
“I got a great story. It starts like this: F*CK your GOD. Let the consequences BEGIN. ps. Got a tip for U: read more BOOKS>”
Fortunately, his comment ties into a thought that’s been brewing in my head for quite some time. Let me explain.
Poster Child for Careless, Thoughtless Pain
Sadist. That’s the one word that majestically describes Steve Martin’s character in the film Little Shop of Horrors.
Orin Scrivello is the poster child for pain. He’s the poster child for careless, thoughtless, inhumane physical punishment.
He spent his childhood shooting puppies. Poisoning guppies. Bashing cat heads. Thus, his mom recommends he become a dentist. Suitable occupation.
Not a priest. Not a teacher. But a dentist.
I think it’s safe to say Orin’s maladjusted and borderline insane. And exactly the opposite of Katie.
Which reminds me of what Tim Keller said about preaching: We are like Orin when we pour on the difficult, bitter texts of the Bible without prefacing…without easing in a bit…without entering their world first.
More than once Ray Comfort speaks to this, too.
We’d never dream of walking into a room where someone is sleeping and turn on the bright lights. It’d freak them out to bad.
So, we’re coached to be witnesses, preachers and evangelists who take it slow.
Where I Struggle With His Advice
This is a new one for me. I don’t have the patience to work slowly. Build the relationship. Ease into the conversation. [That's probably why I'm a writer.]
I think I know why: Fear and insecurity drives me to bail on the conversation as soon as possible. So, get it over with quickly. That means simply drop the bomb and move on.
It’s sadistic, I know. And causes lots of damage. Call me “Orin, the Sadistic Christian.”
But let me ask you this: If I would have approached last night’s post differently–entered the non-Christian’s world, say–would that have blunted the message? Would that have changed the commenter’s response from ferocious to calm?
I don’t think so. But I’d like to hear your thoughts. Leave them in the comments. Brutal and all. I’m here to learn.
Image credit: International Posters.
What Is the Difference Between the Gospel and Religion?
Do you know the difference between the Gospel and religion?
Both are stories. Both are narratives.
Lots of people who reject Christianity and Christ reject Christianity and Christ based on the religion narrative.
That narrative looks something like this:
The story of religion, one that is looked at from history’s standpoint, is one usually marred with persecutions and oppressions and witch hunts.
The story is one dominated by men who massaged the Bible so that they could manipulate the masses, men who exploited the poor through indulgences and men who waged crusades comprising aggression, paranoia, nostalgia and wishful thinking in so-called wars of the cross.
The story is one of interrogation, torture and execution at the stake for anyone accused of disagreeing with the Church.
That’s religion’s story.
The Gospel story is vastly different.
It’s a narrative about God redeeming a rebellious people to himself.
The story starts with the creation of those people. And their eventual rejection of their Creator. And the doom that awaited those people because of the justice that is demanded by a holy, just and righteous God.
It’s a story about how that penalty of rejection must be paid. And how utterly impossible it was for man to pay it. And how God came down as a man to redeem these people because of their separation from him.
And how He was crucified, a substitution for our sins, that his righteousness might be imputed to us. That propitiation bridged the unbridgeable gap between God and man that we may stand before God and be found righteous in his sight.
It’s not difficult to distinguish the Gospel from religion. One is the redemptive history of God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. The other is man distorting that history for his gain.
You just have to know what story to tell. What story are you telling?
Six Ways of Looking at God’s Omniscience
**Part of The Nature of God: A Quick and Dirty Guide series.**
The omniscience of God is a straight-forward doctrine: God knows everything–past, present and future.
Why should you care? Simple.
If you think hard enough about God’s omniscience, it will create terror in you–or fascination.
The reason I’m bringing this up is because it relates to living a vivid, meaningful life rather than a short, brutal one…in fact, pointing back to an article earlier in the week about weaning ourselves off of addictions by a simple, uninhibited pursuit of the knowledge of God.
At the core of our sin and wretched state is a lack of belief in God’s existence and attributes–especially omniscience. This lack of belief allows our sin to escalate out of control.
A. W. Tozer lamented the loss of the fear of God. He understood the concrete respect it afforded God. Lose that fear and you have a unbridled satisfaction to please the self.
So Let’s explore the six implications of God’s omniscience…and take a step away from the brutal and nasty life of chronic, enslaving sin.
Omniscience Means We Cannot Hide Anything from God
One of the most obvious–and frightening–aspects of God’s knowledge is that he sees our secret thoughts. Everything is laid bare. We are naked before God.
We cannot think, plan or scheme without God knowing. He sees our agenda and understands what motivates us. Our words are seen by God before we utter them. Nothing is hidden from God.
Omniscience Means God’s Knowledge Is Perfect
God never learned. Cannot learn. And has no need to learn.
How does he know things? Turretin said, God “knows all things intuitively and noetically rather than by learning or reasoning.”
God’s knowledge is perfect because God is absolute perfection. Perfection means God knows himself perfectly. And if he knows himself perfectly, then there is nothing that he doesn’t know, including our thoughts, words or deeds.
In City of God 11.1 Augustine said, “Neither does His attention pass from thought to thought, for His knowledge embraces everything in a single spiritual continuation.”
Nothing–even the smallest thing–escapes His knowledge. And he can’t lie.
Omniscience Means God’s Knowledge is Unlimited
God is infinite. His knowledge is identical to his infinitude. Thus, he has infinite knowledge.
Furthermore, we find it impossible to fathom God’s sleepless, everlasting knowledge. Or to explain God’s ways.
His judgments are unsearchable. His decrees without sum. We are overcome by his infinite knowledge.
Omniscience Means God Appoints All Works Beforehand
We were in God’s mind before he created us. Ephesians 1:11:
In him we were also chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will.
He appoints all the births, deaths and in-betweens for every living object–and he does it because he can. And the events God predicted happened just as he said they would, so people would not credit these events to other gods.
Omniscience Means God Foresees All
God’s knowledge extends to all that is real–including our future needs.
And before the earth was formed, God determined every elect sinner–however vile, useless and deserving of death–by trusting in Christ would be made righteous.
Origen contended, “God knows the future of all things, including the sins of mankind.”
Why God’s Omniscience Is Important to You
That God knows you–every thought, mystery, doubt, sin, worry or fear–through and through can be a cause of terror to the man that has something to hide.
But to the man who has nothing to hide, God’s omniscience can be a fascination. A trigger to unbridled adoration.
What does God’s omniscience trigger in you: Fear? Adoration? Or both? Leave your thoughts–brutal and all–in the comments.
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