Jenson, Robert W. “Reconciliation in God.” In The Theology of Reconciliation, edited by Colin E. Gunton, 158–66. London: T&T Clark, 2003.1 Jenson’s opening lines set the stage for his main thesis: When I am invited to speak at a conference, I know I am supposed to indulge in the sort of trinitarian and christological speculation […]
Trinity
“Savior” in Titus
In my Bible reading a couple of days ago, I was struck by Paul’s use of Savior (σωτήρ) in Titus. Several things stood out to me. First, it occurs 6 times in the small letter of only 46 verses—twice per chapter. It occurs only 24 times in the whole NT. So it’s significant that 25% […]
The Triune God ≠ A Non-Triune God
A couple of evenings ago I read Rick Love’s response to John Piper’s thoughts on “Loving God and Neighbor Together: A Christian Response to ‘A Common Word Between Us and You.’” (“A Common Word Between Us and You” is available at http://www.acommonword.com/.) One portion caught my attention: Q: The Yale Response seems to imply that […]
Essential Equality and Functional Subordination: A Complementarian Novelty?
Did complementarians invent the notion that beings can be equal in essence and yet one be subordinate to the other in terms of function or role? That’s what many egalitarians claim. Here’s an interesting selection from Ambrosiaster: The subjection of Christ to the Father means that every creature will learn that he is subject to […]
Are You a Practical Modalist?
I’ve been reading Robert Letham’s excellent book The Holy Trinity: In Scripture, History, Theology, and Worship. It’s a must for any serious study of Trinitarianism. In many ways Letham represents a mediating position when it comes to the debates regarding subordination in the Trinity. He differs from someone like Wayne Grudem and maintains that talk […]
Books for Christmas
I put a few books on my Christmas list this year, and my parents and brother graciously purchased some of them for me. I’m enjoying digging into them a little already. Here’s what I got: White, James. The Forgotten Trinity: Recovering the Heart of Christian Belief. Minneapolis: Bethany, 1998. Ware, Bruce A. Father, Son, and […]
“To Him Be Glory Forever”
A couple of weeks ago, I noticed in the Grammatical Relationships section of the Bible Word Study report for εὐχαριστέω an interesting pattern regarding the objects of εὐχαριστέω. I wrote this in a blog post at the Logos Bible Software blog: Of the 23 complements or objects of the verb (i.e., who is being thanked), […]
The Failed Strategy of “Trinity & Subordinationism”
Kevin Giles’s The Trinity & Subordinationism is easily one of the worst books I have ever read.1 I say that not because I disagree with the position he defends (i.e., the Son is not in any sense eternally subordinate to the Father); I’m still in the process of evaluating the evidence. Rather, I make that […]