Hello again, Nick,

Many have trouble and had trouble  with the notion that Jesus is God, because they hold with a static, world-negating mage of God. Following Hellenic conceptions of perfection, they view God as the complete and total antithesis of the  spacio-temporal world.  Hence, God and the world are like oil and water; they do not mi…[Read more]

Hello, Nick,

Philosophy has always been a major dimension of Christendom.  Without philosophy, the church would have sunk into anti-intellectualism and would never have survived.  The trouble today is that there is to much what I call cowboy theology.  You don’t need philosophy, God forbid you should study theology or church history.  Just sit…[Read more]

True, Scripture was written by men, i.e., males, and therefore reflects their prejudices.   However, all we have is human thinking and speculation.  There is no way for us t step outside our humanness.  So carnal  it may be, human wisdom is all we have and therefore cannot be completely invalid.

Hello, Kirwin,

I’m not sure where you came up with the idea that no space existed before creation, as Genesis says nothing about what existed before creation. It is ambiguous on the question of creation ex nihilo.  The opening could mean there was absolutely nothing before or that there was some sort of preexistent chaos out of which the world…[Read more]

But ,Nick, as I readily explained, the Trinity is strongly implied in Scripture.  So for me,one really can’t just up and drop it. I cannot dismiss the whole Trinity, with a simple stroke of teh pen.  Nor can endorse all Trinitarian formulations, with a simple stroke of the pen.   I appreciate that the doctrine is very complex, that we are dea…[Read more]

Hi, Nick,

I am well aware that  the term “Trinity” is not used in Scripture .  I am also aware of the fact that the Trinitarian doctrines are largely extra-biblical in nature and use terms foreign to Scripture. Nevertheless, Scripture implies a Trinity.  I have no trouble applying human concepts.  As I mentioned  in a previous post, I view al k…[Read more]

Well, Ed,  have you considered any new ways of  viewing God as he or she is in his or her own nature?  Have you considered anything beyond the classical model of God/  Have you considered the possibility that God is a social-relational being, needs the universe, and is continually changing? Have you considered the possibility that creation is God’…[Read more]

Hi, Nick,

We need to be clearer on what he means by son of God. And that isn’t easy.  In some biblical passages, Christ is equated with God and presents himself that way.  In others, Christ presents a subordinationalistic  view of  himself, which isn’t Trinitarian. That’s one of the major dilemma of the Trinity.

Hello, Kerwin,

The notion of a wholly immaterial entity came from Hellenic philosophy, not Scripture.  It is a dualistic way of seeing reality, whereby the temporal-material world is seen as inherently evil and a big illusion.  In contrast, in the Bible, the material world is seen as something inherently good.  Humans are not seen as souls st…[Read more]

Hello again, Ed,

The Bible does present  that clearly identify Jesus with God, as per Jn. Then there  are others which suggest otherwise.  That’s why I said earlier that the Bible is not a book of metaphysics, that it presents snap shots of God which often conflict. As to the crucifixion being stated in Genesis, I do not think so. I find no bi…[Read more]

Yes, Jn. is saying the Word  has the qualities of God.  The passage affirms that Christ is God.

Hello, Nick,

Are you saying Christ is not God? As I said before, the Bible is ambiguous here.  Some passages clearly state that he is; others that he isn’t.

Hello, Ed,

I have limited time and cannot read through all you previous posts.  Wish I cold, but I can’t.  If there are some particular ones you want me  to look at, I would be happy to do so.

Hello, Kirwin,

I’m not quite sure I understand what you are getting at.  Jn. makes  clear the Word is God.

I tis true that no one comes to Scripture, with a blank mind.  Everyone reads Scripture through a lens, generally their church’s teachings.

The term “person,” as used in the early Trinitarian formulas does not mean “person” in the same se…[Read more]

Good question, Nick.  The Bible is not a work in metaphysics and so does not give a solid, clear working out of the Trinity. One traditional Trinitarian model is to say  God is like the Sun, and the Son and Spirit like the sunlight.  There has never been a time when there wasn’t sunlight.  Hence, Christ has always existed. Still, there is a pro…[Read more]

Yes, definitely.  The passage is saying the Word is God.

Doesn’t saying the “Word was God” make it clear the Word is God?  Why would it have to say the Was in the form of God?  I don’t follow you here.

On the basis of passages such as the prologue to Jn., Trinitarians maintain that Christ pre-existed.  That’s why Trinitarian formulations often say “begotten, not made,” meaning there never was a time when Christ didn’t exist.

You’re welcome, t8.  That’s what I am here for.  I have a doctorate in theology and am try8ng to be as helpful as possible.

Andrew, the main thrust of Arius was that Christ cannot be God because God cannot suffer or change.  Is that your belief about God?