Horton: God is three persons.

The early Christians did not arrive at the doctrine of the Trinity by theological speculation. Like the gospel itself, the New Testament brings to clear expression that revelation of the Trinity that was more obscurely present all along in the Old Testament. Jesus is the Son who existed with the Father before the ages and was made human “when the set time had fully come” (Gal 4:4; cf. Rom 1:1–5).

With intentional echoes of Genesis 1, John 1 begins, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning” (vv. 1–2). Here the Son is distinct from the Father. There are two persons, yet the Son is identified as God along with the Father. He is “the one and only Son, who came from the Father” (v. 14) and “is himself God and is in closest relationship with the Father” (v. 18).

Paul follows the same formula. Jesus Christ is “the image of the invisible God. . . . For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together” (Col 1:15–17).

The Father, the Son, and the Spirit were all involved in creation. Yet each was involved in a different way. We also see the doctrine of the Trinity arising out of the drama of Jesus’s baptism (Matt 3:13–17; Mark 1:9–11; Luke 3:21–22; John 1:32–34). In that story we find the Father who speaks (“This is my Son, whom I love”), the beloved Son who is baptized, and the Spirit hovering above Jesus as he did over the waters in creation.

The doctrine arose out of the drama of redemption. God came down to us, and he was the Son who existed eternally with the Father. Now he is one of us: a human being, though still God. Then there is the Holy Spirit, who not only descended at Jesus’s baptism but also at Pentecost.

People experienced Jesus as God in his life, death, and resurrection. Then they came to know the Holy Spirit as God when he was poured out at Pentecost. Whatever views you have had of God have to catch up with the story. God is three persons.

Michael Horton, Core Christianity: Finding Yourself in God’s Story (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2016).

Comments

Repackaging the gospel? It's more like obscuring the gospel!

Preface : I recognize this post may make me unpopular with some, but I think it is an important issue to blog about here. I’ve had time to reflect on this video and in my opinion, I think what is in this video raises some questions. This gentleman featured below is slotted to speak at the SBC's 2020 Pastors' Conference and it prompted me to think more about this illustration. I want to note that I don't know him and I have no personal issue with him. I assume he is a brother in the LORD. Having said that, I see some significant issues here that relate to this type of preaching being clear on the gospel of Jesus Christ. In fact, it appears to be obscuring it in my observation. Concern: Should the SBC or churches, in general, be in the habit of holding this up as a good and healthy example? Let's think about it some together. (Watch this clip below here first.) Context: The clip was posted to stand on its own as if it were wise and sound on it

Smith: "Many people believe God opens the door of salvation and then stands back...".

Jonah 2:9 “Salvation belongs to the LORD!” God’s dramatic intervention in the life of Jonah is full of hope—not only for those who seek God, but also for those who, like Jonah, have determined to shut him out. Many people believe God opens the door of salvation and then stands back, leaving it up to us to decide if we want to come in. But if God made salvation possible and then stepped back, refusing to interfere with our choice, then the entire life of believers would be about us—our believing, our serving, our following, and our choices to live a good life. In the case of Jonah, imprisoned in the whale’s belly, God was claiming someone who was quite incapable of performing any redeeming work to compensate for his sin. God was not relying on Jonah to save Jonah. The message remains the same for each of us today: if you have trusted God for salvation, he has done more than simply make salvation possible; he has actually saved you. Colin Smith, “Jonah,” in Gospel Transformation B

Men stirred, boys exhorted, and Jesus exalted!

Neh 8 v 13 (CSB) 13 On the second day, the family heads of all the people, along with the priests and Levites, assembled before the scribe Ezra to study the words of the law. Notice the feel of the scene. After that long day in the Word, it appears that the women and children were, understandably, exhausted and urged to stay home on this occasion. And, among the men, there is a growing interest of “What else are we missing right now as it pertains to obeying God's Word?”. So clear is the fact that the family heads, the men, came back to get more. The real sense of enthusiasm starts with the men here. If you were an able-bodied man here, you stayed behind to get instructions so that you might be a good instructor at home. The text says these men came together to study the words of the law . That means to give attention to and ponder. This is the process of thinking through complex things, resulting in wise dealing and the use of good practical common sense. Here in

Search This Blog