Is the Trinity Biblical?Charles Lee Irons, Ph.D.Calvin OPC in PhoenixOctober 27-29, 2017

Lecture 1:The Trinity in Church History

Friday, October 27, 20178:00 pm – 9:00 pm

Berkhof’s Definition of the Trinity

Systematic Theology, pp. 87-89

1. There is in the Divine Being but one indivisible essence.2. In this one Divine Being there are three persons: the Father, the

Son, and the Holy Spirit.3. The whole undivided essence of God belongs equally to each of the

three persons.

Timeline of Arian Controversy

303 Persecution under Emperor Diocletian312 The conversion of Constantine313 Edict of Milan318 Beginning of Arian controversy321 Arius deposed323 Epistle of Alexander of Alexandria324 Constantine defeats Licinius325 Council of Nicaea336 Death of Arius337 Death of Constantine

The Creed of Nicaea (325)

“begotten not made, of one substance (homoousios) with the Father …”

Homoousios = “having the same substance or nature” (Nicene)Homoiousios = “having a similar substance or nature” (Non-Nicene)

homos = “same”homoios = “like, similar”ousia = “substance, essence, nature”

Athanasius vs. Constantius (350s)

Timeline from 325 to 381 (56 years)

337 Death of Constantine353 Constantius sole emperor361 Julian the Apostate363 Athanasius’ Council in Alexandria366 Council of Lampsacus (14 years before 380)373 Death of Athanasius378 Valens killed at Battle of Adrianople379 Gregory Nazianzen preaches in Constantinople380 Nicene orthodoxy established by imperial edict 381 Council of Constantinople

Party Position Leaders

Homoians The Son is like (homoios) the Father according to the Scriptures.

Acacius of Caesarea

Anhomoiansor Neo-Arians

The Son is unlike (anhomoios) the Father.

Eunomius

Homoiousians or Semi-Arians

The Son is like (homoios) the Father w.r.t. essence (kat’ ousian).

Basil of Ancyra

Three Parties of Arians after Nicaea

The Cappadocian Fathers

Basil of Caesarea (330–379)Against EunomiusOn the Holy Spirit

Gregory Nazianzen (329–390)Five Theological Orations

Gregory of Nyssa (335–395)Basil’s younger brother

Lecture 2:The Case for the Deity of Christ

Saturday, October 28, 20179:30 am – 10:30 am

“The Son of God” in the Gospels

Matthew Mark Luke

The Baptism of Jesus 3:17 1:11 3:22

Peter’s Confession 16:16 [8:29] [9:20]

The Transfiguration of Jesus 17:5 9:7 9:35

Jesus before Caiaphas 26:62–66 14:61–64 22:67–71

The Centurion at the Crucifixion

27:54 15:39 [23:47]

Two Non-Trinitarian Views of Jesus

SocinianismNamed after Faustus Socinus (1539–1604)Jesus is a mere manBegan to exist in womb of Virgin Mary

ArianismJesus is a mere creaturePreexisted his birth, but not eternally preexistent

Two Tests of Ontological Deity

CreationCreator-creature distinctionGod created all things through the SonJohn 1:3, 10; 1 Cor 8:6; Col 1:16; Heb 1:2

AseityLatin: a se (“from himself”)John 5:26; Col 1:17; Heb 1:3, 11-12; 13:8

H.A.N.D.S.

Robert Bowman Jr. and Ed Komoszewski, Putting Jesus in His Place(Kregel, 2007)

1. Jesus shares the Honors due only to God 2. Jesus shares the Attributes of God3. Jesus shares the Names of God 4. Jesus shares the Deeds that only God does5. Jesus shares the Seat of God’s throne

Lecture 3:One God in Three Persons

Saturday, October 28, 201711:00 am – 12:00 pm

The Holy Spirit in the Bible

OldTestamentRuach (“breath,”“wind,”“s/Spirit”)=394x~25%ofthosearereferencestotheSpiritofGod~100referencestotheHolySpiritinOT

NewTestament~300x“TheHolySpirit”=90x

Deity of the Spirit

• Creator (Gen 1:2; Job 26:13; 33:4; Ps 33:6; 104:30)

• Giving life (Job 33:4; Rom 8:2, 10-11; 1 Cor 15:45)

• Omniscient (Isa 40:13-14; 1 Cor 2:10-11; John 16:13; 1 Pet 1:11)

• Omnipresent (Ps 139:7-8)

• Eternal (Heb 9:14)

The Holy Spirit is a Person

• “The Comforter” (John 14:16, 26; 15:26; 16:7)

• “Baptizing them in the name of …” (Matt 28:19)

• Intelligence (John 14:26; 15:26; Rom 8:16; 1 Cor 2:10-11)

• Will (Acts 15:28; 16:7; 1 Cor 12:11)

• Affections (Isa 63:10; Eph 4:30)

Berkhof’s Definition of the Trinity

Systematic Theology, pp. 87-89

1. There is in the Divine Being but one indivisible essence.2. In this one Divine Being there are three persons: the Father, the

Son, and the Holy Spirit.3. The whole undivided essence of God belongs equally to each of the

three persons.

The Simplicity of God

God is not composed of parts.

Three persons are not components of God.

“The whole undivided essence of God belongs equally to each of the three persons.”

Perichōrēsis = mutual indwelling (John 10:30, 38; 14:10-11)

Eternal Generation & Procession

Westminster Confession II.3: “The Father is of none, neither begotten, nor proceeding; the Son is eternally begotten of the Father; the Holy Ghost eternally proceeding from the Father and the Son.”

Inseparable Operation of All Three Persons

Applies to all works of God ad extra (external, i.e., w.r.t. creation).

“Whatever”The Son: John 5:19-23The Spirit: John 16:13-15

Lecture 4:The Eternal Generation of the Son

Saturday, October 28, 20172:00 pm – 3:00 pm

Observations on the Creed of Nicaea

• The Creator-creature distinctionGod the Father, “maker of all things”Son “through whom all things came into being” (John 1:3)

• The Son’s derivation from the Father (“begotten”)

• The language of “substance” (ousia and homoousios)

My 2017 article on Eternal Generationhttp://www.equip.org/article/begotten-father-ages/

Eternal Generation of the Son

• “Only begotten” (monogenēs) (John 1:14, 18; 3:16, 18; 1 John 4:9)• “He who is begotten of God” (1 John 5:18)• “You are my Son; today I have begotten you” (Psalm 2:7 →Acts 13:33;

Heb 1:5; 5:5)• “Before the hills, I was brought forth” (Prov 8:22-25)• “Whose coming forth is from of old” (Micah 5:2)• The Father has “granted the Son to have life in himself” (John 5:26)

Eternal Procession of the Spirit

• “who proceeds from the Father” (John 15:26)• “The Spirit of your Father” (Matt 10:20)• “The Spirit of God” (26x)• “The eternal Spirit” (Heb 9:14)• “The Spirit who is from God” (1 Cor 2:10-12)

Filioque = “and the Son”

Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed: “We believe in the Holy Spirit … who proceeds from the Father and the Son.”

“But when the Helper comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth, who proceeds from the Father, he will bear witness about me” (John 15:26).

Immanent and Economic Trinity

Immanent Trinity = Triune God in eternity, apart from creation(eternal generation and eternal procession)

Economic Trinity = Triune God acting in the economy of redemption (Incarnation and Pentecost)

Economic actions are grounded in and reveal immanent relations.

Lecture 5:The Trinitarian Shape of the Gospel

Saturday, October 28, 20173:30 pm – 4:30 pm

The Triune God Saves Us

• ThereisnoSaviorbutGod(Isa43:11;45:23;Hos13:4).• “IamtheLORD,andbesidemethereisnosavior.”• TheFathersendstheSontorevealtheFather.• TheSonsendstheSpiritofadoption.• Throughtriunesavingaction,weareadoptedassons.• “GodhassenttheSpiritofhisSonintoourhearts,crying‘Abba,Father’”(Gal4:6).• UnitarianismandPelagianismgohandinhand.

The EFS Debate

EFS=EternalFunctionalSubordinationProponents:WayneGrudemandBruceWareTwolinesofattack:• EFSisheretical,basicallyArianism(Giles)• EFSpositsthreewills,denyingsimplicityofGod(Jowers,Butner)

Three Views on Hierarchy in TrinityEgalitarian Non-Hierarchical Trinitarianism

Historic NiceneTrinitarianism

Complementarian Hierarchical Trinitarianism

1. Eternal generation of Son, procession of Spirit?

Some No, some Yes Yes! No, but recently Yes

2. One divine will and inseparable operation?

Yes Yes No

3. Is there an eternal order (taxis) in the Trinity?

No Yes Yes

4. Could the Son have sent the Father?

Yes No No

5. Does the Trinity provide a social model?

Yes (Giles says No) No Yes

6. Representative scholars Bilezikian, Erickson, Giles, Jowers

Johnson, Letham, Sanders, Swain

Grudem, Horrell, House, Ware