Last summer, I did something that I had never taken the time to do before. I read the Nicene Creed in Greek. Of course I was very familiar with the English version of the Creed before then, but not so much the Greek. One thing that is clear in the Greek is that the Nicene fathers were interpreting scriptural terms in saying that Jesus is the “only begotten” (monogenēs) and “begotten not made” (gennaō). These terms derive from John’s writings, and the Creed clearly interprets monogenēs to denote “generation” or “begottenness.” That the Son is “begotten not made” and “begotten before all ages” means that the Son’s “only-begottenness” is eternal.…
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Why churches might need to excommunicate “affirming” members of the congregation
Andrew Wilson has a really good article this morning about non-affirming Christians who affirm the Christian bona fides of affirming Christians. Wilson is interacting with Steve Holmes and Alan Jacobs on this point. Both Holmes and Jacobs claim that affirming homosexual relationships is an error, but not one that should call into question the authenticity of someone’s Christian faith. Andrew makes a number of good points in response to this claim, and I would like to add some more here. The question before us is whether gay-affirming sexual ethics are a first order issue or a second order issue. Is it an issue that distinguishes Christian from Christian (like baptism)?…
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Lee Irons has posted a summary of his unpublished paper on MONOGENES
Just a quick follow-up on my last post. Lee Irons has posted a summary of his unpublished paper at The Gospel Coalition website. Obviously, there is much more to his argument than what is included in a single blog post. Still, you can see the broad outlines of his work there. I should also mention that the paper that convinced Grudem to change his view is nearly two years old. Lee has collected even more evidence and data since 2014, and the case for “only-begotten” has gotten even more compelling as a result. The results of that research will appear in a forthcoming volume edited by Fred Sanders and Scott…
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A Note on the Trinity Debate at ETS
I attended the annual meeting of the Evangelical Theological Society (ETS) last week in San Antonio. There was much that happened there, but of course the focus of much attention was the conference theme—the Trinity. For me, the most significant thing that happened was on day one in the session that featured Kevin Giles, Bruce Ware, Millard Erickson, and Wayne Grudem. While the plenary addresses tended not to address the EFS controversy, this particular session confronted it head-on. The debate was direct and even heated at times, especially in the panel discussion. But in my view the most important thing that happened was Ware’s and Grudem’s unambiguous affirmation of eternal…
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The Doctrine of the Trinity and Complementarianism in Recent Discussions
Reformed Theological Seminary held a conference last weekend on the Trinity. The speakers include my colleague from Southern Seminary Michael Haykin as well as Scott Swain, Ligon Duncan, and D. Blair Smith. The audio from the sessions is now online. I look forward to listening to all of them, but I can already recommend to you Ligon Duncan’s message, which I just finished this morning. It is really wide-ranging and addresses head-on recent controversies. It is titled “The Doctrine of the Trinity and Complementarianism in Recent Discussions.” Here are links to the other messages: Michael Haykin, “Biblical Exegesis in Fourth Century Trinitarian Debates” D. Blair Smith, “Trinitarian Relations in the…
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Senator Ben Sasses casts his vision for America
Senator Ben Sasse recently delivered a stimulating lecture to The Federalist Society. It is his vision of America, and it is really well done. Watch and listen above.
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Trump is not with social conservatives on gay marriage, but we already knew that.
“60 Minutes” aired an interview earlier this evening with President-elect Donald Trump. It was wide-ranging, but I want to focus attention on two items dealing with abortion, gay marriage, and the Supreme Court. Trump’s response to questions on these topics is not encouraging for those of us who believe in the transcendent nature of these particular issues. You can read the exchange about abortion in the following excerpt from a transcript: Lesley Stahl: One of the things you’re going to obviously get an opportunity to do, is name someone to the Supreme Court. And I assume you’ll do that quickly? Donald Trump: Yes. Very important. Lesley Stahl: During the campaign,…
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The Evangelical Theological Society and the Trinity
It is that time of year when all of us Bible nerds relocate ourselves to a non-undisclosed location in order to debate with each other about theology and stuff. This year, the annual meeting of the Evangelical Theological Society (ETS) will be held in San Antonio, Texas. And the theme is on the Trinity. One might think that this theme emerged in response to the trinity controversy over the summer, but that would be mistaken. This theme was decided long before that. Our topic for the week was entirely coordinated by a smiling Providence. Among the highlights from the program: Millard J. Erickson, “Language, Logic, and Trinity: An Analysis of…
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Michael Moore, Joe Scarborough discuss the election of Donald Trump
Michael Moore predicted five months ago that Donald Trump would win the 2016 presidential election. He knew then what the coastal elites just learned on Tuesday–that the Democratic Party is out of touch with its working-class voter base. Moore appeared on “Morning Joe” this morning to discuss the election and its aftermath. It’s a fascinating conversation revealing how liberals are processing this election. It also reveals that the divide in our country is not going to abate now that the election is over. If Moore is right, it is only going to intensify. Liberals are not making their peace with Trump.
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Where does #NeverTrump go in a Trump presidency?
Dan McLaughlin is a #NeverTrump conservative at The National Review, and he asks and answers the following question: “Where Does Never Trump Go in a Trump Presidency?” He argues that there are three options for conservatives now that the party belongs to Donald Trump. Leave the Party Remain in the Party and Embrace Trump Remain in the Party to influence it McLaughlin makes a solid case for number three. He argues that conservatives haven’t been evicted from the party and still have an opportunity for influence. He says that conservatives are now in the same situation they were in before the Reagan-era GOP. This is a reminder that movement conservatives…