Trinity Notes
Thursday, December 31, 2065
Friday, December 30, 2050
The Most Important Blogposts in This Blog
This blogpost lists what I (subjectively) believe to be the most important blogposts in this blog. There are three sections. The first section is on the Deity of Christ. The second section is on the Trinity or the Plurality of God. The third section is on the Deity of the Holy Spirit. Each section has links to blogposts where the most important links (as I perceive it) are above, and with the lesser links below. For example, in the section on The Deity of Christ my blog "Identifying Jesus with Yahweh/Jehovah" (which is nearer the top) is much more important than my blogpost "The Spirit of Jesus" (which is near the bottom of the section).
Here's my main Resources in Defense of Trinitarianism
Here's a link to my blogpost where I've collected links to outside blogs where I've commented and interacted with others on the topic of the Trinity: Blog Comments on the Trinity
The Deity of Christ
Of the Distinct Personality, and Deity of the Son by John Gill
Markan Christology
The Jewish Trinity: How the Old Testament Reveals the Christian Godhead by Dr. Michael Heiser
Identifying Jesus with Yahweh/Jehovah
Jesus as Yahweh/Jehovah Resources
The Angel of the LORD by E.W. Hengstenberg
The Angel of the Lord; or Manifestations of Christ in the Old Testament by W. Pakenham Walsh
"Why Do You Call Me Good?" — Did Jesus Deny Being God in Mark 10:17-18
Jesus' Claim to be the Temple of God Proves His Full Deity
Jesus as God by Murray J. Harris
The Names of Jesus by Elmer L. Towns
Pre-Existence of Jesus in the Synoptic Gospels
The Requirement to Love Jesus Is Evidence of Jesus' Divinity
The Tempting/Testing of Christ Is Evidence of Christ's Full Deity
The "Cup and Table of the Lord" As Evidence for Christ's Full Deity
Concerning 1 John 5:20 ( from The Trinity: Evidences and Issues)
Romans 9:5 and Christ's Full Deity
Regarding Mark 14:62 and Daniel 7:13; Jesus Coming With the Clouds
Doxologies to Christ
The Wings of Christ Are God's Wings
Jesus the True and Proper SON of God
The Meaning of the Term "Son of Man"
Jesus' "Breaking" the Sabbath as Evidence of His Equality with the Father
Jesus Lord of the Sabbath
John 20:28 And Its Proximity To John 20:30-31
God in the Midst
Lord [Jesus Christ] Willing? God's Will and Christ's Will
The Reverence for Jesus is the Fear of Jehovah
Trust in Jesus Is Apparently Trust in Jehovah
The Spirit of Jesus
The Trinity and the Deity of the Messiah From a Messianic Perspective
Matthew 1:23 and "ho theos"
Concerning the Magnificent and August Names and Titles of the Messiah in the Old Testament by John Gill
Revelation 22:12-13 and the Deity of Christ
Worshipping a Merely Human Jesus Is Wrong No Matter How Exalted
God, gods and Jesus in John 10:30-39
Is the "Oneness" of John 10:30 a "Oneness" of Purpose or Being?
Jesus' Omniscience
Does Mark 13:32 Disprove Jesus' Omniscience?
Why Don't the Synoptics Have Jesus Claiming to be the "I Am"?
Brief Selective Survey of Christ's Full Deity in the Synoptics
Melchizedek Resembles the Son of God, Not the Other Way Around
The Trinity demonstrated from The Lord's Prayer
Interactions with Well Known Unitarian and Philosopher Dale Tuggy
Does the New Testament Require Belief in the Full Deity of Jesus For the Reception of Salvation?
Response to Two Unitarian Articles on John 8:58
The Trinity or Plurality of God
The Doctrine Of The Trinity Stated And Vindicated by John Gill
Links to John Gill's Chapters on the Trinity in His Work "A Body of Doctrinal Divinity"
The Jewish Trinity: How the Old Testament Reveals the Christian Godhead by Dr. Michael Heiser
Old Testament Passages Implying Plurality in God
Proving That There Is A Plurality In The Godhead
Quotes from "Of A Plurality In The Godhead" by John Gill
Edward Henry Bickersteth's Books In Defense of the Trinity
All Three Persons of the Trinity Mentioned In Scripture (Directly or Indirectly)
Omniscience of the Persons of the Trinity
The Aaronic Blessing Is Highly Suggestive of the Doctrine of the Trinity
Regarding Jewish Professor Dr. Sommer's Comments About the Trinity
Quotations from the Jewish New Testament Commentary by David H. Stern
The Great Mystery; or, How Can Three Be One? [The Trinity in Early Judaism]
Comments and Blog Posts on the Trinity
Do Rocks Dream of Ceramic Sheep? OR Jade Runner
F[L]air-minded Reinvention of the Wheel
The Most Plausible Anti-Trinitarian Complaint
Speculative Arguments In Defense of the Trinity
Miscellaneous Speculative and/or Suggestive Arguments In Defense of the Trinity
Problematic Passages Used In Defense of the Trinity
The Trinity and the Deity of the Messiah From a Messianic Perspective
A Formulation and Defense of the Doctrine of the Trinity by William Lane Craig
The Trinity demonstrated from The Lord's Prayer
The Trinity At the Beginning of Creation
Why Do Trinitarian Prooftexts Have "So Many Problems"?
Interactions with Mike Gantt
Part One: F[L]air-minded Reinvention of the Wheel
Part Two: Do Rocks Dream of Ceramic Sheep? OR Jade Runner
The Deity of the Holy Spirit
The Full Deity of the Holy Spirit
Of the Distinct Personality, and Deity of the Holy Spirit by John Gill
Praying to and Worshipping the Holy Spirit
The Witness of the Holy Spirit
The Holy Spirit Contradicts the Accidence of Personality
The Holy Spirit in the Old Testament
The Names of the Holy Spirit by Elmer L. Towns
Do the Father and Son Love the Holy Spirit?
The Trinity demonstrated from The Lord's Prayer
Some eye opening articles from the Jews for Jesus website:
Jewishness and the Trinity
The Trinity: Questions and Answers
A Look at the Trinity From a Messianic Jewish Perspective
Kabbalah's Best Kept Secret?
Thursday, October 10, 2024
The Ante-Nicene Trinity: an Interview with Dr. James White
Interview with Dr. James White @AominOrg : The Ante-Nicene Trinity EP 302
https://youtu.be/Dp6-qt_z74U
On the Triune Elohim Eternal Father, Son and Holy Spirit, One and the Same Jehovah by Zanchi
Decades ago I was impressed by Zanchi's "Absolute Predestination" [link Here or Here or Here]. The following is his take on the doctrine of the Trinity.
Zanchi’s “De Tribus Elohim” [or "ON THE TRIUNE ELOHIM ETERNAL FATHER, SON, AND HOLY SPIRIT, ONE AND THE SAME JEHOVAH"
https://a.storyblok.com/f/144583/x/fa24cb731a/on-the-triune-elohim-books-1-3.pdf
or here
https://nsa.edu/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/OnTheTriuneElohimBks1-3.pdf
Or here
ChatGPT's Deductive Argument for Jesus' Full Deity
ChatGPT's Deductive Argument for Jesus' Full Deity
I asked the Artificial Intellience ChaptGPT the following:
Formulate a deductive argument whereby one can show Jesus is equally divine as the Father based on Jesus being worshipped in a way that only God the Father is worshipped. If you can, add bible verses to support the argument.
ChatGPT
Certainly, here's a deductive argument that aims to show Jesus' equality with God the Father based on the worship directed towards him:
Premise 1: Jesus receives worship that is reserved for God alone.
Supporting Verse: Matthew 14:33 – "Then those who were in the boat worshiped him, saying, 'Truly you are the Son of God.'"
Premise 2: God explicitly forbids the worship of anyone other than Himself.
Supporting Verse: Exodus 34:14 – "Do not worship any other god, for the Lord, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God."
Premise 3: The worship of Jesus does not incur divine rebuke but is accepted.
Supporting Verse: Hebrews 1:6 – "And again, when God brings his firstborn into the world, he says, 'Let all God's angels worship him.'"
Conclusion: Therefore, Jesus is worthy of worship in a way that aligns with the worship reserved for God alone, indicating his equality with God the Father.
This argument draws on instances in the Bible where Jesus receives worship, and it posits that if Jesus were not divine, such worship would be inappropriate and contrary to God's commandments. The inclusion of verses helps anchor the premises in specific biblical examples.
It's important to note that interpretations of these passages may vary among different theological traditions, and discussions about the nature of the Trinity and the divinity of Jesus have been central to Christian theology for centuries.
MY REFORMUATION
Premise 1: The God of the Bible expressly and explicitly forbids the 1. kind, 2. height and 3. intensity of worship that belongs only to the true Deity to go to anyone other than the true Deity, namely to Yahweh.
Supporting verses include the first and second of the Ten Commandments [Exo. 20:1-5; Deut. 5:6-9]; Deut. 6:13-15.
Premise 2: In the New Testament Jesus receives worship that is reserved for God alone [i.e. for true Deity alone].
Premise 3: The worship of Jesus does not incur divine rebuke but is, on the contrary, accepted and encouraged by the Christian community, the Apostles, and even by God the Father Himself.
[[Supporting verses include:
- Heb. 1:6 cites Ps. 97:7 and Deut. 32:43 in the LXX and has the Father taking those texts originally about worshipping Yahweh alone and applying them to Jesus;
-1 Cor. 8:6 which Christianizes the Shema from the Greek LXX and takes the "kurios" that translates YHWH in the LXX and applies that "kurios" to Jesus;
- Phil. 2:10-11 which cites Isa. 45:23 about worshipping YHWH and applies it to Jesus ;
- John 20:28 which uses a phrase used for YHWH in the Old Testament [though reversed] in Ps. 35:23;
- 2 Pet. 3:18; Rom. 9:4-5; Rev. 1:6; 2 Tim. 4:18; Heb. 13:20-21; 1 Pet. 4:10-11 all of which likely offer doxologies of worship to Jesus Christ;
- 1 Cor. 1:2 and Rom. 10:13 where Jesus is called upon and invoked in a way reserved only for Yahweh according to the Old Testament.
Premise 4: Old Testament passages originally about Yahweh are applied to Jesus in the New Testament, just as the Greek word "kurios" which is often used in the LXX to translate the Hebrew tetragrammaton is used in the New Testament to refer to Jesus as Lord.
Premise 5. People are only to religiously invoke and swear by the name of Yahweh according to Deut. 10:20.
[[Supporting verses include:
Deut. 5:11 "'You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain, for the LORD will not hold him guiltless who takes his name in vain.
Deut. 6:13 It is the LORD your God you shall fear. Him you shall serve and by his name you shall swear.
14 You shall not go after other gods, the gods of the peoples who are around you---
15 for the LORD your God in your midst is a jealous God---lest the anger of the LORD your God be kindled against you, and he destroy you from off the face of the earth.
Deut. 10:20 You shall fear the LORD your God. You shall serve him and hold fast to him, and by his name you shall swear.
Ps. 63:11 But the king shall rejoice in God; all who swear by him shall exult, for the mouths of liars will be stopped.]]
Premise 6. People take oaths in the name of or invoke Christ and the Holy Spirit
[[Supporting verses include:
1 Thess. 5:27 27 I put you under oath before the Lord to have this letter read to all the brothers.
- Rom. 9:1 I am speaking the truth in Christ---I am not lying; my conscience bears me witness in the Holy Spirit---]]
Premise 7. Bowing/bowing the knee in religious worship is reserved for God alone. Isa. 45:23; Rom. 11:4; Rev. 19:10; 22:8-9
Premise 8. Jesus is bowed down to in religious worship Phil 2:10-11; Rev. 5:13-14
Conclusion: Therefore, Jesus is worthy of worship in a way that aligns with the worship reserved for God alone, indicating his equality with God the Father, and therefore of being (along with the Father) Yahweh.
Two Debates between Anthony Rogers vs Sean Griffin Debate
Here are two excellent debates between Anthony Rogers [Trinitarian] and Sean Griffin [Unitarian]. As I've said before, in my opinion, Rogers is the best living defender of the Trinity, bar none.
Anthony Rogers vs Sean Griffin Debate: Does the Bible Teach the Doctrine of the Trinity?
https://youtu.be/VtUvrCssBuk OR HERE https://youtu.be/89Eyz1TDHQg
In this debate, Rogers has an excellent explanation of the common Unitarian objection that Son being Installed as Lord allegedly proves Jesus can't be fully divine. It begins at 56 minutes and 25 seconds here: https://youtu.be/VtUvrCssBuk?t=3385
If I'm not mistaken, the following debate occurred a few weeks before the one above.
Anthony Rogers vs Sean Griffin Debate: Does the Father Have a Literal Body?
https://youtu.be/l5cPjZXSASU
After Debate videos:
Oops. He Brought Whiny Insults to a Bible fight. Sean Griffin vs Anthony Rogers on the Trinity.
https://youtu.be/RQnnXZ0iz8M
Debate After Party (Does the Bible Teach the Doctrine of the Trinity? Rogers vs Griffin)
https://youtu.be/xLFWRKOe2pA