Friday, April 12, 2024

Answering The Unitarian Objection That Jesus Was Made/Installed As Lord As A Reason To Reject Trinitarianism

 Acts 2:36    Let all the house of Israel therefore know for certain that God has made him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom you crucified."

Acts 2:36 is used by Unitarians to argue against the Trinity because they claim that if Jesus was made/installed as Lord and Messiah at that time, then Jesus wasn't Lord inherently; and therefore Trinitarianism is false.

But Just because Jesus is at that time made or declared to be Lord doesn't mean He wasn't Lord previously. Same with being "made" [read as publically declared] to be Messiah. Because Jesus is described as being Lord and Messiah prior to the events of Acts 2:36 [even in the Luke's earlier book the Gospel of Luke]. Just as Roman 1:4 says, "...and was declared to be the Son of God in power according to the Spirit of holiness by his resurrection from the dead..." Jesus was the Son of God prior to His resurrection. It wasn't only at or after His resurrection was Jesus made the Son of God. Jesus said in John 17:5 He had a glory with the Father before the world existed. There is a distinction between who Jesus was in actuality and what was known or publicly declared to people at a later time.

See Anthony Rogers' explanation of the Son being INSTALLED as Lord and GIVEN authority in this already cued video at 56:25 HERE: https://youtu.be/VtUvrCssBuk?t=3385

Rogers points out that the same language is used of the Father. In Scripture when God accomplishes some great feat [as in creation; redeeming His people; defeating His enemies etc.] it says He is, through such feats, "exalted," "enthroned," "established in His Kingship" et cetera. See for example, Ps. 29; 1 Chron. 29:11; Rev. 4:11; Deut. 33:5

Deut. 33:5 Thus Yahweh ***BECAME*** king in Jeshurun, when the heads of the people were gathered, all the tribes of Israel together.

Rev. 4:11 "Worthy are you, our Lord and God, to ***RECEIVE*** glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they existed and were created."

Also, that objection about being made/installed Lord & Messiah doesn't factor in Phil. 2 which teaches that before Jesus' incarnation He was in the form of God and equal with the Father and that at the incarnation He humbled Himself in the form of a [human] servant. When that's factored in, it can explain how, after humbling Himself, He can then afterwards [after gaining victory] be lifted up and exalted to the position of Lord and Messiah.