Unit 3: Pneumatology Flashcards
What does it mean that pneumatology is forgotten no longer?
We now have a treasure trove of good literature on the Holy Spirit even from the last 20 years.
- some have a hard time talking about the person of the Holy Spirit
What are the ontological focuses of pneumatology?
Divinity (homoousia), personhood (not a force, does personal things, must understand how subsists), procession
What are the seven arguments for the divinity of the Holy Spirit?
1) Individual passages in the Scripture seem to say so: some explicit more implicit (Acts 5 - Ananias lie to Holy Spirit, lie to God)
2) The Baptism of Jesus: Strange to mention Holy Spirit if not divine. Spirit connected, equated
3) The Baptismal formula from Jesus: Strange to mention Holy Spirit if not divine + “name” is singular
4) Apostolic benedictions and blessings (sign on/off): Strange list if not divine (1 Peter, 2 Cor)
5) Pneumatological attributes: perfections/attributes of Spirit only attributed to divinity
- omnipresence, omniscient, omnipotent, eternality (atemporality)
6) Blaspheming the Holy Spirit: the fact that He can be blasphemed is a high claim (divinity claim)
7) Trinitarian Works: do things only divine can do: hover over face of deep, providential care, soteriology, unites us to Christ, resurrect the dead
What is a person?
A subsisting relation
(trinity subsists in eternal relations of origin)
What are the disagreements of the personhood of the Spirit?
Autonomous person or description of ontology of Father and Son or embodiment of power of Father & Son
Nicaea: “and in the Holy Spirit”
Three different heresies: pneumatamachians, socinianism, Jehovah’s witnesses
What do the pneumatamachians say?
“spirit fighters” - fight against the spirit (many types)
- All agree Holy Spirit is not a person
- Not all agree about Son, some Arianism
- Because explicit references to Father and Son’s creative power but not Spirit
– if He is a person He lacks creative power
– so He is probably not a person but a power
- Anathematized in Constantinople
What do the Socinians say about the personhood of the spirit?
Deny personhood of Spirit and Son, calls the Spirit a power
What do Jehovah’s witnesses say about the personhood of the Spirit?
Deny personhood of Spirit, lip service to personhood of the Son
What is the modern soft version of Spirit personhood heresy?
The idea of the Spirit as an impersonal force or power
- BUT scripture talks of Him personally: grieved, insulted, volition/will (gifts & missionary appointment), testifies, teaches, leads, prays
- NOT an action, but an actor
What is the difference between eternal procession and spiration?
Procession is a broader term that could be used for generation as well
What is an analogy for procession?
Graduation: procession metaphorically symbolizes proceeding to university and proceeding out from University
- This is temporal and only economic (action)
- Spirit: eternal & immanent (not economic) -
What is spiration?
A verbed noun, but means “to breathe”
- The Father and the Son eternally breathe the Spirit out
What is the history of the Filioque controversy?
One of the most divisive conflicts in church history the 1054 Great Schism between the east and the west
- Q: Does the Spirit proceed from the Father or from the Father and the Son
- Nicaea offered 5 words on the Spirit and then Pneumatamachians questioned His divinity, Constantinople anathematized the Pneumatamachians and added to the Nicaean creed.
- At some point Filioque “And the Son” was added to the Nicaean-Constantinople Creed
- 589-1054 (500yrs) East Greek-speakers and West Latin-speakers disagreed
- 1049: Pope Benedict VIII added filioque so if not agree excommunicated
- 1054 Excommunicated each other
- Protestants are not forced to take a side, East was not happy change creeds b/c thought inspired, West say Pope inspired so can change creeds,
What is the defense of the Filioque word?
1) When text says Son of God we understand Son from the Father, why not when text says Spirit of Christ we not understand it as Spirit from Son?
2) Upper room discourse: who is sending the Spirit
- John 14:26 - Father (through Son)
- John 15:26 - Son sends & Father sends
- John 16:7 - Son
Act inseparably but appropriation reflects immanent trinity–reality in eternity
3) What distinguishes the persons:
- Son: eternally proceeds by generation
- Spirit: eternally proceeds by spiration
–> brothers, how are the Son and Spirit related?
What is the work of the Spirit?
- The Spirit does a lot of work
- Focus on 4
– Creation: know that He is active, but not sure what doing
– Scripture: THE Person in the development of the Scripture
– Salvation: Appropriated to the Son, but maybe also the Spirit
– Church: THE Person who establishes the church
How is the Spirit active in Creation?
- Important because what pneumatimachians are against
- Spirit hovers over the waters = He is involved incretion, but how?
- Two options
What is option one as to how the Spirit is active in creation?
Creation’s rhythm: speak into existence, purpose, blesses
- Spirit cares about organization (in salvation applies work to believers - unite to Christ in Church unite believers to each other - everything done in order ie prophecy)
- Spirit gives order to the cosmos - giving purpose and remains to allow it to fulfill its purpose
(Science evidences orderliness of creation)
What is option two as to how the Spirit is active in creation?
Hebrew/Greek Name: Ruach/Pneuma - Psalm 33:1-9
- Word of LORD made heavens, breath of LORD made the hosts
- God creates by speech-action: word & breath
- Need breath to speak words
- Economy of Trinity
How is the Spirit at work in the Scriptures?
Scriptures most explicit in affirming this work
- Spirit inspires (communication) & illuminates (understanding)
Father communicates to Son (John 12 & 14)
Son communicates to the Spirit (John 16)
Spirit communicates to the Prophets (2 Peter 1:16-21)
Spirit communicates to the Apostles (1 Cor 2:10-13)
Spirit inspires the audience - cannot understand but by the Spirit (1 Cor 2:14)
What is the Spirit’s work in Accomplishing Salvation?
1) Incarnation (Not happen without Spirit)
2) Mark Son out for Messianic work
3) Indwell and empower Son
- “Spirit Christology” not everything but sometimes unique indwelling of Son
4) Death & resurrection: Spirit raises the Son
5) Ascension: correlates with outpouring of the Spirit
(Think Crucifixion)
What is the Spirit’s work in Applying Salvation?
- Regeneration: born of the Spirit (John 3)
- Union with Christ: Spirit does uniting act, how we get the righteousness is being connected to the vine (Rom 8:9-10)
- Justification: declared righteous by the Spirit of our God (1 Cor 6)
- Adoption: Abba Father makes sense for Jesus and for us if we have the Spirit of our Older Brother (Gal 4)
- Conviction: everyone (John 16)
- Resurrection & Glorification: Same Spirit in Christ (Rom 8:11)
(Think Atonement)
What is the Spirit’s work in the church?
This can be appropriated to the Spirit because the Church is the product of the Spirit
- Inaugurated when the Spirit arrives (Global Church)
- Cares also for the local church: missionaries, elders, gifts, unity, enable one another, brings together as church (Eph 4:7-16, 1 Cor 12-14, Rom 12:4-8, 1 Pet 4:10-11)
– Unique qualification by certain gifts – continuationists/cesationists
- Acts 1 Jesus tells disciples they will be His witnesses and the Spirit will come in power
- Acts 2 the Spirit comes in power enabling (power –> preaching/conversion –> persecution –> prayer (repeat))
