Trinity Lesson #10 Councils and Creeds (Tying Together the Heresies)

Modalistic Monarchianism The One All reality is just ‘emanations’ from the being of ‘The One’, like ripples in a pond. There are stronger and weaker emanations. (People down to rocks.) (Pantheistic)

Sybellius (3 rd Century) Christ is like a sunbeam! As a sunbeam partakes of the nature of the sun, so Christ partakes of the nature of God. Homo’ousios - Same Essence. Christ is the same essence as the Father, as a sunbeam is the same essence as the sun, but is inferior.

Sybellianism condemned as heresy by the church, 3 rd Century. Church changes the term used to describe the nature of Christ to Homoi’ousios – ‘Similar’ Essence

Dynamic Monarchianism (Arianism) Arius (ca. 250 – 336 AD) – Berber priest from Alexandria, Egypt. Christ (the Logos) is a created being. He is God’s ‘first’ creation. Because He is a creation, Christ is obviously inferior to God, yet superior to mankind. ‘Adoptionist Christianity’ – Because of His obedience unto death, Christ is ‘adopted’ by God as His son. Arius also uses the church’s terminology – homoi’ousios.

Monophysitism Christological position that Christ has only one nature. (Mono’physis – One Nature) Eutyches (ca 378 – 456 A.D.) “The Monophysite Heresy” Theonthropic (God-Man) – His nature was ‘humanly divine’ or ‘divinely human’. By mixing ( or “confusing”) the two natures of Christ this way, He ends up being not both fully human and divine, but neither fully human nor fully divine. Return 1Return 1 Return 2Return 2

Nestorianism (ca. 420’s A.D.) Nestorianism is a Christological heresy which originated in the church in the 5 th century out of an attempt to rationally explain and understand the incarnation of the divine Logos, the Second Person of the Holy Trinity as the man Jesus Christ. Nestorianism teaches that the human and divine essences of Christ are separate and that there are two persons, the man Jesus Christ and the divine Logos, which dwelt in the man. Thus, Nestorians reject such terminology as “God suffered” or “God was crucified”, because they believe that the man Jesus Christ suffered. Likewise, they reject the term Theotokos (giver of birth to God) for the Virgin Mary, using instead the term Christotokos (giver of birth to Christ) or Anthropotokos (giver of birth to a man). Return 1Return 1 Return 2Return 2

Distinction vs. Separation Example Distinguish Body from Soul vs. Separate Body from Soul Truly God, Truly Man vs. Fully God, Fully Man

Christ’s Dual Nature We acknowledge Christ to have two natures: Human and Divine. His human nature is fully human (no original sin). His divine nature is fully divine. Thus, we ‘distinguish’ Christ’s two natures without ‘separating’ them. Remember, we are stating what doctrine is Biblically acceptable. We don’t pretend to be able to comprehend the reality of Christ’s dual natures. But when we attempt to make it comprehensible, we end up in heresy.

The Nicene Creed(325 A.D) I believe in one God, the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth, and of all things visible and invisible. And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only-begotten Son of God, begotten of the Father before all worlds; God of God, Light of Light, very God of very God; begotten, not made, being of one substance with the Father, by whom all things were made. Who, for us men and for our salvation, came down from heaven, and was incarnate by the Holy Spirit of the virgin Mary, and was made man; and was crucified also for us under Pontius Pilate; He suffered and was buried; and the third day He rose again, according to the Scriptures; and ascended into heaven, and sits on the right hand of the Father; and He shall come again, with glory, to judge the quick and the dead; whose kingdom shall have no end. And I believe in the Holy Ghost, the Lord and Giver of Life; who proceeds from the Father and the Son; who with the Father and the Son together is worshipped and glorified; who spoke by the prophets. And I believe in one holy catholic and apostolic Church. I acknowledge one baptism for the remission of sins; and I look for the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the world to come. Amen.begotten, not madewas made man

The Definition of the Council of Chalcedon (451 A.D) Therefore, following the holy fathers, we all with one accord teach men to acknowledge one and the same Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, at once complete in Godhead and complete in manhood, truly God and truly man, consisting also of a reasonable soul and body; of one substance with the Father as regards his Godhead, and at the same time of one substance with us as regards his manhood; like us in all respects, apart from sin; as regards his Godhead, begotten of the Father before the ages, but yet as regards his manhood begotten, for us men and for our salvation, of Mary the Virgin, the God-bearer; one and the same Christ, Son, Lord, Only-begotten, recognized in two natures, without confusion, without change, without division, without separation; the distinction of natures being in no way annulled by the union, but rather the characteristics of each nature being preserved and coming together to form one person and subsistence, not as parted or separated into two persons, but one and the same Son and Only-begotten God the Word, Lord Jesus Christ; even as the prophets from earliest times spoke of him, and our Lord Jesus Christ himself taught us, and the creed of the fathers has handed down to us.without confusion, without changewithout division, without separation

The Athanasian Creed (ca. 5 th -6 th Century) Whosoever will be saved, before all things it is necessary that he hold the catholic faith; Which faith except every one do keep whole and undefiled, without doubt he shall perish everlastingly. And the catholic faith is this:

Furthermore it is necessary to everlasting salvation that he also believe rightly the incarnation of our Lord Jesus Christ. For the right faith is that we believe and confess that our Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, is God and man. God of the substance of the Father, begotten before the worlds; and made of the substance of His mother, born in the world. Perfect God and perfect man, of a reasonable soul and human flesh subsisting. Equal to the Father as touching His Godhead, and inferior to the Father as touching His manhood. Who, although He is God and man, yet He is not two, but one Christ. One, not by conversion of the Godhead into flesh, but by taking of the manhood into God. subsistingand inferior to the Father as touching His manhood

One altogether, not by the confusion of substance, but by unity of person. For as the reasonable soul and flesh is one man, so God and man is one Christ; Who suffered for our salvation, descended into hell, rose again the third day from the dead; He ascended into heaven, He sitteth on the right hand of the Father, God Almighty; From thence He shall come to judge the living and the dead. At whose coming all men shall rise again with their bodies; And shall give account of their own works. And they that have done good shall go into life everlasting, and they that have done evil into everlasting fire. This is the catholic faith, which except a man believe faithfully, he cannot be saved.

The Shield of the Trinity (Derived from the doctrine of the Athanasian Creed)

Christ was not ‘begotten’ at Bethlehem, he was ‘incarnated’; the pre-existent, co-eternal Son of God, the Word (Logos) became flesh. Return “only-begotten.” It is the Greek word “monogeneis.” You ‘beget’ that which has the same nature as yourself. Thus, “only begotten” tells us that Christ and the Father are of the same substance/nature. “Begotten, not made”

Phillipians 2: Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: 6 Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: 7 But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: 8 And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. Return 1Return 1 Return 2Return 2

“tritheism” Tritheism is the teaching that the Godhead is really three separate beings forming three separate gods. Return

“subsist” Late Latin subsistere to exist, from Latin, to come to a halt, remain, from sub- + sistere to come to a stand; 1 a) : to have existence : be b) persist, continue As opposed to “exist” : Latin exsistere to come into being Return

“proceeding” The Spirit is “eternally proceeding” from the Father and the Son. Just like “begotten”, the use of this word does not imply that this process had a beginning. As the Father and Son are co-eternal with one another, so the proceeding of the Spirit from them is eternal, and thus the Spirit Himself is also co-eternal with them. Return