“Christ made… everything in heaven and on earth” (Nicaean Creed). What did the phrase δι᾽οὗ τὰ πάντα ἐγένετο τά τε ἐν τῷ οὐρανῷ καὶ τὰ ἐν τῇ γῇ mean in Nicaea? Looking at the later theological formulation can help answer many questions about the earlier meaning of similar biblical complexities. This presentation will compare the … Read more
This paper examines the proto-Trinitarian assumptions embedded within Paul’s argument in Galatians 3:15-4:8. In this passage, Paul identifies Christ’s followers as the rightful heirs of the Abrahamic promises. By employing a creative interpretation of the designation σπερμα Αβραάμ, alongside a oneness motif and parallel structures, he establishes the basis for inheritance through affiliation with Christ. … Read more
This paper investigates select contributions of Trinitarian Hermeneutics and Nicene Docmatics presented in On Classical Trinitarianism (Matthew Barrett, ed.) as they interpret texts in John 14-16. In that volume, seventeen authors analyze various biblical texts to identify the necessity of approaching Scripture via the lens of Classical Trinitarianism. For these authors, Nicea defined Trinitarianism, offering … Read more
John’s theology of the Logos is often treated as a framing device or part of a source for the so-called “prologue.” That John has no real interest in this identity is supposedly evident in the fact that Jesus is not identified as the Logos elsewhere in the Gospel, where he is the Christ, the uniquely … Read more
The Christology of the Nicene Creed represents nearly three centuries of Christian development, and confesses belief in “one Lord Jesus Christ, the only-begotten Son of God, begotten of his 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 … Read more
Critics of the Nicene Creed routinely characterize it as a Hellenized distortion of the Christian faith. Even N. T. Wright complained about the fourth-century church “trying to make theological bricks without the biblical straw.” This paper argues that the Nicene Creed is rooted in Jewish theology and constructed from “biblical straw,” especially proto-creedal New Testament … Read more
This paper argues that the Synoptic Gospels’ application of Isaiah 40:3 and Malachi 3:1 to Jesus reflects a theological claim of his equality with God. Both passages in their original context anticipate the coming of YHWH, preceded by a forerunner who prepares the way for God’s arrival. In Mark 1:2–3, these passages are blended and … Read more
This paper reexamines a widely accepted assumption in New Testament scholarship—that the Synoptic Gospels’ portrayal of Jesus as eschatological judge parallels the figure of the Son of Man in the Similitudes of Enoch (1 En. 37–71). Scholars such as Daniel A. Kirk (A Man Attested by God) and Bart D. Ehrman (How Jesus Became God) … Read more
One of the striking realities of theological discourse is that the same story can be told in radically different ways, yielding divergent meanings. Nowhere is this more apparent than in the early Christological debates, where scriptural texts functioned as battlegrounds for competing theological visions. This paper will explore how the interpretation of 1 Corinthians 15:28 … Read more
In 1 Corinthians 15, Paul begins his teaching on the resurrection with a creedal reminder of the gospel (vv1-11). Paul’s framing of the brief, creedal statements in verses 3b-5 is quite remarkable. In 15:1-3, he intersperses three repetitions of εὐαγγέλιον (gospel) and its cognates with four metaphors that describe embodied engagement with the gospel: standing … Read more