An Appeal to all Advent Christians, Who Affirm Christ’s Full Deity and Humanity, A Follow Up
I am responding to those who asked questions and made pertinent comments about my previous post on ACV’s Facebook page. I do not have a Facebook account and was not able to respond on that platform.
Believing in the Deity of Christ and Salvation
I do not think that there is much wiggle room regarding what Christ said to his opponents in John 8:24: “unless you believe that I am (he) you will die in your sins.” I won’t restate my reasons for seeing that in that verse Christ claims to be Yahweh (I am he) and as such proclaims to be fully God. This is even more the case in John 8:58 where he comes right out and states that he is the I AM. My argument is that the Gospel centers both on the person of Christ and his works (his incarnation and birth, his life of obedience, his penal vicarious death, resurrection and ascension). Saving faith entails both trust in the person of Christ, who is fully God and, by virtue of the incarnation is fully man and trust in his finished work. Since the person of Christ cannot be separated from his work this is indeed a Gospel matter at its very core.
As I wrote in my previous post, when I came to faith in Jesus Christ, I did not understand the reality of the unity of his divine and human natures in his one person. What I did know was that I was a sinner and Christ came to save sinners. I was urged to trust in Christ for the salvation he secured for the ungodly and I did and he saved me. Over time I was taught and saw from my own study of Scripture that Christ was both fully God and fully man. So, what about Advent Christians who have not been taught these doctrines or who may have sat under pastors and teachers who taught against (and still do) the full deity of Christ? Am I saying that these professing believers are not saved? Please hear me out.
I do think that this is a real possibility given what the Scriptures teach but I also know that God is merciful and many, who simply look to Christ and call on him to save them because they are convicted of their sin and believe him to be the Christ, like the thief on the cross, can be saved. As that dying man took stock of what was happening to him, his eyes were opened and he stopped mocking Jesus and began to fear God. He was struck with the fact that though “this man” was receiving the same sentence of condemnation as he and the other criminal were, Jesus had done nothing wrong. At that moment a work of grace occurred and he knew that Jesus could save him. He saw him to be the Messiah King, who one day would usher in that kingdom paradise and in faith called upon him: “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.” Words of saving assurance came to him from the lips of Jesus, “Truly, I say to you today, you will be with me in paradise” (Luke 23:40-43). I doubt that he knew much more about who Jesus was than what he said about him to the other dying thief and to Jesus, as he called on Jesus to save him and Jesus did and he will be in the kingdom on that glorious day.
So the dying thief, like many others, simply looked to Christ as savior and he was saved. However, I would contend that there is a difference between professing believers who look to Christ to save them from their sins, yet have not come to understand the reality of his person as the God-Man and those who deny that reality and worse teach against it. I am sure that many in the first category, if they are under non-trinitarian teaching, which, by its very nature, denies Christ’s deity, might consider themselves to be non-trinitarians due to the fact that they know no difference. Yet, like the thief, they simply look to Christ to save them and he does. So, I hold out the prospect that because God is merciful, one may have a simple faith in Christ that is indeed saving faith. I certainly do not know the hearts of those who profess faith in Christ and my article was not intended to indicate that I have this insight. I do not!
However, due to what I tried to demonstrate in my previous post about the importance of believing in and affirming the full deity and humanity of Christ united in his one person, it is sheer folly to hold to a minimalist view of Christ that is satisfied with a kind of milquetoast presentation of the Gospel in which nothing or very little is said about his person and with no deeper teaching offered. There is spiritual danger lurking about in such a setting and the risk of there being no salvation for those who are taught error concerning Christ or not taught much concerning Christ is very real. Sadly, this is the case in many professing evangelical churches and not just Advent Christian ones. However, it is far worse to be in a church where the teaching denies the full deity and humanity of Christ and seeks to persuade those in the congregation that this is simply a man made doctrine and is to be found nowhere in the Bible. To deny this outrightly and then reject the deity of Christ is to follow in the steps of Jesus' opponents to whom he said: "if you do not believe that I am he, you will die in your sins.”
Therefore, to hold a minimal faith in Christ, in which there is a lack of Biblical clarity on how a right view of his person and natures shape the Gospel that saves sinners, is not a good or safe place to remain. If faith is genuine and saving then when it is presented with the truth of Christ being the Great I Am, who, as the Word, became flesh, in order to save sinners, such faith will welcome this glorious truth and not oppose it.
How We Got Here
It is sad that our history, as a people, has been marked by teaching that denied the full deity and humanity of Jesus Christ. It is also a problem that those in the past, who did hold to the full deity and humanity of Jesus Christ, failed to see this as a Gospel matter. We must not fail in this regard any longer. Yes, many believed that in time, by teaching the truth of Christ’s person, the teaching that denied his divine and human natures in one person would dissipate. Those who held to this high view of Christ simultaneously valued our non-creedal origins and were unwilling to press this issue in venues like our triennial conventions for fear of fracturing the denomination. They held the view that it would be wrong or an unloving act to force this issue and divide over it for the sake of the truth. The division that was feared was structural and organizational. The reality is that we are divided over these issues due to how central they are in defining the Christian Faith. A Jesus who is a created being, even a mighty creature, is not the same Jesus who is the eternal Son of God incarnate. To have two fundamentally different views of Jesus is to have an ingrained theological chasm among us.
I am glad to see, over the course of my years with the denomination, that the doctrines of Christ's hypostatic union and the Trinity have made advances among us but the teaching that rejects Christ as the God-man still remains with us. As long as it does we cannot corporately affirm that we are truly an evangelical denomination for at the center of historical evangelicalism lie both the hypostatic union of Christ’s two natures and the doctrine of the Trinity. Yet, we have failed to grasp the urgency of addressing this issue because we have the misguided conviction that what one believes about Jesus Christ is simply a matter of interpreting the Bible differently. As I tried to stress in my previous post we cannot separate the person of the Lord Jesus Christ from the work he did to secure salvation for sinners. It matters immensely!
Our Motivation Must Be Love
If professing believers in Jesus Christ are simply confused or not clear about what the Bible teaches and are open to being taught, this is a hopeful situation. Such a frame of heart indicates, to me, evidence of saving faith in Christ. Likewise, If professing believers in Christ, who deny his deity, are honestly willing to listen and to discuss with those who love them why the full deity and humanity of Christ are essential to the saving power of the Gospel for them, this is also a hopeful situation. We, who hold this Biblical view of the Lord Jesus Christ, should pray for such opportunities.
Not to make every effort to see that the truth of Christ’s person as the God-man is held and treasured among us is a failure in love. It is a failure to love those among us who are misguided on this teaching. It is a failure to love those among us who teach against it and who promote a view that, at its core, dishonors Christ and misshapes the Gospel, robbing it of its saving power. It is also, on a much deeper level, a failure to love the Lord Jesus Christ because we are not willing to advocate, even at the risk of losing friendships and resources, for the truth of his glorious person. This is hard to write and I am certain for some, who read this, it is hard to consider but Jesus Christ makes it very clear that if we love others (family and even friends) more than him we are not worthy of him (Matt. 10:37; Luke 14:26). I grieve over the many times in my life that I have loved others more than Christ. I have not spoken up for him when I had opportunity to do so. I have loved others more than Christ by my failure to love others with the truth of Christ, which is a failure truly to love others. My fear of man overran my love and awe of Christ. So I appeal to you, who hold to Christ’s full deity and humanity, to stand fast for him in love and I make this appeal to you from a heart that knows how much I need him to help me do likewise.
So What Could Be Done?
I offer these considerations as to what could be done to help us secure greater fidelity to these essential doctrines that shape the Gospel and undergird the Christian Faith. Again as we proceed with the motivation of love for others, we also need to proceed with humility and patience but with determination. The way forward will not be easy but it is worth pursuing.
Make sure that you understand this doctrine of Christ’s two natures in his one person and realize how this teaching is essential to the Gospel. When you share the Gospel make sure you stress both Christ’s person and his work. Pray that the Father would give you a growing love for his Son, the God-man, and that this would be more than just holding to correct notions but would also entail a growing affection for and worship of Christ and a deeper intimacy with him. As Paul prayed in Ephesians 3:14-17 for believers, ask the Father that out of his glorious riches he would strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ (in all his glorious and exalted virtue) may dwell more deeply in your hearts through faith (note the Trinitarian contours of this prayer).
Pray for opportunities within your own church to share this truth about Christ. If you have friends who do not hold to Christ’s deity and humanity, pray for them and reach out to them. Ask them out for coffee or a meal and share why knowing Christ as the God-man is essential to the Gospel. Make sure you know what the Bible teaches about his person and offer to do a Bible study with them. Do this with humility and love. Yet be very clear that for one who professes faith in Christ but knowingly rejects his deity the risks are great. This is not merely a matter of minor theological differences. Keep that in view.
These doctrines need to be regularly and consistently preached and taught in our churches. Ask your pastors and teaching elders to do so. In some of our churches the Nicene and Chalcedon creeds, along with the Apostles creed, are included in the Sunday worship services. This is a way of keeping the truth regarding the Trinity and the person of Christ front and center in our churches. Ask your pastor to do a study on these creeds including some of the history surrounding their origins and unpack what they are teaching in more detail, showing their Biblical roots.
On a broader scale it would be valuable to see a special emphasis on the truth and importance of the Trinity and the Person of Christ from ACGC. Webinars or something similar could be regularly held where these doctrines could be laid out and explained with time for questions. These truths need to be in our heads and hearts and on our lips for they shape the Gospel of salvation and in no way are ancillary to the Christian Faith.
With loving respect, reach out to the leaders of your conference and especially those who may serve on the ministerial committee. Our conferences have been charged with overseeing the credentialing of our ministers. Find out what the theological and ethical standards are for conference pastors. Does the conference have an examination process in place that enables the ministerial committee to determine the personal and theological qualifications for ministerial candidates? Are there standards in place that in case of moral misconduct or theological error by an ordained minister the committee could take steps to discipline, to censure or even to defrock the minister if need be? At the 2017 triennial the delegate body overwhelmingly voted to adopt the National Association of Evangelicals Statement of Faith. This was a positive move but more needs to be done. On a conference level this statement of faith needs to be endorsed and used as a standard for licensing and ordination. This may require a great deal of work and patience to achieve. I know that in some conferences this has already been done and those holding credentials and are pastoring are expected to be able to affirm this statement and it is also a requirement that ministerial candidates do so too. I know in other conferences this will be resisted but faithful efforts to move one’s conference in this direction matter.
Final Thoughts
I know to some my appeal will seem rash and unwarranted. I understand, in light of the ethos we have as a denomination rooted in our aversion to formal creeds and confessions, why this would be the case. I would humbly contend that our reluctance even to see our Declaration of Principles to be a confession, although each paragraph is prefaced by the phrase “we believe,” has impacted our perspective on the importance of doctrinal purity. In fact, for all practical purposes, we are doctrinal relativists. If someone holds a view that he or she believes they have found in the Bible, we give them a pass. This is what some among us mean by being Biblical. Many hold that both Trinitarianism and non-Trinitarianism can co-exist among us because their advocates derive their doctrine from the Bible. Yet, we can wrongly interpret the Bible and wrongly believe that it teaches what it does not in fact teach. The Bible itself warns us to be on our guard against false teaching.
It seems to me that there are two reasons why those among us, who personally hold to the Trinity and to the hypostatic union of Christ’s natures, are reluctant lovingly to advocate that the 2017 Statement of Faith be adopted by our conferences and regions as that to which our ministers and churches should subscribe.
First, there are those who are strongly committed to the stance that the denomination should have no formal or standard creed or confession that requires subscription because they believe that this is wrong to do. They have the support of our history as a denomination for formal non-credalism is in our DNA. The reality is that, while we historically have rejected formal creeds, we have not been without creeds. Each Advent Christian has had his or her own creed. Everyone who professes to be a Christain has a creed. When one goes to the Bible and endeavors to understand what it teaches and comes away with the conviction that the Bible teaches this truth or that truth, a creed has been forged. We cannot help but be creedal. In fact the statement “no creed but the Bible” is creedal in nature. Now, I can respect those who hold this conviction but I do not think that it is so sacrosanct that it would be scandalous for us to change nor do I think that it would harm the denomination but in fact it would be a source of vitality. While more needs to be done to cultivate doctrinal purity for the health of the church than merely adopt a creedal statement, this is a necessary step and it was taken at the 2017 Triennial Convention. Historically, those churches who had confessions of faith but went off the rails theologically did so primarily because they were unwilling to maintain the necessity for subscription and allowed pastors and seminary professors to advocate views that conflicted with the church’s confession.
Second, there are those among us who do not see how one’s settled view of the person of the Lord Jesus Christ actually shapes one’s understanding of the Gospel. Though they may personally hold to the hypostatic union of Christ’s two natures, they do not see how this impacts one’s salvation. They emphasize that those who don’t hold to this teaching just have another view, so, why push things? I have tried to show that the person of Christ and the work of Christ cannot be separated. It is a Gospel matter of great urgency. For the only Jesus who saves sinners by his penal death and resurrection is the eternal Son of God, who shares full deity with the Father and the Holy Spirit and who became incarnate taking on human nature yet without sin. In the hypostatic union of his divine and human natures, as our mediator, he lived an obedient life and died an atoning death and rose again as the glorified Theanthropos (God-man) and offers forgiveness of sins, justification and eternal life to all who repent of their sins and trust in him. Now initially one may not know all of this about Jesus but simply look to him in the offer of the Gospel and trust in him for salvation. Yet, if there is indeed genuine faith, such faith will not reject this teaching about Christ’s glorious person. For, unless we believe that Jesus is the I AM, we will die in our sins. So, those of us who affirm this teaching must be compelled by love to speak up for the sake of those who do not.