Like last week, we talked about the Trinity in Doctrine class last night (before the Super Bowl of course). Also like last week, I’ve got a list of links and resources for further study.
If you happened to miss last night, the big attribute of God I hammered on was aseity, and luckily for you I drew much of the discussion from my post Divine Aseity and Prayer. I also have the lecture slides available here as a PDF: Trinity 2.
We also talked about some practical implications that can be drawn from the doctrine of the Trinity. Specifically we talked about sex and the Trinity (you should have been there), and the difference between Trinitarian and unitarian worship. For the latter, here are two posts and book recommendation:
- Unitarian vs. Trinitarian Worship
- Questioning Your Spirituality
- Trinitarian Spirituality: John Owen and The Doctrine of God in Western Devotion
Speaking of books, here are some I’d recommend if you’d like to do additional reading on the doctrine of God, specifically in terms of the attributes of God and the history of the doctrinal development:
- The Doctrine of God by John Frame (most comprehensive on this list)
- The Doctrine of God by Gerald Bray (shorter than Frame, but excellent)
- The Eternal Generation of The Son by Kevin Giles (the importance of affirming Sonship but not Arianism)
- God With Us by Scott Oliphint (aseity, and in depth exegetical and philosophical discussions related to it)
- Paradox in Theology by James Anderson (how we can affirm a doctrine that is on the surface paradoxical)
- God Without Parts by James Dolezal (a defense of the doctrine of divine simplicity)
- God is Impassible and Impassioned by Rob Lister (a defense of the doctrine of impassibility)
- The Quest For The Trinity by Stephen Holmes (a short, but deep overview of the history of trinitarian doctrinal development)
- Jesus in Trinitarian Perspective: An Introductory Christology ed. Fred Sanders and Klaus Issler
- Our Idea of God by Thomas Morris (an introduction to philosophical theology)
- Philosophical Foundations For A Christian Worldview by J.P. Moreland and William Lane Craig (exactly what the title says)
There are of course volumes more, but these are ones I’ve either a) read and reviewed recently and found helpful or b) ones that were very formative in my understanding.
When it comes to some additional practical applications drawn from Trinitarian thought, I don’t think you can do any better than the recent works of Vern Poythress:
- Redeeming Sociology
- Redeeming Science
- In the Beginning Was the Word: Language – A God-Centered Approach
- Logic: A God Centered Approach to The Foundation of Western Thought
- Inerrancy and Worldview: Answering Modern Challenges to The Bible
Poythress is fairly readable and I’ve found his books to be very stimulating reads. They can be a bit repetitive at times, but the insights make it worth hanging with him.
Lastly, the two historical figures who’ve shaped by Trinitarian understanding are Jonathan Edwards and John Owen. Some of that was because I did an independent study in their Trinitarian thought while in seminary. But, I wouldn’t have picked them if they hadn’t already exerted some early influence in my thinking. If you’re up for it, you can my concluding paper from that class by clicking here: Trinity in Owen and Edwards.