MacArthur on the "Essential" Trinitarian Doctrine

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darinhouston
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Re: MacArthur on the "Essential" Trinitarian Doctrine

Post by darinhouston » Sun Mar 14, 2021 10:53 pm

dwight92070 wrote: - I am responding to claims of Trinitarians as to what their own passages mean. The affirmative case of monotheism is (I hope) fairly non-
controversial.

Dwight: So you would rather "muddy the waters" of the clear scriptural teaching of the fact that Jesus is God and the Trinity, than to come up with scriptures that support your view. Again, we are both monotheistic.
My view is affirmatively presented by scripture - it is the Trinitarian position that is contrived (legitimately or not) by speculation and arguments of interpretation and reason. So, that's where the argument must be.

And your claim of monotheism can only be made by resort to "mystery" in the clear and otherwise admitted incoherence of the position. Merely saying you are monotheist begs the question how. Mystery best lies in clear revelation of the "what" without the "how or why". When the "what" is largely by implication, mystery should suggest the implication is perhaps misguided. God may reveal things that can't be fully understood, but when they matter, they are largely comprehensible and coherent. When we have to rely on mystery to overcome fundamental comprehension or coherence, I suggest that something's wrong with our position.

commonsense
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Re: MacArthur on the "Essential" Trinitarian Doctrine

Post by commonsense » Thu Mar 18, 2021 2:01 pm

dwight92070 wrote:
Sun Mar 14, 2021 1:58 am
The Apostle John testified that Jesus was "making Himself equal with God". The only way someone can be equal with God is if He is God. Anyone less than God cannot be equal with God. Unless the translators here are biased toward Trinitarianism - as you claim in most of the other verses. Or if you want to redefine "equal" - changing the clear meaning of the word.
dwight, Jesus was making Himself equal with God in terms of authority. Man's authority on earth is derived from God. If it doesn't come from God, it's not legit. Just like Moses was "as God" to Pharaoh. We don't have the right to own slaves. Nor did the Pharisees and Sadducees have a right to force everyone into their religion. As Jesus said, a lot of their "laws" were doctrines and traditions of men. This would be like everyone in America being forced to be Catholic, or Jewish, or Muslim, or Mormon etc.etc. And from the sound of it, if this guy MacArthur had his way, all non-Trinitarians would be labeled Satan worshipers and probably thrown into a deep dark dungeon somewhere.

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