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Cal · 05-28-2014, 09:45 AM

I've admittedly been all over the map on this subject. Although I agree that Lee took some liberties with the Scripture, I think, with all due respect to those who say, "neither divide the Godhead nor confound the Persons," the Scripture itself in some places seems to do both.

The fact is, if the Son is God and the Spirit is God and there is only one God, then in some way, at some level, the Son has to be the Spirit.

However, the inverse is also true. If the Son and Spirit are distinct persons, in the sense we understand persons (that is they can have relationships), then in some way, at some level, the Son is not the Spirit.

Attempting to be orthodox only takes us so far, and itself can lead to error. In my experience, being too distinctive about the Persons gets in the way of my experience. It's as if God is saying, "Let it flow," while I'm attempting to be consistent in my mental picture of the Trinity, kind of like trying to analyze dances steps while dancing.

So the crucial questions should probably be--How is it helpful to consider the Persons as distinct, and how is it helpful to consider them as one?

To answer, it clearly expedites experience to not overly distinguish between Jesus and the Spirit when praying or having other personal spiritual experiences. On the other hand, it clearly enriches experience, and understanding, to realize that relationships, particularly ones of love, submission, cooperation, honor and appreciation of roles, seem to be at the heart of who and what God is.

Placed in the best light, Lee's downplaying the distinction between the Son and the Spirit is a nod to our experience. We experience God as one. I have no experiential realization of any personality differences of the Persons of the Trinity. Although I believe there are three Persons, there only seems to be one personality. Put plainly, whether I'm experiencing the Father, Son or Spirit, it's essentially the same to me.

Placed in the worst light, Lee neglected the relational lessons of the Trinity, Loving the Other. This opened the door wider to a cold approach to others, which empowered callousness, betrayal and other abuses. Not to mention that he play fast, loose and abusive to push his view.

05-28-2014, 09:45 AM	#27
Cal Member Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: USA Posts: 4,333	Re: "Become" or "Not Become" Interpreting 1Cor 15:45 I've admittedly been all over the map on this subject. Although I agree that Lee took some liberties with the Scripture, I think, with all due respect to those who say, "neither divide the Godhead nor confound the Persons," the Scripture itself in some places seems to do both. The fact is, if the Son is God and the Spirit is God and there is only one God, then in some way, at some level, the Son has to be the Spirit. However, the inverse is also true. If the Son and Spirit are distinct persons, in the sense we understand persons (that is they can have relationships), then in some way, at some level, the Son is not the Spirit. Attempting to be orthodox only takes us so far, and itself can lead to error. In my experience, being too distinctive about the Persons gets in the way of my experience. It's as if God is saying, "Let it flow," while I'm attempting to be consistent in my mental picture of the Trinity, kind of like trying to analyze dances steps while dancing. So the crucial questions should probably be--How is it helpful to consider the Persons as distinct, and how is it helpful to consider them as one? To answer, it clearly expedites experience to not overly distinguish between Jesus and the Spirit when praying or having other personal spiritual experiences. On the other hand, it clearly enriches experience, and understanding, to realize that relationships, particularly ones of love, submission, cooperation, honor and appreciation of roles, seem to be at the heart of who and what God is. Placed in the best light, Lee's downplaying the distinction between the Son and the Spirit is a nod to our experience. We experience God as one. I have no experiential realization of any personality differences of the Persons of the Trinity. Although I believe there are three Persons, there only seems to be one personality. Put plainly, whether I'm experiencing the Father, Son or Spirit, it's essentially the same to me. Placed in the worst light, Lee neglected the relational lessons of the Trinity, Loving the Other. This opened the door wider to a cold approach to others, which empowered callousness, betrayal and other abuses. Not to mention that he play fast, loose and abusive to push his view.