The Arian Controversy (Truth Matters) [28:06]
by Alex Hall rated at 3.2 (12 votes so far)
Alex Hall of London tells the story of how the church vacillated between Arius and Athanasius during the fourth century. By focusing on the dueling councils during that period (a.d. 318-381) Alex paints a picture, which, although disturbing to those of us who would like to think that such matters as the deity of Christ were always clear, accurately describes how politics heavily influenced the development of theology during that time. A good deal of Alex's work was influenced by When Jesus Became God by Richard Rubenstein. If this conversation has piqued your interest in this subject I highly recommend reading Rubenstein's book as it fills out the details in a readable manner. Alex's conclusion is that we should not trust either side since both used ungodly means to achieve their goal of winning the debate, rather, we should practice the Berean exercise of searching the Scriptures to see whether these things are so (Acts 17.11).
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These books, written by people from diverse backgrounds, express the simple truth that God is one. Some of them are more scholary while others are more autobiographical. In addition, a few of them are available to read online. If you would like more in depth treatment of christian monotheism, these books are the next step to take. Note: if you know of other books, not listed here, please leave us feedback.
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Is Jesus Called Yahweh in Romans 10.13?
by Jay Dicken [< 1 page]
rated at 1 (out of 5 votes)
Joel 2:32 was also quoted by Peter at Acts 2:21 while preaching to Jews who had not accepted Jesus as the Christ (Messiah). Unlike Peter, Paul was not addressing unbelievers, but Roman Christians. They already understood that ‘calling upon the name of the Lord’ God included accepting Jesus as Lord and Christ. Jesus said that “no one comes to the Father, but by me.” Therefore, one has to call upon Jesus (the name means Yahweh Saves) to call upon Yahweh God. So while there appears to be a blurring of the scriptural application in Romans 10:13, there is no warrant for trinitarian conclusions. -- John 14:6