The Christian Doctrine of God (Paperback)

This historic book may have numerous typos, missing text, images, or index. Purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. 1914. Not illustrated. Excerpt: ... Jesus. Not indeed, the doctrine said, that incarnation into humanity is possible to God absolute and unconditioned. Humanity could not contain him, nor would the position of one incarnate be congruous with his relations or his nature. But there exists forever in the Godhead a Son, identified with the Word that was declared to have become flesh and dwelt among us. His relation to the Father is somewhat analogous to that of man, and he is in some sense akin to humanity, which was created in his likeness. The Son is incarnable, and he has entered into closest union with human nature in the person of Jesus. Therefore it is that Jesus is inherently worthy to receive such honour as the Church gives him, and that his salvation is the very salvation of God. He is worthy to be adored, and mighty to save, because God the Son is an element in the constitution of his person. Thus the Christian faith is justified, and an eternal foundation is placed underneath the Christian experience. From the starting-point in the Son, interpretative thought reached out in both directions. On the one hand it made its affirmations concerning the Father. As the titles indicate, the Father was recognized as the source of the Son, though in a manner higher than that of creation. The Son was uncreated, of the Father's very self, mysteriously and eternally generated from his being. The Father was God original, eternally self-manifesting through the Son alone, expressed by the Son in humanity. In the Father first was all that belongs to divine being, and all that was brought by the Son to men. Thus the salvation that had been received through Christ was grounded beyond Christ, and beyond the eternal Son, in God the Father, source of all. And on the other hand interpretative thought took ...