A History of Christian Doctrine #3 - Online Christian Library

Appendix D
authority, yet he renounces their authority when it comes to
water baptism.
Similarly, the booklet says that the holiness teachings of the
UPCI “are strange and legalistic and lack biblical ground” (page
74), yet it ignores the strong teachings of ancient writers such
as Tertullian and Cyprian on this very subject. While embracing
John Calvin’s doctrine of predestination, the booklet says nothing
about Calvin’s teachings on practical holiness and the laws
he promulgated on this subject in Geneva, which were stricter
than the voluntary disciplines that the UPCI has adopted in obedience
to the Scriptures.
• The presentation of the doctrine of the trinity suffers
from the classic weaknesses of the doctrine, namely tendencies
toward tritheism and subordinationism. Many trinitarians
will have problems affirming his views in this area.
For instance, the booklet argues strongly that the Godhead
is a substance that subsists in three centers of consciousness.
“The term person can properly denote self-conscious things
other than human beings, such as angels, demons, imaginary
self-conscious beings, and each of the three persons of God”
(page 47). Interestingly, A Handbook of Theological Terms
asserts, “No important Christian theologian has argued that
there are three self-conscious beings in the godhead,” 349 but this
booklet certainly comes close to doing so.
One passage of Scripture seems to give the author particular
trouble: “Now the Lord is that Spirit” (II Corinthians 3:17).
To avoid saying that “the Spirit” here is the Holy Spirit, he
argues that there are at least two divine Spirits, “the Holy
Spirit” and “the spirit that is God’s substance”: “There are many
spirits other than the Holy Spirit, both literal (e.g., angels,
demons, the spirits of men, and the spirit that is God’s substance
[John 4:24]) and metaphorical” (page 34).
To avoid saying that “the Lord” in II Corinthians 3:17 is
Jesus, he indicates that Jesus and Jehovah are not the same
being and that there is more than one divine Lord: “The word
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