Posts by Alastair Roberts

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The Eternal Subordination of the Son Debate: Concluding Reflections (Part 2)

Alastair Roberts
Jun 26, 2017
In this final part of my series on the debate concerning the eternal subordination of the Son (ESS), I will identify a few more of the issues that the debate has brought to the surface. The Quest for a Deep Structure for Complementarianism The emergence of the ESS position in its current form is in...

The Eternal Subordination of the Son Debate: Concluding Reflections (Part 1)

Alastair Roberts
Apr 3, 2017
In an online context, where conversations move at a breakneck speed, we so often fail to carve out time for proper deliberation and reflection. After the firestorm of one debate has passed, we can swiftly move on to the next dispute, failing to reflect upon the lessons that can be gleaned from the...

Subordination in Scripture: Indivisible Divine Authority in Mutually Defining Relations

Alastair Roberts
Jan 30, 2017
In the previous post in this series, I made some remarks upon the meaning of the term κεφαλή, especially in the context of 1 Corinthians 11:3. Challenging the supposed meaning of this term among certain advocates of the eternal subordination of the Son (ESS) position is important. Not only does it...

Subordination in Scripture: κεφαλή in 1 Corinthians 11:3

Alastair Roberts
Nov 22, 2016
Perhaps the text that is closest to the heart of the ESS (eternal subordination of the Son) debate is found in 1 Corinthians 11:3. The prominence of this text is in large measure due to the manner in which it supposedly provides the basis for a connection between the relationship between the Father...

The Eternal Subordination of the Son Controversy: Reconciling Scripture and Dogma

Alastair Roberts
Oct 14, 2016
The proper authority of dogmatic theology is legitimized through the regular demonstration of its truth and power. This can only occur as the authority of dogmatic theology is consistently and repeatedly shown to arise out from and practically to strengthen and actualize the Scripture's own...

The Eternal Subordination of the Son Controversy: The Tension Between Bible and Doctrine

Alastair Roberts
Sep 26, 2016
The current debate surrounding the eternal subordination of the Son (ESS) has highlighted a number of existing tensions in evangelical theological circles. Perhaps one of the most significant of these is the tension between dogmatic and biblical theology. The dogmaticians and systematic theologians...

The Eternal Subordination of the Son: The Need for Trinitarian Clarity (Part 2)

Alastair Roberts
Aug 22, 2016
In the previous post in this series, we began to consider some of the theological concerns that surface in the teaching of those who hold to a form of the ERAS/ESS position. In this post, we wish to consider these concerns in more detail. In particular, the ERAS/ESS position seems to demand that...

The Eternal Subordination of the Son Controversy: The Need for Trinitarian Clarity

Alastair Roberts
Jul 21, 2016
Most criticisms of the eternal subordination of the Son (ESS) position have focused upon deficiencies in its Trinitarian theology. In my last post I commented upon some of the problems with the term and concept of subordination. Within this post, I will sketch some of the contours of Trinitarian...

The Eternal Subordination of the Son Controversy: Subordination

Alastair Roberts
Jul 11, 2016
Teasing out the many different threads of the current eternal subordination of the Son (ESS) debate is a daunting task. The sheer range of different positions and issues represented within the conversation can be bewildering. Perhaps one of the most immediately pressing ground-clearing tasks is...

The Eternal Subordination of the Son Controversy: Survey of Some Relevant Material

Alastair Roberts
Jun 17, 2016
It has seldom received as public an airing as is now possible in the context of social media, yet controversy surrounding the eternal subordination of the Son position (ESS) is not new. Although it has not usually intruded upon the wider Christian consciousness and has largely been confined to...

The Eternal Subordination of the Son Controversy: The Debate so Far

Alastair Roberts
Jun 16, 2016
The most recent eruption of the eternal subordination of the Son controversy began with a couple of provocative posts by Liam Goligher, pastor of Tenth Presbyterian Church, Philadelphia, over on Aimee Byrd's Housewife Theologian blog . Goligher's posts sharply criticized advocates of the eternal...

The Climactic Word - Transfigured Hermeneutics 6

Alastair Roberts
Mar 16, 2016
This is the sixth of a ten part treatment of the significance of the Transfiguration for Christian theology and biblical reflection. I am currently exploring the way in which the Transfiguration draws upon associations with the events of the Exodus and Mount Sinai and upon broader Old Testament...

The High Priest and the New Temple: Transfigured Hermeneutics 5

Alastair Roberts
Feb 26, 2016
This is the fifth of a multipart discussion of the importance of the event of the Transfiguration for Christian theology and biblical reflection. I have argued for illuminating parallels between the events of Sinai and that of the Transfiguration. My previous two posts explored the gospels'...

Transfigured Hermeneutics 4 - Jesus as God's Glory Face in John's Gospel

Alastair Roberts
Feb 1, 2016
This is the fourth part of a multipart discussion of the importance of the event of the Transfiguration for Christian theology and biblical reflection. In my first three posts, I argued for the significance accorded to the Transfiguration by its location within the narrative structure of the gospel...

Infant Baptism and the Promise of Grace

Alastair Roberts
Jan 20, 2016
In considering the differences between those who support and those who oppose the baptism of infants, focusing too narrowly upon the need for faith in the recipients of the rite can be misleading, for among Reformed Christians this necessity is granted on both sides of the debate. No less than for...

Infant Baptism and the Promise of Grace

Alastair Roberts
Jan 20, 2016
In considering the differences between those who support and those who oppose the baptism of infants, focusing too narrowly upon the need for faith in the recipients of the rite can be misleading, for among Reformed Christians this necessity is granted on both sides of the debate. No less than for...

Transfigured Hermeneutics 3: Transfiguration as Theophany

Alastair Roberts
Jan 13, 2016
This is the third part of a multipart series of posts on the subject of the Transfiguration and its significance for Christian theology and biblical reflection. Within the first couple of posts I explored the literary presentation of the event of the Transfiguration, chiefly as it appears in Luke's...

Transfigured Hermeneutics - Transfiguration and Exodus

Alastair Roberts
Dec 18, 2015
In my previous post , I introduced my exploration of the significance of the event of the Transfiguration. I began by observing the prominence of the event within the narrative structure of the gospels and its various parallels with the event of Jesus' Baptism. In addition to the parallels and...

Transfigured Hermeneutics - Introduction

Alastair Roberts
Dec 9, 2015
The Transfiguration holds great significance within the narratives of the Synoptic gospels and considerable promise for Christian theological reflection more generally. Yet it receives relatively little attention in many quarters, its importance lying underappreciated and unexplored. This neglect...

Paul & the Gift

Alastair Roberts
Nov 16, 2015
John M.G. Barclay, Paul and the Gift . Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2015. 672 pages. $70.00/£45.99 Perhaps the most impressive feature of John Barclay's important new book, Paul & the Gift , is the elegant simplicity and integrity of its central thesis. Indeed, at first blush this simplicity may...

Paul & the Gift

Alastair Roberts
Nov 16, 2015
John M.G. Barclay, Paul and the Gift . Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2015. 672 pages. $70.00/£45.99 Perhaps the most impressive feature of John Barclay's important new book, Paul & the Gift , is the elegant simplicity and integrity of its central thesis. Indeed, at first blush this simplicity may...

The Refugee Crisis and Christian Hope

Alastair Roberts
Sep 9, 2015
Over the past week, the refugee crisis facing Europe has been a matter of intense discussion here in the UK and around the world. While the facts, figures, and politics have long received attention on the news, pictures of the lifeless body of three-year-old Aylan Kurdi washed up on a Turkish beach...

The Refugee Crisis and Christian Hope

Alastair Roberts
Sep 9, 2015
Over the past week, the refugee crisis facing Europe has been a matter of intense discussion here in the UK and around the world. While the facts, figures, and politics have long received attention on the news, pictures of the lifeless body of three-year-old Aylan Kurdi washed up on a Turkish beach...