The Perfector Of All Divine Acts: The Holy Spirit And The Providence Of God -- By: Torey Teer
Journal: Bibliotheca Sacra
Volume: BSAC 177:708 (Oct 2020)
Article: The Perfector Of All Divine Acts: The Holy Spirit And The Providence Of God
Author: Torey Teer
BSac 177:708 (October-December 2020) p. 402
The Perfector Of All Divine Acts:
The Holy Spirit And The Providence Of God
Torey J. S. Teer is a PhD candidate in systematic theology and a freelance editor at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky.
Abstract
Originating within the Trinity, all divine action follows from an established order: from the Father, through the Son, by the Holy Spirit. As the Spirit locates at the end of the agential chain, he is the terminus of all divine acts, and his work is Christological in emphasis. Further, while all external acts of the Trinity are indivisible, the individual roles of the divine persons in those acts are distinguishable. Therefore, vis-à-vis the doctrine of providence, to the Holy Spirit belongs the work of sustaining, recreating, and consummating.
When considering the doctrine of providence, Christian thinkers typically reflect upon God the Father’s pre-eminent role in creating, preserving, and governing the universe. As John Calvin insisted, “To the Father is attributed the beginning of action, the fountain and source of all things.”1 Yet the historic doctrine of inseparable operations observes that in all divine acts in the world, all persons of the Godhead work as one. In other words, when the Trinity acts, there is only one action, not three.2 Hence, all divine persons must be engaged in the work of providence. Moreover, the attendant doctrine of distinct personal appropriations clarifies that a feature common to all three divine persons is attributed to—or appropriated by—one particular person
BSac 177:708 (October-December 2020) p. 403
ad extra if that feature especially reflects the personal properties of that person ad intra.3 Thus, each person plays a unique, distinguishable role in the work of providence. As this article is concerned with advancing a Christological Pneumatology and applying it to various loci of systematic theology, what is the Holy Spirit’s unique role in the triune work of providence?4
This article argues that the Holy Spirit uniquely contributes to the triune work of providence as its perfecting cause, especially with regard to sustaining, recreating, and consummating creation and the saints. The purpose for which the Spirit accomplishes these works is ultimately Christological-eschatological (or Christo-telic) in emphasis—that is, all of the works of the Holy Spirit with regard to providence point toward and support ...
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