On Apostolic Preaching chapter 5 (part 2)

In the second half of chapter 5, Irenaeus presents a second passage that looks that the relationship between creation and the nature of God. In the previous post we discussed how Irenaeus understood the function of the Son and the Spirit in creation from Ps 33:6. In the rest of the short chapter, Irenaeus further explains the roles of the Son and the Spirit beginning with the citation of  Eph 4:6 which reads:

Eph 4:4-6 “There is one body and one Spirit, hust as also you were called in one hope of your calling; one Lord one faith one baptism, one God and Father of all who is over all and through all and in all.” 

The triatic formula of “over all” “through all” and “in all”, the bishop takes as a reference to the Trinity. In his own words he writes:

For over all is the Father; and through all is the Son, for through Him all things were made by the Father; and in us all is the Spirit, who cries Abba Father, and fashions man into the likeness of God

The Spirit, then gets an added referent, He is the one who cries “Abba Father” (Rom) and who fashions humankind in the image and likeness of God (Gen 1:26-7).

But Irenaeus continues this discourse on the Son and the Spirit explaining the interpersonal relationship between them:

Now the Spirit shows forth the Word, and therefore the prophets announced the Son of God; and the Word utters the Spirit, and therefore is Himself the announcer of the prophets, and leads and draws man to the Father.

This is the relationship of all three persons of the Trinity to Scripture. The work of the Spirit is to show forth the Word, thus the prophets announce the Word of God through the Spirit.

But it is the work of the Word to utter the Spirit. So the Word announces the prophets with the result that he leads and draws man to God the Father.

This is not much different than the jigsaw analogy yesterday. The Spirit announces the Word of God through the prophets, but it is the Son who orders and ordains the prophets.

The Son is the announcer, the Spirt announces, with the result that man is drawn back to the Father. This demonstrates the functional relationship between God and Scripture, or theology and the bible, in the thought of Irenaeus.

~ by irenology on June 14, 2009.