Delighting in the Trinity with Michael Reeves Who Is the Living God? (Why the Nicene Creed and Why Now?)
Aug 4, 2025
Dive into the rich history of the Nicene Creed, where Michael Reeves navigates the pivotal clash between Arius and early Christians. Discover how the Council of Nicaea was summoned by Constantine to address crucial questions about Christ's identity. Explore the profound phrases ‘begotten, not made’ and ‘homoousios’ that distinguish the essence of the Trinity. Reeves reveals the significance of the creed in understanding divine salvation and the role of the Holy Spirit as essential in connecting believers to God. Unpack the importance of communal faith through the recitation of creeds.
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Arius' Popular, Disruptive Teaching
- Arius, an elder from Alexandria, taught the Son was a created being and gained popular support through songs and street slogans.
- His teaching provoked bishops' outrage and even physical confrontation at the council.
Start With Revelation, Not Presuppositions
- Arius began with the presupposition that God must be ungenerated, then used scripture to support that view.
- Nicene bishops rejected that rationalism and insisted on starting with God's self-revelation in the Son.
Begetting vs. Making Explained
- "Begotten not made" distinguishes divine sonship from creaturely origin by linking begetting to shared being, not temporal creation.
- Therefore the Son's begetting implies sameness of divine essence with the Father, not derivation from created 'god-stuff.'