Think for Christ All That Is in God with Dr. James Dolezal
29 snips
Jul 27, 2023 
Dr. James Dolezal, theologian and professor focused on classical theism, discusses God’s absolute, noncomposite being and why God must be the ultimate cause. He contrasts classical theism with mutualist/personalist models, defends divine immutability, simplicity, impassibility, and atemporal eternity. He explains how these doctrines shape prayer, Scripture interpretation, and the relation between God and time.
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God As Absolute Ultimacy
- Classical Christian theism sees God as the ultimate, absolutely primary reality whose being is not explained by anything else.
- Dolezal ties this to creation ex nihilo and the biblical witness that all things are from, through, and to God, which rules out causal accounts of God.
Mutualism Claims Creatures Affect God
- Theistic mutualism (or personalism) holds that creatures can affect God so God can undergo real changes in being.
- Dolezal locates varieties from process theism (Whitehead) to softer versions where God is agent and patient, noting this idea has entered modern evangelical thought.
Literal Reading Fuels Mutualist Theology
- The mutualist reading of Scripture often rests on literal readings of anthropomorphic texts (e.g., Genesis 6:6, Exodus 34), suggesting God learns or changes.
- Dolezal contrasts this with classical theist appeal to accommodation and warns literal reading can relativize God's ultimacy.
