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A Historical Overview and Theological Evaluation of the Necessity of the Impeccability of Christ

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A Historical Overview and Theological Evaluation of the Necessity of the Impeccability of Christ A Historical overview and Theological evaluation of the necessity of the impeccability of Christ LE Kanniah 21029156 Dissertation submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree Master of Arts in Dogmatics at the Potchefstroom Campus of the North-West University Supervisor: Prof CFC Coetzee May 2015 Acknowledgments: 1. This is thus far the hardest undertaking of my academic life and were it not for the Lord’s help it would not have been possible. Spiritual platitudes aside, His motivation and continuous insight through His Word has driven me daily at my desk. The task had to be completed and I had to dig deep and were it not for His resources there would be nothing to dig for. All glory to God! 2. My heartfelt thanks to the friends at the NWU faculty that have contributed immensely to my completing this project. Your friendliness, advice and positive comments at your offices, in passing on the staircase and sometimes on the streets have thrown me many a life-line of strength. All glory to God for your help. 3. A special thanks to Professor Callie Coetzee who not only encouraged me but sometimes scolded me on to this goal. His patience was definitely tried and he has done a great work for me. As a test to his longsuffering he read and reread every word I wrote. I cannot imagine the headache he must have had to endure through all of that. I will forever be grateful for what he has done. All glory to God for his efforts! 4. I would be remiss not to thank Hester Lombard at the Theological Library for all her endeavours. She is a valuable asset to have in projects like this. Would to God that I could have her as a full time aid in writing. She was always ready to source anything I asked for and not to mention renewing my books, even to her frustration. All glory to God for your work in the library! 5. Not many pastors have been blessed with the congregation that I have and I am always conscious of the fact that I do not deserve the good people of Calvary Baptist Church, Sunnyridge. I thank you for your prayers and support all the way through. Your ministry to me far exceeds that of mine to you. All glory to God for your love and care! 6. Notwithstanding the efforts of all concerned my wife was the one always by my side egging me on. She sits through my grumblings and pity-parties. Many were the times that I wanted to quit but she is no quitter and would therefore not let me feed on such dissuasion. She is indeed the veritable pillar in my life. All glory to God for her! 7. My three children (Chloe, Chelsea and Jemuel) are the jewels in my crown. They may not be a quiver full but they certainly are a handful. I give them a shout out (as the youngsters today would say). They add spice to my life and in their own weird way added to my pressure to complete this task. All glory to God for you! Edward Kanniah September 2014 i Abstract The following study seeks to investigate the impeccability of Christ from a historical/theological position. Two camps emerge on either side of the debate: Those who hold to the posse non peccare view which is to say, ability not to sin, otherwise known as the peccability view and those who hold to the non posse peccare view which is to say inability to sin, otherwise known as the impeccability view. While both camps affirm the sinless perfection of Christ they oppose each other in whether as fully human He could have sinned if He wanted to. It boils down to a case of ‘could have but did not’ or ‘did not because He could not have’. It is the view of this thesis that the non posse peccare view squares with both historical and biblical theology. We argue in chapter two by surveying Church councils up to the present time pertinent to this theme to prove that the history of this issue matters in that it establishes the relationship between Christology and history and by inference a major impact upon many outcomes in Church history. Our aim was to prove that this historical error goes a long way in distorting the gospel message. In chapter three we survey and evaluate the position from a peccability viewpoint while, at the same time, entering and notarising our points of departure. We have there highlighted the arguments peccability theologians utilise to defend their view and have criticised such from our Dispensational theology. In chapter four we then assess and acknowledge the argument for impeccability by proving the necessity of it for the exoneration of His Person and gospel. In the summit of chapter five we have surveyed the field of Scripture to have the final say on this issue and concluded in favour of impeccability. Key Words: Christology, impeccability, peccability, gospel, fallen, unfallen, humanity ii Opsomming Die volgende studie poog om die onfeilbaarheid van Christus vanuit `n historiese / teologiese posisie te ondersoek. Twee kampe ontstaan aan weerskante van die debat: Diegene wat vashou aan die posse non peccare siening waarmee bedoel word, die vermoë om nie te sondig nie, andersins bekend as die feilbaarheidsbeskouing Terwyl beide kampe die sondelose volmaaktheid van Christus bevestig, neem hulle stelling in teen mekaar. Hulle argumenteer of Chrisus as volwaardige mens kon gesondig het. Dit kom neer op ‘n geval van ‘kon maar het nie’ of ‘het nie omdat hy nie kon sondig nie’. ‘ Dit is die siening van hierdie tesis dat die none posse peccare gesigspunt strook met beide die historiese en Bybelse teologie. Ons argumenteer in hoofstuk twee deur `n oorsig te doen van kerkkonsilies tot op die huidige tydik met betrekking tot hierdie tema om te bewys dat die geskiedenis van hierdie kwessie saak maak, wat daarin geleë is dat dit die verhouding tussen Christologie en geskiedenis vestig, waarvan afgelei kan word dat dit `n groot impak gehad het op baie uitkomste in die kerkgeskiedenis. Ons doel was om te bewys dat hierdie historiese dwaling baie daartoe bygedra het om die evangelieboodskap te verdraai. In hoofstuk drie gee ons `n oorsig en evaluasie van die posisie vanuit `n onfeilbaarheidsoogpunt, terwyl ons terselfdertyd pons uitgangspunte stel en bekragtig. Wat ons daar beklemtoon het, is die argumente wat die feilbaarheidsteoloë gebruik om hul opvatting te verdedig en ons het dit dan ook vanuit ons bedelingsteologie gekritiseer. Op die hoogste vlak in hoofstuk vier het ons ‘n oorsig gegee van sie finale woord wat die Heilige Skrif oor hierdie saak spraak en ons slotsom is ten gunste van onfeilbaarheid. iii Table of Contents: Chapter One: The Importance of the Debate 1. Introduction………………………………………………………………………………………………...1 1.1. Background…………………………………………………………………………………………….1 1.2. Problem Statement……………………………………………………………………………………1 1.3. Central Research Question…………………………………………………………………………..5 2. Aims and Objectives………………………………………………………………………………………6 2.1. Aim………………………………………………………………………………………………………6 2.2. Objective………………………………………………………………………………………………..6 3. Central Theoretical Argument……………………………………………………………………………6 4. Methodology……………………………………………………………………………………………….6 Chapter Two: The History of the Debate 1. Introduction………………………………………………………………………………………………...8 2. Why the History of this issue matters…………………………………………………………………...8 3. The Relationship between Christology and Anthropology…………………………………………..10 4. Christology in Classical Church History……………………………………………………………….12 4.1. The doctrine of Christ before the Reformation……………………………………………………12 4.1.1. Up to the Council of Chalcedon………………………………………………………………...13 4.1.1.1. Those who sacrificed His Deity to His Humanity………………………………………….13 4.1.1.2. Those who sacrificed His Humanity to His Deity………………………………………….14 4.1.1.3. Those who confused the relation of His two natures and coexistence…………………16 4.1.2. The Decision taken by the Council to Chalcedon…………………………………………….20 4.1.3. After the Council of Chalcedon…………………………………………………………………20 4.2. The Doctrine of Christ during the Reformation……………………………………………………22 4.3. The Doctrine of Christ after the Reformation……………………………………………………..23 4.3.1. A new View on the Two natures………………………………………………………………..23 5. Christology in Contemporary Church History…………………………………………………………25 5.1. Naturalism…………………………………………………………………………………………….25 5.2. Form Criticism………………………………………………………………………………………..26 5.3. The Quest for the Historical Jesus…………………………………………………………………26 5.3.1. Demystifying the Mystery of Christ……………………………………………………………..26 5.3.2. The Jewish Problem……………………………………………………………………………..27 5.3.3. The Apotheosis hypothesis or godlike theory…………………………………………………28 5.3.4. The Ventriloquism hypothesis or projection theory…………………………………………...28 5.3.5. The Gentile Question…………………………………………………………………………….28 6. Conclusion………………………………………………………………………………………………..29 iv Chapter Three: The Arguments for Peccability 1. Introduction……………………………………………………………………………………………….30 2. The Empathy of Peccability…………………………………………………………………………….31 3. Peccability based on His Humanity……………………………………………………………………32 3.1. The Difference between His Humanness and Fallenness………………………………………35 3.1.1. His Body and Our Body………………………………………………………………………….37 3.1.2. His Bearing of Our Guilt…………………………………………………………………………37 3.2. The Difference between flesh and ‘the flesh’……………………………………………………..38 3.3. The Difference between Suffering and Sinning…………………………………………………..39 3.4. The Difference between Limited and Unlimited Perception……………………………………..39 3.4.1. Limited in Knowledge…………………………………………………………………………….40 4. Peccability Based on His Testimony…………………………………………………………………..41 4.1. Was Christ Good?...................................................................................................................41
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