In the Volume of the Book… Part II

“Lo, I come to do thy will O God. In the volume of the book it is written of me.” (Hebrews 10:4-13, Psalms 40:6-8) These profound and powerful words speak of the unique life and person of Jesus Christ. They were spoken by the man who was the Messiah of Israel and the Savior of the world. In these prophetic words Christ speaks of Himself and His mission. He knew who He was and He knew what He would do.

Immortality Awaits

Of Himself Jesus said, “I am the way and the truth and the life… no man comes to the Father but by me.” (John 14:1-6) “I am the door, by me if any man enter in he shall be saved. (John 10:9) Jesus boldly claimed to be the only way and the only door that leads to God and to eternal life.  The Bible declares that immortality awaits those who believe in and heed the words of Jesus Christ! This is the offer of the gospel and the promise of God.

The Message of Scripture

The message of scripture is simple and understandable. “There is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus.” (I Timothy 2:5) Hang on to this truth and never let it go. Believe it. Jesus is the Christ, the only begotten and unique Son of God, the promised Messiah, the Anointed One. Of Himself He said, “I am a man who has told you the truth.” (John 8:40) He was crucified and then rose from the dead and now sits at the right hand of the Father. Jesus was not an Archangel or the Father incarnate or a hypothetical second ‘person’ in the trinity. He was one of us and he was truly a man. He said so Himself.

This is Life Eternal

God’s Anointed One (the Christ) was a man! The man called Jesus claimed to be God’s Christ.  This is who He claimed to be and this is exactly what God revealed to the Apostle Peter. Jesus  most definitely never claimed to be God Himself.  God’s only begotten Son was a man. Don’t be offended by this. Jesus said, “This is life eternal that they may know thee, the only true God and Jesus Christ whom thou hast sent.” (John 17:3) This critically important knowledge about God and Christ is somehow a part of the promise of eternal life. Now… take a deep breath and relax. This is much more important than any dogma you may have grown up with. If Jesus was content to declare Himself to be a man we should be content to believe Him.

Copyright 2024 by Bob Shutes

PS: This post concludes the content of the Wonderful Theology website. Our whole focus has been on Jesus Christ and on presenting the Mystery of God and Christ in clear and Biblical terms. We hope these things have been helpful to you. The next destination on our theological journey is a website called Practical Theology. Our plan is to delve into the everyday questions and “nuts and bolts” issues that are important to most believers. We hope you’ll come visit us there and bring a few friends along with you. It may take awhile but we hope to have Practical Theology online by the fall of 2024. God Bless!

Why Publish This Website?

The distorted lens of archaic dogma that has been imposed on the Body of Christ makes it nearly impossible to get a clear vision of God and His Son Jesus Christ.  A highly educated Orthodox Bishop once acknowledged this to me by saying, “In my mind (the trinity) is a vague nebulousness. I can’t understand it but I believe it.”  The difficulty of seeing God through a lens of incomprehensible theology is the reason for this website.

Before the days of creeds and councils, dogmas, denominations and traditional theology there was “primitive” Christianity. No one knew anything about a hypostatic union, homoousious or a Trinity of three divine persons but they did know Jesus and they changed the world. The faith that was once entrusted to the saints simply proclaimed Jesus Christ as Messiah and Son of God. Unfortunately, that faith has gone from entrusted to encrusted… with theological traditions that obscure more than they reveal.

The purpose and mission of Wonderful Theology is to offer people a clear vision of Jesus Christ unencumbered by the Platonic philosophy and tortured logic that lies at the core of trinitarian thought. There are many souls who hunger for something more biblical and understandable.  We proclaim a straightforward Biblical approach declaring the God of Israel as the only true God and Jesus Christ as His uniquely and miraculously begotten human Son. This view is not only comprehensible and believable, it is deeply satisfying.The world has already had more than enough trinitarian thought. Now it is time for something better. There is much better bread to cast upon the waters and that is what we intend to do.

This website will challenge you to look at Jesus through the lens of scripture, no more and no less. I hope our offering will bless you, make you smile, and help you see Him more clearly. You might just decide that scripture IS enough after all.

Copyright 2021 by Bob Shutes

New Wine or Old?

A Traditional Vintage of Trinitarian Wine

Christians have been drinking a traditional vintage of trinitarian wine for quite a while now and many of us feel the time has finally come for something new. Maybe what we are thirsting for is really something so ancient that it just seems new to us. Something refreshing. Old dogmas and traditions don’t truly satisfy and we thirst for something better. Still, no one denies that there is something comforting and familiar about old wine. Maybe that’s why traditional dogma still maintains its “market share” in spite of its failure to touch the heart or enlighten the mind.  This was made clear by Jesus when He said, “No one having drunk old wine desires new because he says the old is better”.

Old Wine is on the Shelf Everywhere

One thing that can be said for the old wine of trinitarian dogma is that it is on the shelf everywhere and is easy to find. Because there is so much of it the price is pretty good too! All you have to do is attend a church that espouses the dogma of the trinity and you’ll probably feel that you’re in pretty good shape spiritually. That’s not a high cost at all and it’s no wonder that this kind of old wine is so popular and well known. The liquor stores (churches) that still sell the trinity carry on as if everything is just fine but in the words of Bob Dylan, “The times they are a changing.”

Something is Changing Indeed!

When you consider the long arc of history it starts to become apparent that something is changing indeed! Trinitarian theologians bemoan the fact that we are living in a “post-Chalcedonian age”. That’s just a polite way of saying that Christians aren’t as impressed (intimidated perhaps?) by church councils, creeds and the doctrine of the trinity as they were in earlier times. This development is regarded as catastrophic in some circles but we think it’s a good thing. Many Christians in our time have re-discovered a very ancient wine that knows nothing of three divine “persons” or the heady intellectualism of platonic philosophy. Instead, we proclaim a gloriously simple gospel that insists on One God and His only begotten (and human) son, Jesus Christ our Messiah.

Although the ancient wine we offer at wonderfultheology.com may not be widely available in mainline churches it is readily available on the pages of your Bible. Take a look with fresh eyes and take a drink with your old thirst and see for yourself.

Here’s New Wine Worth Drinking

There is but one God. He is the God of Israel and He is the God of Jesus. His only begotten Son, the man Christ Jesus was born of a virgin and tempted in all points like we are. He was one of us! He was filled with the Spirit of God without measure and went about doing good. The rulers of Israel hated Him because He defied their man-made traditions and so they crucified Him but God raised Him from the dead and now He sits at the right hand of God. The glorious offer He makes to us is the promise and blessing of immortality. This understanding of God and Christ is new wine worth drinking and these are things worth thinking about. Why not take a sip and see for yourself?

Copyright 2023 by Bob Shutes

Welcome to Wonderful Theology!

We don’t know by what invisible pathway or providence you have come to this website but we are glad you’re here. There is something quite wonderful happening in the Kingdom of God and somehow we are all destined to have a part in it. God has been removing the scales of tradition from our eyes and we are finally beginning to see! At long last, we have started to read the scriptures about God and Christ, the Father and the Son clearly.  We are glad to be freed from the distorting lens of philosophy that has clouded the church’s vision for so many long centuries. God has been gracious to us… and we are thankful.

This is an easy site to navigate and you will find just about everything you need in our Wonderful Index. If this is your first time visiting please take the time to read things in the order presented. We have tried to follow a “line upon line and precept upon precept approach” and this will give you a much clearer understanding of the Biblical vision of God we present.

Etiquette is so important! Please know that we insist on good manners and gentle Christian spirits. We welcome your comments, opinions and good-natured conversation! We are repelled by nastiness, sanctimonious self-righteousness and ugly, threatening or insulting comments. Please try to stay civil or you will be banished and exiled from this site for eternity… unless of course you repent, and in that case we’ll be happy to welcome you back.

We look forward to your feedback and involvement! Please share a link to wonderfultheology.com with your friends and enemies and anyone else you can think of. If you would like to be notified when something new is added to this site please enter your email address on the Newsletter and Updates link on the home page. If you do that we’ll be sure to keep you up to date on things.