REWIND: God Without Passions with Samuel Renihan

You may need a snickers, but God doesn’t. Listen and see why that is good news for us and helps us trust God.

About the Guest(s):
Samuel Renihan is the guest spotlighted in this episode. With a deep commitment to theology, Sam serves as one of the pastors at Trinity Reformed Baptist Church in La Mirada, California. He possesses an academic background with a focus on Spanish language and literature for his undergrad followed by an MDiv at Westminster in Escondido, capped with a PhD from the Free University of Amsterdam. He is dedicated to exploring Baptist confessional theology and history, offering rich insights into the doctrines that shape faith and practice. Sam is also a family man, married to Kim with a son named Owen, and he has an intriguing musical taste influenced by ancient folk stories from Finland.
Episode Summary:
In this enriching episode of Renewalcast, Coalt Robinson sits down with Pastor Samuel Renihan to delve into the nuanced and complex doctrine of divine impassibility. The discussion aims to unravel the intricacies of this crucial theological concept and its implications for understanding God's unchangeable nature. The conversation opens doors to a greater comprehension of how divine attributes provide comfort and assurance within the Christian faith.
Renihan articulates the essence of divine impassibility, emphasizing its role in characterizing God as unchanged and unchangeable by external or internal forces, particularly in terms of emotions. This leads into an exploration of the impact of such a doctrine on our interpretation of scripture and the nature of God's commitments, such as the promise of unfailing love and mercy. Furthermore, Renihan highlights the importance of balancing the understanding of God's love with his justice, stressing the immutable and perfect nature of both attributes.
Key Takeaways:
Divine impassibility asserts that God is not subject to change, either externally or internally, especially concerning emotions.
Passages that seem to suggest God experiences emotional change are interpreted through metaphoric language contextualized by other scriptures affirming God's immutable nature.
Impassibility does not negate God's affective attributes but rather nuances them as perfections integral to his essence – e.g., God as love itself rather than possessing the quality of love.
The doctrine provides reassurance of the steadfastness of God's promises, both in the unchanging nature of his love for the redeemed and the certainty of his justice towards the wicked.
The conversation around impassibility touches on practical aspects of faith, from the assurance of salvation to the understanding of God's discipline and just wrath.
Notable Quotes:
"Impassibility is that God's not passable. He can't be changed by outside forces, external forces, nor does he act upon himself to change himself in any way."
"His love is impassable, and his love will always be perfect and always be marvelous and always at the full for his people, which assures us in so many ways."
"…the gospel is not about changing God's mind. The gospel is about changing you."
"God's justice can do nothing else but approve of a righteous object. That same justice to us is mercy and kindness, whereas to the wicked it is wrath and anger."
"Even the afflictions that God permits in our lives, he does so with a loving purpose of sanctifying us…"
Resources:
James Dolzal's book, "All That Is in God"
Sam Renihan's own book, "God Without Passions: A Reader"
We invite you to listen to the full episode for a more thorough understanding and appreciation of the doctrine of divine impassibility as Samuel Renihan unpacks its profound implications for the Christian faith. Stay tuned to Renewalcast for more thoughtful and enlightening discussions on matters of theology and practice.