Beholding the Wonder of the Trinity: A Review of Bruce A. Ware, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit: Relationship, Roles, and Relevance. Wheaton: Crossway, 2005.

Those who read Bruce Ware's writings have come to expect what the very best in evangelical scholarship on the doctrine of God has to offer: sound biblical interpretation, compelling argumentation, theological clarity, historical awareness, practical application, strong convictions and conclusions—and these with a passionate but pastoral tone. Father, Son, and Holy Spirit does not disappoint such expectation. Ware's contributions on various aspects of the doctrine of God include an incisive critique of Open Theism in God's Lesser Glory (2000) and a constructive proposal of God's providence in God's Greater Glory (2004). In Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, Ware invites his readers to behold the wonder of the Trinity, especially in terms of the relationships the members share with each other, the roles that each member fulfills, and the relevance of trinitarian doctrine for human relationships.

The book is comprised of six chapters, including an introductory discussion of the importance of trinitarian doctrine in chapter 1, a historical overview of the development of trinitarian doctrine in chapter 2, an exposition of the Trinity in chapters 3-5, and a closing consideration of the practical relevance of trinitarian doctrine for the home and the church in chapter 6.

Setting the foundation for what follows in the book, Ware rhetorically asks,

Would God have chosen to reveal himself to us as the God who is Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, unless he knew that this would be important to our understanding of him and of our faith? Must it not be the case that God cares greatly that we ‘get it,' that we see him for who he is? And must it not matter to our own lives whether or not we understand him as the triune God that he is? (13).

These questions demand our affirmation that since God has revealed himself as Father, Son, and Spirit, it is not only our duty to understand who he is but also our joy to behold the mystery and the majesty of our triune God. So, Ware's purpose is "to examine especially the ways in which the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit relate to one another, how they relate to us, and what difference this makes in our lives" (14-15).

Chapter 2 offers a brief historical overview of trinitarian formulation. Ware notes that the development of trinitarian doctrine is based on both scriptural monotheism (24-28) and scriptural trinitarianism (29-35). That is, the biblical data affirms that God is one as well as three; or better said, God is three in one. The early church recognized both scriptural emphases, but as they sought to develop further a doctrine of the Trinity, theological error and controversy ensued, as the well-known Arian controversy demonstrates (36-37). While these controversies helped clarify the deity of the Son and of the Spirit, the early church's formulation culminated in the work of Augustine, who "proposed that we understand the triune nature of God in such a way that we distinguish the senses in which God is one and three, respectively. God is one in essence or nature, but God is three in person" (41). Augustine's proposal has been maintained as orthodoxy throughout church history as Christians of every generation seek to understand our triune God.

The heart of the book is found in chapters 3-5, where Ware delineates his understanding of the relationships and roles within the Trinity. All three chapters begin with the same introduction:

There is one and only one God, eternally existing and fully expressed in three Persons, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Each member of the Godhead is equally God, each is eternally God, and each is fully God—not three gods but three Persons of the one Godhead. Each Person is equal in essence as each possesses fully the identically same, eternal divine nature, yet each is also an eternal and distinct personal expression of the one undivided divine nature.

Because each Person of the Trinity is equally and fully God, Ware argues that what distinguishes them from each other are the particular relationships between them and the roles they occupy with respect to one another. What then are the relationships and roles that distinguish them?

Ware argues that the unique role of the Father is one of supreme authority in the Trinity, seen especially in the Bible's attestation to the Father as the "Grand Architect" and "Wise Designer" of creation, salvation, and consummation (46-53). The Father's paternal relationship to the Son and the Spirit signals the unique position of authority that belongs rightly and only to him. This position must not be taken to mean that the Father acts unilaterally in what he does, since he demonstrates a "profound divine humility" by working through the Son and the Spirit (55-59).

The Son, Ware argues, eternally submits himself under the Father's authority: "the Son in fact is the eternal Son of the eternal Father, and hence, the Son stands in a relationship of eternal submission under the authority of his Father" (71). This submission is seen in the incarnation and earthly mission of the Son (cf. John 8:28-29), in eternity past (cf. John 3:16-17; 6:38; Acts 2:23), and also in eternity future (cf. 1 Cor 15:24-28). The Son's submission to the Father is not one of compulsion or servitude, but one of love (cf. John 14:31); thus, submission to the Father and love for the Father are inseparable (86). What of the Son's relation to the Spirit? The Son's relationship to the Spirit is complex on account of the uniqueness of the reality of the incarnation. That is, Ware argues, the incarnate Son submits to the Spirit as a man in order to fulfill his role as the Spirit-anointed, Spirit-led Messiah (88-94). Yet, as the divine Son he has authority over the Spirit, evidenced by the Son's authority with the Father to send out the Spirit (94-98).

As for the Holy Spirit, Ware argues that the Spirit's unique role is to take the "background position" in the Trinity (104), since the Bible indicates that the Spirit does nothing on his own authority (cf. John 16:12-14). Thus, the important role of the Spirit is to carry out the work of the Father—including scriptural inspiration, regeneration, and sanctification-in order to glorify the Son (105-25).

Father, Son, and Holy Spirit has numerous strengths. Each chapter is saturated with Scripture, which is the primary strength of the book. Ware's commitment to the authority and sufficiency of the biblical text is evident in both his theological conclusions as well as practical applications.

Ware's ability to take the historical development and expression of orthodox trinitarianism and demonstrate its relevance for contemporary theology is an additional strength of this book. Part of showing the relevance of trinitarian doctrine is to address—as Ware does with conviction and clarity—the ways in which such doctrine come to bear on specific theological and practical issues today.

For example, Ware does not shy away from the hot button issues of authority and submission in the home and in the church. As noted above, Ware argues textually and theologically for the Father's authority and the Son's submission. In light of these claims, Ware defends a complementarian understanding of the roles and relationships between men and women in the home and in the church (138-51). For Ware, authority and submission are equally God-like qualities (137), and thus, they are manifested in human relationships since men and women are created in God's image. Those who consider themselves egalitarians will be challenged by Ware's argument, and Ware anticipates their objection:

It is not difficult to see why some find the Son's eternal submission to the Father an objectionable concept. For if the Son eternally submits to the Father, this would indicate that authority and submission are eternal realities. And if so, would it not stand to reason that when God creates the world he would fashion it in a way that reflects these eternal structures? And would it not make sense, then, that the authority-submission structures in marriage and in church leadership are meant to be reflections of the authority and submission in the relations of the Persons of the Godhead? But because some find the very notion of authority and submission objectionable—at least objectionable in these two spheres of human relationships—they clearly resist seeing this relational dynamic as true of the eternal relations within the Godhead (76-77).

Another strength of this book is found in Ware's pastoral and practical applications found in each chapter, and particularly in chapter 6. Among all his rich and helpful observations, Ware's discussion of learning from God what true fatherhood is like is especially insightful (60-63). For those who have had terrible experiences with their human fathers, Ware counsels not to abandon the biblical truth of God as Father (as many are doing in contemporary theology), but to allow its truth to heal and restore what has been lost as the result of sinful actions in earthly relationships.

Father, Son, and Holy Spirit is an important tool for pastors and teachers who want to challenge and instruct lay people or students in the doctrine of the Trinity. But even more, as is common among Ware's writings, this book deepens the reader's admiration for the triune God and leads one not only to think theologically about him, but also to respond doxologically to him.