What’s Love Got to Do With It? 

Iran, Israel, and the Trinity

“God is love”^[1]

“[T]he love of many will grow cold.^[2]

TruthXchange’s mission rests on the reality that Paul explains in Romans 1:  The truth is suppressed in unrighteousness and exchanged for the lie – all because the creation – instead of the Creator – is worshiped and served.^[3]  Now, with bombs blasting and missiles maneuvering between Iran and Israel, so what? Does the theological dynamic of creation-worship inform us about this ongoing protracted geo-political conflict?  Indeed, it does.  Let’s get to the gist.

The key binary in all reality consists of the Creator/creature distinction.  Dr. Jones labels this “Twoism”, teaching us that fundamentally only two religions exist.^[4]  Either people worship the true and living God, or they worship the creation or some aspect of it.  Paul’s point rejects the notion that some vague deity or general theism, or some “unmoved mover” is in play.  Rather Paul, in describing this fundamental binary, champions the God of the Bible. 

Query:  Who is this true and living God? Paul’s theology robustly sets forth the true and living Triune God, one God, three persons:  Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.^[5] Does this matter to cultural apologetics?  If so, how so?^[6]  In particular, does the Trinity help us understand the mid-East conflict?

First, the scriptures teach us that we become like what we worship.^[7]  When a society and hence a culture is “given over” to idolatry, that culture will reflect its dominant idols.  Theology and ethics correlate.^[8]

Second, Iran is modern day Persia.  Though having a history of Zoroastrianism, Iran today is 95% Shia Muslim and in fact is a Sharia theocratic State. What do we know about Islam, particularly its deity?  What we know is that this deity is eternally and absolutely singular and not Trinitarian.  In fact, while Islam acknowledges Jesus, they deny His deity in toto.  This matters spiritually, of course, but also culturally.  Why?

The Triune God is not a “principle”, a force, or “the guy upstairs.”  The one true God is a self-existent eternal community; He is both one and many.  This Triune God, from eternity past, “communes” in loving inter-relatedness within the Godhead, sometimes described as a divine dance, or perichoresis.^[9]  But there’s more.  The God of the bible is ontically love.^[10]  His very being, His essence, is love.  God does love and He IS love. He can’t not love.

Third, contrast this with the Islamic deity:  solo, siloed, and existentially singular in being and nature.  This means that fundamentally, because love requires both a lover and an object to love, this deity is not – and cannot be – love ontically.  Love stands outside this deity and this means that if it can ever love, it’s dependent on the creation to do so. Put differently, with Islam, love is not an inherent divine attribute.^[11]  The Islamic deity needs the creation to experience love.

Accordingly, if Islam rises to dominance in a culture, the people will increasingly become like what they worship:  If the dominant deity inherently lacks love, the people will – over time – become increasingly loveless.  The more they get to “know” this deity, the less loving they will become.  Great commitment to this sort of deity diminishes the worshipper’s love – this is part of what is suppressed in unrighteosness.

What do we see in Islamic nations?  Perpetual conflict, hatred, antisemitism, misogyny, envy, the cheapening of human life, and war.  Possessing abundant fossil fuels and wealth doesn’t make a people loving; the true God does.^[12]   Notice how Jesus connects false prophets – false or distorted religions – with diminishing love:

And many false prophets will arise and lead many astray. And because lawlessness will be increased, the love of many will grow cold.^[13]

This sobering truth is too often overlooked or ignored.  We often panic in fear during times of political conflict.  Yet, panic, pouting, and paranoia are not fruit of the Spirit.  Cultures fundamentally do not “rise and fall” but rather, are judged and are sovereignly held accountable by the Triune God according to their degree of idolatry.^[14]  How can we avoid the trap of loveless fear generated by political danger and instability?  By recalling the antidote to fear:  Perfect love,^[15] stemming from the only God who is love.  May this One who is Love dominant the creation and bless us:

Now to him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you blameless before the presence of his glory with great joy, to the only God, our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, dominion, and authority, before all time and now and forever. Amen.^[16]

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[1][1] 1 John 4:8b

[2] Matt. 24:11, 12

[3] Romans 1:18, 25

[4] Peter Jones, Only Two Religions, https://www.amazon.com/Only-Two-Religions-Peter-Jones/dp/1567695248

[5] Consider how Paul organizes his epistles to the Ephesians and Colossians – they explicitly convey a Trinitarian dialogue and structure.

[6] Plumbing the depths of the Holy Trinity theoretically, let alone applying them, would take 100 lifetimes, plus eternity.  The simple point made here is that worldviews matter to culture.

[7] Ps. 115:8; 135:18; cf., 2 Cor. 3:18

[8] This is Paul’s overarching point in Romans 1:18-32:  false worship leads to unrighteous practices, which get “approved” or codified in the culture.

[9] For a mind-expanding and doxological treatment of this, consider Colin Gunton’s The One, The Three and the Many:  God, Creation, and the Culture of Modernity (1993)

[10] 1 John 4:8, 16

[11] Muslims claim their god is a source of love, but rationally, this deity cannot BE love and does not love outside of the creation; love requires an object.

[12] While it’s certainly true many Muslims love their families, it’s despite their theology and over time, if a loveless deity comes to cultural prominence, their love will grow weak.

[13] Matt. 24:11, 12

[14] Herbert Scholossberg, Idols for Destruction:  Christian Faith and Its Confrontation with American Society (1983)

[15] 1 John 4:18: “Perfect love casts out fear”

[16] Jude 24, 25