Stanley Grenz’s Ecclesiology: Telic and Trinitarian

Abstract

At the turn of the millennium, leading evangelical theologian Stanley Grenz
sought to develop a comprehensive trinitarian theology that worked itself
out into the traditional categories of systematic theology, one of which was
ecclesiology, the doctrine of the church. While often overlooked by those
interacting with Grenz’s work, his ecclesiology took a unique shape
informed keenly by his trinitarian outlook. Simultaneously he remained
firmly imbedded in his evangelical and Baptist traditions, which enabled
him to begin developing an ecclesiology loyal to his tradition while
conversant with voices in the wider church. While plans to develop his
ecclesiology further were unrealized, since this topic received attention
throughout much of his career, what remains is not just a largely coherent
evangelical, Baptist ecclesiology, but one that is both oriented toward the
future as well as being perhaps the most determinedly trinitarian
ecclesiology offered by any North American evangelical in recent history.