One God Report

This episode is part 3 of my response to an article posted by Answers in Genesis, which reviewed several of my blogposts about the supposed “deity of Christ”. Part 1 of my response is called “Jesus Can’t be a Mere Man” Part 2 is called ““Jesus HAD TO BE a (Mere) Man, the Bible Tells Me So” In this episode I review three claims in the Answers in Genesis, all which involve verses from the  Gospel of John that Trinitarians believe are evidence that Jesus is literally God, or more specifically, one member of a three-person god.  In each case, the Trinitarian arguments are weighed and found wanting. The topics and verses and time stamps are as follows: 0:00 – Review and Introduction to the current episode 2:59 – “Did Jesus become a Man?” John 1:1 and John 1:14 12:26 – “Did Jesus Pre-exist”? John 17:5, a recollection of a divine being or expression of trust of the man Christ Jesus? 21:48 – “Did Thomas Call Jesus God”, John 20:28. My Lord and my God, Trinitarians get it Wrong. Related links:  AIG article: https://answersingenesis.org/who-is-god/the-trinity/refuting-unitarian-errors-deity-jesus/?fs=e&s=cl&fbclid=IwAR0LP267XtZkSNsjvNcDzEhyqe7Tk0SI4YSuyRq6PtKseenb1QIYoKgG224  “Jesus Can’t be a Mere Man”  https://spotifyanchor-web.app.link/e/UgADHWPAGub  “Jesus HAD TO BE a (Mere) Man, the Bible Tells Me So”  https://spotifyanchor-web.app.link/e/Uor1bWPAGub  “The Word Became Flesh: Why John 1:14 does NOT say that Jesus Became Man”  https://landandbible.blogspot.com/2021/01/the-word-became-flesh-why-john-114-does.html  If Jesus Pre-existed, He wasn’t Human  https://landandbible.blogspot.com/2019/06/if-jesus-pre-existed-he-wasnt-human.html  My Lord and My God, Trinitarians Get it Wrong  https://landandbible.blogspot.com/2019/12/my-lord-and-my-god-trinitarians-get-it.html  Jesus is Worshipped So He Must be God  https://landandbible.blogspot.com/2021/06/jesus-is-worshipped-so-he-must-be-god.html  Did Jesus Raise Himself from the Dead  https://landandbible.blogspot.com/2020/04/did-jesus-raise-himself-from-dead-john.html  Tips for Talking to Trinitarians about John 1 (Part 1)  https://spotifyanchor-web.app.link/e/7i3bNXPAGub  #Deityofchrist, #trinity, #gospelofjohn, #john1, #100%man, #answersingenesis, #billschlegel, #simonturpin, #sonofgod

In this episode I show that in contrast to the deity of Christ claim that Jesus couldn’t be a mere man, the Bible declares explicitly that Jesus had to be a real (mere) human being.  It is necessary that Jesus was and is a real (mere) human being.  And, what God did through the real (mere) human being, one man, is sufficient to reconcile humanity to God.  In contrast and contradiction to the Trinitarian deity of Christ claim, the Bible declares that as sin and death came through one man, even so God’s grace, gift of righteousness, and the resurrection from the dead come through one man -- Not through a god-man.  Scriptures in this episode:  John 8:40: “I am a man who told you the truth that I heard from God…”  Acts 2:22: "Men of Israel, hear these words: Jesus of Nazareth, a man attested to you by God with mighty works and wonders and signs that God did through him in your midst, as you yourselves know-  Acts 2:36 Let all the house of Israel therefore know for certain that God has made him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom you crucified  Romans 5:15: "For if many died through the trespass of one man, much more have the grace of God and the free gift by the grace of that one man Jesus Christ abounded for many."  Romans 5:19: "For as by one man's disobedience many were made sinners, so by one man's obedience many will be made righteous." 1 Corinthians 15:21: “For since death came through a man, the resurrection of the dead also came through a man”  1 Timothy 2:4-5: God "…desires all men to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth. For there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, a man Christ Jesus"  Genesis 3:4 But the serpent said to the woman, "You will not surely die.  Acts 17:31: “because He (God) has fixed a day on which he will judge the world in righteousness by a man whom He has appointed; and of this H e has given assurance to all by raising him from the dead.  Psalm 8: “What is man that You are mindful of him, or the son of man, that You care for him? You have made him for a little while lower than the angels, You have crowned him with glory and honor” (Hebrews 2:6-7).  Related Links: AIG article: https://answersingenesis.org/who-is-god/the-trinity/refuting-unitarian-errors-deity-jesus/?fs=e&s=cl&fbclid=IwAR0LP267XtZkSNsjvNcDzEhyqe7Tk0SI4YSuyRq6PtKseenb1QIYoKgG224  Bill Schlegel Land and Bible blog:  https://landandbible.blogspot.com/ Jesus had to be God to Atone for Sin?  Satellite Bible Atlas https://www.bibleplaces.com/satellite-bible-atlas-schlegel/  Son of God in the Bible https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WaDElO7wU_8  #Deityofchrist, #trinity, #answersingenesis, #billschlegel, #simonturpin. #sonofgod, #mereman

In this episode I begin to review claims made in an article written by Answers in Genesis-UK Executive Director, Speaker and Author, Simon Turpin. The article is called: Refuting Unitarian Errors Regarding the Deity of Jesus: How can we respond to claims that Jesus is a mere human? The AiG article reacts to some of my blogposts at Land and Bible. In turn, in this podcast episode I wade through some of the biblical references that the AiG article presents as evidence for the “deity of Christ”. The verses don’t say what deity of Christ believers think or want them to say. The focus of this episode is on the unbiblical, indeed satanic spirit that claims that Jesus can’t be a man, a “mere” man or “simple” man at the right hand of God. In contrast to the deity of Christ claim, the Bible claims that a man, a human person (not a God or a god/man or an angel) has been raised from the dead and exalted to God’s right hand. This fact gives humanity hope and knowledge of the love, concern, and care that God has for humankind, and the honor that God gives to humankind. God "…desires all men to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth. For there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, a man Christ Jesus" (1 Timothy 2:4-5). “What is man that You art mindful of him, or the son of man, that You care for him? You have made him for a little while lower than the angels, You have crowned him with glory and honor” (Hebrews 2:6-7). - Related Links: AIG article: https://answersingenesis.org/who-is-god/the-trinity/refuting-unitarian-errors-deity-jesus/?fs=e&s=cl&fbclid=IwAR0LP267XtZkSNsjvNcDzEhyqe7Tk0SI4YSuyRq6PtKseenb1QIYoKgG224 Bill Schlegel Land and Bible blog: https://landandbible.blogspot.com/ Some Relevant Land and Bible (Schlegel) blogposts: https://landandbible.blogspot.com/2019/10/he-is-part-of-cult.html https://landandbible.blogspot.com/2021/01/the-word-became-flesh-why-john-114-does.html Finding Evidence for the Deity of Christ in the Old Testament is not a New Testament Exercise https://landandbible.blogspot.com/2021/12/finding-evidence-for-deity-of-christ-in.html Satellite Bible Atlas https://www.bibleplaces.com/satellite-bible-atlas-schlegel/ Son of God in the Bible https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WaDElO7wU_8 #Deityofchrist, #trinity, #answersingenesis, #billschlegel, #simonturpin. #sonofgod

In this episode we focus on John 1:9-18. In Part 1 one we saw that “in the beginning” of John 1:1, while being a parallel to the Genesis creation, refers directly not to the Genesis creation but to the new beginning that God brings about through the man Jesus, who is metaphorically called “the Word”. In Part 2 we focused on how God in the statement “and the Word was God” is the Father. In this Gospel Jesus declared consistently that it was the Father who dwelt in him who did His, the Father’s works. Never in this Gospel is there a “God the Son” or a “God the Word” in Jesus. Time stamps for the current episode, Part 3: 00:17  Review of Parts 1 and 2, and introduction to Part 3 02:23  John 1_9-13, “the world” is not planet earth or the universe. The “world” that came to be in John’s Gospel is a segment of human society. Verses 9-13 relate to the coming to be, the birth, of God’s children, a new community of God. 04:45  John 1_14, “the Word became flesh”. Is this a statement about “incarnation” or a transformation of essence? Is trans-naturism or trans-essence any more a biblical idea than trans-genderism is? Perhaps these ideas are of the same spirit? Consideration of what the word “became” means. The translation, “So the Word was flesh”. Or, if a change or difference is implied, perhaps a change in method. Hebrews 1_1-2 – God spoke in different ways in past times, but in these latter days He has spoken by a son. That is, by a human being, flesh. John 1_14 begins a new paragraph which is a review and expansion upon information already given. In verses 1-13 the man Jesus (the Word, Light) has been compared to the man John the Baptizer, who was not the Light. A short statement about the conception or birth of Jesus (no where else detailed in John’s Gospel) is out of place after a summary of the ministries of the Baptizer and John has been presented. The glory of the Word is from the Father, or originates from the Father. 16:18  John 1_15, More John the Baptizer and Comparison with Jesus! More evidence that the Prologue is not about the Genesis creation. 16:55  John 1_17, Jesus parallel to Moses, through whom both came good things. Moses and Jesus were the channels for these good things, but not the source. The source was God. 17:11  John 1_18 Is the Triune god in John 1? Why do Trinitarians appeal immediately to John 1 when the God of John 1 is not Triune? The “deity of Christ” appeal to John 1. But in John 1, the Word is subordinate to, and dependent upon his God. The Word is not co-eternal with God. The Word has an origin outside of itself. No one has ever seen God, but thousands of people say Jesus Christ. Textual variants of John 1_18, in each case Jesus (the son, unique one, begotten god) who is at the Father’s side, is subordinate to the God. 23:32  The context of John’s entire Gospel considered. An interpretation of John 1 must be consistent with the entire Gospel. Jesus is a man who told the truth that he heard from God (8:40), who did nothing on his own authority or initiative (5:19, 5:30, 8:28, 8:44). He differentiates himself from God (14:1, etc.). Jesus has a God, the same God as the apostles (20:17). Jesus in the Gospel of John said the Father is the only true God (17:3). The author of the Gospel stated that the reason he recorded the signs Jesus did was so that his readers would believe that Jesus was the Christ, the Son of God, that is, not God (20:31, 1:49). 23:48  Summary and Conclusions 31:01 Parallel between Paul in Acts 26_23 and John’s Prologue. In the man Jesus, specifically in his life as being the firstborn from the dead, there is light to Israel and the Gentiles. As in John’s Prologue, life is first, which gives light (which is the opposite order in Genesis).

Tips for Talking to Trinitarians about John 1 (Part 2) The Word was God: what God? In the previous podcast, Part 1, we asked what “beginning” is directly being referred to in John 1:1, “in the beginning”. If this beginning refers to the new beginning that God is bringing about through life and ministry of the man Jesus of Nazareth, then Trinitarian or “deity of Christ” speculation about a second god-figure is misplaced and wrong. In this podcast we examine closer John 1:1 “and the Word was with God and the Word was God”. The focus of “and the Word was God” is, which God, or who? Trinitarians and “deity of Christ” believers insist that it was “God the Son”, or “God the Word” in Jesus. But this claim explicitly contradicts Jesus and the author of the Gospel of John who declare it was the Father in Jesus. If “God” in the phrase “the Word was God” is the Father, Trinitarianism and “deity of Christ” speculation is dead. Time stamps: 00:18 Additional follow-up comments about “in the beginning” en arche in Greek. 02:21 Introduction to the current podcast 03:28 All “deity of Christ” interpretations of Scripture passages attempt to eliminate the human person, Jesus the Christ from Nazareth. 05:02 The Word was With God. Parallels to Moses. Contrast with John the Baptist. The Logos (Word) is differentiated from God (not just “the Father”) two times in the first two verses of John’s Gospel. 07:21 The Word was God. Is this an ontological statement about the deity of a second God figure? Trinitarians change the meaning of “God” in John 1:1, even though the first occurence is separated from the second occurrence only by the word “and” kai. For Trinitarians, “God” in John 1:1c can not be the Father. 11:12 God is the Father in the Gospel of John, and in John 1;1c 12:19 Who is God in the Gospel of John? The Father. The Gospel says that it is the Father in Jesus, John 10_38, 14_9-10 (14_9-20). 16:31 The Word was God the Father, in action - God the Father at work. 17:26 Using the Bible, the Word of God, as in illustration of “the Word was God”. 18:21 The “Logos was God” means “God the Father in action”. The Father’s presence, power, manifestation, and the Father being represented (agency). 24:34 The tendency of Gentiles to understand “was God” as relating to essence or being. 25:35 The Word is not the source of creation or redemptive regeneration. The Father is the source of His word. The Word is the channel or instrument. 26:08 Confirmation in passages like 2 Cor. 5_18-19 that God the Father was at work in Christ. 26:56 Reasons why the human person Jesus is called the Word. 30:15 The Logos (Jesus the Christ) is compared to Moses in John’s prologue. Neither Moses nor Jesus were the original source of what they brought, but were channels. The Torah came through Moses. Grace and truth came through Jesus the Christ. But Jesus was not the original source of grace and truth. 31:31 Summary and Conclusion

In this episode I give some tips on discussing John 1 with Trinitarians. The man Jesus the Christ is called the Word in John 1:1 because through him God is bringing about new human life, the renewed creation. "The beginning" of John 1:1, while being a parallel to Genesis creation, is not directly describing the Genesis creation. The topic of the Gospel is not the creation of the heavens and the earth, dry land and seas, etc., but the redemption and renewal of humans that comes through the man Jesus Christ. There is no need to speculate about another “second” divine figure present and involved with the Genesis creation. Notes for this episode: “In the beginning” In the Gospel of John “the beginning” refers to the beginning of the ministry of Jesus (John 8:25, 15:27, 16:4). The other Gospels have a “beginning” that is also associated with the beginning of Jesus and his ministry (Mark 1:1, Luke 1:1-2, Matthew 1:1, cf. Acts 1:1, 1:22-23) The phrase “in the beginning” must be interpreted in its context. Other places where the exact same phrase, “in the beginning” is used in the NT but in which is does not refer to the Genesis creation: Acts 11:15 “As I began to speak, the Holy Spirit fell on them just as on us at/in the beginning.” Phil. 4:15, “in the beginning of the Gospel, when I left Macedonia”. In 1 John 1:1 the beginning concerning the word of life involved something and someone the apostles heard, saw and touched, the man Jesus. It makes sense that God is doing something with and in Jesus that has continuity with what God has done in the past, but is “new” with Jesus. New beginning, New Creation John 1 is about the coming to be of new life, new individual and corporate human life, not about the creation of the heavens and the earth, the seas, dry land, plants and animals. In John 1, the man Jesus Christ is the one through whom new life comes to be, through whom new men and women are born. Evidence that John 1 is not about Genesis creation, but about God’s bringing about new life in the man Jesus: 1. “that which came to be in him was life (1:3b-4a). The subject of what came to be is not seas, dry land, plants, animals, planets, stars, sun, etc. But human life, individually and corporately. “corporately” because the word “world” in 1:9-10, is not planet earth. It is a word which means a segment of human society. John 1 is about life for humans, how a person can be “born of God”, and to be part of the family of God (1:12-13). 2. “life was the light of men” Although Genesis creation language is being intentionally used, this is not Genesis creation life and light. In Genesis, light comes first and then life. In John 1:4, life comes first, in which is light for all men. 3. John the Baptist in vs. 6-9, 15, and a comparison in vs. 1-2. The whole prologue can be understood as a clarification of the relationship between the man Jesus and John the Baptizer. The rest of John 1 as well clarifies the relationship of John the Baptizer and Jesus. 4. Parallels with other Gospels “beginning”, and with Paul (Col. 3:12-18) and Revelation (1:5, 3:14) describing Jesus as being “the firstborn from the dead, the beginning of God’s creation”. If John 1 is about the redemption, the new beginning that God is bringing about in and through the man Christ Jesus, there is no need to speculate about a second divine figure or second God who was involved in the Genesis creation. Next episode we plan to look at how to interpret statements like John 1:1 “the Word was God” from the new creation interpretation perspective. Links: UCA Conference, October 13-15, 2022, Lawrenceville, OH https://www.unitarianchristianalliance.org/conference/ #newcreation, #gospelofjohn, #deityofchrist, #unitarianchristianalliance, #biblicalunitarian, #billschlegel

Many Trinitarians turn to John chapter 1 for evidence that Jesus is God and that therefore somehow God is a Trinity. But does John 1 describe God as a Trinity? Are any of the Trinitarian claims about the Triune god presented in John 1? To investigate the Trinitarian claims about John 1, we use the chapter called “A Master Piece: the Prologue of John” from Dr. James White’s book The Forgotten Trinity. Dr. White thinks that John 1 gives evidence that God is Triune. But we will see that none of the characteristics with which Dr. White defines the Trinity are found in John 1. We suggest a better way to interpret John’s opening verses. John is intentionally appropriating language from Genesis 1, but is describing the new creation of God in and through the man Christ Jesus. Web resources mentioned in this podcast: See this link for an analysis of some of the Greek questions in John’s Prologue, and how questions still remain even after the Greek is considered: Another God in the Gospel of John? A Linguistic Analysis of John 1:1 and 1:18 https://brill.com/view/journals/hbth/44/2/article-p141_2.xml?fbclid=IwAR31v93xlcEfLNx3xnf3izHNFCOlduk9HT8ISW9ckT8BuxIHz7xTT_JHfBg (Biblical) Unitarian Christian Alliance conference, Oct. 13-15, 2022 https://www.unitarianchristianalliance.org/conference/ #DeityofChrist, #Trinity, #Gospel of John, #JamesWhite, #ForgottenTrinity, #John1,

In this episode I interviewed students and staff at the youth conference of the Church of God General Conference. The conference, called Fuel is held once a year and occurred July 17-22 at the campus of North Manchester University in North Manchester, Indiana. It is a fun, exciting time when One God believing students from various US States meet, are encouraged and challenged by each other and by the conference staff. Maybe you know someone who should attend next year? I hope you will be blessed by listening in to the excitement in the voices of the students and staff as the next generation learns that Yahweh is our God. He is out God forever and ever. - Resources: Original music: Tony Joe White Polk Salad Annie Church of God General Conference https://coggc.org/ Turning Point Youth Ministries (of Church of God General Conference) http://tpym18wp.abc-coggc.org/?fbclid=IwAR1lSMy68c2qhWZxGyRQq0dqU0BvjDOHtADkbpM4_vTwo4R9LtDVneBW4KE Atlanta Bible College https://www.atlantabiblecollege.com/?fbclid=IwAR3PJ5SqX_4xJEm_d9Q1oVm_M8oB9dy5mvJq1nZNzOwPH_WtL47p2e0QvJo Unitarian Christian Alliance Podcast (Mark Cain) https://podcast.unitarianchristianalliance.org/ Restitutio Podcast (Sean Finnegan) https://restitutio.org/ #Christianyouthcamp, #trinity, #deityofchrist, #fuel

As a former teacher in a Trinitarian Christian University, I did not know how and when Trinitarian scholars think the Trinity was revealed. But I wasn’t alone. Most Christians, including pastors and Bible teachers, don’t know either. In this podcast: 1. According to Trinitarian scholars, the Trinity is not revealed and not verbally described in either the Old Testament or the New Testament. See also One God Report podcast #72 “Is the Trinity Revealed in the Bible? If so, Where”. 2. How and When the Trinity was Revealed (according to Trinitarian scholars). 3. The Trinitarian theory of the Trinity’s revelation directly contradicts the Book of Acts. 4. Why is there no opposition recorded in the New Testament to the new Trinitarian understanding of who God is? 5. The “new revelation” idea contradicts the work of God’s spirit throughout Old Testament times. 6. The “new revelation” idea presents a low view of Scriptural authority, and a low view of Jesus and the apostles as communicators of who God is. The Trinitarian tradition is elevated above the Word of God. 7. The coming of Jesus and the holy spirit does not mean that God is a triune being. A triad is not a trinity. 8. The Trinitarian claim is an effort to explain why the Triune God is not revealed or described in the Scriptures; but, the effort fails miserably and is a mis-interpretation of the coming of the Messiah Jesus and the sending of God’s spirit at Pentecost. James White, "Look in the gutter between Malachi and Matthew": https://youtu.be/C-2nYJHXj60?t=226 #jameswhite, #fredsanders, #trinity, #deityofchrist, #bible

Trinitarian theologians have insisted that God is one by claiming that the Trinity is three persons in one essence (White, The Forgotten Trinity, 24; Sanders, The Triune God, 121). This is supposedly how three can be one. James White, a modern Trinitarian apologist, says that the Trinity is three whos (persons) in one what (essence). But this description of the Trinity given by Trinitarians directly contradicts and testifies against their other core belief drawn that God became flesh. If God, or any person of the one God, became flesh, then God has two natures. Trinitarianism has created a contradiction between its two core doctrines: 1. God is one because they (or it) are one essence. 2. God became a second essence. Trinitarians insist their god has only one nature, while insisting their god has two natures. Which is it? Are we to believe that God has one nature or two natures? Biblical theology and Christology should not be a magic trick. “Look! One nature. Now look, two natures! See, one essence! Now two essences!” If God the Son took on flesh, how many natures does the Trinity have? I’m not asking about how many natures “God the Son” has, but how many natures does the tri-personal god have? The standard explanation for 1600 years has been that the Trinitarian god is three persons in one essence? That definition rejects the idea that God became flesh. That definition also denies the humanity of Jesus. When talking about God, the tendency for Trinitarianism is to forget about or remove the human nature from God. If the Trinity is “three persons in one essence”, Jesus is no longer flesh. Even the abstract “humanity” of Jesus is eliminated. By its very own definition of who or what the Trinity is, Trinitarianism eliminates the “humanity”, the “flesh” of Jesus the Messiah. If  one member of a godhead became flesh, then God has two natures and the Trinitarian claim that God is one essence fails. Trinitarianism is also an attack on the personal-ness of God, an attack on the Fatherhood of God. The claim "three persons in one essence" means the one God is not a personal Father, but is rather an "it" and "essence", or a "force". The one God of Trinitarianism is not a person, but an it. #trinity, #deityofchrist, #jameswhite