There are so many different ways to illustrate the Trinity (the Tri-Unity of God) that it should not be difficult for every Christian to get at least some realization of it. While there is no sufficient analogy to completely explain God (Isaiah 40:18), how He can be one God (John 10:30) and yet three Persons at the same time (Matthew 3:16-17), the Bible does refer to God speaking things into existence (Genesis 1:24; Hebrews 11:3). And what He spoke was His Word, who is that Person of the Trinity who has become flesh in Jesus Christ (John 1:1,14; 1 Timothy 3:16, Luke 24:39). But God the Word existed even before God the Father spoke anything into existence. For all things created were created by God the Word (John 1:1-3, Colossians 1:16-17). And the original Greek word in John 1:1,14 for "Word" is "Logos" (G3056), which refers not only to spoken words, but also to any ordered thoughts. God has always had ordered thoughts, therefore God the Word has always existed.
So a human analogy for God would have God the Father as the mind, and God the Word as the ordered thoughts, speech, and writings (incarnate words) of that mind. God the Holy Spirit would then be analogous to the breath (spirit) which is inextricable from human speech, and also from ordered thoughts, in that a non-breathing person is dead and his brain has no thoughts. God the Holy Spirit (Acts 5:3-4) is one God with God the Father and God the Word because the Holy Spirit is the Spirit of the Father (Matthew 10:19-20 & Mark 13:11) and the Spirit of the Word (John 14:16-18, Romans 8:9). While an individual human is not three persons, the truth about God can still be grasped by looking at man's design. For man was made in God's image (Genesis 1:26). Just as an individual human has his word (Revelation 12:11) and his spirit (1 Thessalonians 5:23), so the one God has His Word (John 1:1) and His Spirit (Romans 8:9). But the one God is so infinitely greater than man (Isaiah 40:17) that the Word of God and the Spirit of God are distinct Persons within His single being.
Besides the analogy of a single human's mind, thoughts/speech/writings, and breath, the Trinity can be compared to the single sun's sphere, light, and heat. For the Father would be analogous to the sun's sphere, which is invisible to humans except for its visible light, which is analogous to the incarnate, visible Word (Colossians 1:15, John 14:9). And the sun is felt by humans via its invisible, infrared rays, which would be analogous to the Spirit. The Trinity can also be compared to water, which even though it is one substance, it can exist in three states of solid, liquid, and gas at the same time (such as in a water-pitcher two-thirds full with water and ice cubes, with water-vapor filling the top third of the pitcher). The Trinity can also be compared to space, which even though it is one area, it consists of three dimensions at the same time. The Trinity can also be compared to 1 x 1 x 1 = 1, or to 1a x 1b x 1c = 1abc.
~
(Re: So does God pray to Himself?)
Jesus Christ prays to God the Father (e.g. John 11:41-42) because even though Jesus is God (John 1:1,14), at the same time He is also human just like we are human (Hebrews 2:17). And so, as a human, He has a God and Father just like we do (John 20:17). Before Jesus became our eternally-human mediator/high priest (1 Timothy 2:5, Hebrews 2:17, Hebrews 7:24-26), and the only-begotten (only-born) Son of God (John 3:16), the only human ever born without any human father (Luke 1:34-35), He preexisted (John 17:5, John 8:58) from all eternity as God the Word (John 1:1,14; 1 Timothy 3:16). He has always been, and still is, even now in human flesh (Luke 24:39; 2 John 1:7), one God with the Father (John 10:30, John 20:28, Titus 2:13), equal in divinity with the Father (Philippians 2:6, Revelation 2:8b, Isaiah 44:6).
~
(Re: Must Christians believe that Jesus is both fully God and fully man?)
Yes, and Christians must not encourage those who claim to be Christians, yet deny the Biblical doctrine regarding Jesus Christ (2 John 1:7-11). Denying the doctrine of the full-divinity of Jesus is a serious problem, just as serious as denying the doctrine that He remains fully human, now and forever in the flesh (2 John 1:7, Luke 24:39, Hebrews 7:24-26, Hebrews 2:17; 1 Timothy 2:5). For denying either the full-divinity or the full-humanity of Jesus denies His ability to save us sinful humans from hell. For Jesus' human suffering during His Passion had to satisfy God the Father's justice (Isaiah 53:11, KJV), which requires an infinite amount of human suffering for sin (Matthew 25:46).
(See 1 John 2:2 below)
~
(Re: Can humans fathom God's *essence?)
Humans cannot fathom God's essence with regard to its magnitude and extension. For His essence is infinite (Psalms 147:5, Jeremiah 23:24; 1 Kings 8:27), while humans are finite. It is for this same reason that even all of humanity together is worth "less than nothing" compared with God (Isaiah 40:17, Daniel 4:35, Isaiah 2:22). But humans can fathom God's essence with regard to what it is. For they have been created by God in His image (Genesis 1:27). God's essence is existence (Exodus 3:14) and consciousness (spirit) (John 4:24). And it is in God's existence that humans have existence (Acts 17:28), just as it is in God's consciousness that humans have consciousness (John 1:9). So every human can fathom what God's essence is (Romans 1:20).
~
(Re: Is it true that the Old Testament does not show the deity of Christ?)
No, it is untrue, just like another mistaken claim made by non-Christian Judaism that nowhere did the Old Testament foretell the suffering and death of the Messiah/Christ for our sins, and His rising physically from the dead on the third day (Luke 24:46). Non-Christian Judaism makes these claims because it is unable to understand many of the Old Testament's teachings regarding the Messiah/Christ (2 Corinthians 3:14), just as before Christ came, no one could understand many of these teachings. For their true meanings were kept secret by God (Romans 16:25-26, Luke 18:34), and were first revealed to the apostles by Jesus Christ after His resurrection (Luke 24:44-47, Galatians 1:12), and then recorded in the New Testament.
Now Christians can know how perfectly the Old Testament shows the deity of Christ. Christ being uncreated, His having existed forever, from everlasting, is shown in Micah 5:2c (cf. John 1:1,14, John 8:58, Colossians 1:16-17). Christ being YHWH the Holy One, from everlasting, is shown in Habakkuk 1:12 (cf. Acts 3:14, Micah 5:2c). Christ being the human/divine Son of God due to His virgin birth is shown in Isaiah 7:14 (cf. Matthew 1:22-25, Luke 1:34-35). Christ being the mighty God is shown in Isaiah 9:6 (cf. Titus 2:13). Christ being YHWH the good shepherd is shown in Psalms 23:1 (cf. John 10:11, Mark 10:18). Christ being YHWH who will set His feet on the Mount of Olives in Jerusalem at His return is shown in Zechariah 14:3-4 (cf. Acts 1:11-12). Christ being YHWH the Redeemer who is the first and last is shown in Isaiah 44:6 (cf. Revelation 2:8, Titus 2:13-14). Christ being YHWH the great I AM is shown in Exodus 3:14 (cf. John 8:58). Christ being one God with God the Father, equal in divinity to God the Father, is shown in Isaiah 45:5-6 and Isaiah 43:10b (cf. John 10:30, John 20:28, Philippians 2:6); for they show that YHWH is the only God, and that He has always been and forever will be the only God.
Similarly, Christians can know how perfectly the Old Testament foretold the suffering and death of Christ for our sins, and His rising physically from the dead on the third day (Acts 26:22-23; 1 Corinthians 15:1-5, Luke 24:44-47). His suffering and death for our sins was foretold in Isaiah 53 (cf. Acts 8:32-35; 1 Peter 2:24). His crucifixion experience was foretold in Psalms 22 (cf. Matthew 27:46,35). His not remaining dead was foretold in Psalms 16:10 (cf. Acts 2:31). His rising from the dead on the third day was foretold in Hosea 6:2 (cf. 1 Corinthians 15:4, Luke 24:46, Colossians 2:12). The fact that Christ's New Covenant Gospel (Matthew 26:28) would go forth to save both Jews and Gentiles was foretold in Isaiah 49:6 and Isaiah 42:6 (cf. Acts 26:23b, Luke 24:47). For some other examples of how Jesus Christ fulfilled Old Testament scriptures at His first coming: He fulfilled Deuteronomy 18:15,18-19 (cf. Acts 3:22-24, Luke 24:44), and Zechariah 9:9 (cf. Matthew 21:4-5), and Psalms 118:22 (cf. Acts 4:11), and Isaiah 9:1-2 (cf. Matthew 4:12-16), and Psalms 110:4 (cf. Hebrews 6:20).
(See also Zechariah 6:11 above)
~
(Re: Creeds)
The Apostle's Creed is careful to include all three Persons of the Trinity. The fact that it does not emphasize the divinity of Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit can simply mean that these were assumed and were not an issue at the time that the Apostle's Creed was developed. The Nicene Creed is careful to emphasize these things because they were an issue at the time that it was developed. Also, we must base our beliefs on the Bible, on everything that it teaches (2 Timothy 3:16, Matthew 4:4). And the Bible teaches the divinity of Jesus and the Holy Spirit (e.g. John 1:1,14; Mark 13:11 and Matthew 10:19-20; Acts 5:3-4).
~
(Re: Acts)
The book of Acts not mentioning the Trinity does not require that Christians in Acts did not believe in the Trinity, just as the book of Esther not mentioning God does not require that the Jews in the book of Esther did not believe in God.
~
(Re: Sermons in Acts)
Note that nothing requires that the book of Acts includes every word of every sermon preached at that time. For example, Acts 16:31 cannot be taken to mean that people can be saved if they (like Muslims) simply believe in Jesus Christ, but deny (like Muslims) that He is the human/divine Son of God (John 20:31, John 3:36; 1 John 2:23), and deny that He suffered and died on the Cross for our sins, and rose physically from the dead on the third day (1 Corinthians 15:1-4, Luke 24:46-47, Matthew 16:21, Matthew 26:28).
--
*John 1:7 / *Jn. 1:7 -
This means that all manner of people can believe in Jesus Christ and be saved (Revelation 5:9b), not absolutely all people (Romans 9:11-24), just as, for example, John 3:26c means that all manner of people came to Jesus during His first-coming earthly ministry, not absolutely all people. The original Greek word (pas: G3956) translated as "all" can mean "all manner of" (e.g. Acts 10:12). It does not have to mean absolutely all.
(See also paragraphs 2-4 of section 5 of John 3:16 below)
--
*John 1:9 / *Jn. 1:9 -
This can refer to Jesus Christ being the source of human consciousness in general. It does not contradict double predestination (Romans 9:11-24), which means that some humans are nonelect children of the devil who cannot ever believe in Jesus (John 8:42-47, Matthew 13:38b-39).
(See also Romans 9:11 below)
--
*John 1:11b / *Jn. 1:11b -
This was God's will (John 12:37-40).
--
*John 1:12 / *Jn. 1:12 -
(Re: Does being children of God mean once-saved-always-saved?)
No, see Galatians 4:6 below.
--
*John 1:13 / *Jn. 1:13 -
See Romans 9:11 below.
~
(Re: Gnostic corruption per Tertullian)
It is dangerous to say that John 1:13 as we have it is a possible Gnostic corruption. For this undermines the validity of the Bible as we have it, opening the door for people to wrongly reject whatever verses of the Bible which they personally do not like as possibly being corruptions. John 1:13 is confirmed by Romans 9:16. There is no Biblical reason to doubt the validity in John 1:13 of the Greek-plural "which" and the Greek-plural "were born". Also, if the early Church had agreed with Tertullian's claim regarding John 1:13, then the early Church would not have continued to copy and pass down to us only Gnostic-corrupted Biblical manuscripts, and not bother to correct them. Also, when Tertullian asks regarding John 1:13, "But how can this be, when all who believe in the name of the Lord are, by reason of the common principle of the human race, born of blood, and of the will of the flesh, and of man...?" (On the Flesh of Christ, Chapter 19), he is missing the point that John 1:13 in its context of John 1:12 can be referring not to the first, physical birth of Christians, but to their spiritually being born again (John 3:6-7) by their faith in Jesus Christ (John 1:12-13).
(See also the "inerrancy" section of 2 Timothy 3:16 below)
--
*John 1:18a / *Jn. 1:18a -
See 1 John 4:12a below.
--
*John 1:29 / *Jn. 1:29 -
This does not mean everyone in the world, for not everyone's sins will be taken away (Revelation 14:10-11).
--
*John 2:6 / *Jn. 2:6 -
The original Greek word (metretes: G3355) translated as "firkins" could refer to liquid measures which were about nine gallons each. So the six water pots of stone containing "two or three firkins apiece" could mean that they contained about 18 to 27 gallons each.
(Compare 1 Kings 18:32 above)
--
*John 2:17 / *Jn. 2:17 -
This refers to Psalms 69:9.
--
*John 2:19-21 / *Jn. 2:19 / *Jn. 2:21 -
John 2:19,21 was fulfilled at Jesus Christ's physical resurrection on the third day after His suffering and death on the Cross for our sins (1 Corinthians 15:3-4, Luke 24:39).
~
(Re: Is Jesus' body the ultimate temple?)
The ultimate temple will be the Trinity itself on the future, New Earth, as in a new surface for the earth, and in the literal city of New Jerusalem, which contains no temple building (Revelation 21:22). While Jesus Christ's individual human body is already a temple of God (John 2:21), note that at the time of His first coming, in the first century AD, His body-temple coexisted with the second Jewish temple building in Jerusalem, which was also indwelt by God at the same time (Matthew 23:21, John 2:16). And Jesus' body-temple also coexisted, and still coexists today, with the literal temple building in heaven (Revelation 11:19).
There is now also the Church-as-a-whole figurative temple building (Ephesians 2:21), and the myriad different temples of every Christian's individual human body (1 Corinthians 6:19). There will also be a third, earthly, literal Jewish temple building in Jerusalem which will be built during the future Tribulation of Revelation chapters 6 to 18 and Matthew 24 (Revelation 11:1-2, Matthew 24:15, Daniel 11:31,36; 2 Thessalonians 2:4). And there will also be a fourth, earthly, literal temple building in Jerusalem which will be built during the future Millennium (Zechariah 14:20-21), which will not begin until after Jesus Christ's future, Second Coming (Revelation 19:7 to 20:6, Zechariah 14:3-21), which will occur immediately after the Tribulation (Matthew 24:29-31).
(See also Revelation 11:1 below)
~
(Re: In the original Greek, does the use in John 2:19-21 of "naos" support an "inside" meaning for the Greek word "epi" in Revelation 13:16?)
The Greek word "naos" (temple: G3485) has multiple meanings. It can refer to either a stone temple (John 2:20), or to a bodily temple (1 Corinthians 6:19). But the meanings of the Greek word "epi" (Revelation 13:16, G1909) do not include one thing being inside another.
~
(Re: But were not the people wrong in their understanding of what Jesus meant?)
Yes, but the Bible tells us that Jesus Christ was talking about His individual human body (John 2:21), not the second Jewish temple building in Jerusalem, just as the Bible tells us that the mark of the future Antichrist (the individual-man aspect of Revelation's "beast") will be placed only "on" (epi: G1909) people (Revelation 13:16), not inside them. Revelation is an unsealed book (Revelation 22:10), meaning that Christians should be able to understand it correctly if they simply read it as it is written.
(See Revelation 13:16 below)
--
*John 2:24-25 / *Jn. 2:24 / *Jn. 2:25 -
So much for humanism.
(See section 3 of Galatians 5:22 below)
~
(Re: Does the use in John 2:24-25 of "man" mean that "man" in Revelation 13:18 is all men?)
In John 2:25, in the original Greek, while "man" (anthropos: G0444) is used twice, it is preceded both times by the Greek definite article, which is definite because it is referring back to the "all" (in the sense of all men) at the end of John 2:24. But in Revelation 13:18 there is no definite article preceding "man" (anthropos) because there had been no prior reference to Revelation's "beast" being a man, much less all men. Instead, Revelation 13:18 refers to a future, individual man and world ruler (2 Thessalonians 2:3b-4, Revelation 13:4-18) who is commonly called the Antichrist. That is why Revelation 13:18 is properly translated as saying that the number of the beast is the number of "a" man.
(See Revelation 13:18 below)
--
*John 3:3 / *Jn. 3:3 -
(Re: Does this have to refer only to before the Millennium?)
No, for John 3:3 can include the future Millennium. For the original Greek word (eido: G1492) translated as "see" in John 3:3 does not have to mean to physically see, or to physically enter, but can mean to spiritually "understand", just as it does in 1 Corinthians 14:16.
John 3:3 is not (as is sometimes claimed) contradicting that some non-Christians will enter the Millennium.
(See paragraph 3 of Luke 17:26 above)
--
*John 3:5 / *Jn. 3:5 -
(Re: Means that Holy Spirit baptism is required for salvation?)
Holy Spirit baptism (Acts 11:15-16, Acts 10:44-46) may be a requirement for ultimate salvation, based on John 3:5; and based on Romans 8:9b when compared with Acts 19:2a. Or, John 3:5 could be referring to physical birth and a subsequent, initial salvation; and Romans 8:9b could be referring only to non-Christians, in that all Christians could have some measure of the Spirit (John 7:39a; 2 Corinthians 4:13a).
(See paragraphs 2-3 of Mark 16:16 above. Also, see section 2 of Mark 16:16 above)
--
*John 3:8 / *Jn. 3:8 -
The original Greek word (thelo: G2309) translated as "listeth", like the English word, can mean "wants".
--
*John 3:10 / *Jn. 3:10 -
The original Greek word (didaskalos: G1320) translated as "master", like the English word, can mean "teacher" (John 3:2), or "didact".
--
*John 3:13 / *Jn. 3:13 -
This means that no man but Jesus Christ had ascended into heaven in a way involving his own power. For Elijah had ascended into heaven, but by an external power (2 Kings 2:11). And if he did that, then Enoch and Moses could have also ascended into heaven by an external power (Hebrews 11:5, Genesis 5:24, Jude 1:9). And at one point during the future Tribulation of Revelation chapters 6 to 18, so will the 144,000 male-virgins part of the Church, represented by the "man child", be caught up into heaven (Revelation 12:5, Revelation 14:1,4-5, Textus Receptus). Also, God's future, Two Witnesses will be taken into heaven (Revelation 11:12). And the apostle Paul at one point during his lifetime was temporarily taken into heaven (2 Corinthians 12:2-7), just as the apostle John was at one point during his lifetime temporarily taken into heaven (Revelation 4).
In John 3:13, "ascended" is in the active voice, which, while it does not require that the subject ascended by his own power, it can mean that. For example, compare Jesus "rising up" in Luke 22:45.
~
(Re: Acts 1:11)
Regarding Jesus Christ's post-resurrection ascension, the passive-voice ascension in Acts 1:11 can be taken together with the active-voice ascension in Ephesians 4:8 to mean that Jesus' post-resurrection ascension occurred both by an external power and His own power working together at the same time. An analogy would be a man walking up an ascending escalator. But John 3:13 was spoken years before Acts 1:11 occurred. And John 3:13 was referring to a perfect-tense ascension of Jesus, meaning that it had already been completed sometime before John 3:13 was spoken. This prior ascension of Jesus, like His later ascension in Ephesians 4:8 and Acts 1:11, could have involved His own power. For in John 3:13, "ascended" is in the active voice.
~
(Re: John 3:13b, Ephesians 4:9b, and Psalms 139:15b)
While Jesus Christ was passively born, John 3:13b uses the active voice to refer to His spiritual, pre-birth descent from heaven into Mary His mother's womb, meaning that this descent could have involved His own power.
Regarding Ephesians 4:9b, it refers to a post-resurrection descent of Jesus Christ into Hades to preach the fulfillment of His Gospel (of 1 Corinthians 15:1-4) to the souls of the dead in Hades (1 Peter 4:6, 1 Peter 3:18c-19). Sometime after this preaching, Jesus ascended into heaven with all of the souls of those in Hades who had died in faith (Ephesians 4:8-9, Hebrews 11:13-16, Hebrews 12:22-24). In Ephesians 4:9, both "descended" and "ascended" are in the active voice, meaning that both Jesus' post-resurrection descent into Hades, and His subsequent ascent into heaven, could have involved His own power.
Regarding Psalms 139:15b, it could refer literally to Sheol/Hades, where the souls of all people went when they died (Psalms 63:9, Ezekiel 26:20, Ezekiel 32:18,24). The author of Psalm 139, King David, could have employed the phrase in verse 15b as poetic hyperbole to express the figuratively dead, originally-sinful, condition of his (as of all other men's, except Jesus Christ's) formation in his mother's womb (Psalms 51:5, Ephesians 2:5, Romans 5:19a).
(See Romans 5:19a below, and Matthew 25:41 above)
--
*John 3:15 / *Jn. 3:15 -
(Re: OSAS?)
Note that it says "should", not "will necessarily".
(See John 3:16 below)
~
(Re: Means that anyone can believe?)
No, see section 5 of John 3:16 below.
-
Next entry / Prior / Table of Contents
Dec 8, 2018
So a human analogy for God would have God the Father as the mind, and God the Word as the ordered thoughts, speech, and writings (incarnate words) of that mind. God the Holy Spirit would then be analogous to the breath (spirit) which is inextricable from human speech, and also from ordered thoughts, in that a non-breathing person is dead and his brain has no thoughts. God the Holy Spirit (Acts 5:3-4) is one God with God the Father and God the Word because the Holy Spirit is the Spirit of the Father (Matthew 10:19-20 & Mark 13:11) and the Spirit of the Word (John 14:16-18, Romans 8:9). While an individual human is not three persons, the truth about God can still be grasped by looking at man's design. For man was made in God's image (Genesis 1:26). Just as an individual human has his word (Revelation 12:11) and his spirit (1 Thessalonians 5:23), so the one God has His Word (John 1:1) and His Spirit (Romans 8:9). But the one God is so infinitely greater than man (Isaiah 40:17) that the Word of God and the Spirit of God are distinct Persons within His single being.
Besides the analogy of a single human's mind, thoughts/speech/writings, and breath, the Trinity can be compared to the single sun's sphere, light, and heat. For the Father would be analogous to the sun's sphere, which is invisible to humans except for its visible light, which is analogous to the incarnate, visible Word (Colossians 1:15, John 14:9). And the sun is felt by humans via its invisible, infrared rays, which would be analogous to the Spirit. The Trinity can also be compared to water, which even though it is one substance, it can exist in three states of solid, liquid, and gas at the same time (such as in a water-pitcher two-thirds full with water and ice cubes, with water-vapor filling the top third of the pitcher). The Trinity can also be compared to space, which even though it is one area, it consists of three dimensions at the same time. The Trinity can also be compared to 1 x 1 x 1 = 1, or to 1a x 1b x 1c = 1abc.
~
(Re: So does God pray to Himself?)
Jesus Christ prays to God the Father (e.g. John 11:41-42) because even though Jesus is God (John 1:1,14), at the same time He is also human just like we are human (Hebrews 2:17). And so, as a human, He has a God and Father just like we do (John 20:17). Before Jesus became our eternally-human mediator/high priest (1 Timothy 2:5, Hebrews 2:17, Hebrews 7:24-26), and the only-begotten (only-born) Son of God (John 3:16), the only human ever born without any human father (Luke 1:34-35), He preexisted (John 17:5, John 8:58) from all eternity as God the Word (John 1:1,14; 1 Timothy 3:16). He has always been, and still is, even now in human flesh (Luke 24:39; 2 John 1:7), one God with the Father (John 10:30, John 20:28, Titus 2:13), equal in divinity with the Father (Philippians 2:6, Revelation 2:8b, Isaiah 44:6).
~
(Re: Must Christians believe that Jesus is both fully God and fully man?)
Yes, and Christians must not encourage those who claim to be Christians, yet deny the Biblical doctrine regarding Jesus Christ (2 John 1:7-11). Denying the doctrine of the full-divinity of Jesus is a serious problem, just as serious as denying the doctrine that He remains fully human, now and forever in the flesh (2 John 1:7, Luke 24:39, Hebrews 7:24-26, Hebrews 2:17; 1 Timothy 2:5). For denying either the full-divinity or the full-humanity of Jesus denies His ability to save us sinful humans from hell. For Jesus' human suffering during His Passion had to satisfy God the Father's justice (Isaiah 53:11, KJV), which requires an infinite amount of human suffering for sin (Matthew 25:46).
(See 1 John 2:2 below)
~
(Re: Can humans fathom God's *essence?)
Humans cannot fathom God's essence with regard to its magnitude and extension. For His essence is infinite (Psalms 147:5, Jeremiah 23:24; 1 Kings 8:27), while humans are finite. It is for this same reason that even all of humanity together is worth "less than nothing" compared with God (Isaiah 40:17, Daniel 4:35, Isaiah 2:22). But humans can fathom God's essence with regard to what it is. For they have been created by God in His image (Genesis 1:27). God's essence is existence (Exodus 3:14) and consciousness (spirit) (John 4:24). And it is in God's existence that humans have existence (Acts 17:28), just as it is in God's consciousness that humans have consciousness (John 1:9). So every human can fathom what God's essence is (Romans 1:20).
~
(Re: Is it true that the Old Testament does not show the deity of Christ?)
No, it is untrue, just like another mistaken claim made by non-Christian Judaism that nowhere did the Old Testament foretell the suffering and death of the Messiah/Christ for our sins, and His rising physically from the dead on the third day (Luke 24:46). Non-Christian Judaism makes these claims because it is unable to understand many of the Old Testament's teachings regarding the Messiah/Christ (2 Corinthians 3:14), just as before Christ came, no one could understand many of these teachings. For their true meanings were kept secret by God (Romans 16:25-26, Luke 18:34), and were first revealed to the apostles by Jesus Christ after His resurrection (Luke 24:44-47, Galatians 1:12), and then recorded in the New Testament.
Now Christians can know how perfectly the Old Testament shows the deity of Christ. Christ being uncreated, His having existed forever, from everlasting, is shown in Micah 5:2c (cf. John 1:1,14, John 8:58, Colossians 1:16-17). Christ being YHWH the Holy One, from everlasting, is shown in Habakkuk 1:12 (cf. Acts 3:14, Micah 5:2c). Christ being the human/divine Son of God due to His virgin birth is shown in Isaiah 7:14 (cf. Matthew 1:22-25, Luke 1:34-35). Christ being the mighty God is shown in Isaiah 9:6 (cf. Titus 2:13). Christ being YHWH the good shepherd is shown in Psalms 23:1 (cf. John 10:11, Mark 10:18). Christ being YHWH who will set His feet on the Mount of Olives in Jerusalem at His return is shown in Zechariah 14:3-4 (cf. Acts 1:11-12). Christ being YHWH the Redeemer who is the first and last is shown in Isaiah 44:6 (cf. Revelation 2:8, Titus 2:13-14). Christ being YHWH the great I AM is shown in Exodus 3:14 (cf. John 8:58). Christ being one God with God the Father, equal in divinity to God the Father, is shown in Isaiah 45:5-6 and Isaiah 43:10b (cf. John 10:30, John 20:28, Philippians 2:6); for they show that YHWH is the only God, and that He has always been and forever will be the only God.
Similarly, Christians can know how perfectly the Old Testament foretold the suffering and death of Christ for our sins, and His rising physically from the dead on the third day (Acts 26:22-23; 1 Corinthians 15:1-5, Luke 24:44-47). His suffering and death for our sins was foretold in Isaiah 53 (cf. Acts 8:32-35; 1 Peter 2:24). His crucifixion experience was foretold in Psalms 22 (cf. Matthew 27:46,35). His not remaining dead was foretold in Psalms 16:10 (cf. Acts 2:31). His rising from the dead on the third day was foretold in Hosea 6:2 (cf. 1 Corinthians 15:4, Luke 24:46, Colossians 2:12). The fact that Christ's New Covenant Gospel (Matthew 26:28) would go forth to save both Jews and Gentiles was foretold in Isaiah 49:6 and Isaiah 42:6 (cf. Acts 26:23b, Luke 24:47). For some other examples of how Jesus Christ fulfilled Old Testament scriptures at His first coming: He fulfilled Deuteronomy 18:15,18-19 (cf. Acts 3:22-24, Luke 24:44), and Zechariah 9:9 (cf. Matthew 21:4-5), and Psalms 118:22 (cf. Acts 4:11), and Isaiah 9:1-2 (cf. Matthew 4:12-16), and Psalms 110:4 (cf. Hebrews 6:20).
(See also Zechariah 6:11 above)
~
(Re: Creeds)
The Apostle's Creed is careful to include all three Persons of the Trinity. The fact that it does not emphasize the divinity of Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit can simply mean that these were assumed and were not an issue at the time that the Apostle's Creed was developed. The Nicene Creed is careful to emphasize these things because they were an issue at the time that it was developed. Also, we must base our beliefs on the Bible, on everything that it teaches (2 Timothy 3:16, Matthew 4:4). And the Bible teaches the divinity of Jesus and the Holy Spirit (e.g. John 1:1,14; Mark 13:11 and Matthew 10:19-20; Acts 5:3-4).
~
(Re: Acts)
The book of Acts not mentioning the Trinity does not require that Christians in Acts did not believe in the Trinity, just as the book of Esther not mentioning God does not require that the Jews in the book of Esther did not believe in God.
~
(Re: Sermons in Acts)
Note that nothing requires that the book of Acts includes every word of every sermon preached at that time. For example, Acts 16:31 cannot be taken to mean that people can be saved if they (like Muslims) simply believe in Jesus Christ, but deny (like Muslims) that He is the human/divine Son of God (John 20:31, John 3:36; 1 John 2:23), and deny that He suffered and died on the Cross for our sins, and rose physically from the dead on the third day (1 Corinthians 15:1-4, Luke 24:46-47, Matthew 16:21, Matthew 26:28).
--
*John 1:7 / *Jn. 1:7 -
This means that all manner of people can believe in Jesus Christ and be saved (Revelation 5:9b), not absolutely all people (Romans 9:11-24), just as, for example, John 3:26c means that all manner of people came to Jesus during His first-coming earthly ministry, not absolutely all people. The original Greek word (pas: G3956) translated as "all" can mean "all manner of" (e.g. Acts 10:12). It does not have to mean absolutely all.
(See also paragraphs 2-4 of section 5 of John 3:16 below)
--
*John 1:9 / *Jn. 1:9 -
This can refer to Jesus Christ being the source of human consciousness in general. It does not contradict double predestination (Romans 9:11-24), which means that some humans are nonelect children of the devil who cannot ever believe in Jesus (John 8:42-47, Matthew 13:38b-39).
(See also Romans 9:11 below)
--
*John 1:11b / *Jn. 1:11b -
This was God's will (John 12:37-40).
--
*John 1:12 / *Jn. 1:12 -
(Re: Does being children of God mean once-saved-always-saved?)
No, see Galatians 4:6 below.
--
*John 1:13 / *Jn. 1:13 -
See Romans 9:11 below.
~
(Re: Gnostic corruption per Tertullian)
It is dangerous to say that John 1:13 as we have it is a possible Gnostic corruption. For this undermines the validity of the Bible as we have it, opening the door for people to wrongly reject whatever verses of the Bible which they personally do not like as possibly being corruptions. John 1:13 is confirmed by Romans 9:16. There is no Biblical reason to doubt the validity in John 1:13 of the Greek-plural "which" and the Greek-plural "were born". Also, if the early Church had agreed with Tertullian's claim regarding John 1:13, then the early Church would not have continued to copy and pass down to us only Gnostic-corrupted Biblical manuscripts, and not bother to correct them. Also, when Tertullian asks regarding John 1:13, "But how can this be, when all who believe in the name of the Lord are, by reason of the common principle of the human race, born of blood, and of the will of the flesh, and of man...?" (On the Flesh of Christ, Chapter 19), he is missing the point that John 1:13 in its context of John 1:12 can be referring not to the first, physical birth of Christians, but to their spiritually being born again (John 3:6-7) by their faith in Jesus Christ (John 1:12-13).
(See also the "inerrancy" section of 2 Timothy 3:16 below)
--
*John 1:18a / *Jn. 1:18a -
See 1 John 4:12a below.
--
*John 1:29 / *Jn. 1:29 -
This does not mean everyone in the world, for not everyone's sins will be taken away (Revelation 14:10-11).
--
*John 2:6 / *Jn. 2:6 -
The original Greek word (metretes: G3355) translated as "firkins" could refer to liquid measures which were about nine gallons each. So the six water pots of stone containing "two or three firkins apiece" could mean that they contained about 18 to 27 gallons each.
(Compare 1 Kings 18:32 above)
--
*John 2:17 / *Jn. 2:17 -
This refers to Psalms 69:9.
--
*John 2:19-21 / *Jn. 2:19 / *Jn. 2:21 -
John 2:19,21 was fulfilled at Jesus Christ's physical resurrection on the third day after His suffering and death on the Cross for our sins (1 Corinthians 15:3-4, Luke 24:39).
~
(Re: Is Jesus' body the ultimate temple?)
The ultimate temple will be the Trinity itself on the future, New Earth, as in a new surface for the earth, and in the literal city of New Jerusalem, which contains no temple building (Revelation 21:22). While Jesus Christ's individual human body is already a temple of God (John 2:21), note that at the time of His first coming, in the first century AD, His body-temple coexisted with the second Jewish temple building in Jerusalem, which was also indwelt by God at the same time (Matthew 23:21, John 2:16). And Jesus' body-temple also coexisted, and still coexists today, with the literal temple building in heaven (Revelation 11:19).
There is now also the Church-as-a-whole figurative temple building (Ephesians 2:21), and the myriad different temples of every Christian's individual human body (1 Corinthians 6:19). There will also be a third, earthly, literal Jewish temple building in Jerusalem which will be built during the future Tribulation of Revelation chapters 6 to 18 and Matthew 24 (Revelation 11:1-2, Matthew 24:15, Daniel 11:31,36; 2 Thessalonians 2:4). And there will also be a fourth, earthly, literal temple building in Jerusalem which will be built during the future Millennium (Zechariah 14:20-21), which will not begin until after Jesus Christ's future, Second Coming (Revelation 19:7 to 20:6, Zechariah 14:3-21), which will occur immediately after the Tribulation (Matthew 24:29-31).
(See also Revelation 11:1 below)
~
(Re: In the original Greek, does the use in John 2:19-21 of "naos" support an "inside" meaning for the Greek word "epi" in Revelation 13:16?)
The Greek word "naos" (temple: G3485) has multiple meanings. It can refer to either a stone temple (John 2:20), or to a bodily temple (1 Corinthians 6:19). But the meanings of the Greek word "epi" (Revelation 13:16, G1909) do not include one thing being inside another.
~
(Re: But were not the people wrong in their understanding of what Jesus meant?)
Yes, but the Bible tells us that Jesus Christ was talking about His individual human body (John 2:21), not the second Jewish temple building in Jerusalem, just as the Bible tells us that the mark of the future Antichrist (the individual-man aspect of Revelation's "beast") will be placed only "on" (epi: G1909) people (Revelation 13:16), not inside them. Revelation is an unsealed book (Revelation 22:10), meaning that Christians should be able to understand it correctly if they simply read it as it is written.
(See Revelation 13:16 below)
--
*John 2:24-25 / *Jn. 2:24 / *Jn. 2:25 -
So much for humanism.
(See section 3 of Galatians 5:22 below)
~
(Re: Does the use in John 2:24-25 of "man" mean that "man" in Revelation 13:18 is all men?)
In John 2:25, in the original Greek, while "man" (anthropos: G0444) is used twice, it is preceded both times by the Greek definite article, which is definite because it is referring back to the "all" (in the sense of all men) at the end of John 2:24. But in Revelation 13:18 there is no definite article preceding "man" (anthropos) because there had been no prior reference to Revelation's "beast" being a man, much less all men. Instead, Revelation 13:18 refers to a future, individual man and world ruler (2 Thessalonians 2:3b-4, Revelation 13:4-18) who is commonly called the Antichrist. That is why Revelation 13:18 is properly translated as saying that the number of the beast is the number of "a" man.
(See Revelation 13:18 below)
--
*John 3:3 / *Jn. 3:3 -
(Re: Does this have to refer only to before the Millennium?)
No, for John 3:3 can include the future Millennium. For the original Greek word (eido: G1492) translated as "see" in John 3:3 does not have to mean to physically see, or to physically enter, but can mean to spiritually "understand", just as it does in 1 Corinthians 14:16.
John 3:3 is not (as is sometimes claimed) contradicting that some non-Christians will enter the Millennium.
(See paragraph 3 of Luke 17:26 above)
--
*John 3:5 / *Jn. 3:5 -
(Re: Means that Holy Spirit baptism is required for salvation?)
Holy Spirit baptism (Acts 11:15-16, Acts 10:44-46) may be a requirement for ultimate salvation, based on John 3:5; and based on Romans 8:9b when compared with Acts 19:2a. Or, John 3:5 could be referring to physical birth and a subsequent, initial salvation; and Romans 8:9b could be referring only to non-Christians, in that all Christians could have some measure of the Spirit (John 7:39a; 2 Corinthians 4:13a).
(See paragraphs 2-3 of Mark 16:16 above. Also, see section 2 of Mark 16:16 above)
--
*John 3:8 / *Jn. 3:8 -
The original Greek word (thelo: G2309) translated as "listeth", like the English word, can mean "wants".
--
*John 3:10 / *Jn. 3:10 -
The original Greek word (didaskalos: G1320) translated as "master", like the English word, can mean "teacher" (John 3:2), or "didact".
--
*John 3:13 / *Jn. 3:13 -
This means that no man but Jesus Christ had ascended into heaven in a way involving his own power. For Elijah had ascended into heaven, but by an external power (2 Kings 2:11). And if he did that, then Enoch and Moses could have also ascended into heaven by an external power (Hebrews 11:5, Genesis 5:24, Jude 1:9). And at one point during the future Tribulation of Revelation chapters 6 to 18, so will the 144,000 male-virgins part of the Church, represented by the "man child", be caught up into heaven (Revelation 12:5, Revelation 14:1,4-5, Textus Receptus). Also, God's future, Two Witnesses will be taken into heaven (Revelation 11:12). And the apostle Paul at one point during his lifetime was temporarily taken into heaven (2 Corinthians 12:2-7), just as the apostle John was at one point during his lifetime temporarily taken into heaven (Revelation 4).
In John 3:13, "ascended" is in the active voice, which, while it does not require that the subject ascended by his own power, it can mean that. For example, compare Jesus "rising up" in Luke 22:45.
~
(Re: Acts 1:11)
Regarding Jesus Christ's post-resurrection ascension, the passive-voice ascension in Acts 1:11 can be taken together with the active-voice ascension in Ephesians 4:8 to mean that Jesus' post-resurrection ascension occurred both by an external power and His own power working together at the same time. An analogy would be a man walking up an ascending escalator. But John 3:13 was spoken years before Acts 1:11 occurred. And John 3:13 was referring to a perfect-tense ascension of Jesus, meaning that it had already been completed sometime before John 3:13 was spoken. This prior ascension of Jesus, like His later ascension in Ephesians 4:8 and Acts 1:11, could have involved His own power. For in John 3:13, "ascended" is in the active voice.
~
(Re: John 3:13b, Ephesians 4:9b, and Psalms 139:15b)
While Jesus Christ was passively born, John 3:13b uses the active voice to refer to His spiritual, pre-birth descent from heaven into Mary His mother's womb, meaning that this descent could have involved His own power.
Regarding Ephesians 4:9b, it refers to a post-resurrection descent of Jesus Christ into Hades to preach the fulfillment of His Gospel (of 1 Corinthians 15:1-4) to the souls of the dead in Hades (1 Peter 4:6, 1 Peter 3:18c-19). Sometime after this preaching, Jesus ascended into heaven with all of the souls of those in Hades who had died in faith (Ephesians 4:8-9, Hebrews 11:13-16, Hebrews 12:22-24). In Ephesians 4:9, both "descended" and "ascended" are in the active voice, meaning that both Jesus' post-resurrection descent into Hades, and His subsequent ascent into heaven, could have involved His own power.
Regarding Psalms 139:15b, it could refer literally to Sheol/Hades, where the souls of all people went when they died (Psalms 63:9, Ezekiel 26:20, Ezekiel 32:18,24). The author of Psalm 139, King David, could have employed the phrase in verse 15b as poetic hyperbole to express the figuratively dead, originally-sinful, condition of his (as of all other men's, except Jesus Christ's) formation in his mother's womb (Psalms 51:5, Ephesians 2:5, Romans 5:19a).
(See Romans 5:19a below, and Matthew 25:41 above)
--
*John 3:15 / *Jn. 3:15 -
(Re: OSAS?)
Note that it says "should", not "will necessarily".
(See John 3:16 below)
~
(Re: Means that anyone can believe?)
No, see section 5 of John 3:16 below.
-
Next entry / Prior / Table of Contents
Dec 8, 2018