Question:
Are there any religions that don't teach the trinity?
sandyingreen
2007-05-17 03:45:40 UTC
I am looking for the religions that teach that God is the Father and Jesus is the son, not a trinity. I am pretty sure that is what Jehovah Witnesses teach, are there any other religions that teach this?
I have heard that also maybe Latter Day Saints, some Pentecostal, but I cannot find anyone that actually knows.
Fifteen answers:
achtung_heiss
2007-05-17 09:11:36 UTC
The only observation that a non-Mormon might make regarding this question is simply to acknowledge that Mormons themselves claim to be nontrinitarian Christians; that is, they believe that Jesus the Son is a distinct person from God the Father. However, Mormons do not believe that the "God" of the so-called "New Testament" is the same "God" of the so-called "Old Testament"; Mormonism teaches that the pre-human Jesus is the "God" or "Jehovah" of the so-called "Old Testament".



This is obviously a fundamentally different theology than the other great nontrinitarian Christian religion, Jehovah's Witnesses. Jehovah's Witnesses believe the bible to teach that there are several references to Jesus in the so-called "Old Testament" which indicate that he is distinct from the "God" or "Jehovah" of the so-called "Old Testament". It is not enough to simply assert that a doctrine is true, and so Jehovah's Witnesses reason from the Scriptures on the matter...





It seems rather obvious that the apostle Luke at Acts 4:25-27 quotes from Psalms 2:1,2. Although these passages are part of the Christian and Hebrew Scriptures respectively, BOTH passages make it plain that there is an "anointed one" who is distinct from God. The Psalm plains calls that God by the name "Jehovah" (explicitly using the Tetragrammaton) and Acts plainly calls the anointed one by the name "Jesus".



(Psalm 2:1,2) [David wrote] Why have the nations been in tumult and the national groups themselves kept muttering an empty thing? 2 The kings of earth take their stand And high officials themselves have massed together as one against Jehovah and against his anointed one



(Acts 4:24-27) [Peter, John, and fellow Christians] with one accord raised their voices to God and said: “Sovereign Lord, you are the One who made the heaven and the earth and the sea and all the things in them, 25 and who through holy spirit said by the mouth of our forefather David, your servant, ‘Why did nations become tumultuous and peoples meditate upon empty things? 26 The kings of the earth took their stand and the rulers massed together as one against Jehovah and against his anointed one.’ 27 Even so, both Herod and Pontius Pilate with men of nations and with peoples of Israel were in actuality gathered together in this city against your holy servant Jesus





Similarly, the apostle Paul at 1 Cor 2:16 and Rom 11:33,34 paraphrases Isaiah 40:13. Note that Isaiah explicitly uses the name "Jehovah" (the Hebrew Tetragrammaton), and 1 Corinthians plainly CONTRASTS the mind of Jehovah with the mind of Christ Jesus.



(1 Corinthians 2:16) For “who has come to know the mind of Jehovah, that he may instruct him?” But we do have the mind of Christ.



(Romans 11:33-34) O the depth of God’s riches and wisdom and knowledge! How unsearchable his judgments are and past tracing out his ways are! 34 For “who has come to know Jehovah’s mind, or who has become his counselor?”



(Isaiah 40:13) Who has taken the proportions of the spirit of Jehovah, and who as his man of counsel can make him know anything?



Learn more!

http://watchtower.co.uk/e/ti/index.htm?article=article_05.htm
nymormon
2007-05-18 15:29:50 UTC
Latter-day Saints DO NOT teach the trinity. They teach that God the Father, the Son Jesus Christ, and the Holy Ghost are 3 distinct, separate beings, with one purpose.
2007-05-20 00:23:54 UTC
The Latter-day Saints teach that the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost are three separate and distinct beings.
full gospel shirley
2007-05-17 06:39:30 UTC
The United Pentacostal Church does not teach the trinity. But we dont go there. We are pentacostals, full gospel, and there is a trinity. It didnt begin only a few hundred years ago, it was from the beginning, there are place in scripture where we are told that Jesus is God, and the Holy spirit is God.

1John 5:7 tell s us that the three are as one. (GODHEAD) That is like the title of the triune God. three as one, triune...??? Get it. Some ppl say the word trinity is not in the Bible, no but others words are the same to describe it. three as one.... 1Tim 316 says that God was made flesh and preached to the gentiles. Titus 2:13 tells us that Jesus is great God and Saviour. Acts 5:3-4 When you lie to Jesus, you lie to God. John 1:1 In the beginning was the WOrd, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.

Now, thru the Bible , we are told the Word is Jesus. Do a study on just this passage alone, and it will rock your world. You will just know that there is a triune God. John 14:9 tells us when we have seen Jesus, we have seen the Father. John 1030 tells us the Jesus and the Father are one.

Now, these are just a few I give to you. I encourage you to look for the rest. They are all three operating as ONE, a triune God, the trinity. You can find churches that dont believe that, as the devil doesnt want us to know and understand how they all work together. devil loves to bring lies and confusion. I can only pray for you and encourage you to sutdy for yourself. Jesus is coming soon, and we must be ready. Meaning we must be fully Gods or we arent His at all,. God bless you in your search. If I can just lead even one to the truth of the Trinity, then I will know I am doing my part for God. Doesnt matter the word not in the Bible Neither is the word RAPTURE> But, it stills exists and is described over and over again. WE must not just read scripture, but study it fully and ask God for wisdom and understanding and Revelation knowledge. IT will all come if we truly seek only truth, and not just what we want to hear or is convenient.

Obedience is the key, it leads to blessing. Any disobedience leads to death, and eventual hell. This is all Biblical too, tho few churches teach it. They tend to teach what we want to hear, not what we need tohear. Study for yourself... and SEE
Shooting Starchild
2007-05-20 12:06:02 UTC
I am a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (LDS/Mormon). I do not believe in the trinity. I believe that God the Father, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Ghost are three separate beings with separate identities and roles. The prophet Joseph Smith stated, "We believe in God, the Eternal Father, and in His Son, Jesus Christ, and in the Holy Ghost." I know that they love us and that they work "...to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man." (Moses 1:39).



You can find reliable information about my faith at www.mormon.org; it is an official site for my church.
Dean Moore
2007-05-19 05:46:57 UTC
The Berean (s) believe this. They view the Holy Spirit as 'power" and hold the Father/ Son relationship. They also claim on:

(1)The sabbath as saturaday.

(2)The dietary laws still in effect .

(3) The feasts of Isreal as ongoing and claim that the early church kept them.

I advice extreme caution in separating the Holy Spirit from God-consider the unforgiveable sin. Speaking against the Holy Spirit ( some equate this to denial of Christ after full understanding of Holiness)-but what the Jews did was to contribute the power behind of Christ miracles to the devil according to the wording of this passage."The Bereans" have a web site. May God bless you and give you the truth you seek.
Alvin R
2007-05-17 07:39:59 UTC
From day one, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints does NOT teach the concept of the Trinity. The president of the LDS Church, Gordon B. Hinckley, has even publicly stated it in the following way, from a talk given at a General Conference session of the LDS Church in April 2007:



"

I confess that I do not know everything, but of some things I am certain. Of the things of which I know, I speak to you this morning.



When the emperor Constantine was converted to Christianity, he became aware of the divisiveness among the clergy concerning the nature of Deity. In an attempt to overcome this he gathered the eminent divines of the day to Nicaea in the year 325. Each participant was given opportunity to state his views. The argument only grew more heated. When a definition could not be reached, a compromise was made. It came to be known as the Nicene Creed, and its basic elements are recited by most of the Christian faithful.



Personally I cannot understand it. To me the creed is confusing.



How deeply grateful I am that we of this Church do not rely on any man-made statement concerning the nature of Deity. Our knowledge comes directly from the personal experience of Joseph Smith, who, while yet a boy, spoke with God the Eternal Father and His Beloved Son, the Risen Lord. He knelt in Their presence; he heard Their voices; and he responded. Each was a distinct personality. Small wonder that he told his mother that he had learned that her church was not true. And so, one of the great overarching doctrines of this Church is our belief in God the Eternal Father. He is a being, real and individual. He is the great Governor of the universe, yet He is our Father, and we are His children.

"



One can read the account in Joseph Smith Jr.'s own words by following this link:



http://scriptures.lds.org/en/js_h/1



Or, you can flag down any LDS missionary Elder or Sister and have them give you a pamphlet of the prophet Joseph Smith Jr. and read it that way.



One thing I can tell you is that as I read and studied and prayed about God and His Son, Jesus Christ, is that they are separate individuals but unified in motivations and purpose, much like what Christ desired his apostles in the ancient days to be, unified in love and purpose.



I have received my personal witness that this is the nature of these Holy Three. They work together and Two of them have been seen by Joseph Smith Jr., so Joseph can be properly called as the Lord's prophet. Even others have seen the resurrected Lord in the temples build by the Saints. This witness I know I received it not by the hands of man, but of the Holy Spirit. I have felt that communication deep in my heart, much like that still small voice that Elijah felt in First Kings chapter 19, verse 12:



12 And after the earthquake a fire; but the LORD was not in the fire: and after the fire a still small voice.



I hope you understand that this concept of the Trinity is not doctrine that we Latter Day Saints teach. We teach instead the Restored Gospel of Jesus Christ as given back to the earth via the ministering of angels.



And I leave this with you in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.



Sincerely,

Alvin R.
sxanthop
2007-05-17 03:48:15 UTC
Yes, indeed Jehovah Witnesses dont teach that. Its man made doctrine.
plhudson01
2007-05-17 03:50:05 UTC
LDS teaches trinity. Buddhism does not
RW
2007-05-17 04:16:38 UTC
you do realize there are religions other than christianity, right?



I mean ones that don't belive in jesus whatsoever...



SOME religions are actually monotheistic, and belive in ONE undivided God. Judaism and Islam are like this. absolute, singular, undivided. some renditions of christianity share this as well.
LabGrrl
2007-05-17 03:50:47 UTC
Almost all Protestant churches teach that.
KNOWBIBLE
2007-05-17 17:59:49 UTC
In fact here are some that don't believe in the trinity:



Living Church of God (believes there is 1 God: the father and his son Jesus Christ in the "God Family" and that many members can be in this "God Family" as the Bible says)

http://www.lcg.org/search/search.php?query=trinity&%24results_per_page=10&search=1

http://www.lcg.org/search/search.php?query=god%27s+church+through+the+ages&type=and&results=10&search=1

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Living_Church_of_God



Churches of God

http://www.giveshare.org/churchhistory/sda/064.sda.html



Jehovah Witnesses

http://www.watchtower.org/library/ti/article_04.htm



Unitarians (Unitarians don't believe Jesus was in the beginning as the Bible says)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unitarian_Christianity

http://www.biblicalunitarian.com/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=113



United Pentecostals (they believe in oneness)

http://experts.about.com/q/Pentecostals-2256/Trinity-1.htm

http://www.cephasministry.com/index_pentecostals.html



Jews and Muslims(Islam) too.

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Arianism VS. Trinitarianism



1JOHN 4:1 = "Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because MANY FALSE PROPHETS are gone out into the world."

(In reference to the crowd = Matt.7:13; 24:24; some departing from the faith = Acts 20:29-30)false prophets are gone out into the world."



PROVERBS 28:11 = "The rich man is wise in his own conceit; but the poor that hath understanding searcheth him out."

{conceit = Prov.26:5; Rom.11:25; 12:16}

(In reference to Heb.5:14= "knowing good and evil"; 1Thess.5:21= "prove all things")



The Orthodox definition of the trinity is defined as: "A three-fold personality existing in one divine being or substance; the union in one God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit as three infinite co-equal, co-eternal persons as; one God in three persons."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trinity (note: in this source as other sources: it tells you 1John 5:7 wasn't in any of the inspired Greek manuscripts)

http://www.biblicalunitarian.com/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=203



The Trinity Doctrine came from paganism.

(Pagan means no religious beliefs; in the 1984 New Concise Webster's Dictionary--Pagan defined : "A heathen; one having no religious beliefs")

http://www.thunderministries.com/Beast/Apostasy.html

http://www.sabbatarian.com/Paganism/HecateTrinity.html

http://www.cornerstone1.org/trinity1.htm

http://www.biblicalunitarian.com/html/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=140

http://mikeblume.com/pagantr.htm



Tertullian (ca.150-225) was the first writer to use the term "trinity" (New Theological Dictionary, p. 1,054).

If we look in the late second and early third centuries; we see the Catholic theologian names Tertullian and Origen keep coming up.

The term trinity was not "revealed" until more than 150 years after Jesus Christ's crucifixion and resurrection.

If this teaching were true; why was it revealed later? Did Christ's disciples know about this doctrine; if they did; why didn't they explain it?

If we search the scriptures; we see the disciples taught a very different explanation of God.

http://www.tomorrowsworld.org/cgi-bin/tw/tw-mag.cgi?category=Magazine28&item=1104232928



(KJV BIBLE)There are 3 that protestants claim about the trinity; they're JOHN 14 & 15 and 1JOHN 5:7. To start out 1JOHN 5:7 was never in any of the inspired Greek manuscripts; so this knocks out one. As for John 14 & 15; the Greek word for "helper" is paracletos; one who helps inwhich points to the Holy Spirit. In Greek, the word "He" is neuter such as "hand" is feminine whether it is a woman's hand or male's hand. As for the word "paracletos" it is masculine and always require a masculine pronoun. This however doesn't prove personhood as you've noticed.

But as you've noticed, these texts don't prove Jesus is God or the Holy Spirit.

I don't believe in the TRINITY! The Bible texts that I'm going to mention contradict the Trinity teaching.

MATT.12:32 "AND WHOSOEVER SPEAKETH A WORD AGAINST THE SON OF MAN, IT SHALL BE FORGIVEN HIM: BUT WHOSOEVER SPEAKETH AGAINST THE HOLY GHOST, IT SHALL NOT BE FORGIVEN HIM, NEITHER IN THIS WORLD, NEITHER IN THE WORLD TO COME."

JOHN 14:28 "IF YE LOVED ME, YE WOULD REJOICE, BECAUSE I SAID , I GO UNTO THE FATHER: FOR MY FATHER IS GREATER THAN I."

1COR.11:3 "BUT I WOULD HAVE YOU KNOW THAT THE HEAD OF EVERY MAN IS CHRIST; & THE HEAD OF THE WOMAN IS THE MAN; AND THE HEAD OF CHRIST IS GOD."

LUKE 18:19 "AND JESUS SAID UNTO HIM, WHY CALLEST THOU ME GOOD? NONE IS GOOD, SAVE ONE, THAT IS, GOD."

****SEVERAL OTHER TEXTS SAY THERE'S ONLY TWO PERSONS:

1COR.1:3; 8:6; 1TIM.1:2; 2:5; GAL.1:3; PHILIPP.1:2; ROM.1:7; 2COR.1:2-3; 1THESS.1:1; 2THESS.1:2; 2TIM.1:2; PHILEMON 1:3; 1PETER 1:3; 2PETER 1:2; 1JOHN 1:3; 2JOHN 1:3.



Now touching on the HOLY SPIRIT; the Holy Spirit is a power(Luke 1:35= "And the angel answered and said unto her, The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee: therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the "Son of God.") where God and Jesus make their presence known in the hearts and minds of believers(1John 3:24 = "And he that keepeth his commandments dwelleth in him, and he in him. And hereby we know that he abideth in us, by the Spirit which he hath given us."). The believers of god and Jesus will have this love poured on them (Rom.5:5 = "And hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given to us.") It will teach them understanding and wisdom of God's Word (John 14:16,17,20,23,26 = "And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever; Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you. At that day ye shall know that I am in the Father, and ye in me, and I in you. Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him. But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.") Jesus had the Holy Spirit in him when he made the lame walk and the deaf to hear and etc.(Luke 5:15-17) God works in our minds to give us stength to overcome (Genesis 6:3 = "And the Lord said, my Spirit shall not always strive with man, for that he also is flesh: yet his days shall be an hundred and twenty years.") Other texts are: John 7:38-39; Rom.8:11,13-14,16 and Psalm 104:30.

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Another text that Trinitarians use to say Jesus is the same being as God is John 10:30.

Well many confuse this text in John 10:30 to say Jesus and God are one and the same person; but this text doesn't mean that.

Go back to verse 29; doesn't it say that Jesus's Father is greater than him. In fact what does Jesus/Bible tell us in these texts; doesn't it say that Jesus and God are seperate people?



JOHN 14:28 = "YE HAVE HEARD HOW I SAID UNTO YOU, I GO AWAY, AND COME AGAIN UNTO YOU. IF YE LOVED ME, YE WOULD REJOICE, BECAUSE I SAID, I GO UNTO THE FATHER: FOR MY FATHER IS GREATER THAN I."



JOHN 20:17 = "JESUS SAID UNTO HER, TOUCH ME NOT; FOR I AM NOT ASCENDED TO MY FATHER: BUT GO TO MY BRETHREN, AND SAY TO THEM, I ASCEND UNTO MY FATHER, AND YOUR FATHER; AND TO MY GOD AND YOUR GOD."



1COR.11:3 "BUT I WOULD HAVE YOU KNOW THAT THE HEAD OF EVERY MAN IS CHRIST; & THE HEAD OF THE WOMAN IS THE MAN; AND THE HEAD OF CHRIST IS GOD."



LUKE 18:19 "AND JESUS SAID UNTO HIM, WHY CALLEST THOU ME GOOD? NONE IS GOOD, SAVE ONE, THAT IS, GOD."



MATT.19:17 = "AND HE SAID UNTO HIM, WHY CALLEST THOU ME GOOD? THERE IS NONE GOOD BUT ONE, THAT IS, GOD: BUT IF THOU WILT ENTER INTO LIFE, KEEP THE COMMANDMENTS."



****SEVERAL OTHER TEXTS SAY THERE'S ONLY TWO PERSONS:

1COR.1:3; 8:6; 1TIM.1:2; 2:5; GAL.1:3; PHILIPP.1:2; ROM.1:7; 2COR.1:2-3; 1THESS.1:1; 2THESS.1:2; 2TIM.1:2; PHILEMON 1:3; 1PETER 1:3; 2PETER 1:2; 1JOHN 1:3; 2JOHN 1:3.



So what does John 10:30 really means--when it says "I and my Father are one?" Well let's go further down to John 10:38. Doesn't it tell us that God and Jesus are alike and similar in actions, features, and etc? Take a Father with his son or a Mother with her daughter; do they have characteristics like you; but does that mean they're you? No of course not; they're seperate, but are alike in different ways.



JOHN 10:38 = "BUT IF I DO, THOUGH YE BELIEVE NOT ME, BELIEVE THE WORKS: THAT YE MAY KNOW, AND BELIEVE, THAT THE FATHER IS IN ME, AND I IN HIM."



JOHN 5:19-20 = "THEN, ANSWERED JESUS AND SAID UNTO THEM, VERILY, VERILY, I SAY UNTO YOU, THE SON CAN DO NOTHING OF HIMSELF, BUT WHAT HE SEETH THE FATHER DO: FOR WHAT THINGS SOEVER HE DOETH, THESE ALSO DOETH THE SON LIKEWISE. FOR THE FATHER LOVETH THE SON, AND SHEWETH HIM ALL THINGS THAT HIMSELF DOETH: AND HE WILL SHEW HIM GREATER WORKS THAN THESE, THAT YE MAY MARVEL."



JOHN 17:21-22 = "THAT THEY ALL MAY BE ONE; AS THOU, FATHER, ART IN ME, AND I IN THEE, THAT THEY ALSO MAY BE ONE IN US: THAT THE WORLD MAY BELIEVE THAT THOU HAS SENT ME. AND THE GLORY WHICH THOU GAVEST ME I HAVE GIVEN THEM; THAT THEY MAY BE ONE, EVEN AS WE ARE ONE."



JOHN 14:10-11 = "BELIEVEST THOU NOT THAT I AM IN THE FATHER, AND THE FATHER IN ME? THE WORDS THAT I SPEAK UNTO YOU I SPEAK OF NOT MYSELF: BUT THE FATHER THAT DWELLETH IN ME, HE DOETH THE WORKS. BELIEVE ME THAT I AM IN THE FATHER, AND THE FATHER IN ME: OR ELSE BELIEVE ME FOR THE VERY WORKS' SAKE."



JOHN 5:36 = "BUT I HAVE A GREATER WITNESS THAN THAT OF JOHN: FOR THE WORKS WHICH THE FATHER HATH GIVEN ME TO FINISH, THE SAME WORKS THAT I DO, BEAR WITNESS OF ME, THAT THE FATHER HATH SENT ME."



JOHN 10:25 = "JESUS ANSWERED THEM, I TOLD YOU, AND YOU BELIEVED NOT: THE WORKS THAT I DO IN MY FATHER'S NAME, THEY BEAR WITNESS OF ME."



Also many others such as:

JOHN 8:28,42,49-50,54; 5:19-20,26-27,30; 6:38,57

MATT.20:23



Jesus Christ came here on earth to show people who God is by his actions and features. So if we knew Jesus in our heart; we would know God because Jesus showed us when he was on earth. (JOHN 17:3)

******************************...

******************************...

Is Jesus God?

The Answer is definately "NO".



Is Jesus God?

Jesus Christ is not God {he was figuratively God(Logos) in the Old Testament; the spokesperson for God} = John 1:1. So does the Bible say Jesus is God; no it says that Jesus is the son of God = 1John 4:15.

References of the devil or demons calling Jesus Son of God:

Matthew 4:3

Matthew 4:6,

Matthew 8:29

Mark 3:11

Luke 4:3

Luke 4:9

Luke 4:41



References to humans calling Jesus Son of God:

Matthew 14:33

Matthew 27:54

Mark 1:1

Mark 15:39

John 1:34

John 1:49

John 11:27

John 20:31

Acts 9:20

Romans 1:4

2 Corinthians 1:19

Galatians 2:20

Hebrews 4:14

Hebrews 6:6

Hebrews 7:3

Hebrews 10:29

1 John 3:8

1 John 4:15

1 John 5:1

1 John 5:5

1 John 5:10

1 John 5:13

1 John 5:20

Matthew 14:33

Revelation 2:18



Jesus referring to himself as the Son of God:

John 3:18

John 5:25

John 10:36

John 11:4

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To understand this better if God are all three persons; then that would deny Jesus as the son of God; wouldn't it? Because you're saying that God is all 3 and the same; aren't you?

Most people say Jesus is God; how can this be? What happened to Jesus then, if Jesus is God or what happened to God if Jesus is God?

1John 2:22-24.



Hosea 11:9 = "...: for I am God and not man; the Holy One in the midst of thee: and I will not enter in the city."

Numbers 23:19 = "God is not a man; that he should lie: neither the son of man, that he should repent..."

Acts 2:22 = "Ye men of Israel, hear these words; Jesus of Nazareth, a man approved of God among you..."



Now from these two texts; it tells us there's two persons: one is God and one is Jesus the son of God; a man approved of God. Now as we have determined Jesus can't be God.





Elohim contains the plural ending -im ("gods"). See: Exodus 12:12; Psalm 97:7.

(Names of God in the Old Testament:, The Anchor bible Dictionary, vol. 4, p.1006).

"There is irrefutable proof that this plural noun (Elohim) is to be understood as conveying, not the sense of a dual or a triune God, but of a "God Family" with more than one member."

See more in:

http://www.tomorrowsworld.org/cgi-bin/tw/booklets/tw-bk.cgi?category=Booklets1&item=1104093303



The Bible contradicts the Trinity teaching over and over. Now if Jesus was a trinity (which is unbiblical), that would mean he didn't come fully in the flesh = 1John 4:3.

How can Jesus be God and talk to himself? Also if Jesus was God on the earth; that would mean he was a spirit; we know this wasn't true because of 1John 4:2-3 and 2Jn.1:7.

http://family.webshots.com/photo/1472651266051497771QlfGdY

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If you look in the encyclopedia under the Roman Catholic Church; you will see they wiped out three arian tribes.

Here are some sites to look at:

http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&rls=PCTA%2CPCTA%3A2006-34%2CPCTA%3Aen&q=three+arian+tribes+wiped+out+by+the+Catholic+Church&btnG=Search

http://www.google.com/search?sourceid=navclient&ie=UTF-8&rls=PCTA,PCTA:2006-34,PCTA:en&q=heruli%2c+vandals%2c+ostrogoths+wiped+out+by+the+Catholic+Church



WHO ARE THESE 10 HORNS?

**Now the 10 horns represents kings or kingdoms and 1 comes up among the them and destroys (DANIEL 7:8,23,24)three.



3 Successive Horns uprooted (babarians followers of Arianism destroyed on papal authority--this period called the "transition age" in Philip Myers' Ancient History, p.571)

AND THEN A LITTLE HORN COMES UPON THE SCENE THAT HAS DESTROYED THE HERULI (under Odoacer) 476-493AD, KINGDOM OF THE VANDALS 429-533AD AND KINGDOM OF THE OSTROGOTHS 493-554AD.



NOW DETERMINING WHO THE HORN IS: A.C. FLICK, THE RISE OF THE MEDIAEVAL CHURCH. (PUTNAM'S 1909 ED.)PP.148-149.

*FROM THE CLUES IN THE BIBLE; WE KNOW IT'S THE ROMAN EMPIRE (REV.17:4; COMPARE TO MATT.27:28 AND MARK 15:17,20

Rev.17:4 = "And the woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet colur,..."

Matt.27:28 = "And they stripped him, and put on him a scarlet robe."

Mark 15:16,17 = "And the soldiers led him away into the hall, called Praetorium; and they called together the whole band. And they clothed him with purple, and plaited a crown of thorns, and put it upon his head."

Mark 15:20 = "And when they had mocked him, they took off the purple, and plaited a crown of thorns, and put it upon his head."



Little horn among the 10 (Daniel 7:8,20-22,24-27)

2-Horned Lamb-Like Beast from earth and image(Rev.13:11-18)

Royally Clad Harlot named Mystery, Babylon the Great (Rev.17:1-6)

Symbolic meaning = False Christian Religion Ruling the Beast

Historical Fulfillment = Roman Catholic Church under the Pope (in the image of the Roman civil government)



http://www.lcg.org/cgi-bin/tw/booklets/tw-bk.cgi?category=Booklets1&item=1104414543

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Not all christians believe in trinitarianism.

(Note: some have different views of non-trinitarianism as noted in these sites below; these are unitarians point of view. Unitarians don't believe Jesus was in the beginning as the Bible says)

http://www.mindspring.com/~anthonybuzzard/trinity.htm

http://anthonybuzzard.home.mindspring.com/whoisjesus.htm#21



In fact here are some that don't believe in the trinity:

Living Church of God (believes there is 1 God: the father and his son Jesus Christ in the "God Family" and that many members can be in this "God Family" as the Bible says)

http://www.lcg.org/search/search.php?query=trinity&%24results_per_page=10&search=1

http://www.lcg.org/search/search.php?query=god%27s+church+through+the+ages&type=and&results=10&search=1

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Living_Church_of_God

Churches of God

http://www.giveshare.org/churchhistory/sda/064.sda.html

Jehovah Witnesses

http://www.watchtower.org/library/ti/article_04.htm

Unitarians (Unitarians don't believe Jesus was in the beginning as the Bible says)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unitarian_Christianity

http://www.biblicalunitarian.com/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=113

United Pentecostals (they believe in oneness)

http://experts.about.com/q/Pentecostals-2256/Trinity-1.htm

http://www.cephasministry.com/index_pentecostals.html



******************

Reference sources:

What is God really like?

http://www.tomorrowsworld.org/cgi-bin/tw/tw-mag.cgi?category=Magazine28&item=1104232928

The Real God.

http://www.lcg.org/cgi-bin/tw/magazine/tw-mag.cgi?category=Magazine3&item=1103832467

Is God really a TRINITY?

http://lcg.org/search/search.php?query=IS+THERE+A+TRINITY&%24results_per_page=10&search=1

God's Church through the Ages (see the Trinity)

http://www.lcg.org/cgi-bin/tw/booklets/tw-bk.cgi?category=Booklets1&item=1104363708

Your Ultimate Destiny

http://www.tomorrowsworld.org/cgi-bin/tw/booklets/tw-bk.cgi?category=Booklets1&item=1104093303

The Beast of Revelation

http://www.lcg.org/cgi-bin/tw/booklets/tw-bk.cgi?category=Booklets1&item=1104414543
2007-05-17 04:18:01 UTC
I copied and pasted Punter's answer, because his answer is the best.



According to Islam, trinity is biggest falsehood.



Postmortem of Trinity

What is the origin of the Trinity doctrine?

The New Encyclopædia Britannica says: “Neither the word Trinity, nor the explicit doctrine as such, appears in the New Testament, nor did Jesus and his followers intend to contradict the Shema in the Old Testament: ‘Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God is one Lord’ (Deut. 6:4). . . . The doctrine developed gradually over several centuries and through many controversies. . . . By the end of the 4th century . . . the doctrine of the Trinity took substantially the form it has maintained ever since.”—(1976), Micropædia, Vol. X, p. 126.



The New Catholic Encyclopedia states: “The formulation ‘one God in three Persons’ was not solidly established, certainly not fully assimilated into Christian life and its profession of faith, prior to the end of the 4th century. But it is precisely this formulation that has first claim to the title the Trinitarian dogma. Among the Apostolic Fathers, there had been nothing even remotely approaching such a mentality or perspective.”—(1967), Vol. XIV, p. 299.



In The Encyclopedia Americana we read: “Christianity derived from Judaism and Judaism was strictly Unitarian [believing that God is one person]. The road which led from Jerusalem to Nicea was scarcely a straight one. Fourth century Trinitarianism did not reflect accurately early Christian teaching regarding the nature of God; it was, on the contrary, a deviation from this teaching.”—(1956), Vol. XXVII, p. 294L.



According to the Nouveau Dictionnaire Universel, “The Platonic trinity, itself merely a rearrangement of older trinities dating back to earlier peoples, appears to be the rational philosophic trinity of attributes that gave birth to the three hypostases or divine persons taught by the Christian churches. . . . This Greek philosopher’s [Plato, fourth century B.C.E.] conception of the divine trinity . . . can be found in all the ancient [pagan] religions.”—(Paris, 1865-1870), edited by M. Lachâtre, Vol. 2, p. 1467.



John L. McKenzie, S.J., in his Dictionary of the Bible, says: “The trinity of persons within the unity of nature is defined in terms of ‘person’ and ‘nature’ which are G[ree]k philosophical terms; actually the terms do not appear in the Bible. The trinitarian definitions arose as the result of long controversies in which these terms and others such as ‘essence’ and ‘substance’ were erroneously applied to God by some theologians.”—(New York, 1965), p. 899.



Even though, as Trinitarians acknowledge, neither the word “Trinity” nor a statement of the Trinitarian dogma is found in the Bible, are the concepts that are embodied in that dogma found there?



Does the Bible teach that the “Holy Spirit” is a person?



Some individual texts that refer to the holy spirit (“Holy Ghost,” KJ) might seem to indicate personality. For example, the holy spirit is referred to as a helper (Greek, pa•ra′kle•tos; “Comforter,” KJ; “Advocate,” JB, NE) that ‘teaches,’ ‘bears witness,’ ‘speaks’ and ‘hears.’ (John 14:16, 17, 26; 15:26; 16:13) But other texts say that people were “filled” with holy spirit, that some were ‘baptized’ with it or “anointed” with it. (Luke 1:41; Matt. 3:11; Acts 10:38) These latter references to holy spirit definitely do not fit a person. To understand what the Bible as a whole teaches, all these texts must be considered. What is the reasonable conclusion? That the first texts cited here employ a figure of speech personifying God’s holy spirit, his active force, as the Bible also personifies wisdom, sin, death, water, and blood. (See also pages 380, 381, under the heading “Spirit.”)





Acts 7:55, 56 reports that Stephen was given a vision of heaven in which he saw “Jesus standing at God’s right hand.” But he made no mention of seeing the holy spirit. (See also Revelation 7:10; 22:1, 3.)



The New Catholic Encyclopedia admits: “The majority of N[ew] T[estament] texts reveal God’s spirit as something, not someone; this is especially seen in the parallelism between the spirit and the power of God.” (1967, Vol. XIII, p. 575) It also reports: “The Apologists [Greek Christian writers of the second century] spoke too haltingly of the Spirit; with a measure of anticipation, one might say too impersonally.”—Vol. XIV, p. 296.



Does the Bible agree with those who teach that the Father and the Son are not separate and distinct individuals?



O Christians do you believe that Jesus pbuh have been praying himself, he is god. How absurd?

Matt. 26:39, RS: “Going a little farther he [Jesus Christ] fell on his face and prayed, ‘My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as thou wilt.’” (If the Father and the Son were not distinct individuals, such a prayer would have been meaningless. Jesus would have been praying to himself, and his will would of necessity have been the Father’s will.)



John 8:17, 18, RS: “[Jesus answered the Jewish Pharisees:] In your law it is written that the testimony of two men is true; I bear witness to myself, and the Father who sent me bears witness to me.” (So, Jesus definitely spoke of himself as being an individual separate and distinct from the Father.)



See also pages 197, 198, under “Jehovah.”



Does the Bible teach that all who are said to be part of the Trinity are eternal, none having a beginning?



Col. 1:15, 16, RS: “He [Jesus Christ] is the image of the invisible God, the first-born of all creation; for in him all things were created, in heaven and on earth.” In what sense is Jesus Christ “the first-born of all creation”? (1) Trinitarians say that “first-born” here means prime, most excellent, most distinguished; thus Christ would be understood to be, not part of creation, but the most distinguished in relation to those who were created. If that is so, and if the Trinity doctrine is true, why are the Father and the holy spirit not also said to be the firstborn of all creation? But the Bible applies this expression only to the Son. According to the customary meaning of “firstborn,” it indicates that Jesus is the eldest in Jehovah’s family of sons. (2) Before Colossians 1:15, the expression “the firstborn of” occurs upwards of 30 times in the Bible, and in each instance that it is applied to living creatures the same meaning applies—the firstborn is part of the group. “The firstborn of Israel” is one of the sons of Israel; “the firstborn of Pharaoh” is one of Pharaoh’s family; “the firstborn of beast” are themselves animals. What, then, causes some to ascribe a different meaning to it at Colossians 1:15? Is it Bible usage or is it a belief to which they already hold and for which they seek proof? (3) Does Colossians 1:16, 17 (RS) exclude Jesus from having been created, when it says “in him all things were created . . . all things were created through him and for him”? The Greek word here rendered “all things” is pan′ta, an inflected form of pas. At Luke 13:2, RS renders this “all . . . other”; JB reads “any other”; NE says “anyone else.” (See also Luke 21:29 in NE and Philippians 2:21 in JB.) In harmony with everything else that the Bible says regarding the Son, NW assigns the same meaning to pan′ta at Colossians 1:16, 17 so that it reads, in part, “by means of him all other things were created . . . All other things have been created through him and for him.” Thus he is shown to be a created being, part of the creation produced by God.



Rev. 1:1; 3:14, RS: “The revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave him . . . ‘And to the angel of the church in La-odicea write: “The words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning [Greek, ar•khe′] of God’s creation.”’” (KJ, Dy, CC, and NW, as well as others, read similarly.) Is that rendering correct? Some take the view that what is meant is that the Son was ‘the beginner of God’s creation,’ that he was its ‘ultimate source.’ But Liddell and Scott’s Greek-English Lexicon lists “beginning” as its first meaning of ar•khe′. (Oxford, 1968, p. 252) The logical conclusion is that the one being quoted at Revelation 3:14 is a creation, the first of God’s creations, that he had a beginning. Compare Proverbs 8:22, where, as many Bible commentators agree, the Son is referred to as wisdom personified. According to RS, NE, and JB, the one there speaking is said to be “created.”)



Prophetically, with reference to the Messiah, Micah 5:2 (KJ) says his “goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting.” Dy reads: “his going forth is from the beginning, from the days of eternity.” Does that make him the same as God? It is noteworthy that, instead of saying “days of eternity,” RS renders the Hebrew as “ancient days”; JB, “days of old”; NW, “days of time indefinite.” Viewed in the light of Revelation 3:14, discussed above, Micah 5:2 does not prove that Jesus was without a beginning.



Does the Bible teach that none of those who are said to be included in the Trinity is greater or less than another, that all are equal, that all are almighty?



Who has spread the blasphemy of 'co-equality' of three persons of trinity?

Mark 13:32, RS: “Of that day or that hour no ones knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.” (Of course, that would not be the case if Father, Son, and Holy Spirit were coequal, comprising one Godhead. And if, as some suggest, the Son was limited by his human nature from knowing, the question remains, Why did the Holy Spirit not know?)



Matt. 20:20-23, RS: “The mother of the sons of Zebedee . . . said to him [Jesus], ‘Command that these two sons of mine may sit, one at your right hand and one at your left, in your kingdom.’ But Jesus answered, . . . ‘You will drink my cup, but to sit at my right hand and at my left is not mine to grant, but it is for those for whom it has been prepared by my Father.’” (How strange, if, as claimed, Jesus is God! Was Jesus here merely answering according to his “human nature”? If, as Trinitarians say, Jesus was truly “God-man”—both God and man, not one or the other—would it truly be consistent to resort to such an explanation? Does not Matthew 20:23 rather show that the Son is not equal to the Father, that the Father has reserved some prerogatives for himself?)



Holy Spirit is greater than son.

Matt. 12:31, 32, RS: “Every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven. And whoever says a word against the Son of man will be forgiven; but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the age to come.” (If the Holy Spirit were a person and were God, this text would flatly contradict the Trinity doctrine, because it would mean that in some way the Holy Spirit was greater than the Son. Instead, what Jesus said shows that the Father, to whom the “Spirit” belonged, is greater than Jesus, the Son of man.)



John 14:28, RS: “[Jesus said:] If you loved me, you would have rejoiced, because I go to the Father; for the Father is greater than I.”



1 Cor. 11:3, RS: “I want you to understand that the head of every man is Christ, the head of a woman is her husband, and the head of Christ is God.” (Clearly, then, Christ is not God, and God is of superior rank to Christ. It should be noted that this was written about 55 C.E., some 22 years after Jesus returned to heaven. So the truth here stated applies to the relationship between God and Christ in heaven.)



1 Cor. 15:27, 28 RS: “‘God has put all things in subjection under his [Jesus’] feet.’ But when it says, ‘All things are put in subjection under him,’ it is plain that he is excepted who put all things under him. When all things are subjected to him, then the Son himself will also be subjected to him who put all things under him, that God may be everything to every one.”



The Hebrew word Shad•dai′ and the Greek word Pan•to•kra′tor are both translated “Almighty.” Both original-language words are repeatedly applied to Jehovah, the Father. (Ex. 6:3; Rev. 19:6) Neither expression is ever applied to either the Son or the holy spirit.



Does the Bible teach that each of those said to be part of the Trinity is God?



Jesus said in prayer: “Father, . . . this is eternal life, that they know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom thou hast sent.” (John 17:1-3, RS; italics added.) (Most translations here use the expression “the only true God” with reference to the Father. NE reads “who alone art truly God.” He cannot be “the only true God,” the one “who alone [is] truly God,” if there are two others who are God to the same degree as he is, can he? Any others referred to as “gods” must be either false or merely a reflection of the true God.)



One God

1 Cor. 8:5, 6, RS: “Although there may be so-called gods in heaven or on earth—as indeed there are many ‘gods’ and many ‘lords’—yet for us there is one God, the Father, from whom are all things and for whom we exist, and one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom are all things and through whom we exist.” (This presents the Father as the “one God” of Christians and as being in a class distinct from Jesus Christ.)



1 Pet. 1:3, RS: “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ!” (Repeatedly, even following Jesus’ ascension to heaven, the Scriptures refer to the Father as “the God” of Jesus Christ. At John 20:17, following Jesus’ resurrection, he himself spoke of the Father as “my God.” Later, when in heaven, as recorded at Revelation 3:12, he again used the same expression. But never in the Bible is the Father reported to refer to the Son as “my God,” nor does either the Father or the Son refer to the holy spirit as “my God.”)



For comments on scriptures used by some in an effort to prove that Christ is God, see pages 212-216, under the heading “Jesus Christ.”



In Theological Investigations, Karl Rahner, S.J., admits: “Θεός [God] is still never used of the Spirit,” and: “ὁ θεός [literally, the God] is never used in the New Testament to speak of the πνεῦμα ἅγιον [holy spirit].”—(Baltimore, Md.; 1961), translated from German, Vol. I, pp. 138, 143.



Do any of the scriptures that are used by Trinitarians to support their belief provide a solid basis for that dogma?



A person who is really seeking to know the truth about God is not going to search the Bible hoping to find a text that he can construe as fitting what he already believes. He wants to know what God’s Word itself says. He may find some texts that he feels can be read in more than one way, but when these are compared with other Biblical statements on the same subject their meaning will become clear. It should be noted at the outset that most of the texts used as “proof” of the Trinity actually mention only two persons, not three; so even if the Trinitarian explanation of the texts were correct, these would not prove that the Bible teaches the Trinity. Consider the following:



(Unless otherwise indicated, all the texts quoted in the following section are from RS.)



Texts in which a title that belongs to Jehovah is applied to Jesus Christ or is claimed to apply to Jesus



Alpha and Omega Applies to God.

Alpha and Omega: To whom does this title properly belong? (1) At Revelation 1:8, its owner is said to be God, the Almighty. In verse 11 according to KJ, that title is applied to one whose description thereafter shows him to be Jesus Christ. But scholars recognize the reference to Alpha and Omega in verse 11 to be spurious, and so it does not appear in RS, NE, JB, NAB, Dy. (2) Many translations of Revelation into Hebrew recognize that the one described in verse 8 is Jehovah, and so they restore the personal name of God there. See NW, 1984 Reference edition. (3) Revelation 21:6, 7 indicates that Christians who are spiritual conquerors are to be ‘sons’ of the one known as the Alpha and the Omega. That is never said of the relationship of spirit-anointed Christians to Jesus Christ. Jesus spoke of them as his ‘brothers.’ (Heb. 2:11; Matt. 12:50; 25:40) But those ‘brothers’ of Jesus are referred to as “sons of God.” (Gal. 3:26; 4:6) (4) At Revelation 22:12, TEV inserts the name Jesus, so the reference to Alpha and Omega in verse 13 is made to appear to apply to him. But the name Jesus does not appear there in Greek, and other translations do not include it. (5) At Revelation 22:13, the Alpha and Omega is also said to be “the first and the last,” which expression is applied to Jesus at Revelation 1:17, 18. Similarly, the expression “apostle” is applied both to Jesus Christ and to certain ones of his followers. But that does not prove that they are the same person or are of equal rank, does it? (Heb. 3:1) So the evidence points to the conclusion that the title “Alpha and Omega” applies to Almighty God, the Father, not to the Son.



God is savior

Savior: Repeatedly the Scriptures refer to God as Savior. At Isaiah 43:11 God even says: “Besides me there is no savior.” Since Jesus is also referred to as Savior, are God and Jesus the same? Not at all. Titus 1:3, 4 speaks of “God our Savior,” and then of both “God the Father and Christ Jesus our Savior.” So, both persons are saviors. Jude 25 shows the relationship, saying: “God, our Savior through Jesus Christ our Lord.” (Italics added.) (See also Acts 13:23.) At Judges 3:9, the same Hebrew word (moh•shi′a‛, rendered “savior” or “deliverer”) that is used at Isaiah 43:11 is applied to Othniel, a judge in Israel, but that certainly did not make Othniel Jehovah, did it? A reading of Isaiah 43:1-12 shows that verse 11 means that Jehovah alone was the One who provided salvation, or deliverance, for Israel; that salvation did not come from any of the gods of the surrounding nations.



Almighty God is The first and the Last – Alpha and Omega

Almighty God: At Isaiah 43:10 Almighty God says: “Before me no god was formed, nor shall there be any after me.” Does this mean that, because Jesus Christ is prophetically called “Almighty God” at Isaiah 9:6, Jesus must be God? Again, the context answers, No! None of the idolatrous Gentile nations formed a god before Almighty God, because no one existed before Almighty God. Nor would they at a future time form any real, live god that was able to prophesy. (Isa. 46:9, 10) But that does not mean that Almighty God never caused to exist anyone who is properly referred to as a god. (Ps. 82:1, 6; John 1:1, NW) At Isaiah 10:21 Jehovah is referred to as “mighty God,” just as Jesus is in Isaiah 9:6; but only Jehovah is ever called “God Almighty.”—Gen. 17:1.



If a certain title or descriptive phrase is found in more than one location in the Scriptures, it should never hastily be concluded that it must always refer to the same person. Such reasoning would lead to the conclusion that Nebuchadnezzar was Jesus Christ, because both were called “king of kings” (Dan. 2:37; Rev. 17:14); and that Jesus’ disciples were actually Jesus Christ, because both were called “the light of the world.” (Matt. 5:14; John 8:12) We should always consider the context and any other instances in the Bible where the same expression occurs.



Application to Jesus Christ by inspired Bible writers of passages from the Hebrew Scriptures that clearly apply to Jehovah – The Almighty God.



Jesus pbuh came to please Almighty God

Why does John 1:23 quote Isaiah 40:3 and apply it to what John the Baptizer did in preparing the way for Jesus Christ, when Isaiah 40:3 is clearly discussing preparing the way before Jehovah? Because Jesus represented his Father. He came in his Father’s name and had the assurance that his Father was always with him because he did the things pleasing to his Father.—John 5:43; 8:29.



Why does Hebrews 1:10-12 quote Psalm 102:25-27 and apply it to the Son, when the psalm says that it is addressed to God? Because the Son is the one through whom God performed the creative works there described by the psalmist. (See Colossians 1:15, 16; Proverbs 8:22, 27-30.) It should be observed in Hebrews 1:5b that a quotation is made from 2 Samuel 7:14 and applied to the Son of God. Although that text had its first application to Solomon, the later application of it to Jesus Christ does not mean that Solomon and Jesus are the same. Jesus is “greater than Solomon” and carries out a work foreshadowed by Solomon.—Luke 11:31.



Bible never says Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit are co-equal or co-eternal or all are gods. No trinity.



Matthew 28:19 and 2 Corinthians 13:14 are instances of this. Neither of these texts says that Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are coequal or coeternal or that all are God. The Scriptural evidence already presented on pages 408-412 argues against reading such thoughts into the texts.



McClintock and Strong’s Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological, and Ecclesiastical Literature, though advocating the Trinity doctrine, acknowledges regarding Matthew 28:18-20: “This text, however, taken by itself, would not prove decisively either the personality of the three subjects mentioned, or their equality or divinity.” (1981 reprint, Vol. X, p. 552) Regarding other texts that also mention the three together, this Cyclopedia admits that, taken by themselves, they are “insufficient” to prove the Trinity. (Compare 1 Timothy 5:21, where God and Christ and the angels are mentioned together.)



Texts in which the plural form of nouns is applied to God in the Hebrew Scriptures



At Genesis 1:1 the title “God” is translated from ’Elo•him′, which is plural in Hebrew. Trinitarians construe this to be an indication of the Trinity. They also explain Deuteronomy 6:4 to imply the unity of members of the Trinity when it says, “The LORD our God [from ’Elo•him′] is one LORD.”



The plural form of the noun here in Hebrew is the plural of majesty or excellence. (See NAB, St. Joseph Edition, Bible Dictionary, p. 330; also, New Catholic Encyclopedia, 1967, Vol. V, p. 287.) It conveys no thought of plurality of persons within a godhead. In similar fashion, at Judges 16:23 when reference is made to the false god Dagon, a form of the title ’elo•him′ is used; the accompanying verb is singular, showing that reference is to just the one god. At Genesis 42:30, Joseph is spoken of as the “lord” (’adho•neh′, the plural of excellence) of Egypt.



The Greek language does not have a ‘plural of majesty or excellence.’ So, at Genesis 1:1 the translators of LXX used ho The•os′ (God, singular) as the equivalent of ’Elo•him′. At Mark 12:29, where a reply of Jesus is reproduced in which he quoted Deuteronomy 6:4, the Greek singular ho The•os′ is similarly used.

Almighty God is different from Egyptians triads gods

At Deuteronomy 6:4, the Hebrew text contains the Tetragrammaton twice, and so should more properly read: “Jehovah our Almighty God is one Jehovah.” (NW) The nation of Israel, to whom that was stated, did not believe in the Trinity. The Babylonians and the Egyptians worshiped triads of gods, but it was made clear to Israel that Jehovah is different.



Texts from which a person might draw more than one conclusion, depending on the Bible translation used



If a passage can grammatically be translated in more than one way, what is the correct rendering? One that is in agreement with the rest of the Bible. If a person ignores other portions of the Bible and builds his belief around a favorite rendering of a particular verse, then what he believes really reflects, not the Word of God, but his own ideas and perhaps those of another imperfect human.



John 1:1, 2:

Humans are called as gods – godly persons

RS reads: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God.” (KJ, Dy, JB, NAB use similar wording.) However, NW reads: “In the beginning the Word was, and the Word was with God, and the Word was a god. This one was in the beginning with God.”



Which translation of John 1:1, 2 agrees with the context? John 1:18 says: “No one has ever seen God.” Verse 14 clearly says that “the Word became flesh and dwelt among us . . . we have beheld his glory.” Also, verses 1, 2 say that in the beginning he was “with God.” Can one be with someone and at the same time be that person? At John 17:3, Jesus addresses the Father as “the only true God”; so, Jesus as “a god” merely reflects his Father’s divine qualities.—Heb. 1:3.



Is the rendering “a god” consistent with the rules of Greek grammar? Some reference books argue strongly that the Greek text must be translated, “The Word was God.” But not all agree. In his article “Qualitative Anarthrous Predicate Nouns: Mark 15:39 and John 1:1,” Philip B. Harner said that such clauses as the one in John 1:1, “with an anarthrous predicate preceding the verb, are primarily qualitative in meaning. They indicate that the logos has the nature of theos.” He suggests: “Perhaps the clause could be translated, ‘the Word had the same nature as God.’” (Journal of Biblical Literature, 1973, pp. 85, 87) Thus, in this text, the fact that the word the•os′ in its second occurrence is without the definite article (ho) and is placed before the verb in the sentence in Greek is significant. Interestingly, translators that insist on rendering John 1:1, “The Word was God,” do not hesitate to use the indefinite article (a, an) in their rendering of other passages where a singular anarthrous predicate noun occurs before the verb. Thus at John 6:70, JB and KJ both refer to Judas Iscariot as “a devil,” and at John 9:17 they describe Jesus as “a prophet.”



John J. McKenzie, S.J., in his Dictionary of the Bible, says: “Jn 1:1 should rigorously be translated ‘the word was with the God [= the Father], and the word was a divine being.’”—(Brackets are his. Published with nihil obstat and imprimatur.) (New York, 1965), p. 317.



In harmony with the above, AT reads: “the Word was divine”; Mo, “the Logos was divine”; NTIV, “the word was a god.” In his German translation Ludwig Thimme expresses it in this way: “God of a sort the Word was.” Referring to the Word (who became Jesus Christ) as “a god” is consistent with the use of that term in the rest of the Scriptures. For example, at Psalm 82:1-6 human judges in Israel were referred to as “gods” (Hebrew, ’elo•him′; Greek, the•oi′, at John 10:34) because they were representatives of Jehovah and were to speak his law.



See also NW appendix, 1984 Reference edition, p. 1579.



John 8:58:



RS reads: “Jesus said to them, ‘Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I am [Greek, e•go′ ei•mi′].’” (NE, KJ, TEV, JB, NAB all read “I am,” some even using capital letters to convey the idea of a title. Thus they endeavor to connect the expression with Exodus 3:14, where, according to their rendering, God refers to himself by the title “I Am.”) However, in NW the latter part of John 8:58 reads: “Before Abraham came into existence, I have been.” (The same idea is conveyed by the wording in AT, Mo, CBW, and SE.)



Which rendering agrees with the context? The question of the Jews (verse 57) to which Jesus was replying had to do with age, not identity. Jesus’ reply logically dealt with his age, the length of his existence. Interestingly, no effort is ever made to apply e•go′ ei•mi′ as a title to the holy spirit.



Says A Grammar of the Greek New Testament in the Light of Historical Research, by A. T. Robertson: “The verb [ei•mi′] . . . Sometimes it does express existence as a predicate like any other verb, as in [e•go′ ei•mi′] (Jo. 8:58).”—Nashville, Tenn.; 1934, p. 394.



See also NW appendix, 1984 Reference edition, pp. 1582, 1583.



Acts 20:28:



JB reads: “Be on your guard for yourselves and for all the flock of which the Holy Spirit has made you the overseers, to feed the Church of God which he bought with his own blood.” (KJ, Dy, NAB use similar wording.) However, in NW the latter part of the verse reads: “the blood of his own [Son].” (TEV reads similarly. Although the 1953 printing of RS reads “with his own blood,” the 1971 edition reads “with the blood of his own Son.” Ro and Da simply read “the blood of his own.”)



Which rendering(s) agree with 1 John 1:7, which says: “The blood of Jesus his [God’s] Son cleanses us from all sin”? (See also Revelation 1:4-6.) As stated in John 3:16, did God send his only-begotten Son, or did he himself come as a man, so that we might have life? It was the blood, not of God, but of his Son that was poured out.



See also NW appendix, 1984 Reference edition, p. 1580.



Romans 9:5:

Disputed verse.

JB reads: “They are descended from the patriarchs and from their flesh and blood came Christ who is above all, God for ever blessed! Amen.” (KJ, Dy read similarly.) However, in NW the latter part of the verse reads: “from whom the Christ sprang according to the flesh: God, who is over all, be blessed forever. Amen.” (RS, NE, TEV, NAB, Mo all use wording similar to NW.)



Is this verse saying that Christ is “over all” and that he is therefore God? Or does it refer to God and Christ as distinct individuals and say that God is “over all”? Which rendering of Romans 9:5 agrees with Romans 15:5, 6, which first distinguishes God from Christ Jesus and then urges the reader to “glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ”? (See also 2 Corinthians 1:3 and Ephesians 1:3.) Consider what follows in Romans chapter 9. Verses 6-13 show that the outworking of God’s purpose depends not on inheritance according to the flesh but on the will of God. Verses 14-18 refer to God’s message to Pharaoh, as recorded at Exodus 9:16, to highlight the fact that God is over all. In verses 19-24 God’s superiority is further illustrated by an analogy with a potter and the clay vessels that he makes. How appropriate, then, in verse 5, the expression: “God, who is over all, be blessed forever. Amen”!—NW.



The New International Dictionary of New Testament Theology states: “Rom. 9:5 is disputed. . . . It would be easy, and linguistically perfectly possible to refer the expression to Christ. The verse would then read, ‘Christ who is God over all, blessed for ever. Amen.’ Even so, Christ would not be equated absolutely with God, but only described as a being of divine nature, for the word theos has no article. . . . The much more probable explanation is that the statement is a doxology directed to God.”—(Grand Rapids, Mich.; 1976), translated from German, Vol. 2, p. 80.



See also NW appendix, 1984 Reference edition, pp. 1580, 1581.



Philippians 2:5, 6:

Contradiction – Jesus is equal to god, God is greater than Jesus.

KJ reads: “Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God.” (Dy has the same wording. JB reads: “he did not cling to his equality with God.”) However, in NW the latter portion of that passage reads: “who, although he was existing in God’s form, gave no consideration to a seizure [Greek, har•pag•mon′], namely, that he should be equal to God.” (RS, NE, TEV, NAB convey the same thought.)



Which thought agrees with the context? Verse 5 counsels Christians to imitate Christ in the matter here being discussed. Could they be urged to consider it “not robbery,” but their right, “to be equal with God”? Surely not! However, they can imitate one who “gave no consideration to a seizure, namely, that he should be equal to God.” (NW) (Compare Genesis 3:5.) Such a translation also agrees with Jesus Christ himself, who said: “The Father is greater than I.”—John 14:28.



The Expositor’s Greek Testament says: “We cannot find any passage where [har•pa′zo] or any of its derivatives [including har•pag•mon′] has the sense of ‘holding in possession,’ ‘retaining’. It seems invariably to mean ‘seize,’ ‘snatch violently’. Thus it is not permissible to glide from the true sense ‘grasp at’ into one which is totally different, ‘hold fast.’”—(Grand Rapids, Mich.; 1967), edited by W. Robertson Nicoll, Vol. III, pp. 436, 437.



Colossians 2:9:

Contradiction God’s nature or Godhead.

KJ reads: “In him [Christ] dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead [Greek, the•o′te•tos] bodily.” (A similar thought is conveyed by the renderings in NE, RS, JB, NAB, Dy.) However, NW reads: “It is in him that all the fullness of the divine quality dwells bodily.” (AT, We, and CKW read “God’s nature,” instead of “Godhead.” Compare 2 Peter 1:4.)



Jesus never claimed that he is part of trinity.

Admittedly, not everyone offers the same interpretation of Colossians 2:9. But what is in agreement with the rest of the inspired letter to the Colossians? Did Christ have in himself something that is his because he is God, part of a Trinity? Or is “the fullness” that dwells in him something that became his because of the decision of someone else? Colossians 1:19 (KJ, Dy) says that all fullness dwelt in Christ because it “pleased the Father” for this to be the case. NE says it was “by God’s own choice.”



Do fullness make Christ God? No

Consider the immediate context of Colossians 2:9: In verse 8, readers are warned against being misled by those who advocate philosophy and human traditions. They are also told that in Christ “are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge” and are urged to “live in him” and to be “rooted and built up in him and established in the faith.” (Verses 3, 6, 7) It is in him, and not in the originators or the teachers of human philosophy, that a certain precious “fulness” dwells. Was the apostle Paul there saying that the “fulness” that was in Christ made Christ God himself? Not according to Colossians 3:1, where Christ is said to be “seated at the right hand of God.”—See KJ, Dy, TEV, NAB.



According to Liddell and Scott’s Greek-English Lexicon, the•o′tes (the nominative form, from which the•o′te•tos is derived) means “divinity, divine nature, godly person.” (Oxford, 1968, p. 792) Being truly “divinity,” or of “divine nature,” does not make Jesus as the Son of God coequal and coeternal with the Father, any more than the fact that all humans share “humanity” or “human nature” makes them coequal or all the same age.



Titus 2:13:

God Savior and Jesus pbuh is Prophet

RS reads: “Awaiting our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ.” (Similar wording is found in NE, TEV, JB.) However, NW reads: “while we wait for the happy hope and glorious manifestation of the great God and of the Savior of us, Christ Jesus.” (NAB has a similar rendering.)



Which translation agrees with Titus 1:4, which refers to “God the Father and Christ Jesus our Savior”? Although the Scriptures also refer to God as being a Savior, this text clearly differentiates between him and Christ Jesus, the one through whom God provides salvation.



Some argue that Titus 2:13 indicates that Christ is both God and Savior. Interestingly, RS, NE, TEV, JB render Titus 2:13 in a way that might be construed as allowing for that view, but they do not follow the same rule in their translation of 2 Thessalonians 1:12. Henry Alford, in The Greek Testament, states: “I would submit that [a rendering that clearly differentiates God and Christ, at Titus 2:13] satisfies all the grammatical requirements of the sentence: that it is both structurally and contextually more probable, and more agreeable to the Apostle’s way of writing.”—(Boston, 1877), Vol. III, p. 421.



See also NW appendix, 1984 Reference edition, pp. 1581, 1582.



Hebrews 1:8:

Throne belong to Almighty God

RS reads: “Of the Son he says, ‘Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever.’” (KJ, NE, TEV, Dy, JB, NAB have similar renderings.) However, NW reads: “But with reference to the Son: ‘God is your throne forever and ever.’” (AT, Mo, TC, By convey the same idea.)



Which rendering is harmonious with the context? The preceding verses say that God is speaking, not that he is being addressed; and the following verse uses the expression “God, thy God,” showing that the one addressed is not the Most High God but is a worshiper of that God. Hebrews 1:8 quotes from Psalm 45:6, which originally was addressed to a human king of Israel. Obviously, the Bible writer of this psalm did not think that this human king was Almighty God. Rather, Psalm 45:6, in RS, reads “Your divine throne.” (NE says, “Your throne is like God’s throne.” JP [verse 7]: “Thy throne given of God.”) Solomon, who was possibly the king originally addressed in Psalm 45, was said to sit “upon Jehovah’s throne.” (1 Chron. 29:23, NW) In harmony with the fact that God is the “throne,” or Source and Upholder of Christ’s kingship, Daniel 7:13, 14 and Luke 1:32 show that God confers such authority on him.



Hebrews 1:8, 9 quotes from Psalm 45:6, 7, concerning which the Bible scholar B. F. Westcott states: “The LXX. admits of two renderings: [ho the•os′] can be taken as a vocative in both cases (Thy throne, O God, . . . therefore, O God, Thy God . . . ) or it can be taken as the subject (or the predicate) in the first case (God is Thy throne, or Thy throne is God . . . ), and in apposition to [ho the•os′ sou] in the second case (Therefore God, even Thy God . . . ). . . . It is scarcely possible that [’Elo•him′] in the original can be addressed to the king. The presumption therefore is against the belief that [ho the•os′] is a vocative in the LXX. Thus on the whole it seems best to adopt in the first clause the rendering: God is Thy throne (or, Thy throne is God), that is ‘Thy kingdom is founded upon God, the immovable Rock.’”—The Epistle to the Hebrews (London, 1889), pp. 25, 26.



1 John 5:7, 8: is removed from bible because it was an interpolation.



KJ reads: “For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one. And there are three that bear witness in earth, the spirit, and the water, and the blood: and these three agree in one.” (Dy also includes this Trinitarian passage.) However, NW does not include the words “in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one. And there are three that bear witness in earth.” (RS, NE, TEV, JB, NAB also leave out the Trinitarian passage.)



Regarding this Trinitarian passage, textual critic F. H. A. Scrivener wrote: “We need not hesitate to declare our conviction that the disputed words were not written by St. John: that they were originally brought into Latin copies in Africa from the margin, where they had been placed as a pious and orthodox gloss on ver. 8: that from the Latin they crept into two or three late Greek codices, and thence into the printed Greek text, a place to which they had no rightful claim.”—A Plain Introduction to the Criticism of the New Testament (Cambridge, 1883, third ed.), p. 654.



See also footnote on these verses in JB, and NW appendix, 1984 Reference edition, p. 1580.



Other scriptures that are said by Trinitarians to express elements of their dogma



Notice that the first of these texts refers to only the Son; the other refers to both Father and Son; neither refers to Father, Son, and Holy Spirit and says that they comprise one God.



John 2:19-22:



By what he here said, did Jesus mean that he would resurrect himself from the dead? Does that mean that Jesus is God, because Acts 2:32 says, “This Jesus God raised up”? Not at all. Such a view would conflict with Galatians 1:1, which ascribes the resurrection of Jesus to the Father, not to the Son. Using a similar mode of expression, at Luke 8:48 Jesus is quoted as saying to a woman: “Your faith has made you well.” Did she heal herself? No; it was power from God through Christ that healed her because she had faith. (Luke 8:46; Acts 10:38) Likewise, by his perfect obedience as a human, Jesus provided the moral basis for the Father to raise him from the dead, thus acknowledging Jesus as God’s Son. Because of Jesus’ faithful course of life, it could properly be said that Jesus himself was responsible for his resurrection.



Says A. T. Robertson in Word Pictures in the New Testament: “Recall [John] 2:19 where Jesus said: ‘And in three days I will raise it up.’ He did not mean that he will raise himself from the dead independently of the Father as the active agent (Rom. 8:11).”—(New York, 1932), Vol. V, p. 183.



“I and my father are one” do not constitute trinity.

John 10:30:



When saying, “I and the Father are one,” did Jesus mean that they were equal? Some Trinitarians say that he did. But at John 17:21, 22, Jesus prayed regarding his followers: “That they may all be one,” and he added, “that they may be one even as we are one.” He used the same Greek word (hen) for “one” in all these instances. Obviously, Jesus’ disciples do not all become part of the Trinity. But they do come to share a oneness of purpose with the Father and the Son, the same sort of oneness that unites God and Christ.



In what position does belief in the Trinity put those who cling to it?



It puts them in a very dangerous position. The evidence is indisputable that the dogma of the Trinity is not found in the Bible, nor is it in harmony with what the Bible teaches. (See the preceding pages.) It grossly misrepresents the true God. Yet, Jesus Christ said: “The hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for such the Father seeks to worship him. God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth.” (John 4:23, 24, RS) Thus Jesus made it clear that those whose worship is not ‘in truth,’ not in harmony with the truth set out in God’s own Word, are not “true worshipers.” To Jewish religious leaders of the first century, Jesus said: “For the sake of your tradition, you have made void the word of God. You hypocrites! Well did Isaiah prophesy of you, when he said: ‘This people honors me with their lips, but their heart is far from me; in vain do they worship me, teaching as doctrines the precepts of men.’” (Matt. 15:6-9, RS) That applies with equal force to those in Christendom today who advocate human traditions in preference to the clear truths of the Bible.



Regarding the Trinity, the Athanasian Creed (in English) says that its members are “incomprehensible.” Teachers of the doctrine often state that it is a “mystery.” Obviously such a Trinitarian God is not the one that Jesus had in mind when he said: “We worship what we know.” (John 4:22, RS) Do you really know the God you worship?



Serious questions confront each one of us: Do we sincerely love the truth? Do we really want an approved relationship with God? Not everyone genuinely loves the truth. Many have put having the approval of their relatives and associates above love of the truth and of God. (2 Thess. 2:9-12; John 5:39-44) But, as Jesus said in earnest prayer to his heavenly Father: “This means everlasting life, their taking in knowledge of you, the only true God, and of the one whom you sent forth, Jesus Christ.” (John 17:3, NW) And Psalm 144:15 truthfully states: “Happy is the people whose God is Allah!”—NW.
raYah
2007-05-17 04:00:13 UTC
Jesus Of Christianity & Islam

Comparing Ideas - Sharing Knowledge



Does the belief in Jesus, peace be upon him, as a ‘son of God’ really make sense?



What exactly does 'son of God' mean?



Can true salvation from God, be the punishment of someone else who is innocent from any of these crimes, to be punished as though he were guilty?



Does God need someone to suffer severe punishment, even though they are trying, day after day.



Did Jesus, peace be upon him, tell the people to take him as a god, or to worship him?



Let us find the answer to these and other important questions about the nature of Jesus of Christianity and Islam.



"Look to the Books"



To begin, let us do a sample comparison of the teachings of the Holy Books of Almighty God.



QURAN OF ISLAM





Surah 39:53 “Say: ‘Oh my servants who have transgressed against their souls! Despair not of the Mercy of Allah: for Allah forgives all sins, for he is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful’.”



Also: Surah 4:110

“If anyone does evil or wrongs his own soul but afterwards seeks Allah’s forgiveness, he will find Allah Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful.”



Surah 2:21

“O you people! Adore your Guardian lord, who created you and those who came before you that you may become righteous.”



Surah 58:22

“You will not find any people who believe in Allah and the Last Day, loving those who resist Allah and His Messenger, even though they were their fathers or their sons, or their brothers, or their kindred. For such He has written faith in their hearts and strengthened them with a spirit from Himself. And He will admit them to Gardens beneath which rivers flow, to dwell therein (forever). Allah will be well pleased with them, and they with Him. They are the Party of Allah. Truly it is the Party of Allah that will achieve Felicity.”



New Testament of BIBLE





Mark 6:10

“Why do you call me good?” answered Jesus, “No-one is good but God alone!”



Matthew 5:17

“Do not think that I came to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them, but rather to fulfill them. I tell you the truth, until Heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of the pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until all things are accomplished. Anyone who breaks one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the Kingdom of Heaven. But whoever keeps the commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called great in the Kingdom of Heaven.”



Matthew 7:21

“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the Will of the Father who is in Heaven. Many will say to me on the day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!”



Some leaders claimed, “This probably refers to the Mormons or somebody else. Don’t worry about it.”



Mark 1:35

Gabriel says Jesus will be “called the son of God” and he would be “given the Throne of David” to “rule the House of Jacob forever.”



Luke 3:36

“Enos was the son of Seth, and Seth was the son of Adam, and Adam was the son of God.”



Note: Adam, not Jesus, is listed in this genealogy of Jesus as the son of God, not Jesus.



Later on, the priests are asking Jesus, peace be upon him, if he claims to be the son of God. He tells them in fact, it is they who are making this claim.



“You say that I am.”





Gospel of John contains the greatest number of references to “son of God.”

Jesus, speaking in the third person talked about the “Son of God” in John 3:17



John 5:24

John 11:4

John 11:27



Martha, one of the followers, calls Jesus, peace be upon him, “The Messiah, the Son of God”

John 20:31 he is called “The Messiah, the Son of God.”



But no verse makes the exact statement “Jesus is the Son of God and as such he is divine or God.”



QURAN 4:171

“O People of the Book! Commit no excesses in your religion: nor say of Allah anything but the truth. Christ Jesus, the son of Mary was (no more than) a Messenger of Allah, and His Word, which He bestowed on Mary, and a Spirit proceeding from Him: so believe in Allah and His Messengers. Say not “Trinity”: desist: It will be better for you: For Allah is One God: Glory be to Him: (Far exalted is He) above having a son. To Him belong all things in the heavens and on earth. And enough is Allah as a Disposer of affairs.”



Notice in the Bible, the frequent link between the position of Jesus, peace be upon him, as the Messiah and the ‘son-ship.’



The term ‘son of god’ can not, in itself, be considered enough to declare anything unique about Jesus, peace be upon him, as this term is used for many people throughout the Old and the New Testament. See above: Luke 3:38



Also, in Isaiah 62:8

refers to the entire house of Israel as being, ‘Sons of God’.



Romans 8:14 Paul tells us about those who are led by the spirit:

“because those who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God.”



The word “Messiah” is one that more particularly seems to represent the station of the person predicted to appear and lead the people to the victory over this world.



Oxford Companion of the Bible states Jews prior to Jesus, peace be upon him, hoped for a prophesied ruler, reigning with everlasting justice, peace and security for the “Sons of Israel.”



BIBLE

Isaiah 11:1-5

“A shoot will come up from the stump of Jesse; from his roots a Branch will bear fruit. The spirit of the Lord will be on him - the Spirit of wisdom and of understanding, the Spirit of counsel and of power, the Spirit of Knowledge and of the fear of the Lord - and he will delight in the fear of the Lord.”



Jeremiah 33:14-20

“The days are coming, declares the Lord, ‘When I will fulfill the gracious promise I made to the house of Israel and to the house of Judah. In those days and at that time I will make a righteous Branch sprout from David’s line; he will do what is just and right in the land. In those days Judah will be saved and Jerusalem will live in safety. This is the name by which it will be called: The Lord Our Righteousness.” For this is what the Lord says: ‘David will never fail to have a man to sit on the throne of the house of Israel, nor will the priests, who are Levites, ever fail to have a man to stand before me continually to offer burnt offerings, to burn grain offering and to present sacrifices.”



Ezekiel 37:24-28:

“My servant David will be king over them, and they will all have one shepherd. They will follow my laws and be careful to keep my decrees. The will live in the land I gave to my servant Jacob, the land where your fathers lived. They and their children and their children’s children will live there forever, and David my servant will be their prince forever. I will make a covenant of peace with them, it will be an everlasting covenant. I will establish them and increase their numbers and I will put my sanctuary among them forever. My dwelling place will be with them; I will be their God, and they will be my people. Then the nations will know that I the Lord make Israel holy, when my sanctuary is among them forever.”



Genesis 49:10

“The scepter will not depart from Judah, nor the rules staff from between his feet, until he comes to whom it belongs and the obedience of the nations is his.”



Numbers 24:17

“I see him, but not now; I behold him, but not near. A star will come out of Jacob; a scepter will rise out of Israel. He will crush the foreheads of Moab, the skulls of all the sons of Sheth. Edom will be conquered; Seir, his enemy, will conquered, but Israel will grow strong. A ruler will come out of Jacob and destroy the survivors of the city.”



God Incarnate? NOT HERE



BIBLE

2 Samuel 7:12-15 Nathan the prophet (son of Solomon)

“The Lord declares to you that the Lord Himself will establish a house for you: When your days are over and you rest with your fathers, I will raise up your offspring to succeed you, who will come from your own body, and I will establish his kingdom. He is the one who will build a house for my Name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. I will be his father and he will be my son. (New Testament book of Hebrews stops here)

Samuel continues:

“When he does wrong, I will punish him with the rod of men, with floggings inflicted by men. But my love will never be taken away from him, as I took it away from Saul, whom I removed from before you.”



Hebrews 1:5

“You are my Son; today I have begotten you.”



Does this support the case the doctrine that Jesus, peace be upon him, is the ‘begotten Son of God?”



Old Testament BIBLE

Psalms 2:7 David is stating what God has proclaimed regarding David’s relationship to God

“I will proclaim the decree of the Lord: he said to me, ‘you are my Son; this day have I begotten you.”



Note: the New International Version says the verse could be translated either as “become your Father” or as “begotten you” into English or Greek.



New Testament BIBLE

Mark 1:35

“He will be called the Son of God.”



Note: This does not state he “is” the son, but rather, he will be “called” the son of God.



Or was he the “one anointed to preach Good News to the poor.” prophesied by Isaiah, and the Messiah proclaimed by Gabriel, the followers of Jesus, peace be upon him, Jesus, himself and the remained of the New Testament, he evidently would not be God.



New Testament BIBLE

John 8:58

“I tell you the truth’, Jesus answered, ‘before Abraham was, I am!’”



“I am” is the term used to identify God to Moses, peace be upon him.



New Testament BIBLE

John 3:16

“For God so loved the world that He gave his only begotten son, that whoever believed in him should not perish but have everlasting life.”



This does not actually define Jesus, peace be upon him, as God, or as the Messiah or as a Prophet.



Note: This verse was actually modified by Jerome in the 4th century.



ARIUS (Early history of the Church) a popular leader from Alexandria, Egypt.

He argued, Jesus, peace be upon him, was created and not ‘begotten.’

He was charged with heresy and his followers were horribly oppressed by the Church.



After the matter was ‘decided’ and ‘confirmed’ by the Council of Nicea in 325 A.D. and in an effort to consolidate both beliefs, Jerome altered the original version of the Gospel of John 3:16 by changing the word ‘monogenes’ (unique) and substituted the word ‘ingenious’; meaning ‘only begotten.’



What other ‘interpretations’ did the early Church Fathers invent to satisfy their claims of the divinity of Jesus, peace be upon him?



Good question.



New Testament BIBLE

John 10:38 “But if I do it, even though you do not believe me, believe the miracles, that you may learn and understand that the Father is in me, and I in the Father.”



John 14:10 “Don’t you know that I am in the Father and that the Father is in me? The words that I say to you are not my own. Rather, it is the Father, living in me who is doing this work.”



But further reading in the very same chapter:

John 14:20 “On that day you will realize that I am in my Father, and you are in me, and I am in you.”



So how does he live in his disciples and how do they live in him? And if so, are they also, sons of God or Gods?



Another good question.



1st John 2:5-6 (This is an epistle [letter] written by another “John,” not John the Gospel er nor John the Baptist)

“But if anyone obeys his word, God’s love is truly made complete in him. This is how we know we are in Him. Whoever claims to live in Him must walk as Jesus did.”



Note: This indicates, living ‘in God’ means, ‘Obeying God’s commandments and following the Way of Jesus, peace be upon him.’



Twice in the New Testament, Jesus, peace be upon him, tells his followers how to pray saying, “When you pray, say this…”

And the words are very clear, ‘God’s Will be done on earth as it is in Heaven.”



BIBLE

John 17:22-23

“I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one; I in them and you in me. May they be brought to complete unity to let the world know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me.”



The word used throughout chapter 10 and 17, for unity or one was the same, ‘heis’ meaning the number one. There is another word ‘hen’ which means a unity of essence. However, ‘hen’ is nowhere to be found in these chapters.



Note: Conclusion is this is a prayer from Jesus, peace be upon him, to God that all of his followers would have the same relationship that he (Jesus) had.



Understanding the word ‘one’ meanings understanding the way in which it is being used. For example a man and a woman become ‘one’ when they marry; someone might say, ‘One hopes for success’ or ‘We are one in agreement.’



Jesus, peace be upon him, is supposed to have said, “If you have seen me, you have seen the Father.” In the very part of the Bible we find the verse wherein Jesus, peace be upon him, tells his followers, if they accepted a little child, then they also accepted Jesus, peace be upon him. Naturally, he did not mean the child was God or that he was a child.



Christians are taught early in life, by doing good deeds and service for others, they are in fact allowing others to see Jesus in them.



Why do we hold so tight to doctrines, even after realizing the incorrectness and false teachings?



Yet another good question.



The Bible clearly teaches that Jesus, peace be upon him, is a man, born of a woman without any father, strengthened by a Spirit from God (Gabriel), sent by God to teach the Children of Israel the true meaning of belief and proper actions (following the commandments) that God would accept from them and as such, their ‘road to salvation.’



One more time:

BIBLE

John 1:1

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God at the beginning.”



Jesus, peace be upon him, was the very “Word of God.”



QURAN

Surah 4:171

“O People of the Book! Commit no excesses in your religion: nor say of Allah anything but the truth. Christ Jesus the son of Mary was (no more than) A Messenger of Allah, and His Word, which He bestowed on Mary, and a Spirit proceeding from Him; so believe in Allah and His Messengers. Say not ‘trinity’: desist.



It is difficult for us to admit that we have been deceived for so many years by some many people, some of them very near and dear to us. The truth is, ‘Someone has been lying to us’ - on purpose.



It is also difficult to consider the consequences of loosing faith in the doctrine of the Church, out of fear of loosing faith in God altogether.



But there is wonderful hope, Grace, Mercy and Salvation for those who come to the correct belief and obey the commandments.



Wisdom or Word?



Oxford Companion to the Bible

The words “wisdom” and “word” were synonymous (exactly the same words) in Jewish thought at the time of Jesus.



Old Testament BIBLE

Proverbs 8:22-30

“The lord brought me forth at the beginning of his work before his deeds of old; I was appointed from eternity, from the beginning before the world began. When there were no oceans, I was given birth, when there were no springs abounding with water; before the mountains were settled in place, before the hills, I was given birth, before he made the earth or its fields or any of the dust of the world. I was there when he set the heavens in place, when he marked out the horizon on the face of the deep, when he established the clouds above and fixed securely the fountains of the deep, when he gave the sea its boundary so the waters would not overstep his command, and when he marked out the foundations of the earth. Then I was the craftsman at his side.”



Proverbs 3:19

“By Wisdom the Lord laid the earth’s foundations, by understanding he set the heavens in place; by his knowledge the deeps were divided, and the clouds let drop the dew.”



APOCRYPHA (hidden books of the Bible)

Wisdom 1 and Wisdom II

Sirach (also called: “Ecclesiasticus”) written by Jesus ben Sira, a devout Jew of Jerusalem, 200 years before Christ.

These texts were a part of the Bible until the time of the Calvinists and the Protestant Reformation (hence the word - protest).



Scrolls found at Wadi Qumran and Masada confirm these were always a part of the ancient version of the Bible, but obviously not something Protestants wanted anything to do with.



Wisdom states in Sirach 24:1-12

“Wisdom praises herself, and tells of her glory in the midst of her people. In the assembly of the Most High she opens her mouth, and in the presence of his hosts she tells of her glory: ‘I came forth from the mouth of the Most High and covered the earth like a mist. I dwelt in the highest heavens, and my throne was in a pillar of a cloud. Alone I compassed the vault of heaven and traversed the depths of the abyss. Over waves of the sea, over all the earth, and over every people and nation I have held sway. Among all these I sought a resting place; in whose territory should I abide? Then the Creator of all things gave me a command, and my Creator chose the place for my tent. He said, ‘Make your dwelling in Jacob, and in Israel, receive your inheritance.’ Before the ages, in the beginning he created me, and for all the ages I shall not cease to be. In the holy tent I ministered before him, and so I was established in Zion. Thus in the beloved city he gave me a resting place, and in Jerusalem was my domain. I took root in an honored people, in the portion of the Lord his heritage.



Wisdom of Solomon 7:25-27

“For she is a breath of the power of God, and a pure emanation of the glory of the Almighty; therefore nothing evil gains entrance into her. For she is a reflection of eternal light, a spotless mirror of the working of God, and an image of His goodness. Although she is but one, she can do all things, and while remaining in herself, she renews all things; in every generation she passes into holy souls and makes them friends of God, and prophets.”



Did the beginning of the Gospel of John indicate John believed the Spirit was sent by God to Jesus, peace be upon him, that it was the Spirit of Wisdom, Spirit of Prophecy, sent to all the prophets, with the same commandments and wisdom?



Could the Spirit of Wisdom be with God since creation? Or perhaps the Spirit was the ‘Word of God’ that was uttered or breathed by God in the Beginning and then continued along with God in the rest of Creation?



BIBLE APOCRAPHA

Wisdom of Solomon 7:22

“For wisdom, the Fashioner of all things, taught me.”



Could the Spirit of Wisdom be the Holy Spirit that spoke to Mary about having her baby? And the same Holy Spirit that descending upon him at this baptism?



BIBLE

John 1:32

“Then John gave this testimony: ‘I saw the Spirit come down from heaven as a dove and remain on him. I would not have known him, except that the one who sent me to baptize with water told me, ‘The man on whom you see the Spirit come down and remain is he who will baptize with the Holy Spirit’.”





All of this confirms without doubt the writers of the Old Testament and the New Testament were definitely on the lookout for a “Messiah” or “chosen leader of the way to salvation in this life and the next life.”



The word in Hebrew for the ‘chosen one’ or ‘anointed one’ or ‘appointed one’ is ‘Messiah.’

The word in Koine Greek for ‘Messiah’ is ‘Christos’ (became ‘Christ’).

The word in Arabic for it is “Meshiha”



Did Jesus, peace be upon him, ask people to pray to him, or to pray with him, to the God who sent him?



Did Jesus, peace be upon him, claim to be God?



Can the term "son of God" in English really present the meaning intended by the writers of the Bible?



Now let us compare with compassion and wisdom in our hearts. Which of the two concepts make the most sense between Islam and Chrisitanity when it comes to the subject of Jesus, peace be upon him?



Let us compare the two and see what our widsom and common sense tell us:



According to the teachings of Islam in the Quran and the words of the last prophet, Muhammad, peace be upon him, Jesus, the son of Mary, was predicted, he came to earth as a baby with a mother but no father, he did amazing miracles by the permission of Allah, including even bringing a dead man back to life; he did demonstrate for his followers the very best of behavior and obedience to the commandments of God. And according to the Bible he personally prayed and ask God Almighty to save him from the fate of going to the cross.



The Bible indicates Jesus' prayers at Gethsemene went unanswered, even though he stayed up through the night crying and asking God, "Let this cup pass from me, even so, Your will be done."



Yet, according to Quran, Almighty God did answer his prayers. He did not go to the cross, but rather the likeness of him was put on another person who did go to the cross and Almighty God, caused Jesus, peace be upon him, to be saved, protected and he is with God and will return in the Last Days to lead the true believers to victory over the evil ones.



Some have even speculated the one on the cross was the very one (Judas Thomas Iscariot) who sold out Jesus and his followers for thirty pieces of sliver.
Punter
2007-05-17 03:48:29 UTC
According to Islam, trinity is biggest falsehood.



Postmortem of Trinity

What is the origin of the Trinity doctrine?

The New Encyclopædia Britannica says: “Neither the word Trinity, nor the explicit doctrine as such, appears in the New Testament, nor did Jesus and his followers intend to contradict the Shema in the Old Testament: ‘Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God is one Lord’ (Deut. 6:4). . . . The doctrine developed gradually over several centuries and through many controversies. . . . By the end of the 4th century . . . the doctrine of the Trinity took substantially the form it has maintained ever since.”—(1976), Micropædia, Vol. X, p. 126.



The New Catholic Encyclopedia states: “The formulation ‘one God in three Persons’ was not solidly established, certainly not fully assimilated into Christian life and its profession of faith, prior to the end of the 4th century. But it is precisely this formulation that has first claim to the title the Trinitarian dogma. Among the Apostolic Fathers, there had been nothing even remotely approaching such a mentality or perspective.”—(1967), Vol. XIV, p. 299.



In The Encyclopedia Americana we read: “Christianity derived from Judaism and Judaism was strictly Unitarian [believing that God is one person]. The road which led from Jerusalem to Nicea was scarcely a straight one. Fourth century Trinitarianism did not reflect accurately early Christian teaching regarding the nature of God; it was, on the contrary, a deviation from this teaching.”—(1956), Vol. XXVII, p. 294L.



According to the Nouveau Dictionnaire Universel, “The Platonic trinity, itself merely a rearrangement of older trinities dating back to earlier peoples, appears to be the rational philosophic trinity of attributes that gave birth to the three hypostases or divine persons taught by the Christian churches. . . . This Greek philosopher’s [Plato, fourth century B.C.E.] conception of the divine trinity . . . can be found in all the ancient [pagan] religions.”—(Paris, 1865-1870), edited by M. Lachâtre, Vol. 2, p. 1467.



John L. McKenzie, S.J., in his Dictionary of the Bible, says: “The trinity of persons within the unity of nature is defined in terms of ‘person’ and ‘nature’ which are G[ree]k philosophical terms; actually the terms do not appear in the Bible. The trinitarian definitions arose as the result of long controversies in which these terms and others such as ‘essence’ and ‘substance’ were erroneously applied to God by some theologians.”—(New York, 1965), p. 899.



Even though, as Trinitarians acknowledge, neither the word “Trinity” nor a statement of the Trinitarian dogma is found in the Bible, are the concepts that are embodied in that dogma found there?



Does the Bible teach that the “Holy Spirit” is a person?



Some individual texts that refer to the holy spirit (“Holy Ghost,” KJ) might seem to indicate personality. For example, the holy spirit is referred to as a helper (Greek, pa•ra′kle•tos; “Comforter,” KJ; “Advocate,” JB, NE) that ‘teaches,’ ‘bears witness,’ ‘speaks’ and ‘hears.’ (John 14:16, 17, 26; 15:26; 16:13) But other texts say that people were “filled” with holy spirit, that some were ‘baptized’ with it or “anointed” with it. (Luke 1:41; Matt. 3:11; Acts 10:38) These latter references to holy spirit definitely do not fit a person. To understand what the Bible as a whole teaches, all these texts must be considered. What is the reasonable conclusion? That the first texts cited here employ a figure of speech personifying God’s holy spirit, his active force, as the Bible also personifies wisdom, sin, death, water, and blood. (See also pages 380, 381, under the heading “Spirit.”)





Acts 7:55, 56 reports that Stephen was given a vision of heaven in which he saw “Jesus standing at God’s right hand.” But he made no mention of seeing the holy spirit. (See also Revelation 7:10; 22:1, 3.)



The New Catholic Encyclopedia admits: “The majority of N[ew] T[estament] texts reveal God’s spirit as something, not someone; this is especially seen in the parallelism between the spirit and the power of God.” (1967, Vol. XIII, p. 575) It also reports: “The Apologists [Greek Christian writers of the second century] spoke too haltingly of the Spirit; with a measure of anticipation, one might say too impersonally.”—Vol. XIV, p. 296.



Does the Bible agree with those who teach that the Father and the Son are not separate and distinct individuals?



O Christians do you believe that Jesus pbuh have been praying himself, he is god. How absurd?

Matt. 26:39, RS: “Going a little farther he [Jesus Christ] fell on his face and prayed, ‘My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as thou wilt.’” (If the Father and the Son were not distinct individuals, such a prayer would have been meaningless. Jesus would have been praying to himself, and his will would of necessity have been the Father’s will.)



John 8:17, 18, RS: “[Jesus answered the Jewish Pharisees:] In your law it is written that the testimony of two men is true; I bear witness to myself, and the Father who sent me bears witness to me.” (So, Jesus definitely spoke of himself as being an individual separate and distinct from the Father.)



See also pages 197, 198, under “Jehovah.”



Does the Bible teach that all who are said to be part of the Trinity are eternal, none having a beginning?



Col. 1:15, 16, RS: “He [Jesus Christ] is the image of the invisible God, the first-born of all creation; for in him all things were created, in heaven and on earth.” In what sense is Jesus Christ “the first-born of all creation”? (1) Trinitarians say that “first-born” here means prime, most excellent, most distinguished; thus Christ would be understood to be, not part of creation, but the most distinguished in relation to those who were created. If that is so, and if the Trinity doctrine is true, why are the Father and the holy spirit not also said to be the firstborn of all creation? But the Bible applies this expression only to the Son. According to the customary meaning of “firstborn,” it indicates that Jesus is the eldest in Jehovah’s family of sons. (2) Before Colossians 1:15, the expression “the firstborn of” occurs upwards of 30 times in the Bible, and in each instance that it is applied to living creatures the same meaning applies—the firstborn is part of the group. “The firstborn of Israel” is one of the sons of Israel; “the firstborn of Pharaoh” is one of Pharaoh’s family; “the firstborn of beast” are themselves animals. What, then, causes some to ascribe a different meaning to it at Colossians 1:15? Is it Bible usage or is it a belief to which they already hold and for which they seek proof? (3) Does Colossians 1:16, 17 (RS) exclude Jesus from having been created, when it says “in him all things were created . . . all things were created through him and for him”? The Greek word here rendered “all things” is pan′ta, an inflected form of pas. At Luke 13:2, RS renders this “all . . . other”; JB reads “any other”; NE says “anyone else.” (See also Luke 21:29 in NE and Philippians 2:21 in JB.) In harmony with everything else that the Bible says regarding the Son, NW assigns the same meaning to pan′ta at Colossians 1:16, 17 so that it reads, in part, “by means of him all other things were created . . . All other things have been created through him and for him.” Thus he is shown to be a created being, part of the creation produced by God.



Rev. 1:1; 3:14, RS: “The revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave him . . . ‘And to the angel of the church in La-odicea write: “The words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning [Greek, ar•khe′] of God’s creation.”’” (KJ, Dy, CC, and NW, as well as others, read similarly.) Is that rendering correct? Some take the view that what is meant is that the Son was ‘the beginner of God’s creation,’ that he was its ‘ultimate source.’ But Liddell and Scott’s Greek-English Lexicon lists “beginning” as its first meaning of ar•khe′. (Oxford, 1968, p. 252) The logical conclusion is that the one being quoted at Revelation 3:14 is a creation, the first of God’s creations, that he had a beginning. Compare Proverbs 8:22, where, as many Bible commentators agree, the Son is referred to as wisdom personified. According to RS, NE, and JB, the one there speaking is said to be “created.”)



Prophetically, with reference to the Messiah, Micah 5:2 (KJ) says his “goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting.” Dy reads: “his going forth is from the beginning, from the days of eternity.” Does that make him the same as God? It is noteworthy that, instead of saying “days of eternity,” RS renders the Hebrew as “ancient days”; JB, “days of old”; NW, “days of time indefinite.” Viewed in the light of Revelation 3:14, discussed above, Micah 5:2 does not prove that Jesus was without a beginning.



Does the Bible teach that none of those who are said to be included in the Trinity is greater or less than another, that all are equal, that all are almighty?



Who has spread the blasphemy of 'co-equality' of three persons of trinity?

Mark 13:32, RS: “Of that day or that hour no ones knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.” (Of course, that would not be the case if Father, Son, and Holy Spirit were coequal, comprising one Godhead. And if, as some suggest, the Son was limited by his human nature from knowing, the question remains, Why did the Holy Spirit not know?)



Matt. 20:20-23, RS: “The mother of the sons of Zebedee . . . said to him [Jesus], ‘Command that these two sons of mine may sit, one at your right hand and one at your left, in your kingdom.’ But Jesus answered, . . . ‘You will drink my cup, but to sit at my right hand and at my left is not mine to grant, but it is for those for whom it has been prepared by my Father.’” (How strange, if, as claimed, Jesus is God! Was Jesus here merely answering according to his “human nature”? If, as Trinitarians say, Jesus was truly “God-man”—both God and man, not one or the other—would it truly be consistent to resort to such an explanation? Does not Matthew 20:23 rather show that the Son is not equal to the Father, that the Father has reserved some prerogatives for himself?)



Holy Spirit is greater than son.

Matt. 12:31, 32, RS: “Every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven. And whoever says a word against the Son of man will be forgiven; but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the age to come.” (If the Holy Spirit were a person and were God, this text would flatly contradict the Trinity doctrine, because it would mean that in some way the Holy Spirit was greater than the Son. Instead, what Jesus said shows that the Father, to whom the “Spirit” belonged, is greater than Jesus, the Son of man.)



John 14:28, RS: “[Jesus said:] If you loved me, you would have rejoiced, because I go to the Father; for the Father is greater than I.”



1 Cor. 11:3, RS: “I want you to understand that the head of every man is Christ, the head of a woman is her husband, and the head of Christ is God.” (Clearly, then, Christ is not God, and God is of superior rank to Christ. It should be noted that this was written about 55 C.E., some 22 years after Jesus returned to heaven. So the truth here stated applies to the relationship between God and Christ in heaven.)



1 Cor. 15:27, 28 RS: “‘God has put all things in subjection under his [Jesus’] feet.’ But when it says, ‘All things are put in subjection under him,’ it is plain that he is excepted who put all things under him. When all things are subjected to him, then the Son himself will also be subjected to him who put all things under him, that God may be everything to every one.”



The Hebrew word Shad•dai′ and the Greek word Pan•to•kra′tor are both translated “Almighty.” Both original-language words are repeatedly applied to Jehovah, the Father. (Ex. 6:3; Rev. 19:6) Neither expression is ever applied to either the Son or the holy spirit.



Does the Bible teach that each of those said to be part of the Trinity is God?



Jesus said in prayer: “Father, . . . this is eternal life, that they know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom thou hast sent.” (John 17:1-3, RS; italics added.) (Most translations here use the expression “the only true God” with reference to the Father. NE reads “who alone art truly God.” He cannot be “the only true God,” the one “who alone [is] truly God,” if there are two others who are God to the same degree as he is, can he? Any others referred to as “gods” must be either false or merely a reflection of the true God.)



One God

1 Cor. 8:5, 6, RS: “Although there may be so-called gods in heaven or on earth—as indeed there are many ‘gods’ and many ‘lords’—yet for us there is one God, the Father, from whom are all things and for whom we exist, and one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom are all things and through whom we exist.” (This presents the Father as the “one God” of Christians and as being in a class distinct from Jesus Christ.)



1 Pet. 1:3, RS: “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ!” (Repeatedly, even following Jesus’ ascension to heaven, the Scriptures refer to the Father as “the God” of Jesus Christ. At John 20:17, following Jesus’ resurrection, he himself spoke of the Father as “my God.” Later, when in heaven, as recorded at Revelation 3:12, he again used the same expression. But never in the Bible is the Father reported to refer to the Son as “my God,” nor does either the Father or the Son refer to the holy spirit as “my God.”)



For comments on scriptures used by some in an effort to prove that Christ is God, see pages 212-216, under the heading “Jesus Christ.”



In Theological Investigations, Karl Rahner, S.J., admits: “Θεός [God] is still never used of the Spirit,” and: “ὁ θεός [literally, the God] is never used in the New Testament to speak of the πνεῦμα ἅγιον [holy spirit].”—(Baltimore, Md.; 1961), translated from German, Vol. I, pp. 138, 143.



Do any of the scriptures that are used by Trinitarians to support their belief provide a solid basis for that dogma?



A person who is really seeking to know the truth about God is not going to search the Bible hoping to find a text that he can construe as fitting what he already believes. He wants to know what God’s Word itself says. He may find some texts that he feels can be read in more than one way, but when these are compared with other Biblical statements on the same subject their meaning will become clear. It should be noted at the outset that most of the texts used as “proof” of the Trinity actually mention only two persons, not three; so even if the Trinitarian explanation of the texts were correct, these would not prove that the Bible teaches the Trinity. Consider the following:



(Unless otherwise indicated, all the texts quoted in the following section are from RS.)



Texts in which a title that belongs to Jehovah is applied to Jesus Christ or is claimed to apply to Jesus



Alpha and Omega Applies to God.

Alpha and Omega: To whom does this title properly belong? (1) At Revelation 1:8, its owner is said to be God, the Almighty. In verse 11 according to KJ, that title is applied to one whose description thereafter shows him to be Jesus Christ. But scholars recognize the reference to Alpha and Omega in verse 11 to be spurious, and so it does not appear in RS, NE, JB, NAB, Dy. (2) Many translations of Revelation into Hebrew recognize that the one described in verse 8 is Jehovah, and so they restore the personal name of God there. See NW, 1984 Reference edition. (3) Revelation 21:6, 7 indicates that Christians who are spiritual conquerors are to be ‘sons’ of the one known as the Alpha and the Omega. That is never said of the relationship of spirit-anointed Christians to Jesus Christ. Jesus spoke of them as his ‘brothers.’ (Heb. 2:11; Matt. 12:50; 25:40) But those ‘brothers’ of Jesus are referred to as “sons of God.” (Gal. 3:26; 4:6) (4) At Revelation 22:12, TEV inserts the name Jesus, so the reference to Alpha and Omega in verse 13 is made to appear to apply to him. But the name Jesus does not appear there in Greek, and other translations do not include it. (5) At Revelation 22:13, the Alpha and Omega is also said to be “the first and the last,” which expression is applied to Jesus at Revelation 1:17, 18. Similarly, the expression “apostle” is applied both to Jesus Christ and to certain ones of his followers. But that does not prove that they are the same person or are of equal rank, does it? (Heb. 3:1) So the evidence points to the conclusion that the title “Alpha and Omega” applies to Almighty God, the Father, not to the Son.



God is savior

Savior: Repeatedly the Scriptures refer to God as Savior. At Isaiah 43:11 God even says: “Besides me there is no savior.” Since Jesus is also referred to as Savior, are God and Jesus the same? Not at all. Titus 1:3, 4 speaks of “God our Savior,” and then of both “God the Father and Christ Jesus our Savior.” So, both persons are saviors. Jude 25 shows the relationship, saying: “God, our Savior through Jesus Christ our Lord.” (Italics added.) (See also Acts 13:23.) At Judges 3:9, the same Hebrew word (moh•shi′a‛, rendered “savior” or “deliverer”) that is used at Isaiah 43:11 is applied to Othniel, a judge in Israel, but that certainly did not make Othniel Jehovah, did it? A reading of Isaiah 43:1-12 shows that verse 11 means that Jehovah alone was the One who provided salvation, or deliverance, for Israel; that salvation did not come from any of the gods of the surrounding nations.



Almighty God is The first and the Last – Alpha and Omega

Almighty God: At Isaiah 43:10 Almighty God says: “Before me no god was formed, nor shall there be any after me.” Does this mean that, because Jesus Christ is prophetically called “Almighty God” at Isaiah 9:6, Jesus must be God? Again, the context answers, No! None of the idolatrous Gentile nations formed a god before Almighty God, because no one existed before Almighty God. Nor would they at a future time form any real, live god that was able to prophesy. (Isa. 46:9, 10) But that does not mean that Almighty God never caused to exist anyone who is properly referred to as a god. (Ps. 82:1, 6; John 1:1, NW) At Isaiah 10:21 Jehovah is referred to as “mighty God,” just as Jesus is in Isaiah 9:6; but only Jehovah is ever called “God Almighty.”—Gen. 17:1.



If a certain title or descriptive phrase is found in more than one location in the Scriptures, it should never hastily be concluded that it must always refer to the same person. Such reasoning would lead to the conclusion that Nebuchadnezzar was Jesus Christ, because both were called “king of kings” (Dan. 2:37; Rev. 17:14); and that Jesus’ disciples were actually Jesus Christ, because both were called “the light of the world.” (Matt. 5:14; John 8:12) We should always consider the context and any other instances in the Bible where the same expression occurs.



Application to Jesus Christ by inspired Bible writers of passages from the Hebrew Scriptures that clearly apply to Jehovah – The Almighty God.



Jesus pbuh came to please Almighty God

Why does John 1:23 quote Isaiah 40:3 and apply it to what John the Baptizer did in preparing the way for Jesus Christ, when Isaiah 40:3 is clearly discussing preparing the way before Jehovah? Because Jesus represented his Father. He came in his Father’s name and had the assurance that his Father was always with him because he did the things pleasing to his Father.—John 5:43; 8:29.



Why does Hebrews 1:10-12 quote Psalm 102:25-27 and apply it to the Son, when the psalm says that it is addressed to God? Because the Son is the one through whom God performed the creative works there described by the psalmist. (See Colossians 1:15, 16; Proverbs 8:22, 27-30.) It should be observed in Hebrews 1:5b that a quotation is made from 2 Samuel 7:14 and applied to the Son of God. Although that text had its first application to Solomon, the later application of it to Jesus Christ does not mean that Solomon and Jesus are the same. Jesus is “greater than Solomon” and carries out a work foreshadowed by Solomon.—Luke 11:31.



Bible never says Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit are co-equal or co-eternal or all are gods. No trinity.



Matthew 28:19 and 2 Corinthians 13:14 are instances of this. Neither of these texts says that Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are coequal or coeternal or that all are God. The Scriptural evidence already presented on pages 408-412 argues against reading such thoughts into the texts.



McClintock and Strong’s Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological, and Ecclesiastical Literature, though advocating the Trinity doctrine, acknowledges regarding Matthew 28:18-20: “This text, however, taken by itself, would not prove decisively either the personality of the three subjects mentioned, or their equality or divinity.” (1981 reprint, Vol. X, p. 552) Regarding other texts that also mention the three together, this Cyclopedia admits that, taken by themselves, they are “insufficient” to prove the Trinity. (Compare 1 Timothy 5:21, where God and Christ and the angels are mentioned together.)



Texts in which the plural form of nouns is applied to God in the Hebrew Scriptures



At Genesis 1:1 the title “God” is translated from ’Elo•him′, which is plural in Hebrew. Trinitarians construe this to be an indication of the Trinity. They also explain Deuteronomy 6:4 to imply the unity of members of the Trinity when it says, “The LORD our God [from ’Elo•him′] is one LORD.”



The plural form of the noun here in Hebrew is the plural of majesty or excellence. (See NAB, St. Joseph Edition, Bible Dictionary, p. 330; also, New Catholic Encyclopedia, 1967, Vol. V, p. 287.) It conveys no thought of plurality of persons within a godhead. In similar fashion, at Judges 16:23 when reference is made to the false god Dagon, a form of the title ’elo•him′ is used; the accompanying verb is singular, showing that reference is to just the one god. At Genesis 42:30, Joseph is spoken of as the “lord” (’adho•neh′, the plural of excellence) of Egypt.



The Greek language does not have a ‘plural of majesty or excellence.’ So, at Genesis 1:1 the translators of LXX used ho The•os′ (God, singular) as the equivalent of ’Elo•him′. At Mark 12:29, where a reply of Jesus is reproduced in which he quoted Deuteronomy 6:4, the Greek singular ho The•os′ is similarly used.

Almighty God is different from Egyptians triads gods

At Deuteronomy 6:4, the Hebrew text contains the Tetragrammaton twice, and so should more properly read: “Jehovah our Almighty God is one Jehovah.” (NW) The nation of Israel, to whom that was stated, did not believe in the Trinity. The Babylonians and the Egyptians worshiped triads of gods, but it was made clear to Israel that Jehovah is different.



Texts from which a person might draw more than one conclusion, depending on the Bible translation used



If a passage can grammatically be translated in more than one way, what is the correct rendering? One that is in agreement with the rest of the Bible. If a person ignores other portions of the Bible and builds his belief around a favorite rendering of a particular verse, then what he believes really reflects, not the Word of God, but his own ideas and perhaps those of another imperfect human.



John 1:1, 2:

Humans are called as gods – godly persons

RS reads: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God.” (KJ, Dy, JB, NAB use similar wording.) However, NW reads: “In the beginning the Word was, and the Word was with God, and the Word was a god. This one was in the beginning with God.”



Which translation of John 1:1, 2 agrees with the context? John 1:18 says: “No one has ever seen God.” Verse 14 clearly says that “the Word became flesh and dwelt among us . . . we have beheld his glory.” Also, verses 1, 2 say that in the beginning he was “with God.” Can one be with someone and at the same time be that person? At John 17:3, Jesus addresses the Father as “the only true God”; so, Jesus as “a god” merely reflects his Father’s divine qualities.—Heb. 1:3.



Is the rendering “a god” consistent with the rules of Greek grammar? Some reference books argue strongly that the Greek text must be translated, “The Word was God.” But not all agree. In his article “Qualitative Anarthrous Predicate Nouns: Mark 15:39 and John 1:1,” Philip B. Harner said that such clauses as the one in John 1:1, “with an anarthrous predicate preceding the verb, are primarily qualitative in meaning. They indicate that the logos has the nature of theos.” He suggests: “Perhaps the clause could be translated, ‘the Word had the same nature as God.’” (Journal of Biblical Literature, 1973, pp. 85, 87) Thus, in this text, the fact that the word the•os′ in its second occurrence is without the definite article (ho) and is placed before the verb in the sentence in Greek is significant. Interestingly, translators that insist on rendering John 1:1, “The Word was God,” do not hesitate to use the indefinite article (a, an) in their rendering of other passages where a singular anarthrous predicate noun occurs before the verb. Thus at John 6:70, JB and KJ both refer to Judas Iscariot as “a devil,” and at John 9:17 they describe Jesus as “a prophet.”



John J. McKenzie, S.J., in his Dictionary of the Bible, says: “Jn 1:1 should rigorously be translated ‘the word was with the God [= the Father], and the word was a divine being.’”—(Brackets are his. Published with nihil obstat and imprimatur.) (New York, 1965), p. 317.



In harmony with the above, AT reads: “the Word was divine”; Mo, “the Logos was divine”; NTIV, “the word was a god.” In his German translation Ludwig Thimme expresses it in this way: “God of a sort the Word was.” Referring to the Word (who became Jesus Christ) as “a god” is consistent with the use of that term in the rest of the Scriptures. For example, at Psalm 82:1-6 human judges in Israel were referred to as “gods” (Hebrew, ’elo•him′; Greek, the•oi′, at John 10:34) because they were representatives of Jehovah and were to speak his law.



See also NW appendix, 1984 Reference edition, p. 1579.



John 8:58:



RS reads: “Jesus said to them, ‘Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I am [Greek, e•go′ ei•mi′].’” (NE, KJ, TEV, JB, NAB all read “I am,” some even using capital letters to convey the idea of a title. Thus they endeavor to connect the expression with Exodus 3:14, where, according to their rendering, God refers to himself by the title “I Am.”) However, in NW the latter part of John 8:58 reads: “Before Abraham came into existence, I have been.” (The same idea is conveyed by the wording in AT, Mo, CBW, and SE.)



Which rendering agrees with the context? The question of the Jews (verse 57) to which Jesus was replying had to do with age, not identity. Jesus’ reply logically dealt with his age, the length of his existence. Interestingly, no effort is ever made to apply e•go′ ei•mi′ as a title to the holy spirit.



Says A Grammar of the Greek New Testament in the Light of Historical Research, by A. T. Robertson: “The verb [ei•mi′] . . . Sometimes it does express existence as a predicate like any other verb, as in [e•go′ ei•mi′] (Jo. 8:58).”—Nashville, Tenn.; 1934, p. 394.



See also NW appendix, 1984 Reference edition, pp. 1582, 1583.



Acts 20:28:



JB reads: “Be on your guard for yourselves and for all the flock of which the Holy Spirit has made you the overseers, to feed the Church of God which he bought with his own blood.” (KJ, Dy, NAB use similar wording.) However, in NW the latter part of the verse reads: “the blood of his own [Son].” (TEV reads similarly. Although the 1953 printing of RS reads “with his own blood,” the 1971 edition reads “with the blood of his own Son.” Ro and Da simply read “the blood of his own.”)



Which rendering(s) agree with 1 John 1:7, which says: “The blood of Jesus his [God’s] Son cleanses us from all sin”? (See also Revelation 1:4-6.) As stated in John 3:16, did God send his only-begotten Son, or did he himself come as a man, so that we might have life? It was the blood, not of God, but of his Son that was poured out.



See also NW appendix, 1984 Reference edition, p. 1580.



Romans 9:5:

Disputed verse.

JB reads: “They are descended from the patriarchs and from their flesh and blood came Christ who is above all, God for ever blessed! Amen.” (KJ, Dy read similarly.) However, in NW the latter part of the verse reads: “from whom the Christ sprang according to the flesh: God, who is over all, be blessed forever. Amen.” (RS, NE, TEV, NAB, Mo all use wording similar to NW.)



Is this verse saying that Christ is “over all” and that he is therefore God? Or does it refer to God and Christ as distinct individuals and say that God is “over all”? Which rendering of Romans 9:5 agrees with Romans 15:5, 6, which first distinguishes God from Christ Jesus and then urges the reader to “glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ”? (See also 2 Corinthians 1:3 and Ephesians 1:3.) Consider what follows in Romans chapter 9. Verses 6-13 show that the outworking of God’s purpose depends not on inheritance according to the flesh but on the will of God. Verses 14-18 refer to God’s message to Pharaoh, as recorded at Exodus 9:16, to highlight the fact that God is over all. In verses 19-24 God’s superiority is further illustrated by an analogy with a potter and the clay vessels that he makes. How appropriate, then, in verse 5, the expression: “God, who is over all, be blessed forever. Amen”!—NW.



The New International Dictionary of New Testament Theology states: “Rom. 9:5 is disputed. . . . It would be easy, and linguistically perfectly possible to refer the expression to Christ. The verse would then read, ‘Christ who is God over all, blessed for ever. Amen.’ Even so, Christ would not be equated absolutely with God, but only described as a being of divine nature, for the word theos has no article. . . . The much more probable explanation is that the statement is a doxology directed to God.”—(Grand Rapids, Mich.; 1976), translated from German, Vol. 2, p. 80.



See also NW appendix, 1984 Reference edition, pp. 1580, 1581.



Philippians 2:5, 6:

Contradiction – Jesus is equal to god, God is greater than Jesus.

KJ reads: “Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God.” (Dy has the same wording. JB reads: “he did not cling to his equality with God.”) However, in NW the latter portion of that passage reads: “who, although he was existing in God’s form, gave no consideration to a seizure [Greek, har•pag•mon′], namely, that he should be equal to God.” (RS, NE, TEV, NAB convey the same thought.)



Which thought agrees with the context? Verse 5 counsels Christians to imitate Christ in the matter here being discussed. Could they be urged to consider it “not robbery,” but their right, “to be equal with God”? Surely not! However, they can imitate one who “gave no consideration to a seizure, namely, that he should be equal to God.” (NW) (Compare Genesis 3:5.) Such a translation also agrees with Jesus Christ himself, who said: “The Father is greater than I.”—John 14:28.



The Expositor’s Greek Testament says: “We cannot find any passage where [har•pa′zo] or any of its derivatives [including har•pag•mon′] has the sense of ‘holding in possession,’ ‘retaining’. It seems invariably to mean ‘seize,’ ‘snatch violently’. Thus it is not permissible to glide from the true sense ‘grasp at’ into one which is totally different, ‘hold fast.’”—(Grand Rapids, Mich.; 1967), edited by W. Robertson Nicoll, Vol. III, pp. 436, 437.



Colossians 2:9:

Contradiction God’s nature or Godhead.

KJ reads: “In him [Christ] dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead [Greek, the•o′te•tos] bodily.” (A similar thought is conveyed by the renderings in NE, RS, JB, NAB, Dy.) However, NW reads: “It is in him that all the fullness of the divine quality dwells bodily.” (AT, We, and CKW read “God’s nature,” instead of “Godhead.” Compare 2 Peter 1:4.)



Jesus never claimed that he is part of trinity.

Admittedly, not everyone offers the same interpretation of Colossians 2:9. But what is in agreement with the rest of the inspired letter to the Colossians? Did Christ have in himself something that is his because he is God, part of a Trinity? Or is “the fullness” that dwells in him something that became his because of the decision of someone else? Colossians 1:19 (KJ, Dy) says that all fullness dwelt in Christ because it “pleased the Father” for this to be the case. NE says it was “by God’s own choice.”



Do fullness make Christ God? No

Consider the immediate context of Colossians 2:9: In verse 8, readers are warned against being misled by those who advocate philosophy and human traditions. They are also told that in Christ “are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge” and are urged to “live in him” and to be “rooted and built up in him and established in the faith.” (Verses 3, 6, 7) It is in him, and not in the originators or the teachers of human philosophy, that a certain precious “fulness” dwells. Was the apostle Paul there saying that the “fulness” that was in Christ made Christ God himself? Not according to Colossians 3:1, where Christ is said to be “seated at the right hand of God.”—See KJ, Dy, TEV, NAB.



According to Liddell and Scott’s Greek-English Lexicon, the•o′tes (the nominative form, from which the•o′te•tos is derived) means “divinity, divine nature, godly person.” (Oxford, 1968, p. 792) Being truly “divinity,” or of “divine nature,” does not make Jesus as the Son of God coequal and coeternal with the Father, any more than the fact that all humans share “humanity” or “human nature” makes them coequal or all the same age.



Titus 2:13:

God Savior and Jesus pbuh is Prophet

RS reads: “Awaiting our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ.” (Similar wording is found in NE, TEV, JB.) However, NW reads: “while we wait for the happy hope and glorious manifestation of the great God and of the Savior of us, Christ Jesus.” (NAB has a similar rendering.)



Which translation agrees with Titus 1:4, which refers to “God the Father and Christ Jesus our Savior”? Although the Scriptures also refer to God as being a Savior, this text clearly differentiates between him and Christ Jesus, the one through whom God provides salvation.



Some argue that Titus 2:13 indicates that Christ is both God and Savior. Interestingly, RS, NE, TEV, JB render Titus 2:13 in a way that might be construed as allowing for that view, but they do not follow the same rule in their translation of 2 Thessalonians 1:12. Henry Alford, in The Greek Testament, states: “I would submit that [a rendering that clearly differentiates God and Christ, at Titus 2:13] satisfies all the grammatical requirements of the sentence: that it is both structurally and contextually more probable, and more agreeable to the Apostle’s way of writing.”—(Boston, 1877), Vol. III, p. 421.



See also NW appendix, 1984 Reference edition, pp. 1581, 1582.



Hebrews 1:8:

Throne belong to Almighty God

RS reads: “Of the Son he says, ‘Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever.’” (KJ, NE, TEV, Dy, JB, NAB have similar renderings.) However, NW reads: “But with reference to the Son: ‘God is your throne forever and ever.’” (AT, Mo, TC, By convey the same idea.)



Which rendering is harmonious with the context? The preceding verses say that God is speaking, not that he is being addressed; and the following verse uses the expression “God, thy God,” showing that the one addressed is not the Most High God but is a worshiper of that God. Hebrews 1:8 quotes from Psalm 45:6, which originally was addressed to a human king of Israel. Obviously, the Bible writer of this psalm did not think that this human king was Almighty God. Rather, Psalm 45:6, in RS, reads “Your divine throne.” (NE says, “Your throne is like God’s throne.” JP [verse 7]: “Thy throne given of God.”) Solomon, who was possibly the king originally addressed in Psalm 45, was said to sit “upon Jehovah’s throne.” (1 Chron. 29:23, NW) In harmony with the fact that God is the “throne,” or Source and Upholder of Christ’s kingship, Daniel 7:13, 14 and Luke 1:32 show that God confers such authority on him.



Hebrews 1:8, 9 quotes from Psalm 45:6, 7, concerning which the Bible scholar B. F. Westcott states: “The LXX. admits of two renderings: [ho the•os′] can be taken as a vocative in both cases (Thy throne, O God, . . . therefore, O God, Thy God . . . ) or it can be taken as the subject (or the predicate) in the first case (God is Thy throne, or Thy throne is God . . . ), and in apposition to [ho the•os′ sou] in the second case (Therefore God, even Thy God . . . ). . . . It is scarcely possible that [’Elo•him′] in the original can be addressed to the king. The presumption therefore is against the belief that [ho the•os′] is a vocative in the LXX. Thus on the whole it seems best to adopt in the first clause the rendering: God is Thy throne (or, Thy throne is God), that is ‘Thy kingdom is founded upon God, the immovable Rock.’”—The Epistle to the Hebrews (London, 1889), pp. 25, 26.



1 John 5:7, 8: is removed from bible because it was an interpolation.



KJ reads: “For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one. And there are three that bear witness in earth, the spirit, and the water, and the blood: and these three agree in one.” (Dy also includes this Trinitarian passage.) However, NW does not include the words “in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one. And there are three that bear witness in earth.” (RS, NE, TEV, JB, NAB also leave out the Trinitarian passage.)



Regarding this Trinitarian passage, textual critic F. H. A. Scrivener wrote: “We need not hesitate to declare our conviction that the disputed words were not written by St. John: that they were originally brought into Latin copies in Africa from the margin, where they had been placed as a pious and orthodox gloss on ver. 8: that from the Latin they crept into two or three late Greek codices, and thence into the printed Greek text, a place to which they had no rightful claim.”—A Plain Introduction to the Criticism of the New Testament (Cambridge, 1883, third ed.), p. 654.



See also footnote on these verses in JB, and NW appendix, 1984 Reference edition, p. 1580.



Other scriptures that are said by Trinitarians to express elements of their dogma



Notice that the first of these texts refers to only the Son; the other refers to both Father and Son; neither refers to Father, Son, and Holy Spirit and says that they comprise one God.



John 2:19-22:



By what he here said, did Jesus mean that he would resurrect himself from the dead? Does that mean that Jesus is God, because Acts 2:32 says, “This Jesus God raised up”? Not at all. Such a view would conflict with Galatians 1:1, which ascribes the resurrection of Jesus to the Father, not to the Son. Using a similar mode of expression, at Luke 8:48 Jesus is quoted as saying to a woman: “Your faith has made you well.” Did she heal herself? No; it was power from God through Christ that healed her because she had faith. (Luke 8:46; Acts 10:38) Likewise, by his perfect obedience as a human, Jesus provided the moral basis for the Father to raise him from the dead, thus acknowledging Jesus as God’s Son. Because of Jesus’ faithful course of life, it could properly be said that Jesus himself was responsible for his resurrection.



Says A. T. Robertson in Word Pictures in the New Testament: “Recall [John] 2:19 where Jesus said: ‘And in three days I will raise it up.’ He did not mean that he will raise himself from the dead independently of the Father as the active agent (Rom. 8:11).”—(New York, 1932), Vol. V, p. 183.



“I and my father are one” do not constitute trinity.

John 10:30:



When saying, “I and the Father are one,” did Jesus mean that they were equal? Some Trinitarians say that he did. But at John 17:21, 22, Jesus prayed regarding his followers: “That they may all be one,” and he added, “that they may be one even as we are one.” He used the same Greek word (hen) for “one” in all these instances. Obviously, Jesus’ disciples do not all become part of the Trinity. But they do come to share a oneness of purpose with the Father and the Son, the same sort of oneness that unites God and Christ.



In what position does belief in the Trinity put those who cling to it?



It puts them in a very dangerous position. The evidence is indisputable that the dogma of the Trinity is not found in the Bible, nor is it in harmony with what the Bible teaches. (See the preceding pages.) It grossly misrepresents the true God. Yet, Jesus Christ said: “The hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for such the Father seeks to worship him. God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth.” (John 4:23, 24, RS) Thus Jesus made it clear that those whose worship is not ‘in truth,’ not in harmony with the truth set out in God’s own Word, are not “true worshipers.” To Jewish religious leaders of the first century, Jesus said: “For the sake of your tradition, you have made void the word of God. You hypocrites! Well did Isaiah prophesy of you, when he said: ‘This people honors me with their lips, but their heart is far from me; in vain do they worship me, teaching as doctrines the precepts of men.’” (Matt. 15:6-9, RS) That applies with equal force to those in Christendom today who advocate human traditions in preference to the clear truths of the Bible.



Regarding the Trinity, the Athanasian Creed (in English) says that its members are “incomprehensible.” Teachers of the doctrine often state that it is a “mystery.” Obviously such a Trinitarian God is not the one that Jesus had in mind when he said: “We worship what we know.” (John 4:22, RS) Do you really know the God you worship?



Serious questions confront each one of us: Do we sincerely love the truth? Do we really want an approved relationship with God? Not everyone genuinely loves the truth. Many have put having the approval of their relatives and associates above love of the truth and of God. (2 Thess. 2:9-12; John 5:39-44) But, as Jesus said in earnest prayer to his heavenly Father: “This means everlasting life, their taking in knowledge of you, the only true God, and of the one whom you sent forth, Jesus Christ.” (John 17:3, NW) And Psalm 144:15 truthfully states: “Happy is the people whose God is Allah!”—NW.


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