In the past I have taught that the “Root” of the “Olive Tree” in the parable in Romans 11 is the Abrahamic Covenant. I was wrong. It is the “Seed” promised in the Abrahamic Covenant, who is Christ according to Galatians 3:16. This is God’s Son who was betrothed to Israel first under the Mosaic Covenant, but then again under the New Covenant. Here is my reasoning: Romans 11:16-29 (NKJV) 16 For if the FIRSTFRUIT…
We are beginning section “D” of Bereans Bible Institute Module II on the doctrine of God and His Only-Begotten Son. This section will deal primarily with the “proof-texting” done by Biblical Unitarians (Socinians) and their specific arguments in their attempt to prove that Jesus had no pre-human existence, and that He was not LITERALLY the “Son of God,” not LITERALLY “begotten” out of God, fathered by God Himself. In this first installment, I tackle the…
One of the most important themes which runs through the entire Bible is the Marriage of the Son of God. The Old Testament refers many times to Zion/Jerusalem & Israel as being “betrothed” to the Lord. The prophets declare her harlotry during this betrothal period, and emphasize that the Lord has divorced her for a time (as illustrated by her exile and the desolation of the Temple). Yet He promised to take her again as…
I just completed the 5th video lesson in section “C” of the Bereans Bible Institute Module 2. This lesson deals with a topic I covered in much greater detail in a previous post on this blog at the following link: “To Whom has the ‘Arm of the Lord’ been Revealed?” Scripture uses the metaphors of Yahweh’s “Mighty Hand” and His “Outstretched Arm” in describing both the creation of heaven and earth and especially the exodus…
From time to time throughout my ministry I have been compelled to acknowledge that I have taught incorrectly in the past, and to correct those errors. Well, here is another one. I have taught that “the angels who sinned” mentioned in 2 Pet. 2:4 and Jude 1:6 were fallen heavenly messengers. This is the traditional interpretation found throughout Christianity. However, I have always been uneasy about this view for two reasons: I have also repeatedly…
Isaiah and Micah were contemporary prophets, both prophesying in Judah during the reigns of Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah. Both prophets prophesied concerning the deliverance of king Hezekiah’s kingdom from the siege of Jerusalem by Sennacherib, king of Assyria. The deliverance was because of Hezekiah’s prayer to Yahweh and was accomplished by Yahweh’s Messenger killing 185,000 Assyrian soldiers in one night. Isaiah 36-39 tells the story of this siege and miraculous deliverance. But the fascinating detail,…
The same “Messenger of Yahweh” who confirmed the Covenant to Abraham, who was “the Mighty One of Jacob,” who appeared to Moses in the burning bush, was also with Israel in the pillar of cloud and fire and spoke to Moses on Mt. Sinai. He then led Israel through the wilderness, at times punishing them severely for their rebellion, yet leading them to the Promised Land. He was the “ROCK” of Israel who Paul identified…
The “Mighty One of Jacob” was Yahweh’s “Messenger” who appeared to Jacob at the top of a ladder. Jacob anointed with oil the Stone at the base of the ladder, and named it “Bethel,” the House of God. The vision of the ladder, with Yahweh’s “Messenger” at the top and the Anointed Stone at the base, is an allegory of the descent of Yahweh’s Messenger’s from heaven to become the “Christ,” the Anointed “Foundation Stone.”…
The Apostles repeatedly stated that no one has seen God Himself at any time in history, that no one is capable of seeing God with their eyes. This immediately creates a difficulty with the many Old Testament Scriptures which claim that someone called “God” and “Yahweh” spoke face to face with the patriarchs, Moses, etc. and these people then claimed to have seen God. This Person who commonly used the title “God,” used Yahweh’s own…
Biblical Unitarians (Socinians) DENY that God’s Son existed since creation and was God’s Agent through whom He created all things. They offer three contradictory arguments in their attempts to explain away John 1:3,10 and Col. 1:16. But each argument uses either faulty logic or impossible interpretations of the Greek grammar, and each falsifies the others. These are: Go to: BBI II-C #1 Yahweh’s “Messenger,” the “Image of the Invisible God”
In Colossians 1:14-20, Paul revealed the “Hidden Wisdom” (of 1 Cor. 2:6-10) by placing the Son of God Himself within the context of Proverbs 8:22-31, claiming that Jesus was “the first-produced of all creation” and is called “the Beginning” (as stated in Prov. 8:22-25) and was God’s Agent through whom He created all things (as stated in Prov. 8:30). In the same passage Paul went on to claim that the Son, through whom God created…
Not only did Paul refer to Jesus as “the Wisdom of God” and the “hidden Wisdom,” but Luke, Paul’s companion, called Jesus “the Wisdom of God” in his Gospel. Luke’s Christology comes from Paul. In all three synoptic Gospel accounts of Jesus’ baptism, the Father declared from heaven that His Son was “Wisdom” of Proverbs 8:22-31 & Prov. 30:4. Thus all of the Gospel accounts have preexistence language concerning Christ, identifying Him as God’s Agent…
Proverbs begins by telling the reader to decipher a riddle, the “hidden Wisdom” concealed by God behind what at first appears to be just a “personification” of one of God’s attributes. Yahweh has always possessed his own “wisdom,” yet this at the “beginning” of creation week, this “hidden Wisdom” was “acquired,” “founded,” and “begotten” by Yahweh as “the Beginning” of His works. “Wisdom” then claims to have been God’s protege and agent in the creation…
In the Bereans Bible Institute Module 2-A we used the Genesis creation account as the springboard to discuss John’s Gospel because John introduced Jesus as God’s Agent in creation “in the Beginning.” Now in Module 2-B we will use Solomon’s creation account (Proverbs 8:22-31 & Proverbs 30:1-4) as the springboard to discuss Paul’s letters, and how he portrayed “Wisdom” as both God’s agent in creation and the one who was crucified. The first lesson deals…
Isaiah 9:6-7 NRSV 6 For a child has been born for us, a son given to us; authority rests upon his shoulders; and he is named Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. 7 His authority shall grow continually, and there shall be endless peace for the throne of David and his kingdom. He will establish and uphold it with justice and with righteousness from this time onward and forevermore. The zeal of…
For the last several lessons we have been looking at the language in John’s Gospel about the pre-human existence of God’s Son, which is a major theme running throughout the entire book. Socinian Unitarians, who deny the pre-human existence of the Son of God, use exegetical gymnastics to deny the literal understanding of all of these passages. Yet, in chapters 16 & 17 the writer made it perfectly clear that all of this preexistence language,…
The genuine Christian Faith was founded, expounded, and demonstrated by the Son of God who was and is “the image of the invisible God,”[1] perfectly reflecting the character and purposes of God. The Apostles then mirrored “the mind of Christ,”[2] having been “conformed to the image of [God’s] Son.”[3] They parroted Jesus’ teachings and followed His example of submission to God’s stated purposes and His self-sacrifice. The Apostles were secondary reflections of God’s purposes and…
Since 1947-48, when the modern state of Israel was established by the United Nations, there has been a continuous stream of conflict and violence against Israel by its neighbors. The Six-Day War in 1967 is considered by both Jews and Christians as divine intervention. Against enormous odds, Israel deflected the simultaneous attacks from the surrounding nations, defeated them decisively in six days, and recaptured Jerusalem and especially the Temple Mount which had been denied her…
The eighth chapter of John’s Gospel continues to develop the idea of the pre-human existence of the Son of God. In this chapter Jesus claimed to have come “from above,” the very place where He was about to return. He claimed to be “the Beginning,” the title given to “Wisdom” in Proverbs 8:22, and that He “issued forth out of God,” terminology which refers to the “begetting” of Wisdom in Proverbs 8:24-25. These statements reach…
In John 6, Jesus stated more than once that He came down from heaven. He compared Himself to the manna which God provided for Israel in the wilderness. The difference was that the manna from heaven sustained the Israelites temporal lives, but Jesus provides immortality. Trinitarians have no real difficulties in this chapter. However, Unitarians who deny that the Son of God existed before His birth from Mary have plenty of difficulties in this chapter….
At sundown this evening begins Rosh Hashanah, Hebrew for “Head of the Year,” also known as the “Feast of Trumpets.” This is the anniversary of the first day of creation week. The Son of God was begotten out from God’s own being (the only-begotten from the Father – Jn. 1:14). This “beginning” event began day one of creation week. God’s Son is “the first-produced of all creation” (Col. 1:15), “The Beginning” and “before all things”…
There are several statements in the New Testament which flatly contradict the Trinitarian claim that Jesus was “co-equal” and “co-eternal” with the Father. Scripture indicates that God performed all of Jesus’ miracles through Him. Jesus had no inherent power or “divine nature” as the source of His miracles. He stated plainly that He was powerless to perform even one thing. He also stated that His Apostles would do the same and more miracles once the…
I am 100% convinced that the earth is slightly less than 6,000 years old. Most Evangelical Christians are also “Young-Earth Creationists,” and take the Genesis creation account literally, as well as the chronological data in the Bible, all of which requires this view. However, Young-Earth Creation ministries often use a particular argument from Romans 5 & 8 in order to counter “Old-Earth Creationists” who claim that the earth itself is billions of years old, some…
In chapter 3 of his Gospel, John went on to support his previous statements about Logos (Word) being “in the beginning with God” (Jn. 1:2) by quoting Jesus’ statement to Nicodemus about testifying to “heavenly things” (Jn. 3:9-12). He then added his own commentary, explaining that the same Son of Man who ascended to heaven previously descended from heaven, thus being an eyewitness to “heavenly things” (Jn. 3:13). He followed this with a quote from…
The prologue to John’s Gospel closes with a claim that all personal appearances of “God” in the Old Testament were actually His Son, His personal Agent. John 1:18 (LGV) “Never before has anyone seen God. The Only-Begotten Son, the one being unto the Father’s bosom, that one declared Him.” This summary statement was intended to amplify what was stated in verse 10, that the same one through whom all things originated also interacted with man…
In John 1:1-5 the apostle wrote of Jesus’ preexistence by claiming that He was “in the beginning,” that He was “with God” (external to God), but that He “was God” (using the personal noun “Theos” which always refers to a personal being). In verse 2 He repeated that He was “in the beginning with God.” In verse 3 John stated that everything that exists originated through Him, and nothing originated without Him. In the fourth…
In John 1:14, the clause, “And the Word became flesh” does not work in either a Trinitarian or Biblical Unitarian model. The meaning of the verb “ginomai” (became) in a predicate nominative construction requires that one person or thing that has a concrete and tangible existence is transformed into something or someone different with a concrete and tangible existence — a complete change in ontological nature, a new beginning as something different. Also, the word…
In episode 7 of this series, we take a close look at John 1:12-14. Verse 13 contains a textual variant which most Christians are not familiar with. The common versions translate this verse as if it referred to Christians, “who were begotten (plural) … out of God.” However, three lines of evidence point to the singular reading, “who was begotten (singular) … out of God,” meaning the “Logos” who afterward “became flesh and dwelled among…
In the context of John 1:10-12, the pronouns (“Him” / “His”) refer to Jesus, the one we must “receive” and “believe in His name.” Yet, these pronouns require an antecedent noun as a referent which is the same gender and number (masculine, singular) as the pronouns. The only possible singular, masculine noun which can be the antecedent for these pronouns is the noun “Logos” (Word) in verse 1. This requires that “Logos” was a personal…
Tonight is PASSOVER, the most awesome time of the year! It was on this night 1993 years ago that Jesus shared His last Passover with His disciples, knowing full well that in the morning He would be hanging on a cross, finishing the work that His Father sent Him here to do. Unfortunately, the Roman church sought to distance Christianity from all things Jewish, abandoning both the Feasts and the Sabbath. Most Christians do not…
In lesson 5 we dig into the Greek text of John 1:3-4. This text was quoted quite differently by the early Christian writers from how it is translated in most of our modern Bibles. The punctuation in all of the critical printed editions of the Greek text of this passage is also ignored in most English versions. When we punctuate these verses as in the printed Greek texts and as quoted by the early Chrsitians,…
John’s prologue was intended to reveal what is rather vague in the Genesis creation account. In this lesson we dissect the Greek grammar of the four clauses contained in John 1:1-2 and answer the question: “Who or what is the ‘Word’ (Logos) in John’s prologue?” Is it the name of a Person as in Trinitarianism? Is it the “words” (commands) “Let there be …” in Genesis 1? Is it an abstract “Plan” in God’s mind?…
The New Testament is clear that the Son of God was concealed in the Old Testament in a “mystery” which Israel did not understand. This concealment was intentional, because it was necessary for God’s plan of redemption to be carried out. A close examination of the Genesis creation account actually illustrates how certain aspects of this “mystery” were concealed. The revelation of the “Mystery of Christ” was given to the Apostles to proclaim plainly. The…
In this second episode we examine the question of the real, essential, and consistent meaning of the word “God” (Heb. Elohim, Gk. Theos). Establishing a clear definition for this word from the biblical usage is absolutely critical simply because it is misused by both Trinitarians and Unitarians in order to prop up their theology. The word simply means the supreme Sovereign holding all authority and all power within a particular realm of dominion. (It does…
I have begun a new video series on the topic of God and His Son. This is a remake of the Bereans Bible Institute Module II series “The Doctrine of God” which was originally done in 2014-2015 when we were first coming out of Trinitarianism. I have studied and learned a great deal since those days, which makes a complete remake of that series necessary. The first episode is an introduction, dealing with the process…
It is not uncommon for Biblical Unitarians to claim that the “Logos of Life” in 1 John 1:1-2 who was “with the Father” was God’s Plan and not God’s Son. The basis for this claim is the very first word in John’s first letter, the Greek word “O.” Most English Bibles translate “O” as “that which” or “What” (as a neuter relative pronoun). Here is how the modern cursive Greek texts render the opening clause:…
Dr. Dale Tuggy did a podcast with Dr. Dustin Smith on the topic of Philippians 2:5-10, attempting to harmonize this passage with Biblical Unitarianism (which denies any form of preexistence for the Son). Philippians 2:5-11 (LGV) 5 Have this disposition in you which [was] also in Anointed Jesus 6 who, being in the form of God, did not consider to be equal with God a prize, 7 but emptied Himself, taking the form of a slave, becoming in the…
I was invited by Carlos Xavier to a live discussion with Anthony Buzzard at “Focus on the Kingdom” YouTube channel. The live discussion took place on Saturday, January 21 at 2:00pm. The topic was: “Did the Son of God originate and exist prior to His birth in Bethlehem?” I took the affirmative position, and Anthony Buzzard took the negative position. The notes I used can be downloaded at the following link: Anthony.pdf. I would be…
In his book, The Doctrine of the Trinity, Christianity’s Self-Inflicted Wound, it is apparent that Anthony Buzzard was working from a false presupposition regarding the question of a pre-human existence for the Son of God. He made it plain that any form of literal preexistence is totally incompatible with the biblical belief that Jesus was 100% human, that He only possessed those ontological characteristics which are common to all humans and nothing more. On page…
Recently I wrote a blog post about the divide among Biblical Unitarians concerning the meaning of John’s prologue. It appears that the new interpretation being offered reflects the difficulties that many in the movement are facing as they attempt to engage Trinitarians on this passage. I recently came across the below video debate among Biblical Unitarians on this issue. (If the embedded video does not play on your device, it can be viewed on YouTube…
John 20:26-29 (NASB) 26 And after eight days again His disciples were inside, and Thomas with them. Jesus came, the doors having been shut, and stood in their midst, and said, “Peace be with you.” 27 Then He said to Thomas, “Reach here your finger, and see My hands; and reach here your hand, and put it into My side; and be not unbelieving, but believing.” 28 Thomas answered and said to Him, “My Lord…
A few readers of this blog are aware that I was raised in the Plymouth Brethren assemblies. The Brethren went beyond the Protestant Reformation by attempting to restore primitive Christian practices and the kind of church government outlined in the New Testament. Many more readers are aware that I pastored a church in Florida for ten years which was affiliated with the Stone – Campbell Restoration Movement, the division known as the “Independent (or Unaffiliated)…
John 5:16-18 (LGV) 16 And because of this the Judeans were pursuing Jesus and were seeking to kill Him, because He was doing these things on a Sabbath. 17 But Jesus replied to them, “My Father is working until now, and I am working.” 18 The Judeans then increasingly sought to kill Him because not only was He breaking the Sabbath but was also calling God His own Father, making Himself equal with God! In…
In his book, “The Birth of Jesus or the Birth of Christians, An inquiry into the Authenticity of John 1:13,” Catholic theologian Denis S. Kulandaisamy outlined the history of controversary concerning John 1:13. He gave a detailed summary of the scholarly works and their reasoning in favor of the singular reading, “who was begotten” (referring to the Son of God) as opposed to the majority reading, “who were begotten,” (referring to Christians). This variant reading…
In part 1 of this series three important clauses were considered consisting of πᾶς + substantive singular participle. These are incorrectly translated in English versions as “whoever _________.” But these should not be translated as referring to individuals who meet a particular requirement, but instead as referring to the whole collective group as a single entity characterized by the participle: 1. The expression πᾶς ὁ πιστεύων (“whoever believes”) should be “the entire believing [entity].” (John…
Certain non-Trinitarian churches and organizations share many doctrines in common with 4Winds Fellowships, especially those who call their non-Trinitarian theology “Biblical Unitarianism.”[1] However, on the most important doctrine of all – who is Jesus Christ – there is a significant difference. Some Biblical Unitarian authors give the outward appearance of objective scholarship in their treatment of the origin of the so-called “Logos Doctrine” (preexistence of Christ). But in reality, the method of historical research is…
The Apostle Paul used the “body of Christ” metaphor as his way to identify the collective Son of God. He used this term for the local church, all baptized Christians within a local community in fellowship with one another, with Jesus Christ as the head of the body. That this is local is evident from his following statement which can only apply to a local setting, not to all Christians everywhere. 1 Cor. 12:24-27 (NKJV)…
Eph. 1:9 (LGV) 9 having made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His good intent which He planned within Himself 10 for the administration of the fullness of the appointed times, to sum up everything together in the Anointed – what is in the sky and what is on the land — in Him. Paul explained that the goal of God’s ultimate plan for this creation, which He devised within Himself,…
The New Testament contains a common, theologically significant, expression which is incorrectly translated in most English versions. This provides false implications which affect more than one theological point. The expression πᾶς + substantive singular participle is translated either as “whoever believes,” “whoever is born/begotten” (of God, or of the Spirit), or “whoever loves.” 1. The expression πᾶς ὁ πιστεύων (“whoever believes”) appears in John 3:15,16, John 12:46, Acts 10:43; Rom. 10:11; 1 John 5:1. 2….
Baptist Greek scholar, A. T. Robertson, noted in his Word Pictures in the New Testament that there are two ways of punctuating and reading John 1:3-4. The old Greek manuscripts did not have punctuation, which at times allows more than one way of reading a particular passage, particularly the exact point where a sentence ends and a new sentence begins. This is because often in Greek a sentence begins with a dependent clause rather than…