Co-equal:
Karl Barth, a noted theologian of the 20th century gives a stunning admonition that the church has gone beyond the Bible to arrive at the doctrine of the Trinity. “The Bible lacks the express declaration that the Father, Son, and the Holy Spirit are of equal essence and therefore in an equal sense God Himself. And the other express declaration is also lacking that God is God thus and only thus, i.e., as the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. These two express declarations which go beyond the witness of the Bible are the twofold content of the church doctrine of the Trinity” (Doctrine of the Word of God, p. 437).
Again, in John 1:1-2 we are told, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word with was God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God.” The Word was Jesus Christ incarnate—the One who became flesh and blood, with human nature (Matthew 1:18-20). Jesus Christ was “Immanuel” or God in the flesh (V23); although completely emptied of all His godly divinity or power. He was a flesh and blood human being just like you and me today —He sneezed, He bled and He would sweat! He was an average looking, everyday “Joe” (Isaiah 53:1-3). He miraculously became a Human Being (Hebrews 2:9, 4:14-15; Philippians 2:7)! While Jesus Christ, the Son of Man, was on this very earth as a physical, flesh and blood human being, there was only one God Being—the Father—present in heaven. One of the members of the Godhead emptied and humbled Himself and became a man that we might have the opportunity to become like God. As you meditate on this concept, the true importance and impact of John 3:16 should become abundantly clear, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.” Jesus was the only begotten Son of God through the receiving of the Holy Spirit (John 3:34, Colossians 1:19). What did He do with the Holy Spirit? Yes, He had the same carnal human nature that all of us have today; yet, He was able to overcome Satan and perform many mighty miracles. He changed water to wine (John 2:1-11). He dealt powerfully with a demon-possessed man (Mark 1:23-28). He cleansed and completely healed persons suffering from the terrible disease of leprosy (Mark 1:40-42). He calmed the sea (Matthew 8:23-27). He healed two blind men (Matthew 9:27-31. Also, through the Holy Spirit He restored a man’s withered hand (Mathew 12:9-13). Of course, the list goes on including: feeding 5,000 people (Matthew 14:15-21), resurrecting Lazarus (John 11:39-45) and healing those who simply touched His garments (Matthew 14:34-36). These are simply a few of the many miracles performed by the person Jesus Christ, which are listed throughout the four gospels. However, by Jesus’ own admittance, how did He say He performed these wonderful miracles? In His own words He states, “I can of Myself do nothing. As I hear, I judge; and My judgment is righteous, because I do not seek My own will but the will of the Father who sent Me” (John 5:30). So if Jesus, as God in the flesh, could of Himself do nothing, then how did He perform these marvelous works? John explains, “Do you not believe that I am in the Father, and the Father in Me? The words that I speak to you I do not speak on My own authority; but the Father who dwells in Me does the works” (John 14:10). He completely emptied Himself! Jesus, as a flesh and blood Human Being, was powerless to do anything based on His own power and strength. He could not do these works on His own accord, except only through the Holy Spirit dwelling in Him from the Father!
Many today have the notion that we cannot obey God’s law; therefore, you hear such comments as “we are not under law, but under grace” or “the law was nailed to the cross.” Contrary to apparent popular belief the life and example of Jesus Christ should be very encouraging. He has shown us that we can obey God—not on our own accord, but with Jesus living in us through the power of the Holy Spirit. This power can be obtained through baptism and the “laying on of hands” by a true representative of God—how exciting! Perhaps, some will say, “He only said what He said because He was human and the Father was spirit.” Yet, consider the time when there only existed these two self-existent Spirit Personages. Yes, there was a time when there was nothing else—no matter—no material universe—absolutely no other living thing or being! And then something wonderful happened. Let’s repeat what we are told in Ephesians 3:9, “…God who created all things through [by] Jesus Christ.” Yes, all things—the universe and everything in it—were made by the Supreme Being called, the Word, who became Jesus Christ. What a powerful admonition! Only these two, as one in mind and power, except that God the Father was supreme in authority and the Word was in perfect harmony under that authority. They, as Spirit beings (not yet in the flesh), were of one mind, one Spirit and in absolute agreement, but again as Christ said, “My Father is greater than I.”
Are they really co-equal as the mysterious Trinity doctrine professes? In teaching the rich young ruler about how to enter into eternal life, Christ said, “Why do you call Me good? No one is good but One, that is, God” (Matthew 19:17). Our Savior didn’t even mention Himself! He continues, “But if you want to enter into life, keep the commandments [all Ten].” Jesus Christ left us a perfect example in keeping the Ten Commandments in the letter and spirit of the law. We too can enter into eternal life by keeping these same Ten Commandment, but this is only possible through Jesus Christ living in us through the power of the Holy Spirit (Galatians 2:20; Acts 5:32). Incredibly, He also states in John 14:28, “You have heard Me say to you, I am going away and coming back to you. If you loved Me, you would rejoice because I said, I am going to the Father, for My Father is greater than I.” By the very words of Jesus Christ, the co-equal doctrine is shattered!
When Jesus Christ was on this earth, He constantly referred to the fact that there was a Father. In our New Testament He revealed the Father! Jesus never hesitated to show that He could do nothing of His own accord (John 5:19) except as guided, led by, sustained and supported by the Father. Even human beings have differing jobs, responsibilities and levels of authority that they exert over other human beings. Likewise, the great God called Father has the greatest level of authority that has ever existed—by any Being. Jesus Christ is joyfully, willingly and properly submissive as the second in command of the great God Family. Jesus does not chafe under this authority but lives in perfect harmony with it and directs every human being to it.
By Bible definition, Jesus Christ was the Word of God (John 1:1), He was the One who spoke and the entire great universe that we see around us came into being—the visible and invisible things such as angels and great Cherubim (Colossians 1:15-18). Jesus lived a perfect life and left a perfect example through the power of the Holy Spirit. He showed us, manifested to us, made visible to us what the great invisible God is like. If Christ did all of these magnificent things—what greater effects are there that the Father does? The Father calls and begets the very sons and daughters of God. Jesus Christ does not beget us—the Father does! What greater things can the Father do?
We have seen that Jesus Christ is God—“the same yesterday, today and forever” (Hebrews 13:8). However, you can search the Bible in its entirety and you will find no such teaching with regard to the Holy Spirit. Theologians must admit the clear facts! Discussing the evidence for the doctrine of the Trinity in the Bible, George L. Johnson writes: “Theologians have to recognize that there is no biblical proof for the divinity or personality of the Spirit. And that in order to arrive at a doctrine of the Trinity, they have to go outside the Bible” (Is God a Trinity?, p. 31).
Is the Holy Spirit a God or Person:
Very few “professing Christians” today understand what the Holy Spirit of God really is. Some think of it as a mystic cloud or a holy ghost, a third person of a “trinity.” God gave man the “spirit in man,” which is the very dimension that separates or differentiates man from animals. Animals have instinct, pr-programmed patterns, but do not add or subtract! Animals do not reason, design or build! Man is capable of magnificent feats because of the God added non-physical component of the brain, which is referred to in scripture as the “spirit in man.” This is noted in 1 Corinthians 2:11, “For what man knows the things of a man except the spirit of man which is in him...” This is also mentioned in Job 32:8, “But there is a spirit in man, and the breath of the Almighty gives him understanding.”
This is the human spirit in each and every one of us, but it is not a separate person or being living inside of us. The “spirit in man” is not the person, but the spirit essence in the person just as in matter air is essence, and so is water. The human spirit cannot see as it is our physical brain that sees, through the eyes. The human spirit in a person cannot hear. The brain hears through the ears. This human spirit cannot think. The brain thinks—the spirit imparts the power of intellect and the power to think; whereas, animals without such spirit cannot, except in the most basic manner. This was explained in great detail by our late church leader Mr. Herbert W. Armstrong.
What about the Holy Spirit! How does it relate to the “spirit in man?” The Apostle Paul continues writing in 1 Corinthians 2:11, “Even so no one knows the things of God except the Spirit of God.” The truth of the matter is that the Holy Spirit is not something we are born with, but it is something we must receive from God (Acts 2:38). In fact, without God’s Holy Spirit we are not even yet Christians, “Now if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he is not His” (Romans 8:9). Is this a separate person that enters us upon our faith in Jesus Christ as our personal savior and upon repentance? What most people do not realize is that the Holy Spirit actually imparts a tremendous and dynamic source of power to our minds. The Holy Spirit is the very essence of God Himself—His very nature and character—and it imparts power! And this is the power we must be led by (Romans 8:14) before we can be born sons and daughters of God (2 Corinthians 6:18).
The power of the Holy Spirit is demonstrated throughout the Bible in many different ways. The Psalms of David tell us much about this power. For instance, where this power resides, “God has spoken once, Twice I have heard this: That power belongs to God” (Psalms 62:11). How did God utilize this power in His work of creation? “Praise the Lord! Praise the Lord from the heavens; Praise Him in the heights! Praise Him, all His angel; Praise Him, all His hosts! Praise Him, sun and moon; Praise Him, all you stars of light! Praise Him, you heavens of heavens, and you water above the heavens! Let them praise the name of the Lord, For He commanded and they were created” (Psalm 148:1-5)!
“The OT clearly does not envisage God’s spirit as a person, neither in the strictly philosophical sense, nor in the Semitic sense. God’s spirit is simply God’s power. If it is sometimes represented as being distinct from God, it is because the breath of Yahweh acts exteriorly (Isaiah 48:16, 63:11, 32:15).” Continuing on, “Very rarely do the OT writers attribute to God’s spirit emotions or intellectual activity (Isaiah 63:10). When such expressions are used, they are mere figures of speech that are explained by the fact that the ruah was regarded also as the seat of intellectual acts and feeling (Genesis 41:8). Neither is there found in the OT or in rabbinical literature the notion that God’s spirit is an intermediary being between God and the world. This activity is proper to the angels, although to them is ascribed some of the activity that elsewhere is ascribed to the spirit of God” (New Catholic Encyclopedia, Vo. XIII, p. 574).
God commanded, “Let the dry land appear”; and it was so (Genesis 1:9)—instantly! It was the power of the “Spirit of God hovering over the face of the waters” (Genesis 1:2) that performed this mighty command! It is by the power of His Holy Spirit that God sustains and upholds His creation (Nehemiah 9:6; Hebrews 1:3) and it is by this same power that He rules (Psalms 66:7)! It is God’s Holy Spirit—His miraculous power—that permeates everything (Psalm 139:7-8)! God’s spirit is God’s power and it is by this power that Jesus Christ created the whole universe for man to someday inherit (Hebrews 2:8).
Now what about the New Testament? It is also by the power of the Holy Spirit by which the blind saw, the deaf heard, the lame miraculously walked and the dead were raised (Luke 5:15-17). It is the power by which God works in the minds and hearts of human beings made in His very image (Genesis 6:3). The Holy Spirit is the power by which God began the New Testament Church (Acts 2:1-4). Again notice the New Catholic Encyclopedia:“The majority of NT texts reveal God’s spirit as something, not someone; this is especially seen in the parallelism between the spirit and the power of God.” The authors continue: “When a quasi-personal activity is ascribed to God’s spirit, e.g., speaking, hindering, desiring, dwelling (Acts 8:29, 16:7; Romans 8:9), one is not justified in concluding immediately that in these passages God’s spirit is regarded as a Person; the same expressions are used in regard to rhetorically personified things or abstract ideas (see Romans 6:6, 7:17). Thus the context of the phrase ‘blasphemy against the spirit’ (Matthew 12:31; cf. Matthew 12:28; Luke 11:20) shows that reference is being made to the power of God” (New Catholic Encyclopedia, Vol. XIII, p. 575).
On the Last Great Day Jesus Christ stated “‘If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink…out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.’ But this He spoke concerning the Spirit…” (John 7:37-39). Here Christ symbolically compared the Holy Spirit to water. The Greek New Testament word from which “spirit” is translated is from Strong’s 4154, pneuma (pnyoo'-mah) and means a current of air, i.e. breath (blast) or a breeze; by analogy or figuratively, a spirit.
Sometimes people will ask the question “Is the Holy Spirit and the Holy Ghost one in the same person?” This is derived from the fact that the King James Version of the Bible translates the Greek word pneuma into the archaic English word “ghost,” which means “spirit.” So the Holy Ghost and Holy Spirit are one and the same thing; although, it is not a person! In the Old Testament, the Hebrew word translated “spirit” is ruach and had the same meaning as the Greek pneuma. Interestingly, just as water and air are essential to maintaining physical life, so is the essential indwelling power of God’s presence in a human being for everlasting life (Romans 8:11)! Also, just as air and water both flow and have power to affect and change that with which they come in contact, so also does the Holy Spirit. However, it is obvious that the Holy Spirit is not a separate being—or the so-called “third person” of a “trinity.”
We are told in the Gospel of Matthew that a young lady by the name of Mary “was found with child of the Holy Spirit” (Matthew 1:18). Jesus Christ, the “Word”—the One who had eternally existed with the Father became “Immanuel” (Matthew 1:23). He emptied Himself of all His Godly divinity and became human flesh and blood. He was miraculously begotten by the power of the Holy Spirit. Yet, how is Jesus Christ referred to or addressed as throughout the scriptures and who did He relate Himself to, “I am the Son of God.” If the Holy Spirit is a Person or God, what a colossal insult against the Holy Spirit! Jesus calls God His Father and not the Holy Spirit!
According to the Trinity doctrine, the Apostle Paul, who was taught directly by Jesus Christ, must also be classified as one of the most blasphemous men around. It is interesting to note that if God were a Trinity, the Holy Spirit is left out of every greeting the Apostle Paul gave to the churches (see Romans 1:7, 1 Corinthians 1:3, 2 Corinthians 1:3, Galatians 1:3, Ephesians 1:2, Philippians 1:2, Colossians 1:2, 1 Thessalonians 1:1-2, 2 Thessalonians 1:2, 1 Timothy 1:2, 2 Timothy 1:2, Titus 1:4 and Philemon 1:3). The only scriptural conclusion is that Paul did not recognize the Trinity. This could also be said of Peter, who similarly makes it clear that God the Father and Jesus Christ are not the same as the divine power that flows out from Them (2 Peter 1:2-3). If the Holy Spirit is God, what a colossal insult from these two apostles!
Jesus was a flesh and blood, Human Being and He was tempted in every point as we are today; yet, He was without sin. He is the only Human Being who has ever lived to do so perfectly (Philippians 2:6-8; Hebrews 2:7, 4:15)! One of the greatest all time lies of professing “Christianity” is that Christ was only perfect because He was God. Therefore, modern teaching essentially asserts that Christ did it all for us and He nailed the law to the cross because we could never keep it anyway! This is a momentous, out-right lie!
Jesus Christ emptied Himself of all His Godly divinity and lived the life of an everyday human being. How did He live perfectly? “I do not speak on My own authority; but the Father who dwells in Me does the works” (John 14:10). Jesus, as we are today, was powerless of His own Human self. However, He was filled with the divine power of God and it was by the Father’s power in that Christ did many mighty works. Jesus Christ obeyed God perfectly, He maintained a very close personal relationship with His Father and He always sought the will of His Father in heaven; therefore, He was filled with the power of Almighty God’s Holy Spirit without measure (John 3:34; Colossians 1:19). And it was by this full measure of power that He was able to overcome Satan, live a perfect life and qualify to be the “Kings of kings and Lord of lords” over this earth (Revelation 19:16).
Yes, Jesus was tempted in all points that we are because He was composed of the same carnal, weak and fleshly nature that we have. Yet, He obeyed all of God’s laws in the spirit and the letter perfectly and He did so through the power of the Holy Spirit! The human flesh and blood Jesus Christ kept the spiritual law of God. So can we! How? By receiving the same power from God—His Holy Spirit! The Apostle Peter admonishes us to imitate Jesus Christ’s perfect example (1 Peter 2:21). Notice as recorded in the gospel of Luke what Christ promised the disciples, “Behold, I send the Promise of My Father upon you; but tarry in the city of Jerusalem until you are endued with power from on high” (Luke 24:49). He didn’t say a person, but the power! And a great display of power it was when the Holy Spirit did arrive on the Day of Pentecost, A.D. 31 (Acts 2:1-13).
Mr. John Ogwyn, a late Evangelist in God’s church taught: In John 14:16-20, Jesus emphasized that after his departure to be with the Father, the disciples would not be abandoned (the Greek term used in verse 18 is orphanous, meaning “orphans”). Rather, through the power of the Holy Spirit, He and the Father would dwell inside true Christians (vv. 20, 23). The Holy Spirit imparts both understanding and strength. It flows out from God and connects our minds to His. It is not some separate and distinct personality of the Godhead. Rather, it is the means by which Christ and the Father make their presence felt in the hearts and minds of true believers.
What were they to do with this incredible power? Jesus instructed them, “But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth” (Acts 1:8). There is a stunning difference in the lives of these flesh and blood apostles before and after the advent of the Holy Spirit—the power of the Holy Spirit is truly meant to strengthen people.
This same power is available to us today! However, it is meant to change our lives as expressed by the Apostle Paul, “And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind…” (Romans 12:2). A transformation is a change from the inside out. This explains why spirit begotten Christians who have received the power of God’s Spirit begin to think like God, see as God sees and act as God acts! In fact, this is the exact opposite of being conformed or taking on the outward appearance of this world. However, it can not be impressed enough upon the reader that this requires the indwelling power of God’s Holy Spirit!
God the Father and God the Son are both divine Personages in the God Family; whereas, the Holy Spirit is the core of which God is composed (John 4:24) and the power by which He impels Himself and accomplishes His work! The one area in which most theologians and scholars feel describes the Spirit as a person is resolved by a short and simple lesson in the Greek language.
Comments