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Saturday, November 22, 2014

 

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The Doctrine of the Trinity:
P White


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1.-"Before Abraham was, I am" (John viii. 58).

This sentence is quoted to prove that the Lord Jesus was in existence before Abraham -- that is, Before Abraham was, Jesus was.

Unfortunately for the defenders of this doctrine, this statement by Jesus does not say that. There is a significant difference. And surely a difference with an important meaning. If Jesus had meant to say, "Before Abraham was, I was," would He not have said so? But by using the rather strange expression, "Before Abraham was, I am," He must have meant what He said, and there must have been a meaning attaching to it. What does the sentence mean?

If we look carefully at the chapter we shall find the meaning quite clearly. How often would these seeming difficulties be swept away by simply reading the context!

In verses 24 and 28 an almost similar expression occurs, and it becomes an identical one, when we take into account the reason of the word in these two verses, which appears in italics. In ordinary literature words appearing in italics are to be emphasized, but in the Authorised Version of the Scriptures, it is the notification by the Translators to the reader that there is no authority in the original writings for that word. The Translators were of opinion that they were justified in concluding that it was implied, but they candidly acknowledge by the use of the italics that the word is not definitely authorised: that is, that there's no word in the original writings for it. Readers are at perfect liberty to omit it in their readings.

By exercising this option, we have the precise expression appearing twice in this chapter, other than the sentence under consideration. It will also be found in chapter xiii., verse 19.

What meaning did Jesus attach to this expression? Verse 28 clearly shows:

"When ye have lifted up the Son of man, then shall ye know that I am he, and that I do nothing of myself; but as the Father hath taught me, I speak these things."

What did they learn when the Son of man had been lifted up?

"Now when the centurion, and they that were with him, watching Jesus, saw the earthquake, and those things that were done, they feared greatly, saying, Truly this was the Son of God" (Matt. xxvii. 54).

But why connect this with Abraham? What was the "day of Christ" that Abraham rejoiced to see (John viii. 56), and why should he, who had so long been dead, look forward to such a day?

At the birth of Jesus, the father of John, being filled with the Holy Spirit, gives the reason why Jesus connects Abraham with the "day of Christ":

"And his father Zacharias was filled with the Holy Spirit, and prophesied, saying, Blessed be the Lord God of Israel; for he hath visited and redeemed his people, and hath raised up an horn of salvation for us in the house of his servant David; as he spake by the mouth of his holy prophets . . . to perform the mercy promised to our fathers, and to remember his holy covenant, the oath which he sware to our father Abraham" (Luke i. 67-73).

The "day of Christ" is spoken of everywhere in Scripture. It is the day when the Lord Jesus shall return from the Father's presence with the promised times of refreshing, in accordance with His promise, "I will come again." He comes to perform the mercy promised to the fathers; God's holy covenant, the oath which he sware unto Abraham.

What was the covenant which God sware unto Abraham?

"I will give unto thee, and to thy seed after thee (whom Paul identifies to be Christ, -- 'and to thy seed, which is Christ,' -- Gal. iii. 16), the land wherein thou art a stranger, all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession; and I will be their God" (Gen. xvii. 8).

Did this promise of Christ originate with God's promise to Abraham? No; it was given first in Eden, as Gen. iii. 15, and Paul's comments in Titus i. 2, demonstrate.

The reason of Jesus in so speaking of Himself in relation to Abraham is quite obvious. Your father Abraham rejoiced to see my day; and he saw it, and was glad. Why? Because, as we have already seen, it would bring the day of fulfilment of those great and precious promises which God had made unto him.

Abraham was the recipient of the promise, but the Lord Jesus was "He" whom God had appointed to fulfil them. Therefore, before Abraham was Christ:

"For all the promises of God in him are yea, and in him Amen, unto the glory of God by us" (2 Cor. i. 20).

"According to the eternal purpose which he purposed in Christ Jesus our Lord" (Eph. iii. 11).

2.-"Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever" (Heb. i. 8).

Here is a quotation from the 45th Psalm. This Psalm tells of the setting up of the Kingdom of God under the rulership of God's own Son -- the Lord Jesus Christ. And very instructive are the expressions used, both in the Psalm and in the quotations therefrom in the first chapter of Hebrews.

Verse 9 in the chapter in Hebrews tells how the Son hath loved righteousness, therefore God -- who would be the triune God, if the Trinitarian contention were true -- anoints Him with the oil of gladness above His fellows.

Who are the "fellows" of Jesus? -- The next chapter tells us: -

"For it became him, for whom are all things, and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons unto glory, to make the captain of their salvation perfect through sufferings. For both he that sanctifieth and they who are sanctified are all one: for which cause he is not ashamed to call them brethren, saying, I will declare thy name unto my brethren, in the midst of the church will I sing praise unto thee."

The Lord Jesus, therefore, is not put on an equality with the Lord God, but is acknowledged to be of His brethren.

It may, however, be contended, that the very next verse does not support this understanding. We read:

"Thou, Lord, in the beginning, hast laid the foundations of the earth."

This, again, is a quotation, but not from the 45th Psalm. It is to be found in the 102nd Psalm, verse 25. It is prophetic of the same time as when Christ sets up the Kingdom of God, but it is not in reference to Christ, but to the Father Himself.

It tells of the difference between Christ and God. God was unchanging. His years are without end. God is from everlasting to everlasting (Psalm xc. 2). But of Christ we do not read this, but that:

He is "the same yesterday, to-day, and for ever" (Heb. xiii. 8).

This Psalm and the 1st chapter of Hebrews tells of the setting up of the Kingdom of God. Of the gathering of the glorified saints with Christ. Of the setting by God of Christ at the head of His brethren, by reason of His perfections. Of the acclamation by the glorified throng, of Christ at their head, in the show which is a quotation from a Psalm of David. And then the thanksgiving of Christ to His Father for the redemption He has wrought, which in turn is again a quotation from the Psalms:

"As a vesture thou shalt fold them (the former things) up, and they shall be changed: but thou art the same, and thy years shall not fail."

There is no indication at all of any support for the popular beliefs in this quotation, or in the original reference in the Psalms.

3.-"I and my Father are one" (John x. 30).

If it were just a matter of setting Scriptural statements against Scriptural statements, this statement of the Lord Jesus would be set forth in conjunction with the following expressions:

"My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father's hand. I and my Father are one" (John x. 29, 30).

"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 showeth him all things that himself doeth" (John v. 18, 19).

This, however, would not be answering the claim of the Trinitarian that here is an expression by the Lord Jesus Himself, that demonstrates that He claimed that He was not only on an equality with the Father, but that He was identical with Him in substance and person, as defined in the Creeds.

These other statements, however, it must be very clearly kept in mind are not to be thrown aside as if they had not been spoken at all. They have a meaning; and a meaning that must be harmonious with the one under consideration. And that expression in turn must agree with the others.

What is it that the Lord Jesus is speaking about ? Salvation through Himself:

"I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly" (John x. 10).

He tells them of thieves and robbers who come telling of another way of escape from death, but He says, "I am the door, and there is no other."

This is no new message. It is the same that has been told by all the prophets of God from the beginning:

"God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son" (Heb. i. 1, 2).

And so in John's Gospel He tells us:

"My Father worketh hitherto, and I work" (John v. 17).

Both the Father and the Son were working together for the salvation of those whom the Father would call out of the world. God was reconciling the world unto Himself, and He was making that reconciliation through His Son:

"All things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation; To wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself" (2 Cor. v. 18, 19).

This is precisely what the Lord Jesus was telling His hearers:

"If I do not the works of my Father, believe me not. 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 x. 3 7, 3 8).

The Father and the Son were one in purpose -- the salvation of the world -- He was not speaking of the Godhead at all. The whole tenor of the chapter is patently clear; and even if it were otherwise, the many emphatic statements of the Lord Jesus on His subservience to His Father, would be a reply once and for all as to what He meant by the statement "I and my Father are one."

If we ask for a peep into the future, when the great plan of which the 10th chapter of John tells, is finished, we are provided with it by the Apostle Paul in 1 Cor. xv. 23-28:

"Every man in his own order: Christ the first fruits; afterward they that are Christ's at his coming. Then cometh the end, when he shall have delivered up the kingdom to God, even the Father; when he shall have put down all rule and all authority and power. For he must reign until he hath put all enemies under his feet. But when he saith all things are put under him, it is manifest that he is excepted which did put all things under him. And when all things shall be subdued unto him, then shall the Son also himself be subject unto him that put all things under him, that God may be all in all."

When time is no longer, and when the purpose of God is finished, the last and final picture that we have of the relationship of the Son to the Father, is one of definite subserviency of the Son to the Father -- that the glorious Father may reign in unchallenged supremacy.

4.-"My Lord and my God" (John xx. 28).

In view of what has been said in this work, on pages 174 and 176, it seems unnecessary to go again into the meanings of these words. "Lord" here is Kurious, Master; and God, Theos, God, or god; as we read in Acts vii. 43, "the star of your god Remphan; or in Acts xii. 22, concerning Herod; the people thought "It was the voice of a god, and not a man."

Thomas, therefore, in his overwhelming conviction at the actual personal resurrection of his Master, cries out, "My lord, my master, my theos." None of which words convey in themselves the idea of the Eternal God.

If Jesus was the second person of the eternal Godhead, evidence must be produced from elsewhere to prove it. This expression does not do so.

5.-"The glory which I had with thee before the world was" (John xvii. 5).

This is an extract from a beautiful prayer that Jesus was offering unto His Father at the time that the work of bringing life into this death-stricken world was on the point of being completed:

"I have glorified thee on earth: I have finished the work which thou gavest me to do" (John xvii. 4).

As the Scriptures so abundantly testify, the work of God in Christ was the burden of prophet, priest, king, and Apostle from the very beginning. God devised a glorious scheme of redemption through Christ at the very time that sin entered into the world.

In the terms of the curse in the Garden of Eden, at the time of the failure of our first parents to maintain faithfulness to God's commands, the plan in Christ is referred to:

"I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it (Heb., mu, he or it) shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel" (Gen. iii. 15).

And Paul writing to Titus of the times before the human race began, says:

"In hope of eternal life, which God, that can not lie, promised before the world began" (Titus i. 2).

And further, in that magnificent 1st chapter of the Gospel of John, so frequently and so grievously wrenched from its meaning, John tells us that the word, or purpose, of God was with Him right in the beginning of things.

It is clear that so soon as man had chosen the way of evil and sin, God designed redemption in the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ:

God -- "who hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began, but is now made manifest by the appearing of our Saviour Jesus Christ, who hath abolished death, and hath brought life and immortality to light through the gospel" (2 Tim. i. 9, 10).

Indeed, in the last message that the Lord Jesus left with His people, we have a significant reference to-

" . . . the book of life from the foundation of the world" (Rev. xvii. 8).

During the ministry of Jesus, and especially in those times of meditation which He had with the Father, God showed Him what He was doing:

"For the Father loveth the Son, and showeth Him all things that himself doeth" (John v. 20).

Thus, on the threshold of the completion of the work, in His last great prayer, we have it recorded how He asked His Father to give Him the glory which had for so long been spoken of and promised:

"Now, O Father, glorify thou me with thine own self with the glory I had with thee before the world was" (John xvii. 5).

Such a prayer no more requires pre-existence than that salvation was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began.

It was the purpose of God to redeem -- it was certain, because God had promised it -- and therefore it is spoken of long before its fulfilment both in regard to Jesus Himself as well as to us.

What the glory was is evident in the compass of the 17th chapter of John itself. At verse 22 we read:

"And the glory which thou gavest me I have given them; that they may be one, even as we are one: I in them, and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one. . . . Father, I will that they also, whom thou hast given me, be with me where I am; that they may behold my glory, which thou hast given me; for thou lovedst me before the foundation of the world."

It was salvation. First, in the case of the Lord Jesus, and then those who are His, at His coming. That all may bask in the glory of the Father, when there shall be:

"Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men."

6.-"In the beginning was the word" (John i. 1).

One of the most difficult problems that can be set an advocate of the doctrine of the Trinity, is to ask him to speak of that doctrine in Bible language. About two of the briefest sentences will be the result. One of these will be found to be, "In the beginning was the word."

The first point that we notice about this reply is, that the quotation does not mention Jesus at all. As a matter of fact the name of Jesus does not occur for a long way into the 1st chapter of the Gospel of John.

"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by him; and without him was not anything made that was made" (John i. 1-3).

This reference is quoted as meaning that Jesus not only had existence prior to His birth of Mary, but that He was co-existent with the Father Himself, and had existence from the very beginning

Let us analyse the quotation and define the meaning of the words:

WORD

This is a common word in the New Testament writings. The actual Greek word is Logos. Dr. Robert Young in his Analytical Concordance to the Bible, gives 318 references to it. The following are the details

 

account ... 8
cause ... 1
communication ... 3
doctrine ... 1
game ... 1
intent ... 1
matter ... 4
mouth ... 1
preaching ... 1
question ... 1
reason ... 2
rumour ... 1
saying ... 50

 

show ... 1
speech ... 8
talk ... 1
thing ... 4
things to say ... 1
tidings ... 1
treatise ... 1
utterance ... 4
word ... 208
Word ... 7
words ... 4
work ... 2
do ... 1

 

There are a few alternative renderings in the margin as follows: doctrine, in the margin, is word; question, in the margin is thing; once, saying, is in the margin, thing; twice, word, is in the margin, preaching; once, words, is in the margin, speech; and work, on both its appearances, is in the margin as account.

Dr. Strong in his Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible, gives the following definition in his Greek Dictionary of the New Testament, that is appended to the Concordance:

"Something said (including the thought); by implication a topic (subject of discourse), also reasoning (the mental faculty) or motive; by extension a computation; special (with the article in John) the Divine Expression (i.e., Christ): -- account, cause, communication, by an idiom, concerning doctrine, fame, have to do intent, matter, mouth, preaching, question, reason, or as a translation in connection with another, or other words, reckon, remove, say, saying, shew, or again by idiom, speaker, speech, talk, thing, or additionally as previously with another, or other words, none of these things move me, tidings, treatise, utterance, word, work."

 

It will be readily, granted that there is nothing either in the translations of the words as Dr. Young furnishes them, nor in the Dictionary meanings of Dr. Strong, that will of itself give the basis for the popular meaning.

Coming to the English meaning of the word, for it has been chosen over 200 times as the best equivalent of the original word Logos, Webster in his International Dictionary of the English Language gives the following definition:

"The spoken sign of a conception or an idea; an articulate or vocal sound, or a combination of articulate and vocal sounds, uttered by the human voice, and by custom expressing an idea or ideas a single component part of human speech or language; a constituent part of a sentence; a term; a vocable."

And among the secondary meanings he gives:

"Talk; discourse; speech; language; account; tidings; message, communication, information."

With these various definitions before us, let us look again at the quotation from John.

"In the beginning was the Word" -- or word (for there is no authority for the subtle capital letter which may so easily mislead the unwary). In the beginning was the word, was the thought, or topic, or idea, the speech, or tidings, or message, or whatever word we may select to convey the original purpose which the Almighty had in the beginning. This thought or purpose was with God right from the beginning, and all things were made by, for, or on account of, this Great Purpose which He had. He was the word, or intention, or purpose. It was the expression of His own glorious Self.

From Adam -- for we find this purpose spoken of so early:

"In hope of eternal life, which God, that cannot lie, promised before the world began but hath in due times manifested (or revealed) his word through preaching" (Titus i. 2, 3).

to the days of the manifestation of the purpose in Christ, we find this the subject of the declarations of all the men of God who have spoken or written under His guidance (2 Peter i. 19-21). But that purpose -- or word, if we so desire -- was not made flesh until Christ came. John tells us so:

"And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father), full of grace and truth" (John i. 14).

And when that word was made flesh and dwelt among us, then we find that John the Baptist, the divinely-arranged announcer of the Son of God, declaring:

"Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world" (John i. 29).

The Lord Jesus was the expression of the Father's Grace, or purpose. He was the Word of God, but not until that word was made flesh and dwelt among us.

The Lord Jesus came from His Father with the express object of bringing life and immortality into this world where all flesh is mortal and therefore perishing. It was the Father's arm outstretched to save, and apart from that intervention no flesh should be saved. When the Lord Jesus had risen from the dead, and received immortality from His Father -- the first born from among the dead -- then began the New Creation which in the fulness shall see this earth, with the curse removed, and death and the labouring for existence done away, peopled with a perfect and an immortal race who shall be a
praise and a glory to their God, and a blessing to themselves. Thus shall be fulfilled at last the "purpose" which the Father had before the world began, and which in due time was manifested in His dear Son.

7.-"The Comforter" (John xv. 26).

The personality of the Holy Spirit is thought by many amply proved by this reference of the Lord Jesus. The whole argument lies apparently in the use of the Capital letter for the title of comforter (for which there is no authority), and the appearance of the personal pronoun.

The two pronouns in verse 14 apply to the Father, but in verse 26 the "he" does refer to the Comforter. But a reference to the Concordance will quickly show that very little argument can be based on the pronoun. Dr. Young, in his Analytical Concordance gives the following details of the use of this word in the New Testament:

"HE (Greek, Ekeinos). Meaning: That, this, same, he, she, it, they, etc.

He, she, it, they ... 100 times.
same ... ... ... ... 19 times.
That ... ... ... ... 137 times.

 

 

This is, of course, not an exhaustive analysis of the word. Strong, in his Concordance says, to examine the word exhaustively would mean reprinting the whole Bible. He says the word is unimportant, and no argument can be based upon it because of its general use. As Dr. Young shows from his selections, a very general meaning attaches to it. In no sense can personality be argued from it. Let us see what other uses are made of it:

SHE. "As soon as she (Mary) heard" (John xi. 2 9).

"She (Mary) supposing him to be the gardener" (John xx. 15).

"And she (Mary Magdalene) went and told them" (Mark xvi. 20).

IT. "There is a sin unto death: I do not say that he shall pray for it" (1 John v. 16).

THEY. "They (the Scriptures) are they which testify of me" (John vi. 39).

"They (the Pharisees) said unto him" (John vii. 45).

"They (the disciples) thought that he had spoken of taking of rest in sleep" (John xi. 13).

THAT. "Many shall say to me in that day, Lord, Lord" (Matt. vii. 22).

"At that day ye shall know that I am in the Father" (John xiv. 20)

"In that day ye shall ask me nothing" (John xvi. 23).

"That disciple (Peter) was known unto the High Priest" (John xviii. 15).

THIS. But know this, that if the goodman of the house" (Matt. xxiv. 43).

It is quite obvious that personality does not in itself attach to this word. If the Comforter is a person, it must be proved apart from any support that the appearance of the word "he" can give it. In fulfilment of the promise of the Lord Jesus, we ask, What came? After Jesus had died and rose again, He met with His disciples and told them that they should be baptized with the Holy Ghost not many days hence. Not long after, when the disciples were gathered together,

" . . . suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and filled all the house where they were sitting. And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance" (Acts ii. 2-4).

 

It was a power that came, and not another person, as was Jesus. Previously we have dealt with the Holy Spirit, and here sufficient has been shown to prove that the statement of the Lord in John xiv. does not in any way support the popular contention.

It is, however, well to direct attention to the frequent personification in the Scriptures.

WISDOM.-A woman. Proverbs viii. (the whole chapter).

CHARITY.-1 Cor. xiii.

SIN.-Rom. vi.

RICHES.-Mammon. Luke xvi. 13.

DEATH.-Reigns. 1 Cor. xv. 55.

IRON GATE.-His own accord. Acts xii. 10.

HEADS, GATES, DOORS.-Psa. xxiv.

 

8.-"The fourth is like the Son of God" (Dan. iii. 25).

It would be strange if the only reference to the Son of God -- Jesus Christ -- in the Old Testament was in this remarkable setting. As a matter of fact, it has no reference to Jesus at all. The Revised Version translates it:

" . . . the fourth is like a son of the gods."

 

But quite apart from a varied translation, the context disposes completely of any possibility of this expression being concerning the Lord Jesus. Verse 28 tells:

"Then Nebuchadnezzar spake, and said, Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego, who hath sent his angel, and delivered his servants that trusted in him."

 

It was a simple but glorious fulfilment of the promise of God to His children, to

" . . . give his angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways" (Psa. xci. 11),

 

if only those children will place their unbounded confidence in Him. It certainly contains no reference to the activities of Jesus, the Son of God.

9.-" The mighty God, the everlasting Father" (Isa. ix. 6).

That this is a prophecy of the Lord Jesus Christ is perfectly clear.It is, perhaps, the most well known of all the prophecies concerning him. It is contended that it is, furthermore, a definite statement of His partnership in the Godhead.

No such claim would or could be made apart from the doctrine of the Triune Godhead; for all admit that the Father is God, and all agree that there is only one God -- whether that God be a Unity or a Trinity. But such a doctrine is not taught here. To make this a statement of Christ's Godhead, the Trinity must have been already proved which it has not been.

However, apart from that obvious proviso, what is the meaning of this expression? We must look at the original words to arrive at the meaning of the prophet:

"Mighty" is Gibbor, which means according to Strong, "powerful"; by implication, warrior, tyrant; champion, chief, by an idiom, excel, giant, man, mighty (man, one), strong (man), valiant man."

 

God is El, concerning which we have already written. It simply means, as Strong again points out :

". . . strength; as an adjective, mighty, especially the Almighty (but used also of any deity; God (god), by idiom, goodly, great, or an idol, might, or mighty one, power, strong."

 

The Lord Jesus will, therefore, when this prophecy is fulfilled be a Mighty One. Of what time is the prophet speaking? He speaks, as the next verse declares, of the time when Christ shall sit upon the throne of David, and upon His Kingdom. What will be the office of Christ in that day? Two chapters later tells us that

". . . there shall come forth a rod out of the stem of Jesse, and a branch shall grow out of his roots; and the spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him. . . . With righteousness shall he judge the poor, and reprove with equity for the meek of the earth: and he shall smite the earth with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips shall he slay the wicked" (Isa. xi. 1-4).

 

Thus shall He be the Mighty One when He returns from the heavens, having received the Kingdom (Luke xix. 15). He will be earth's sole Monarch (Zech. xiv. 9).

"Behold," says God (Isa. x1ii. 1), "my servant, whom I uphold; mine elect, in whom my soul delighteth; I have put my spirit upon him; he shall bring forth judgment to the nations."

 

In that golden age of the earth the Lord Jesus shall bless mankind in the abundance of peace. He will not brook rebellion, or war, or cruelty. He shall rule till He shall have put down every enemy even to the last enemy, death itself. Thus shall He be the Mighty One of that age.

"The Everlasting Father" falls very closely into place in this picture. The precise rendering of this expression according to several versions -- all supporters of the doctrine of the Trinity -- should be:

DOUAY VERSION (the Catholic): "The Father of the world to come."

DR. LOWTH: "The Father of the everlasting age."

ROTHERHAM: "The Father of futurity."

All of which point forward to that time when Christ shall reign and prosper; to the time when

"His name shall endure for ever; his name shall be continued as long as the sun; and men shall be blessed in him; all nations shall call him blessed" (Psa. lxxii. 17).

 

He will be the Father of that age, and men shall rejoice in Him, and call Him blessed.

10.-"Holy, Holy, Holy,, Is the Lord of Hosts" (Isa. vi. 3).

It will always seem that there must be very little to prove the Trinity when recourse has to be made to such statements as this to prove that doctrine. There is not a suggestion in it that it refers to a triune personality. The mere repetition of the word "holy" is seized upon without the slightest apparent reason.

There are a number of references in the Old Testament in which the repetition of a word occurs:

Jeremiah xxii. 29: "O earth, earth, earth, hear the word of the Lord."

 

Is it contended that the earth is a triune earth? What would it be if it were?

Ezekiel xxi. 27: "I will overturn, overturn, overturn it; and it shall be no more, until he come, whose right it is; and I will give it him."

 

There were not three overturnings of Israel, nor a triune overturning. It simply is the eastern manner of emphasising.

Thrice holy is the Lord:

" . . . the blessed and only Potentate, the King of kings, and Lord of lords; Who only hath immortality, dwelling in light which no man can approach unto; whom no man hath seen nor can see; to whom be honour and power everlasting. Amen" (1 Tim. vi. 15, 16).

11.-The "Fellow" of the Lord (Zech. xiii. 7).

This prophecy concerning Christ as the "fellow" of the Lord does not contain any suggestion of equality with the Lord so far as His nature is concerned. The word itself -- amiyth -- comes from a primitive root meaning to associate; companionship; hence, concretely, a comrade or kindred man; another; fellow; neighbour.

It is common in Scripture to find association in the work upon which God is engaged. In the First Epistle to the Corinthians, chapter iii., verse 9, we read concerning the saints that:

"We are labourers together with God" (R.V., God's fellow -workers).

 

As in the verse in Zechariah this means no more than that there is a common purpose. That God is calling out from the nations a people for His Name, and the Lord Jesus with His brethren, or fellows (see Psa. xlv. 7 and Heb. i. 9) are working with God in the harvesting of them. The Father has worked in days gone by in Old Testament times, and then the Son took up the work, as Jesus Himself said in John v. 17. Frequently we find co-labouring with Christ referred to. An instance of this is in 1 Cor. vi. 1:

"We then, as workers together with him, beseech you also that ye receive not the grace of God in vain."

A cherished privilege of the children of God is the fellowship which they have with the Father and the Son. In the First Epistle of John i. 3, John says:

"Truly our fellowship is with the Father, and with his Son, Jesus Christ."

What is this great privilege? What does the word "fellowship" mean? Webster tells that it means:

"The state or relation of being a fellow or associate. Companionship of persons on equal and friendly terms: frequent and familiar intercourse. A state of being together; companionship; partnership; association; hence confederation; joint interest. Those associated with one, as in a family, or a society; a company."

 

That the Lord Jesus is the "fellow" of the Lord God is obvious, for the Lord is redeeming His children out of the world through Him. In like manner are the saints "fellows" with God and with His Son. All in Scripture are described as working together. Such is the high calling of the saints in Christ. But nothing at all in this verse can be construed as giving support in any way to the doctrine of the equality of the Lord Jesus with His Father.

12.-"Thought it not robbery to be equal with God" (Phil. ii. 6).

A careful reading of the context of this verse will show that the Apostle is exhorting the brethren to be obedient as was Christ -- to have the same mind or disposition as He had.

Take an analytical examination of the various phrases:

"Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God."

 

The Revised Version renders this:

"Who, being in the form of God, counted it not a prize (Greek, a thing to be grasped) to be on an equality with God."

 

The same Apostle gives an interpretation of his meaning of "the form of God" in 2 Cor. iv. 4-6:

"In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them. For we preach not ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord; and ourselves your servants for Jesus' sake. For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ."

 

John recording the coming of Christ on the mission of His Father, in his Gospel (chap. i. verse 14,) says:

"The word was made flesh, and dwelt among us (and we beheld his glory, as of the only begotten of the Father), full of grace and truth."

 

But, though He was the Only Begotten Son of God, and was the manifestation of His purpose and glory, He did not look upon equality with God a matter to be grasped. He did not parade or boast of His high Sonship, or mission, but made Himself of no reputation, and took upon Him the form of a servant; emptied Himself, and assumed the position of a bond servant -- a slave, as the Revised Version renders it in the margin -- and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. Wherefore God (Who, if the doctrine of the Trinity be correct, would be the Triune God, in which Jesus would be included) also hath highly exalted Him, and given Him a name above every name: that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow.

Jesus, through being born Son of God, did not by this birth consider that He would grasp equality with God without effort. He realised that it was by obedience and endurance that He would be highly exalted, as the verses 8 and 9 which follow point out.

The Epistle to the Hebrews also clearly demonstrates this:

"Who, in the days of his flesh, when he had offered up strong crying and tears unto him that was able to save him from (or, out of) death, and was heard, in that he feared; though he were a Son, yet learned he obedience by the things which he suffered; and being made perfect, he became the author of eternal salvation unto all them that obey him" (v. 7-9).

13.-"He took not on Him the nature of angels" (Heb. ii. 16).

This expression is taken to mean that the Lord Jesus had the power to decide in what nature He came, and therefore that He was pre-existent to be able thus to decide. The best way to attain to the correct view of this passage is to produce a number of alternative renderings -- all of which are by believers in the doctrine of the pre-existence of the Lord Jesus:

DR. MOFFATT: "For of course it is not angels that he succours, it is the offspring of Abraham."

AMERICAN REVISION COMMITTEE (A.D. 1901): "For verily not to angels doth he give help, but he giveth help to the seed of Abraham"

DR. WEYMOUTH (New Testament in Modern Speech): "For assuredly it is not to angels that he is continually reaching a hand, but it is to the descendants of Abraham."

ROTHERHAM (Emphasised New Testament): "For not surely of messengers is he laying hold, but of Abraham's seed is he laying hold."

THE TWENTIETH CENTURY NEW TESTAMENT: "It was not, of course, to the help of the angels that Jesus came, but to the help of the descendants of Abraham."

REVISED VERSION: "For verily not of angels doth he take hold, but he taketh hold of the seed of Abraham."

The next verse demonstrates the meaning of the Apostle:

"Wherefore in all things it behoved him to be made like unto his brethren, that he might be a merciful and faithful high priest in all things pertaining to God, to make reconciliation for the sins of the people. For in that he himself hath suffered being tempted, he is able to succour them that are tempted."

The doubt of the translators themselves as to their rendering is evident by the use of italics in the crucial words -- him the nature of.

14.-"By Him were all things created" (Col. i. 16).

This statement of the Apostle Paul is taken to say that the Lord Jesus was the Creator of the heavens and the earth, and therefore, must of necessity have been pre-existent to His birth of the Virgin Mary. A careful reading of the verse will quickly show that the Apostle does not say such a thing at all. What the Apostle does say is that all things IN heaven and IN the earth were created by Him. And moreover, the Apostle goes on to define what those things were:

". . . whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers; all things were created by and for him."

We must of necessity hesitate to think what dominions, principalities and powers are in the literal heaven and in the literal earth. It is fortunate that the Lord Jesus Himself has replied to our necessary enquiry, or we may have speculated to very wrong conclusions.

In Matt. xxviii.18 Jesus says that:

"All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth."

The Apostle Paul amplifies this remark of the Lord, and says in Eph. i. 9, 10:

"Having made known unto us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure which he hath purposed in himself: that in the dispensation of the fulness of times he might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven, and which are on earth; even in him."

 

And again in the same chapter, verses 17-23:

"That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him: the eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that ye may know what is the hope of his calling, and what the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints, and what is the exceeding greatness of his power to usward who believe, according to the working of his mighty power, which he wrought in Christ, when he raised him from the dead, and set him at his own right hand in the heavenly, places, far above all principality, and power, and might, and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this world, but also in that which is to come: and hath put all things under his feet, and gave him to be the head over all things, to the church, which is his body, the fulness of him that filleth all in all."

A number of other such testimonies could be produced to the same effect. All go to show that what the Apostle was speaking of was the triumph of the Lord Jesus over the world. In the chapter from which this expression is taken (Col. i.), the Apostle proceeds to elaborate the statement:

"And he is before all things, and by him all things consist. And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the pre-eminence. For it pleased the Father that in him should all fulness dwell; and having made peace through the blood of his cross, by him to reconcile all things unto himself; by him, I say, whether they be things in earth, or things in heaven."

The Revised Version clarifies the verse under consideration:

"In whom we have our redemption, the forgiveness of our sins; who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation: for in him were all things created, in the heavens and upon the earth, things visible and things invisible, whether thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers; all things have been created through him, and unto him; and he is before all things, and in him all things consist (R.V., marg., That is, hold together). And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things (R.V. marg., Or, that among all he might have) the pre-eminence. For it was the good pleasure of the Father that in him should all the fulness dwell; and through him to reconcile all things unto himself; through him, I say, whether things upon the earth, or things in the heavens."

All of which makes it perfectly clear that the Apostle is referring to the work the Lord Jesus had wrought in bringing life into this death-stricken world, and that He was the first to rise from the dead, having led captivity captive. The Apostle is not alluding to the creation of the literal heaven and earth at all.

 


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