Category Archives: GOD

DENOMINATIONS, CULTS, & FALSE TEACHING, GOD, What is “the foolishness of God” in 1 Corinthians 1:25?, What is “the foolishness of God” in 1 Corinthians 1:25?

What is “the foolishness of God” in 1 Corinthians 1:25?

WHAT IS “THE FOOLISHNESS OF GOD” IN 1 CORINTHIANS 1:25?

by Shawn Brasseaux

Can God be foolish? First Corinthians 1:25 says, “Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men; and the weakness of God is stronger than men.” Why does the Bible say “the foolishness of God?” In this Bible study, we hope to compare verses and shed light on this expression.

To get the thought-flow, we begin at verse 17: “[17] For Christ sent me not to baptize, but to preach the gospel: not with wisdom of words, lest the cross of Christ should be made of none effect. [18] For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God. [19] For it is written, I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and will bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent. [20] Where is the wise? where is the scribe? where is the disputer of this world? hath not God made foolish the wisdom of this world? [21] For after that in the wisdom of God the world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe. [22] For the Jews require a sign, and the Greeks seek after wisdom: [23] But we preach Christ crucified, unto the Jews a stumblingblock, and unto the Greeks foolishness; [24] But unto them which are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God, and the wisdom of God. [25] Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men; and the weakness of God is stronger than men.”

Jesus Christ, from heaven, post-resurrection, commissioned the Apostle Paul to preach the Gospel, a new set of Good News never known to man until now. This Gospel is called “the Gospel of the Grace of God” in Acts 20:24. Water baptism was not a part of this Gospel message as it had been with the Gospel of the Kingdom in Matthew 28:19 and Mark 16:16 (cf. Acts 2:38). While the 12 Apostles were indeed sent by Jesus Christ to water baptize converts, Paul was not sent to water baptize. True, Paul water baptized during the Acts period, but that was only temporary, necessary to communicate to Israel the fact that Paul was replacing Peter and the 11. Paul eventually quit water baptizing. The emphasis of Paul’s Gospel was not religious ceremonies (namely, water baptism). Neither was it delivered by smooth, eloquent Greek oratory (rhetoric). Romans 16:17-18 talks about such false teachers who use “good [kind, appealing] words and fair [beautiful] speeches.” Employing elaborate vocabulary, they sound attractive enough to reel in supporters by the masses. Think of the rich chanting and singing in the Roman Catholic Mass, the multi-syllable vocabularies of many theologians and clergy members, and so on.

Paul said in 1 Corinthians 2:2,4: “And I, brethren, when I came to you, came not with excellency of speech or of wisdom, declaring unto you the testimony of God…. And my speech and my preaching was not with enticing words of man’s wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power.” Such “wisdom of words” would make the cross of Christ “of none effect,” or nullify it, for eloquence would make Paul the speaker the issue instead of Jesus Christ, the Saviour, the issue. The Apostle, although educated, thus refrained from using flattering, extravagant words to attract people. Remember, the wisdom to be declared in the Gospel was not Paul’s wisdom, but God’s wisdom. Man’s wisdom was not important concerning the Gospel; God’s wisdom was to have the preeminence, and it did in Paul’s ministry (this should also be of our ministry).

Since Paul did not resort to eloquent speeches and ostentatious phrases, his preaching was at variance with religious norms. He did not sound like “just another religious leader.” When compared to religious standards, he appeared and sounded silly. He was not sent to water baptize?! (Nearly every religion reveres some water ceremony!) He was traveling throughout the Roman Empire, preaching that the cross of Calvary—when a Jew had died—was “the power of God.” Calvary’s cross, even today, is ridiculed. “How can a dead Jew save me from hell?,” it is still asked. “What kind of God would see value in sending His Son to die in such a cruel, painful manner?,” it is still inquired. “How is victory accomplished when Jesus let the Romans kill Him?,” it is still asked. First Corinthians 1:18 could not be any plainer: “For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God.” The lost people of the world do not have spiritual eyes. All they have is human wisdom, and that is not enough to understand the things of God. Therefore, they scoff at and dismiss that which they do not know.

God in His wisdom actually fixed it to where mankind will never be able to figure out Him or His plan. It is for this reason that intellectuals laugh at Christians, invent anti-God arguments, and attack His Bible. Yes, they appear to sound smart, “untouchable,” clothed in their beautiful robes of scholarship and rationalism. “Me? Need God? Ha! I have degrees from prestigious institutions! My education causes me to live in reality! I do not believe in some ‘old man in the sky!’ I think for myself! Get away from me with that ‘book of superstition!’” All the while, they are totally oblivious to true wisdom. They have pompously ignored the fact that all the knowledge humanity has gained as a whole—which is much, much more than what they know individually—is just a fraction of the information in existence. In that realm of unknown wisdom, we find God’s wisdom, that which they will never grasp. Without this discernment to make sense of it, they simply dismiss it as quickly as possible using whatever convenient means.

As it is written in Isaiah 55:8-9: “[8] For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD. [9] For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.” First Corinthians chapter 1 continues: “[19] For it is written, I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and will bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent. [20] Where is the wise? where is the scribe? where is the disputer of this world? hath not God made foolish the wisdom of this world?” This is a quote from Isaiah 29:14, which is God’s response to the Israelites exalting the opinions of men above His Word. He will let them have their way—spiritual ignorance!

In fact, let us turn to Isaiah chapter 29 to notice the parallel: “[9] Stay yourselves, and wonder; cry ye out, and cry: they are drunken, but not with wine; they stagger, but not with strong drink. [10] For the LORD hath poured out upon you the spirit of deep sleep, and hath closed your eyes: the prophets and your rulers, the seers hath he covered. [11] And the vision of all is become unto you as the words of a book that is sealed, which men deliver to one that is learned, saying, Read this, I pray thee: and he saith, I cannot; for it is sealed: [12] And the book is delivered to him that is not learned, saying, Read this, I pray thee: and he saith, I am not learned. [13] Wherefore the LORD said, Forasmuch as this people draw near me with their mouth, and with their lips do honour me, but have removed their heart far from me, and their fear toward me is taught by the precept of men: [14] Therefore, behold, I will proceed to do a marvellous work among this people, even a marvellous work and a wonder: for the wisdom of their wise men shall perish, and the understanding of their prudent men shall be hid.” By using His wisdom to outsmart man in his “wisdom,” God proved man’s wisdom was really foolishness! First Corinthians 1:20 again: “Where is the wise? where is the scribe? where is the disputer of this world? hath not God made foolish the wisdom of this world?”

With respect to 1 Corinthians chapter 1, we continue: “[21] For after that in the wisdom of God the world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe. [22] For the Jews require a sign, and the Greeks seek after wisdom: [23] But we preach Christ crucified, unto the Jews a stumblingblock, and unto the Greeks foolishness; [24] But unto them which are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God, and the wisdom of God. [25] Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men; and the weakness of God is stronger than men.”

Again, verse 21 says that God, in His wisdom, planned it to where man could use his wisdom and still be unable to reach the level of divine wisdom. Man would remain at the spiritual I.Q. of “0” and God would be ranked as “infinity.” In God’s wisdom, He did not choose to save from hell people who went to seminary for a decade. He did not choose to save from hell those who joined a church, gave a donation to a ministry, kept a list of rules and regulations, got water baptized, held on, held out, recited a book of prayers, helped the poor and homeless, promised to live their lives for Him, and so on. These are classic responses in religion, but Paul never preached them. Again, that is why Paul was such an “oddball,” and that is why we grace-preaching Christians are equally foolish to the world. We do not sound religious and we claim not to be “religious,” yet we believe in God and the Bible. They see us as the most mysterious paradox of all!

The Bible says what pleased God was to “save them that believe” (1 Corinthians 1:21). While the Gospel of Grace sounded foolish, what was on display was God’s wisdom and man’s natural inability to grasp it. Apart from the teaching ministry of the Holy Spirit, we Christians could not understand it either (see chapter 2, which we cannot discuss here for brevity’s sake). As we read, “For the Jews require a sign, and the Greeks seek after wisdom” (verse 22). The Jews were interested in miracles, the Greeks pursued wisdom, but the thrust of Paul’s Gospel was not miraculous demonstrations or human philosophy. “[23] But we preach Christ crucified, unto the Jews a stumblingblock, and unto the Greeks foolishness; [24] But unto them which are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God, and the wisdom of God. [25] Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men; and the weakness of God is stronger than men.”

Paul went and “preached Christ crucified” (verse 23). The Jews to which he preached during Acts saw no victory or power in a dead Jew on a cross. The Greeks to which he preached during Acts heard no flattering oratory or polished expressions. Thus, “unto the Jews a stumblingblock”—the unbelieving Jews who heard Paul preach saw Jesus crucified as nothing more than a scandal of weakness most unpleasant and worthy of being shunned. (See them reject it in Acts 13:45!) Furthermore, “unto the Greeks foolishness”—the unbelieving Gentiles who heard Paul preach saw Jesus crucified as nothing more than absurdity. (See them laugh at it in Acts 17:32!) However, the believing Jews and Greeks/Gentiles who saw value in the words of God that Paul was preaching, these saints saw with spiritual eyes Jesus Christ “the power of God” (Jews) and “the wisdom of God” (Greeks). They were willing to let the Holy Spirit teach them!

Now, we (finally!) get to verse 25: “Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men; and the weakness of God is stronger than men.” On one hand, the “foolishness of God” is how the Greeks viewed the Gospel of Jesus Christ’s death, burial, and resurrection as sufficient payment for our sins. On the other hand, the “weakness of God” is how the Jews saw that Gospel of Grace. That God would do for man what he could never do for himself? Outlandish! That God would become a Man and die for man’s sin by letting man put Him to death? Strange! That there could be life in such a death? Folly! That a dead Man, totally deceased, could return to life and never die again? No! That such information could be conveyed without fancy phraseology and scholarly wisdom? Ridiculous! That God would do away with religious works as means to approach Him? Heresy! (No wonder Paul’s audience was so rattled! Beloved, no wonder they give us such bizarre reactions today! Hahaha)

First Corinthians 1:25 does not mean God does foolish things or thinks foolish thoughts. Remember, “the thought of foolishness is sin” (Proverbs 24:9). God cannot sin; therefore, He cannot think foolishly or act foolishly. It is talking about what appears to be, or what seems to be, foolish. Again, man, because of his limitations, cannot fairly evaluate what God does or thinks. Man in and of himself does not have enough strength or knowledge to gauge spiritual matters. Therefore, God’s thoughts and actions are so foreign to him. Lest he appear foolish and/or weak, his only hope is to explain away God’s thoughts and actions as “foolish.” You can go on into chapter 2 of 1 Corinthians to see this, particularly verse 14: “But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.”

We end this by saying, “What a wise God we Christians serve!”

Also see:
» Why can I get nothing out of the Bible when I read it?
» What does the Bible mean, “rude in speech?”
» Why do people get angry when we share right division with them?

Did little boy Jesus know He was going to die on Calvary?, Did little boy Jesus know He was going to die on Calvary?, GOD, JUST ASKING / CURIOUS QUESTIONS

Did little boy Jesus know He was going to die on Calvary?

DID LITTLE BOY JESUS KNOW HE WAS GOING TO DIE ON CALVARY?

by Shawn Brasseaux

Someone recently asked me if Jesus Christ—as a “preteen” and/or teenager—knew He was going to suffer and die so graphically on that awful Roman cross. Did our Lord live His entire earthly life with that macabre awareness? Or did such cognizance come near the end of His life? Beloved, there are various verses that shed light on this most tantalizing subject, and we would do well to consider them.

The Incarnation—the process of God becoming Man—is perhaps the most difficult Bible teaching. We will never fully understand it in this life because our minds are finite, limited. Even though we cannot explain that doctrine 100 percent, that does not mean we have license to be totally ignorant of it. The Bible affords us certain clues about the Incarnation: if we are diligent Bible students, we will look for and find them in the Scriptures. We need not sit in spiritual darkness when God’s Word can shed light! “The entrance of thy words giveth light; it giveth understanding unto the simple” (Psalm 119:130).

In relationship to the question at hand, we know that Jesus Christ was fully God and fully Man. He was not 50 percent God and 50 percent Man. (One common misconception.) He was not 0 percent God and 100 percent Man. (Another common misconception.) He was not 100 percent God and 0 percent Man. (Yet another common misconception.) Friends, the Lord Jesus Christ was 100 percent God and 100 percent Man. He was not diminished Deity: He simply added humanity to that Deity. Jesus Christ has always been God, but He has only been a Man for about 2,000 years. From the Scriptural record, we learn that Jesus grew physically, spiritually, and mentally… no different from us. Just like us, He had to learn by experience. Leaving the virgin Mary’s womb as a small Baby, Jesus grew up little by little to become a 30-year-old Man (see Luke 3:23).

Look at Luke chapter 2, especially verses 40 and 52: “[40] And the child grew, and waxed strong in spirit, filled with wisdom: and the grace of God was upon him. [41] Now his parents went to Jerusalem every year at the feast of the passover. [42] And when he was twelve years old, they went up to Jerusalem after the custom of the feast. [43] And when they had fulfilled the days, as they returned, the child Jesus tarried behind in Jerusalem; and Joseph and his mother knew not of it. [44] But they, supposing him to have been in the company, went a day’s journey; and they sought him among their kinsfolk and acquaintance. [45] And when they found him not, they turned back again to Jerusalem, seeking him. [46] And it came to pass, that after three days they found him in the temple, sitting in the midst of the doctors, both hearing them, and asking them questions. [47] And all that heard him were astonished at his understanding and answers. [48] And when they saw him, they were amazed: and his mother said unto him, Son, why hast thou thus dealt with us? behold, thy father and I have sought thee sorrowing. [49] And he said unto them, How is it that ye sought me? wist ye not that I must be about my Father’s business? [50] And they understood not the saying which he spake unto them. [51] And he went down with them, and came to Nazareth, and was subject unto them: but his mother kept all these sayings in her heart. [52] And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favour with God and man.”

Again, read verses 40 and 52: “[40] And the child grew, and waxed strong in spirit, filled with wisdom: and the grace of God was upon him…. [52] And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favour with God and man.” The Lord Jesus, up until the age of 30, is said to have “waxed [grown] strong in spirit,” “filled with wisdom,” “the grace of God being upon him,” “increasing in wisdom and stature,” and “increasing in favour with God and man.” His body grew taller and stronger physically. He grew mentally and spiritually as well. Like other little Jewish boys, He had school to attend. Also, we know He began to follow His foster father, Joseph, in carpentry. That is, He began to learn a trade of architecture and manual labor. For that reason, the common Jews were accustomed to referring to Jesus as “the carpenter, the son of Mary” (Mark 6:3).

Isaiah 50:4-6, circa 700 years before God became a Man, provides a small prophetic glimpse into Jesus’ life, especially His innermost feelings: “[4] The LORD God hath given me the tongue of the learned, that I should know how to speak a word in season to him that is weary: he wakeneth morning by morning, he wakeneth mine ear to hear as the learned. [5] The LORD God hath opened mine ear, and I was not rebellious, neither turned away back. [6] I gave my back to the smiters, and my cheeks to them that plucked off the hair: I hid not my face from shame and spitting.”

Father God “wakened” and taught Jesus Christ “morning by morning.” That is, every morning, the Lord Jesus reflected on the Scriptures and communed with His Heavenly Father. Remember, at that time, all Israel had access to was what we call the “Old Testament,” the Books of Genesis to Malachi. Still, whatever limited divine revelation there was, Jesus was willing to hear it and obey it. He wanted to be in perfect accordance with His Father’s will for His life. There was complete, unwavering loyalty. It was in that point that Jesus, though Man, was completely unlike us. He never failed; He was humanity as God had created Adam (before Adam’s fall into sin).

“The LORD God hath opened mine ear, and I was not rebellious, neither turned away back.” Friends, we could never say such a thing and mean it! However, the Lord Jesus could and did! The writer of Hebrews told Israel: “Jesus the Son of God…. For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin” (4:15). Even when it came to His suffering, He was willing to obey His Father’s will, fully compliant to shed His blood (see Hebrews chapter 10 in its entirety). Isaiah quoted Jesus centuries in advance: “I gave my back to the smiters, and my cheeks to them that plucked off the hair: I hid not my face from shame and spitting.”

The Holy Spirit, in retrospect to Christ’s earthly ministry, commented through the Apostle Paul in Philippians chapter 2: “[5] Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: [6] Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: [7] But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: [8] And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.”

According to the Prophet Isaiah, as we read earlier, Jesus read the Scriptures every chance He had, especially in the synagogues on the Sabbath. Just as we would read the Bible and better understand where we fit in it, Jesus would read the Bible and better understand where He fit in it. He became more and more aware of His mission to be Israel’s chief spiritual Teacher, and He was willing to teach Israel of her mission and His as well (see Luke 4:16-21—the beginning of His ministry). His Father was training Him, just as a son would serve his father as an apprentice in the family business. (In a similar incident, a divinely-ordained parallel no doubt, His foster father had trained him in his own trade.)

We saw earlier how Luke 2:46-47 says Jesus was sitting at the Temple, with the rabbinical (Jewish religious) scholars around Him, listening to them and asking them questions. The Bible says: “And it came to pass, that after three days they [Joseph and Mary] found him in the temple, sitting in the midst of the doctors, both hearing them, and asking them questions. And all that heard him were astonished at his understanding and answers.” Verse 42 claims Jesus was merely 12 years old here! These (probably aged) doctors of theology were amazed at how wise and articulate this little boy was. He surely put them to shame when it came to knowing and understanding Bible doctrine!

Luke 2:48-50 says: “And when they [Joseph and Mary] saw him, they were amazed: and his mother said unto him, Son, why hast thou thus dealt with us? behold, thy father and I have sought thee sorrowing. And he said unto them, How is it that ye sought me? wist ye not that I must be about my Father’s business? And they understood not the saying which he spake unto them.”

Joseph and Mary were also surprised to find Jesus sitting amongst such “scholars” and engaging in dialog with them! When Mary rebuked Him for staying behind, saying He had giving His “father” and mother a hard time, He corrected her: “How is it that ye sought me? wist ye not that I must be about my Father’s business?” That is, “Do you not know that I must be concerned with My Father’s business?” Jesus objected to Mary calling Joseph his “father.” (Yet the modern English versions call “Joseph” just that—Jesus’ “father”—on one occasion in the passage [verse 33]. Furthermore, when our King James reads “Joseph and his mother” in verse 43, modern versions say “his parents!”)

Even at age 12, Jesus said, “I must be about my Father’s business.” Surely, He did not know everything in the Bible at this point in life. Still, He knew enough to communicate it to others and amaze them with those words of life. From here onward to age 30—another 18 years—the Lord Jesus came to better understand that His Father’s “business” involved three years of Him preaching, teaching, and performing miracles.

My own personal belief, which you can accept or reject, is Jesus gradually began to understand the concept of death like any other person. It did not come in His first few years of life, but it surely came by the time He reached adulthood. There came a day when young Jesus finally saw the cross in His future. As He studied the Scriptures and prayed to His Father in light of them, it became increasingly clear. Eventually, He began to see Himself in those Old Testament verses that talked about Him as Messiah suffering and dying (Psalm 22, Isaiah chapter 53, and so on). As a child, Jesus probably did not know about Calvary. No child can understand the horrors of such a graphic death. Father God may have shielded young Jesus from that as well. There is nothing in the Bible to cause us to assume Jesus spent His childhood fearful or depressed because of the cross. But, we do know that, toward the end of His life, He began to speak more and more to His disciples concerning His impending death. On the night of His arrest, and hours before His crucifixion, our Lord Jesus came to fully understand the immense suffering He would experience shortly—not just physical, but spiritual as well. Being a Man, He had great difficulty coming to terms with it.

We find the first hint of this in Matthew 26:37-39: “[37] And he took with him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, and began to be sorrowful and very heavy. [38] Then saith he unto them, My soul is exceeding sorrowful, even unto death: tarry ye here, and watch with me. [39] And he went a little farther, and fell on his face, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt.” The Lord Jesus is deeply troubled, far beyond words. Mark 14:33-34 is the companion passage: “[33] And he taketh with him Peter and James and John, and began to be sore amazed, and to be very heavy; [34] And saith unto them, My soul is exceeding sorrowful unto death: tarry ye here, and watch.”

The Lord Jesus can only pray that His Father give Him strength to do His will rather than His own will. Luke 22:37 says: “For I say unto you, that this that is written must yet be accomplished in me, And he was reckoned among the transgressors: for the things concerning me have an end.” Verses 40-44 are most difficult for us to read: “[40] And when he was at the place, he said unto them, Pray that ye enter not into temptation. [41] And he was withdrawn from them about a stone’s cast, and kneeled down, and prayed, [42] Saying, Father, if thou be willing, remove this cup from me: nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done. [43] And there appeared an angel unto him from heaven, strengthening him. [44] And being in an agony he prayed more earnestly: and his sweat was as it were great drops of blood falling down to the ground.” There is great distress here, fear and anguish. He realizes He is about to experience the undiluted wrath of His Father! His soul will be offered as a sacrifice for our sins! He sees it now as never before! He knows the Cross is just hours away!

In the above prayers in the Garden of Gethsemane, we see Jesus, although equal with the Father, willfully submitting to the Father’s will. That is, the Incarnation was Jesus’ submission among His equals (Father God and God the Holy Ghost). For sake of brevity, we stop here and present a summary.

CONCLUSION

The Lord Jesus was 100 percent God and 100 percent Man. It is important that we not overlook either nature, as some have done and still do today. We do not fully grasp that but we believe it because the Bible makes it abundantly clear. Notice these sample verses: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God…. And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us…” (John 1:1,14). “For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus” (1 Timothy 2:5).

The Bible is not clear just how much spiritual understanding Jesus had as a child—as in pre-adolescent and early adulthood (late teens)—with respect to Calvary’s reality. Yet, there are things we DO know from the Bible. He, a human like us, grew every which way we do. There was physical maturity, spiritual maturity, and mental maturity in the life of Christ. He grew taller and stronger. Also, by careful study of the Scripture, and daily prayer, He increased in understanding Father God’s will for Him. Even at age 12, He definitely had a profound grasp of the Scriptures.

Jesus Christ lived the next 18 years of His earthly life studying and praying, preparing for His ministry. By age 30, He had matured enough to become a mighty spiritual leader. Surely, He grew exponentially during those final three years of life. Just moments before His arrest, and hours prior to His crucifixion, He had the clearest grasp of His Father’s will He had ever had. We can see that most clearly in His prayers in the Garden of Gethsemane. His Father’s will was that He die for Israel’s sins (and ultimately, for all of mankind’s sins), and He resolved to go through with it all the way.

My own personal idea is that Jesus did not have knowledge of Calvary until several years into life. I do not believe He spent His childhood despondent concerning His death. However, perhaps as early as in His teenage years, He realized He would have to die the most horrible way ever devised. Whenever He finally reached that point of maturity—where He could fully cooperate with His Heavenly Father in accomplishing everything He wanted—He entered the ministry. The more He studied and prayed, the more He saw His Father’s will for Him, and when He saw that that will would lead Him up to that Cross, He submitted Himself and did it! 🙂

Also see:
» “The Son of man hath not where to lay his head?”
» How does one know if he or she is maturing in the Word of God?
» What is the Lord’s will for my Christian life?

GOD, What does God mean “I am Alpha and Omega?”

What does God mean, “I am Alpha and Omega?”

WHAT DOES GOD MEAN, “I AM ALPHA AND OMEGA?”

by Shawn Brasseaux

Surely, dear friend, if you are a diligent Bible student, you have encountered the phrase, “I am Alpha and Omega,” at least once. Maybe you have never read the Bible, but you have at least heard the expression spoken in “Christian” circles. Have you ever wondered what it means? Let us take the Bible and look! “For what saith the Scriptures?”

The title “Alpha and Omega” is unique to the Book of the Revelation. Jesus Christ says it on four occasions in these following verses in King James Bible:

  • Revelation 1:8: “I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty.”
  • Revelation 1:11: “Saying, I am Alpha and Omega, the first and the last: and, What thou seest, write in a book, and send it unto the seven churches which are in Asia; unto Ephesus, and unto Smyrna, and unto Pergamos, and unto Thyatira, and unto Sardis, and unto Philadelphia, and unto Laodicea.”
  • Revelation 21:6: “And he said unto me, It is done. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely.”
  • Revelation 22:13: “I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last.”

Alpha (Α,α) is the first letter of the Greek alphabet—Greek being the original language of the “New Testament” Scriptures (including Revelation). Omega (Ω,ω) is the last letter of the Greek alphabet. If we were using English, it would be, “I am A and Z.” Or, in Hebrew, “I am Aleph and Tav.” When the God of the Bible says He is “Alpha and Omega,” He is literally saying that He is “the beginning and the end,” “the first and the last” (refer to the verses above). Now, what does this expression mean exactly?

“I am Alpha and Omega” means that, whatever God starts, He will be there to finish. As the Psalmist extolled, “Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever thou hadst formed the earth and the world, even from everlasting to everlasting, thou art God” (Psalm 90:2). From “everlasting to everlasting”—going back in time forever to going forward in time forever—He is God. Before creation was, He was. Now that He has formed creation, He will always remain to see that creation serves His intended purpose. The God of the Bible has unlimited power to fulfill His will, to do of His good pleasure. He does not need to ask anyone’s permission, or seek outside advice before acting. He is completely outside of time and space. Nothing is hidden from Him. He reads hearts. He knows the future. It is guaranteed that He will always fulfill His will and ensure creation is governed most carefully.

Friend, we are finite, weakly creatures. We are not “Alpha and Omega.” Our physical strength is limited; therefore, we cannot do everything we want to do. Our mind is puny; therefore, we cannot know everything there is to know. Our material wealth can be reduced to a number (very small in the grand scheme of things!); therefore, we cannot do everything there is to do. Our home is this oblate spheroid of rock and water, Earth; therefore, we cannot see everything there is to see. Time limits us, as we are only here for a short time in this life. Age limits us, as physical death comes to all of us. We cannot leave the universe, so space limits us. While we can and may plan all we want, there is no guarantee we will even be around to see those ideas brought to fruition. There is no certainty that we will live to be elderly. The money we have in the bank right now may be gone in the next hour. We may be perfectly healthy today, and lying on sickbed (or dying on a deathbed!) tomorrow! There is no guarantee that a storm will not pass through your neighborhood and destroy your house in the coming months. Later this week, you may be paralyzed in an automobile accident. We know not what the future holds in this life.

On the other hand, God knows all possible outcomes, and He understands what to do to achieve His desired end. No event will ever catch Him by surprise. He never ages; His life had no beginning and it will never end. For Him, sleep is unnecessary. There is no limit to His resources—He is all-knowing (omniscient), all-powerful (omnipotent), and all-over (omnipresent). He owns everything material and immaterial there is, and no disaster can take away what He has. He never has to be concerned with sickness, injury, or death hindering Him. His spoken words caused the heaven and the earth to appear out of “thin air:” yea, there is nothing too hard for Him to do. We have to stop here and exclaim, “Wow! The God of the Christian Bible, the God of the Hebrew Bible, what a God! What a God indeed! Wow!”

As mentioned earlier, “Alpha and Omega” appears only in the last Bible Book, the Revelation (1:8; 1:11; 21:6; 22:13). Revelation is the Book of Genesis brought to complete fruition, some 6000 years later. What God started in Genesis, He has accomplished in Revelation. He was there to see creation arise to existence; He is there to see creation bring glory to His Son throughout the endless ages to come. Genesis 1:1 says, “In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.” (Sin entered and delayed God’s plans. God, through the crosswork of His Son, Jesus Christ, brought those plans to completion.) Revelation 21:1 thus reads, “And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea.” Moreover, the Holy Spirit did not only strategically place “Alpha and Omega” in the Bible’s last book, God declaring how He is at the end to see the beginning concluded. He also placed it at the beginning and the end of that same book! What started at the beginning of Revelation, God brought it to completion at the end. His Son, Jesus Christ, has been appointed Head of all creation, the Ruler of Heaven and Earth. What sin delayed, God resumed!

Synonymous to the title “Alpha and Omega” is “the First and the Last.” It too is found in the Revelation, as well as in the Prophet Isaiah.

  • Isaiah 48:11-12: “[11] For mine own sake, even for mine own sake, will I do it: for how should my name be polluted? and I will not give my glory unto another. [12] Hearken unto me, O Jacob and Israel, my called; I am he; I am the first, I also am the last.”
  • Isaiah 41:4: “Who hath wrought and done it, calling the generations from the beginning? I the LORD, the first, and with the last; I am he.”
  • Isaiah 44:6: “Thus saith the LORD the King of Israel, and his redeemer the LORD of hosts; I am the first, and I am the last; and beside me there is no God.”
  • Revelation 1:17-18: “[17] And when I saw him, I fell at his feet as dead. And he laid his right hand upon me, saying unto me, Fear not; I am the first and the last: [18] I am he that liveth, and was dead; and behold, I am alive forevermore, Amen; and have the keys of hell and of death.”
  • Revelation 2:8: “And unto the angel of the church in Smyrna write; These things saith the first and the last, which was dead, and is alive;”
  • Revelation 22:13: “I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last.” (This last verse is special, as it equates all three expressions. In other words, they are three different ways of conveying the same truth. God was the first Person in existence, and if all of creation passed away, He would still remain.)

Remember, those “Alpha and Omega” and “First and Last” titles/declarations in Revelation are the Lord Jesus Christ speaking to the Apostle John. JEHOVAH God used these same words to describe Himself in the “Old Testament” writings of the Prophet Isaiah! It could not be more obvious—Jesus Christ and JEHOVAH God are one and the same Person. JEHOVAH God claimed to be “the First and the Last,” or “the Beginning and the End,” or “Alpha and Omega.” Likewise, Jesus Christ also claimed to be “the First and the Last,” or “the Beginning and the End,” or “Alpha and Omega.” Again, JEHOVAH God and the Lord Jesus Christ are one and the same Person. We would have to not want to see it not to see it, friends! Unless we have an agenda to rob Jesus Christ of His title of JEHOVAH God the Son, unless we have a theological speculation or church tradition to uphold, we will simply say “Amen” to these Bible verses!

Also see:
» Is the Trinity/Godhead a Scriptural teaching?
» The Holy Spirit—a Person, or a force?
» How do God’s foreknowledge and our free will work together?

BIBLE CONTRADICTIONS / CONFUSING VERSES SIMPLIFIED, BIBLE VERSIONS AND MANUSCRIPTS, Can you explain 1 Timothy 3:16?, Can you explain 1 Timothy 3:16?, Can you explain 1 Timothy 3:16?, Can you explain 1 Timothy 3:16?, GOD, GRACE (CHRISTIAN) LIVING

Can you explain 1 Timothy 3:16?

CAN YOU EXPLAIN 1 TIMOTHY 3:16?

by Shawn Brasseaux

People have confused 1 Timothy 3:16 for many, many years—centuries, actually. Just what makes it so controversial? Read it to see why: “And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory.” What is this talking about? There has been so much discussion about it but very little light has been shed. In this Bible study, we purpose to make the truths of God’s Word as plain and simple as humanly possible concerning 1 Timothy 3:16. To the Scriptures!

I. FIRST TIMOTHY 3:16 AND TEXTUAL CRITICISM

First Timothy 3:16 is one of the major problem verses in the modern English versions and their underlying manuscripts. Our King James Bible says, “God was manifest in the flesh….” Most modern English versions, however, have a general reading of “He” or “He who” or “Who” where our KJV has “God.” (With no Greek authority, some modern versions read “Christ!”) Why do modern English versions read differently here? The answer is two-fold.

The first and foremost factor is a textual issue. It is not that the new-version translators are unskilled in translating. The problem is they are translating a depraved (corrupt) Greek text. The King James Bible’s underlying Greek text, the Textus Receptus, reads “theos” (rendered “God”). However, the modern English version manuscripts, the Alexandrian text, read “os” (“which” or “who”—which is syntactical nonsense). Modern English versions that read “Christ” are interpreting the passage without manuscript support. The scribes/copyists of the modern-version Alexandrian manuscripts altered (probably intentionally) the correct Greek word, theos, into os. Notice how this extremely subtle change involved nothing more than dropping the first three letters (“the-”). With the omission of these few Greek letters, the Bible text was greatly damaged. (And these perverted manuscripts are heralded as “better” texts!!)

Secondly, there is a copyright issue. Modern English versions must read differently from each other in order to have their unique copyrights. Verses must be reworded if the text is to be considered distinct from other modern English versions. Modern English translators are forced to change the wording of 1 Timothy 3:16 so as to keep their respective works separate. This is why some versions have “He who,” others have “He,” some have “Who,” and others have “Christ.” The New King James Version, surprisingly, actually agrees with the King James Bible by retaining “God.”

People who do not like to recognize Jesus Christ’s deity prefer the reading of 1 Timothy 3:16 in the modern English versions. Only unbelievers and heretics would be comfortable with removing “God” and replacing it with “He,” “He who,” or “Who.” Now we understand why the Jehovah’s Witness New World Translation does not use the King James Bible Greek text! The Jehovah’s Witnesses see no problem calling Christ Jesus “He” or “He who” or “Who”—they just refuse to call Him “God!” (Anyone who dismisses this textual problem as “minor” has a heart problem. They do not have the sense to understand their Bible should not have mistakes in the first place!)

II. FIRST TIMOTHY 3:16, IN CONTEXT

Like so many, I once assumed 1 Timothy 3:16 referred to Jesus Christ’s earthly ministry. Friend, this is probably how you have often heard this verse taught. If you read study Bible notes, commentaries, and listen to preachers and teachers, invariably, you will see they approach 1 Timothy 3:16 in this manner. However, if you look at the context, there is nothing about Christ’s earthly ministry. What is the context of 1 Timothy chapter 3? Or, better yet, what is the context of the whole book of 1 Timothy? The context of the epistle is the organization and administration of the local church assembly. Chapter 3 begins with the office of the bishop, then discusses the office of the deacon, and finally mentions the assembly (collectively).

Our first step in understanding 1 Timothy 3:16 is to read and believe the two previous verses: “[14] These things write I unto thee, hoping to come unto thee shortly. [15] But if I tarry long, that thou mayest know how thou oughtest to behave thyself in the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth.” If you get nothing else out of this article, friend, please remember not to isolate verse 16 from verses 14 and 15!

What is “the house of God?” What is “the church of the living God?” Church tradition causes most people to say “the house of God” is a physical building. However, the Bible says God does not dwell in temples made with hands (Acts 17:24). Rather than speculating, we will let the Bible define for us this term “the house of God.”

Ephesians 2:19-22 says: “[19] Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellowcitizens with the saints, and of the household of God; [20] And are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone; [21] In whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple in the Lord: [22] In whom ye also are builded together for an habitation of God through the Spirit.”

We are the temple of the Holy Ghost, as 1 Corinthians chapter 6 says: “[19] What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? [20] For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s.” Also, 1 Corinthians chapter 3: “[16] Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you? [17] If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are.”

According to the Bible text, the “house of God” of 1 Timothy 3:15 is individual Christians. It is also the local assembly of these Christians gathering in fellowship. We Christian believers, we are the house of God, the temple of God. Friend, do not let religion rob you of this truth by encouraging you to refer to some manmade structure today as “the house [or temple] of God!”

When we come to verse 16, we simply carry the thought over from verse 15 (most Bible readers fail to do this and thus misinterpret the verse). Verse 16 is still talking about the local group of Christians, or you could even say all of the Church the Body of Christ. If you look closely, the order of events of verse 16 does not match the order of Christ’s earthly life and ministry. However, that order of events perfectly matches our life and earthly ministry as members of the Body of Christ. We now dissect 1 Timothy 3:16: “And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory.”

III. FIRST TIMOTHY 3:16, EXPOUNDED

A. “AND WITHOUT CONTROVERSY…”

“And.” Let me remind you again the opening “and” links verse 16 to verse 15. Verses 14 and 15 again: “[14] These things write I unto thee, hoping to come unto thee shortly. [15] But if I tarry long, that thou mayest know how thou oughtest to behave thyself in the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth. [16] And [a continuation of verse 15] without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory.” Verse 16 continues the thought mentioned in verse 15. The truth 1 Timothy 3:16 sets forth concerns the Church the Body of Christ of verse 15!

“Without controversy.” The Apostle Paul will reveal, profess, and proclaim, what is undoubtedly one of the most awesome teachings in the whole Bible. (Although, as we already pointed out, this verse has been highly “controversial” because people refuse to believe it as it exists in the proper Greek and English Bible texts! Regardless of their great efforts to deface the Word of God, these people cannot change what the original Bible says.)

B. “GREAT IS THE MYSTERY OF GODLINESS: GOD WAS MANIFEST IN THE FLESH…”

Any Bible student knows that Jesus Christ being God was no mystery (secret). Various “Old Testament” prophetic verses all predicted—hundreds of years in advance—that Messiah would be God in human flesh. We will briefly survey some examples.

Isaiah 9:6-7, written 700 B.C.: “[6] For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace. [7] Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this.” (Messiah holds the titles of “The Mighty God” and “The Everlasting Father.” Could Messiah’s equality with Father God be any clearer?)

Isaiah 35:4, written 700 B.C.: “Say to them that are of a fearful heart, Be strong, fear not: behold, your God will come with vengeance, even God with a recompence; he will come and save you.” (In light of verses 5-6, this is a reference to Messiah’s earthly ministry. Messiah is called “God” here.)

Micah 5:2, written 750 B.C.: “But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting.” (This is a verse about Messiah Jesus, according to Matthew 2:4-6. Micah 5:2 is perverted in modern in English versions, with “everlasting” [a reference to Messiah’s deity] is changed to “ancient times.”)

Malachi 3:1, written 400 B.C.: “Behold, I will send my messenger, and he shall prepare the way before me: and the LORD, whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to his temple, even the messenger of the covenant, whom ye delight in: behold, he shall come, saith the LORD of hosts.” (The “me” here is JEHOVAH, and really it is Jesus Christ whom John the Baptist preceded—see Mark 1:1-3. Mark 1:2 is perverted in modern English versions.)

The above verses indicate Messiah’s deity was not a secret. BUT, 1 Timothy 3:16 says “God manifest in human flesh” WAS a secret. “And without controversy great is the mystery [secret] of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh….” In other words, God being manifested in the flesh in this verse, the truth of 1 Timothy 3:16, was hidden from the “Old Testament” prophets. There is only one logical conclusion—1 Timothy 3:16 discusses something other than Messiah Jesus’ earthly ministry. Perhaps this startles you, but rest assured, it will become clearer as we progress. What type of fleshly manifestation of God is Paul mentioning here? (Hint: Recall the theme of the chapter, or the theme of the book!) “God manifest in human flesh” is a description of us, the Church the Body of Christ! We, corporately, are “godliness” (“God-likeness”). After all, it is God’s life in us! This is the “mystery of godliness.”

Second Corinthians chapter 4: “[7] But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us. [8] We are troubled on every side, yet not distressed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; [9] Persecuted, but not forsaken; cast down, but not destroyed; [10] Always bearing about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our body. [11] For we which live are always delivered unto death for Jesus’ sake, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our mortal flesh.” In the lives of Christians, the “life of Jesus” is manifested for all to see! By the working of the Holy Spirit who indwells us, the life of Jesus Christ (who is God manifested in human flesh) is revealed, or made known, in our lives. The Holy Spirit produces the life of Jesus Christ in the lives of the members of the Church the Body of Christ.

Galatians 2:20 tells us: “I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.” And, Philippians 1:21: “For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.” Finally, Colossians 3:4: “When Christ, who is our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with him in glory.”

Recall that the group of believers we know of as the Church the Body of Christ was kept secret from the “Old Testament” prophets. God manifesting His life in and through a group of believing Jews and Gentiles in one Body of Christ, that was most definitely a secret (mystery) not revealed until Paul’s apostleship and ministry. Read about “the mystery of [the Body of] Christ” in Ephesians 3:1-9. We do not learn this secret until the Pauline epistles, Romans through Philemon.

We let the Holy Spirit tell us in Ephesians chapter 9: “[1] For this cause I Paul, the prisoner of Jesus Christ for you Gentiles, [2] If ye have heard of the dispensation of the grace of God which is given me to you-ward: [3] How that by revelation he made known unto me the mystery; (as I wrote afore in few words, [4] Whereby, when ye read, ye may understand my knowledge in the mystery of Christ) [5] Which in other ages was not made known unto the sons of men, as it is now revealed unto his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit; [6] That the Gentiles should be fellowheirs, and of the same body, and partakers of his promise in Christ by the gospel: [7] Whereof I was made a minister, according to the gift of the grace of God given unto me by the effectual working of his power. [8] Unto me, who am less than the least of all saints, is this grace given, that I should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ; [9] And to make all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the world hath been hid in God, who created all things by Jesus Christ….”

C. “JUSTIFIED IN THE SPIRIT…”

“Justified in the Spirit” would make no sense referring to Jesus Christ. He needed no justification because He was God. Remember, the context is the Body of Christ.

We are justified, declared righteous in God’s sight, by the shed blood of Jesus Christ on Calvary (Romans 3:25-26). The moment we trust Jesus Christ as our personal Saviour, the Holy Spirit puts us into the Body of Christ (1 Corinthians 12:13). We thus share Christ’s identity, His righteousness. We are surrounded by the power of the Holy Spirit because He makes Christ’s life real in our lives. Romans 8:9 says: “But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his.” Rather than being “in the flesh,” we are “in the Spirit.” That means the Spirit of God lives in us—remember, we are His “temple.” That is our identity. He has applied the righteous nature of Jesus Christ to our account, in contrast to the sin nature we have in Adam. That new nature in Christ produces God’s life, enabling God’s life to be manifested in ours. Again, “God manifest in the flesh.”

Galatians 3:3: “Are ye so foolish? having begun in the Spirit, are ye now made perfect by the flesh?” And, Galatians 5:16: “This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh.” Galatians 5:25 also: “If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.” We can also look at Colossians 1:8: “Who also declared unto us your love in the Spirit.” Again, “in the Spirit” is our position, and when we walk in that sanctified position, God’s life is manifested (practical, daily living). God’s life is not manifested in our lives when we walk in our resources, our own strength (legalism instead of grace living). When we walk apart from our identity in Christ, sin will dominate our lives.

D. “SEEN OF ANGELS…”

While angels watched Jesus Christ in His earthly ministry, this is not a reference to His earthly ministry because, as we have said already, the context does not support it. Remember, angels watch us as well. First Corinthians 4:9: “For I think that God hath set forth us the apostles last, as it were appointed to death: for we are made a spectacle unto the world, and to angels, and to men.” And, 1 Corinthians 11:10: “For this cause ought the woman to have power on her head because of the angels.” Also, Ephesians 3:10: “To the intent that now unto the principalities and powers in heavenly places might be known by the church the manifold wisdom of God,” Finally, 1 Timothy 5:21: “I charge thee before God, and the Lord Jesus Christ, and the elect angels, that thou observe these things without preferring one before another, doing nothing by partiality.”

When we realize that angels are watching us in our daily activities, then that will surely change our behavior. Think of the millions of angels above observing us down here. Are they seeing the life of God in human flesh on display in our lives? Are they witnessing the grace of God transforming lives? Or, are they seeing sinful people misbehaving while also claiming to value and follow God’s Word? Something to think about, my friend, something major to think about!

E. “PREACHED UNTO THE GENTILES…”

The message of “God manifest in the flesh” (the Body of Christ) being preached to Gentiles would certainly not be true until we come to the Apostle Paul’s ministry. If you are familiar with the Bible rightly divided, then you know Paul’s ministry was to Gentiles, all the nations, not just to Israel.

Paul wrote in Romans 11:13: “For I speak to you Gentiles, inasmuch as I am the apostle of the Gentiles, I magnify mine office….” Also, the ascended Jesus Christ told Paul in Acts 26:17-18: “[17] Delivering thee from the people, and from the Gentiles, unto whom now I send thee, [18] To open their eyes, and to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins, and inheritance among them which are sanctified by faith that is in me.” And, Paul wrote in 1 Timothy 2:5-7: “[5] For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus; [6] Who gave himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time. [7] Whereunto I am ordained a preacher, and an apostle, (I speak the truth in Christ, and lie not;) a teacher of the Gentiles in faith and verity.”

We can also refer to Titus 2:11: “For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men….” “All men” is a reference to Paul preaching to all nations. Also, the Holy Spirit led Paul to write in Romans 15:15-16: “[15] Nevertheless, brethren, I have written the more boldly unto you in some sort, as putting you in mind, because of the grace that is given to me of God, [16] That I should be the minister of Jesus Christ to the Gentiles, ministering the gospel of God, that the offering up of the Gentiles might be acceptable, being sanctified by the Holy Ghost.” Another reference is Ephesians 3:9: “And to make all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the world hath been hid in God, who created all things by Jesus Christ….” Finally, Paul penned in 2 Timothy 4:17: “Notwithstanding the Lord stood with me, and strengthened me; that by me the preaching might be fully known, and that all the Gentiles might hear: and I was delivered out of the mouth of the lion.”

In stark contrast to Paul’s ministry, Jesus Christ’s earthly ministry was not to Gentiles—it was only to Jews. The Lord Jesus Christ Himself said to the 12 apostles in Matthew 10:5-7, for example: “[5] These twelve Jesus sent forth, and commanded them, saying, Go not into the way of the Gentiles, and into any city of the Samaritans enter ye not: [6] But go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. [7] And as ye go, preach, saying, The kingdom of heaven is at hand.” He told a Gentile woman in Matthew 15:24: “I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel.” And, we can also look at John 4:22: “Ye worship ye know not what: we know what we worship: for salvation is of the Jews.” Finally, Romans 15:8 affirms: “Now I say that Jesus Christ was a minister of the circumcision [Israel] for the truth of God, to confirm the promises made unto the fathers….”

F. “BELIEVED ON IN THE WORLD…”

Again, this would not be true of Jesus Christ’s earthly ministry. “God manifest in the flesh” (the Body of Christ) was not believed on in the world until Jesus Christ was preached “in the world.” As briefly noted earlier, Paul’s ministry goal was to reach “all nations.” Romans 1:5 highlights his ministry: “By whom we have received grace and apostleship, for obedience to the faith among all nations, for his name.” And, Romans 16:26 serves as confirmation: “But now is made manifest, and by the scriptures of the prophets, according to the commandment of the everlasting God, made known to all nations for the obedience of faith.”

The Holy Spirit led Paul to write in Colossians, chapter 1: “[4] Since we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus, and of the love which ye have to all the saints, [5] For the hope which is laid up for you in heaven, whereof ye heard before in the word of the truth of the gospel; [6] Which is come unto you, as it is in all the world; and bringeth forth fruit, as it doth also in you, since the day ye heard of it, and knew the grace of God in truth….” Not only was Paul, through the power of the Holy Spirit, preaching the Gospel of the Grace of God to “all the world,” that Gospel message was “bring[ing] forth fruit” in all the world. That is, people believed it, trusted it, and thus gained a hope in heaven because of Jesus Christ’s finished crosswork.

G. “RECEIVED UP INTO GLORY…”

While commonly assumed to be a reference to Jesus Christ’s ascension into heaven in Acts chapter 1, this is actually in reference to the Rapture, when the Church the Body of Christ finishes its earthly tasks (previous clauses of the verse) and is taken into heaven to serve Father God there. You may read 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18, Ephesians 2:6-7, Philippians 3:20-21, 2 Thessalonians 2:1, 2 Corinthians 5:1, Colossians 3:1-4, 1 Corinthians 15:51-55, et cetera). The life that God manifested in our mortal flesh here on earth will be brought to fruition in the heavenly places. His life, as lived on earth through us, will be put on display throughout the universe through us.

Unfortunately, time and space do not permit us to quote and expound Romans 8:18-25, Ephesians 1:20-23, 1 Corinthians 15:34-58, Colossians 3:1-4, and 2 Timothy 2:10-13. These are some of the main passages that highlight God using us (the Church the Body of Christ) in the ages to come to reflect His life in the heavenly places. Please read and study them on your own time. They will help you immensely in answering the question concerning what we will do in heaven for eternity.

IV. CONCLUSION

Some believe that 1 Timothy 3:16 was an “early Christian hymn.” This speculation does not concern us. What concerns us is that we properly identify the person or people in the verse. It is not the earthly ministry of Jesus Christ Himself. Rather, it applies to the earthly ministry of the Body of Christ.

Christ ascended, then He was preached unto Gentiles, and then He was believed on in the world. First Timothy 3:16 has that order reversed—preaching unto Gentiles, believing on in the world, and then ascending into heaven. Could it be clearer, dear friends? The verse is describing the life of the Body of Christ (today’s program) and not Jesus Christ in the books of Matthew through John. The context of 1 Timothy chapter 3, the theme of 1 Timothy itself, and verses 14 and 15—they all demand 1 Timothy 3:16 apply to the Church the Body of Christ. First Timothy 3:16 is a succinct summary of everything about the Body of Christ, from its earthly formation to its heavenly destiny.

“And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory.”

Also see:
» Why do some Christians persistently behave like lost people?
» Is grace a “license to sin?”
» Are all Christians “ambassadors,” or just Paul and his ministry companions?

BIBLE CONTRADICTIONS / CONFUSING VERSES SIMPLIFIED, Did God create evil?, Did God create evil?, GOD

Did God create evil?

DID GOD CREATE EVIL? WHAT ABOUT ISAIAH 45:7?

by Shawn Brasseaux

“I form the light, and create darkness: I make peace, and create evil: I the LORD do all these things” (Isaiah 45:7). What does this mean, God “create[s] evil?” Is God responsible for evil? If God is holy (righteous), how can He be the origin of evil? We will search the Bible for the answers!

Isaiah 45:7 contains two sets of contrasts—“light versus darkness” and “peace versus evil.” Stated another way, “Darkness is to light and evil is to peace.” Evil in this sense is the antonym of “peace.” Thus, “evil” here means “trouble,” “hardship,” or “something bad.” Let me show you the other instances in the Bible in which “evil” is used in the sense of God causing bad things to happen, or about to cause bad things to happen, in response to sinners committing transgressions.

  • Exodus 32:12: “Wherefore should the Egyptians speak, and say, For mischief did he bring them out, to slay them in the mountains, and to consume them from the face of the earth? Turn from thy fierce wrath, and repent of this evil against thy people.”
  • Exodus 32:14: “And the LORD repented of the evil which he thought to do unto his people.”
  • Deuteronomy 31:17: “Then my anger shall be kindled against them in that day, and I will forsake them, and I will hide my face from them, and they shall be devoured, and many evils and troubles shall befall them; so that they will say in that day, Are not these evils come upon us, because our God is not among us?”
  • Deuteronomy 31:21: “And it shall come to pass, when many evils and troubles are befallen them, that this song shall testify against them as a witness; for it shall not be forgotten out of the mouths of their seed: for I know their imagination which they go about, even now, before I have brought them into the land which I sware.”
  • Deuteronomy 31:29: “For I know that after my death ye will utterly corrupt yourselves, and turn aside from the way which I have commanded you; and evil will befall you in the latter days; because ye will do evil in the sight of the LORD, to provoke him to anger through the work of your hands.”
  • Joshua 23:15: “Therefore it shall come to pass, that as all good things are come upon you, which the LORD your God promised you; so shall the LORD bring upon you all evil things, until he have destroyed you from off this good land which the LORD your God hath given you.”
  • 1 Samuel 6:9: “And see, if it goeth up by the way of his own coast to Beth-shemesh, then he hath done us this great evil: but if not, then we shall know that it is not his hand that smote us; it was a chance that happened to us.”
  • 1 Chronicles 21:15: “And God sent an angel unto Jerusalem to destroy it: and as he was destroying, the LORD beheld, and he repented him of the evil, and said to the angel that destroyed, It is enough, stay now thine hand. And the angel of the LORD stood by the threshingfloor of Ornan the Jebusite.”
  • 2 Chronicles 7:22: “And it shall be answered, Because they forsook the LORD God of their fathers, which brought them forth out of the land of Egypt, and laid hold on other gods, and worshipped them, and served them: therefore hath he brought all this evil upon them.”
  • Jeremiah 1:14: “Then the LORD said unto me, Out of the north an evil shall break forth upon all the inhabitants of the land.”
  • Jeremiah 4:6: “Set up the standard toward Zion: retire, stay not: for I will bring evil from the north, and a great destruction.”
  • Jeremiah 6:19: “Hear, O earth: behold, I will bring evil upon this people, even the fruit of their thoughts, because they have not hearkened unto my words, nor to my law, but rejected it.”
  • Jeremiah 18:8: “If that nation, against whom I have pronounced, turn from their evil, I will repent of the evil that I thought to do unto them.”
  • Jeremiah 19:3: “And say, Hear ye the word of the LORD, O kings of Judah, and inhabitants of Jerusalem; Thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel; Behold, I will bring evil upon this place, the which whosoever heareth, his ears shall tingle.”
  • Jeremiah 19:15: “Thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel; Behold, I will bring upon this city and upon all her towns all the evil that I have pronounced against it, because they have hardened their necks, that they might not hear my words.”
  • Jeremiah 32:23: “And they came in, and possessed it; but they obeyed not thy voice, neither walked in thy law; they have done nothing of all that thou commandedst them to do: therefore thou hast caused all this evil to come upon them:”
  • Jeremiah 32:42 “For thus saith the LORD; Like as I have brought all this great evil upon this people, so will I bring upon them all the good that I have promised them.”
  • Jeremiah 35:17: “Therefore thus saith the LORD God of hosts, the God of Israel; Behold, I will bring upon Judah and upon all the inhabitants of Jerusalem all the evil that I have pronounced against them: because I have spoken unto them, but they have not heard; and I have called unto them, but they have not answered.”
  • Jeremiah 36:3: “It may be that the house of Judah will hear all the evil which I purpose to do unto them; that they may return every man from his evil way; that I may forgive their iniquity and their sin.”
  • Jeremiah 36:31: “And I will punish him and his seed and his servants for their iniquity; and I will bring upon them, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and upon the men of Judah, all the evil that I have pronounced against them; but they hearkened not.”
  • Jeremiah 39:16: “Go and speak to Ebed-melech the Ethiopian, saying, Thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel; Behold, I will bring my words upon this city for evil, and not for good; and they shall be accomplished in that day before thee.”
  • Jeremiah 40:2-3: “[2] And the captain of the guard took Jeremiah, and said unto him, The LORD thy God hath pronounced this evil upon this place. [3] Now the LORD hath brought it, and done according as he hath said: because ye have sinned against the LORD, and have not obeyed his voice, therefore this thing is come upon you.”
  • Jeremiah 49:37: “For I will cause Elam to be dismayed before their enemies, and before them that seek their life: and I will bring evil upon them, even my fierce anger, saith the LORD; and I will send the sword after them, till I have consumed them:”
  • Ezekiel 6:10: “And they shall know that I am the LORD, and that I have not said in vain that I would do this evil unto them.”

When the Bible talks about God “creating evil,” “bringing evil,” and “doing evil,” it is not about Him committing sin or causing sin to come into existence. It is rather talking about Him righteously judging man’s sins. Whenever man commits evil, God will act accordingly and punish the wrongdoer or wrongdoers. In the Old Testament especially, He brought upon the sinners trouble, hardship, or bad things. It is not complicated, dear friends!

Also see:
» Does God chastise us when we sin?
» Why does God let Satan exist?
» How can a loving God send people to hell forever?

GOD, Why did Jesus say “My God my God?”

Why did Jesus say, “My God, my God?”

WHY DID JESUS SAY, “MY GOD, MY GOD?”

by Shawn Brasseaux

Concerning Jesus’ crucifixion, Matthew 27:46 says: “And about the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani? that is to say, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?” Mark 15:34, the parallel verse, says: “And at the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani? which is, being interpreted, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?” Why did Jesus say “my God” twice?

Jesus was quoting Psalm 22:1: “My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? why art thou so far from helping me, and from the words of my roaring?” David the Psalmist had written “God” twice, so Jesus said it twice. But, why did David write it? And, why twice? Why not three times, or four, or five times? It is no coincidence that David and Jesus used “God” twice. Jesus Christ is speaking to two individuals named “God.” In other words, He was speaking to God the Father and God the Holy Spirit. (And people say the Old Testament never mentions the Trinity!) Since they are one God not two Gods, He said, “Why hast thou forsaken me?” The second-person singular pronoun “thou” is one entity. The Godhead is three Persons who are all equally God, who all share the attributes of what it takes to be God, and yet they are all distinct individuals.

Why did God the Father and God the Holy Spirit leave Jesus? Psalm 22:3 says, “But thou art holy, O thou that inhabitest the praises of Israel.” Habakkuk 1:13 says: “Thou art of purer eyes than to behold evil, and canst not look on iniquity: wherefore lookest thou upon them that deal treacherously, and holdest thy tongue when the wicked devoureth the man that is more righteous than he?” The Bible says that God is so holy that He cannot even look upon sin. So, when Father God made Jesus Christ “sin for us” (2 Corinthians 5:21) at Calvary’s cross, when Father God made Jesus Christ’s soul “an offering for sin” (Isaiah 53:10), God the Father and God the Holy Spirit had to leave Jesus. They could not be associated with sin.

Also see:
» Is the Holy Spirit a Person or a force?
» Is the Trinity/Godhead a Biblical concept?
» Was God “bored” before creation?

GOD, HEAVEN & HELL, How can a loving God send people to hell forever?, How can a loving God send people to hell forever?

How can a loving God send people to hell forever?

1 Comment

HOW CAN A LOVING GOD SEND PEOPLE TO HELL FOREVER?

by Shawn Brasseaux

How can a loving God send people to hell to be tormented forever and ever? There is a plain and simple answer to this question that is repeatedly asked. Usually, this question is not asked in faith. It is often asked by people who just want to ridicule and scorn, or people who want to deceive themselves into thinking they are not going to such an awful place. How would God want us to answer those who challenge the reality of hell and the lake of fire? Should we just be silent, or should we tell them something? How do we go about explaining it to them? Dear friend, all we have to do is look in the Bible to see what it says, believe what we find it says, and then tell others what it says. “For what saith the Scriptures?”

THE GOODNESS OF THE GOD OF THE BIBLE

The God of the Bible has often been portrayed as a bloodthirsty, grouchy old man sitting in a rocking chair in heaven. He is depicted as a monster that is insensitive, distant, and cruel. Religion does not help in dispelling these myths, for religion is just that—insensitive, distant, and cruel. We want to demonstrate that the God of the Bible is a wonderful Person, a God who is kind beyond our wildest dreams.

We read why the God of the Bible is delaying His wrath in 2 Peter 3:9: “The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.” Why has God’s wrath not yet come upon this Christ-rejecting world? Is it because that wrath was not real? Was God was just “bluffing?” Sending out a false alarm? No, not at all! He is giving people ample time to be saved from that righteous wrath! How’s that for a loving God?

Just before the Babylonians came and deported Judah into captivity, the Lord GOD asked these rhetorical questions in Ezekiel chapter 18: “[23] Have I any pleasure at all that the wicked should die? saith the Lord GOD: and not that he should return from his ways, and live? … [30] Therefore I will judge you, O house of Israel, every one according to his ways, saith the Lord GOD. Repent, and turn yourselves from all your transgressions; so iniquity shall not be your ruin. … [32] For I have no pleasure in the death of him that dieth, saith the Lord GOD: wherefore turn yourselves, and live ye.” The God of the Bible pled with Judah to straighten up, that His wrath not come upon them, and yet He knew they would not listen to Him. How’s that for a loving God?

Or, let us try Ezekiel 33:10-11: “[10] Therefore, O thou son of man, speak unto the house of Israel; Thus ye speak, saying, If our transgressions and our sins be upon us, and we pine away in them, how should we then live? [11] Say unto them, As I live, saith the Lord GOD, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked; but that the wicked turn from his way and live: turn ye, turn ye from your evil ways; for why will ye die, O house of Israel?” Again, JEHOVAH God the Father wanted Israel to turn around, do right, that they not die because of their sins. How’s that for a loving God?

And Lamentations 3:22-23, when the Babylonians finally came and destroyed Jerusalem and the Temple: “[22] It is of the LORD’S mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not. [23] They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness.” Are you not glad that God deals with you on the basis of your faithfulness but rather on the basis of His faithfulness? If it were your faithfulness, you would have been consumed a long time ago! How’s that for a loving God?

The Apostle John wrote, “God is love” (1 John 4:8,16). Surely, the God of the Bible is not simply loving, but rather He is love. His very nature is love; to wit, He lives without any selfishness. God the Father, God the Son (Jesus Christ), and God the Holy Ghost all live for each other’s benefit. Actually, the very first time the word “love” appears in Scripture is in Genesis 22:2: Abraham loved his only begotten son, Isaac, which represented God the Father’s love for His only begotten Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. How’s that for a loving God?

Another glimpse of the loving unity among the three Persons of the Godhead/Trinity is Jesus’ prayer to His heavenly Father: “for thou lovedst me before the foundation of the world” (John 17:24). God the Father called Jesus Christ “my beloved Son” (Matthew 3:17; Mark 1:11; Luke 3:22). The three Persons of Godhead do not simply love one another, but they also love undeserving mankind. Again, how’s that for a loving God?

The Apostle John wrote in 1 John 4:19, “We love him [God], because he first loved us.” The Apostle Paul confirmed, “God commendeth his love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8). Paul also affirmed, “…the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me” (Galatians 2:20). Why God loves such wicked creatures as us is still difficult to grasp. How’s that for a loving God?

And we see in Micah 7:18-20: “[18] Who is a God like unto thee, that pardoneth iniquity, and passeth by the transgression of the remnant of his heritage? he retaineth not his anger for ever, because he delighteth in mercy. [19] He will turn again, he will have compassion upon us; he will subdue our iniquities; and thou wilt cast all their sins into the depths of the sea. [20] Thou wilt perform the truth to Jacob, and the mercy to Abraham, which thou hast sworn unto our fathers from the days of old.” Someone who cleanses the sins of those who will never deserve that forgiveness? Someone who delights in mercy? Someone who is not angry forever? Someone who has compassion on the unloving and unlovely? How’s that for a loving God?

We read in Joel 2:12-13: “[12] Therefore also now, saith the LORD, turn ye even to me with all your heart, and with fasting, and with weeping, and with mourning: [13] And rend your heart, and not your garments, and turn unto the LORD your God: for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness, and repenteth him of the evil.” JEHOVAH God declared that He did not want to judge wicked Israel. He wanted them to reform, that they not experience His wrath. Again, how’s that for a loving God?

And the Bible says in Jonah 4:1-2: “[1] But it displeased Jonah exceedingly, and he was very angry. [2] And he prayed unto the LORD, and said, I pray thee, O LORD, was not this my saying, when I was yet in my country? Therefore I fled before unto Tarshish: for I knew that thou art a gracious God, and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness, and repentest thee of the evil.” Jonah said the reason why he refused to go to Nineveh and preach to them was because he knew God would be merciful if they repented. After the encounter with the whale, Jonah went to Nineveh and preached to them. When the city reformed, Jonah was greatly disappointed and very angry. He wanted God to destroy them, but God was merciful in not punishing Nineveh! How’s that for a loving God?

Psalm 145:8-9 is a wonderful set of verses: “[8] The LORD is gracious, and full of compassion; slow to anger, and of great mercy. [9] The LORD is good to all: and his tender mercies are over all his works.” Again, how’s that for a loving God? The God of the Bible is very gracious, loving, and compassionate, but we should not overlook that He is also a God of justice and righteousness. Recall Exodus 34:6-7: “[6] And the LORD passed by before him [Moses], and proclaimed, The LORD, The LORD God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abundant in goodness and truth, [7] Keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, and that will by no means clear the guilty; visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children, and upon the children’s children, unto the third and to the fourth generation.” How’s that for a loving God, that He would be forgiving and longsuffering and gracious and abundant in goodness and truth?

Again, there is no question about the fact that the God of the Bible is love: the Bible clearly teaches, “God is love” (1 John 4:8,16). However, the sinner had better not assume that the God of the Bible is nothing but love, for he or she will have quite the shock when he or she faces an angry God in judgment!

After discussing man’s specific sins in Romans 1:18-32, Paul begins Romans chapter 2: “[1] Therefore thou art inexcusable, O man, whosoever thou art that judgest: for wherein thou judgest another, thou condemnest thyself; for thou that judgest doest the same things. [2] But we are sure that the judgment of God is according to truth against them which commit such things. [3] And thinkest thou this, O man, that judgest them which do such things, and doest the same, that thou shalt escape the judgment of God? [4] Or despisest thou the riches of his goodness and forbearance and longsuffering; not knowing that the goodness of God leadeth thee to repentance? [5] But after thy hardness and impenitent heart treasurest up unto thyself wrath against the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God; [6] Who will render to every man according to his deeds: [7] To them who by patient continuance in well doing seek for glory and honour and immortality, eternal life: [8] But unto them that are contentious, and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, indignation and wrath, [9] Tribulation and anguish, upon every soul of man that doeth evil, of the Jew first, and also of the Gentile; [10] But glory, honour, and peace, to every man that worketh good, to the Jew first, and also to the Gentile: [11] For there is no respect of persons with God.”

Paul was the greatest servant the Lord Jesus Christ ever commissioned to teach and preach God’s grace and love to us in Christ. Yet, even Paul was honest about God’s wrath and justice when he preached God’s grace and love. Romans chapter 2 is one such clear instance. The Holy Spirit through Paul had religious people in mind when He wrote, “[5] God… [6] Who will render every man according to his deeds… [8] But unto them that are contentious, and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, indignation and wrath, [9] Tribulation and anguish, upon every soul of man that doeth evil, of the Jew first, and also the Gentile” (Romans 2:5-6,8-9). Man’s pathetic efforts to appease a holy God will have one result—”indignation, wrath, tribulation, and anguish,” forever, and ever, and ever, and ever. Sinners can merit nothing but God’s wrath. They cannot merit God’s grace or God’s blessings.

We can conclude this section by looking at Paul’s words in Ephesians 5:3-6: “[3] But fornication, and all uncleanness, or covetousness, let it not be once named among you, as becometh saints; [4] Neither filthiness, nor foolish talking, nor jesting, which are not convenient: but rather giving of thanks. [5] For this ye know, that no whoremonger, nor unclean person, nor covetous man, who is an idolater, hath any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God. [6] Let no man deceive you with vain words: for because of these things cometh the wrath of God upon the children of disobedience.”

GOD’S JUSTICE DEMANDS HIS RIGHTEOUSNESS BE DEFENDED

The idea of a “loving Jesus” is discussed ad nauseam among “feel-good” circles in Christendom. Many decades ago, a Bible commentator wrote about how liberalism and modernism had crept into Christianity, and how “God’s love” and “God’s Fatherhood of all” and “God’s goodness” were constantly being stressed, at the expense of God’s holiness, righteousness, and justice. The writer talked about how there was too much preaching about “God’s love” and nothing about “God’s wrath!” How much more today!

Friends, to emphasize God’s love to such an extent that His justice and utter hatred for sin are ignored, is a grave error. It actually harms people rather than helping them. It not only involves being dishonest with people, but it entails being deceitful using God’s Word. To make the Bible popular with man, the average local church is pressured (and sadly often acquiesces) into presenting Bible reading as a “get happy quick” scheme. The Scriptures are appealed to only when someone needs money, encouragement, physical healing, et cetera. There is no sincere desire to learn the timeless truths of the Bible for the sake of trying to better understand His will for us. God is not merely a God of love. He is also a God of righteousness and justice. Anytime an action does not measure up to God’s standard of rightness, His justice requires a punishment. We can look at four brief, simple examples in Scripture.

IN THE DAYS OF NOAH

Genesis chapter 6 opens up with the world totally corrupt. Man’s thoughts are nothing but evil and his actions are nothing but violent: “[5] And God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. [6] And it repented the LORD that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart.”

It is here in human history that God finds Noah, one man in the world who has not abandoned His Word. Of all the millions—if not billions—of people in the world at that time, God can only find one man of faith! Noah “walked with God” (Genesis 6:9) because he believed what God said to him. God instructed him to build an ark of wood to save his house, as well as save the animal species of the world. Hebrews 11:7 says that Noah “became heir of the righteousness which is by faith.” For over 100 years (Genesis 6:3), Noah was “a preacher of righteousness” (2 Peter 2:5) as he prepared that ark of gopher wood (1 Peter 3:20).

Through Noah’s words, God warned the millions upon millions—if not billions—of people of the impending global flood. As the ark was under construction, God patiently waited for over one century for mankind to get right with Him. Alas, they refused to listen to Noah’s message, and not one showed up on the ark. It is important to note that after the ark was finished, God gave mankind another seven days before the floodwaters came from above and from beneath (Genesis 7:4,10). Still, no one came to the ark for salvation, and they all drowned. How’s that for a loving God, that He gave them a century to reform to not avail? Again, lost mankind had ignored God’s warnings of impending wrath, and mankind alone was to blame. There were eight believers in the entire world at the time of the Great Flood (2 Peter 2:5)!

IN THE DAYS OF ABRAHAM

We can see how JEHOVAH, Israel’s God, the God of the Bible, is very patient. It takes very much to anger Him and cause Him to retaliate in righteous indignation and wrath. When His patience is finally exhausted, one does not want to be in the path of what is coming! God is “slow to anger,” but He is “great in power,” and He will never let sinners off. This is the justice that we need in this world, if things are ever to be made right. Beloved, we all know how things have to be set right in the end, and God Himself will see to it. Hell and the lake of fire are part of God’s plan to make things right.

Sodom and Gomorrah were in Palestine (their ruins may be near the Dead Sea’s southern shore). These two wicked cities were engaged in homosexual activity (“going after strange flesh;” Jude 7). Abraham, Israel’s greatest patriarch, negotiated with God regarding His wrath on those two ungodly cities. In Genesis chapter 18, two angels and the LORD (in a theophany, pre-incarnate human form) visit Abraham. Abraham, knowing the wrath is soon coming upon Sodom and Gomorrah, asks the LORD in verse 23, “Wilt thou also destroy the righteous with the wicked?”

Abraham reasons with the LORD: if there are 50 righteous people in the city of Sodom, will God destroy them all with the wicked? The LORD agrees not to destroy Sodom if there are 50 righteous people living in it (verse 26). Abraham decreases the number from 45 (verse 28), to 40 (verse 29), to 30 (verse 30), to 20 (verse 31), and finally, to 10 (verse 32). The LORD agrees, “I will not destroy it for ten’s sake” (verse 32). How’s that for a loving God?

Again, we see God’s great mercy. He is not a ruthless monster, but He is quite willing to spare Sodom if there are just 10 believers there. We all know what happened, however. Genesis chapter 19 continues: “[24] Then the LORD rained upon Sodom and Gomorrah brimstone and fire from the LORD out of heaven; [25] And he overthrew those cities, and all the plain, and all the inhabitants of the cities, and that which grew upon the ground.” Imagine that—there were not even 10 believers in the LORD, dwelling in the city of Sodom!

IN THE DAYS OF THE PROPHET NAHUM

The Prophet Nahum wrote about the divine judgment coming upon apostate Nineveh. It was the capital city of the Assyrian Empire that the Prophet Jonah had visited and in which he preached God’s Word centuries before. Nahum predicted: “[2] God is jealous, and the LORD revengeth; the LORD revengeth, and is furious; the LORD will take vengeance on his adversaries, and he reserveth wrath for his enemies. [3] The LORD is slow to anger, and great in power, and will not at all acquit the wicked: the LORD hath his way in the whirlwind and in the storm, and the clouds are the dust of his feet” (Nahum 1:2-3).

In 612 B.C., God meted out His wrath on Nineveh as other Gentile armies came in and defeated it (just as Nahum predicted). The Ninevites had abandoned Israel’s God and the message that the Prophet Jonah preached to them nearly two centuries earlier, and Nineveh had reached the point that it was beyond saving. God’s love did not do away with His wrath. His justice had to be satisfied, and it was when other Gentiles punished wicked Nineveh.

WHAT THE FUTURE HOLDS

Dear friends, there is coming a day when this dispensation will end, and Israel’s program will resume. God’s people, the Church the Body of Christ, will be taken into heaven at the Rapture, and the unbelievers will remain behind on Earth. Once the Antichrist appears, the seven-year Tribulation will run its course.

We read from 2 Thessalonians chapter 2: “[7] For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only he who now letteth will let, until he be taken out of the way. [8] And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming: [9] Even him, whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders, [10] And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved. [11] And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie: [12] That they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness.”

We want to pay close attention to verse 10. The unbelievers “received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved.” The lost experiencing the seven-year Tribulation period, Daniel’s 70th week, did they want God’s love in our Dispensation of Grace? Did they want a God of love, a God who died for them at Calvary? No. Did those in hell want a God of love? No. Will a God of love force Himself on those who reject Him? No! Will God force people to accept His love and force them into heaven? No! The God of the Bible values free will—He did not create us as robots. A loving God will let people go to hell because they do not want a loving God and they do not want His heaven that is filled with His love. They prefer to hate the living and loving God of the Bible. They prefer to hate Jesus Christ, who loved them so much that He died for them.

1 John 3:16: “Hereby perceive we the love of God, because he laid down his life for us: and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren.” How’s that for a loving God?

Romans 5:8: “But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” How’s that for a loving God?

1 John 4:10: “Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.” How’s that for a loving God?

If people reject the love of God that He demonstrated to us at Calvary’s cross, the love He displayed by sending His Son Jesus Christ to die in our place, if they scoff and reject His sacrifice, then the plain and simple truth is that those people are the ones who are “unloving!”

CONCLUSION

How could a loving police officer arrest law-breakers? The police officer believes in justice, so he or she will enforce it. How can a loving parent discipline his or her unruly child? The parent believes in justice, so he or she will enforce it. How can a loving judge sentence a proven murderer to life in prison? The judge believes in justice, so he or she will enforce it. How can a loving jury find the defendant “guilty” in light of the incriminating evidence. The jury believes in justice, so they will enforce it. How can a loving teacher send a disobedient student to the principal’s office for corporal punishment, suspension, or expulsion? The teacher believes in justice, so he or she will enforce it. If we would not criticize these people, perhaps we had better use our tongues more wisely than to blame God for the eternal destiny sinners choose for themselves.

Suppose you had two grown sons, and one murdered the other in secret. “Oh, son, I love you so much I will overlook what happened. You killed your brother, but I will not turn you over to the authorities! You can hideout in my house from those unloving officers!” What about this? “Officer, why have you arrested me for driving while intoxicated? Why are you so unloving?! You need to be more lenient!” What about that? While everyone will agree I am being silly, some blame God for the poor decisions of sinners. Is that not sillier? Yea, it is insanity, pure insanity! When someone asks, “How can a loving God send people to hell?,” it is a flawed question. It is question of unbelief, for the Bible declares that He will not let sinners escape. The question should be, “How could a just God not create a place called hell?” Would He really be God if He were loving and not just/fair? Think of all the people who would then say, “Oh, how unfair God is! He always lets the evil person get away with wickedness!” Instead of nitpicking and putting God on trial, we should say: “How God is ever so loving! He sent His only begotten Son to an awful Roman cross, to shed His sinless blood for us, that we not go to the awful hellfire we merited as sinners!”

Someone once appropriately said, “God’s love will never let you go, God’s love will never let you down, and God’s love will never let you off.” Contrary to popular belief, God does not send people to hell; they choose to go there. Jesus Christ died for man’s sins, His innocent blood was shed, He was buried, and He was raised again the third day. That is the Gospel of Grace of 1 Corinthians 15:3-4. Faith in this Gospel of the Grace of God is man’s only way to escape the righteous wrath of God. God has done everything to keep man from going to hell, but if man refuses to accept God’s solution for sin by faith, God will let man reap the eternal penalty of sin. That penalty is to eternally exist in a place where God’s wrath is meted out and His justice against sin is the punishment of unredeemed sinners. His wrath is never appeased so hellfire must last forever. Remember, one must cross many barriers to wind up in eternal hellfire. One has to ignore the Gospel, ignore the Christians, ignore the Bible, ignore Jesus Christ. No one ever “accidentally” went (or goes) to hell!

If there were no place such as eternal hellfire, there would never be any true justice in creation. Sin would have no penalty, and creatures (angels and humans) could do whatever they wanted without fear of punishment. Matthew 25:41 says that “everlasting fire” was originally “prepared for the devil and his angels.” God never intended man to go to everlasting fire: that punishment was meant for Satan and his angels. Hell was God’s response to the angelic rebellion in heaven. It was to keep the rest of the angels from following that rebellion. However, when man joined that rebellion in Genesis chapter 3, he too became worthy of such a dreadful place.

Someone once asked, “Why would a loving God send you to hell because you did not believe in Him?” Simply put, God has a special place reserved for people who deliberately refuse to participate in glorifying His Son Jesus Christ. That place is called “hell,” and the ultimate destiny is “the lake of fire.” Notice what Psalm 7:11 says: “God judgeth the righteous, and God is angry with the wicked every day.” And Hebrews 12:28-29: “[28] Wherefore we receiving a kingdom which cannot be moved, let us have grace, whereby we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear: [29] For our God is a consuming fire.” Or, 2 Thessalonians 1:7-8: “[7] And to you who are troubled rest with us, when the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with his mighty angels, [8] In flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ:”

And, Jesus’ very unpopular hellfire discourse in Mark chapter 9: “[43] And if thy hand offend thee, cut it off: it is better for thee to enter into life maimed, than having two hands to go into hell, into the fire that never shall be quenched: [44] Where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched. [45] And if thy foot offend thee, cut it off: it is better for thee to enter halt into life, than having two feet to be cast into hell, into the fire that never shall be quenched: [46] Where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched. [47] And if thine eye offend thee, pluck it out: it is better for thee to enter into the kingdom of God with one eye, than having two eyes to be cast into hell fire: [48] Where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched. [49] For every one shall be salted with fire, and every sacrifice shall be salted with salt. [50] Salt is good: but if the salt have lost his saltness, wherewith will ye season it? Have salt in yourselves, and have peace one with another.” (Modern English versions and their underlying manuscripts bracket off as uninspired or completely eliminate verses 44 and 46 for obvious reasons.)

Dear reader, it is the author’s burden that you not die and go to hell forever. You may not believe in hell right now, but after you die, you will change your mind, and by then it will be too late. Do not put off salvation through Jesus Christ another second. What God the Father wants to see is your faith/trust resting solely in Jesus Christ’s finished crosswork. He died for your sins, He was buried, and He was raised again the third day (1 Corinthians 15:3-4). Please trust Him and Him alone, and you will never know about hell beyond the pages of Scripture.

Also see:
» Is hellfire really forever? (COMING SOON!)
» What about those who have not heard?
» Why did Jesus Christ stand in Acts 7:55-56?

GOD, Is the Holy Spirit a Person or a force?

Is the Holy Spirit a Person or a force?

IS THE HOLY SPIRIT A PERSON OR A FORCE?

by Shawn Brasseaux

Is the Holy Spirit a Person of the Godhead? According to the cults, such as the Jehovah’s Witnesses, the Holy Ghost is simply God’s “active force,” not God Himself. We want to see what God’s Word says regarding the doctrine of the Holy Ghost, and not worry about what some denominational handbook says. “For what saith the Scriptures?”

The Bible says in Acts 4:32-37 (cf. Acts 2:44-47) that the believing remnant of Israel had pooled their wealth and possessions, “had all things common,” and “laid [the money] at the apostles’ feet.” In Acts 5:1-3, however, a Jewish man (Ananias) and his wife (Sapphira) withhold a portion of wealth from the apostles. The Apostle Peter says, “Ananias, why hath Satan filled thine heart to lie to the Holy Ghost, and to keep back part of the price of the land? … Thou hast not lied unto men, but unto God” (Acts 5:3,4). According to the Bible, if someone lies to the Holy Ghost, he or she has “lied to God.” Obviously the Bible makes the Holy Spirit equal to God. Because the names “Holy Ghost” and “God” have been used interchangeably, we conclude that the Holy Ghost is God.

Furthermore, throughout the Bible, the Holy Spirit exhibits the characteristics of a Person, not an inanimate force.

  • THE HOLY GHOST SPEAKS, SHOWS, HEARS, AND GUIDES US INTO ALL TRUTH. John 16:13 – “Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come.”
  • THE HOLY GHOST CAN BE BLASPHEMED/SPOKEN AGAINST. Matthew 12:31,32 – “…but blasphemy against the Holy Ghost shall not be forgiven unto men… but whosoever speaketh against the Holy Ghost, it shall not be forgiven him.” (cf. Mark 3:29-31; Luke 12:10)
  • THE HOLY GHOST CAN BE GRIEVED/SADDENED. Ephesians 4:30 – “And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption.”
  • THE HOLY GHOST TEACHES WITH WORDS AND REMINDS. John 14:26 – “But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.” 1 Corinthians 2:13 – “Which things also we speak, not in the words which man’s wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth; comparing spiritual things with spiritual.”
  • THE HOLY GHOST SPEAKS. 2 Samuel 23:2 – “The Spirit of the LORD spake by me, and his word was in my tongue.” 1 Kings 22:24 – “…Which way went the Spirit of the Lord from me to speak unto thee?” 2 Chronicles 18:23 – “…Which way went the Spirit of the Lord from me to speak unto thee?” Ezekiel 11:5 – “And the Spirit of the LORD fell upon me, and said unto me, Speak; Thus saith the LORD….” Matthew 10:20 – “For it is not ye that speak, but the Spirit of your Father which speaketh in you.” Mark 13:11 – “…[F]or it is not ye that speak, but the Holy Ghost.” Acts 1:16 – “Men and brethren, this scripture must needs have been fulfilled, which the Holy Ghost by the mouth of David spake before concerning Judas, which was guide to them that took Jesus.” Acts 8:29 – “Then the Spirit said unto Philip, Go near, and join thyself to his chariot.” Acts 10:19 – “While Peter thought on the vision, the Spirit said unto him, Behold, three men seek thee.” Acts 20:23 – “Save that the Holy Ghost witnesseth in every city, saying that bonds and afflictions abide me.” Acts 21:11 – “And when he was come unto us, he took Paul’s girdle, and bound his own hands and feet, and said, Thus saith the Holy Ghost, So shall the Jews at Jerusalem bind the man that owneth this girdle, and shall deliver him into the hands of the Gentiles.” Acts 28:25 – “…Well spake the Holy Ghost by Esaias the prophet unto our fathers,” Galatians 4:6 – “And because ye are sons, God hath sent forth the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father.” 1 Timothy 4:1 – “Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils;” Hebrews 3:7 – “Wherefore (as the Holy Ghost saith, To-day if ye will hear his voice,” Revelation 2:7,11,17,29 – “He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches;… He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches;… He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches;… He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches.” Revelation 3:6,13,22 – “He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches….He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches…. He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches.” Revelation 14:13 – “…Yea, saith the Spirit, that they may rest from their labours; and their works do follow them.” Revelation 22:17 – “And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come.”
  • THE HOLY GHOST REVEALS. Luke 2:26 – “And it was revealed unto him by the Holy Ghost, that he should not see death, before he had seen the Lord’s Christ.” Ephesians 3:5 – “Which in other ages was not made known unto the sons of men, as it is now revealed unto his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit;”
  • THE HOLY GHOST LIVES/DWELLS. John 14:17 – “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.” Romans 8:9,11 – “But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his…. But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, he that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwelleth in you.” 1 Corinthians 3:16 – “Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?” 2 Timothy 1:14 – “That good thing which was committed unto thee keep by the Holy Ghost which dwelleth in us.”
  • THE HOLY GHOST APPOINTS. Acts 20:28 – “Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock, over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed the church of God, which he hath purchased with his own blood.”
  • THE HOLY GHOST INVITES OR REQUESTS. Acts 11:12 – “And the Spirit bade me go with them, nothing doubting. Moreover these six brethren accompanied me, and we entered into the man’s house:”
  • THE HOLY GHOST BEARS WITNESS/TESTIFIES. John 15:26 – “But when the Comforter is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the Father, he shall testify of me:” Acts 5:32 – “And we are his witnesses of these things; and so is also the Holy Ghost, whom God hath given to them that obey him.” Acts 20:23 – “Save that the Holy Ghost witnesseth in every city, saying that bonds and afflictions abide me.” Romans 8:16 – “The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God:” Hebrews 10:15 – “Whereof the Holy Ghost also is a witness to us: for after that he had said before,” 1 John 5:6-8 – “This is he that came by water and blood, even Jesus Christ; not by water only, but by water and blood. And it is the Spirit that beareth witness, because the Spirit is truth. 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.”
  • THE HOLY GHOST MAKES INTERCESSION FOR US. Romans 8:26-27 – “Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered. And he that searcheth the hearts knoweth what is the mind of the Spirit, because he maketh intercession for the saints according to the will of God.”
  • THE HOLY GHOST REASONS/THINKS. Acts 15:28 – “For it seemed good to the Holy Ghost, and to us, to lay upon you no greater burden than these necessary things;”
  • THE HOLY GHOST HAS KNOWLEDGE. 1 Corinthians 2:10-11 – “But God hath revealed them unto us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God. For what man knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man which is in him? even so the things of God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God.”
  • THE HOLY GHOST CAN BE TEMPTED. Acts 5:9 – “Then Peter said unto her, How is it that ye have agreed together to tempt the Spirit of the Lord?”
  • THE HOLY GHOST CAN BE VEXED/TROUBLED. Isaiah 63:10 – “But they rebelled, and vexed his holy Spirit: therefore he was turned to be their enemy, and he fought against them.”
  • THE HOLY GHOST FORBIDS. Acts 16:6 – “Now when they had gone throughout Phrygia and the region of Galatia, and were forbidden of the Holy Ghost to preach the word in Asia,”
  • THE HOLY GHOST CREATED US / GAVE US LIFE. Job 33:4 – “The Spirit of God hath made me, and the breath of the Almighty hath given me life.”
  • THE HOLY GHOST SENDS. Isaiah 48:16 – “Come ye near unto me, hear ye this; I have not spoken in secret from the beginning; from the time that it was, there am I: and now the Lord GOD, and his Spirit, hath sent me.”

CONCLUSION

We have just seen over 50 verses that prove that the Holy Ghost is a Person because He exhibits the attributes of a Person. He is not simply “God’s active force,” as the cults suggest. The Holy Spirit is a living Person, one of the three Persons of the Godhead. Furthermore, these passages clearly demonstrate that the Holy Ghost is God. Will you believe the Word of God? (Will you believe the Word of the Holy Ghost?; 2 Peter 1:20-21) Or, will you believe the worthless, foolish tradition of men?

Also see:
» Why does the King James Bible use the terms “Holy Ghost” and “Holy Spirit?” (LINK TEMPORARILY UNAVAILABLE)
» Have I blasphemed against the Holy Ghost?
» Does the Bible teach the doctrine of the Trinity/Godhead?

CREATION AND EARLY MAN, GOD, Was God “bored” before creation?, Was God “bored” before creation?

Was God “bored” before creation?

WHAT WAS GOD DOING BEFORE CREATION? WAS HE NOT “BOReD” WITHOUT ANGELS, ANIMALS, AND HUMANS TO WATCH?

by Shawn Brasseaux

God has always existed, and He will always exist. Imagine that! Read it again. God has always existed, and He will always exist. We cannot begin to imagine such a concept, but we take it by faith because the Bible testifies this to be true.

Everyone knows Genesis 1:1: “In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.” Yet, the question often arises, “What was God doing before creation?” Was God bored without the angels and man? Besides God, nothing existed. No angels, no people, no animals, nothing. So, was God “bored?” No, He was not bored. Why? The doctrine of the Trinity answers this question. Although we cannot give a detailed answer, we can grasp a better understanding of what God was doing before creation.

God exists in three Persons—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit—but He exists in one “Godhead” (see Acts 17:29 KJV, Romans 1:20 KJV, and Colossians 2:9 KJV). For instance, Jesus said in John 10:30: “I and my Father are one.” The Lord Jesus and God the Father are separate Persons, yet they are one God. Speaking of Jesus Christ, the Bible says, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God” (John 1:1). There are many references in the Bible to the Godhead, but here are the three most obvious:

  • Matthew 28:19: “Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:”
  • 2 Corinthians 13:14: “The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Ghost, be with you all. Amen.”
  • 1 John 5:7 KJV*: “For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one.” (*Unfortunately, 1 John 5:7 is omitted from many modern English Bibles.)

To get a brief glimpse of what God was doing before creation, we look at what the Lord Jesus Christ prayed to His Father in John chapter 17. Verse 5: “And now, O Father, glorify thou me with thine own self with the glory which I had with thee before the world was.” What was before the creation of the world? The glory that God the Father and God the Son shared with each other! There was fellowship among the Persons of the Godhead: the Father and the Son shared glory. Let us continue reading in the Scriptures.

John 17:24 reads (Jesus still praying to His Father): “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.” What occurred between God the Father and God the Son before the foundation (or the creation) of the world? Love! The Father loved the Son, and the Son loved the Father. The Holy Spirit, the third Person of the Godhead, was there to witness the love between God the Father and God the Son!

Also, we can also add that before the events of Genesis 1:1, the triune God was “laying out blueprints” for the timeline of human history. For instance, Ephesians 1:4 reads: “According as he [God the Father] hath chosen us in him [Christ Jesus] before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love.” What was God doing before creation? He was choosing His servants, people who would serve Him—us, members of the Church Body of Christ—and He was planning our role in human history and His plan for the ages. (Please take note that He was not selecting us for salvation [as Calvinism teaches], He was selecting us for service. God was determining our role as members of the Church the Body of Christ.)

In the eons of eternity past, prior to creation, God was also setting the stage for His own death, as we see what Peter says to the Jews in Acts 2:23: “[Jesus Christ] Him, being delivered by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God, ye have taken, and by wicked hands have crucified and slain.” The triune God already knew and planned Christ’s First Advent and His crucifixion from the foundation of the world! He already knew He would have to die for man that would come on the scene later.

While it is possible we have not answered the question to your satisfaction, this is all the information God has chosen to reveal to us in His Word. It is not important to know what God was doing in eternity past; otherwise God would have gone into great detail about it in His Word. Anything beyond what we have discussed here from the Scriptures would simply be speculation, with no supporting Scripture.

Also see:
» Is the Trinity/Godhead a Biblical doctrine?
» Why did God create us? (LINK TEMPORARILY UNAVAILABLE)
» Does God really exist? (LINK TEMPORARILY UNAVAILABLE)

GOD, Is the Godhead/Trinity a Biblical concept?

Is the Godhead/Trinity a Biblical concept?

IS GOD REALLY ONE GOD IN THREE PERSONS? OR IS HE THREE GODS? DOES THE BIBLE TEACH THE DOCTRINE OF THE TRINITY/GODHEAD?

by Shawn Brasseaux

Does God exist in three Persons? If so, does that mean that Christians worship three Gods? The term “Trinity” does not appear in the Bible, but the word “Godhead” appears three times in the King James Bible (Acts 17:29; Romans 1:20; Colossians 2:9)—modern Bibles, unfortunately, either omit or water down this term. What is the Trinity? Is it a biblical doctrine? We want to answer these questions using the Bible, not some denominational handbook.

One of the strongest claims in the Bible for God existing in three Persons is the “famous Trinitarian proof” (the Johannine Comma) of 1 John 5:7, which reads: “For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one.” Obviously, this verse speaks of three Persons all being God, all three being one. Notice, the Godhead is not three Gods; but three Persons in one Godhead. We have God the Father, God the Son (Jesus Christ, “the Word” of John 1:1,14), and God the Holy Ghost. Notice how the verse says the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost “are one:” this is reminiscent of what Jesus said in John 10:30, “I and my Father are one.”

Unfortunately, unlike the King James Bible, most modern English Bibles, such as NIV, NASB, NRSV, ESV, omit 1 John 5:7 (this is also true of the depraved Jehovah’s Witness “bible,” which denies the deity of Jesus Christ!). Why? Because their corrupt underlying Greek New Testament texts omit this verse. It should be noted that the Old Syriac (A.D. 170) and the Old Latin (A.D. 200) contain 1 John 5:7 and over a dozen church fathers and writers quote it between A.D. 150 and A.D. 550, some predating the corrupt modern Bibles’ manuscripts that omit it. All of 1 John 5:7 belongs in the Bible; it is an important verse! But, there is more in the Bible to support the doctrine of the Trinity.

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 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 1:1,14). By noting the wording, we learn that Jesus Christ, “the Word” (cf. Revelation 19:13), is God. According to John 1:14, “the Word became flesh:” unquestionably, that refers to Jesus Christ (God’s incarnation, His indwelling a human body). In the beginning Jesus Christ “was with God” (indicating He is a Person separate from God the Father), and Jesus Christ “was God” (indicating He is one with [equal to] God the Father).

In 2 Corinthians 13:14, we read: “The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Ghost, be with you all. Amen.” Jesus Christ told His apostles, “Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost” (Matthew 28:19). Yet again, we see God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Ghost.

Immediately after John the Baptist water baptized Jesus, the Holy Spirit descended like a dove, and as it lighted upon the Lord Jesus, the God the Father declared, “This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased” (Matthew 3:16,17; Mark 1:10,11; Luke 3:22,23). There are the three Persons of the Godhead in three passages.

Look at Ephesians 2:18: “For through him [Jesus Christ] we both have access by one Spirit unto the Father.” Here are all three members of the Godhead again. “Elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through sanctification of the Spirit, unto obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ” (1 Peter 1:2). And again, all three Persons of the Godhead are found in one verse.

At the midpoint of the seven-year Tribulation (which is after the rapture), a remnant of Jewish believers will flee to the mountains of Israel. This remnant is described as “the woman.” In Revelation 12:6, we see “And the woman fled into the wilderness, where she hath a place prepared of God, that they should feed her there a thousand two hundred and threescore days.” This place in the mountains will be “prepared of God, that they should feed her there….” Notice “they”—this is another reference to the triune Godhead.

In Ephesians 4:4-6, we find a list of seven distinct doctrines that are vital to the Dispensation of Grace—by the way, seven is God’s number of perfection: (1) one Body, the Church the Body of Christ; (2) one Spirit, the Holy Spirit; (3) one hope, the hope of our calling; (4) one Lord, God the Son Jesus Christ; (5) one faith, the faith of Jesus Christ; (6) one baptism, not water baptism, but the supernatural baptism of 1 Corinthians 12:13; and (7) one God and Father. All three members of the Godhead—Father, Son, and Spirit—are mentioned yet again.

In the Person of the Holy Spirit, God indwells us believers and seals us until the “day of redemption;” that is, the rapture (Ephesians 4:30). This Holy Spirit is the same Spirit that indwelt Christ while He was in His earthly ministry (Mark 3:29,30). Jesus Christ, God the Son, prayed to God the Father in Matthew 27:46, Mark 15:34, Luke 23:46, and John chapter 17. Obviously, Jesus was not talking to Himself, so He was communicating with God His Father.

The Holy Spirit is not “God’s active force,” but rather the Holy Spirit is a Person of the Godhead (Acts 5:3,4). A force does not have a seat of emotions; we know that the Holy Spirit is not an “active force” because the Holy Spirit can be “grieved” and saddened (Ephesians 4:30). The Holy Spirit can also teach (1 Corinthians 2:13) and pray (Romans 8:26,27).

The Father is not over God the Son, and the God the Son is no greater than the Holy Spirit. All three are coequal in power and authority (however, because Jesus Christ is both God and man, He can, in His humanity, submit Himself to His heavenly Father’s will [see Matthew 26:39,42; Mark 14:36; Luke 22:42; Philippians 2:5-11]). Jesus made it very clear, “My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all… I and my Father are one” (John 10:29,30)—the Jews then took up stones to stone Jesus (verse 31)!

The best way to comprehend the Godhead is to consider that we are all equally human by nature, but we are also individuals. God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit are all individuals, but they are all equally God by nature and in essence (all three are omnipresent, omniscient, omnipotent, righteous, just, holy, et cetera), thus making all three “one” (1 John 5:7).

God existing in a Trinity prevents tyranny or deception. If God were just one Person, He could be a bully and He could be dishonest. However, all three Persons of the Godhead testify to the truthfulness and integrity of the other two members. They testify to the truth of each other, just as Bible says, “At the mouth of two witnesses, or three witness,” the testimony is to be believed—the testimony of one person is not to be accepted unless at least one or two others corroborate him (Deuteronomy 17:6; Matthew 18:16; 2 Corinthians 13:1; 1 Timothy 5:19; Hebrews 10:28).

God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit live for each other. They fellowship with one another, and they want us to fellowship with them! God became a man in order to restore our fellowship with Him. Notice what Jesus Christ prayed to His heavenly Father just before He went to Calvary’s cross: “[5] And now, O Father, glorify thou me with thine own self with the glory which I had with thee before the world was. [24] 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” (John 17:5,24).

We cannot see all three Persons of the Godhead. However, God the Son stepped out of eternity and entered time, and “in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily” (Colossians 2:9; cf. John 14:9; Colossians 1:15; Hebrews 1:3). Jesus Christ is fully God and fully man, so He can take God by the hand and man by the hand and link them (1 Timothy 2:5)! The invisible triune Godhead has been made visible via the God-Man, Jesus Christ!

So, God exists in three Persons—they are three Persons in one Godhead; not three Gods. The three Persons of the Godhead—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit—are unique Individuals, but they are also similar in that they are all fully God. Indeed, the doctrine of the Godhead—God existing in three Persons—is one of the most difficult Bible concepts to grasp, but we take the doctrine of the Trinity by faith.

IS THE TRINITY A “NEW TESTAMENT INVENTION?” OR, IS IT FOUND IN THE OLD TESTAMENT TOO?

Opponents to the doctrine of the Trinity claim that it is only a “New Testament teaching,” or that the Trinity promotes polytheism (the belief in many gods). For instance, modern-day Jews reject the doctrine of the Trinity because Deuteronomy 6:4 says: “Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD.” If this verse disproves the Trinity (as present-day Jews claim), then that would mean that Deuteronomy 6:4 contradicts a number of Old Testament passages—verses in the Hebrew Bible—that support the Trinity.

Although God did not explicitly reveal the doctrine of the Trinity in the Old Testament like He does in the New, we can go back to the Old Testament and see references to the Trinity there. Remember that the Bible is a progressive revelation, with things kept secret in the Old Testament and later revealed in the New.

For example, God the Father tells God the Son, “The LORD said unto my Lord, Sit thou at my right hand, until I make thine enemies thy footstool” (Psalm 110:1). Compare this to Acts 2:34-36. If the Trinity is not found in the Old Testament, then what is the meaning of Psalm 110:1?

Genesis 1:26 says, “And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness.” Notice the word “our” appears twice. The triune God made mankind in their image, as in one God in three Persons. In Genesis 3:22, after Adam and Eve fall into sin, we see the LORD God saying, “Behold, the man is become as one of us, to know good and evil:” Notice that pronoun “us.” This is a reference to the Trinity. (At this point, the following objection is raised to avoid the Trinity doctrine: “How do we know the words ‘our image’ in Genesis 1:26 do not mean that God made man in His image and the angels’ image?” Because Genesis 1:27 says: “So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.” Man is made in “God’s image,” the triune Godhead’s image.)

We read in Genesis 11:6-7: “[6] And the LORD said, Behold, the people is one, and they have all one language; and this they begin to do: and now nothing will be restrained from them, which they have imagined to do. [7] Go to, let us go down, and there confound their language, that they may not understand one another’s speech.” Notice, the LORD says “Let us go down.” Like in Genesis 3:22, the “us” is a reference to the Trinity: God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Ghost.

In Psalm 2:1-3, we read the prophetic statement of Israel rejecting her Messiah-King the Lord Jesus (1000 years before it happened): “[1] Why do the heathen rage, and the people imagine a vain thing? [2] The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the LORD, and against his anointed, saying, [3] Let us break their bands asunder, and cast away their cords from us.”

Notice, Israel’s religious leaders conspire with the Roman government to kill Jesus Christ (verses 1 and 2). Verse 3 says it all—the Jews and Romans want to “break their bands asunder, and cast away their cords from us.” To whom is “their” referring? Look at verse 2: “the LORD, and his anointed.” This is God the Father and His Son Jesus Christ (“Christ” is Greek for “anointed one;” in Hebrew, the word is “Messiah”). God the Father and God the Son share power over mankind, and rebellious mankind wants to destroy the Godhead’s authority over them.

Read Isaiah 48:12,16: “[12] Hearken unto me, O Jacob and Israel, my called; I am he; I am the first, I also am the last… [16] Come ye near unto me, hear ye this; I have not spoken in secret from the beginning; from the time that it was, there am I: and now the Lord GOD, and his Spirit, hath sent me.” This is the Trinity again!

It should also be noted that the Hebrew word translated “God”—Elohim—such as in Genesis 1:1, is plural, as in three Persons, and yet He is one LORD, JEHOVAH (Deuteronomy 6:4).

Is God a triune God? YES! Does the Bible Teach the doctrine of the Trinity? YES! The Bible, in both the Old and New Testaments, gives us ample proof that God is a triune God, that He exists as three separate but equal Persons—God the Father, God the Son (Jesus Christ), and God the Holy Spirit. They are all fully God, yet they are unique Persons too, just as we are all fully human, yet we are unique persons. All three members of the Godhead operate in perfect accordance with each other, and they are coequal and coeternal (none of them were created, and they exercise the same power).

Also see:
» Is the Holy Spirit a Person or a force?
» Is Jesus Christ God? (UPCOMING)
» Does God really exist? (UPCOMING)