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NASB | James 2:19 You believe that God is one. You do well; the demons also believe, and shudder. |
AMPLIFIED 2015 | James 2:19 You believe that God is one; you do well [to believe that]. The demons also believe [that], and shudder and bristle [in awe-filled terror--they have seen His wrath]! [Deut 6:4; 11:13-21; Mark 12:29] |
Subject: Is God ONE or is God THREE? |
Bible Note: Greetings, Jesusman. Earlier today, Makarios stated in a post concerning Acts 8:37: 'We cannot "improve" upon what God has revealed.' This reflects my sentiment concerning the omission of the doctrine of the trinity from the Bible. I would simply add to that thought and say that the only doctrines that have "apostolic" authority or certification are the ones defined in scripture. I believe that the fact that none of the inspired writers of the Bible did "sit down and put pen to paper, and [write] down the concise doctrine of the trinity" is very significant. I want to make it clear that none of what I write is a personal attack on you, my friend. Your ideas and questions are very pertinent and thought-provoking. I have had to come to grips with these very same questions. Let me try briefly show how my understanding of God is fully complicit with all of the Bible without in any way being a "contradiction in theology." (Granted, it may contradict extra-Biblical theology, but not Biblical theology.) Your question "Does God have some cosmic form of Multiple personalities?" is precisely the explanation that I would offer. I understand the Bible to teach that Jesus Christ was the physical, finite representation of the spiritual, infinite God. God robed Himself in flesh in order to redeem fallen humanity. Jesus Christ was both humanity and deity. He was fully man--the Son of Man; and He was fully God--the Son of God. When Jesus spoke, His words must be analyzed to determine whether he was speaking as a man or as God. Now we know that God is infinite, eternal, omnipresent, omnipotent and omniscient. And we also know that the body of flesh was subject to the limitations of humanity--it was finite. It is also readily apparent that you cannot pour all of an infinite substance into a finite container. So, even though Jesus Christ in the flesh on the earth was fully God, yet God the Eternal Spirit still existed in the same form as He always had--eternal, infinite, omnipotent, omnipresent, omniscient... I submit this humbly for your consideration. I harbor no hostility toward you or anyone else who chooses to believe differently than I do. It just seems to me like tradition has a stronger influence on many folks than does truth--i.e., the actual Word of God. How does "multiple persons" in the Godhead rank as orthodoxy while "multiple personalities" in the Godhead ranks as heterodoxy? If this is only a question of semantics, then I choose to remain with the simple and unadorned doctrines of the Bible, because I am assured of safety in nothing else. Kind regards, Tim D. Cormier Tennessee Preacher |