Tuesday, December 25, 2018

“The only true God”


At John 17:3 the Lord Jesus called the Father (John 17:2, 5) “the only true God.” Or as William Barclay conveyed it: “the only real God.”[1] It is significant that the Father never returned the favor. It is not reciprocal. (The Father never called Jesus “the only true God.”)[2]

In this passage “Jesus addresses God on behalf of his followers” and “here he prays for himself and on their behalf.”[3] It is “The priestly prayer of Jesus before his sacrifice.”[4]

Thus, Jesus petitioned and believed in one (1) sovereign Jehovah God his Father (Deuteronomy 32:6; Isaiah 63:16, 64:8; Jeremiah 31:9; Psalm 89:26; Malachi 2:10): the Prime Jehovah.

Any additional explanation commensurate with the Trinitarian ideology disagrees with the Lord Jesus’ crystal-clear clarion expression of praise.

I will believe Jesus, and hold Trinitarian ideology to be in error disagreeing with Jesus. Any who disagree with Jesus and side with Trinitarian ideology place themselves in a precarious position.—Matthew 7:21-23.

Jesus therefore would not hold Conciliar Christology[5] in high esteem like the Trinitarian churches do. Neither do I, and will err on the side of Jesus.—Matthew 11:25; Luke 10:21; 1 Corinthians 1:20-21.

Erring on the side of Jesus is the safest side to err on.


Footnotes:
[1] The New Testament, a Translation by William Barclay. (1999)

[2] Trinitarians may appeal to Hebrews 1:8, but this is a quote from Psalm 45:6 to the Davidic King representing God. This only proves that Jesus is the Davidic King representing God. They may also appeal (as the popular Dr. Heiser has) to Genesis 48:15-16 (NWT) which parallels “true God” with “angel.” However, this is moot as the NET Bible notes for “angel”:
Jacob closely associates God with an angelic protective presence. This does not mean that Jacob viewed his God as a mere angel, but it does suggest that he was aware of an angelic presence sent by God to protect him. Here he so closely associates the two that they become virtually indistinguishable. In this culture messengers typically carried the authority of the one who sent them and could even be addressed as such. Perhaps Jacob thought that the divine blessing would be mediated through this angelic messenger. (underscore added)
Thus, if anything, the angel could be called “true God” (NWT) representationally and not reciprocally vis-à-vis John 17:3.

(See a discussion of the Genesis 48:15-16 argument here: youtu.be/GaYVBqgVxd8.)

Other Trinitarians in what is observed to be an act of sheer desperation appeal to Jude 1:4, where Jesus is called: “our only Master and Lord.” (Barclay) Jesus is “our only Master and Lord” under the “the only real God.” This is the most natural, direct conclusion due to the subordinationist terminology excluding “God.” Jesus is our Master, Lord, and Christ because the “only real God” exalted him to that status.—Acts 2:32-33, 36; 5:31; Philippians 2:9.

[3] The Jewish Annotated New Testament, page 189

[4] RSV footnote.

[5] That is, the Christology (the branch of Christian theology relating to the person, nature, and role of Christ) derived from the Ecumenical Councils starting with Nicea in 325 CE.


Additional reading:
Video:
Credits:
Opening graphic from: All About Japan’s First Sunrise of the Year and 5 Good Places to View It. http://jpninfo.com/66563

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posted by JimSpace at 10:48 PM