ONENESS OBJECTION # 2 – “THE SALUTATIONS” If God and Jesus are One, what about Paul’s greetings from “God the Father, and the Lord Jesus Christ”? WHY IS THIS OBJECTION RAISED? This objection is raised because of certain passages in the epistles, which Trinitarians believe serve as proof to three persons in the Godhead. Here are a couple of those scriptures: 1. Romans 1: 7 …Grace to you and peace from God our Father, and the Lord Jesus Christ. 2. Galatians 1: 3 Grace be to you and peace from God the Father, and from our Lord Jesus Christ, Notice the second time the word “from” is used in Galatians 1: 3. Whenever a word appears in Italics in the KJV, this means that it was not in the original text, but rather inserted by the interpreters as they saw fit to make a passage more understandable. You will understand why I mentioned this as we study further. WHAT ARE SOME OF THE PROBLEMS WITH THIS BELIEF? Some of the problems that are encountered with believing that the greetings from “God”, and “Jesus” are proof of the Trinity are these: 1. The doctrine of the Trinity was not officially developed until the year 381AD, over 300 years after the writing of these epistles. The Bible never mentions the words “trinity” or “triune”, but constantly mentions “God is ONE.” (See Deuteronomy 6: 4) 2. Why would they have not been greeted from the Holy Ghost as well? How can “God” and “Jesus” be proof of THREE individuals? 3. Only one name is ever mentioned, Jesus Christ. Why are we not given names for the others? 4. If the word, “and” in these passages, (God the Father AND the Lord Jesus Christ) signifies distinct and separate “persons” in the Godhead, the following scriptures would lead us to believe that “God” is a different person from “The Father”, thus creating a fourth person in the Godhead: Philippians 4: 20 Now unto God and our Father be glory for ever and ever... 1 Thes. 3: 11 Now God himself and our Father, and our Lord Jesus Christ… Rev 1: 6 And hath made us kings and priests unto God and his Father; to him be glory… Col. 3: 17…do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God and the Father… WHAT DOES THE BIBLE ACTUALLY MEAN? The key to understanding the salutations is the word, “and”, as it is used in conjunction with God the Father AND the Lord Jesus Christ. The original Greek text used the word, “kai” in these instances, which could also be interpreted as “even”, meaning “who is the same as” or “also known as”. Therefore, if interpreted with the word, “even”, the scriptures we have just reviewed would not imply in any way that there are 2, 3, or 4 members of the Godhead. They would simply read, “Greetings from God the Father, even The Lord Jesus Christ”. As a matter of fact, the word, “kai” was indeed interpreted as “even” in some places in scripture. Examples: James 3: 9 Therewith bless we God, even the Father ... *2 Corinthians 1: 3 Blessed be God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies, and the God of all comfort. *Notice how many ways God was expressed here. Nobody would dare try and tell you that “God”, “the Father of Jesus Christ”, “the Father of mercies” and “the God of all comfort” are 4 different persons. In the same manner, the salutations are not declaring separate persons, but describing the One God who was manifest in flesh, and continues to abide with us in Spirit. CONCLUSION The greetings in the salutations were just another way of expressing the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Only one name is ever mentioned – Jesus Christ. For the Apostles to speak of God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ in the same sentence was no different as when they spoke of “the great God and Savior, Jesus Christ” (Titus 2: 13) or “both Lord and Christ” (Acts 2: 36). The One eternal God, who is a Spirit, manifested himself in flesh, and that human body was literally the Son of God. When the Bible refers to Father, Son, or Holy Spirit, it is not referring to three separate persons in One God, but different expressions of One God. The devil is referred to as the god of this world, Lucifer, Satan, the dragon, the father of lies, the accuser, etc. Yet he is just one devil. Nobody would declare that every title of the devil is indicative of a different “person”. (See Revelation 12: 9) @Back On Track Bible Studies - Rick Flores From Withstanding The Winds
Posted on: Tue, 16 Dec 2014 14:07:30 +0000