God the Father
The doctrine of the Trinity insists that you believe Jesus is a divine “person” who is equal with the Father. To us this seems glaringly at odds with a host of scriptures that clearly and explicitly say otherwise. God our Father even seems a little indignant when He asks “To whom then will you liken me or shall I be equal?” (Isaiah 40:25) and in another place He says “I am YHWH and there is none else, there is no God beside me.” (Isaiah 45:5) The Old Testament is filled with statements like these and the New Testament likewise declares the unique supremacy and singularity of God’s Being. “For us (Christians) there is one God, the Father, and no other besides Him.” (I Cor 8:4-6)
Trinitarian Dogma Says God is Not Even a Person!
The trinitarian dogma we have inherited insists that God is not even a person! C.S. Lewis said it this way, “We must remind ourselves that Christian theology does not believe God to be a person.” I would suggest that instead listening to C.S. Lewis we should remind ourselves that this kind of thinking is radically anti-biblical. How is it even possible that our theology has reduced God to some type of “substance” or “essence”? Another good question is this… Is Jesus Christ or any other being equal with God the Father?
The Trinity Says God is One Substance
Scripture has been subjugated to philosophy to create the illusion that God is a single essence or substance instead of a single divine Being. In the words of one writer, “God is one what in three whos” (whatever that means). The truth that the God of Israel is an intensely personal God has been replaced by a new belief that God should be thought of as one divine “essence or substance” instead of one Supreme Being. This drastic change transforms the God of Israel into an incomprehensible abstraction thereby depersonalizing the most personal of all beings!
The Trinity Has Some Big Problems
One Catholic scholar observes “a fundamental crisis over plausibility and acceptance of the church’s Christology (read trinity). Incomprehensibility, complexity and remoteness from life and the Bible are the themes of a crisis of belief.” Another notable Trinitarian scholar has acknowledged “We may have to admit that we don’t really know in what way God is one and in what different way He is three.” These are open admissions of the weakness and failure of trinitarian theology. We appreciate this kind of honesty! These are modern scholars who recognize the trinity has some very big problems.
The Bible Says God Has No Equal
On the other hand, “We speak that we do know…” (John 3:11) “For us there is one God, the Father, and no other besides Him” (I Cor 8:4-6) “For us there is one God the Father, and one mediator between God and man, the man Christ Jesus.” (I Tim 2:5) There is only one divine person we call God and He has no equal. We know Him as the Father and Jesus Christ is His miraculously conceived, resurrected and glorified human Son. This truth is so straightforward and clear that even children can understand it. It is absolutely and utterly biblical to say that God the Father has no co-equal “persons” beside Him. Remember this… God has no equal.
Jesus Never Claimed to be God’s Equal
The man Christ Jesus made it abundantly clear to His disciples that He did not consider Himself to be God’s equal. “My Father is greater than I…” (John 14:28) and that He (Jesus) said and did only what He had been taught by His Father. For example: “Of my own self I can do nothing…” (John 5:30) Jesus never claimed to be God’s equal but he did claim to be God’s son! Believing that Jesus is co-equal with the Father overrules the words and teachings of Jesus Himself and we think that’s a very bad idea. If you have accepted the notion that Jesus is co-equal with the Father you might want to reconsider. For your own sake please do.
PS: This isn’t hard to understand! The only reason it seems difficult is because our vision has been clouded and our hearing has been dulled by the archaic creeds and dogmas that still afflict the church. Be brave dear friend! Read the scriptures for yourself. See what Jesus said with your own eyes. Hear His words with your own ears. You’ll be glad you did. God Bless.
PPS: Please share this with a friend.
Copyright 2022 by Bob Shutes