McBell
Unbound
Dodging the evidence?Lol I didn't copy and paste anything online. Nice try dodging the evidence I presented
I do not have a dog in this fight.
I am merely curious the source of your evidence.
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Dodging the evidence?Lol I didn't copy and paste anything online. Nice try dodging the evidence I presented
The Bible (what it says) and studying the TopicDodging the evidence?
I do not have a dog in this fight.
I am merely curious the source of your evidence.
If you do not want to reveal your source, that is fine.The Bible (what it says) and studying the Topic
He writes it. It is his own work.If you do not want to reveal your source, that is fine.
I am not interested in Pigeon Chess.
Have a nice day.
Sorry JayJayDee, but the old Jehovahs Witness argument that Thomas was "surprised" is completely False. Thomas was not expressing surprise at seeing the risen Christ when he called Him "My Lord and My God." If Thomas had done this he would have been guilty of taking Gods name in vain. Jews of the first century believed that any careless use of Gods name amounted to blasphemy. If Thomas HAD taken Gods name in vain, Jesus surely would have rebuked him for doing so. But not only did Jesus NOT rebuke Thomas, He COMMENDED Thomas for finally coming to believe He was who He said He was (both "Lord" and "God") Jesus affirmed Thomas, not corrected Him. No created being could ever allow such words to be addressed to him personally. No angel, no prophet, no sane human being could ever allow himself to be addressed as both Lord and God. Yet Jesus not only accepts the words of Thomas but pronounces the blessings of faith upon them as well. For Thomas wasn't just calling Jesus "a god." He was calling Jesus "His Lord" and "His God." And again, if Jesus was not God almighty in the same sense the Father is, He surely would have said something like, "No-I am just a lesser god. Jehovah is the only true God. You must not put me in Jehovahs place. Only Jehovah can be called my Lord and my God." But Jesus said Nothing. Instead, as I said, He Commended Thomas for recognizing His True Identity
Of course.
In the days of the apostles, an apostasy (a falling away) was already stirring. Men wanted to bring in teachings that conflicted with the teachings of the Christ. The apostles, who were the ones responsible for bestowing the gifts, were acting as a restraint against this apostasy that Jesus said would come. (2 Thess 2:1-3, 6, 7)
In his parable of the "wheat and the weeds" he said that satan would oversow the same "field" that Jesus had planted with fine wheat...with weeds of false Christianity. This was the "wolves in sheep's clothing" that we were warned about. These wolves were already at the door when the last of the apostles died. Then, when there was nothing to stop them, the weeds took over, as weeds always do. Both were to grow together in the world until the harvest time, when a separation would take place. (Matt 13:24-30) At the end of this period, the reapers would gather the weeds and dispose of them.
The promised return of Christ was expected early in the piece but unknown to the Bible writers, almost two thousand years would pass before Jesus returned to take his chosen ones home. By then, the world was choking in these weeds.
When we examine the history of the church, we see a decline in obedience to the teachings of the Christ from the second century onwards......so by the 4th century "Christianity was no longer recognisable as the church Jesus started.
It was taken hostage by Constantine the Great who fused pagan Roman sun worship with the poor excuse for Christianity that has developed over the centuries. Roman Carholicism was the mother church, but she has many daughters. Christendom is their sum total...part of the religious empire created by the devil to lead people away from God. We are told to "get out" of that spiritually adulterous "city". (Rev 18:4, 5)
Jesus qualifies for the title "god". As has been explained many times before, Thomas' expression was one of surprise....he was not stating a doctrine that none of the other apostles supported. Jesus himself identified his Father as "the only true God" (John 17:3) yet in John 1:18 Jesus is called "the only begotten god".
"God" in Greek is "theos" and simply means a "mighty one"....Thomas could rightly call Jesus a mighty one because of this incident.
Paul called satan "theos" (2 Cor 4:3, 4) Did he mean that satan was Almighty God or that he was a "mighty one"....someone with immense power. (1 John 5:19)
Sometimes the English translation does not reflect the Greek meaning at all.
Jesus is said to return with the voice of an archangel to call his chosen ones to heaven. Why would Jesus use the voice of a lesser being to make such an important call? If Jesus was God, then just as at Jesus' baptism, God's own voice was heard approving of his son, why would God not use his own voice to call his anointed to heaven?
"Are you aware?".....You use this phrase often....do you imagine that JW's are moronic mushrooms, kept in the dark and fed manure? Seriously...what do you imagine we are? Have you formed your opinion of us from our enemies? Do you really think we are that stupid? We are aware of everything. (John 15:18-21)
Those who formed those kinds of opinions in Jesus' day missed out on becoming his disciples....they are still waiting all these centuries later for him to put in his first appearance. They won't be prepared for his return.
We as Jehovah's people began a 'refining and cleansing' of our beliefs, "in the time of the end" just as Daniel had foretold. (Dan 12:4, 9, 10) Just as all was not revealed at once to Jesus apostles in the first century, so little by little our beliefs went through a cleansing and refining process that took many years. There was much work to do with so many centuries of apostate teachings to clear away. We sifted through our beliefs and one by one we threw away the erroneous teachings of Christendom and separated from them completely.
The word "proskenyo" has been described in detail already. The word is only used as "worship" in connection with Almighty God. Jesus never sought worship, (Luke 4:8) nor did he ever tell anyone to pray to him. He told us to pray to the Father in his name, acknowledging his service as "mediator between God and man".
"Proskenyo" is used to describe what the magi did to the child Jesus when they found him. Since they did not believe that he was a god, but simply "one born to be King of the Jews", they gave their honour and respect to this royal child.
There is so much ignorance about the Bible's teachings, it is as if we are surrounded by angry infants telling us that we have it all wrong. We have done thorough research and what we believe is cripturally sound. No one is forced to believe it......but we are compelled to preach it. What you do about it is nothing to do with us. (John 17:3) We are just the messengers. (1 Cor 3:6-9)
Has "the Christ" come and returned IN your flesh, INSIDE of you? Metaphysically? If not, you are all of those things you've listed above.
"Vine’s Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words (1981, Vol. 1, pp. 208, 209) states: “PAROUSIA . . . denotes both an arrival and a consequent presence with. For instance, in a papyrus letter [written in Greek] a lady speaks of the necessity of her parousia in a place in order to attend to matters relating to her property there. . . . When used of the return of Christ, at the Rapture of the Church, it signifies, not merely His momentary coming for His saints, but His presence with them from that moment until His revelation and manifestation to the world.” Liddell and Scott’s Greek-English Lexicon (revised by H. Jones, Oxford, 1968, p. 1343) shows that pa·rou·siʹa is used at times in secular Greek literature to refer to the “visit of a royal or official personage.”
Secular Greek writings are, of course, helpful in determining the sense of this Greek term. However, even more effective is the use given the word in the Bible itself. AtPhilippians 2:12, for example, Paul speaks of the Philippian Christians as obeying “not during my presence [pa·rou·siʹai] only, but now much more readily during my absence [a·pou·siʹai].” So, too, at 2 Corinthians 10:10, 11, after referring to those who said that “his letters are weighty and forceful, but his presence [pa·rou·siʹa] in person is weak and his speech contemptible,” Paul adds, “Let such a man take this into account, that what we are in our word by letters when absent [a·ponʹtes], such we shall also be in action when present [pa·ronʹtes].” (Compare also Php 1:24-27.) Thus, the contrast is between presence and absence, not between an arrival (or coming) and departure.
In view of this, J. B. Rotherham’s Emphasised Bible states in its appendix (p. 271): “In this edition the word parousia is uniformly rendered ‘presence’ (‘coming,’ as a representative of this word, being set aside). . . . The sense of ‘presence’ is so plainly [shown] by the contrast with ‘absence’ . . . that the question naturally arises,—Why not always so render it?”
That Jesus’ pa·rou·siʹa is not simply a momentary coming followed by a rapid departure but is, rather, a presence covering a period of time is also indicated by his words recorded at Matthew 24:37-39 and Luke 17:26-30.
Here “the days of Noah” are compared to “the presence of the Son of man” (“the days of the Son of man,” in Luke’s account). Jesus, therefore, does not limit the comparison just to the coming of the Deluge as a final climax during Noah’s days, though he shows that his own “presence” or “days” will see a similar climax. Since “the days of Noah” actually covered a period of years, there is basis for believing that the foretold “presence [or “days”] of the Son of man” would likewise cover a period of some years, being climaxed by the destruction of those not giving heed to the opportunity afforded them to seek deliverance."
Psalm 110:1, 2 says otherwise. Jesus sat at God's right hand waiting for his 'enemies to be placed as a stool for his feet'. He was not crowned as king then, because his first act as ruler of the kingdom was to evict satan and his hordes from heaven. The sign of his presence commenced from then.
Satan's activities have continued to intensify as his time grows shorter. Today he is no longer subtle...he has pulled out all the stops and he is in people!s faces....morally, physically and spiritually. Don't tell me you can't see it.
It is after Christ conquers his enemies that people will all serve him as king.
They will be the only ones remaining.His kingdom is everlasting, which means that all other kingdoms in opposition must be overthrown before that can take place. (Dan 2:44) . All of Daniel's prophesies pertain to "the time of the end" so that puts Jesus enthronement at the beginning of that period. (Dan 7:13, 14) 1914 fits perfectly.Daniel also saw the march of world powers as they interacted with God's people. The last ruling entity before the conclusion of this system of things in the Anglo-American dual world power. The end will come in our time
We are not a "church"....we don't have a list of "doctrines"...we have a belief system. It is in the process of constant clarification as the food is served to us. What we need to know is given to us when we need to know it. We gather together as Jehovah's people to encourage one another as we see that day approach. (Heb 10:24, 25)
The light gets brighter as Jehovah's day draws nearer. (Prov 4:18)
You are free to believe whatever you wish.....and so are we. What we choose as our truth is the basis for judgment.....how we respond the the global "witness" that Jesus is conducting in "all the inhabited earth" determines our future. (Matt 24:14) Believe it or not....it's your choice.
I guess my Top Ten List Proving Jesus is not the archangel Michael will go unchallenged. Sigh, even though it is the Truth, I guess I win by default as well.
Of course.
In the days of the apostles, an apostasy (a falling away) was already stirring. Men wanted to bring in teachings that conflicted with the teachings of the Christ. The apostles, who were the ones responsible for bestowing the gifts, were acting as a restraint against this apostasy that Jesus said would come. (2 Thess 2:1-3, 6, 7)
In his parable of the "wheat and the weeds" he said that satan would oversow the same "field" that Jesus had planted with fine wheat...with weeds of false Christianity. This was the "wolves in sheep's clothing" that we were warned about. These wolves were already at the door when the last of the apostles died. Then, when there was nothing to stop them, the weeds took over, as weeds always do. Both were to grow together in the world until the harvest time, when a separation would take place. (Matt 13:24-30) At the end of this period, the reapers would gather the weeds and dispose of them.
The promised return of Christ was expected early in the piece but unknown to the Bible writers, almost two thousand years would pass before Jesus returned to take his chosen ones home. By then, the world was choking in these weeds.
When we examine the history of the church, we see a decline in obedience to the teachings of the Christ from the second century onwards......so by the 4th century "Christianity was no longer recognisable as the church Jesus started.
It was taken hostage by Constantine the Great who fused pagan Roman sun worship with the poor excuse for Christianity that has developed over the centuries. Roman Carholicism was the mother church, but she has many daughters. Christendom is their sum total...part of the religious empire created by the devil to lead people away from God. We are told to "get out" of that spiritually adulterous "city". (Rev 18:4, 5)
Jesus qualifies for the title "god". As has been explained many times before, Thomas' expression was one of surprise....he was not stating a doctrine that none of the other apostles supported. Jesus himself identified his Father as "the only true God" (John 17:3) yet in John 1:18 Jesus is called "the only begotten god".
"God" in Greek is "theos" and simply means a "mighty one"....Thomas could rightly call Jesus a mighty one because of this incident.
Paul called satan "theos" (2 Cor 4:3, 4) Did he mean that satan was Almighty God or that he was a "mighty one"....someone with immense power. (1 John 5:19)
Sometimes the English translation does not reflect the Greek meaning at all.
"God" in Greek is "theos" and simply means a "mighty one"....Thomas could rightly call Jesus a mighty one because of this incident.
Jesus is said to return with the voice of an archangel to call his chosen ones to heaven. Why would Jesus use the voice of a lesser being to make such an important call? If Jesus was God, then just as at Jesus' baptism, God's own voice was heard approving of his son, why would God not use his own voice to call his anointed to heaven?
"Are you aware?".....You use this phrase often....do you imagine that JW's are moronic mushrooms, kept in the dark and fed manure? Seriously...what do you imagine we are? Have you formed your opinion of us from our enemies? Do you really think we are that stupid? We are aware of everything. (John 15:18-21)
Those who formed those kinds of opinions in Jesus' day missed out on becoming his disciples....they are still waiting all these centuries later for him to put in his first appearance. They won't be prepared for his return.
We as Jehovah's people began a 'refining and cleansing' of our beliefs, "in the time of the end" just as Daniel had foretold. (Dan 12:4, 9, 10) Just as all was not revealed at once to Jesus apostles in the first century, so little by little our beliefs went through a cleansing and refining process that took many years. There was much work to do with so many centuries of apostate teachings to clear away. We sifted through our beliefs and one by one we threw away the erroneous teachings of Christendom and separated from them completely.
The word "proskenyo" has been described in detail already. The word is only used as "worship" in connection with Almighty God. Jesus never sought worship, (Luke 4:8) nor did he ever tell anyone to pray to him. He told us to pray to the Father in his name, acknowledging his service as "mediator between God and man".
"Proskenyo" is used to describe what the magi did to the child Jesus when they found him. Since they did not believe that he was a god, but simply "one born to be King of the Jews", they gave their honour and respect to this royal child.
There is so much ignorance about the Bible's teachings, it is as if we are surrounded by angry infants telling us that we have it all wrong. We have done thorough research and what we believe is cripturally sound. No one is forced to believe it......but we are compelled to preach it. What you do about it is nothing to do with us. (John 17:3) We are just the messengers. (1 Cor 3:6-9)
So it says in v.3 that.‘Let no one in any way deceive you,’ and v.15, say that we Stand Firm and hold on to the traditions.
2 Thess. 2:15
15. So then, brethren, stand firm and hold to the traditions which you were taught, whether by word of mouth or by letter from us.
Then what will be the consequence if there is apostasy (during their time and the coming days)?
Truly, they stand firm and by this message (below), Christianity was never shaken or rattled. Instead Paul uttered “Now to our God and Father be the glory forever and ever. Amen.”
They stand firm and dependent on God’s protection. They are warned only and not to be ready to start a new established church. Thus, no any sign of command from Jesus Christ that a future church will be founded.
....2 Thess. 3:3-6
3. But the Lord is faithful, and He will strengthen and protect you from the evil one.
4. And we have confidence in the Lord concerning you, that you are doing and will continue to do what we command.
5. And may the Lord direct your hearts into the love of God and into the steadfastness of Christ.
6. Now we command you, brethren, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you keep aloof from every brother who leads an unruly life and not according to the tradition which you received from us.
We acknowledged on the account regarding the Roman Catholicism during that time, but based on the scripture above by Paul, they are never shaken and rattled. Truly, they hold firm to what has commanded to hold on their tradition. Now, where does that notion about sun god, Constantine and Roman Catholicism came from?
Do you think that there are no more Christians like Tertullian, Athanasius, Justyn Martyr, Iraenaeus, Aristides, Origen and other apologists, and early Church Fathers who propagate Christianity?
Let us see if Thomas was really in the state of surprise like what JW org. and the Church of Christ (Philippines) claimed. The right context can surely help us to draw the right conclusion if John 17:3 mentioned Thomas presence....
Question: How come Thomas was surprise when he already heard about Jesus already? and after 8 days. Please think about it.
If you are Thomas, will you be in the act of surprise or shock that you’ve seen Jesus after you know it already before (that they see Jesus already without Thomas) plus the 8 days afterwards???
Then if you would insist that Thomas will be in the act of surprise, he will be overacting or exaggerating. It is like an actor who will do the play to a scene, do you want to see an actor in a Delayed Reaction? I’m sure the director will kick you out because of wrong sequence of acting as delayed reaction.
The validity of evidence in regard to Jesus deity came from the affirmation of Jesus "Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet believe." Jesus never refuted nor corrected Thomas confession, but affirmed and accepted it. In consideration with their practice in utterance of a deity is punishable by stoning to death (John 10:33), therefore the uttered word of Thomas is a verbal risk which he should be discreet to do it.
John 10:33
33. The Jews answered him, "It is not for a good work that we stone you but for blasphemy; because you, being a man, make yourself God."
If Jesus is the “begotten Son,” then how come Archangel is a “begotten Son”?
The problem of the word “mighty one” is you converted it easily as God. Jesus is already stoned because of His claim to be God. JW believed Father God is Almighty God and Jesus Christ is a Mighty God.
How come that the word “God” which refers to Almighty God simply means now into a “a Mighty one or Mighty God”? It is a contradiction. Is Jesus a Mighty God or Almighty God?
It is because Jesus is not the archangel Michael. Let me prove to you. Now, why Jesus can appeal to Father God to put more than twelve legions of angels, if Jesus is the Archangel Michael?
Does an Archangel can appeal to our Father God? It is not logical.
Sorry for my word usage for making you upset. Ok. It is clear that when the word
“worship” refer to God (Father), the worship is used, but for Jesus as the Mighty God, the word “obeisance” is use to come out that He is a lesser God.
One thing that came up to my mind is this:
If Jesus is Mighty God, He is also a God , not a god. How come that He is not—to be worshipped?
Hebrews 1:1-2Why does that make any difference?
When Paul wrote those words in Hebrews ch 1, Jesus was sitting at God's right hand in heaven, waiting for the time when his 'enemies would be placed as a stool for his feet'. (Psalm 110:1)
It is the words prior to verse 5, 6 that give us the explanation.......
Hebrews 1:1-4...."God, after He spoke long ago to the fathers in the prophets in many portions and in many ways, in these last days has spoken to us in His Son, whom He appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the world. And He is the radiance of His glory and the exact representation of His nature, and upholds all things by the word of His power. When He had made purification of sins, He sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, having become as much better than the angels, as He has inherited a more excellent name than they." (NASB)
What is Paul saying about Jesus in these verses? Christ is "appointed heir of all things". What is an heir? What things did Christ "inherit"? Trinitarians will not like the words of this scripture because it clearly separates God from his Christ. Jesus is given a name more excellent than the angels' and is an inheritor of what his God gives him. If Jesus was God, what could he "inherit" that he doesn't already have?
But as God's "only begotten son", who was a unique creation......'the radiance of God's glory and the exact representation of his nature"....Jesus was not just your average angel. Which is why it is said in verses 5 and 6..."For to which of the angels did He ever say, “You are My Son, Today I have begotten You”? And again,“I will be a Father to Him And He shall be a Son to Me”? And when He again brings the firstborn into the world, He says, “And let all the angels of God worship Him.”
God did not entrust any of those Angels with the task of rescuing the human race...he sent his most trusted son to do the job.
The word rendered "worship" in verse 6 is "proskenyo" which in this instance means "obeisance" as the angels are bowing before one who is their superior....not only their superior but the one who was responsible for their very existence. (Col 1:15, 16) But he is not receiving "worship" such as is rendered to God "alone". (Luke 4:8)
There are only two beings in all of scripture who are said to be in command of the angels....Jesus and Michael.
If you choose not to believe that they are the same personage under different names in different roles in their service to Jehovah....then don't.
It matters little in the big picture. What matters, is that Jeus is NOT Almighty God....isn't that something you have stated is not a belief of yours in any case?
I have no necessity to recoup anything. Perhaps it is you who need to recoup your own understanding? I am quite satisfied with mine. There are few dead pixels in my big picture, thanks to my teachers, whom I believe are directed by God's spirit.
You are free to believe whatever you wish.
The weeds came in. They were the Gnostics and the Arians. Both were condemned by Church councils.And that is just what happened. The apostles had only the Hebrew Scriptures.....we have their writings and the Christian "traditions" handed down by them is in the Christian scriptures, not in the traditions of an apostate church system. Do you understand the difference?
The "wheat" were not going disappear, but their growth was to be stunted by the "weeds". This is made apparent by the fact that the workers were instructed not to uproot the weeds in case they uprooted the wheat along with them. (Matt 13:36-43)
So both have been 'growing together' from the first century all the way to the time of the end (the harvest) It is only at the end times that a distinction was to be made between the two. The reapers are instructed to collect the weeds first and dispose of them. Then the wheat are gathered into the storehouse.
The Bible paints a very clear picture to me.
What has that scripture got to do with the apostasy? It is clear that "some" would stand firm for the truth of Christ's teachings. The wheat have been there all along. Many of them were tortured and executed by the church itself for daring to oppose its absolute authority and wicked teachings.
The weeds did not behave in a Christ-like manner but like the Pharisees, imitated their real father. like it or not, this is the foundation of Christendom. If you want to criticise our beginnings, do not fail check out the origins of all the churches of Christendom.... It is shameful, to say the least.
The Reformation did not unite Christians...all it did was break the power of Roman Catholicism and carve Christianity up into even more bickering fragments. Are you proud to be a part of that....? I wasn't. I was relieved to walk away. (Rev 18:4, 5)
Yes they do "stand firm and dependent on God's protection" otherwise the wheat would have been completely obliterated by the weeds. But Daniel did not foretell a 'future new church'....he foretold a 'cleaning, whitening and refining' of God's people in the future. Just as Jesus came, not to start a new religion, but to clean up the Jewish religion....so in the "time of the end" it was foretold again. Why would God foretell a "cleansing" if there was no filth? Why a "whitening", if there was no stain? Why a "refining" if there were no impurities to be removed? (Dan 12:4, 9, 10)
Sorry, your phrasing is a little difficult to understand here.....but the establishment of Roman Catholicism was only a symptom of a much deeper problem....an apostasy that had been festering for centuries. There is a reason why the Christian scriptures were completed at the end of the first century because after that everything went to the dogs. The weeds began to flourish.
By the time of Constantine the church was so weak that the merging of Roman sun worship with apostate Christianity, (still evident in the Catholic Church to this day,) was sure to happen just as Jesus said it would. The weeds then took over in the church and spread all over the world. Churches became divided by nationalism and by sectarianism. Roman Catholic, Greek Orthodox, Russian Orthodox, Eastern Orthodox......does the Christ exist divided by nationality?
Why did Paul say there were to be NO divisions among Christ's followers? (1 Cor 1:10) Yet we see nothing but division in Christendom.
The early Church Fathers were not the "propagators" of Christianity, but the instruments used by the devil to fertilise his weeds. Some resisted the change but the tide became too strong.
Yes indeed, the context always reveals things we might not at first understand. Your own sequence seems to be out of order.
Were you there to read his body language and tone of voice? All we have is a brief account of a doubting man's reaction to seeing his Lord after he had suffered a terrible death. Thomas was not among the apostles when Jesus appeared to them. They related that Jesus had been with them...but he doubted that it could be true, stating that he would not believe it unless he saw the proof. So eight days later Jesus granted his request to see with his own eyes that it was truly Jesus. His response is not at all out of order under the circumstances.
This is not true. Thomas' brief response and Jesus' not making a fuss about it are hardly something that prove a doctrine.
The expression “My Lord and my God” would still have to harmonize with the rest of the inspired Scriptures. Since the record shows that Jesus had previously sent his disciples the message, “I am ascending to my Father and your Father and to my God and your God,” there is no reason for believing that Thomas thought Jesus was the Almighty God. (Joh 20:17) That would be a contradiction.
John himself, after recounting Thomas’ encounter with the resurrected Jesus, says of this and similar accounts: “But these have been written down that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ the Son of God, and that, because of believing, you may have life by means of his name.”—Joh 20:30, 31.
This was a false claim made by the Jews in an attempt to do away with Jesus, not an admission by God's son that he was equal with his Father.
God has many "sons" as the Bible clearly states. The Angels and even Adam are called "sons of God", but they are unlike this unique son who is "only begotten".....a begotten son needs a 'begetter'. "The Word" was "with God in the beginning", meaning the beginning of creation, because the eternal God has no beginning. He is the first and only direct creation of the Father, which makes him unique. (Col 1:15, 16) All other things were brought into existence "through" the son. There is no scriptural reason why Michael cannot be Jesus in his heavenly role. He speaks of his Father as his God even after his return to heaven. (Rev 3:12) Can God have a God?
It never meant anything else but a "mighty one". But there is only one "Almighty" God.....the Father. The word "theos" only ever meant a "mighty one" in Greek. In order to qualify which "theos" is spoken about when Father and son are mentioned together, the use of the definite article differentiates between "a god" and "the God". In John 1:1 there are two "mighty ones" spoken about....but only one is "ho theos" (The God).
Angels, human judges and even satan are all called "gods" in the scriptures. It is not a title used exclusively of the Father.
Why not? God's interactions with his angels are mentioned in the Bible. (Job 1:6; 38:4-7) What prevents them from appealing to the Father? As "sons of God", He is their Father too.
What is upsetting is the condescension with which many people address us and our beliefs. We can hold our ground scripturally with everything we believe. Just because it is a departure from what is accepted today as Christian belief, doesn't mean that it's wrong. None of it is based on human tradition or the introduced doctrines made part of an apostate church during the period in which Jesus said his enemy would produce a counterfeit form of Christianity.
In the contextual use of the word "theos" in the Greek, it is clear that Jesus, as a divine being, is rightly referred to as a "mighty one" but he is not "THE Mighty One". In John 1:18, he is called "the only begotten god".....since the Almighty cannot be "begotten", it is clear that this is a lesser personage than the Almighty himself. Jesus called his Father "the only true God" (John 17:3) he did not include himself in that designation.....why do you all keep ignoring this scripture?
Because the worship of all lesser beings is to be directed to the Father....all prayer is to the Father.....all honor and glory is to the Father.....because Jehovah is the only true God. (Deut 6:4; Luke 4:8; Matt 6:9; Phil 2:11)
This is what the Bible teaches.
I'd like to believe that weeds are not people. Is that OK with you?The weeds came in. They were the Gnostics and the Arians. Both were condemned by Church councils.
However, they have come on the scene today. They are JW's.
The weeds came in. They were the Gnostics and the Arians. Both were condemned by Church councils.
However, they have come on the scene today. They are JW's.
I have no idea what you mean by this. What is your point? What confusion do you believe I am under?If it be true that Psalms 1:8, 9; 45:6, 7 were first applied to flesh and blood Israelite kings (and it is indeed true), then, just what makes you think that is not also true of most all the recitations of David and the other Psalmists?
Do you see yourself as the sole arbiter of what I post MC? Am I to answer to you or to bow before your superior knowledge perhaps? Or am I supposed express my gratitude for your concessions?Your last paragraph is out of character for you and so I will attribute it to stress of some sort and let it pass.
But listen to me when I tell you that if you believe all you have been saying then you have not quite understood what the governing body teaches on this issue. Go back and review their teachings.
Yep. They are. Gnostic Arians to the core. You combine both Church defined heresies into one religion.Are they?