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Q&A on the Godhead: Difference between revisions
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We have done our best to provide answers below on questions that have been emailed to us. | We have done our best to provide answers below on questions that have been emailed to us. Please feel free to email us if you have further questions. | ||
=Is there such a thing as eternal sonship?= | =Is there such a thing as eternal sonship?= | ||
Please see our article on [[Eternal Sonship]]. | Please see our article on [[Eternal Sonship]]. | ||
=Did God leave Jesus Christ on the cross?= | |||
William Branham stated: | |||
:''Now notice this quickening Power, Zoe, bringing the Word, the mind that was in Christ was in you then. I'm trying to show you, that, you, when you raised. When God raised Jesus from the dead, He raised up you, also. And also quickened to Life, with Him, you are now quickened to Life, although then you were but an attribute in His thoughts, but God had saw all in Him, at the finish, see. When God looked down upon the body... | |||
:'''''The Spirit left Him, in the garden of Gethsemane. He had to die, a man.''' Remember, friends, He didn't have to do that. That was God. God anointed that flesh, which was human flesh. And He didn't... '''If He'd have went up there, as God, He'd have never died that kind of death; can't kill God. But He didn't have to do it'''. | |||
:''But, remember, He went there with you in Him. See, God had never separated the Bride from the Groom, yet. So when God looked down upon the body of Christ, He saw both male and female. It was all redeemed in that one body. See? They are one, same, same Word. The same Word, spoke of the Groom, speaks of the Bride.<ref>IT IS THE RISING OF THE SUN JEFFERSONVILLE.IN 65-0418M </ref> | |||
:''He died more death in Gethsemane than He did on the cross." <ref>57-0418 THE.COMMUNION</ref> | |||
However, it states in Romans 5:6 and 8, Romans 8:34, Romans 14:9 and 15, 1 Corinthians 8:11, 1 Corinthians 15:3 and 2 Corinthians 5:14 that CHRIST (the anointed one) died. He died as he had lived - as the Christ. | |||
William Branham's understanding of this issue was clearly non-scriptural. Read more about this in our study on [[John 18:6]]. | |||
=What is the meaning of "begotten"?= | =What is the meaning of "begotten"?= | ||
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The word "begotten" used in these passages is the Greek word "μονογενής" (monogenés) which means ''pertaining to what is unique in the sense of being the only one of the same kind or class.'' For example, in Hebrews 11:17 it states "''he who had received the promises presented his only son''" or "''… was ready to offer his only son"''. Abraham, of course, did have another son, Ishmael, and later sons by Keturah, but Isaac was a unique son in that he was a son born as the result of certain promises made by God. Accordingly, he could be called a μονογενής son, since he was the only one of his kind.<ref>Johannes P. Louw and Eugene Albert Nida, vol. 1, Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament: Based on Semantic Domains, electronic ed. of the 2nd edition., 590 (New York: United Bible Societies, 1996).</ref> | The word "begotten" used in these passages is the Greek word "μονογενής" (monogenés) which means ''pertaining to what is unique in the sense of being the only one of the same kind or class.'' For example, in Hebrews 11:17 it states "''he who had received the promises presented his only son''" or "''… was ready to offer his only son"''. Abraham, of course, did have another son, Ishmael, and later sons by Keturah, but Isaac was a unique son in that he was a son born as the result of certain promises made by God. Accordingly, he could be called a μονογενής son, since he was the only one of his kind.<ref>Johannes P. Louw and Eugene Albert Nida, vol. 1, Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament: Based on Semantic Domains, electronic ed. of the 2nd edition., 590 (New York: United Bible Societies, 1996).</ref> | ||
This is a clear example of the current inadequacy of some passages in the KJV. The above passages are translated completely differently in more modern translations: | This is a clear example of the current inadequacy of some passages in the KJV. The above passages are translated completely differently in more modern translations. In fact, in virtually all of the newer translations, the term "begotten" is rarely, if ever used in these passages: | ||
John 1:14 | |||
:''...we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.<ref>The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton: Standard Bible Society, 2001), Jn 1:14.</ref> | |||
:''We saw his glory—the glory of the one and only, full of grace and truth, who came from the Father.<ref>Biblical Studies Press, The NET Bible First Edition; Bible. English. NET Bible.; The NET Bible, Jn 1:14 (Biblical Studies Press, 2006). </ref><br> | :''We saw his glory—the glory of the one and only, full of grace and truth, who came from the Father.<ref>Biblical Studies Press, The NET Bible First Edition; Bible. English. NET Bible.; The NET Bible, Jn 1:14 (Biblical Studies Press, 2006). </ref><br> | ||
John 1:18 | |||
:''No one has ever seen God; the only God, who is at the Father’s side, he has made him known.<ref>The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton: Standard Bible Society, 2001), Jn 1:18.</ref> | |||
:''No one has ever seen God. The unique God, who is close to the Father’s side, has revealed him.<ref>International Standard Version, Jn 1:18 (Yorba Linda, CA: ISV Foundation, 2011). </ref><br> | :''No one has ever seen God. The unique God, who is close to the Father’s side, has revealed him.<ref>International Standard Version, Jn 1:18 (Yorba Linda, CA: ISV Foundation, 2011). </ref><br> | ||
:'' | John 3:16 | ||
:''For God so loved the world, that he gave his '''only Son''', that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.<ref>The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton: Standard Bible Society, 2001), Jn 3:16.</ref> | |||
:'' | :''For this is the way God loved the world: He gave his '''one and only Son''', so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.<ref>Biblical Studies Press, The NET Bible First Edition; Bible. English. NET Bible.; The NET Bible (Biblical Studies Press, 2006), Jn 3:16.</ref> | ||
::''has | John 3:18 | ||
:''...but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God.<ref>The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton: Standard Bible Society, 2001), Jn 3:18.</ref> | |||
:''...but whoever does not believe has already been condemned, because he has not believed in the name of God’s unique Son.<ref>International Standard Version, Jn 3:18 (Yorba Linda, CA: ISV Foundation, 2011).</ref> | :''...but whoever does not believe has already been condemned, because he has not believed in the name of God’s unique Son.<ref>International Standard Version, Jn 3:18 (Yorba Linda, CA: ISV Foundation, 2011).</ref> | ||
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'''Question''': Do the words, Everlasting and Eternal have the same meaning? | '''Question''': Do the words, Everlasting and Eternal have the same meaning? | ||
There are two words which are translated as "everlasting" - ἀΐδιος (aidios)and αἰώνιος (aionios). "Eternal" is also a translation | '''Answer:''': There are two words which are translated as "everlasting" - ἀΐδιος (aidios)and αἰώνιος (aionios). "Eternal" is also a translation of these two words, as well as αἰών (aion). | ||
Branham taught | William Branham taught that there was a difference between "everlasting" and "eternal": | ||
:But then read the other, "But these shall go into eternal (That's a different. See?), Eternal Life. Eternal comes from the word of eternity, and eternity had neither beginning nor end. It's forever and forever. Now, that should answer that (See?), because if you'll just read the Scripture real close, you'll see. "And these shall go away into everlasting punishment, but the righteous..." The wicked shall go into everlasting punishment, be punished for a space of time: maybe a billion years, I don't know; but you'll certainly be punished for your sins.''<ref>QUESTIONS.AND.ANSWERS.ON.HEBREWS.1_ JEFF.IN COD WEDNESDAY_ 57-0925</ref> | |||
The word " | :''Now, hell, we'll go back to that awhile. I tell you that--that there cannot be... I do believe in a burning hell. Yes, sir, the Bible said so, the lake of fire. Now, but that cannot be an everla--it cannot be an eternal. It could be... The Bible never says it's eternal; it says everlasting hell. Don't say the word "eternal"; it says an everlasting hell. Now, it's prepared for the devil and his angels; an everlasting hell, not an eternal one. | ||
:''Now, after... That soul may be tormented there for its doing for ten million years, for all I know. I don't know what everlasting might be in God's sight. It might be for five minutes; it might be for a million years; it might be for ten million years; but there will come a time when that soul will cease to be.''<ref>THE.SMYRNAEAN.CHURCH.AGE_ JEFF.IN ROJC 185-227 TUESDAY_ 60-1206</ref> | |||
We have another example of William Branham's theology being all over the map as he also said exactly the opposite: | |||
" | :''"He that heareth My Word," Saint John 5:24, for instance. "He that heareth My Words and believeth on Him that sent Me, has Eternal Life." Or, King James puts it "everlasting," which is "Eternal," rightly.'' <ref>HE.CARES.DO.YOU.CARE_ JEFF.IN V-12 N-4 SUNDAY_ 63-0721</ref> | ||
Let's look at what the Bible actually says: | |||
The | :''And these shall go away into everlasting (αἰώνιον) punishment: but the righteous into life eternal (αἰώνιον).''<ref>The Holy Bible: King James Version, Electronic Edition of the 1900 Authorized Version., Mt 25:46 (Bellingham, WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc., 2009).</ref> | ||
The Greek word for everlasting and eternal in this verse is the same Greek word, which is why modern translation use the word "eternal" for both words in this verse. | |||
:''“These will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”<ref>New American Standard Bible: 1995 Update, Mt 25:46 (LaHabra, CA: The Lockman Foundation, 1995).</ref> | |||
This is another clear case of william Branham's lazy or sloppy theology. | |||
=Three Persons= | =Three Persons= | ||
The concept of three "persons" in the Godhead | '''Question''': The concept of three "persons" in the Godhead leaves me with some more questions. God in three persons, blessed Trinity, the song says. But can a Spirit be a person? | ||
The Bible states in Isaiah 46:9-10 (NIV): | |||
:''Remember the former things, those of long ago; | |||
:''I am God, and there is no other; | |||
:''I am God, and there is none like me. | |||
:''I make known the end from the beginning, | |||
:''from ancient times, what is still to come. | |||
:''I say, ‘My purpose will stand, | |||
:''and I will do all that I please.’ | |||
Then again in John 4:24 (NIV) it says: | |||
:''God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in the Spirit and in truth.” | |||
Why, when we read about the goings on in the Throne Room, there is always One sitting on the throne. Even in Revelation 5 there is One sitting on the throne and the Lamb in the midst of the throne. | |||
These questions may seem silly, but it bothers me sometimes. | |||
'''Answer''': The Holy Spirit is a "he" not an "it". | |||
:''Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come. <ref>The Holy Bible: King James Version, Electronic Edition of the 1900 Authorized Version., Jn 16:13 (Bellingham, WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc., 2009).</ref> | |||
The Spirit is a he. "He" has to refer to a person. The Spirit is not an it, and the Spirit is not, therefore, a liquid, so you cannot say in a sense, “I want more of the Spirit,” and think in terms of gallons. You can’t say, “I have a gallon of the Spirit, and I need 10,” because if the Spirit is a person, then when we talk about being filled with the Spirit or having less or more of the Spirit, we have to think, what does it mean to have less or more of a person? You see, when a person comes into the house or out of the house, he’s either all the way in or he’s all the way out. I mean, he’s in or he’s out.<ref>Timothy J. Keller, The Timothy Keller Sermon Archive (New York City: Redeemer Presbyterian Church, 2013).</ref> | |||
John | Modalism (which is primarily what William Branham taught) basically says that the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit are just phases of the same God. But that ignores John 1:1-2: | ||
:''In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was '''with''' God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning '''with''' God. | |||
:''No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him.''<ref>The Holy Bible: King James Version, Electronic Edition of the 1900 Authorized Version., Jn 1:1–2,18 (Bellingham, WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc., 2009).</ref> | |||
The Father was with the Son. The Son was with the Father. The word "with" is very important. | |||
Later on in the chapter, down in verse 18 John brings it out a little further. He says the Son was in the bosom of the Father. Now let’s think about that. What is John saying? How many people are there in your life who have a right to your bosom. Put it this way. If you were lying on the rug, if you were lying on a couch, or lying in your bed, how many people are there, without asking permission, who could just walk up, stretch out next to you and lie up against your breast? How many people are there in life like that? For some of you there is no one. For some of us it’s just a very, very small number. | |||
So don’t you see, the posture of being in someone’s bosom means a personal relationship of incredible intimacy and centrality and primacy in somebody’s life. Then, keep this in mind. The Father and the Son had no bodies. They had no real breasts. So what does it mean when John says they were in one another’s bosom? The answer has to mean they were wrapped up in one another. Jesus says, “I and the Father are one.” | |||
We’re talking about spiritual unity, spiritual oneness. | |||
This is amazing. Many biblical scholars are sure that when John was writing that, he was thinking about … In the book of Proverbs, there is this very artistic and poetic place where it talks about God creating the world, and by his side was the divine wisdom. In Proverbs 8, wisdom speaks like this. It’s almost for sure that John was thinking about this when he penned these words. | |||
Wisdom says... ''“when he assigned to the sea its limit, so that the waters might not transgress his command, when he marked out the foundations of the earth, then I was beside him, like a master workman, and I was daily his delight, rejoicing before him always...<ref>The Holy Bible: English Standard Version, Pr 8:29–30 (Wheaton: Standard Bible Society, 2001)</ref> | |||
See? “… the Word was with God …” And. “Through him all things were made.” | |||
Augustine says if you’re a non-Trinitarian… Many people believe in God, but they’re non-Trinitarians. They say, “Well, there’s only one God, one Person. Jesus was a nice man, or Jesus was a kind of created being, but there’s only one Person, one God.” Augustine says if you are non-Trinitarian in your view of God, you have a defective God. You have a God who never loved anybody until he created the world. God existed from all eternity, but until he created at least angels, or until he created other human beings, other persons, he had never had a relationship. | |||
< | Augustine says not only do you have an imperfect God, but you have a God who created to meet a love need. He created in order to have love. Augustine says that’s not true of the God of the Bible. Love and relationship are eternally inherent in him. He has always had love and relationship beginninglessly. Therefore, when he created the world and he created other persons and angels and human beings, he created not to get love, he created to give love. He created not to use us to meet his needs, he created just to let us take in the richness and the spillover of the love he had within himself, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. <ref>Timothy J. Keller, The Timothy Keller Sermon Archive (New York City: Redeemer Presbyterian Church, 2013).</ref> | ||
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