Last Friday I was privileged to participate in a debate over the question of who God is. I took the affirmative position that the Father is the only true God (cf. Jn 17.3). My opponent, Russ Dizdar, took the traditional position that God is three persons in one essence–the Trinity. This was my first moderated debate and it went very well for both of us. The tone was very civil and both sides were able to present their positions.
Unfortunately, the moderator, GeorgeAnn Hughes (founder of The Byte Show) was not able to participate very much because she was having some trouble with her voice (please keep her in your prayers). As a result, Mr. Dizdar and I kept track of our own time and took turns presenting our cases. The format of the debate was as follows:
I was reading an excellent book (Ancient Near Eastern Thought and the Old Testament by Wheaton Professor John Walton and it had a great deal of information that put together the Old Testament very well. I wanted to bring up this one part about the Mosaic law (specifically the first four commandments), and how we can see the forceful changes it makes to the status quo of the ancient peoples.
- Thou shalt have no other gods before me
Recently I listened to a three part audio series in which Anthony Buzzard spoke on the oneness of God. He was in California about a year ago doing some work on the recent documentary, The Human Jesus, when Dan Mages asked him over to a small group to give a talk about unitarianism. He spoke about his own journey of faith and interwove thoughts on the kingdom and then the strict jewish monotheism of Jesus. He spoke for about 45 minutes and then the questions started rolling. There were a few conservative reformed Christians present who asked nearly every question in the book. Though it is difficult at times to hear the questioner I could get the gist of most of the questions.
- part 1 [64:38]
Is believing that Jesus is God idolatry? This is a question I have struggled with concerning our Trintarian and Oneness friends. On the one side I don’t want to approach the matter flippantly as if the subject is not important, and on the other side, I don’t want to have a harsh or judgmental attitude unnecesarily. In order to clarify what idloatry really is I looked it up in the following source:
ISBE Encyclopedia
Idolatry originally meant the worship of idols, or the worship of false gods by means of idols, but came to mean among the Old Testament Hebrews any worship of false gods, whether by images or otherwise, and finally the worship of Yahweh through visible symbols (Hos 8:5, 6; 10:5); and ultimately in the New Testament idolatry came to mean, not only the giving to any creature or human creation the honor or devotion which belonged to God alone, but the giving to any human desire a precedence over God’s will (1 Cor 10:14; Gal 5:20; Col 3:5; 1 Pet 4:3).
Last week, I posted a prayer by Isaac Watts, as he enquired after
the only true God [John 17:3]; who is :-
the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob;
and the God and Father of our Lord Jesus the Messiah.
[2 Cor 1:3, 11:31; Eph 1:3; Col 1:3; 1 Pet 1:3]
There was also another famous ‘Isaac’ who abandoned Trinitarianism and embraced the awesome truth that there is solely One God, the Father.
[1 Cor 8:4,6]
Namely, Sir Isaac Newton.
Although renown for his scientific achievements; he in fact wrote more on theology than any other subject.
After his death, his biographers were dismayed to find that so much of his theological writings were in fact, antitrinitarian!
Isaiah 7:14-16
14 Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.
15 Butter and honey shall he eat, that he may know to refuse the evil, and choose the good.
16 For before the child shall know to refuse the evil, and choose the good, the land that thou abhorrest shall be forsaken of both her kings.
Matthew 1:23
Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us.
Did you know … that Isaac Watts, the father of English hymnody/hymnology (the singing & composition of hymns), the author of “When I Survey The Wondrous Cross”; the writer of many trinitarian hymns;
near the end of his life; rejected the ‘Trinity doctrine’ and adhered to the unitarian perspective that “solely the Father is the only true One God” !!!
What follows is one of the most sincerest prayers I have ever come across. Read it slowly and witness the sincerity and the desire for the truth in these words by Watts; as he asked God to clear up the matter of whether …
God is three-in-one or solely ONE GOD??
I came across the following article [click here] and thought it might be useful … Any thoughts?
Here are “One Hundred Scriptural Arguments for the Unitarian Faith” from the American Unitarian Association. This is a must read for those studying the doctrine of the Trinity. [ The exact date of this document is not known, but it was written around 1825. ]
One Hundred Scriptural Arguments
For the Unitarian FaithBoston: American Unitarian Association
By: Samuel Barrett (1825)
Scriptural Arguments
Last weekend we enjoyed the One God Conference put on by Ken Westby of Seattle and hosted by Living Hope Community Church in Latham, NY. It was an enlightening and challenging time to study and probe the subject of our one God deeper. Please note that the viewpoints expressed by the speakers below are their own and are not necessarily endorsed by Living Hope.
- Welcome and Introduction by Ken Westby [19:58]
- The Trinity Defined and Refuted by Sean Finnegan [74:10]
- John the Odd Man amoung the Evangelists by F. Paul Haney [54:47]
- Did Jesus Volunteer to be our Savior? by Mel Hershberger [49:55]
- Christ the Firstborn Head of the Universe by Nathan Crowder [78:23]
- Questions and Answers by Robert Woodburn [40:10]
It is not just the glory, but also the character, love, mercy, power, message and self-expression of God- are all revealed to man by Jesus.
2 Corinthians 4:6
For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.
That is why the scripture states about Jesus:
Hebrews 1:3
Who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high;