I wrote this post because an argument was raised by one of our visitors saying that the proof that Christ is a God is the pronouncement of John in John 1:1, “And the Word was God.”

Let’s qoute John 1:1:

1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. (New King James Version)

Now, here’s my points (Note: This points are my personal points. It doesn’t stand for the doctrines of the Church where I’m in.) :

(1) The verse said: “In the beginning was the Word…” Now, the fact that the subject of this verse has beginning and his beginning was the Word, then it is already the proof that the subject is not a God because God has no beginning.

(2) The verse said: “… and the Word was with God …” Okay, if you really believe that the Word is really a God, it was said that the Word was with God, does it mean that there are two Gods, the Word and the other God?

Remember that there is only one God. When the Bible say, there is only one God, it means that there is no other God besides Him, nor there is like Him, and no other God formed before Him nor there will be formed after Him.

(3) The verse said: “… and the Word was God …” Most of the Bible readers mistakenly thought that just because it was said that the “Word was God” then the Word is really a God. Take note that the term “God” is used here as Adjective not as Noun and you should also take note that the statement is in figurative language, “Metaphor”.

The verse doesn’t say: … and the Word was a God. Nor it say: … and the Word was the God. What has been written is, “… and the Word was God…”

I will give you an example. If you’ll say, “Time is Gold”. Does it mean that literally, time is the Gold? Of course not! You are only describing the Time as precious as gold.

CONCLUSSION:

In other words, John 1:1 couldn’t be used as proof that Christ is a God. The truth remains that there is only one God and He is the Father.

I know, some of the Pinoy Bloggers around the world do not believe in God and His existence. That’s there belief and I respect that.

However, in my case, I just can’t deny the truth that there is really a God who created all things in heaven and in earth. Just consider all the things around us. They wouldn’t exist if there is no supernatural power that created them, just like what Apostle Paul said in Hebrews 3:4:

4For every house is built by someone, but God is the builder of everything. (New International Version)

Apostle Paul wrote to the real Christian(I said real, because there are those who said they are christians but are actually not.) this:

19since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. 20For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse. (Romans 1:19-20, New International Version)

According to the Apostle Paul, God’s invisible qualities (his eternal power and divine nature) has been clearly seen and understood through the things that has been created.

19 because what may be known of God is manifest in them, for God has shown it to them. 20 For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse, (Romans 1:19-20, New King James Version)

These things are the:

1 The heavens declare the glory of God;
And the firmament shows His handiwork.
2 Day unto day utters speech,
And night unto night reveals knowledge.
3 There is no speech nor language
Where their voice is not heard.
4 Their line[a] has gone out through all the earth,
And their words to the end of the world.
In them He has set a tabernacle for the sun, (Psalms 19:1-4, New King James Version)

And the said things includes also:

7 “But now ask the beasts, and they will teach you;
And the birds of the air, and they will tell you;

8 Or speak to the earth, and it will teach you;
And the fish of the sea will explain to you.

9 Who among all these does not know
That the hand of the LORD has done this,

10 In whose hand is the life of every living thing,
And the breath of all mankind? (Job 12:7-10, New Kings James Version)

I am sad to know that they stop believing God just because of the things they thought God did them like:

1. ordered a plane to crash into a building full of innocent bystanders in His name
2. ordered President Bush to waste 1.2 trillion dollars on a war that killed thousands upon thousands of innocent children & women, obliterating their homes in the process
3. prohibits the Vatican from allowing contraceptives in AIDS ridden Africa, killing millions in the process
4. and others…

Qutoe: The time has come to say enough is enough. The time has come to declare my disbelief in a God who supposedly ordered a plane to crash into a building full of innocent bystanders in His name. The time has come to declare my disbelief in a God who supposedly ordered President Bush to waste 1.2 trillion dollars on a war that killed thousands upon thousands of innocent children & women, obliterating their homes in the process. The time has come to declare my disbelief in a God who supposedly prohibits the Vatican from allowing contraceptives in AIDS ridden Africa, killing millions in the process. The time has come for me to be sick at the sight of appalling poverty in the Philippines, wherein the sickening site of destitute people lying in the street became common, a portion of which could have been prevented if the Church didn’t blocked every attempt to institute abortion and contraceptives in our country. The time has come to open my eyes that religion is man made. The time has come for me to declare that I stopped beleiving in Santa Claus a long time ago. Its time. (source)

These things have nothing to do with God. If you only know the truth recorded on the Bible, you’ll realized that poverty and problems that we experienced are just the result of not following the laws of God. Even the prohibition of the use of contraceptives by the Vatican is against the will of God.

Have you ever heard the Catholic Authorities teach that God is subject to Mary, the mother of Christ?

This is what I discovered while reading the book, “True Devotion To The Blessed Virgin Mary”:

“Mary, being altogether transformed into God by grace and by the glory which transforms all the saints into Him, … that in heaven and on earth everything, even God Himself, is subject to the Blessed Virgin, …” (p.17)

I don’t know if you’ll believe this. But for me, nothing is above God because God is above all just like what is written on the Holy Bible:

“For ‘He has put all things under His feet.’ But when He says ‘all things are put under Him,’ It is evident that He who put all things under Him is excepted.

“Now when all things are made subject to Him, then the Son Himself will also be subject to Him who put all things under Him, that God may be all in all.” (I Corinthians 15:27-28, New King James Version)

I was once upheld the belief that Christ and the Father are one God. That was when I was still a member of the Roman Catholic Church. However, when I was exposed to the truth written on the Bible, I realized that this belief is not based on the Bible and contradicts the truth recorded on the Bible.

To let you know, nowhere on the Bible that you can read “Christ and the Father are one God”, nor Christ said, the He and His Father are one God.
What was written on the Bible is the truth that Christ and the Father are one, as written on John 10:3:

30 I and My Father are one.” (John 10:30, NKJV)

What was written is “I and My Father are one”. Now to understand what Christ said, let us ask some questions and we’ll try the Bible to answer them.

1. Does it mean, Christ and the Father are one in number? If we’ll count them, Christ and the Father are numbered one? The Bible teaches that Christ and the Father are not one in number. This is what Christ testified:
   

   16 And yet if I do judge, My judgment is true; for I am not alone, but I am with the Father who sent Me. 17 It is also written in your law that the testimony of two men is true. (John 8:16-17, NKJV)

   Christ said, He was not alone but He is with His Father who sent Him. He even justified that in the law of Jews, the testimony of two men is true, which clearly means, Christ and the Father is not one in number but two.

2. Is Christ and the Father one God? No. It is Christ Himself said that the only true God is the Father.
   

   1 Jesus spoke these words, lifted up His eyes to heaven, and said: “Father, the hour has come. Glorify Your Son, that Your Son also may glorify You,…3 And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent.(John 17:1,3)

Actually, I was wondering where did they get this teaching (Christ and the Father are one God) when in fact this is not recorded on the Bible.

Trinity believers thought that Christ is a different person and so is the Father, but then they are one God. Is it really true based on the truth written on the Bible?
We have already discussed on my previous post (see Christ is not the Father and the Father is not Christ) that Christ is not the Father and the Father is not Christ. It is true that Christ is different person and so as the Father too (see The Difference: God and Christ). However, to say that Christ and the Father are one God, that’s a big lie because this is not written on the Bible.

Bet you… nowhere on the righteously translated copy of the Holy Bible that you can read, “The Father and Christ are one God.”

Remember what Christ said during His prayer to God.

1After Jesus said this, he looked toward heaven and prayed: “Father, the time has come. Glorify your Son, that your Son may glorify you. 3Now this is eternal life: that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent. (John 17:1,2, NIV)

According to Him, it’s the Father who should be known as the ONLY TRUE GOD. And saying only true God means there is no God besides the true God (see Christ not the True God). And since the only true God is the Father, it is clear that the Son of the Father is not already the true God.

It is Christ who said this. Should you not believe Him? The true disciples of Christ believed Him,

31 Then Jesus said to those Jews who believed Him, “If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. (John 8:31, NKJV)

because they know that what Christ said is TRUTH, that He heard from the Father.

40 But now you seek to kill Me, a Man who has told you the truth which I heard from God. Abraham did not do this. (John 8:40, ibid)

People are confused when the Bible say, “One Lord”. There are times that the Bible refer it to our Lord God and sometimes it refers to our Lord Jesus Christ. But it is one of the reason why people thought that Christ is God because He is called Lord.

Is it really true that there is only one Lord and who is it? Apostle Paul answered it with a YES when he said, there is but one Lord, Jesus Christ.

6yet for us there is but one God, the Father, from whom all things came and for whom we live; and there is but one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom all things came and through whom we live. (I Corinthians 8:6, NIV)

It’s because Christ is the only one who was made Lord by our Lord God.

36″Therefore let all Israel be assured of this: God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ.” (Acts 2:36, ibid)

To make it clear, there are actually two Lords that exist, just like what David saw:

43He said to them, “How is it then that David, speaking by the Spirit, calls him ‘Lord’? For he says,
44″ ‘The Lord said to my Lord:
“Sit at my right hand
until I put your enemies
under your feet.” ‘[a] 45If then David calls him ‘Lord,’ how can he be his son?”(Matthew 22:43-45, ibid)

The Lord who said “Sit at my right hand…” is the Lord God and the Lord told to sit is the Lord Jesus Christ:

1Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. (Colossians 3:1, ibid)

However, let us not forget that there is only one Lord God and one Lord Jesus Christ. Although they are both Lord but their Lordship is different.

The Lordship of God is native of Him. There is no beginning and there will be no end.

2 Before the mountains were born
or you brought forth the earth and the world,
from everlasting to everlasting you are God. (Psalms 90:2, ibid)

But the Lordship of Christ is just given by our Lord God.

36″Therefore let all Israel be assured of this: God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ.” (Acts 2:36, ibid)

I wonder who among you wanted to see God personally. But is God visible? On this blogpost, I will share to you some ways how to see God.

From our previous religious post, we’ve learned that the only true God is the Father. And it’s according to Christ Himself.

1 Jesus spoke these words, lifted up His eyes to heaven, and said: “Father, the hour has come. Glorify Your Son, that Your Son also may glorify You, 3 And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent. (John 17:1,3, NKJV)

And He is invisible, according to Apostle Paul.

17 Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible, to God who alone is wise, be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen. (I Timothy 1:17, ibid)

And no one has seen God.

12 No one has seen God at any time. If we love one another, God abides in us, and His love has been perfected in us. (I John 4:12, ibid)

Because He is spirit,

24 God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.” (John 4:24. ibid)

and the spirit has no bones and flesh.

39 Behold My hands and My feet, that it is I Myself. Handle Me and see, for a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see I have.” (Luke 24:39, ibid)

However, we knew that there is God because everything that we need to know about Him are revealed to us.

19 because what may be known of God is manifest in them, for God has shown it to them. (Romans 1:19, ibid)

If God is invisible, how could we see God? The Bible teach us three ways on how to see God.

First:

If we saw Christ, we saw the Father (And we already know that the Father is the only true God). That is according to Christ Himself.

9 Jesus said to him, “Have I been with you so long, and yet you have not known Me, Philip? He who has seen Me has seen the Father; so how can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? (John 14:9, ibid)

Does it mean that Christ is the Father Himself? No. It was explained by Christ the reason why we saw God if we saw Him. That is because the words spoke by Christ is not His own words but the words of God.

10 Do you not believe that I am in the Father, and the Father in Me? The words that I speak to you I do not speak on My own authority; but the Father who dwells in Me does the works. (John 14:10, ibid)

The words which Christ heard from God.

40 But now you seek to kill Me, a Man who has told you the truth which I heard from God. Abraham did not do this. (John 8:40, ibid)

And the Father who is the only true God,

1 Jesus spoke these words, lifted up His eyes to heaven, and said: “Father, the hour has come. Glorify Your Son, that Your Son also may glorify You, 3 And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent. (John 17:1,3, NKJV)

and who dwells in Christ was the one who did the works.

10 Do you not believe that I am in the Father, and the Father in Me? The words that I speak to you I do not speak on My own authority; but the Father who dwells in Me does the works. (John 14:10, ibid)

Second:

We can also see God through the angels. Those who see the Angel of God see God.

When the Angel of the LORD appeared no more to Manoah and his wife, then Manoah knew that He was the Angel of the LORD.
22 And Manoah said to his wife, “We shall surely die, because we have seen God!” (Judges 13:21-22, ibid)

It is because the Angel are sent by God.

19 And the angel answered and said to him, “I am Gabriel, who stands in the presence of God, and was sent to speak to you and bring you these glad tidings. (Luke 1:19, ibid)

And those who are sent by God spoke the words of God who sent them.

49 For I have not spoken on My own authority; but the Father who sent Me gave Me a command, what I should say and what I should speak. (John 12:49, ibid)

That’s the reason why we can see God if we see those sent by God.

45 And he who sees Me sees Him who sent Me.(John 12:45, ibid)

Third:

The third, if you see everything around your, like trees, animals, and everything, then you have seen God, because His invisible attributes, His eternal power and Godhead are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made.

19 because what may be known of God is manifest in them, for God has shown it to them. 20 For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse, (Romans 1:19-20, ibid)

]]> http://www.selaplana.com/2006/05/29/do-you-want-to-see-god/feed/ 1 http://www.selaplana.com/2006/05/28/christ-is-the-father-and-the-father-is-christ/ http://www.selaplana.com/2006/05/28/christ-is-the-father-and-the-father-is-christ/#comments Sun, 28 May 2006 06:55:45 +0000 Sustines Laplana http://www.selaplana.com/2006/05/28/christ-is-the-father-and-the-father-is-christ/

I came here for my internet activities late because, my cousins wanted me to be convinced that Father and Christ are one. For them, Christ is the Father and the Father is Christ.

I told them: “if Christ is the Father and the Father is Christ then why is it that Christ prayed to the Father in John 17:1-3?”

1After Jesus said this, he looked toward heaven and prayed: “Father, the time has come. Glorify your Son, that your Son may glorify you. 2For you granted him authority over all people that he might give eternal life to all those you have given him. 3Now this is eternal life: that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent. (John 17:1-3, NIV)

Do you think Christ will looked towards heaven if the Father whom Christ was praying is not in Heaven? Christ lifted up His eyes to Heaven when praying to the Father because the Father is really in heaven according to Christ.

9″This, then, is how you should pray:
” ‘Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name, (Matthew 6:9, ibid)

If Christ is the Father, then why should he looked up his eyes towards the heaven, and asked the Father to glorify Him? It is already clear that the Father is not Christ because the Father is the one whom Christ prayed and would glorify Him.
If Christ is the Father and the Father is Christ, it means that they are really one in number.
Is the Father and Christ one in number? I mean if we count Christ and the Father, can we count them as one only not two? Christ Himself anwered this question. And He said, He was not alone. He was with the Father.

16 And yet if I do judge, My judgment is true; for I am not alone, but I am with the Father who sent Me. 17 It is also written in your law that the testimony of two men is true. (John 8:16-17, NKJV)

He even quote what was written in the law that the testimony of two men is true. In other words Christ wanted to tell them that He and His Father in not one in number but they are two.

If Christ and the Father are counted as two beings, then it is not true that Christ is the Father and the Father is Christ.

]]> http://www.selaplana.com/2006/05/28/christ-is-the-father-and-the-father-is-christ/feed/ 0 http://www.selaplana.com/2006/05/26/the-difference-god-and-christ/ http://www.selaplana.com/2006/05/26/the-difference-god-and-christ/#comments Fri, 26 May 2006 06:11:14 +0000 Sustines Laplana http://www.selaplana.com/2006/05/26/the-difference-god-and-christ/

Did you know that Christ is really different from God?

I want to share you six great differences between Christ and God.

First. The Father who is the only true God,

1After Jesus said this, he looked toward heaven and prayed: “Father, the time has come. Glorify your Son, that your Son may glorify you. 3Now this is eternal life: that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent. (John 17:1,3, NIV)

recognized no other god.

39 “See now that I myself am He!
There is no god besides me.
I put to death and I bring to life,
I have wounded and I will heal,
and no one can deliver out of my hand. (Deuteronomy 32:39, ibid)

On the other hand, Christ called for His God.

34And at the ninth hour Jesus cried out in a loud voice, “Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?”—which means, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” (Mark 15:34, ibid)

Second: God raised Jesus from the dead.

32God has raised this Jesus to life, and we are all witnesses of the fact. (Acts 2:32, ibid)

And it is Christ who was raised by God from the dead.

10then know this, you and all the people of Israel: It is by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified but whom God raised from the dead, that this man stands before you healed. (Acts 4:10, ibid)

Third: God put everything under Christ feet, but Christ is subject to God.

27For he “has put everything under his feet.”[a] Now when it says that “everything” has been put under him, it is clear that this does not include God himself, who put everything under Christ. 28When he has done this, then the Son himself will be made subject to him who put everything under him, so that God may be all in all. (1 Corinthians 15:27-28, ibid)

Fourth: God is immortal,

17Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory for ever and ever. Amen. (I Timothy 1:17, ibid)

but Christ died.

3For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, (I Corinthians 15:3, ibid)

Fifth: God is almighty,

1 When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the LORD appeared to him and said, “I am God Almighty ; walk before me and be blameless. (Genesis 17:1, ibid)

Christ only received authority.

18Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.(Matthew 28:18, ibid)

Sixth: God can do everything,

11 From the east I summon a bird of prey;
from a far-off land, a man to fulfill my purpose.
What I have said, that will I bring about;
what I have planned, that will I do. (Isaiah 46:11, ibid)

But Christ can do nothing by Himself.

30By myself I can do nothing; I judge only as I hear, and my judgment is just, for I seek not to please myself but him who sent me. (Jon 5:30, ibid)

]]> http://www.selaplana.com/2006/05/26/the-difference-god-and-christ/feed/ 4 http://www.selaplana.com/2006/05/23/there-is-only-one-god/ http://www.selaplana.com/2006/05/23/there-is-only-one-god/#comments Tue, 23 May 2006 03:03:35 +0000 Sustines Laplana http://www.selaplana.com/2006/05/23/there-is-only-one-god/

Did you know that among the so-called gods, there is only one true God?

According to the Apostle Paul, there are so-called gods, whether in heaven or on earth.

5For even if there are so-called gods, whether in heaven or on earth (as indeed there are many “gods” and many “lords”), (I Corinthians 8:5, NIV)

For example, the graven images are called gods,

3“You shall have no other gods before Me.
4 “You shall not make for yourself a carved image—any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth; (Exodus 20:3-4, NKJV)

The devil

8 Again, the devil took Him up on an exceedingly high mountain, and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory. 9 And he said to Him, “All these things I will give You if You will fall down and worship me.” (Matthew 4:8-9, ibid)

who is the ruler of this world

11 of judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged. (John 16:11, ibid)

is also called god.

4 whose minds the god of this age has blinded, who do not believe, lest the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine on them. (II Corinthians 4:4, ibid)

Moses was made god for Pharaoh or was god for Pharaoh.

1 So the LORD said to Moses: “See, I have made you as God to Pharaoh, and Aaron your brother shall be your prophet. (Exodus 7:1, ibid)

But, among those so called gods, we should not forget that there is only one true God, the Father.

6 yet for us there is one God, the Father, of whom are all things, and we for Him; and one Lord Jesus Christ, through whom are all things, and through whom we live. (I Corinthians 8:6, ibid)

Noone knows this truth, that is, the Father is the only true God, but only those who are members of the Church of Christ (see Only The Church of Christ Knows).

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