The Father, One God
7. 1 Corinthians 8:6
"[Y]et 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."
Here, it cannot be clearer than that the "one God" is "the Father" and that Jesus Christ is identified as "one Lord". Does this mean the Father is not "Lord"? The lordship of Jesus Christ is unique, for it is bestowed upon him alone, hence "one Lord", by God the Father. Whereas the lordship of the Father is not bestowed at all, for it is inherent in him.
In Acts 2 we are told that God raised Jesus to life and made him "both Lord and Messiah" (vv. 32 and 36). The apostle Paul, author of First Corinthians, writes in Romans 14:9, "Christ died and returned to life so that he might be the Lord of both the dead and the living."
Moreover, in Philippians 2 Paul tells us that God exalted Jesus "to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father" (vv. 9-11).
McGrath,[1] Bowman,[2] Rhodes,[3] and Geisler[4] use 1 Corinthians 8:6 to establish the oneness of the Trinitarian God.
8. Ephesians 4:4-6
"There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to one hope when you were called; one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all."
This text, too, provides a clear indication that the "one God" is none other than the Father (Eph. 1:2; 5:20; 6:23). In opening his letter, Paul gives praise to this one God who is "the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ" (1:3; cf. v. 17). There is nothing here about Jesus being the one God.
McGrath,[5] Bowman,[6] Rhodes,[7] Bowman and Komoszewski,[8] and Geisler[9] cite Ephesians 4:6 as another basis for Trinitarian monotheism.
9. 1 Timothy 2:5
"For there is one God and one mediator between God and mankind, the man Christ Jesus."
In verse four Paul declares that God "wants all people to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth". Two basic essentials of the truth to be known are in order. (1) The "one God" being spoken of here is "God the Father" (1 Tim. 1:2). (2) The one mediator between this God and and mankind is "the man Christ Jesus". There is no hint in Paul's declaration of Jesus being the "one God and man" or "God-man". If, for Paul, Jesus being a God-man is an essential truth to be known, then he missed a great opportunity to inform his readers. The fact is Paul does not say anything about Jesus being God-man in this letter or any of his other writings in the New Testament.
First Timothy 2:5 is perhaps one of the most often quoted biblical references in establishing the oneness of the Trinitarian God, as McGrath,[10] Bowman,[11] Rhodes,[12] Bowman and Komoszewski,[13] and Geisler[14] do in their respective work.
10. James 2:19
"You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that—and shudder."
Who is the "one God" according to the epistle of James? It is "God our Father" (1:27). The author does not identify Jesus as the one God—in addition to the Father, nor does he give a hint to the idea.
McGrath,[15] Bowman,[16] Rhodes,[17] Bowman and Komoszewski,[18] and Geisler[19] refer to James 2:19 as also a basis for the Trinitarian view of God.
Conclusion
Using biblical texts as the ten discussed above to establish the oneness of a Trinitarian God—without providing a single text that clearly and decisively points to Jesus as the one God—is problematic. The only two established premises are: there is but one God; that one God is the Father. These premises seem to amount to what was stated in the first article: If the Bible singles out the Father—and no one else as the one God, then it follows that Jesus is not the one God of the Bible—in addition to God the Father.
For this reason, it appears that Trinitarians are saddled with a burden to mount up a particular case: Although the Bible does not directly identify Jesus as the one God, there are indirect biblical indications that identify him as such. Or, are there?
I would submit that mounting up this case is difficult, complicated, long and messy. Minimally, Trinitarians would need to clearly define what it means for Jesus to be (1) “fully divine” (whatever this means) and at the same time (2) “fully human” (whatever this means).
While attempting to establish Jesus’ “full divinity”, Trinitarians must not confuse him with God the Father in terms of “personhood” (whatever this means). This is very important because, according to the doctrine of the Trinity, the Son and the Father are “one being” (whatever this means). That is, while the two are the one God, the Son and the Father are two distinct persons.
To be sure, just because mounting up a case for Jesus being the one God of the Bible is difficult, complicated, long and messy, it does not automatically mean that the doctrine of the Trinity itself is unbiblical. It just means that the burden is on the Trinitarians to demonstrate that it is biblical. Until they do so successfully, if we want to be biblical Christians, we are—to say the least—free to regard the doctrine as unbiblical and hence non-essential to salvation.
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[1] McGrath, 120.
[2] Bowman, 50.
[3] Rhodes, 95, 269.
[4] Geisler, 39.
[5] McGrath, 120.
[6] Bowman, 50.
[7] Rhodes, 72, 95, 248, 269.
[8] Bowman and Komoszewski, 166.
[9] Geisler, 39, 270.
[10] McGrath, 121.
[11] Bowman, 50.
[12] Rhodes, 72, 248, 269.
[13] Bowman and Komoszewski, 166.
[14] Geisler, 39, 270.
[15] McGrath, 121.
[16] Bowman, 50.
[17] Rhodes, 72, 95, 248, 269.
[18] Bowman and Komoszewski, 166.
[19] Geisler, 39.
