Doctrine of God - He is One (Scriptures)

Introduction

Colossians 2:9 KJV 1900

9 For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily.

Body

Establishing Our Case

Old Testament Teaches that God is One

Deuteronomy 6:4 “4 Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God is one Lord:”

Exodus 20:3 “3 Thou shalt have no other gods before me.”

Exodus 20:5 “5 Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the Lord thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me;”

Deuteronomy 32:39 “39 See now that I, even I, am he, And there is no god with me: I kill, and I make alive; I wound, and I heal: Neither is there any that can deliver out of my hand.”

II Samuel 7:22 “22 Wherefore thou art great, O Lord God: for there is none like thee, neither is there any God beside thee, according to all that we have heard with our ears.”

Psalm 86:10 “10 For thou art great, and doest wondrous things: Thou art God alone.”

Isaiah 43:10-11 “10 Ye are my witnesses, saith the Lord, And my servant whom I have chosen: That ye may know and believe me, And understand that I am he: Before me there was no God formed, Neither shall there be after me. 11 I, even I, am the Lord; And beside me there is no saviour.”

Isaiah 44:6 “6 Thus saith the Lord the King of Israel, And his redeemer the Lord of hosts; I am the first, and I am the last; And beside me there is no God.”

Isaiah 44:8 “8 Fear ye not, neither be afraid: Have not I told thee from that time, And have declared it? ye are even my witnesses. Is there a God beside me? Yea, there is no God; I know not any.”

Isaiah 44:24 “24 Thus saith the Lord, thy redeemer, And he that formed thee from the womb, I am the Lord that maketh all things; That stretcheth forth the heavens alone; That spreadeth abroad the earth by myself;”

Isaiah 45:6 “6 That they may know from the rising of the sun, and from the west, That there is none beside me. I am the Lord, and there is none else.”

Isaiah 45:21-22 “21 Tell ye, and bring them near; Yea, let them take counsel together: Who hath declared this from ancient time? who hath told it from that time? Have not I the Lord? and there is no God else beside me; A just God and a Saviour; there is none beside me. 22 Look unto me, and be ye saved, all the ends of the earth: For I am God, and there is none else.”

Isaiah 46:9 “9 Remember the former things of old: For I am God, and there is none else; I am God, and there is none like me,”

Isaiah 42:8 “8 I am the Lord: that is my name: And my glory will I not give to another, Neither my praise to graven images.”

Isaiah 48:11 “11 For mine own sake, even for mine own sake, will I do it: For how should my name be polluted? And I will not give my glory unto another.”

Isaiah 37:16 “16 O Lord of hosts, God of Israel, that dwellest between the cherubims, thou art the God, even thou alone, of all the kingdoms of the earth: thou hast made heaven and earth.”

Malachi 2:10 “10 Have we not all one father? Hath not one God created us? Why do we deal treacherously every man against his brother, By profaning the covenant of our fathers?”

Zechariah 14:9 “9 And the Lord shall be king over all the earth: In that day shall there be one Lord, and his name one.”

Referred to as the “Holy One”

Psalm 71:22 “22 I will also praise thee with the psaltery, Even thy truth, O my God: unto thee will I sing With the harp, O thou Holy One of Israel.”

Psalm 78:41 “41 Yea, they turned back and tempted God, And limited the Holy One of Israel.”

Isaiah 1:4 “4 Ah sinful nation, a people laden with iniquity, A seed of evildoers, children that are corrupters: They have forsaken the Lord, They have provoked the Holy One of Israel unto anger, They are gone away backward.”

Isaiah 5:19 “19 That say, Let him make speed, and hasten his work, That we may see it: And let the counsel of the Holy One of Israel draw nigh and come, That we may know it!”

Isaiah 5:24 “24 Therefore as the fire devoureth the stubble, And the flame consumeth the chaff, So their root shall be as rottenness, And their blossom shall go up as dust: Because they have cast away the law of the Lord of hosts, And despised the word of the Holy One of Israel.”

Some Trinitarians explain these verses by stating God meant to emphasize His oneness as opposed to pagan deities, but still existed in a plurality.

Why then do the Jews, even today, believe so vehemently in a strict monotheism?

Why did’t God make clear to us that He was actually a plurality of gods instead of one?

Suppose God did want to make clear to us that He was one? What language would He have used to bring that point across?

Maybe words like “none”, “none else”, “none like Me”, “none beside me”, “alone”, “by Myself”, and “one”?

The New Testament Teaches that God is One

Jesus believed in and taught Deuteronomy 6:4, that it was the first of all the commandments

The New Testament is built upon the foundation of the Old Testament and repeats its teaching about the nature of God many times

Romans 3:30 “30 Seeing it is one God, which shall justify the circumcision by faith, and uncircumcision through faith.”

I Corinthians 8:4 “4 As concerning therefore the eating of those things that are offered in sacrifice unto idols, we know that an idol is nothing in the world, and that there is none other God but one.”

Galatians 3:20 “20 Now a mediator is not a mediator of one, but God is one.”

Ephesians 4:6 “6 One God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all.”

I Timothy 2:5 “5 For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus;”

James 2:19 “19 Thou believest that there is one God; thou doest well: the devils also believe, and tremble.”

I John 2:20 “20 But ye have an unction from the Holy One, and ye know all things.”

Revelation 4:2 “2 And immediately I was in the spirit: and, behold, a throne was set in heaven, and one sat on the throne.”

Jesus is God

The Old Testament States that Jesus is God

Isaiah 9:6 “6 For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: And the government shall be upon his shoulder: And his name shall be called Wonderful, Counseller, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.”

Isaiah 7:14 “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.”

Matthew 1:21-23 “21 And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins. 22 Now all this was done, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying, 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.”

Isaiah 11:1 “1 And there shall come forth a rod out of the stem of Jesse, And a Branch shall grow out of his roots:”

Isaiah 11:10 “10 And in that day there shall be a root of Jesse, Which shall stand for an ensign of the people; To it shall the Gentiles seek: And his rest shall be glorious.”

A branch because the Messiah would descend from Jesse as a Son

A root because Jesus is God, the creator of all life, including Jesse

Isaiah 35:4-6 “4 Say to them that are of a fearful heart, Be strong, fear not: Behold, your God will come with vengeance, Even God with a recompence; He will come and save you. 5 Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, And the ears of the deaf shall be unstopped. 6 Then shall the lame man leap as an hart, And the tongue of the dumb sing: For in the wilderness shall waters break out, And streams in the desert.”

Luke 7:22 “22 Then Jesus answering said unto them, Go your way, and tell John what things ye have seen and heard; how that the blind see, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, to the poor the gospel is preached.”

Isaiah 40:3 “3 The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, Make straight in the desert a highway for our God.”

Matthew 3:3 “3 For this is he that was spoken of by the prophet Esaias, saying, The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make his paths straight.”

Micah 5:2 “2 But thou, Beth-lehem Ephratah, Though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, Yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; Whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting.”

Luke 2:15-16 “15 And it came to pass, as the angels were gone away from them into heaven, the shepherds said one to another, Let us now go even unto Beth-lehem, and see this thing which is come to pass, which the Lord hath made known unto us. 16 And they came with haste, and found Mary, and Joseph, and the babe lying in a manger.”

The New Testament States that Jesus is God

John 20:28 “28 And Thomas answered and said unto him, My Lord and my God.”

Acts 20:28 “28 Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock, over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed the church of God, which he hath purchased with his own blood.”

Titus 2:13 “13 Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ;”

II Peter 1:1 “1 Simon Peter, a servant and an apostle of Jesus Christ, to them that have obtained like precious faith with us through the righteousness of God and our Saviour Jesus Christ:”

I Corinthians 3:16-17 “16 Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you? 17 If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are.”

Ephesians 3:17 “17 That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love,”

Colossians 2:9 “9 For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily.”

Colossians 1:19 “19 For it pleased the Father that in him should all fulness dwell;”

Colossians 2:10 “10 And ye are complete in him, which is the head of all principality and power:”

Whatever we need we find in Jesus Christ alone.

God was Manifest in the Flesh as Jesus

I Timothy 3:15-16 “15 But if I tarry long, that thou mayest know how thou oughtest to behave thyself in the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth. 16 And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory.”

John 1:1 “1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.”

John 1:14 “14 And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.”

II Corinthians 5:19 “19 To wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation.”

John 1:18 “18 No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him.”

Hebrews 1:1-3 “1 God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, 2 Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds; 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;”

Colossians 1:15 “15 Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature:”

II Corinthians 4:4 “4 In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them.”

Hebrews 10:20 “20 By a new and living way, which he hath consecrated for us, through the veil, that is to say, his flesh;”

Genesis 22:8 “8 And Abraham said, My son, God will provide himself a lamb for a burnt offering: so they went both of them together.”

Hebrews 10:5 “5 Wherefore when he cometh into the world, he saith, Sacrifice and offering thou wouldest not, but a body hast thou prepared me:”

John 1:10-11 “10 He was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not. 11 He came unto his own, and his own received him not.”

Jesus is the Father

We see in Malachi 2:10 “10 Have we not all one father? Hath not one God created us? Why do we deal treacherously every man against his brother, By profaning the covenant of our fathers?” God is our Father. Is the Father in Jesus?

Isaiah 9:6 “6 For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: And the government shall be upon his shoulder: And his name shall be called Wonderful, Counseller, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.”

Colossians 2:9 “9 For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily.”

John 8:19 “19 Then said they unto him, Where is thy Father? Jesus answered, Ye neither know me, nor my Father: if ye had known me, ye should have known my Father also.”

John 8:24 “24 I said therefore unto you, that ye shall die in your sins: for if ye believe not that I am he, ye shall die in your sins.”

John 8:25 “25 Then said they unto him, Who art thou? And Jesus saith unto them, Even the same that I said unto you from the beginning.”

John 8:27 “27 They understood not that he spake to them of the Father.”

John 10:30 “30 I and my Father are one.”

Some try to assert that Jesus means “one” here the same way that a husband and wife are one. They are in agreement.

Lets see what other scriptures have to say. Do they support this interpretation?

John 12:45 “45 And he that seeth me seeth him that sent me.”

John 14:7 “7 If ye had known me, ye should have known my Father also: and from henceforth ye know him, and have seen him.”

John 14:8 “8 Philip saith unto him, Lord, shew us the Father, and it sufficeth us.”

John 14:9-11 “9 Jesus saith unto him, Have I been so long time with you, and yet hast thou not known me, Philip? he that hath seen me hath seen the Father; and how sayest thou then, Shew us the Father? 10 Believest thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in me? the words that I speak unto you I speak not of myself: but the Father that dwelleth in me, he doeth the works. 11 Believe me that I am in the Father, and the Father in me: or else believe me for the very works’ sake.”

John 10:38 “38 But if I do, though ye believe not me, believe the works: that ye may know, and believe, that the Father is in me, and I in him.”

John 2:19-21 “19 Jesus answered and said unto them, Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up. 20 Then said the Jews, Forty and six years was this temple in building, and wilt thou rear it up in three days? 21 But he spake of the temple of his body.”

Acts 2:24 “24 Whom God hath raised up, having loosed the pains of death: because it was not possible that he should be holden of it.”

Which one raised up Jesus? The Son or the Father?

John 16:7 “7 Nevertheless I tell you the truth; It is expedient for you that I go away: for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I depart, I will send him unto you.”

John 14:26 “26 But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.”

Again, who sent the comforter?

John 14:14 “14 If ye shall ask any thing in my name, I will do it.”

John 16:23 “23 And in that day ye shall ask me nothing. Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in my name, he will give it you.”

Who answers prayer?

Ephesians 5:26 “26 That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word,”

Jude 1 “1 Jude, the servant of Jesus Christ, and brother of James, to them that are sanctified by God the Father, and preserved in Jesus Christ, and called:”

Who sanctifies us?

These are easily understood when we understand Jesus had a dual nature, being both fully God and fully man.

Trinitarian Verses in Scripture

The Idea of Plurality in the New Testament

II Corinthians 13:14 “14 The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Ghost, be with you all. Amen.”

Interestingly, this is the only salutation we find in the N.T. that includes the Holy Ghost. There are around twenty salutations given that mention God and Jesus, but no mention of the Holy Ghost.

The O.T. priestly blessing is adapted in the N.T., which would literally call down the Name of Yahweh upon the people in covenant relationship and in covenant worship

Numbers 6:24-27 “24 The Lord bless thee, and keep thee: 25 The Lord make his face shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee: 26 The Lord lift up his countenance upon thee, and give thee peace. 27 And they shall put my name upon the children of Israel; and I will bless them.”

They would greet each other or bless each other by saying “Peace be unto you”

In the N.T. they added “grace”.

Philippians 1:2 “2 Grace be unto you, and peace, from God our Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ.”

John 1:17 “17 For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ.”

They knew the Father, Yahweh, and they understood Him covenantally according to the O.T. law, but Jesus Christ was new to this dispensation.

They were saying in effect “Peace comes through the office of God as Father, but we receive grace from God through the office of the Son.”

We even call this dispensation the dispensation of grace.

Old Testament Verses with Exclamations

Genesis 1:26 “26 And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.”

There are hundreds and hundreds of references to God in the singular. There are only four verses in the Old Testament that reference God in the plural

Genesis 3:22 “22 And the Lord God said, Behold, the man is become as one of us, to know good and evil: and now, lest he put forth his hand, and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live for ever:”

Genesis 11:7 “7 Go to, let us go down, and there confound their language, that they may not understand one another’s speech.”

Isaiah 6:8 “8 Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, Whom shall I send, and who will go for us? Then said I, Here am I; send me.”

Isaiah 44:24 “24 Thus saith the Lord, thy redeemer, And he that formed thee from the womb, I am the Lord that maketh all things; That stretcheth forth the heavens alone; That spreadeth abroad the earth by myself;”

God says He created the heavens alone and created the earth by Himself.

Malachi 2:10 “10 Have we not all one father? Hath not one God created us? Why do we deal treacherously every man against his brother, By profaning the covenant of our fathers?”

Scripture states that there was only one creator. Not two.

If this verse is suppose to refer to God the Son, we have yet more difficulties

Galatians 4:4 “4 But when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law,”

Jesus was born approximately 4,000 years after the creation week

Jesus was born of a woman

Scripturally this cannot refer to a second deity. How do we reconcile this verse (and the other three verses) with the rest of scripture?

God was speaking with the Angels at creation

This is the traditional Jewish interpretation of this verse

I Kings 22:19-22 “19 And he said, Hear thou therefore the word of the Lord: I saw the Lord sitting on his throne, and all the host of heaven standing by him on his right hand and on his left. 20 And the Lord said, Who shall persuade Ahab, that he may go up and fall at Ramoth-gilead? And one said on this manner, and another said on that manner. 21 And there came forth a spirit, and stood before the Lord, and said, I will persuade him. 22 And the Lord said unto him, Wherewith? And he said, I will go forth, and I will be a lying spirit in the mouth of all his prophets. And he said, Thou shalt persuade him, and prevail also: go forth, and do so.”

Here we see God speaking with Angels concerning this matter

Job 38:4-7 “4 Where wast thou when I laid the foundations of the earth? Declare, if thou hast understanding. 5 Who hath laid the measures thereof, if thou knowest? Or who hath stretched the line upon it? 6 Whereupon are the foundations thereof fastened? Or who laid the corner stone thereof; 7 When the morning stars sang together, And all the sons of God shouted for joy?”

We know that Angels were present during creation

God was taking council with His own will

Ephesians 1:11 “11 In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will:”

It’s similar to someone saying “Hmm…let’s see here...” when considering a problem. Let us see here.

Some describe this as a majestic or literary plural

In formal speaking and writing the speaker or writer often refers to himself in the plural, especially if the speaker is royalty.

Daniel 2:36 “36 This is the dream; and we will tell the interpretation thereof before the king.”

Only Daniel gave the interpretation. No one else.

The plural pronoun is used to agree with the use of the plural noun Elohim

The noun that refers to God here is in the plural

It denotes the greatness and majesty of God or the multiple attributes of God

It’s a way to assign to God more than any one being could possess.

This passage described God’s foreknowledge of the future arrival of the Son, much like prophetic passages in the Psalms.

God does not live in time and sees all things as present

Genesis 17:5 “5 Neither shall thy name any more be called Abram, but thy name shall be Abraham; for a father of many nations have I made thee.”

Romans 4:17 “17 (As it is written, I have made thee a father of many nations,) before him whom he believed, even God, who quickeneth the dead, and calleth those things which be not as though they were.”

I Peter 1:19-20 “19 But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot: 20 Who verily was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you,”

Isaiah 6:3 “3 And one cried unto another, and said, Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord of hosts: The whole earth is full of his glory.”

Does “Holy, holy, holy” denote a trinity?

No. Double or triple repetition was a common Hebrew literary practice

It was used to give added emphasis.

Jeremiah 22:29 “29 O earth, earth, earth, hear the word of the Lord.”

Conclude Here