51. Does the Bible say that Jesus was God with us? Yes. Matthew 1:23.
Technically, עִמָּנוּ אֵל means ‘God IS with us’ (cf. Is. 8:10), but yes, Matthew does apply the name to Jesus.
52. Did Jesus ever say, "I and my Father are one?" Yes. John 10:30.
Yes and the Greek reads, egō kai patēr hen esmen. Esmen is the 2nd person plural of the verb eimi and translates literally as ‘we are’ while hen is the neuter form of the numeral one signifying that it is not ‘one person’ but rather ‘one thing’ that the Father and the Son are (which agrees perfectly with the doctrine of the Trinity)—Jesus literally said, ‘I and my father we are one [thing]’
53. Can it be proved scripturally that Jesus and the Father are one in the same sense that husband and wife are one? No. The Godhead was never compared to the relationship of a husband and wife. Jesus identified Himself with the Father in a way that husband and wife cannot be identified with each other. John 14:9-11.
The Trinitarian argument is not that the Father and Jesus are one the same way that a husband and wife are one. The only comparison that would possibly be made here by a Trinitarian is that the Hebrew word for ‘one’ (echad) is used to describe both. This is actually two logical fallacies in one. First they have created a faulty analogy and secondly they attribute this fallacious argument to Trinitarians and then attempt to knock it down when in fact we don’t hold this argument to begin with. Trinitarians do believe that the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are one as nothing else in existence is one. There is no perfectly analogous picture of the intimate relationship shared within the Trinity.
54. Does the Bible say that there is only one wise God? Yes. Jude 25.
And again, Trinitarianism is monotheism—the barrage of questions concerning ‘one God’ are pointless in that proving monotheism doesn’t prove modalism nor does it disprove Trinitarianism.
55. Does the Bible call the Holy Ghost a second or third person in the Godhead? No. The Holy Ghost is the one Spirit of God, the one God Himself at work in our lives. John 4:24; I Corinthians 3:16-17; 6:19; 12:13.
John 4:24 is clearly in reference to the Father which can be seen easily from reading the verse immediately before it. Also, John 4:24 shows us the three persons of the Trinity in the worship for it is the Father who seeks our worship in Spirit (i.e. the Holy Spirit) and Truth (i.e. the Son, see Jo. 14:6). As far as the title ‘third person’ is concerned, again… the title doesn’t need to present for the doctrine to be taught. The Father begets, the Son is begotten, the Spirit proceeds. It’s that simple.
56. Can Trinitarians show that three divine persons were present when Jesus was baptized by John? Absolutely not. The one, omnipresent God used three simultaneous manifestations. Only one divine person was present--Jesus Christ the Lord.
Notice that all they have done here is re-state their premise in the conclusion without actually having shown this to be true. They’ve assumed that one God means one divine person and therefore conclude that three divine persons can not be shown at Jesus’ baptism. But because Trinitarians can show the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit to be three persons and Trinitarians can show the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit to be present at Jesus’ baptism, it then logically follows that Trinitarians can show three divine persons present at Jesus’ baptism. It is a common argument from the modalist that the omnipresence of God accounts for all three modes or manifestations being at Jesus’ baptism but this claim is light on substance.
The fact is that God is omnipresent, but this is a trait shared by each member of the Godhead. It is illogical to claim that Jesus in his deity (as the Father) spoke to Jesus in his humanity (as the Son) from heaven while Jesus as the Spirit (his omnipresent deity) descended upon himself (in his humanity). This violates the law of non-contradiction as the modalist would have one person being three persons at the same time and in the same sense. They might claim that these are not ‘persons’ at all but rather ‘three manifestations of one person’ but this is shown false in that each ‘manifestation’ exhibits the qualities of personhood. In the account of Jesus’ baptism alone we see at the very least the Father speaking and the Son being the subject of the words spoken as irrefutable proof of at least two personalities. Omnipresence does not account for such nonsense and the burden of proof is on the modalist to show such.
57. Then what were the other two of whom Trinitarians speak? One was a voice from heaven; the other was the Spirit of God in the form of a dove. Matthew 3:16-17.
Voices come from persons and the Holy Spirit is shown to be a person all throughout Scripture.
58. What did the voice say at Jesus' baptism? "Thou art my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased." Mark 1:11. As the Son of God, Jesus was the one God incarnate.
Again, a definite and clear distinction is seen in the Father in heaven speaking about the Son on earth at Jesus’ baptism. Yes, Jesus is God incarnate, but it is the Son who was incarnated, not the Father!
59. Does the Bible say that God shed His blood and that God laid down His life for us? Yes. Acts 20:28; I John 3:16. God was able to do this because He had taken upon Himself a human body.
Textual variants in Acts 20:28 aside, the Trinitarian can certainly affirm that God added a human nature and was incarnate in a human body for the purpose of redeeming mankind on the cross.
60. The Bible says that God is coming back with all his saints (Zechariah 14:5) and also that Jesus is coming back with all his saints (I Thessalonians 3:13). Are two coming back? No. Only one is coming back--our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ. Titus 2:13.
Again, Jesus is God. The Father and Jesus are two persons, not two Gods. Questions like this are straw man arguments in that they keep assuming a bi/tri-theism on the part of Trinitarians.
Technically, עִמָּנוּ אֵל means ‘God IS with us’ (cf. Is. 8:10), but yes, Matthew does apply the name to Jesus.
52. Did Jesus ever say, "I and my Father are one?" Yes. John 10:30.
Yes and the Greek reads, egō kai patēr hen esmen. Esmen is the 2nd person plural of the verb eimi and translates literally as ‘we are’ while hen is the neuter form of the numeral one signifying that it is not ‘one person’ but rather ‘one thing’ that the Father and the Son are (which agrees perfectly with the doctrine of the Trinity)—Jesus literally said, ‘I and my father we are one [thing]’
53. Can it be proved scripturally that Jesus and the Father are one in the same sense that husband and wife are one? No. The Godhead was never compared to the relationship of a husband and wife. Jesus identified Himself with the Father in a way that husband and wife cannot be identified with each other. John 14:9-11.
The Trinitarian argument is not that the Father and Jesus are one the same way that a husband and wife are one. The only comparison that would possibly be made here by a Trinitarian is that the Hebrew word for ‘one’ (echad) is used to describe both. This is actually two logical fallacies in one. First they have created a faulty analogy and secondly they attribute this fallacious argument to Trinitarians and then attempt to knock it down when in fact we don’t hold this argument to begin with. Trinitarians do believe that the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are one as nothing else in existence is one. There is no perfectly analogous picture of the intimate relationship shared within the Trinity.
54. Does the Bible say that there is only one wise God? Yes. Jude 25.
And again, Trinitarianism is monotheism—the barrage of questions concerning ‘one God’ are pointless in that proving monotheism doesn’t prove modalism nor does it disprove Trinitarianism.
55. Does the Bible call the Holy Ghost a second or third person in the Godhead? No. The Holy Ghost is the one Spirit of God, the one God Himself at work in our lives. John 4:24; I Corinthians 3:16-17; 6:19; 12:13.
John 4:24 is clearly in reference to the Father which can be seen easily from reading the verse immediately before it. Also, John 4:24 shows us the three persons of the Trinity in the worship for it is the Father who seeks our worship in Spirit (i.e. the Holy Spirit) and Truth (i.e. the Son, see Jo. 14:6). As far as the title ‘third person’ is concerned, again… the title doesn’t need to present for the doctrine to be taught. The Father begets, the Son is begotten, the Spirit proceeds. It’s that simple.
56. Can Trinitarians show that three divine persons were present when Jesus was baptized by John? Absolutely not. The one, omnipresent God used three simultaneous manifestations. Only one divine person was present--Jesus Christ the Lord.
Notice that all they have done here is re-state their premise in the conclusion without actually having shown this to be true. They’ve assumed that one God means one divine person and therefore conclude that three divine persons can not be shown at Jesus’ baptism. But because Trinitarians can show the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit to be three persons and Trinitarians can show the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit to be present at Jesus’ baptism, it then logically follows that Trinitarians can show three divine persons present at Jesus’ baptism. It is a common argument from the modalist that the omnipresence of God accounts for all three modes or manifestations being at Jesus’ baptism but this claim is light on substance.
The fact is that God is omnipresent, but this is a trait shared by each member of the Godhead. It is illogical to claim that Jesus in his deity (as the Father) spoke to Jesus in his humanity (as the Son) from heaven while Jesus as the Spirit (his omnipresent deity) descended upon himself (in his humanity). This violates the law of non-contradiction as the modalist would have one person being three persons at the same time and in the same sense. They might claim that these are not ‘persons’ at all but rather ‘three manifestations of one person’ but this is shown false in that each ‘manifestation’ exhibits the qualities of personhood. In the account of Jesus’ baptism alone we see at the very least the Father speaking and the Son being the subject of the words spoken as irrefutable proof of at least two personalities. Omnipresence does not account for such nonsense and the burden of proof is on the modalist to show such.
57. Then what were the other two of whom Trinitarians speak? One was a voice from heaven; the other was the Spirit of God in the form of a dove. Matthew 3:16-17.
Voices come from persons and the Holy Spirit is shown to be a person all throughout Scripture.
58. What did the voice say at Jesus' baptism? "Thou art my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased." Mark 1:11. As the Son of God, Jesus was the one God incarnate.
Again, a definite and clear distinction is seen in the Father in heaven speaking about the Son on earth at Jesus’ baptism. Yes, Jesus is God incarnate, but it is the Son who was incarnated, not the Father!
59. Does the Bible say that God shed His blood and that God laid down His life for us? Yes. Acts 20:28; I John 3:16. God was able to do this because He had taken upon Himself a human body.
Textual variants in Acts 20:28 aside, the Trinitarian can certainly affirm that God added a human nature and was incarnate in a human body for the purpose of redeeming mankind on the cross.
60. The Bible says that God is coming back with all his saints (Zechariah 14:5) and also that Jesus is coming back with all his saints (I Thessalonians 3:13). Are two coming back? No. Only one is coming back--our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ. Titus 2:13.
Again, Jesus is God. The Father and Jesus are two persons, not two Gods. Questions like this are straw man arguments in that they keep assuming a bi/tri-theism on the part of Trinitarians.
