The Full-Orbed Deity of Jesus Christ
Gordon Magee
Jesus Is the Father

Plain Statements

For or 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 . . . The everlasting Father” (Isaiah 9:6).

“He that hath seen me hath seen the Father” (John 14:9).

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

Verses to Compare

1. Who raised Jesus from the dead? John 2:19-22 says Jesus; Romans 6:4 says the Father.

2. Who answers prayer? John 14:14 says Jesus; John 15:16 says the Father.

3. Who has the drawing power? John 12:32 says Jesus; John 6:44 says the Father.

4. Who is the Alpha and Omega? Revelation 1:8 says Jesus; Revelation 21:6-7 says the Father.

5. Who is the corning One? John 14:3 says Jesus; I John 3:1-2 says the Father.

Surely we cannot think that two persons raised Jesus from the dead, that two persons answer prayer, that two persons draw us to God, that two persons are the Alpha and Omega, and that two persons are coming.

Christ’s Truthful Claims

Jesus claimed that He was the resurrection, the answerer of prayer, the drawing power, the Alpha and Omega, and the coming One. Did He claim too much? We say no, for Jesus is the Father.

1. Christ is a Father to His children (Hebrews 2:13; John 1:12-13).
2. Christ is the Father of eternity (Isaiah 9:6, see margin).
3. Christ is the Father to the church (Isaiah 53:10).
4. Christ is the Father to overcomers (Revelation 21:7).
5. Christ is the Father of creation (John 1:3).
6. Christ is the Father to Israel, “his people” (Matthew 1:21).
7. Christ is the Father of lights (James 1:17; John 9:5).
8. Christ is the Father of spirits (Hebrews 12:9; John 1:3).

If we deny the Fatherhood of Jesus, then we deny that He is God for “there is but one God, the Father” (I Corinthians 8:6; Ephesians 4:6; John 4:21-24).

Jesus Is the Son

In the scriptural passages relative to the Son two thoughts come prominently into view: (1) manhood or humanity and (2) time. For example:

* In Hebrews 5:8 the Son learned.
* In John 17 the Son prayed.
* In I John 11 and John 13:16 the Son was sent.
* In Mark 13:32 the Son did not know all things.
* In John 14:28 the Son was not as great as the Father.
* In I John 1:7 the Son had blood.
* In Galatians 2:20-21 the Son died!

All this clearly shows that as Son, Jesus was man. The angel clearly said so to Mary. That holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God” (Luke 1:35). “His Son, made of a woman” (Galatians 4:4).

The Term “Eternal Son” Is a Trinitarian Invention

The term “eternal Son” is never found in the Bible, and thank God it is not! If it was, it would teach Jesus as Son forever, praying, learning, being lesser, “not knowing,” and so on. For all these things are in the Scripture associated with the Son. Indeed, the Bible flatly and plainly contradicts the “eternal Son” idea in John 3:16 and everywhere it mentions the “begotten Son.” The words eternal and begotten are contradictory and mean completely opposite things. Hebrews 1:5-6 tells us the very day in which the Son was begotten; how then can men speak of the “eternal Son”? Furthermore, the Bible tells us when the Sonship role will cease! (I Corinthians 15:28).

We do believe in the eternality of He who came as the Son. However He is not eternal as the Son, which term relates to what He is in time and as to His humanity.

Threefold Purpose of the Sonship

1. Redemption (Hebrews 2:14; Galatians 2:20).
2. Mediation (Hebrews 7:3; 10:12).
3. Millennial reign and judgment (Matthew 26:64; Acts 17:31; John 5:22).

Jesus Is the Holy Spirit

Verses to Compare

1. There is one Spirit (Ephesians 4:4).
2. There is but one Lord, Jesus Christ (I Corinthians 8:6, NIV).
3. “Now the Lord [Jesus is the one Lord] is the Spirit” (II Corinthians 3:17, NIV).

The Titles of the Spirit Reveal that He is Jesus (in Emanation)

* The Spirit of His Son (Galatians 4:6).
* The Spirit of Jesus (Acts 16:7, NIV).
* The Spirit of Jesus Christ (Philippians 1:19).

Two Spirits?

Do Trinitarians imagine that there are two Spirits in the Godhead, namely, the Father, the so-called first person, who is termed a Spirit (John 4:24), and the Holy Spirit, the so-called third person? There are not two Spirits in the Godhead because “there is . . . one Spirit” (Ephesians 4:4).
In the answer to these questions lies the truth.

1. Who is the abiding One? Matthew 28:20 says Jesus; John 14:16 says the Spirit.
2. Who makes intercession? Hebrews 4:15 and 7:25 say Jesus; Romans 8:26 says the Spirit.
3. Who is the Paraclete? I John 2:1 says Jesus (see margin); John 14:26 says the Spirit.
4. Who is the speaker in Revelation 2-3? Revelation 1:8-12 and 22:16 say Jesus; Revelation 2:7 says the Spirit.

Do we have two abiding ones, two intercessors, two Paracletes, and two speakers giving the messages to the seven churches? The answer every time is in the negative. Jesus is the Spirit. Let us read John 14:18 carefully: “I [Jesus] will not leave you comfortless [margin, “orphans”]: I will come to you.” If this is not Jesus the Son promising to come as the Spirit in order to be a Father to the apostles then what does it mean?

Did Christ Have Two Fathers?

A classic example of the confusion of thought implicit in Trinitarian belief is seen when, under questioning, they are obliged to confess that Christ must have had two fathers, namely, the first person of the trinity (they say), to whom He prayed, and the Holy Spirit, who performed the miracle act of paternity in the virgin womb (Luke 1:35).

Are Christ and the Spirit Two Persons?

Colossians 2:9 says, “In him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily.” Jesus must be the Holy Ghost.

John 20:22 says, “He breathed on them, and saith unto them, Receive ye the Holy Ghost.” In the day that we can establish a difference of person between ourselves and our breath then we may succeed in proving a difference of person between Jesus and the Holy Ghost.

Colossians 1:27 says, “Christ in you, the hope of glory.” Who indwells the believer? The Holy Ghost. Paul calls Him Christ.

The Personality of the Spirit

All this will serve to expose the untruthfulness of those who say that we deny the personality of the Spirit. Think a moment! How could we if we believe the Spirit is Jesus? “O consistency, thou art a jewel.”

Unanswerable Difficulties of Trinitarianism

1. God was in Christ.

“God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself” (II Corinthians 5:19). We are reconciled by the death of Christ to the deity resident in Jesus. If, as Trinitarians say, Jesus is but the incarnation of one of three divine persons, then according to this verse we are not reconciled to the Father and the Spirit.

2. Something two divine persons don’t know!

Mark 13:32 and Matthew 24:36 say that the Son does not know the day or hour of His second advent, but only the Father does. According to trinitarianism, there are three omniscient persons in the Godhead. How then does only one divine person (the Father) know the time of the advent?

3. Trinitarianism requires three Calvarys.

Trinitarians believe that three divine persons made the new covenant and the old. The law of the covenant required that the covenant maker die in order to put the covenant in force. (See Hebrews 8:7-13; 9:16-17.) Consistent and logical trinitarianism would require the death of three divine persons, therefore, in order to bring in the new covenant. Oneness believers have no such difficulty, as they believe that He who died was in the fullest sense Jehovah God, the covenant maker.

4. Whom shall we worship?

In John 4:21-24, Jesus taught that the sole object of worship is the Father. Can our Trinitarian friends explain why Christ denied worship to the other two divine persons? Once again, Oneness believers have no difficulty. Jesus did not believe the trinity; to Him Father, Son, and Holy Ghost were one person.

The Great Key

The key to an understanding of the Godhead teaching is the dual nature of Jesus. Jesus was:

* A man (John 8:40) and also God (John 20:28; I Corinthians 8:6).
* Not fifty years old (John 8:57) and also eternal (Micah 5:2).
* A babe (Luke 2:16) and also the mighty God (Isaiah 9:6).
* Learning (Hebrews 5:8) and also knew all things (John 21:17).
* Weak and weary (II Corinthians 13:4; John 4:6) and also the Almighty (Revelation 1:8).
* On earth (Mark 2:10)–and also in heaven (John 3:13).
* The Son (Isaiah 9:6) and also the Father (Isaiah 9:6).
* One who prayed (Luke 22:41) and also the One who answers prayer (John 14:14).

These verses of Scriptures do not present two divine persons but rather two natures human and divine.

The Apostles Were Oneness

This is how the apostles spoke of Jesus:

* “The great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ” (Titus 2:13).
* “The Almighty” (Revelation 1:8).
* “Jesus Christ. This is the true God, and eternal life” (I John 5:20).
* “The only Lord God, and our Lord Jesus Christ” (Jude 1:4).
* “Our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory,” and “There is one God” (James 2:1, 19).
* “Jesus Christ . . . the King . . . the only wise God” (I Timothy 1:16-17).

The present resurgence of the truth of the full deity of Jesus is but a rediscovery of a very precious apostolic truth that for long centuries has been obscured by apostasy and a tritheistic theory.

This article “The Full-Orbed Deity of Jesus Christ” was excerpted from: Is Jesus in the Godhead or Is the Godhead in Jesus? Written by Gordon Magee. Copyright 1988. It may be used for study & research purposes only.