¹⁴[Pilate] said to the Jews, “Behold, your King!” ¹⁵They cried out, “Away with him! Away with him! Crucify him!” Pilate said to them, “Shall I crucify your King?” The chief priests answered, “We have no king but Caesar!”…¹⁹Pilate wrote a title also, and put it on the cross. There was written, “JESUS OF NAZARETH, THE KING OF THE JEWS.” (John 19:14–19)

Having prepared our minds in the last chapter with the OT Schoolmaster, we should be suitably prepared to see how King Jesus was received in the NT. As you read each of these passages, ask yourself honestly, based on the context: were they seeking to worship their Messiah as a king after the manner of David, or as God incarnate? We believe the context reveals the answer.

As it is written, “The multitudes… who followed kept shouting, ‘Hosanna to the son of David! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!’” (Matthew 21:9).

It is written, ¹“Now when Jesus was born… wise men… came… saying, ‘Where is he who is born King of the Jews? For we saw his star in the east, and have come to worship him.’ 3 When Herod the king heard it… ⁷Then Herod… ⁸… sent them to Bethlehem, and said, ‘Go and search diligently for the young child. When you have found him, bring me word, so that I also may come and worship him’” (Matthew 2:1, 3, 7–8).

It is written again, ⁸“But when the multitudes saw it, they marveled and glorified God, who had given such authority to men… ¹⁸While he told these things to them, behold, a ruler came and worshiped him, saying, ‘My daughter has just died, but come and lay your hand on her, and she will live’” (Matthew 9:8, 18).

It is written again, ¹⁶“Fear took hold of all, and they glorified God, saying, ‘A great prophet has arisen among us!’ and, ‘God has visited his people!’ ¹⁷This report went out concerning him in the whole of Judea, and in all the surrounding region” (Luke 7:16,17).

It is written again, ¹“Jesus said these things, and lifting up his eyes to heaven, he said, ‘Father, the time has come. Glorify your Son, that your Son may also glorify you; ²even as you gave him authority over all flesh, he will give eternal life toall whom you have given him. ³This is eternal life, that they should know you, the only true God, and him whom you sent, Jesus Christ. ⁴I glorified you on the earth. I have accomplished the work which you have given me to do. ⁵Now, Father, glorify me with your own self with the glory which I had with you before the world existed’” (John 17:1, 3, 5).

It is a curiosity that Onenessians will skip right over the first four clearly stated verses and jump to the fifth verse that is unclear (Glorify me with your own self). They do this so that they can jump to the pagan conclusion of literal preexistence and dual natures. This is how they end up accepting doctrines that are taught by pagans and antichristians but which are never clearly spelled out in the Bible. Remember that jumping to conclusions is the big daddy of all sin!

The way Jesus taught us to interpret the Scriptures is by interpreting the unclear verses by means of the clear verses. There is no clear verse that says Jesus intended us to understand that being glorified by the Father meant he was to be considered the person of the Father. Now look at this next verse that qualifies Jesus’ statement:

The glory which you have given me, I have given to them; that they may be one, even as we are one… (John 17:22)

If Oneness is true, then Jesus was praying for us all to be “lifeless empty shells without the spirit of God in us,” in accordance with David Bernard’s description of Jesus. Jesus’ prayer only makes sense if he were as human as we are and was praying that we, personally, join in the unity with the Father that he has, which is a unity of purpose and attitude, not a unity of personality.

We continue…

Similarly to John 17, it is written, ³²“When Elisha was come into the house, behold, the child was dead, and laid on his bed. ³³ He went in therefore, and… prayed to YHWH… ³⁵…and the child opened his eyes. ³⁶“He called Gehazi, and said, Call this Shunammite. So he called her. When she was come in to him, he said, Take up your son. ³⁷Then she went in, and fell at his feet, and bowed herself to the ground[worshiped]; and she took up her son, and went out” (2 Kings 4:32–37).

Was Elisha God? If not, why didn’t he rebuke the Shunamite woman for worshiping at his feet? Why is it so hard for us to believe that Elisha was part of the OT Schoolmaster to help bring us to Christ and understand how a man like Jesus, who was greater than Elisha, could be given authority over all flesh and be worthy of our worship because he is the Son of God?

It is written again, ²¹“When Jesus had crossed back over in the boat to the other side, a great multitude was gathered to him; and he was by the sea. ²²Behold, one of the rulers of the synagogue, Jairus by name, came; and seeing him, he fell at his feet [worshiped], ²³and begged him much, saying, ‘My little daughter is at the point of death. Please come and lay your hands on her, that she may be made healthy, and live’” (Mark 5:21–43).

By what stretch of the imagination would anyone believe that one of the “rulers of the synagogue” believed that Jesus was YHWH God incarnate? The man was desperate for the life of his daughter, but that doesn’t mean he’d forgotten everything he knew as a Jewish leader.

Furthermore, we don’t have to guess what the people thought Jesus was, because the Bible tells us, as it is written, “While he was still speaking, they came from the synagogue ruler’s house saying, ‘Your daughter is dead. Why bother the Teacher anymore?’ But Jesus, when he heard the message spoken, immediately said to the ruler of the synagogue, ‘Don’t be afraid, only believe’” (Mark 5:35–36).

I would think that the apostles, or Jairus, or Jesus himself would have rebuked those who came from the ruler’s house. They should have said something like, “Teacher? This is not just a teacher! Why this is YHWH God Himself come down to earth as a man!” Doesn’t any Onenessian think it is just a little bit odd that no one in the Bible ever confessed the theory they hold so dear and so “primary”— that “Jesus is the Father incarnate”? This question is like the question we and Oneness Pentecostals ask, saying, “Doesn’t any ‘just believer’ think it is a little bit odd that no one in the Bible was ever told to ‘accept the Lord as their personal savior’?” The absent Oneness confession in the Bible not only shows the utter weakness of the Oneness conclusion, but also the double-mindedness of Onenessians in their methods.

And again, as the story is told in Matthew, ²⁷“As Jesus passed by from there, two blind men followed him, calling out and saying, ‘Have mercy on us, son of David!’ ²⁸When he had come into the house, the blind men came to him. Jesus said to them, ‘Do you believe that I am able to do this?’ They told him, ‘Yes, Lord.’ ²⁹Then he touched their eyes, saying, ‘According to your faith be it done to you’” (Matthew 9:27–29).

According to what faith did they have? Well, what did they confess? Was it belief that Jesus was God incarnate, or that he was the son of David? If they thought he was God incarnate, wouldn’t Jesus’ question have been a little silly? Would any Jew not believe that God was able to heal?

It is written again, “When they got up into the boat, the wind ceased. Those who were in the boat came and worshiped him, saying, ‘You are truly the Son of God!’” (Matthew 14:32–33).

Recall what we learned about what the term “Son of God” meant to the Jews? That he was the Son of David, whom God said would be His Son. So they worshiped him as David’s heir, just like David himself was seen doing before his king, Saul, as it is written, “David also arose afterward, and went out of the cave, and cried after Saul, saying, My lord the king. When Saul looked behind him, David bowed with his face to the earth, and did obeisance [worship]” (1 Samuel 24:8).

If Oneness reasoning is true, shouldn’t we believe that King Saul was also God incarnate? Of course not.

It is written yet again, ²²Behold, a Canaanite woman came out from those borders, and cried, saying, “Have mercy on me, Lord, you son of David! My daughter is severely demonized!” ²³But he answered her not a word. His disciples came and begged him, saying, “Send her away; for she cries after us.” ²⁴But he answered, “I wasn’t sent to anyone but the lost sheep of the house of Israel.” ²⁵But she came and worshiped him, saying, “Lord, help me.” ²⁶But he answered, “It is not appropriate to take the children’s bread and throw it to the dogs.” ²⁷But she said, “Yes, Lord, but even the dogs eat the crumbs which fall from their masters’ table.” ²⁸Then Jesus answered her, “Woman, great is your faith! Be it done to you even as you desire.” And her daughter was healed from that hour” (Matthew 15:22–28).

Was her confession of faith in Jesus as the “son of David” or as “YHWH incarnate”? The fact is, in not one example out of all the places where Jesus was “worshiped” did anyone ever confess they worshiped him as “YHWH incarnate.”

It is written again, ²⁰“Then the mother of the sons of Zebedee came to him with her sons, kneeling [worshiping] and asking a certain thing of him. ²¹He said to her, “What do you want?” She said to him, “Command that these, my two sons, may sit, one on your right hand, and one on your left hand, in your Kingdom” (Matthew 20:20–23). The Jews were expecting the Son of David to restore the kingdom of David to Israel. It would simply be jumping to conclusions to believe that this mother was asking that her sons be at the right and left hand of God’s throne in the heavens.

It is written again, ⁸“They departed quickly from the tomb… ⁹As they went… behold, Jesus met them, saying, ‘Rejoice!’ They came and took hold of his feet, and worshiped him. ¹⁰ Then Jesus said to them, ‘Don’t be afraid. Go tell my brothers (or siblings) that they should go into Galilee, and there they will see me’ (Matthew 28:8–10). This passage doesn’t seem to tell us whether they worshiped because Jesus was the Son of David or because he was YHWH incarnate. But if we have ears to hear Jesus, he tells us, “Go tell my brothers”. Does YHWH have siblings? But He must if the Oneness theory is to be believed. Rather, this verse is reminiscent of Psalms 45:7 and Hebrews 1:6–9: “Therefore God, your God, has anointed you with the oil of gladness above your fellows.” Thus the Jesus that was being worshiped here was the one that Moses spoke of, “For Moses indeed said to the fathers, ‘The Lord God will raise up a prophet for you from among your brothers, like me. You shall listen to him in all things whatever he says to you. It will be that every soul that will not listen to that prophet will be utterly destroyed from among the people’” (Acts 3:22–23). People who don’t listen to this prophet Jesus jump to conclusions and think he is YHWH incarnated, but that isn’t something Jesus ever said or claimed of himself.

It is written again, ¹⁶“The soldiers led him away… ¹⁷…They clothed him with purple, and weaving a crown of thorns, they put it on him. ¹⁸They began to salute him, ‘Hail, King of the Jews!’ ¹⁹ They struck his head with a reed, and spat on him, and bowing their knees, did homage [worship] to him” (Mark 15:16–19). Obviously these soldiers didn’t mock-worship Jesus as YHWH, but as the king of the Jews.

It is written again, ³⁶“He answered, ‘Who is he, Lord, that I may believe in him?’ ³⁷Jesus said to him, ‘You have both seen him, and it is he who speaks with you.’ 38 He said, ‘Lord, I believe!’ and he worshiped him” (John 9:35–38). Did this man see YHWH? It is written again, “No one has seen God at any time. The one and only Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, he has declared him” (John 1:18).

We would like to think that the evidence we’ve provided against the Oneness theory can be found in the above words of God in the Bible, not in our commentary. But that doesn’t mean there isn’t more to say. If it still isn’t clear how Jesus could be worshiped even though he is not an incarnation of God the Father, compare the following and see if this doesn’t help reveal the biblical viewpoint to you.

You shall have no other gods before me. (Exodus 20:3)

On the other hand,

Hosanna to the son of David! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest! (Matthew 21:9)

For the Father judges no one, but he has given all judgment to the Son, that all may honor the Son, even as they honor the Father. He who doesn’t honor the Son doesn’t honor the Father who sent him. (John 5:22–23)

⁶Again, when he brings in the firstborn into the world he says, “ Let all the angels of God worship him.” ⁷Of the angels he says, “Who makes his angels winds, And his servants a flame of fire.” ⁸but of the Son he says, “Your divine throne is forever and ever; The scepter of uprightness is the scepter of your Kingdom. ⁹ You have loved righteousness, and hated iniquity; Therefore God, your God, has anointed you… above your fellows.” (Hebrews 1:6–12)

We hope the reader can see the difference between honoring someone who has been sent by the true God versus following after other gods. The passage in Hebrews says this “firstborn” had a God who anointed him to be worshiped of angels, and anointed him above his “fellows,” much as could have been said of Joseph.

Now we ask the reader to consider what all these passages we’ve read so far are saying as compared to the Oneness position.

If Christ is just a man in whom God dwells in a special way, as opposed to being the very incarnate person of God Himself, then worship of Christ is idolatrous, for we would be worshipping [sic] someone other than God. Only if Jesus’ human nature shares an essential and metaphysical union with the divine person/nature can the man from Galilee be considered to be God and be worthy of worship. Jason Dulle, accessed 2/27/2015, http://www.onenesspentecostal.com/ugstsymposium.htm.

You have just read the subtlety of deceit, as a theologian expresses how to have an antichrist spirit; that is, a spirit that is against the idea of an anointed man being our savior as Jesus Christ was. As we have seen, the Bible contains many examples where men of God were worshiped without actually being God. So what the above words present is nothing more than false conclusions. The option not being accepted in this case is Jesus’ lordship and kingship as the Son of David, king of the Jews, which was given to him by God.

Along these lines is another often overlooked biblical contrast that may be helpful to point out here. That is the simple truth that Jesus is, even now, the only true human king anointed by God over all other humans; in contrast, no other human has such authority within the body of Christ.

⁴⁹Nathanael answered him, “Rabbi, you are the Son of God! You are King of Israel!” ⁵⁰Jesus answered him, “Because I told you, ‘I saw you underneath the fig tree,’ do you believe?” (John 1:49–50)

These will war against the Lamb, and the Lamb will overcome them, for he is Lord of lords, and King of kings… (Revelation 17:13–14)

These verses, among many others, show that Jesus is even still rightly called our king. On the other hand, the following Scriptures are very clear that no one else among us should have such authority over others in the body of Christ:

²⁵He [Jesus] said to them, “The kings of the nations lord it over them, and those who have authority over them are called ‘benefactors.’ ²⁶But not so with you. But one who is the greater among you, let him become as the younger, and one who is governing, as one who serves.” (Luke 22:25–26)

²Shepherd the flock of God which is among you, exercising the oversight, not under compulsion, but voluntarily, not for dishonest gain, but willingly; ³ neither as lording it over the charge allotted to you, but making yourselves examples to the flock. (1 Peter 5:2–3)

So then, when John was rebuked in the Book of Revelation for worshiping the messenger, it wasn’t evidence that if Jesus were so worshiped the only conclusion would be that Jesus must be God. No, John was rebuked because the messenger that John was speaking to was one of his fellow servants.

⁸Now I, John, am the one who heard and saw these things. When I heard and saw, I fell down to worship before the feet of the angel who had shown me these things. ⁹He said to me, ‘See you don’t do it! I am a fellow bondservant with you and with your brothers, the prophets, and with those who keep the words of this book. Worship God.’ (Revelation 22:8–9)

The same was true when the devil tempted Jesus to worship him. The devil has no authority from God as a king over anyone. So it is simply creating a false conclusion to adamantly claim with no possibility of exception that if Jesus was worshiped it could only mean that he is God. Creating or defending such a false conclusion is to ignore completely all the OT Schoolmaster Scriptures we’ve quoted, along with the context in which Jesus was being worshiped (as the heir of the throne of King David). Such a false argument is nothing short of handling the word of God in a deceitful manner.

Have we exaggerated our opening comment in this chapter that the Oneness rejection of worshiping a human Jesus is their “working on the Sabbath” issue? Is the Oneness position a fair estimation that harmonizes all the Scriptures we’ve seen in this and the previous chapter? Or is it rather a subtle rejection of the man who has been anointed above his fellows, whom he calls his siblings? We believe we’ve made a very strong case, but that doesn’t mean all will see it.

Maybe not everyone will see it, but here’s what we see: the subtlety of the Oneness rejection of the biblical Jesus is found in the “redefinition” of Christ into something (an incarnation of the person of God the Father) that the Bible never clearly articulates. And isn’t a redefinition another way of creating a man-made counterfeit instead of the real thing? And isn’t worshiping a counterfeit a genuine form of idolatry?

If this still isn’t clear, let’s ask this: how many passages could be listed from the beginning to the end of the Bible that declare plainly that the “Messiah should be worshiped because he is and was to be an incarnation of the person of YHWH God”? Answer: zero! It is the same number of Scriptures you would find looking for a clear statement about the Trinity in the Bible!

Rejecting the Messiah is nothing new. Rejecting God’s authority is nothing new. What is “unique” about the Oneness position is that it rejects the truth that there is one individual who has been sent, and there is another individual who anointed the other sent who. This is two whos, not one.

The Trinitarians reject the truth of the “one sender and the other one sent” also being “worshiped” by making them both coequal “persons” in the godhead. The Onenessians reject the truth by making the sender and the one sent merely two natures of the same individual person. Both are doctrines by deduction rather than scriptural explanation. The result is that both fail to see and accept the simplicity of Jesus Christ, and therefore they come up with another “Jesus” that the Bible quite frankly does not describe anywhere in all its pages.

But I am afraid that somehow, as the serpent deceived Eve in his craftiness [or subtlety], so your minds might be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ. For if he who comes preaches another Jesus, whom we did not preach… you put up with that… (2 Corinthians 11:3)

The Snake-Handler Factor:The idea that Jesus “must be God because he was worshiped,” based on the NT, ignores the context of Jesus’ position amidst the rest of the saints of the NT. When John was told not to bow down to the angel in heaven, he was told precisely why: because that “angel” (or messenger, which is what the word really means) was really a fellow saint of God, who also came out of great tribulation! Thus the messenger was not John’s “king.” Such is not the case with the Lord Jesus, the Anointed One. Right now, today, he is and has been “anointed with the oil of gladness above his fellows!” Jesus is, even now, our Lord, our Liege, our King! The Oneness contention is like comparing Brother Joe to Brother Larry and saying because Brother Larry can’t worship Brother Joe, then neither can King Jesus be worshiped without actually being God. This is a non sequitur; the conclusion does not follow the reasoning. It is therefore a false and deceptive way to attempt to prove “doctrine.”

Jumping to Conclusions versus “It is written”: The Oneness and Trinitarian idea that “Only if Jesus’ human nature shares an essential and metaphysical union with the divine person/ nature can the man from Galilee be considered to be God and be worthy of worship” is jumping to conclusions and adopting pagan incarnation ideas not found in the Bible. On the other hand, we are told by the Lord Jesus that, “…the Father… has given all judgment to the Son, that all may honor the Son, even as they honor the Father. He who doesn’t honor the Son doesn’t honor the Father who sent him” (John 5:22–23). Thus both Onenessians and Trinitarians reject the thoroughly biblical truth of a highly exalted, human Son of God and Son of Man in whom God dwelled and through whom God worked.

The OT Schoolmaster: “YHWH said to Joshua, This day will I begin to magnify you in the sight of all Israel, that they may know that, as I was with Moses, so I will be with you” (Joshua 3:7). Joshua was a type of Jesus Christ that taught us to fear and worship Jesus as God’s anointed representative above the rest of us.

Teach No Other Doctrine: The concepts that Oneness and Trinitarians have of Christ come straight from antichristian Gnosticism, as we covered in Chapter 12. It is not a doctrine that is clearly stated in the Scripture. Thus, teaching that Christ was an incarnation either of the person of God the Father or of an eternal God the Son is teaching other doctrines, which is forbidden by the Christian Scriptures and thus an open and unrepentant sin.

 Print This Post