The Trinity & The Serpent’s Playbook

The interview is titled: “Renowned Scholar Exposes an Obvious Error Skeptics Make About Jesus.” You can find it on the Daily Dose of Wisdom channel on YouTube. (The specific video link is: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QfHOZJ29z_s&t=194s.)

Now here’s the thing—if Ehrman is right that Jesus started out being seen as a foreknown, exalted human during the time of the apostles, and only later came to be viewed as God Himself, then that would be a textbook case of “another Jesus.” That’s exactly what Paul warned us about in 2 Corinthians 11: someone preaching a different Jesus than the one the apostles actually preached.

So let’s take a step back and look at how the Bible itself presents these two views—and what’s at stake.

This isn’t just a debate about different interpretations. This is a moral issue. And the first thing we need to do is expose how Dr. Wallace’s entire method—like so many Trinitarian arguments—lines up perfectly with the serpent’s strategy in Genesis 3.

Wallace’s defense of the deity of Christ is not just mistaken. It follows, step by step, the same pattern the serpent used in the garden:
– assuming God didn’t say enough,
– twisting what He did say,
– offering something that sounds more insightful or appealing,
– and replacing God’s truth with man’s ideas.

So what I’m going to show you now are the six main tactics the serpent used—and how Wallace follows each one, point for point.

Let’s start with the first tactic straight out of the serpent’s playbook.

1. Assume Something Is Missing from God’s Words

Remember what the serpent said to Eve in Genesis 3? He said, “Did God really say…?” That one question was enough to plant doubt—just enough to make her think maybe she didn’t get the full picture. And that’s exactly how many Trinitarians begin their reasoning. Not with what God said, but with what they think He didn’t say.

Listen to what Dan Wallace says in the interview:

“Jesus doesn’t quite come out and say that he’s God… except in one very, very clear place—and that’s his trial scene before Caiaphas… If Jesus had come out and said he was God publicly, then immediately he’d be executed… He’s got to time it.”

Now think about that for a second. He’s not just making an observation here—he’s telling us that Jesus intentionally hid who He really was until the timing was just right. But where does Jesus ever say that? Where do the apostles ever teach that? Nowhere.

What Wallace is really saying is that God’s revelation wasn’t clear enough—that we have to read between the lines, because Jesus supposedly had to sneak around with His identity. That’s the same thinking the serpent introduced in Genesis 3: assuming God left something out, or didn’t say enough, and we need to fill in the gaps ourselves.

But Scripture says Jesus came to reveal the Father—not to hide anything. John 18:20 even tells us Jesus said, “I spoke openly to the world. I always taught in synagogues and in the temple… and I spoke nothing in secret.” That doesn’t sound like someone “timing” His message. That sounds like someone who had nothing to hide.

So what Wallace is really doing here is replacing what Jesus and the apostles did say with his own idea of what Jesus should have said—then using that to justify a doctrine Jesus never taught. That’s not biblical teaching. That’s the serpent’s method of introducing doubt and backfilling it with human logic.

And once that door is open—once someone starts thinking, “Maybe God didn’t tell us everything”—they’re set up to receive all kinds of extra interpretations and assumptions.

So let’s go to the second tactic from the serpent’s playbook and how Wallace falls right into it:

2. Twist What God Said or Mix in Personal Assumptions

In Genesis 3, the serpent didn’t just question God’s words—he reworded them. He told Eve, “You won’t really die…” That’s not what God said, but it sounded close enough to pass. That’s how deception works. It doesn’t always come as an outright lie. It comes as a subtle shift—a slight twist that changes the meaning without seeming to.

Now let’s look at how Wallace does the same thing.

At one point in the interview, he says:

“And you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Power… which is another name for God… You’re equal with God.”
“That’s a very clear testimony to them that he is, in fact, God in the flesh.”

But let’s slow down here. Did Jesus ever say, “I am equal with God”? No. Did He ever say, “I am God in the flesh”? No. What He said was that He would be sitting at the right hand of power—referring to the place of honor that God gave Him. But Wallace twists that statement and inserts his own assumption. He adds the idea of “equality” and “shared essence” when Scripture never defines it that way.

And here’s the danger: it sounds religious. It sounds deep. But it’s the same trick the serpent used. You take what God said, then you add just enough of your own ideas until the whole thing turns into something God never actually said.

Wallace even claims this proves Jesus is “God in the flesh.” But let’s compare that with what the Bible actually explains about Jesus sitting at God’s right hand.

Here’s a perfect example:

1 Chronicles 29:23: “Then Solomon sat on the throne of Yahweh as king instead of David his father.”

Did you catch that? Solomon sat on God’s throne. Using Wallace’s logic, that would mean Solomon was also God. But no one—no prophet, no apostle, no one in Scripture—ever said Solomon was God. Sitting on the throne at the right hand of God, biblically stated, wasn’t about identity—it was about delegated authority that Solomon had been anointed with—that means given. This is why Jesus made it very clear: all power has been given to me.

So when Jesus says He’s seated at the right hand of God, that’s not a claim of deity. It’s a fulfillment of Psalm 110:1, where Yahweh says to someone else, “Sit at my right hand.” That’s God giving authority to the one He anointed—not someone declaring Himself to be God.

And just in case there’s any doubt about how the Bible describes Jesus’ role, here are a few key scriptures to let God speak for Himself:

1 Timothy 2:5: “For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus.”
Hebrews 2:17: “He was obligated in all things to be made like his brothers, that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest.”
Hebrews 4:14–15: “We have a great high priest… Jesus, the Son of God… who has been in all points tempted like we are, yet without sin.”
Hebrews 9:24: “Christ hasn’t entered into holy places made with hands… but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us.”
Those are just a few. The consistent message is that Jesus is not sitting as God—He’s sitting with God, before God, for us. As a high priest. As a man. As someone who was appointed to that role—not someone who always had it by nature.

So when Wallace says Jesus sitting at God’s right hand proves He’s equal with God, that’s not just a stretch. That’s a complete misrepresentation of what Scripture actually teaches. And again, it follows the serpent’s tactic: take what God said, then twist it just enough to create a new version.

Let’s keep going.

3. Offer a Different Interpretation That Seems More Helpful or Clear

In the garden, after the serpent questioned God’s words and twisted the meaning, he offered Eve something that sounded better. He said, “You will be like God, knowing good and evil.” It was still deception, but it was wrapped in a promise that seemed wise, powerful—even spiritual. That’s how the serpent works: he doesn’t just lie—he offers an upgrade, but its false.

And that’s exactly what Wallace does when he gives his explanation of Jesus sitting at God’s right hand.

Here’s what he says:

“[In] Mark 14:62… when He says sitting at the right hand of God he’s not saying a different throne, he’s sitting at God’s right hand on the same throne. We actually have archaeological evidence… that sitting at the right hand of someone on a throne means you’re on the same throne—you’re equal with God… What Jesus is essentially saying here is the holy of holies… was just a replica of what the holy of holies in heaven was all about… the place where only Jesus can enter and sit at the right hand of God on His throne.”

Now notice what’s happening here. Instead of letting Scripture explain itself, Wallace brings in an outside source—something he calls “archaeological evidence.” But he doesn’t cite any real evidence, nor scripture explaining it as such. He doesn’t name the outside evidence, show it, or explain it. He just says it’s there—and expects the audience to trust him.

That should raise a red flag right away. But let’s assume for a moment that what he’s saying is true. Let’s take his claim seriously: that sitting at God’s right hand on a throne makes you “equal with God.”

If that’s the case, then let’s go back again to 1 Chronicles 29:23.

“Then Solomon sat on the throne of Yahweh as king instead of David his father.”

Solomon didn’t just sit at God’s right hand—he sat on God’s throne. By Wallace’s standard, Solomon would have to be called God. But he wasn’t. Not by David. Not by the prophets. Not by anyone in the New Testament.

So Wallace’s reasoning backfires. It doesn’t prove Jesus is God—it proves that being given the privilege and honor to sit on God’s throne means you were authorized by God to rule, not that you are God by nature. He claims he has archeology, we have scripture.

Let’s also look at another part of what Wallace says. He claims that:

“The holy of holies was just a replica of what’s in heaven… the place where only Jesus can enter and sit at the right hand of God…”

Now, part of that is actually true. There is a heavenly temple, and the earthly one was a copy. But the rest? That Jesus enters it because He is God? That’s the part Wallace inserts on his own. Scripture says Jesus enters that heavenly place as high priest—not as God.

And who was the high priest? A man chosen from among men. Let’s here what the scriptures have to say:

Hebrews 2:17: “Therefore he was obligated in all things to be made like his brothers, that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God, to make atonement for the sins of the people.”

Hebrews 3:1: “Therefore, holy brothers, partakers of a heavenly calling, consider the Apostle and High Priest of our confession: Jesus.”

Hebrews 4:14–15: “Having then a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let’s hold tightly to our confession. For we don’t have a high priest who can’t be touched with the feeling of our infirmities, but one who has been in all points tempted like we are, yet without sin.”

Hebrews 5:1: “For every high priest, being taken from among men, is appointed for men in things pertaining to God…”

Hebrews 5:5–6: “So also Christ didn’t glorify himself to be made a high priest, but it was he who said to him, ‘You are my Son. Today I have become your Father.’”

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

So Scripture already fully explains what Jesus was doing in the heavenly temple. He didn’t go in as God—He went in as a man before God for us. Just like any high priest would.

Yeah, hath God said? Wallace’s reinterpretation only works if we ignore all this and accept his upgrade as more helpful or spiritually advanced. But it’s not advanced—it’s misleading, its taking away from scripture. And it’s exactly what the serpent offered Eve: a way to “go deeper” than what God had already made clear.

So again, we’re not just looking at a doctrinal disagreement. We’re watching the same pattern the serpent used—offering a different meaning that sounds better, but leads people away from what God actually said.

Let’s move on to tactic #4.

4. Set Up a False Dilemma

A false dilemma is when someone presents only two options—even though other options exist. It’s one of the serpent’s favorite tricks. He did it with Eve when he made it seem like she had to choose between staying ignorant or becoming like God. But the truth was, she already had what she needed—God walking in their midst—she just didn’t see it anymore. The serpent distracted her from seeking God, just like Trinitarians distract you from seeking explanations in the Bible, rather than reading their ideas into the text.

Trinitarians do this when they talk about Jesus being called the “Son of God.” They make it sound like there are only two options: either Jesus is just a regular man, or He must be inherently God by nature. But what if the Bible already defines what “Son of God” means—and that definition is neither of those two?

Listen to what Wallace says:

“Mark’s gospel starts out by speaking of Jesus in the very first sentence: ‘The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God,’ and it culminates with the centurion’s confession in Mark 15:39: ‘This man was truly God’s Son.’ —‘Son of God’ / ‘God’s Son.’ There’s a high Christology in Mark.”

That phrase “high Christology” is a scholar’s way of saying, “Mark starts with the assumption that Jesus is God.” But here’s the problem: Wallace just assumes that “Son of God” means “God.” But Scripture never says that. Not once.

This is a textbook false dilemma. Wallace skips right past the actual biblical definition and tries to force you into choosing between two man-made categories. But let’s go back to what God Himself said the term meant.

2 Samuel 7:12–14: “I will set up your offspring after you… I will establish his kingdom… He will build a house for my name… I will be his father, and he will be my son.”

God was speaking to David about one of his future sons. And God is the one who defines what it means for someone to be His Son. There’s nothing in that passage about becoming God. The whole point is that the Son is from David’s body—a real human being who would one day be exalted by God.

And that’s exactly how people understood it in Jesus’s day. They weren’t expecting “God the Son.” They were expecting the Son of David.

Matthew 9:27: “Have mercy on us, Son of David!”
Matthew 12:23: “Can this be the Son of David?”
Luke 1:32: “The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David.”

You see the pattern. The hope wasn’t in God showing up as a man. The hope was in God keeping His promise to David—a promise about raising up one of David’s own sons to be King.

And Paul confirms this again in Acts:

Acts 13:32–33: “We bring you good news of the promise made to the fathers, that God has fulfilled the same to us… in that he raised up Jesus. As it is also written in the second psalm, ‘You are my Son. Today I have become your Father.’”

Does true God have a day in which another God became His Father?

Paul says the Sonship was fulfilled when God raised Jesus from the dead—not when Jesus was eternally begotten in heaven as some preexistent being. That’s not what the apostles taught. That’s actually a contradiction of terms between “eternal” and “begotten.” Its nonsense talk. Its philosophical jargon meant to excuse their confusion by dazzling you with their brilliance. But it isn’t the light that comes from God’s word. It’s the devil descending as an angel of light. And yet that’s what Wallace is trying to force onto the text.

He skips over what God already said and acts like the only choices are: “Jesus is just a man,” or “Jesus is God.” But the Bible gives a third option: Jesus is the man God appointed and exalted from before the foundation of the world—just like He explained, and just like He promised to David He would.

Wallace doesn’t like that option. So he sets up a false dilemma, just like the serpent did: “Either you take the upgrade I’m offering, or you’re missing out.”

Let’s move on to tactic #5.

5. Persuade People the New Idea Is Best

Once the serpent had Eve doubting God, twisting His words, and looking at other options, his final move was simple: make the new option sound better. The fruit looked good for food, it was pleasing to the eyes, and it seemed like it would make her wise. It just made more sense to her than what God had said.

This is exactly what’s happening with Dan Wallace and other Trinitarian scholars. They don’t just say Jesus being God is an option—they say it’s the best option. The smarter option. And then finally, the only option. The one modern experts finally figured out after all these years.

Wallace says this:

“You can’t come away with saying [Matthew, Mark, Luke, Acts, etc.] don’t affirm the deity of Christ. It’s everywhere in the New Testament. And the best defense of this by far… is The Incarnate Christ and His Critics… perhaps the best defense of the deity of Christ in all of church history.”

Let that sink in. He’s not pointing people to the teachings of Jesus or the writings of the apostles. He’s pointing them to books written thousands of years later by modern scholars. He’s saying, “If you really want to understand who Jesus is, you need this book”—not the Bible, not the words of Jesus, but something else.

He even says people like Bart Ehrman “don’t have a clue” because they’ve done a “sloppy reading of the text.” But what he really means is: “They didn’t read it my way.” In other words, unless you read it using Trinitarian assumptions like Dan Wallace’s, you won’t come to the right conclusion.

But Paul says something very different in 2 Timothy 3:16–17:

“All Scripture is God-breathed and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for instruction in righteousness, that each person who belongs to God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.”

Scripture is enough. Not Scripture plus archaeology. Not Scripture plus expert commentary. Not scripture plus 4th or 5th century creeds. Just Scripture.

But Wallace is telling us that the best defense of Jesus being God isn’t found in the Bible at all—it’s found in a book written thousands of years after the apostles were dead. That’s the same pattern the serpent used: convince you that what God already gave isn’t enough. That you need something better.

And like Eve saw the fruit as beautiful and wise, this version of Jesus—polished, academic, and philosophical—sounds good. But sounding good doesn’t make it true. The real test is this: does it match what Jesus and His apostles actually said?

Now in that same video, the host Brandon McGuire adds his own argument. He says:

“If the requirement to believe in the divinity of Jesus is for Jesus to have said, ‘It is I, Jesus, and I am God,’ in those exact words, then if that’s the standard, you’d also have to find somewhere that says, ‘I am Jesus and I am not God’ to make the opposite case—which is, I think, a fair point.”

But is that really a fair point?

Actually, no. Because the Bible gives us something better than that kind of artificial logic. Jesus didn’t speak in slogans. He gave real answers. And in fact, He repeatedly said things that mean exactly what “I am not God” would mean—without using those exact words.

Let’s look at what Jesus did say.

5.1. Statements by Jesus That Show He Is Not God

5.1.a. Jesus denied having self-originating power (aseity):

In John 5:19, 30, Jesus says:

“The Son can do nothing from Himself…”
“I can do nothing from Myself.”

These aren’t just humble words—they’re His clear answer to the accusation that He was “making Himself equal with God” (John 5:18). And He responds by saying: no, I’m not equal—I can’t even act from myself. I depend on the Father completely. And make no mistake, there is nothing here or anywhere else in the Bible that says He was merely speaking from His human nature side. He didn’t say that. He said “I” can do nothing. And in case you still think “son of God” means deity, He denounces that also: “The Son” can do nothing of Himself. That is even clearer than saying, “I am not God.” Why?

Because it is the opposite of how God described Himself in Exodus 3:14 as being “I AM that I AM.” God is, by definition, self-existent. Jesus says, “I can do nothing from Myself.” That means Jesus isn’t self-existent, and that means He is not that “I AM that I AM.”

And for the record, God said, in Exodus 3:14, in the Greek, “I am the Being” —“ego eimi ho on”— where “ho on” means “the being”, but Jesus speaking in the Greek simply said “I am” (ego eimi, not ho on) in reference to being “the Christ” the “anointed one”). If this sounds confusing, just remember, when Jesus said “I can do nothing of myself” it was a very clear and descriptive way of precisely saying “I am not God.” Rather than merely use titles, Jesus went straight to a clear denial of the most explanatory characteristic of God we have—that He, God, alone, is self-existent and all-powerful by nature of His Being. 

Saying “I am that I am” and saying, “I can do nothing of myself” are mutually exclusive terms. And that is how Jesus explicitly said, “I am not God.”

5.1.b. Jesus said He always does what pleases the Father—not Himself:

In John 8:29, Jesus says: “I always do what pleases Him.”

He didn’t say, “I do whatever I want because I’m God.” He didn’t say, “The three of us agreed beforehand.” He said His job is to obey—not to act from His own will.

5.1.c. Jesus said He is a man who told them the truth from God:

In John 8:40, Jesus says:

“But now you seek to kill Me, a man who has told you the truth that I heard from God.”

Here, He says it plainly. He is a man, not God. He heard the truth from God and delivered it. That’s not equality—that’s servanthood.

Wallace claims that Jesus’ calling Himself “Son of Man,” or sitting at God’s right hand, proves deity. But Jesus doesn’t rely on those symbolic images—He says it straight: “I am a man who heard from God.”

5.1.d. Jesus said the Father is the only true God:

In John 17:3, Jesus prays: “This is eternal life: that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent.”

There’s no confusion here. Jesus says the Father is the only true God—and He clearly puts Himself outside of that identity.

5.1.e. Jesus said the Father is greater than He:

In John 14:28, Jesus says: “The Father is greater than I.”

Not equal. Not the same in nature. Greater.

5.1.f. Jesus said the Father is His God—after the resurrection:

In John 20:17, Jesus says: “I ascend to My Father and your Father, and to My God and your God.”

This is after the resurrection, when He had already been glorified. Yet He still says the Father is “My God.” If He were God, this would make no sense.

5.1.g. The apostles said Jesus was a man empowered by God:

In Acts 2:22, Peter says: “Jesus of Nazareth, a man attested to you by God with miracles and wonders and signs which God did through him…”

In Acts 10:38, Peter says again:

“God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power… for God was with him.”

These are not just poetic phrases. These are clear teachings that Jesus was a man, empowered by God, not equal to Him.

5.1.f. Jesus Was Given Everything He Had

Let’s now look at what the Bible says after Jesus rose from the dead. If there was ever a moment to come out and say He was God, that would have been the time. But instead, Jesus and the apostles keep saying the same thing: Jesus was given everything—He didn’t already have it.

That means the Bible itself gives us something better than if Jesus had said, “I am not God.” It explains why He has divine authority, names, and honors—not because they are inherent to Him, but because God gave them to Him.

5.1.f.1 Jesus was given all authority:

In Matthew 28:18, Jesus says: “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Me.”

Think about that. If Jesus were already God, He wouldn’t need to be given authority. He would already have it by nature. But Jesus says He received it—from someone else. That’s not deity—that’s delegation.

5.1.f.2. Jesus was made Lord and Christ:

In Acts 2:36, Peter says:

“God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ.”

That word “made” is huge. If Jesus were already Lord and Christ by identity, then God wouldn’t need to “make” Him anything. But Scripture is clear—Jesus was made Lord and Christ after the resurrection.

5.1.f.3. Jesus was given a name above every name:

In Philippians 2:9–11, Paul writes:

“Therefore God exalted Him and gave Him the name that is above every name…”

Again, He didn’t already have it—He was given that name. And the glory that comes from confessing Jesus as Lord goes to God the Father—not to Jesus as if He were God. This is all about reward for obedience, not proof of preexistence.

5.1.f.4. Jesus was appointed heir of all things:

In Hebrews 1:2, it says:

“…whom He appointed heir of all things…”

An heir is someone who inherits from someone else. They don’t already own it—they receive it. That alone proves Jesus wasn’t God. Because God doesn’t need to inherit anything—He already owns it all.

“For every animal of the forest is mine, and the cattle on a thousand hills…” (Psalm 50:10)
“The world is mine, and all that is in it.” (Psalm 50:12)
“He isn’t served by men’s hands, as though He needed anything.” (Acts 17:25)

God doesn’t need. But an heir does. So when Scripture calls Jesus “heir of all things,” it proves He is not God.

5.1.f.5. Jesus was given a kingdom and dominion:

In Daniel 7:13–14, the prophet sees a vision of the Son of Man:

“To Him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom…”

The power Jesus has was given to Him. He didn’t have it before then. He didn’t seize it. He didn’t claim it by identity. God handed it to Him as a reward for faithfulness.

5.1.f.6. Jesus was appointed High Priest by God:

In Hebrews 5:4–5, it says:

“No one takes this honor to himself… So also Christ did not glorify Himself to become High Priest, but it was He who said to Him: ‘You are My Son, today I have begotten You.’”

Jesus didn’t promote Himself. He didn’t just take glory. God gave it to Him. And this same passage connects the idea of Jesus being God’s Son with being appointed—not with being God.

5.1.f.7. Jesus was seated at God’s right hand:

In Hebrews 1:3, we read:

“…sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high.”

And in Acts 7:55–56, Stephen says:

“Look! I see the heavens opened and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God!”

Notice—Jesus is with God, not as God. He sits or stands next to the throne. That throne isn’t His by nature. It’s an honor that was given.

All of this creates a crystal-clear pattern:
Jesus was given everything He had. That means none of it proves He was God like Trinitarians falsely conclude. It proves the opposite.

If someone has to receive something, it means they didn’t already have it. But Trinitarians flip that around. They take every trait that was given to Jesus—His power, His throne, His name—and say, “See? That proves He was God!”

But if that’s how we read Scripture, then we’re not really listening to Jesus. We’re just inserting our own beliefs and making Him say what we want.

The New Testament keeps showing that Jesus’ greatness was because of His faithfulness—not because He was already divine. He overcame. He obeyed. He was rewarded.

In 1 Corinthians 15:27–28, Paul lays it all out:

“For ‘God has put all things in subjection under His feet.’ But when it says ‘all things are put in subjection,’ it is plain that He is excepted who put all things in subjection under Him. When all things are subjected to Him, then the Son Himself will also be subjected to Him who put all things in subjection under Him, that God may be all in all.”

Even at the very end of the story—after Jesus has been glorified and exalted—He is still under God. He still submits. He is still not God.

6. Replacing God’s Truth with Human Ideas

Here’s what Wallace says in the video:

“Jesus shares the… same honors that God has: the attributes, the name, the deeds, and the seat… The H.A.N.D.S. acronym all point to the deity of Christ.”

So what is he doing here? He’s using a man-made shortcut—H.A.N.D.S.—to try and prove Jesus is God. But that shortcut doesn’t come from Jesus or the apostles. It comes from human thinking.

Wallace doesn’t quote Jesus saying, “I am God.” He doesn’t quote Jesus saying, “I am that I am”, or “I can do anything I want and no one can stop me because no on is above me.” He doesn’t show the apostles preaching that Jesus is God. Instead, he builds a theory: since Jesus shares things like honor, a name, authority, or a throne, that must mean He is God.

But the Bible already tells us why Jesus has these things: God gave them to Him. The Bible never says Jesus already owned the honors, the power, the name, the works, or the throne of God by nature. Instead, Scripture says:

• He was crowned with honor (Hebrews 2:9)
• He was given authority (John 5:27)
• He was given the name above every name (Philippians 2:9)
• He was shown the Father’s works (John 5:19–20)
• He was seated next to God (Revelation 3:21)

If all of that was given, then none of it proves He was God to begin with. Unless Wallace can show that God the Father also had to be given His honor, name, power, and seat, then the whole H.A.N.D.S. acronym falls apart. It is nothing but assumptions, smoke, and mirrors.

Wallace is not standing on Scripture. He’s replacing God’s truth with a human formula. And that’s exactly what the serpent did in the garden—he gave Eve a new idea that sounded clever but wasn’t what God said.

7. Looking at the Creation Instead of the Creator

Later in his video, Wallace tells a story from Acts 28, when Paul was shipwrecked and bitten by a snake. The pagan people on the island thought he was a god because he didn’t die. Wallace says Paul tore his clothes and protested, because calling a man “god” is blasphemy. So far, so good.

But then Wallace turns around and does the exact same thing with Jesus. He points to Jesus’s miracles, His resurrection, His power, and says: “See? That proves He’s God!”

That’s the same mistake the pagans made—treating miracles or power as proof of deity. We see this mistake again in Acts 14:11, when the people shouted, “The gods have come down to us in human form!” Paul and Barnabas immediately ran among the people shouting:

“Why are you doing this? We are just men like you!”

They did not accept being called gods—they pointed people back to the one true God. Jesus did the same thing.

In John 5:18, when people said He was making Himself equal with God, Jesus answered:

“The Son can do nothing from Himself… I seek not My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me.”

He didn’t accept the claim. He corrected it. And in John 10:33–36, when they again accused Him of claiming to be God, He didn’t say, “That’s right.” He said:

“Isn’t it written in your law, ‘I said, you are gods’? … Do you say I blaspheme because I said, ‘I am the Son of God’?”

He explained that He was the Son of God—not God Himself. He was sent by God. That’s a huge difference.

So when Wallace sees the power and glory of Jesus and says, “This proves He is God,” he’s falling into the same trap as pagans. He’s pointing to the creation—things like miracles, honor, and thrones—instead of listening to the Creator, who said Jesus is His Son, not His equal.

Even when Jesus healed the paralyzed man in Matthew 9, the people responded the right way:

“They marveled and glorified God, who had given such authority to men.” (Matthew 9:8)

They didn’t say, “Jesus must be God!” They said, “God gave Him this power.” That’s how the apostles always preached Jesus.

Here are a few examples:

• Acts 2:22 — “Jesus of Nazareth, a man approved by God… which God did through Him.”
• Acts 10:38 — “God anointed Jesus… for God was with Him.”
• Acts 3:13 — “The God of our fathers glorified His servant Jesus.”
• Acts 17:31 — “God will judge the world by the man He has appointed.”

Again and again, Jesus is called a man. A man empowered by God. Not a second God. Not God in disguise.

So when Wallace claims Jesus must be God because of what He did or how He was glorified, he’s doing exactly what Paul and Jesus both warned against: using human reasoning and pagan mythology instead of God’s own words.

Let’s take a step back and recount the pattern we’ve just seen. Wallace—like so many Trinitarians before him—follows every single step of the serpent’s playbook from Genesis 3:

1. He assumes something is missing from what God said.
2. He twists what God did say, mixing it with his own assumptions.
3. He offers a different explanation that sounds more “reasonable.”
4. He sets up a false choice, pretending it’s the only way to understand.
5. He persuades you that his version is best, putting himself in the seat of authority.
6. He replaces God’s truth with human logic, like acronyms and slogans.
7. He points to the creation—miracles, power, honor—as proof of deity, instead of listening to the Creator’s own words.

This is exactly what the serpent did in the garden. And Wallace—and every Trinitarian argument like his—is repeating it step for step.

And look where that serpent’s deception got us.

All the pain we’re going through right now, and have been for thousands of years…
The starvation… the corrupt leaders… the babies dying without food… the wars and violence… the broken homes… the greed, the sin, the pride… All of it began with that first lie.

And that same lie—that God’s Word needs to be reinterpreted, twisted, or upgraded—has been dressed up in religious robes and taught from pulpits for 1,600 years.

And we’re supposed to believe that interpreting God’s words the way the serpent did in the Garden of Eden is how we’re supposed to rightly understand how to arrive at truth? If that isn’t the subtlety of deceit, what is?

So I ask you plainly:

Is that what Jesus died to give us?
A religion built on the same tactics the devil used in Eden?
A doctrine that can’t be explained without rewriting what God actually said?

That is what it means to twist the Creator’s words and follow the serpent’s lies instead.

Let’s not fall for it. Let’s not trade the truth for tradition. Let’s not worship the creation instead of the Creator. Let’s call it what it is: the serpent’s playbook. And then…
Let’s get back to what Jesus actually said and explained about Himself, the one who was sent, and about His Father, the only True God.

John 17:1-3: “Jesus said these things, then lifting up his eyes to heaven, he said, “Father, the time has come. Glorify your Son, that your Son may also glorify you; even as you gave him authority over all flesh, so he will give eternal life to all whom you have given him. This is eternal life, that they should know you, the only true God, and him whom you sent, Jesus Christ.”

 

Do you hear Jesus? God gave Him authority in the same way that Jesus gives us eternal life to those whom God has given to Him.

Given is not the same as inherently being His. Only God can say, “all souls are mine” (Ezekiel 18:4), but for Jesus, we were given to Him.

I want to be His, don’t you?

John 8:47: “He who is of God hears the words of God. For this cause you don’t hear, because you are not of God.”

John 10:24-29: “24 The Jews therefore came around him and said to him, “How long will you hold us in suspense? If you are the Christ, tell us plainly.” 25Jesus answered them, “I told you, and you don’t believe. The works that I do in my Father’s name, these testify about me. 26But you don’t believe, because you are not of my sheep, as I told you. 27My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. 28I give eternal life to them. They will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand. 29My Father who has given them to me is greater than all. No one is able to snatch them out of my Father’s hand.”

Pastor’s Report

Dear Brother Tom,
I hope you’re doing well! I’m excited to share the report on the Trinity vs Son of God conference in Uganda, made possible by your generous support of $1350.

Here’s a breakdown of the expenses:
• Food: $600
• Conference equipment (chairs, projector, internet, PA system, etc.) and outreach: $600
• Transportation: $150 was not enough, so we added $100 from our side to cover everything.
• We had an unexpected number of 130 attendees; the expected number was 70.

Life-Changing Experience!

The 2-day conference exceeded expectations with 130 attendees from diverse backgrounds:
• 27 Trinitarians
• 23 non-believers
• 35 Catholics
• 45 Son of God brothers and sisters

Miracles and Transformations

The conference was marked by:
• 7 attendees experiencing healing
• 17 filled with the Holy Spirit, speaking in tongues through prayer and intercession

New Path Forward

35 attendees adopted the Son of God doctrine, requesting baptism after being deeply moved by Brother Tom’s teachings.

A Hunger for More

Attendees are eager for the next conference, demonstrating a newfound zeal for the Son of God doctrine.

Thank you for your kindness and support. Your contribution played a significant role in the conference’s success 🙏. Your teachings and prayers had a lasting impact. We look forward to the next conference, expecting a great harvest in the kingdom.

God bless you always,
Your brothers Ibrahim and Edward, Son of God doctrine, Uganda