stretched said:
John 1:1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God.
John 1:14 And the Word became 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.
* Pardon my lack of understanding, but does this imply that Jesus is the word? Does the Bible state that anywhere else? If it does then…
1 Peter 1:23
For you have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring word of God.
Revelation 19:13
He is dressed in a robe dipped in blood, and his name is the Word of God.
The Word, or "divine Logos", is Jesus as the personification of the Gospel (God's good news) - also called "the word of truth" (Col. 1:5). Elsewhere the Holy Spirit is also called "the word of God" (Eph. 6:17).
John:18 No one has seen God at any time. The only begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, He has declared Him.
* If the Word is god, then seeing (we beheld His glory) Jesus is seeing god. Yet the above verse contradicts that by saying, no one has seen god at “any time”.
God's glory (sometimes referred to as his Presence or "Shekinah") is not God in His totality. Here's something for you from the Jewish Encyclopedia:
[Shekinah:] The majestic presence or manifestation of God which has descended to "dwell" among men. Like Memra (= "word"; "logos") and "Yeḳara" (i.e., "Kabod" = "glory"), the term was used by the Rabbis in place of "God" where the anthropomorphic expressions of the Bible were no longer regarded as proper.
And to that extent - like through a veil - it
is possible to see "the Father", and "the Son", but not "God". When you look at "the sun" (especially through a filter), you see only the light, not the core. You don't see it "as it is".
John 14:8-10
Philip said, "Lord, show us the Father and that will be enough for us."
Jesus answered: "Don't you know me, Philip, even after I have been among you such a long time? Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, 'Show us the Father'? Don't you believe that I am in the Father, and that the Father is in me? The words I say to you are not just my own. Rather, it is the Father, living in me, who is doing his work.
John also explains it:
1 John 3:2
Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when he appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is.
But that doesn't mean Jesus was anything less than God (I'm sure you'll appreciate this one better now):
Hebrews 1:3
The Son is the radiance of God's glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word.
So as the human expression of god his character is different to that of the god in the OT. All I am really trying to achieve is to reconcile this paradox:
OT
Character A: "And it came to pass, that at midnight the LORD smote all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, from the firstborn of Pharaoh that sat on his throne unto the firstborn of the captive that was in the dungeon; and all the firstborn of cattle. And Pharaoh rose up in the night, he, and all his servants, and all the Egyptians; and there was a great cry in Egypt; for there was not a house where there was not one dead." (Exodus 12:29-30)
And,
NT
Character B: Mat 5:44 But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you;
* Does this seem like the same character to you? So if Jesus is god, and as you state Jenyar “Jesus is the human expression of God, and none but God”, how do you explain this disparity as displayed above? Please do not use historical context in your explanation.
You've come to believe they are separate, and now you're picking out "evidence" for your belief from the Bible. But like I showed you before, you can find judgment and blessings from God expressed by Jesus just like you find them expressed throughout Israel's history. And haven't you read Revelation? It explains Jesus' work completing God's purpose. You complained about the plagues, but they're all in Revelation as well.
Rev. 6:15-17
Then the kings of the earth, the princes, the generals, the rich, the mighty, and every slave and every free man hid in caves and among the rocks of the mountains. They called to the mountains and the rocks, "Fall on us and hide us from the face of him who sits on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb! For the great day of their wrath has come, and who can stand?"
(or the rest from "the Word of God" in Rev. 19, which I quoted above...)
"Out of his mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations. 'He will rule them with an iron scepter.' He treads the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God Almighty."
Otherwise, you might as well put the plagues of Egypt next to Israel's freedom and say they contradict each other. Jesus's gospel is also called the double-edged sword, just like the OT Law. But then about whom was David speaking when he said:
"Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me," and "My comfort in my suffering is this: Your promise preserves my life"?
People like Abraham, Isaac and David definitely experienced God as Christians experience Jesus, so maybe the problem is that there
is no comfort without God's Comforter, the Spirit. Or maybe those who don't believe in God's love and mercy can
see only His punishment?