Originally posted by Vienna
I put this explanation elsewhere on the boards but I will repeat it here for Overdose
God is a trinity of persons: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. The Father is not the same person as the Son; the Son is not the same person as the Holy Spirit; and the Holy Spirit is not the same person as Father. They are not three gods and not three beings. They are three distinct persons; yet, they are all the one God. ne.
Nice very nice. 1+1+1=1 .
Sorry moderator, I had to paste the whole thing for Vienna, I had a feeling if I would just post a link it might get ignored.
Jesus was not the son of God. Never was and never will be....
http://www.usbible.com/Jesus/jesus_son_of_god.htm
MOD: You can reduce the leght if you wish.
Jesus Son of God
This report is limited to demonstrating that the phrase, “son of God,” (small “s”) was simply a way for a first century Jew to express himself as one of God’s children. Jewish kings where called “the Son of God” (capital “S”) in recognition as God’s chosen king of Israel. The phrase had nothing to do with the Christian trinity.
During his coronation, the new king was anointed with oil. Thus, the anointed one was called the Messiah in Hebrew or the Christ in Greek. To Christians, “Son of God” implies divinity; to first century Jews, it was like saying, “your royal highness.” For the record, “Christ” was not Jesus’ last name; it meant he was recognized as the anointed king of Israel.
What this points to is that, as a first century Jew, Jesus was not claiming to be a god of the human race; he was claiming the throne of the Jewish nation. He was not out to save gentiles from inherited sin. He was interested in getting Jews to have faith him before the world came to an end.
It is going take several reports to tie the pieces together, but looking ahead, they lead to the conclusion that Jesus was not crucified for theological reasons; he was crucified for political reasons. His mission to restore the throne of Israel was perceived by Roman authorities and their Jewish lackeys as a threat to political stability.
Jewish Eschatology
The subject of the influence of Jewish prophecy on the gospels deserves full treatment. But for now it is important to put the gospels in the perspective of the timeframe in which they were written.
The king, Jews were looking for, was a consecrated by Yahweh. More specifically, “Christ” signified a king from the Davidic dynasty and in particular the future “Son of David.” This king would deliver Israel from foreign bondage and restore the glories of a former golden age. This is what Jesus had in mind, not redemption.
A day would come on which mankind will be judged by God.
1Behold, a day of the LORD is coming… (Zech. 14:1)
On that day, someone from the house of David will cleanse the inhabitants of Jerusalem from sinners. (Jesus states those intentions in Matt. 15:24)
1“On that day there shall be a fountain opened for the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem to cleanse them from sin and uncleanness.(Zech. 13:1)
The time of salvation is imminent. (Copied into (Matt. 3:3)
3A voice cries: “In the wilderness prepare the way of the LORD, Make straight in the desert a highway for our God. (Isa. 40:3)
He will come to Jerusalem riding on an ass. (Copied into Matt. 21:5)
9Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout aloud, O daughter of Jerusalem! Lo, your king comes to you; triumphant and victorious is he, humble and riding on an ass, on a colt the foal of an ass. (Zech. 9:9)
To recapitulate, Jesus was one of many Jews who claimed to be the messiah who would free the Jews from Roman oppression. He was one of many who failed.
32Let the Christ, the King of Israel, come down now from the cross, that we may see and believe.” Those who were crucified with him also reviled him. (Mark 15:32)
Jesus’ disappointment is best expressed by his last words.
34And at the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, “Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?” which means, “My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?” (Matt. 15:34)
It was much later when Christian propagandists turned Jesus’ demise into a doctrine of salvation for gentiles.
The First Christian
It is another long story to explain how a man who claimed to be king became an icon for Christian salvation. But for now, Christianity did not begin with Jesus; it began several decades after Jesus’ death with Paul.
He was the first to state that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the scriptures.
3For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the scriptures, (1 Cor. 15:3)
He was the first to state that sin came into the world through one man and death through sin.
12Therefore as sin came into the world through one man and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all men sinned. (Rom. 5:12)
He was the one who invented Adam's Curse.
God Had Many Sons
Despite the Christian belief that Jesus was God’s only son, several passages tell us that the phrase had a much broader definition.
14And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, full of grace and truth; we have beheld his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father. (John 1:14)
God had sons in heaven.
Remnants of polytheism appear in these next passages.
1. Some sons mated with earth women.
2the sons of God saw that the daughters of men were fair; and they took to wife such of them as they chose. (Gen. 6:2)
2. Sons presented themselves before the Lord. Satan came too.
6Now there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the LORD, and Satan also came among them. (Job 1:6)
3. There was a divine council of gods, in which Yahweh was the Supreme God and the others were his sons.
1God has taken his place in the divine council; in the midst of the gods he holds judgment:
6I say, “You are gods, sons of the Most High, all of you; (Psalm 82:1, 6)
God had sons on earth.
1. Jews considered themselves God’s chosen sons. The term could apply to Jews as individuals, Israel or a king of Israel.
1“You are the sons of the LORD your God; …
2For you are a people holy to the LORD your God, and the LORD has chosen you to be a people for his own possession, out of all the peoples that are on the face of the earth. (Deut. 14:1-2)
22And you shall say to Pharaoh, ‘Thus says the LORD, Israel is my first-born son, (Ex. 4:22)
1When Israel was a child, I loved him, and out of Egypt I called my son. (Hosea 11:1)
2. The term could also apply to a king, as the next two passages show.
Yahweh prophesized to Nathan that Solomon will be his son.
14I will be his father, and he shall be my son. (2 Sam. 7:14)
The second Psalm was part of a coronation for the king of Jerusalem. The words in red were said at Jesus’ baptism and his transfiguration (Matt. 3:17; Mark 1:11 & Matt. 17:5; Mark 17:5; Luke 9:35)
6“I have set my king on Zion, my holy hill.”
7I will tell of the decree of the LORD: He said to me, “You are my son, today I have begotten you. (Psalm 2:6-7)
3. Luke defines Adam as the Son of God. Adam was the only son who has no mother.
38the son of Enos, the son of Seth, the son of Adam, the son of God. (Luke 3:38)
Conclusion
Christian propagandists corrupted the broad meaning of the Jewish term, “Son of God,” to have it mean God had one and only one Son.
When did Jesus become the Godly Son
This time we will stand on the Christian side of the fence, where “Son of God” implies godliness. If what follows seems unintelligible, it is because it is unintelligible.
Because Christianity binds the Father and Son together, for the Father to send the Son is equivalent to saying God sent himself. If Jesus was God, he didn’t die. If he was an ordinary man, his death meant nothing. For the logic of Christian redemption to be coherent, Jesus would have to be a demigod, i.e. a distinct offspring of the Father. This is not a mystery, it is a sham.
Was Jesus God, at the time of creation, who came as a man? Or was he a demigod born at the beginning of the first century? Was he a man who became god at resurrection? Or did he become God’s right hand man when he arrived in heaven? Was he deified by the Father at his baptism? Or was he a man anointed the king of Israel? Depending where you look, the answer is all of the above.
1. John says he was God at creation.
1In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
2He was in the beginning with God;
3all things were made through him, and without him was not anything made that was made. (John 1:1-3)
2. Matthew and Luke imply he became a demigod at conception, i.e. half human half god.
18Now the birth of Jesus Christ took place in this way. When his mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be with child of the Holy Spirit; (Matt. 1:18)
35And the angel said to her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be called holy, the Son of God. (Luke 1:35)
3. Mark thought he had human parents. This comes about by the logic of Jesus’ coming to John the Baptist to repent for his sins.
4John the baptizer appeared in the wilderness, preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins.
5And there went out to him all the country of Judea, and all the people of Jerusalem; and they were baptized by him in the river Jordan, confessing their sins.
6Now John was clothed with camel’s hair, and had a leather girdle around his waist, and ate locusts and wild honey.
7And he preached, saying, “After me comes he who is mightier than I, the thong of whose sandals I am not worthy to stoop down and untie.
8I have baptized you with water; but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.” (Mark 1:4-8)
4. God calls Jesus his Son after he was baptized. This could mean he was deified at baptism. (Luke and John leave out the baptism ceremony.)
17and lo, a voice from heaven, saying, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.” (Matt. 3:17; Mark 1:11)
The same phrase can be found at Jesus transfiguration.
5He was still speaking, when lo, a bright cloud overshadowed them, and a voice from the cloud said, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to him.” (Matt. 17:5; Mark 9:7; Luke 9:35)
It was not the first time God begot a son, or a prophecy. The psalmist was repeating what God said to him.
6“I have set my king on Zion, my holy hill.”
7I will tell of the decree of the LORD: He said to me, “You are my son, today I have begotten you. (Psalm 2:6-7)
5. According to Paul, Jesus became Son upon his resurrection.
3the gospel concerning his Son, who was descended from David according to the flesh
4and designated Son of God in power according to the Spirit of holiness by his resurrection from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord, (Romans 1:3-4)
6. Jesus could have become God when he arrived in heaven.
51While he blessed them, he parted from them, and was carried up into heaven. (Luke 24:51)
But if Jesus sat at the right hand of God, he could not be in the center occupied by God.
19So then the Lord Jesus, after he had spoken to them, was taken up into heaven, and sat down at the right hand of God. (Mark 16:19)
Elijah ascended to heaven before Jesus. This would mean that Jesus is not alone up there.
11And as they still went on and talked, behold, a chariot of fire and horses of fire separated the two of them. And Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven. (2 Kings 2:11)
Jesus did not see himself as a God
Common interpretation has it that Jesus was crucified on the charge of blasphemy for claiming to be God. Such was not the case. He was crucified for claiming to be the Christ. “Christ” means the anointed one, messiah, king of Israel; he believed he was chosen by God to lead the Jews. The title has political overtones.
24So the Jews gathered round him and said to him, “How long will you keep us in suspense? If you are the Christ, tell us plainly.”
25Jesus answered them, “I told you, and you do not believe. The works that I do in my Father’s name, they bear witness to me; (John 10:24)
On a number of occasions in several ways, Jesus spoke of his Father in heaven, and that his power came from God. Unless he was lying, if Jesus was God, he would not keep on distinguishing himself from the Father in so many different ways. These passages represent a sampling.
1. No reward will come from the Father who is in heaven.
1“Beware of practicing your piety before men in order to be seen by them; for then you will have no reward from your Father who is in heaven. (Matt. 6:1)
2. Pray to your Father who is in heaven.
8Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him.
9Pray then like this: Our Father who art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. (Matt. 6:8-9)
3. To sit on my right hand and my left is not mine to grant, but it is for those whom it has been prepared by my Father.
21And he said to her, “What do you want?” She said to him, “Command that these two sons of mine may sit, one at your right hand and one at your left, in your kingdom.”
22But Jesus answered, “You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink the cup that I am to drink?” They said to him, “We are able.”
23He said to them, “You will drink my cup, but to sit at my right hand and at my left is not mine to grant, but it is for those for whom it has been prepared by my Father.” (Matt. 20:21-23)
4. All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.
18And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. (Matt. 28:18)
25And whenever you stand praying, forgive, if you have anything against any one; so that your Father also who is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses.” (Mark 13:32)
5. No one is good but God alone.
17And as he was setting out on his journey, a man ran up and knelt before him, and asked him, “Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?”
18And Jesus said to him, “Why do you call me good? No one is good but God alone. (Mark 10:17; Luke 18:18-19)
6. His Father is still working and he is working.
17But Jesus answered them, “My Father is working still, and I am working.” (John 5:17)
7. The Son can do nothing of his own accord. In other words, the power to do miracles comes from God; he is only an intermediary.
19Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of his own accord, but only what he sees the Father doing; for whatever he does, that the Son does likewise. (John 5:19)
8. If the Father loves the Son, it is likely that it does not mean that mean that God loves himself?
20For the Father loves the Son, and shows him all that he himself is doing; and greater works than these will he show him, that you may marvel. (John 5:20)
Gospel Son of God
This next group contains every passage where the phrase “Son of God” is used. Christian interpretation has it that Jesus was claiming to be one and only Son of the godhead.
As said before, first century Jews, including Jesus, perceived the meaning of Christ as a king who would free them from Roman oppression. To call him the Son of God was something like calling him “royal highness.”
Just before Jesus ascended, the last thing his disciples asked him was when he will restore the kingdom of Israel.
6So when they had come together, they asked him, “Lord, will you at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?” (Acts 1:6)
Satan
3And the tempter came and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, (Matt. 4:3, 6; Luke 4:3, 9)
Demons
29And behold, they cried out, “What have you to do with us, O Son of God? Have you come here to torment us before the time?” (Matt. 8:29; Mark 3:11; Luke 4:41)
Apostles
33And those in the boat worshiped him, saying, “Truly you are the Son of God.” (Matt. 14:33)
High priest (Note how the priest conflates Christ with Son of God.)
63But Jesus was silent. And the high priest said to him, “I adjure you by the living God, tell us if you are the Christ, the Son of God.” (Matt. 26:63; Luke 22:70)
Passersby
40and saying, “You who would destroy the temple and build it in three days, save yourself! If you are the Son of God, come down from the cross.” (Matt. 27:40)
43He trusts in God; let God deliver him now, if he desires him; for he said, ‘I am the Son of God.’” (Matt. 27:43)
A Roman centurion
54When the centurion and those who were with him, keeping watch over Jesus, saw the earthquake and what took place, they were filled with awe, and said, “Truly this was the Son of God!” (Matt. 27:54, Mark 15:39)
Mark, Gospel of
1The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. (Mark 1:1)
Angel
35And the angel said to her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be called holy, the Son of God. (Luke 1:35)
John, Gospel of
12But to all who received him, who believed in his name, he gave power to become children of God; (John 1:12)
14And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, full of grace and truth; we have beheld his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father. (John 1:14)
18No one has ever seen God; the only Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, he has made him known. (John 1:18)
John the Baptist
34And I have seen and have borne witness that this is the Son of God.” (John 1:34)
A Jew named Nathanael.
49Nathanael answered him, “Rabbi, you are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel!” (John 1:49)
Martha
27She said to him, “Yes, Lord; I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, he who is coming into the world.” (John 11:27)
Jews
7The Jews answered him, “We have a law, and by that law he ought to die, because he has made himself the Son of God.” (John 19:7)
Thomas
31but these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in his name. (John 20:31)
Jesus
God was choosing kings long before Jesus. Of course, there can be only one chosen king at a time.
23On that day, says the LORD of hosts, I will take you, O Zerubbabel my servant, the son of Shealtiel, says the LORD, and make you like a signet ring; for I have chosen you, says the LORD of hosts.” (Hag. 2:23)
1. In this set of passages, Jesus makes indirect reference to the only Son of God. They don’t add anything new.
16For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. (John 3:16)
18He who believes in him is not condemned; he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God. (John 3:18)
25“Truly, truly, I say to you, the hour is coming, and now is, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear will live. (John 5:25)
4But when Jesus heard it he said, “This illness is not unto death; it is for the glory of God, so that the Son of God may be glorified by means of it.” (John 11:4)
2. In this passage it appears that Jesus has been telling people he is the Son of God.
36do you say of him whom the Father consecrated and sent into the world, ‘You are blaspheming,’ because I said, ‘I am the Son of God’? (John 10:36)
3. The Jews accuse Jesus of blasphemy for saying he is the Son of God. In defense, he argues that it is written in the law that they are gods too. He was denying exclusive ties to the Father.
33The Jews answered him, “It is not for a good work that we stone you but for blasphemy; because you, being a man, make yourself God.”
34Jesus answered them, “Is it not written in your law, ‘I said, you are gods’?
35If he called them gods to whom the word of God came (and scripture cannot be broken),
36do you say of him whom the Father consecrated and sent into the world, ‘You are blaspheming,’ because I said, ‘I am the Son of God’? (John 10:33-36)
Jesus drew from Psalm 82:6. But 82:1 says that these gods belong to a divine council. And 82:7 says they will die like men. Actually, God was threatening the other gods.
1God has taken his place in the divine council; in the midst of the gods he holds judgment:
6I say, “You are gods, sons of the Most High, all of you;
7nevertheless, you shall die like men, and fall like any prince.” (Psalm 82:1, 6-7)
4. The phrase, “Father is in me and I am in the Father,” does not mean, “The Father is me and I am the Father.” The first denotes loyal unity; the second means they are one in the same. The first is Jewish; the second is Christian semantics.
37If I am not doing the works of my Father, then do not believe me;
38but if I do them, even though you do not believe me, believe the works, that you may know and understand that the Father is in me and I am in the Father.” (John 10:33-38)
FINAL ANALYSES
The gospels were written by first century Jews and are best understood from their point of view. Christian misinterpretation evolved out of an elaborate conspiracy to establish a new religion by shading the language of the old religion.
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