This is nothing new. This kind of evil has been said of Jesus for years. One of the early heretics to teach this was Arius.
It became the first major threat to the views implicitly held by the church regarding Jesus’ deity. Because Arianism arose in a period of serious theological reflection and represented a much more thorough and systematic construction than Ebionism, this movement had a real chance of becoming the official view. Although it was condemned by the church at the Council of Nicea in 325 and at subsequent councils, it lingers on to our day in various forms, most notably the movement known as Jehovah’s Witnesses.
Erickson, M. J. (1998). Christian theology (2nd ed.) (711–712). Grand Rapids, Mich.: Baker Book House.
One thing the man kept saying to me was that Jesus never claimed to be God. That is not true.
John 10:31–33 Again the Jews picked up stones to stone him, 32 but Jesus said to them, “I have shown you many great miracles from the Father. For which of these do you stone me?” 33 “We are not stoning you for any of these,” replied the Jews, “but for blasphemy, because you, a mere man, claim to be God.”
One thing I respect is that this man, although wrong, is concerned about his neighbors and is using his Saturday to tell what he knows.
We orthodox believers need to deny the lie, love the lost and mistaken people of our world, and be challenged by the efforts of those that do not know the truth.
1 comment:
Perhaps what upset the Jews in these verses was what Jesus said in the previous verse.
John 10:30 says, “I and the Father are one."
Jesus generously explained:
“Jesus answered them: “Is it not written in your Law, ‘I said: “YOU are gods”’? 35 If he called ‘gods’ those against whom the word of God came, and yet the Scripture cannot be nullified, 36 do YOU say to me whom the Father sanctified and dispatched into the world, ‘You blaspheme,’ because I said, I am God’s Son? 37 If I am not doing the works of my Father, do not believe me. 38 But if I am doing them, even though YOU do not believe me, believe the works, in order that YOU may come to know and may continue knowing that the Father is in union with me and I am in union with the Father.” (John 10:34-38)
The same idea is found in the scripture at John 17:21, 22, where Jesus prayed regarding his followers: “That they may all be one,” and he added, “that they may be one even as we are one.” He used the same Greek word (hen) for “one” in all these instances. The same word used at John 10:30.
Obviously, Jesus’ disciples would not all become part of the Godhead. But they do come to share a oneness of purpose with the Father and the Son, the same sort of oneness that unites God and Christ.
Isaiah is inspired to call Jesus “mighty God” at Isa. 9:6. Powerful, but not absolutely.
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