Yahushua is the Son of God; not God the Son

Introduction

The Bible teaches that there is one God, the Father, and one Messiah and Lord, Yahushua Christ, who is the divinely conceived Son of Yahuwah. Those are fundamental truths, and this article will provide evidence to support them. In doing so, it will also show that Yahushua Christ is the fully human “Son of Yahuwah” and not “God the Son.” Thus, it will also provide evidence that the Bible does not teach the doctrine of the Trinity.

For clarity’s sake, it is helpful to understand what the Trinity is. The orthodox doctrine of the Trinity is that the Father is God, the Son is God, and the Holy Spirit is God, and the three of them are co-equal, co-eternal, and share the same essence, and together those three individual “Persons” are one triune God; also, Yahushua is both 100% God and 100% man, and both Yahushua’s divine nature and his human nature live together in his flesh body. Though widely believed, the doctrine of the Trinity is never stated in the Bible.

We do not present this article to antagonize or attack anyone, but rather because we believe an honest and rigorous examination of the biblical evidence will support that the Father alone is God and Yahushua is His created Son. Furthermore, it is important for Christians to know the truth about Yahuwah, Yahushua, and the Holy Spirit.

There is value in truth, and Yahuwah and Yahushua deserve to be known for who they really are. Knowing that there is only one God, and that He is not triune and thus sharing His identity with two others, elevates Him to His rightful position as the one God of the Bible, the Creator of the universe, and the One who we love with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength. Similarly, knowing that the Lord Yahushua is who Peter said he was, “a man approved of Yahuwah” (Acts 2:22 KJV), elevates him to his rightful position. He is the only begotten Son of Yahuwah, who loved so much that he lived a sinless, obedient life and died on the cross for us, whom Yahuwah raised from the dead and who now stands at Yahuwah’s right hand as Yahuwah’s second in command, administering the things of Yahuwah.

Something that is openly admitted by theologians but not known by many Christians is that the doctrine of the Trinity is not stated in the Bible but is actually “built” by piecing together statements that are said to support it. However, something that is generally believed by Christians is that the Trinity is a mystery. No one can understand it, so doctrinal discussions are often avoided or brushed aside and ignored. Worse, the teaching that the Trinity is a “mystery” has been used as a club to beat down doubters and dissenters, and those people are often branded as “heretics” and their role in Christianity minimized.

Thus, the Trinity stands as an unchallengeable but never-understood fortress in the center of Christianity. But Christians should get their doctrine from the Bible. What if a careful examination of the Bible showed no Trinity? What if the cautious study showed that Yahuwah was the one God of the Bible, and Yahushua was who Peter said he was, “a man approved of Yahuwah” and not a “God-man”? What if the “mystery” of the Trinity was not a mystery but an erroneous formulated over time? This study will show that Yahushua was indeed a fully human man approved by Yahuwah.

Basic Problems with the Doctrine of the Trinity

The word “Trinity” is not in the Bible. Although that does not rule out the Trinity's possible existence, it supports evidence that the doctrine is unbiblical.

Trinitarians differ, sometimes significantly, in their definitions of the Trinity. The Eastern Orthodox Church differs from the Western Church in the relation of the Holy Spirit to the Father and the Son. Also, Trinitarians who hold to the “classic” definition of the Trinity, that Yahushua was 100% God and 100% man while on earth, believe differently from Kenotic Trinitarians, who believe that Yahushua set aside his godhood. At the same time, he was a man on Earth. Oneness Pentecostals say the classic formula of the Trinity is entirely wrong. Yet all these claim that Christ is God and that the Bible supports their position.

A study of the history of the Christian Church shows a definite development in the doctrine of the Trinity over the centuries. For example, the Apostles’ Creed, in its early form believed to date back to shortly after the time of the apostles themselves, does not mention the Trinity or the dual nature of Christ. Furthermore, it only states, “I believe in ‘the holy spirit,’” which could just as easily refer to the gift of the holy spirit as it could to a third “Person” in the Trinity. The Nicene Creed, written in 325 AD and modified later, added material about Yahushua Christ being “eternally begotten” and “true God” and about the Holy Spirit being “Lord.” But it was the Athanasian Creed, most likely composed in the late 400s or early 500s AD, that was the first creed to state the doctrine of the Trinity explicitly, and it includes that if a person does not believe it, he will perish everlastingly. Yet that point seems to contradict the Bible because when Peter addressed the Jews on the Day of Pentecost, although Peter did not mention the Trinity or that Yahushua was God in the flesh, about 3,000 people in the audience were saved (Acts 2:41).

It seems that if the doctrine of the Trinity was genuine and central to Christian belief, and especially if belief in it was necessary for salvation as many Trinitarians teach, it would have been clearly stated in the Bible and the earliest Christian creeds.

There is no Trinity in the Old Testament

Yahuwah gave the Scriptures to the Jewish people, and the Jewish religion and worship that come from that revelation do not contain any reference to or teachings about a triune God. Since Yahuwah gave the Old Testament to the Jews, indeed, they were qualified to read and understand it, but they never saw the doctrine of the Trinity in it; in fact, quite the opposite. Throughout their history, the Jews fiercely defended the fact that there was only one God.

Yahushua himself tied the greatest commandment in the Law together with there being only one God. An expert in Old Testament law asked Yahushua which of the commandments was the most important. Yahushua told him, “The first of all the commandments is, Hear, O Israel; The Lord our God is one Lord: And thou shalt love the Lord thy God….” (Mark 12:29-30 KJV). The Jewish scholar, per the teachings of the Rabbis and the revelation and practices given to the Jews, would have believed that Yahuwah was the only true God. But Yahushua never corrected him or tried to modify his beliefs, he reinforced what this man already believed—that only Yahuwah was God.

The Old Testament foretold that Yahushua would be a human being

The Old Testament prophecies about the coming Messiah foretold that he would be a human being. He would be the offspring of Eve (Gen. 3:15); a descendant of Abraham (Gen. 12:3; 18:18; 22:18), a descendant of Judah (Gen. 49:10); a prophet like Moses (Deut. 18:15); a son of David (2 Sam. 7:12-13; Isa. 11:1); a king ruling under Yahuwah (Ps. 110:1); and a ruler from among the people of Israel (Jer. 30:21). That explains why the people were all expecting a human Messiah.

Even Mary, the mother of Yahushua, was expecting a human Messiah and did not know how she could give birth to the Messiah without having sex with a man (Luke 1:34-3). Although some Trinitarians claim that there are a few Old Testament prophecies, such as Isaiah 9:6 and Micah 5:2, that show that Yahushua is God, it’s important to note that the ancient Jews, to whom those prophecies were given never understood them to mean that their Messiah would be both God and human. Those few prophecies can be translated and understood in a Biblical Unitarian way.

Psalm 110:1 merits special attention because it is especially clear but has been misunderstood and misrepresented. Most English versions read like the ESV: “The LORD says to my Lord….” The word “LORD” is Yahuwah, but many Trinitarian commentators argue that “my Lord” in this verse is the Hebrew word adonai, another name for Yahuwah, and is therefore proof of the divinity of the Messiah. But the Hebrew text does not use adonai, it uses adoni (pronounced “a-do-nee”), which is always used in Scripture to describe human masters and lords, but never Yahuwah.

The Hebrew words Adoni and Adonai have the same root, adon, and that is the word listed in the concordances and most lexicons, which is one reason we must use the actual Hebrew text to see what Psalm 110:1 is saying. The difference between adon (the “root” word), adoni (“lord,” always used of men or angels) and adonai (which is used of Yahuwah and sometimes written adonay) is critical to the understanding of Psalm 110:1. The fact that the Hebrew text uses the word adoni of the Messiah in Psalm 110 is good supporting evidence that the Messiah is not Yahuwah, and is one reason the Jews were expecting the Messiah to be a human ruler like the other kings who ruled under Yahuwah.

The New Testament teaches that Yahushua was a man

The New Testament teaches that Yahushua was a man. For one thing, Yahushua himself said so. For example, in John 8:40, Yahushua said he was “a man who has told you the truth” [emphasis ours]. Yahushua was not being disingenuous and hiding his “divine nature.” He was making a factual statement that reinforced what the Jews were expecting of the Messiah—that he would be a fully human man.

The apostles also taught that Yahushua was a man. For example, in his sermon to the crowds gathered on the Day of Pentecost, the Apostle Peter made a very clear declaration that Yahushua was a man approved of God: “Ye men of Israel, hear these words; Yahushua of Nazareth, a man approved of Yahuwah among you by miracles and wonders and signs, which Yahuwah did by him in the midst of you…” (Acts 2:22 KJV). Here Peter clearly taught that Yahushua was a man, and that Yahuwah did miracles “by him.”

It seems that if there were a Trinity, when Peter had the ears of the Jewish nation gathered together on the Day of Pentecost would have been a good time to introduce it to the Jews. But instead Peter told the Jews that Yahushua was the Messiah they had been expecting: a man approved of Yahuwah.

Like Peter, Paul also taught that Yahushua was a man. For example, when he was in Athens, Paul taught a crowd of unsaved Gentiles about Yahushua Christ and said that God would judge the world “by the man whom He has appointed” (Acts 17:31). Paul never said or implied that Yahushua was anything but a “man.” However, especially since Paul’s Greek audience was polytheistic, it seems that if there had been a Trinity, Paul would have taught it to the crowd. Whereas the Jews would have likely been very upset if someone taught there was a Trinity, these polytheistic Greeks would almost certainly not have been upset, so this would have been a perfect time to introduce the subject to people. Instead, Paul said that Yahushua was a man appointed by Yahuwah.

There are several other New Testament verses that state that Yahushua was a man. For example, Romans says that a man, Adam, caused sin to enter into the world, and also that a man would have to redeem it from sin. Romans 5:15 (ESV) says, “For if many died through one man’s trespass, much more have the grace of Yahuwah and the free gift by the grace of that one man Yahushua Christ abounded for many.” Some theologians teach that only Yahuwah could pay for the sins of mankind, but the Bible specifically says that a man must do it.

1 Timothy 2:5 says that it is Yahushua, the man, who was the mediator between Yahuwah and men. 1 Timothy 2:5 (ESV) says, “For there is one God, and there is one mediator between Yahuah and men, the man Christ Yahushua.” This verse calls Yahushua Christ a “man” even after his resurrection.

Trinitarian doctrine tries to explain the verses that say Yahushua was a man by saying that he was a man, but he was also 100% God at the same time. But there are problems with that. One is that there is no single verse that says Yahushua was both God and man. The God-man doctrine is built from many verses. Furthermore, scholars admit that only about eight verses in the entire New Testament can be understood to say that Yahushua is God. Every one of them can either be translated in a way that supports the Biblical Unitarian position, or disputed textually, or can be explained from the use of the word “God” in the culture. In contrast, the clear verses where Yahushua is said to be a “man,” such as when Peter or Paul taught their audiences that Yahushua was a man appointed by Yahuwah, are not disputed, and in the context, there does not seem to be any good reason those men would not have said that Yahushua was a God-man if in fact that is what he is.

Actually, Hebrews seems to clear up the subject when it says that when Yahushua was on earth, he was made like us in every way: “Therefore he [Yahushua] had to be made like his brothers in every respect, so that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in the service of Yahuwah” (Heb. 2:17 ESV). This verse shows that Yahushua was not fully human and fully God simultaneously. If he were, he would not be like us in every respect. If we believe that Yahushua was a fully human man, this verse can be seen to be completely true, but if Yahushua is fully God and fully human, it is confusing at best. None of us would have the doubts, worries, and fears that we do if we were God. The Bible says that Yahushua was made like us in every way, in a very straightforward way, and that Yahushua was not “both God and human.”

Yahushua was like Adam

Adam, the first man, was fully human and, by his sin, brought sin into the world. Yahushua is called the “last Adam” (1 Cor. 15:45), but it seems that designation would not be appropriate if Yahushua were not fully human in the same way that Adam was. Also, Adam is called a “type” of Yahushua Christ (Rom. 5:14). The word translated as “type” in many English versions is the translation of the Greek word tupos (#5179 τύπος), which can be defined as “a type, pattern, model, or example of something else.” Adam was a type, prototype, or pattern of Christ because he was fully human and began without a sinful nature—and Yahushua was the same: fully human and made without a sinful nature. The reason that no other human male after Adam could be a “type” of Christ is that we are all born with a sinful nature. But if Yahushua was 100% man and 100% God, then Adam could not be a “type” of Christ because Adam did not have a “God-nature.”

Yahushua has a God

The Bible says in many verses that there is only one God, and “God” does not have a God. For example, in Isaiah 44:6, Yahuwah says, “…there is no God besides me.” In contrast, Yahushua had a God. When Yahushua was on the cross, he called out, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” (Matt. 27:46). He also spoke of his God to Mary Magdalene, saying, “…I ascend to my Father and your Father, and my God and your God” (John 20:17) [emphasis ours].

Even after he was standing at the right hand of Yahuwah and administering the things of God, Yahushua still called God, “my God.” In the Book of Revelation, Yahushua says about those who are victorious that he will “write on him the name of my God” and “the name of the city of my God” that comes down out of heaven from “my God.” (Rev. 3:12). That Yahushua had a God is solid evidence that he is not a co-equal, co-eternal “God” in a triune God.

Yahushua called Yahuwah “the only true God.”

Yahushua called the Father “the only God” (John 5:44).

Similarly, on the night he was arrested, Yahushua prayed to Yahuwah that people would “know you, the only true God” (John 17:3). It seems disingenuous, or at least confusing, that Yahushua would refer to his Father as “the only true God” if he knew that both he and “the Holy Spirit” were also “Persons” in a triune God, and that the Father shared His position as “God” with them. It seems much more likely that Yahushua spoke the simple truth when he called his Father “the only true God.”

Yahushua was part of Yahuwah’s creation

Colossians 1:15 (ESV) calls Yahushua “the firstborn of all creation.” Scholars disagree on what this phrase means, but that is primarily because the doctrine of the Trinity obscures its simple meaning. Trinitarian doctrine states that Yahushua is “eternal,” but if that is true then he cannot be the firstborn “of all creation,” because that would make him part of the creation—Yahushua would be a created being. But the simple reading of Colossians 1:15 seems clear: Yahushua is a created being. The BDAG Greek-English lexicon [entry under “creation”] explains the Greek word translated “creation” as “that which is created…of individual things or beings created, creature.” Not only was Yahushua a created being, he is also called the “firstborn” from the dead because he was the first one in God’s creation who was raised from the dead to everlasting life—a point that is also made in Colossians 1:18 and Revelation 1:5.

Yahuwah is eternal, but Yahushua had a beginning

Yahuwah was not born; He is eternal. In contrast to the eternal Yahuwah, Christ is “begotten,” that is, born. Yahushua Christ had a beginning. Yahushua is never called “God the Son” in the Bible, but he is called the “Son of God” more than 50 times, and a “son” has a beginning. The very fact that Yahushua is the “Son of God” shows he had a beginning. Trinitarian doctrine denies this and invents the phrase “eternally begotten.” But “eternally begotten” is not in the Bible; it was invented to help explain the Trinity but is actually a nonsensical phrase; the words are placed together, but they cancel each other out. “Eternal” means without beginning or end, whereas something that is “begotten,” by definition, has a beginning.

We cannot approach the Bible with wisdom and “reason together” with Yahuwah (Isa. 1:18), if we must invent and use non-biblical phrases to support our theology. Also, additional evidence that Yahushua had a beginning is provided in verses such as Matthew 1:18, which speaks of the “beginning” of Yahushua Christ, and Colossians 1:15 (covered above), which says that Yahushua is part of God’s creation. The Bible calls Yahushua the “Son” of God for the simple reason that he had a beginning. Yahushua had been part of Yahuwah’s plan since the foundation of the world, but he began his actual life when Yahuwah “fathered” him and Mary conceived him in her womb.

The Bible teaches that Yahushua and Yahuwah are two distinct beings.

There are many verses where Yahushua and Yahuwah are portrayed as two separate beings. There are too many examples to list, but for example, in Mark 10:18, Yahushua told the rich young ruler that he was not good, but “Yahuwah” was good; in Luke 2:52, Yahushua grew in favor with “Yahuwah” and with men; Yahushua said to the Jews that he was “a man who has told you the truth that I heard from Yahuwah” (John 8:40 ESV); and he told his disciples, “Believe in Yahuwah; believe also in me” (John 14:1 ESV).

Also, the Church Epistles were authored by both Yahuwah and Christ. For example, 1 Corinthians 1:3 (ESV) says, “Grace to you and peace from Yahuwah our Father and the Lord Yahushua Christ.” The Book of Revelation shows both Yahuwah and “the Lamb” ruling in the eternal city (Rev. 22:1, 3). In all these examples, Yahushua is shown to be separate and distinct from “Yahuwah,” which is what the people of the time believed and expected.

The Trinitarian explanation of these verses is that Yahushua is Yahuwah, so when Yahushua speaks of himself and “God,” then “God” means “the Father.” But the Bible never says that. It is only because Trinitarian doctrine asserts that Yahushua is God that the assumption is made that when Yahushua and God appear together, “God” means “the Father.” But the straightforward reading of Scripture is that there is Yahushua and there is “Yahuwah,” so Yahushua is not Yahuwah.

Yahushua and Yahuwah have separate wills. Yahushua prayed to Yahuwah, “not my will, but yours, be done” (Luke 22:42 ESV; cp. John 5:30). If Yahushua and the Father are the same “one God,” then they would have one will. Trinitarian doctrine claims that Luke refers to Yahushua’s human will, not his divine will, which is problematic. For one thing, the Bible never says anything like that; it is an invented explanation. It would also mean that Yahushua had two wills in conflict with each other inside him, one human and one divine. But that surely cannot be the case: Yahushua taught that a kingdom divided against itself cannot stand (Mark 3:24).

The Bible says that Yahushua is an “heir” of Yahuwah (Heb. 1:2), and a “joint-heir” with us (Rom. 8:17). But if Christ is a co-eternal “Person” in the “Godhead,” then he cannot be an heir “of Yahuwah” because, being Yahuwah, he would be full owner of everything and there is nothing he could “inherit.” Yahushua cannot be Yahuwah and an heir of Yahuwah simultaneously.

The Bible says that Yahushua Christ is the “image of Yahuwah” (Col. 1:15; 2 Cor. 4:4). But if Christ is the image of Yahuwah, then He cannot be Yahuwah, because a person cannot be himself and an image of himself at the same time. Yahushua can be called the “image” of Yahuwah because he always did the will of Yahuwah and acted like Yahuwah Himself would act. The fact that Yahushua was the image of Yahuwah is why Yahushua could say that if you had seen him, you had seen the Father.

Ephesians 4:4-6 is recognized by many Christians as listing seven of the most essential doctrines of the Christian Faith. It says there is one God and one Lord and one spirit. This verse teaches precisely what the Jews expected based on the Old Testament and what Yahushua, Peter, Paul, and others taught: that there was one God, one Lord, the Messiah, and one spirit of Yahuwah. There are three separate things being spoken about here, but not “one God” composed of both Yahushua and God, and “the Holy Spirit” as well.

• The Bible teaches that the Father is God

1 Corinthians 8:6 starts out, “for us there is one God,” and if the doctrine of the Trinity were true, we would expect it to finish in a typically Trinitarian fashion, such as, “the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.” We would certainly not expect it to name only the Father as “God” and omit “the Holy Spirit” altogether.

• God is greater than Christ

Yahushua said: “…the Father is greater than I” (John 14:28 ESV). In contrast, the orthodox formula of the Trinity says that the Father and the Son are “co-equal.” We see no reason not to believe Yahushua’s simple statement.

The Bible teaches that Yahuwah is the “head” of Christ, that is, He is Christ’s leader: “But I want you to understand that the head of every man is Christ, the head of a wife is her husband, and the head of Christ is Yahuwah” (1 Cor. 11:3 ESV). The Trinitarian explanation of this verse is that Yahuwah was the head of Christ only while he was on earth, but the Bible never says that. In fact, the Bible shows us the opposite: Yahuwah is still the head of Christ and directing him even after he ascended into heaven (Rev. 1:1; 14:14-15).

Yahuwah “made” Yahushua Lord. In Peter’s teaching to the Jews on the Day of Pentecost, he taught that “Yahuwah has made him both Lord and Christ, this Yahushua whom you crucified.” (Acts 2:36 ESV). In order to make Yahushua Lord, Yahuwah must have greater authority than Yahushua. Furthermore, if Christ was God, then he was already “Lord”—in which case God would not need to “make” him Lord.

It has also been taught that because Yahushua is called “Lord,” he must be God. But “Lord” (the Greek word is kurios) is a masculine title of respect and nobility, and many others besides Yahuwah and Yahushua are called “Lord,” However, that can be hard to see in English Bibles because many times kurios is not translated as “Lord,” and that confuses the issue.

1) property owners are called Lord (Matt. 20:8, kurios is “owner”)

2) heads of households were called Lord (Mk 13:35, owner=kurios).

3) slave owners were called Lord (Matt. 10:24, master=kurios).

4) husbands were called Lord (1 Pet. 3:6, master (NIV) =kurios).

5) a son called his father Lord (Matt. 21:30, sir=kurios).

6) the Roman Emperor was called Lord (Acts 25:26, His Majesty=kurios).

7) Roman authorities were called Lord (Matt. 27:63, sir=kurios).

Christians take Yahushua as their “Lord,” but that is not the same as saying he is “God.”

The Bible says that the Son will be subject to the Father even in the future. “When all things are subjected to him, then the Son himself will also be subjected to him [Yahuwah] who put all things in subjection under him, that Yahuwah may be all in all” (1 Cor. 15:28 ESV). If Yahushua is subject to the Father in the eternal future, then it seems the teaching that the two of them are “co-equal” is wrong.

Yahushua was consecrated (sanctified) by Yahuwah. John 10:36 says: “do 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’?” (Jn. 10:36 ESV). The fact that Yahushua was consecrated, or as it is translated in other versions, “sanctified,” by Yahuwah shows he is not God, because Yahuwah does not need to be sanctified.

Philippians 2:6 (ESV) says that Christ “did not count equality with Yahuwah a thing to be grasped.” There is some disagreement among scholars on how to translate the Greek text, so other English versions translate the verse somewhat differently. Nevertheless, the point of the verse is that Yahushua Christ was highly exalted by Yahuwah because he was humble and did not seek equality with Yahuwah. If Yahushua was God, then he would never have needed to seek equality with Yahuwah in the first place—it would have been inherent in him.

Yahushua received his direction and his doctrine from his Father, Yahuwah. In John 5:19 (ESV), he said: “the Son can do nothing of his own accord, but only what he sees the Father doing.” Yahushua repeated that in several different ways. “I can do nothing on my own. As I hear, I judge…because I seek not my own will but the will of him who sent me” (John. 5:30 ESV). “My teaching is not mine, but his who sent me” (John 7:16 ESV). “I do nothing on my own authority, but speak just as the Father taught me” (John. 8:28 ESV). “For I have not spoken on my own authority, but the Father who sent me has himself given me a commandment—what to say and what to speak” (John 12:49 ESV). If Yahushua was God, and co-equal and co-eternal with the Father, then he would not have needed to be directed by his Father.

The Old Testament referred to the Messiah as the servant of Yahuwah. For example, in Isaiah 52 and 53, which speak of the suffering and death of the Messiah, the Bible refers to the Messiah as God’s “servant” (Isa. 52:13). When the disciples prayed to God in Acts, they called King David Yahuwah’s “servant” (Acts 4:25), and later in that same prayer they called Yahushua “your holy servant” (Acts 4:30 CSB). They equated the Messiah as servant of Yahuwah, like David was—rather than referring to Yahushua as if he was God himself (cp. Matt. 12:18; Acts 3:26). Yahushua is not God but the servant of God, just like the Bible says.

Many verses indicate that Yahushua’s power and authority were given to him by the Father. If Yahushua were the eternal God, he would have always had those things that the Scripture says he was “given.” Christ was:

• Given “all authority” (Matt 28:18).
• Given “a name above every name” (Phil 2:9).
• Given work to finish by the Father (John 5:36).
• Given those who believed in him by the Father (John 6:39; John 10:29).
• Given glory (John 17:22, 24).
• Given his “cup” (his torture and death) by the Father (John 18:11).
• “Seated” at God’s own right hand (Eph. 1:21).
• “Appointed” over the Church (Eph. 1:22).

These verses and others like them make no sense if Christ is “co-equal” with the Father. Taken at face value, they show Yahushua is a man approved of Yahuwah.

A rich young ruler came to Christ and called him, “Good Teacher” (Luke 18:18 ESV). Yahushua replied, “Why do you call me good? No one is good except Yahuwah alone” (Luke 18:19 ESV). If Yahushua was telling people that he was God, why did he not compliment this young ruler by calling him “good?” That Yahushua rebuked the man and said that no one was good except “God” is evidence that Yahushua was not teaching people that he was God. Yahushua was very quick to make the distinction between himself and Yahuwah, and in doing so affirmed what this Jewish man would have already believed: that there is one God, and Yahushua was certainly not that one God.

Despite the popularity of the term “Deity of Christ,” the phrase never appears in the Bible, and Christ is never called “Deity” in the Bible. “Deity” is from the Latin “Deus,” which means “God,” and the phrase “the Deity of Christ,” as it is popularly (but not biblically) used, means the “Godness” of Christ.

Colossians 2:9 (ESV) says that in Christ “the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily.” This verse is stating that God (the Deity) placed all His fullness in Christ, which is quite different from saying that Christ is himself a Deity. Earlier in Colossians, the concept is made clear: “For Yahuwah was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him” (Col. 1:19 NIV84). That is true. But the fact that Christ has “all the fullness” of Yahuwah does not make him God. Ephesians 3:19 says that Christians should be filled with “all the fullness of Yahuwah,” as well, but that does not mean Christians will somehow become Yahuwah.

Major differences between Yahushua and Yahuwah

• Wisdom

Yahushua grew in wisdom, but Yahuwah is all wise. The Bible says, “And Yahushua increased in wisdom” (Luke 2:52 ESV). Also, Yahushua “learned obedience” (Heb. 5:8). Yahuwah does not need to learn. Trinitarians assert that it was Yahushua’s human part that grew and learned, but no single verse makes that distinction.

• Knowledge

Yahushua had limited knowledge, whereas Yahuwah did not. Mark 13:32 (ESV) says: “But concerning that day or that hour, no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.” Even after His resurrection, Yahushua still receives knowledge from Yahuwah: “The revelation of Yahushua Christ, which God gave him” (Rev. 1:1 ESV).

• Perfection/Growth

The Scripture teaches that it was fitting that “Yahuwah” should make Yahushua “perfect through suffering” (Hebrews 2:10). Yahuwah is, and has always been, “perfect,” but Yahushua needed to attain perfection through His suffering.

To perfectly obey Yahuwah throughout his ministry, Yahushua needed the gift of the holy spirit, and he received it at his baptism (Matt. 3:16; Mark 1:10; Luke 3:22) and had it upon him when he started his ministry (Luke 4:18). If Yahushua was God, he would not need the Holy Spirit, which is the very nature of Yahuwah. God placed the gift of His Holy Spirit on the leaders and prophets of the Old Testament so that they would have spiritual power and be able to hear from Him via the Spirit upon them (i.e., Num. 11:17-29; Judges 3:10; 6:34; 11:29; 1 Sam. 10:6, 10; 16:13; 1 Chron. 12:18; 2 Chron. 15:1; Micah 3:8). Furthermore, the Old Testament prophecies, such as those in Isaiah 11:2; 42:1; and 61:1, indicated that Yahuwah would put His spirit upon His Messiah, showing that he was not fully equipped without it. Yahushua needed the gift of the Holy Spirit to be spiritually powerful, just as the other prophets did. Acts 10:38 (REV) says: “Yahushua, the one from Nazareth—how Yahuwah anointed him with holy spirit and with power, and he went around doing good, and healing all those who were being oppressed by the Devil, for God was with him.”

• Temptation

Yahushua was “one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin” (Heb. 4:15 ESV), yet the Bible is clear that Yahuwah cannot be tempted: “for God cannot be tempted with evil” (James 1:13 ESV).

At times of weakness or difficulty, angels ministered to and strengthened Yahushua. Luke 22:43 (ESV) says: “And there appeared to him an angel from heaven, strengthening him” [in the garden of Gethsemane]. Humans need to be strengthened; Yahuwah does not need to be strengthened by angels or by anyone or anything else (cp. also Matt. 4:11, Mark. 1:13).

• Death

Scripture says very plainly that Yahushua died. Yahuwah cannot die. Romans 1:23 and other verses say that Yahuwah is immortal. Orthodox Christian doctrine is that only the human side of Yahushua died, but that assertion is based on assumptions. There is no verse of Scripture that says anything like, “Only Yahushua’s human nature died.”

• Family

Hebrews 2:10-11 teaches that we are “brothers” of Yahushua and “sons of God,” and Yahushua is never ashamed to call us such. Hebrews is making a distinction between God and Yahushua that is very important and that we lose if we think Yahushua is God. If that were the case, we would be “brothers of God,” but we clearly are not that. A Trinitarian explanation is that we are brothers of the man part of Yahushua, but that is adding to the text. The Bible nowhere says or implies that; it is an assumption to support Trinitarian doctrine.

• Works

We are commissioned to do “greater works” than Yahushua. In John 14:12 (ESV), Yahushua told his disciples that “whoever believes in me will also do the works that I do; and greater works than these will he do.” If Yahushua was God, then his statement would be a commission for us to do greater works than God—which is not possible.

If Yahushua Christ were Yahuwah, he would have to have the attributes of Yahuwah. Most theologians agree that some of Yahuwah’s attributes are unoriginated, self-existent, immortal, all-wise, all-good, all-powerful, and omnipresent. But Yahushua had none of those attributes.

• He was not unoriginated. Christ was the only begotten Son of God (John 3:16).
• He was not self-existent. “I live because of the Father” (John 6:57).
• He was not immortal. Yahushua died and Yahuwah resurrected Him (Acts 13:30).
• He was not all wise. Yahushua “grew in wisdom” (Luke 2:52).
• He was not all-powerful. Whereas “nothing is impossible with Yahuwah” (Luke 1:37), Christ said, “the Son can do nothing by Himself” (John 5:19).
• He was not omnipresent. After Lazarus died, Yahushua told his disciples “I am glad I was not there” (John 11:15).
• Yahuwah is spirit, but Yahushua is flesh and bone

Yahuwah is Spirit (John 4:24) yet even after his resurrection, Yahushua said about himself that he was not a spirit, but flesh and bone. When Yahushua appeared to his apostles, he said, “See my hands and my feet, that it is I. Touch me, and see. For a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see that I have” (Luke 24:39 ESV). That Yahushua is still flesh and bone today is exactly what we would expect if Yahushua is a “man approved of Yahuwah.” Part of the great hope that we Christians have is that in the future Yahushua “will transform our lowly body to be like his glorious body” (Phil. 3:21 ESV). So, in the future, we will have bodies like Yahushua’s, but that hardly seems appropriate if Yahushua is God in the flesh.

• Yahushua never taught the Trinity

John 1:18 says that Yahushua made “Yahuwah” known to people. But if “Yahuwah” is a triune God composed of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, then Yahushua did not make Yahuwah known. Yahushua never taught the Trinity, even when he had good opportunities. For example, when Yahushua met the Samaritan woman at the well (John 4:1-42), he told her that he was the Messiah (John 4:26), but nothing more. Similarly, when Yahushua asked the Apostles who they thought he was, and Peter said that Yahushua was the Christ, Yahushua did not take that opportunity to teach them the Trinity (Matt. 16:17-20). Also, when Yahushua healed the man who had been blind from birth, he told him that he was the Messiah but did not say a word about the Trinity (John 9:35-38). When the rich young ruler called Christ, “Good master,” Yahushua not only did not teach the man the Trinity, he rebuffed him and said the only one who was good was God (Mark 10:17-18).

Other examples could also be given, but the point is that even when Yahushua had the opportunity to teach the Trinity, he never did. That is astounding if the doctrine of the Trinity is correct, because the people were expecting a human Messiah, not “God in the flesh.” So when Yahushua told them he was the Messiah but did not say anything about there being a Trinity, he was only reinforcing what they already thought. There does not seem to be any compelling reason not to take Yahushua’ words at face value; that he was the human Messiah the Jews were expecting.

• Yahushua’s miracles do not prove he was God

It is sometimes said that the miracles Yahushua did proved that he was God. But almost every miracle that Yahushua did on earth was done in some form by earlier prophets or by the apostles. These include healing the sick, raising the dead, multiplying food, and even walking on water. In fact, the Old Testament prophets did some amazing miracles that Yahushua did not do, including splitting an ocean apart (Moses), stopping a river (Joshua), making the sun stop in the sky (Joshua), and calling down fire from heaven (Elijah). God was the one who worked the miracles through the prophets, and He worked them through Yahushua also (Acts 2:22).

• The dual-nature of Yahushua is never called a “mystery”

It is said that no human can understand the doctrine of the Trinity because it is a mystery. But the Bible never even uses the words “Trinity” or “dual nature” of Christ, much less defining them as mysteries. Furthermore, the Greek word mustērion (#3466 μυστήριον) refers to a “secret” in the religious or sacred realm, it does not mean “mystery” in the modern sense of the word. This fact can be documented in any number of lexicons or Bible dictionaries, and it is also clear in the Bible itself. The Bible says that many of the mustērion of God have now been made known, proving they were not unknowable “mysteries,” but were God’s secrets that are now revealed (i.e., Rom. 16:25, 26; 1 Cor. 2:7-10; Eph. 3:4, 5, Col. 1:26).

The reason why many English Bibles continue to translate mustērion as “mystery” in spite of the fact that the scholars and many clergy know that “mystery” is an inaccurate translation is due in large part to the many unbiblical and even self-contradictory doctrines that have crept into the Church over time. When even the clergy could not explain or understand these doctrines, the translation “mystery” became generally accepted because the concept of a “mystery” was a handy way to present inexplicable doctrines to the average Christian. People who challenged these and other traditions of the Church were quickly labeled “heretics” and persecuted, so the translation “mystery” went mostly unchallenged.

Although the Bible says that certain things were secrets, like the Gentiles being included in the Church (Rom. 11:25; Eph. 3:4-6), or the way that living believers would be changed in the Rapture (1 Cor. 15:51), no verse says the Trinity or the dual nature of Christ is a mustērion (secret). But if the doctrine of the Trinity or the dual nature of Christ were true, we would certainly expect that the Bible would include them among God’s mustērion. To us, the most logical reason the Trinity and the dual nature of Christ are not referred to in the Bible as a mustērion (a secret) is that they are not biblical doctrines in the first place.

Not only are the Trinity and dual nature of Christ not “mysteries,” they are contradictions. Doctrinal statements such as “eternally begotten,” “three ‘Persons’ in One God,” and “Yahushua is both 100% human and 100% God,” are actually just simple contradictions. This has been recognized for a long time, and more than a hundred years ago, William G. Eliot wrote: “Mystery and contradiction are very different things. The former is something beyond our sight, or seen imperfectly. The latter is seen to be untrue. …we know enough to see that two contradictory statements cannot both be true. …So when Christ asserts that he did not know of a certain future event (see Mark xiii. 32), the assertion that he was nevertheless Omniscient, is evidently a denial of what he said” (Discourses on the Doctrines of Christianity, American Unitarian Association, Boston, 1870, p. 6).

Conclusion

In order to fully love and worship Yahuwah and Yahushua, it is essential to know who they are. Yahuwah, the Father, is the Creator of the universe, the Author of the plan of Salvation, the Father of Yahushua Christ, and our One God, and removing Him from that exalted position and having Him share His position as “God” with two other “Persons” diminishes who He is and what He alone has done. Furthermore, making Yahushua into God, instead of elevating him, actually diminishes who he was and is and what he accomplished and is still doing. It demeans Yahushua because his courage, mental tenacity, love, and great faith are unparalleled in human history. He went through life like each human does, with doubts, fears, concerns, and the possibility of sin. His true greatness is lost if he is God, because “with Yahuwah all things are possible.” Believing Yahushua is God also demonstrates disbelief in Yahushua’s own words when he made statements such as “my father is greater than I” and when he prayed to the Father as “the only true God.” Also, it makes it impossible for us to identify with him and strive to be like him, for how can we ever hope to live like Yahuwah?

By restoring the Father to His unique and singular position as God, He receives all the worship, credit, respect, and awe He deserves as the One True God. By restoring Christ to his position as the man approved of Yahuwah—the only-begotten Son of the Father, the last Adam, the one who could have sinned but voluntarily stayed obedient, the one who could have given up but loved us so much that he never did, and the one whom Yahuwah highly exalted to be our Lord—then Christ receives all the worship, credit, respect and awe that he deserves, and we can draw great strength and determination from his example.

This is a non-WLC article. Source: https://www.biblicalunitarian.com/articles/Yahushua-is-the-son-of-god-not-god-the-son

We have taken out from the original article all pagan names and titles of the Father and Son, and have replaced them with the original given names. Furthermore, we have restored in the Scriptures quoted the names of the Father and Son, as they were originally written by the inspired authors of the Bible. -WLC Team