The Son of God

2018-01-13

This information was borrowed from the essay on Oneness Pentecostals, but because this information is extremely important, I am adding this article as a stand-alone work, with some additions.

A lot of confusion is out there because we often emphasize Jesus as being God, that we often neglect to emphasize that Jesus, the Son of God is distinct from God the Father. God the Father, Jesus the son of God, and the Holy Spirit are all God, but they are distinct persons. This is what is often called the Trinity.

The word “Trinity” is not found in the Bible, but it is a term that is used to explain the Creator God of the Bible:

For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one. (1 John 5:7)

A friend once described the Trinity in this fashion: there is one “what” (God), but there are three “whos” (as we said above, the three “whos” are God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit).

Jesus is Not the Father

We read in John 1:1-3:

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made.

There is a lot of doctrine in these three verses. Let us see what this passage says about the Lord Jesus Christ.

The Word is Eternal. The Word, we see later, is the Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God (John 1:14, 17-18). The phrase “In the beginning was the Word” tells us that at the beginning of time and creation, the Word already was.
The Word is distinct from God the Father. The Word was with God, which means that He is distinct from God in some way. One is not “with” one’s self; one is with another.
The Word is God. This may seem contradictory to the previous point, but we see that in the same verse the Bible affirms both. The Word is God.
The Word was with God in the beginning. We see that He “was in the beginning with God” (John 1:2). This gives us a little more information from our previous points, in that the Word always was with God since eternity past. As the Word, this Son of God was always distinct from God the Father, yet as a being from eternity past, He is completely divine.
The Word created all things. The Word created everything, without exception. This discounts any suggestion that the Word only existed conceptually in the mind of God. The Word was a literal being who created everything, both seen and unseen.

The Eternality of the Son

The Bible teaches us that the Son of God is eternal, and distinct from God the Father:

But unto the Son he saith, Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever: a sceptre of righteousness is the sceptre of thy kingdom. Thou hast loved righteousness, and hated iniquity; therefore God, even thy God, hath anointed thee with the oil of gladness above thy fellows. And, Thou, Lord, in the beginning hast laid the foundation of the earth; and the heavens are the works of thine hands: They shall perish; but thou remainest; and they all shall wax old as doth a garment; And as a vesture shalt thou fold them up, and they shall be changed: but thou art the same, and thy years shall not fail. But to which of the angels said he at any time, Sit on my right hand, until I make thine enemies thy footstool? (Hebrews 1:8-13)

The Son is God. In Hebrews 1:8, we see that God the Father calls the Son “God.” The Son certainly became a human being as we see in 1 Timothy 3:16, but He is truly divine.
The Son is Distinct from the Father. Since the Father is speaking to the Son, we see that they must be distinct persons. The Father anointing the Son also shows us this distinction (Hebrews 1:9). Finally, the fulfillment of Psalm 110:1 in Hebrews 1:13 shows us the Son at the Father’s right hand. For more on this distinction, refer to There Shall No Man See Me, and Live and its discussion on the Angel of the LORD.
The Son of God will reign forever. The Son of God’s throne will be forever. He is always going to be King, and He will never cease to be King. The heavens and the earth may disappear, but the Son remains forever (Hebrews 1:10-11).
The Son of God is the creator of heaven and earth. Again, we see that the Son is the creator of all things (Hebrews 1:10). Reminiscent of the merism “the heaven and the earth” in Genesis 1:1, we see in this verse that the Son is the creator of all things.
The Son of God does not change. Just as God the Father does not change, the Son does not change (Hebrews 1:12). A characteristic of God is his immutability. The Son of God also has this characteristic (Hebrews 13:8).

Not Modalism

All of this contrasts with the teaching of modalism; if the Son is a temporary “mode” or role in which God operates, then we cannot interpret this passage literally. Take, for example, the following:

And Jesus, when he was baptized, went up straightway out of the water: and, lo, the heavens were opened unto him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon him: And lo a voice from heaven, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. (Matthew 3:16-17)

The Holy Ghost descended upon the Son of God, and God the Father spoke to all the people that were there, that He was well pleased with His Son. This shows us the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, all at the same time, as distinct persons. The Holy Spirit is not normally visible, since spirits do not have bodies. This scene is to show us the distinction between the three persons of the Godhead (cf. John 1:32-34).

The Word is the Son of God

Who hath ascended up into heaven, or descended? who hath gathered the wind in his fists? who hath bound the waters in a garment? who hath established all the ends of the earth? what is his name, and what is his son’s name, if thou canst tell? Every word of God is pure: he is a shield unto them that put their trust in him. (Proverbs 30:4-5)

God is the only one who has the power to do these things that Agur mentions here. God has a Son, and though he never answers the question regarding the Son’s name, notice that the next verse speaks of the purity of God’s Word.

Conclusion

Jesus is the Son of God, which means He is fully God, but He also is distinct from God the Father. The New Testament clearly teaches us this. What makes Biblical Christianity distinct from the cults and world religions is the reality of the Trinity and of the Son of God.

The Son of Man