One God & One Lord

The four statements below were copied from the Statement of Belief at a Biblical Unitarian website. I think they comprise a good, basic statement of biblical unitarian theology. Statements beyond these four items on Unitarian statements of belief are basically denomination-specific.

1. We believe that the Scriptures are “God-breathed,” perfect in their original writing, without flaw or contradiction, and provide the only sure and steadfast basis for faith. Understanding the Scripture is attainable by applying logic and sound principles of biblical interpretation, in conjunction with the spirit of God in us.
2. We believe that God, the Creator, the Father of Jesus Christ, is “the only true God” (John 17:3), holy and separate from all His creation. He is a personal God who has committed Himself to us in writing.
3. We believe that Jesus Christ, the “last Adam,” is the only-begotten Son of God. He was born of the virgin Mary, lived a sinless life, suffered and died as a payment for all men’s sin, was raised from the dead and exalted to the position of “Lord” by God His Father.
4. We believe that “the Holy Spirit” is another name for God, while “holy spirit” is God’s gift of His divine nature that a person receives when he is born again, the “spirit of truth” that Jesus promised.

When encountering anything “unitarian,” it is good to understand the distinction between what is known as “Unitarian Universalist” and “biblical unitarianism” or “Biblical Unitarians.” Biblical unitarians have specific beliefs about God and Christ that differ from trinitarianism (God in three persons), as noted in points 2, 3, and 4 above. Beyond that, biblical unitarians and trinitarians often overlap in what they believe, with variations within denominations.

Unitarian Universalist (UU), on the other hand, is a wholly separate religion unto themselves. One might compare it to Scientology, the religion invented by the late science fiction writer L. Ron Hubbard, in that UUs accept all deity beliefs and even non-theistic beliefs. Basically, UUs have no set beliefs about anything.

You’ve probably heard it on the news already, but the Vatican has now moved the birthplace of Jesus to Nazareth.

Here are a couple links to the story:

• Christian Today

• The Telegraph

Some interesting excerpts:

“This Christmas the Vatican has changed the traditional Nativity scene display in front of St Peter’s Basilica into a scene showing the young Jesus in Nazareth, at Joseph’s carpentry shop.
. . .
The idea of setting the scene in Nazareth rather than in Bethlehem came from Matthew 1:24-25 which says, “When Joseph woke up, he did as the Angel of God ordered and took Mary into his house. Without them knowing each other, a child was born and he called his name Jesus.”

The book of Matthew mentions that Jesus was born in Bethlehem, however a spokesman for the Vatican said that they had decided to feature the Nativity scene in Nazareth anyway. (emphasis added)

The spokesman said, “It was time for a change …

… it is Matthew’s gospel which forms the basis for the Angelus prayer, and the view of Jesus in a carpenter’s workshop matches the Franciscan tradition.

The following excerpt was in an article at FoxNews.com:

“Officials at the unveiling said the shift underscored the idea that Jesus was born not just in a single place, but everywhere and for everyone.”

Kind of sounds like a move toward eliminating Jesus’ birth as an event in history and relegating it to a general “idea” of a Christ-child birth, a very New Age concept of Christ.

I guess if the Roman Catholic Church can change the Sabbath from Saturday to Sunday, they can change the birthplace of Jesus from Bethlehem to Nazareth.

The following are a few milestones of the Reformation timeline taken from an article in Answers Magazine, Oct-Dec 2007, titled “The Reformation of the 16th Century” by Herb Samworth, Th.D.

• 1384 - John Wyclif, the “Morning Star of the Reformation,” translated the Bible into English because he believed that everyone should be able to read the Bible for himself.

• 1411 - Because Jon Hus rejected the church leadership’s claim to ultimate authority and he encouraged people to read the Bible for themselves, he was excommunicated from the church. Later he was burned at the stake.

• 1517 - Martin Luther’s 95 theses, which he posted to a church door, listed some objections to an unscriptural church practice (the sale of indulgences).

• 1519 - Ulrich Zwingli, a priest in Zurich, started a reformation in his church by preaching through the New Testament instead of reading pre-written materials. Zwingli believed that even the common man could read and search the pages of Scripture.

• 1536 - In Geneva, John Calvin began to write Institutes of the Christian Religion, which stressed God’s character, Jesus’ redemptive work, the Holy Spirit’s influence, the church’s proper role, and the Bible’s final authority over mankind.

OK, so the Reformation came about because Christians saw error in what the church was teaching and in the way the church leadership required that only the church’s teachings (interpretations of scripture) be taught to the people (the church’s claim to ultimate authority). The people should be allowed to read the Bible for themselves! And, indeed, how else are we the people supposed to examine the scriptures to see if what we are being taught is true? Acts 17:11

But what is happening today (and, truly, has been happening since the Reformation began)? Those called “Reformed” (some call themselves Calvinists) tell those who do not agree with them, but who have read the Scriptures for themselves, that they are heretics because they do not hold to “the essentials” of “the Reformed Faith.” Are these “Reformers” not committing the same error of the early Roman church by intending to force feed to the people what to believe, to people who are fully capable of reading and understanding the Scriptures for themselves? Wasn’t that the whole reason for the Reformation, so that the people could read the Scriptures for themselves and not have the Scriptures’ meanings dictated to them by a central, self-proclaimed authority?

It’s not only the Calvinists, but every systematic theology, sect, and denomination is equally guilty. When a person studies the Scriptures for himself and comes to a conclusion different from what he is being taught in his church (denomination), he becomes a mini-Reformer.

This isn’t to say or imply that everyone is right and each person can have their own “correct” or private understanding of the Scriptures. Truth is truth and everything else is a lie. However, we should share our individual understandings with an attitude of love and learning.

The arrogance of the Roman church is alive and well in the children of the Reformation.

• 1 Corinthians 14:26 - When you assemble, each one has a psalm, has a teaching, has a revelation, has a tongue, has an interpretation Let all things be done for edification.

I recently received in email two little stories that generally make their rounds at this time of year. One is titled, “Teach the Children” and is about a parent’s encounter with a “sad and disappointed” Santa Claus. Why was Santa sad? Because the children were not being taught the true meaning of Christmas. Santa then encourages the parent to teach them “the symbolism behind the customs and traditions of Christmas,” what these customs and symbols “truly represent.” What are they? Well, here’s a sample of these so-called truths behind the traditions:

• Evergreens are used for Christmas trees because green is the “second color of Christmas” (red is the first color) and the evergreen’s unchanging color represents eternal life in Jesus.
• Red Christmas tree ornaments represent the blood of Christ and silver bells should teach children to follow the true Shepherd.
• Each twinkling light on a Christmas tree represents each of God’s children whose light is shining for all to see.
• Candy canes are shaped like the letter J for Jesus as well as the shepherd’s hook which the Good Shepherd uses to rescue his fallen lambs from the ditches.

“But where does that leave you Santa?” the parent asks. Santa replies, “I represent the spirit of family fun and the joy of giving and receiving. I am just a humble servant of God, promoting His commandment to love Him and each other.”

Teaching them about Santa is bad enough, must it be compounded with more lies and man-made traditions? How about just teaching the children the truth. Hey, what a concept!

The second email attachment was a “Letter from Jesus about Christmas.” It starts out well, with Jesus speaking the truth that he was not really born on December 25 and that his birth is being celebrated on what actually began as a pagan festival. The letter goes on to say that the way he (Jesus) would prefer we celebrate his birthday is to simply “get along and love one another.”

He also advises us to stop squabbling with public entities about the placement of nativity scenes. Rather, Jesus encourages all his followers to put nativity scenes on their own front lawns. If we all did that, then “there wouldn’t be any need for such a scene on the town square.”

Here’s my problem with that. A good many Christians, in faithful Roman trinitarian tradition, believe that Jesus is their God. Therefore, all those nativity sets in all those yards amounts to nothing more than a bunch of little idols of their god scattered throughout the world. This letter has “God” encouraging the making of images of himself! Tsk, tsk, tsk.

The last part of Jesus’ letter is a wish list of the presents he’d like to receive from you. Most of these suggestions are good and honorable, like visiting someone in a nursing home, assembling together to learn more about him, forgiving those who have hurt you, and helping the needy.

He closes the letter by telling you not to forget that he is God (something the real Jesus never said in the pages of Scripture).

Distortions of the truth can not be corrected by piling even more on top.

Many Christians are taught that the internal struggle between doing good and doing evil that Paul describes in Romans chapter 7 is a description of what is normal in the Christian experience. This, however, could not be farther from the truth. I believe Paul is describing his life before Christ, not while a Christian. Let me explain.

In verse 14 he says he is sold into bondage to sin:

• Romans 7:14 NASB
  (14) For we know that the Law is spiritual, but I am of flesh, sold into bondage to sin.

However, the Christian is freed from sin - Romans 6:18, 6:22, 8:2.

• Romans 6:18, 22; 8:2 NASB
  (6:18) and having been freed from sin, you became slaves of righteousness.
  (6:22) But now having been freed from sin and enslaved to God, you derive your benefit, resulting in sanctification, and the outcome, eternal life.
  (8:2) For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and of death.

In Romans 8:13, Paul wrote: “for if you are living according to the flesh, you must die; but if by the Spirit you are putting to death the deeds of the body, you will live.”

So how can Romans 7:19 possibly be Paul describing his present state?

• Romans 7:19 NASB
  (19) For the good that I want, I do not do, but I practice the very evil that I do not want.

Practicing evil is living according to the flesh. In Romans 8:13, Paul says that if you live according to the flesh, you must die. Paul is not a hypocrite; therefore, Romans 7:14-24 must be describing his life before Christ.

If Paul was really describing himself as a Christian in Romans 7, how could he instruct the Corinthian believers to imitate him?

• 1 Corinthians 4:16-17 NASB
  (16) Therefore I exhort you, be imitators of me.
  (17) For this reason I have sent to you Timothy, who is my beloved and faithful child in the Lord, and he will remind you of my ways which are in Christ, just as I teach everywhere in every church.

If Paul was really describing himself as a Christian in Romans 7, how could he say that he is conscious of nothing against himself?

• 1 Corinthians 4:3-5 NASB
  (3) But to me it is a very small thing that I may be examined by you, or by any human court; in fact, I do not even examine myself.
  (4) For I am conscious of nothing against myself, yet I am not by this acquitted; but the one who examines me is the Lord.
  (5) Therefore do not go on passing judgment before the time, but wait until the Lord comes who will both bring to light the things hidden in the darkness and disclose the motives of men’s hearts; and then each man’s praise will come to him from God.

In Romans 7:19,21, Paul says he practices evil and that evil is present in him. But he urges the Corinthians to imitate him?! And that he is conscious of nothing against himself?! No, I don’t think he was describing himself as a Christian. He was describing the conflict of someone still under the Law and without Christ.

In Romans 8:5, Paul says “For those who are according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who are according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit.”

As Jesus said, you must be born again:

• John 3:5-7 NASB
  (5) Jesus answered, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.
  (6) “That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.
  (7) “Do not be amazed that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’

And how do you know you are a child of God?

• 1 John 3:10 NASB
  (10) By this the children of God and the children of the devil are obvious: anyone who does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor the one who does not love his brother.

Yet in Romans 7:19, Paul said that he practices evil. Was Paul a confused Christian? Or was he describing the unsaved person’s need for Christ?

• 1 John 3:7-8 NASB
  (7) Little children, make sure no one deceives you; the one who practices righteousness is righteous, just as He is righteous;
  (8) the one who practices sin is of the devil; for the devil has sinned from the beginning. The Son of God appeared for this purpose, to destroy the works of the devil.
  

To sum up, in Romans 7:14, Paul says “For we know that the Law is spiritual, but I am of flesh, sold into bondage to sin.”

A Christian is not sold into bondage to sin. As a Christian, you are set free from sin! In Romans 7:24 Paul asks, “Who will set me free from the body of this death?” Then he answers the question in the next verse, “Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord!”

If verses 14-24 describe the Christian experience with sin, then Paul says that Christians are in bondage to sin, and you know that is not so.

• Romans 6:22-23 NASB
  (22) But now having been freed from sin and enslaved to God, you derive your benefit, resulting in sanctification, and the outcome, eternal life.
  (23) For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Most Christians with a love for Bible study already know of the more common inaccuracies of the manger scenes depicted at this time of year.

• You know that Jesus wasn’t really born on December 25,

• you know that the angels that appeared to the shepherds in the field did not sing,

• you know that three wise men were not at the birth but showed up at the house up to two years afterward,

• and you know that the number of wise men (magi) is unknown. Three is a traditional number based on the number of gifts they brought: gold, frankincense, and myrrh.

• You probably also know that the commonly seen image of a pregnant Mary riding on a donkey during the trip to Bethlehem is pure conjecture.

During my Web journeys this year, I came across another probable nativity story inaccuracy, one I had not read about before: The whole scenario of there being “no room in the inn.” For one thing, there is no innkeeper mentioned at all. The whole inn story is based on one verse:

• Luke 2:7 NASB - And she gave birth to her firstborn son; and she wrapped Him in cloths, and laid Him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.

The Greek word kataluma is used only three times in the New Testament. Luke 2:7, Mark 14:14, and Luke 22:11. It is translated as “inn” only in Luke 2:7. In both of the other verses (which are parallel accounts of one story) the word is translated as “guest room”:

• Mark 14:14 NASB - and wherever he enters, say to the owner of the house, ‘The Teacher says, “Where is My guest room in which I may eat the Passover with My disciples?”‘

• Luke 22:11 NASB - “And you shall say to the owner of the house, ‘The Teacher says to you, “Where is the guest room in which I may eat the Passover with My disciples?”‘

The very next verse in Luke 22 defines for us what a kataluma is:

• Luke 22:12 NASB - “And he will show you a large, furnished upper room; prepare it there.”

A kataluma, or guest room/guestchamber (KJV), is the upper room of a house where guests would be lodged. It is not a Motel 6. And remember, there is no mention of an innkeeper in scripture. We are simply told that there was no room in the kataluma.

We can’t escape some speculation. While an “inn” is speculation, we do have the definition provided by the other uses of kataluma in the Bible. We also know that a manger is a feeding trough usually located in a stable. The stable was usually a room on the ground floor of the house. But even with that knowledge we must speculate some.

Joseph was returning to his homeland to register for the census (Luke 2:1-5). Being from Bethlehem and the “family of David,” we can speculate that he probably had family in Bethlehem and would go to stay in a family member’s home. Others of the family of David would also have returned to Bethlehem at this time to comply with the emperor’s decree (Luke 2:1). With other visiting family members already there, the guest room, the kataluma, of the family home would likely have been full, but the stable room on the ground floor would have provided a place to lay the new born Jesus.

Here’s another clue from the inspired text:

• Luke 2:6 NASB - While they were there, the days were completed for her to give birth.

“While they were there” (in Bethlehem), the time to give birth arrived. They were already in Bethlehem, possibly already staying with family, when the time came to give birth. The dramatized stories often depict Joseph and Mary just arriving in Bethlehem and Joseph frantically looking for a place to lodge so that Mary could give birth. But the text, on the other hand, tells us that “while they were there, the days were completed.” The guest room was filled to capacity; there was no room for more, not even a new born baby. But there was room in the stable and a manger for the baby Jesus to lay in.

Note also that the text doesn’t even say that the baby was born in the stable, only that after giving birth, she wrapped him in cloths and laid him in a manger.

• Luke 2:6-7 NASB - (6) While they were there, the days were completed for her to give birth. (7) And she gave birth to her firstborn son; and she wrapped Him in cloths, and laid Him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.

Consider the power of tradition and the errors that get reinforced over time.

Consider that the nativity story is the most biblical part of the holiday that Christians and the world call Christmas.

Consider how easy it has been over the centuries to let “the reason for the season” turn into a story of historical fiction. The manger scene is “based on a true story,” but the details have been distorted by the imaginations of men.

Now, consider that if this most biblical part of Christmas can be so readily accepted in its twisted form, then the rest of Christmas — the pagan origins of the holiday itself and the pagan origins of Christmas customs such as the Christmas tree, mistletoe, Santa Claus, and the exchange of gifts — is probably so far from what Christians should be doing that they don’t even realize it. They willingly revel in pagan customs while celebrating with false details an event that they were never instructed by God to celebrate in the first place.

The gift I would like my readers to have most this Christmas is a hunger for God’s word and a desire to know and practice the truth. Merry Christmas.

1 John 2:19 is a verse often used by proponents of OSAS (Once Saved, Always Saved) to show that the truly regenerated will never depart from the faith. In other words, if they fall away, they were never saved to begin with. However, 1 John 2:19 is not about salvation security at all. What is it really about then? Let’s find out.

• 1 John 2:18-19
  18 Children, it is the last hour; and just as you heard that antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have appeared; from this we know that it is the last hour.
  19 They went out from us, but they were not really of us; for if they had been of us, they would have remained with us; but they went out, so that it would be shown that they all are not of us.
  

Who went out from them? Verse 19 states that “they” went out from them. Who are “they”? Verse 18 provides the answer: Antichrists. Who are antichrists? Those who deny that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God.

• 1 John 2:22 - Who is the liar but the one who denies that Jesus is the Christ? This is the antichrist, the one who denies the Father and the Son.

Why did they go out from them? “So that it would be shown that they all are not of us.”

John is the only one who writes of “antichrists.” These are the same ones that Matthew, Mark, and Luke write about: false prophets. Antichrist is John’s word for a false prophet. He says as much himself:

• 1 John 4:1-3
  1 Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world.
  2 By this you know the Spirit of God: every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God;
  3 and every spirit that does not confess Jesus is not from God; this is the spirit of the antichrist, of which you have heard that it is coming, and now it is already in the world.
  

In 1 John 2:19, these were not mere “false conversions” dropping away from the flock, these were false prophets speaking lies and convincing disciples to follow after them.

• Matthew 7:15 - “Beware of the false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly are ravenous wolves.”
  

• Acts 20:29-30
  29 “I know that after my departure savage wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock;
  30 and from among your own selves men will arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away the disciples after them.
  

How many “church splits” over the centuries have these false prophets, these ravenous wolves, these antichrists, been responsible for, taking gullible disciples along with them and forming new denominations?

Become sober-minded as you ought, and stop sinning; for some have no knowledge of God. I speak this to your shame.
(1 Corinthians 15:34 NASB)