One God & One Lord

• Colossians 2:9 NASB
  For in Him all the fullness of Deity dwells in bodily form,

Yes, Colossians 2:9 says that all the fullness dwells in Jesus. And Colossians 1:19 says that God was pleased to have all His fullness dwell in him. Do these statements amount to a declaration that Jesus is God?

In Ephesians 3:19, Paul prays that all Christians would “be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God” (NIV) or that you “be filled up to all the fullness of God” (NASB).

• Ephesians 3:19 NASB
  and to know the love of Christ which surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled up to all the fullness of God.

In Ephesians 4:13, Paul desires Christians to “become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ” (NIV). In other words, Paul’s desire for us (and it should be our desire for ourselves and other Christians) is that we attain to the same fullness that was in Christ - the whole measure that was in him.

• Ephesians 4:13 NIV
  until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.

Having the fullness of God does not make one God; it does not make Jesus God. Having the fullness is the goal of all who love God. It is the mark of a mature Christian.

Now let’s look at Colossians 2:9 again, but this time with the “rest of the story”–

• Colossians 2:9-10 NASB
  (9) For in Him all the fullness of Deity dwells in bodily form,
  (10) and in Him you have been made complete, and He is the head over all rule and authority;

The word translated “complete” in verse 10 is just the verb form of the same word translated “fullness” in verse 9. The NIV translates the word properly as “fullness” in both places–

• Colossians 2:9-10 NIV
  (9) For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form,
  (10) and you have been given fullness in Christ, who is the head over every power and authority.

The fullness dwells in Christ and in him, we too are given the fullness. Is there anything that suggests it is one kind of fullness that is in Christ, but another kind in us? No, and we can let Paul remind us of that by showing again his prayer for Christians in Ephesians 3:19 –

• Ephesians 3:19 NASB
  (19) and to know the love of Christ which surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled up to all the fullness of God.

As the fullness of diety dwells in Jesus, Paul’s prayer is that the same fullness, the fullness of God, would fill us.

• Philippians 2:5-8 NASB
  (5) Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus,
  (6) who, although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped,
  (7) but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men.
  (8) Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.

Trinitarians want to believe that the above passage states that Jesus is God himself come into the world. But look at the introductory verse to this passage: Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus. Have this attitude. This passage is not some ontological statement that Jesus is God, it is a statement explaining to us the attitude Jesus had and that we should imitate him. Let’s dissect it, shall we?

First of all, a few questions:

Do trinitarians believe that they are a new creature in Christ? Of course they do.

• 2 Corinthians 5:17 NASB
  Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come.

Do trinitarians believe that they are children, sons and daughters of God? Of course they do.

• 1 John 3:2 NASB
  Beloved, now we are children of God, and it has not appeared as yet what we will be. We know that when He appears, we will be like Him, because we will see Him just as He is.

Believers have been born again as a new creature, as a child of God. How are we, who were made as men and remain in the appearance as men, but are now sons of God, to act in the presence of men? THAT is what the Philippians 2 passage is instructing us about. And our perfect example is our Lord Jesus Christ. We, as sons and daughters of God who live among men and are in appearance as men, are to have the same attitude that was in Christ Jesus, the Son of God.

As Son of God, he existed in the form of God (verse 6). It is significant that in John 1:33 we are told that the Spirit would remain upon Jesus. This was not someone whom the Spirit of God would touch for a time or a season to utter words of God or perform a miraculous deed and then depart, but the Spirit would descend upon and remain upon this Son of God.

The Greek word translated “form” (morphe) refers to appearance only; it intrinsically does not embody the idea of total equality.

morphe (From Thayer’s Greek Definitions)
1. the form by which a person or thing strikes the vision
2. external appearance

Therefore, even though Jesus exhibited the appearance of God (e.g., by the works he did), he did not strive or desire to be equal with God.

Even though he was God’s Son, he would not grasp for equality with God. No, instead, though being yet found in appearance as a man (verse 8), he would humble himself and take the form of a bond servant to men (verse 7) in full obedience to God (verse 8). He maintained this attitude of servanthood to men and obedience to God to his death (verse 8).

We too, as those made as sons of men but re-born as sons of God (yet remaining in appearance as men) are to have this very same attitude. Is that so hard to understand?

• Galatians 3:26 NASB
  For you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus.

• Ephesians 4:23-24 NASB
  be renewed in the spirit of your mind, and put on the new self, which in the likeness of God has been created in righteousness and holiness of the truth.

We have been born again of God and we are not to be puffed up or arrogant in that knowledge. No, we are to be humble servants of God, just as Jesus was in the days of his flesh (see Hebrews 5:7-8). We, though children of God, are still in the days of our flesh and must walk as Jesus walked.

When we are taught something since childhood, or even for very many years, it becomes difficult to see any other meaning besides that which we were taught. Such is the case with verses like Matthew 1:23 -

• Matthew 1:23 NASB
  (23) “BEHOLD, THE VIRGIN SHALL BE WITH CHILD AND SHALL BEAR A SON, AND THEY SHALL CALL HIS NAME IMMANUEL,” which translated means, “GOD WITH US.”

Most Christians have been trained to read this verse and imagine that it means that Jesus is God himself, come to be with them. However, if we let scripture interpret scripture, we shall discover the true meaning of this verse.

In the New American Standard Bible translation, when you encounter all capital letters in a New Testament text, it means that the translators have determined that the capitalized text is a quotation from the Old Testament. In the case of Matthew 1:23, the quotation is from Isaiah 7:14 -

• Isaiah 7:14 NASB
  (14) “Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, a virgin will be with child and bear a son, and she will call His name Immanuel.

Let’s look first at a little more context for Matthew 1:23 -

• Matthew 1:21-23 NASB
  (21) “She will bear a Son; and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.”
  (22) Now all this took place to fulfill what was spoken by the Lord through the prophet:
  (23) “BEHOLD, THE VIRGIN SHALL BE WITH CHILD AND SHALL BEAR A SON, AND THEY SHALL CALL HIS NAME IMMANUEL,” which translated means, “GOD WITH US.”

In Matthew 1:21 we see that Jesus (which means “YHWH saves”) would save his people, the people of Israel, from their sins. The birth of this holy child, who would be called the Son of God, was a sign to the people that God was “with them,” as opposed to being against them.

When God, through His prophets, instructs what to name a child, or when God gives someone a new name, that name always has prophetic meaning. The prophecy may involve the named person or child directly, such as in the name Jesus, through whom God indeed would save; or changing Abram to Abraham, which changed the meaning of his name from “high father” to “father of a multitude”:

• Genesis 17:5 NASB
  (5) “No longer shall your name be called Abram, But your name shall be Abraham; For I have made you the father of a multitude of nations.

An example of a name given that does not involve the child himself but signifies to others a promise or prophecy of God is in Isaiah 8:3-4 -

• Isaiah 8:3-4 NASB
  (3) So I approached the prophetess, and she conceived and gave birth to a son. Then the LORD said to me, “Name him Maher-shalal-hash-baz;
  (4) for before the boy knows how to cry out ‘My father’ or ‘My mother,’ the wealth of Damascus and the spoil of Samaria will be carried away before the king of Assyria.”

The Hebrew name in Isaiah 8:3 is rendered in the Jewish Targum as “hasten to seize the prey, and to take away the spoil.”

Even in the context of Isaiah 7:14 itself, we see the same thing: that of the name given to the child meant as a sign to the people of what God would do:

• Isaiah 7:14-16 NASB
  (14) “Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, a virgin will be with child and bear a son, and she will call His name Immanuel.
  (15) “He will eat curds and honey at the time He knows enough to refuse evil and choose good.
  (16) “For before the boy will know enough to refuse evil and choose good, the land whose two kings you dread will be forsaken.

God would be with His people by desolating the land of their enemies.

God encourages His people by telling them that He is with them:

• Joshua 1:9 NASB
  (9) “Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous! Do not tremble or be dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.”
• 1 Samuel 10:7 NASB
  (7) “It shall be when these signs come to you, do for yourself what the occasion requires, for God is with you.
• 1 Chronicles 17:2 NASB
  (2) Then Nathan said to David, “Do all that is in your heart, for God is with you.”
• 2 Chronicles 13:12 NASB
  (12) “Now behold, God is with us at our head and His priests with the signal trumpets to sound the alarm against you. O sons of Israel, do not fight against the LORD God of your fathers, for you will not succeed.”
• Psalms 14:5 NASB
  (5) There they are in great dread, For God is with the righteous generation.
• Isaiah 8:10 NASB
  (10) “Devise a plan, but it will be thwarted; State a proposal, but it will not stand, For God is with us.”
• Zechariah 8:23 NASB
  (23) “Thus says the LORD of hosts, ‘In those days ten men from all the nations will grasp the garment of a Jew, saying, “Let us go with you, for we have heard that God is with you.”‘”
• John 3:2 NASB
  (2) this man came to Jesus by night and said to Him, “Rabbi, we know that You have come from God as a teacher; for no one can do these signs that You do unless God is with him.”

“God is with you” or “God is with us” means that He is with the people in plan and purpose. He is “for them.”

• Romans 8:31 NASB
  (31) What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who is against us?

When we choose to follow Jesus, the one whom God has sent, then we are involved in the plan and purpose of God and surely God is with us.

• John 6:29 NASB
  (29) Jesus answered and said to them, “This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He has sent.”
• John 17:3 NASB
  (3) “This is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent.

I heard a preacher on the radio a day or two ago say that to “put on Christ” is the same thing as putting on “the armor of God” from Ephesians 6. Elsewhere, I read where someone said that to “put on Christ” was the same thing as putting on the “new self.” That made me curious to see if and how they all relate.

• Romans 13:14 NASB
  But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh in regard to its lusts.

• Ephesians 6:11 NASB
  Put on the full armor of God, so that you will be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil. … through verse 18 …

• Romans 13:12 NASB
  The night is almost gone, and the day is near. Therefore let us lay aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light.

Notice that “put on the armor of light” (Romans 13:12) appears just two verses before “put on the Lord Jesus Christ” (Romans 13:14). I split them on purpose in order to tie in Ephesians 6:11.

How do the above verses relate to the verses about putting on the new self? Are there two ways to view the idea of putting on Christ? Or do they all really mean the same thing?

1. To put on the armor of light.

2. To put on Christ

3. To put on the full armor of God

4. To put on the new self

5. To clothe yourselves with Christ

(To “clothe” and to “put on” are the same Greek word. Many translations use “put on” in Galatians 3:27)

• Colossians 3:10 NASB
  and have put on the new self who is being renewed to a true knowledge according to the image of the One who created him
  

• Ephesians 4:24 NASB
  and put on the new self, which in the likeness of God has been created in righteousness and holiness of the truth.
  

• Galatians 3:27 NASB
  For all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ.

The meaning of Colossians 3:10 and putting on the “new self” is further defined in verses 12 and 14:

• Colossians 3:12 NASB
  So, as those who have been chosen of God, holy and beloved, put on a heart of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience;
  

• Colossians 3:14 NASB
  Beyond all these things put on love, which is the perfect bond of unity.

Kind of sounds like the fruit of the spirit from Galatians 5:22-23, doesn’t it?

• Galatians 5:22-23 NASB
  But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.

Similar attributes are also described as armor in 1 Thessalonians:

• 1Thessalonians 5:8 NASB
  But since we are of the day, let us be sober, having put on the breastplate of faith and love, and as a helmet, the hope of salvation.

Which brings us back to the armor of God in Ephesians 6, which includes the breastplate of righteousness, the shield of faith, and the helmet of salvation.

Looks to me like it is all speaking of the same thing. To put on Christ is to put on the new self, to put on the armor of light, the full armor of God, and to walk according to the Spirit, exhibiting the fruit of the Spirit. (See also Romans 8:4, Romans 8:13, Galatians 5:25).

Have you put on the Lord Jesus Christ?