Southern Christian University

The Godhead

James A. Turner

.

I    The Bible Teaches That There Are Three Persons In The Godhead

 

      A. They are God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Ghost or Holy Spirit. About all of the

            versions use Holy Spirit instead of Holy Ghost except the KJV. The NKJV also uses Holy Spirit.

 

           1. If I understand things correctly the “Spirit of God” in the Old Testament is the same as the Holy

               Spirit of the New Testament.

     2. Christ is spoken of as God in several passages in the Old Testament and the New Testament. Christ

         appeared to Moses in person as recorded in Ex. 3:1-6 and to Joshua as recorded in Joshua 5:13-15

         and was recognized by both as a divine person. See also I Cor.10:1-2. How do we know that the

         person is Christ? Men nor angels are not to be worshiped (Acts 10:25-26; Rev. 19:9-10, 22:8-9).

        Two of the best passages in the New Testament are Jn.1:1-14 and I Jn. 1:1-4.

     3. The Holy Spirit is spoken of as a distinct person of the Godhead, “But the comforter, which is the

          Holy Spirit, whom the Father shall send in my name he shall teach you all things and bring all

          things to your remembrance whatsoever I have said unto you.” See also Jn. 16:7-14. He is spoken of

          as God in Acts 5:3-5.

 

B. Chapter one of Genesis shows that there are more than one person in the Godhead.

 

           1. The Old Testament scriptures were first written in the Hebrew Language, and those who are

               scholars in the Hebrew language say that the word for God in Genesis 1:1 is plural.

     2. Young’s Analytical Concordance gives the meaning of Elohim in Genesis 1:1 as, “God, gods,

         object of worship.”

     3. Adam Clark in his Commentary On The Whole Bible makes the comment on Genesis 1:1, “The

         original word Elohim, God is certainly the pural form of El or Eloah and has long been supposed,

         by the most eminently learned and pious men, to imply a plurality of Persons in the Divine nature.”

           4.Jamieson, Fausset and Brown Commentary On The Whole Bible says, “God—the name of the

 Supreme Being, signifying in Hebrew, Strong, Mighty ---- by its use here in the plural form is   obscurely taught at the opening of the Bible, a doctrine clearly revealed in other parts of it, viz., that though God is one, there is a plurality of persons in the Godhead- God, Son, and Spirit who were engaged in the creative work (Prov. 8:27; Jn. 1:3-10; Eph. 3:9; Heb. 1:2; Job 26:13).

5.      Matthew Henry’s Commentary On The Whole Bible says, “The author and cause of this great

     work- God. The Hebrew word is Elohim, which bespeaks, (1). The power of God the creator. El

                 signifies the strong God and what less than almighty strength could bring all things out of 

                 nothing? (2) The plurality of persons in the Godhead Father, Son and Holy Spirit.”

           

C.      Genesis 1:26 definitely shows that the Godhead is plural.

 

      1.Confess that you do not know the Hebrew language, and therefore you can not be certain about

            their conclusions, but we can be certain about Genesis 1:26, “Let us make man in our image, after

            our likeness---“ Us and our would be at least two distinct persons who worked together in perfect

             harmony and unity in the creation.  

      2.  This is very plainly taught in many passages in the New Testament. Evidently the plan for creation

           was the Father’s, but the Son actually created all creation. God made the worlds through Christ,

           “through whom (Christ) also he (the Father) made the worlds (Heb. 1:2). All things were made

           through him, and without him (Christ) was anything made that hath been made (Jn. 1:3).” Jn. 1:14,

          “And the word became flesh and dwelt among us (Christ) and we beheld him as the only begotten of

           the Father (the only one raised from the dead to die no more, Acts 13:33, 17:30-31, I Cor. 15: 22-

           23). “For in him (Christ) were all things created, in the heavens and upon the earth, things visible

           and things invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers: all things have been

           created through him, and unto him; and he is before all things, and in him all things consist (Col

           1:16-17).”

3.      It looks like the Holy Ghost/ Holy Spirit was the finisher of creation. Job 26:13 reads, “By his

      Spirit the heavens are garnished ----- “.

 

D.      It is very definite that the Father, Son and Holy Spirit worked together in perfect harmony and unity in the gospel scheme of redemption for the salvation of man.

 

1.      God in his infinite wisdom knew that if he made man a free moral agent that in process of time

      man would sin, and God, the Father, made a plan for man’s salvation before he made man. This

      plan was that Christ the Son would be sent to die as an offering for sin and all who would hear

     and obey Christ and serve the Godhead in Christ and His spiritual body the church would be saved

     (Eph. 1:3-5, 1: 11-12, 2:1-10, 3:10-11; Gal. 3: 26-27; Rom. 6:1-7; I Cor. 12:13; Ehp. 1:22-23, 4:4-

     5; Acts 13:46-48; Rom. 8: 29-30; II Tim. 1:9; II Thess. 2:13-14; I Pet. 1: 18-23.

             2.  It was Christ who executed the Father’s plan (Jn. 3:14-18) by agreeing to the Father’s plan and by

      dying  on the Cross of Calvary. He came to die as the sin offering. He was “the Lamb slain from

      the foundation of the world (Rev. 13:8 in KJV)” See also Isa. 53:7, 53:10-11; Rom. 3: 23-25; I Jn.

      2:1-2; Rev. 5:5-6, 6: 1-2, 6: 9-11, 6:15-17, 7:9-12, 12:11, 14:1, 17:13, 19: 6-9, 19:11-16, 22: 3-4,

      22:16-17).

3.   When man sinned, while in the garden, the first promise of a Saviour was given. Christ, the seed

       of woman without the agency of man, would come to deliver man from the power of Satan (Gen.

       3:15; Heb. 2:14-15; Lu. 1:26-35; Gal. 4:4-6; Jn. 3:14-15, 8:28, 12:27-33; Col. 2:14).

 

E.       The Holy Spirit definitely put the finish work to the gospel scheme of redemption by guiding the apostles into all truth and making them sufficient to give the New Testament (I Cor. 1:10-13; II Cor. 3:4-6).

 

1.      In the last long discourse that Jesus gave the apostles, as recorded in chapters 13-16 of John Jesus promised the apostles that they would be baptized with the Holy Spirit (Jn. 14:26, 16:7-14; Acts 1:4-5, 1: 8).

2.      The apostles were baptized with the Holy Spirit on the first Pentecost (Lev. 23:15-16; Acts 2:1-16) after the ascension of Christ.

3.      The primary purpose of Holy Spirit baptism for the apostles was to guide them into all truth and give them miraculous powers that would aid them and their converts in a rapid giving and confirmation of the New Testament. They were given miraculous ability to speak languages that they had not learned (Acts 2:1-16; thus overcoming the language barriers and to perform miracles, signs, and wonders to confirm the New Testament (Heb. 2:3-4; Acts 3:11-19, 4:4, 4:27-31, 13:6-12, 19:11-20).

4.      The apostles by the laying on of their hands could impart one or more of the nine miraculous gifts to converts (I Cor. 12:4-11; Acts 8:14-24; I Cor. 1:7, 9:1-3; II Tim. 1:6). The New Testament Epistles were written as problems arose in the churches and the Epistles were written to solve the problems.

               5.   The miraculous abilities given to the apostles by the out pouring of the Holy Spirit, and the

                     abilities given converts by the laying on of the apostles hands made it possible for the early

            church to preach the gospel to the world in about thirty years. Paul wrote Colossians in about

            62 A.D., and he states in Col. 1:5-6 that the gospel had come to them as, “it had come to all

            the world, bearing fruit and increasing.” In Col. 1:23 he states that the gospel had been

           “preached in all creation under heaven; whither I Paul was made a minister.

 

II     Chapter 12, 13, and 14 of I Corinthians are all on the subject of spiritual gifts.

 

        A.  In 13:8-10 he tells them that the miraculous gifts would cease, “when that which is perfect is come

               ----“ The statement means that when all the New Testament had been given  (Jas. 1:25) that

               the miraculous abilities would cease.

 

              1.   In I Cor. 13:11 and Eph. 4:8-16 he speaks of the miraculous

      period as the childhood period of the church. All of the New Testament

      has been given and confirmed, and the childhood age is over.

              2.    Today no one can give miraculous gifts by the laying on of hands. There are no

      actual miracles, signs or wonders performed to day.

              3.    The so called miracles affirmed today are Jannes and Jambres like those who for a little while

with stood Moses and Aaron (II Tim. 3:6-9; Ex. 78-13, 7:20-24, 8:16-19, 9:8-12).

4.        The Jannes and Jambres of our day need to be challenged to prove their abilities. If they can

 heal like Jesus and the apostles they can also raise the dead as Jesus and Peter did. They need

 to be challenged to raise one dead person in a close by cemetery by saying, “If you raise one,

I will raise all the others in the cemetery.”

     5.     If a person could actually heal, as Jesus and the apostles did, with our fast news and travel there would be millions coming within a few hours to be healed from nearly all of the countries of the world, if not all, to be healed.

 

III      Some Questions You Can Ask

 

          1.    When God made Eve as a “helpmeet “ for Adam and joined them together in marriage (Gen. 2:21-

                  23) he said, “Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife:

                  and they shall be one flesh.”  Question, Did they immediately turn from being two into one

                 person, or were they still two persons who belong to each in regard to sexual relations (I Cor.7:3-

                6) and other matters that they were to work together in harmony and unity? The Godhead works

                 together in perfect harmony and unity!

         2.    Several Hundred years before Christ was born of Mary, a virgin, Daniel saw one “like a son

                of man” ascend to the Ancient days ---- and he “was given dominion and glory and kingdom that

               all peoples, nations and languages should serve him --- (Daniel 7:13-14). This was fulfilled when

                Christ ascended to the right hand of God (Eph. 1:19-23) Question, Did Jesus ascend to himself or

                 is the Ancient of days referring to God the Father?      

   3.   When Jesus said, “I,lo, I am come (in the roll of the book it is written of me) to do thy will, O God

(Heb. 10:7). Question, Did he come to do his own will or the will of the Father?

         4.    Ask a similar question on Jn. 6:38.

5.    When Jesus prayed three times in Gethsemane (Mt. 26:36-46) “My Father, if it be possible, let

        this cup pass away from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as thou will” was he praying to

         himself or to God the Father?

6.     Who is Jesus speaking of in Jn. 8:18-19 is Jesus just speaking of himself?

7.        When Jesus said of the Holy Spirit in Jn.16:14, “He shall glorify me: for he shall takes of mine  and shall declare it unto you.” Was Jesus speaking only of himself, or is it the Holy Spirit only, or is he speaking of himself and the Holy Spirit?

8.      What do the plurals us and our in Gen. 1:26 mean?

9.      In the judgment scene of Rev. 6:12-17 were the people trying to flee from God the Father, or of the Lamb, or of both?