A week ago I decided to read through What the Bible Teaches, by R.A. Torrey again. It’s a great book – you can download a free PDF here – so we’re doing a little Bible study every Thursday. Subscribe over there to make sure you don’t miss anything! >>>
John is hosting the Bible study today, so grab your coffee and head over there.
Chapter 2 is, “The Unity of God,” which can hardly be discussed without discussing the triune nature of the Godhead. John poses an interesting question:
Can one be a Christian and not believe Jesus was God? I’d have to defer to the wisdom of our Lord on that judgment, but it is very hard to understand how a believer could be so inclined, considering what to me is indisputable evidence that it is, indeed, Jesus who is, was, and will be. After all, He did tell the Pharisees, “before Abraham was born, I AM” (John 8:58). What else could that possibly mean?
Thoughts? Insights? Let’s hear it.
(Oh, and if any of you who are reading along are also bloggers, and you’d like to jump in and host a chapter, let me know!)
So it looks like you are asking two questions in one here, but maybe I’m mistaken. The first looks like the topic “The Trinity”, and the second topic would be the can a person be a ‘believer without believing in Jesus being God.
This reminds me of a topic I once had with a bible study I was leading with ECC. Which was, ‘can a person be a believer and not a disciple’ although this isn’t the same question I do think they fit hand in hand yet one is far more of a greater question to answer. So if you don’t believe that Jesus was God what exactly is your hope in? A revolutionary man who lived two thousand years ago, taught goodness, and gave his life for his cause? Then tell me that if you believe in Jesus then is he the same as Gandhi, Luther, or Mohammad? If Jesus was a simple man like us full of sin, then how can he be any kind of pure sacrifice for us? If you believe in the Teaching’s of Jesus then you must understand the old testament to understand what his sacrifice meant, and then you will see if he wasn’t perfect in God’s standards then why have we stopped offering sacrifices for our sins? Jesus if John 14:23 says this, “if anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our abode with him.” He and the Father together in unity will make their abode with us.
On the topic of the trinity… leave that to another day!
I’m not actually asking anything, John is. 🙂
He has a lot more on this over on his blog, I just pulled a tiny piece. You should check it out. I think he’d really enjoy your ideas/conversation.
http://word.johnjschneider.com/?p=747