Messianic Perspectives

Liz Ayala: Stay with us as we discuss the question, do Christians worship three gods? Right here on Messianic Perspectives. Shalom and welcome to Messianic Perspectives, a daily program where we look into the scriptures from a distinctive first century Jewish point of view. I'm Liz Ayala. Today, Dr. Gary Hedrick is discussing the doctrine of the Trinity. Does it really mean that Christians worship three gods, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit? Some people think so, and that's what we want to find out. I'll be back at the close of the program to tell you about our special offer.

And now, with today's installment, here's Gary Hedrick.

Dr. Gary Hedrick: All right, thank you. It's good to have you with us, listening friend, as we continue this series of programs on the Trinity. And we've been zeroing in on the question of whether or not Jesus Christ is God, because that's really the main issue in this whole discussion. The deity of Christ is the watershed because no one really disagrees with the idea that the Father is God. Of course, he's God. And most people wouldn't have a serious problem with the idea that the Holy Spirit is God. It's very clear in the Jewish scriptures that the Holy Spirit, the is God.

He's the Elohim, the spirit of God. So, there's no problem with the Father, the first person of the Trinity being God, and in most cases, no problem with the Spirit, the third person of the Trinity being God. The real problem is with the second person of the Trinity, the Son. That's the real dividing line between historic biblical Christianity and the rest of the religious world, including, by the way, liberal Christendom. There are people who call themselves Christians who reject the deity and virgin birth of Jesus Christ. But in doing so, they have forsaken true historic biblical Christianity.

As a matter of fact, someone who rejects the deity and virgin birth of Christ is more in line with traditional Judaism than he is with Christianity. So, is Jesus God or not? Well, I want us to look at a very interesting passage here in the New Testament. This is where we find the most shocking words ever spoken, the most astonishing statement ever to fall from human lips. And it's found in the Gospel according to John, chapter 8. As you know, the four Gospels are Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, and they're basically biographies of the life of Christ from four different perspectives.

And up until this point in the book of John here in chapter 8, there has been this cat and mouse game between Yeshua of Nazareth, Jesus of Nazareth, and the Jewish establishment where they were following him around, watching his miracles. They called them magic. And they were just trying to find some flaw or some mistake that they could turn around and use against him. And they were getting frustrated because he never seemed to do or to say anything wrong. But when we come to John chapter 8, this is where they finally let it all hang out.

I mean, this is where they finally play their hand. In verse 41, they were talking to Jesus and they said, we weren't born of fornication like you were. They were saying that he had been an illegitimate child. And that was and still is, by the way, the traditional Jewish position. The Talmud says that his father was a Roman soldier named Pantera or Pandera. You say that's terrible. Well, what did you expect them to say? Joseph freely admitted that he wasn't the father of the child. So, the Jewish establishment had to come up with some explanation for his birth.

And we'll pick up the conversation here in John chapter 8, verse 51. Jesus said, verily, verily, I say unto you, if a man keep my saying, he shall never see death. Then said the Jews unto him, now we know that thou hast a devil. Abraham is dead and the prophets. And thou sayest, if a man keep my saying, he shall never taste of death. Art thou greater than our father Abraham who is dead? And the prophets are dead. Whom makest thou thyself? John 8, verses 51 through 53. They were saying, just who do you think you are, Jesus?

Of course, we know he was talking about spiritual death, which is the separation of the spirit from God. But they thought he was saying that anyone who believes in him will not experience physical death, which is the separation of the spirit from the body, a totally different concept. So, since they thought he was talking about physical death, they concluded that he was crazy, demon possessed. Abraham had died. The prophets had died. Did this carpenter's son think he was better than the patriarchs? Whom makest thou thyself? Just who do you think you are anyway? He was claiming authority over death.

So, it says in verse 54 of John chapter 8, Jesus answered, if I honor myself, my honor is nothing. It is my Father that honoreth me of whom ye say that he is your God, yet ye have not known him. But I know him. And if I should say I know him not, I shall be a liar like unto you. But I know him and keep his saying. Now, watch this. Jesus says, your father Abraham rejoiced to see my day. And he saw it and was glad. Then said the Jews unto him, thou art not yet 50 years old and hast thou seen Abraham?

You see, Abraham had died some 2,000 years before. His spirit was in paradise. Yet what these Jews couldn't figure out was that Jesus was speaking as though he had been in contact with Abraham because he said that Abraham had witnessed the incarnation and the fulfillment of the Messianic promises from his vantage point in paradise, which was the Old Testament equivalent of heaven. And how could Jesus know what Abraham had seen from paradise unless he had been there himself? And to have seen Abraham, they thought he would have had to have been 2,000 years old. Well, what they didn't know was that he was actually a lot older than that.

Now, watch what it says. John chapter 8, verse 58. And Jesus said unto them, verily, verily, I say unto you, before Abraham was, I am. Then took they up stones to cast at him, but Jesus hid himself and went out of the temple, going through the midst of them and so passed by. The reaction of the Jewish crowd shows that they recognized his statement as a claim to deity. They picked up stones because under the Mosaic law, stoning was the penalty for blasphemy, capital punishment. And it was blasphemy for a mortal man to claim equality with God.

They knew what he was saying. He was saying, before Abraham came into being, I was already in existence. The Greek phrase literally means I am being. It's from the verb to be. It was an unmistakable title of divinity. It's exactly the same thing Yahweh told Moses back in Exodus 3:14 when the children of Israel asked, who sent you? Tell them I am that I am sent you. So, these are the most shocking words ever uttered by human lips. I like the way C. S. Lewis puts it. He was professor of medieval and Renaissance English literature at Cambridge University in England for many years.

And here's what he says. Then comes the real shock. Among these Jews, there suddenly turns up a man who goes about talking as if he was God. He claims to forgive sins. He says he has always existed. He says he is coming to judge the world at the end of time. Now, let us get this clear. Among pantheists like the Indians, anyone might say that he was part of God or one with God, and there would be nothing very odd about it. But this man, since he was a Jew, could not mean that kind of God.

God in their language meant the being outside the world who had made it and was infinitely different from anything else. And when you have grasped that, you will see that what this man said was, quite simply, the most shocking thing that has ever been uttered by human lips. That C S Lewis in the book Mere Christianity Book 2, chapter 3. You see, there can be little question that the New Testament presents Yeshua as God in the flesh. After the resurrection, his disciples recognized him as God. John chapter 20. Then saith he to Thomas, reach hither thy finger and behold my hands and reach hither thy hand and thrust it into my side and be not faithless, but believing.

And Thomas answered and said unto him, my Lord and my God. Jesus saith unto him, Thomas, because thou hast seen me, thou hast believed. But blessed are they that have not seen and yet have believed. John chapter 20, verses 27 through 29. Over and over again, Jesus Christ spoke of himself as the great I am. John 4:26, John 6:35, John 8:12, John 10:9, and John 11:25. Not only that, but he also forgave sins, a prerogative reserved only for God himself. And he accepted worship, something else that was reserved only for God. Ultimately, each of us is left with a decision.

Will we believe in Jesus and accept him or not? Once again, I'll let C S Lewis state the case. Here's what he says. A man who was merely a man and said the sort of things Jesus said would not be a great moral teacher. He would either be a lunatic on a level with the man who says he is a poached egg or else he would be the devil of hell. You must make your choice. Either this man was and is the Son of God or else a madman or something worse. You can shut him up for a fool.

You can spit at him and kill him as a demon or you can fall at his feet and call him Lord and God. But let us not come up with any patronizing nonsense about his being a great human teacher. He has not left that open to us. He did not intend to. Well, that's all of our time for today, listening friend. If you've never received Jesus Christ as your savior, why don't you do it right now? You can, you know. If you're not a believer in Yeshua and you'd like a free copy of our little tract, Has the Messiah already come?

We'd be happy to send it to you. Just write to us or give us a call. I'll see you next time. You take care. Bye-bye.

Liz Ayala: Thank you, Gary, and thank you, listening friend, for tuning in today. Now, let me tell you about our special offer for this month. It's Gary Hedrick's booklet entitled, Do Christians worship three gods? In this 70 page booklet, Gary addresses head-on the question of whether or not the doctrine of the Trinity makes Christianity incompatible with the teachings of the Jewish Bible or what we call the Old Testament. It's available for a suggested gift of $7. After all, the Jewish people have always been champions of monotheism. The central creed of Judaism is Deuteronomy 6:4 which says, the Lord our God is one Lord, not three.

So, when a Jewish person becomes a believer in Jesus, isn't he forsaking his monotheistic Jewish heritage? Surprisingly enough, the answer is no. And you'll find out why in this interesting booklet. It has an informative question and answer section and also a helpful glossary of Hebrew words at the end. The title again is, Do Christians worship three gods? Then we also have the programs you're hearing here on the broadcast available on two CDs with the same title, Do Christians worship three gods? This series is available for a suggested gift of $12. Just visit our secure online store at messianicspecialties.com to place your order.

If you would prefer to order by mail, just address your request to Messianic Perspectives, PO Box 345, San Antonio, Texas 78292. To order by phone, use our toll-free order line. The number is 1-800-926-5397. Even if you're one of our regular listeners, you still may not know that we're much more than just a radio program. Messianic Perspectives is sponsored by CJF Ministries, one of the largest missionary organizations in the world. We currently have missionary families serving the Lord all over the world including the United States, Canada, South America, England, France, and of course, Israel. So, when you write, consider helping us with a gift above the suggested amount.

We'd be very grateful. Have you enjoyed this edition of Messianic Perspectives? Why not continue to learn about the Jewish roots of your Christian faith by inviting a speaker from CJF Ministries? Call our toll-free number 1-800-926-5397 and we'll be happy to handle all of the details. And as always, when you're in touch with us, please mention the call letters of this station. If you're listening to our webcast or podcast, we need to know that too. I'm Liz Ayala. Join us next time, won't you, as Dr. Gary Hedrick continues our series of studies on Do Christians worship three gods?

Right here on Messianic Perspectives. Messianic Perspectives is sponsored by CJF Ministries of San Antonio, Texas and is made possible on this station by the free will contributions of our listeners in this area.