What benefit does it produce to make Jesus God

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Matthias

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Because no mere man could carry and bear the weight of God's wrath 2 Corinthians 5:21

A “mere man” is a man. The mere man / man Christ Jesus did. 2 Corinthians doesn’t deny that. Your rationale does.

The historical trinitarian response is the sentiment you expressed. That’s why Jesus is not a human person (a human person is “a mere man”) in trinitarian theology.
 

RLT63

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A “mere man” is a man. The mere man / man Christ Jesus did. 2 Corinthians doesn’t deny that. Your rationale does.

The historical trinitarian response is the sentiment you expressed. That’s why Jesus is not a human person (a human person is “a mere man”) in trinitarian theology.
He is unique among men. Who else was born of a virgin and lived a sinless life? He is a man 100% and John 1 tells us he was with God and he was God.
 

Matthias

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4-7 but possibly 11:
  1. God the Father
  2. God the HS
  3. God the son, in his divine nature.
  4. God the son, in his human nature.
  5. S1
  6. S2
  7. S3
  8. S4
  9. S5
  10. S6
  11. S7, the 7 Spirits of God referenced in Revelations.
  12. God of Grace
  13. God of Love
  14. God of Mercy
  15. God of Justice
  16. THE LORD OF HEAVEN’S ARMIES.
I may have missed a couple of dozen or hundred maybe or billions when God is in all. Hard to say how many selves, maybe also 1 and 3 at the same time. Do I get partial credit if I include the preferred answer? :p

That’s an interesting answer. I’ve personally never read any trinitarian writer, or spoken with any trinitarian, who gave that response to the question. Perhaps you have.

Trinitarianism “officially” breaks down into two camps* on the question. One trinitarian camp says the Trinity is a single self. The other trinitarian camp says the Trinity is three selfs.

* There is, technically, a third camp. Those in the third trinitarian camp say they don’t know - some in this camp add that they don’t care - how many selfs the Trinity is. This camp is, in my experience, Joe Average Trinitarian. The question for this camp is analogous to “how many angels can dance on the head of pin?”
 
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Matthias

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He is unique among men. Who else was born of a virgin and lived a sinless life?

He certainly is a unique man / human person.

He is a man 100% and John 1 tells us he was with God and he was God.

How many persons do you see in John’s prologue (1:1-5) to his Gospel?
 

Aunty Jane

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Lucifer was around a long time before creation.
If you mean satan....he is never called “Lucifer” in the scriptures.....just to be clear.

The correct translation of the Hebrew word heh·lelʹ is “shining one.” Heh·lelʹ is not a name or a title of satan, but a term describing the boastful position taken by Babylon’s dynasty of kings of the line of Nebuchadnezzar. (Isaiah 14:12) The kings of Babylon were tools of the devil, its “king” and their actions reflected his own ambitious desire revealed in Eden. So Jehovah came to the salvation of his people by restoring them to their land, until the real Seed of promise should come. (Ezra 1:1-6) Even though they failed so many times to uphold Jehovah’s Sovereignty, he kept them in existence in order to fulfill his promise.

When he rebelled, was cast to the earth, he knew what God was like, and likely had a very good grasp of God intentions... After all, he was there when God's promised Adam and Eve a Savior/Messiah, and every Jewish woman hope it would be her to be the mother.
I believe that you have that taking place way too early. It is in Revelation (things that were to take place in the Lord’s Day) that the casting of satan along with his demonic hordes to this earth down to the earth, takes place. This of course is in line with satan and his demons having free access to both heaven and earth until the time of Christ’s enthronement as king. (Daniel 7:13-14) only then was he confined to the earth. (Revelation 12:7-12) Now we see the effects of that confinement in this “time of the end”.

What the devil had a good grasp of was the worship that humans would give to Yahweh. He wanted some of that for himself. He even tried to get Jesus to worship him...remember?

When he suggested that the woman could “be like God” if she ate from the forbidden fruit, he was actually talking about himself. Satan was an appointed guardian cherub in the garden of Eden, privy to all that was taking place with the creation of all things. He was part of the angelic host that applauded the creation of the universe and the preparation of our earth for habitation by “souls” of infinite variety. As a once faithful angel, he got carried away with his own magnificence, as stated by Ezekiel when God addressed the King of Tyre. What he said was aimed clearly at the devil...whom this earthly king was emulating.

You were in Eden, the garden of God; Every precious stone was your covering. . . . .On the day that you were created they were prepared. You were the anointed cherub who covers, And I placed you there. You were on the holy mountain of God; You walked in the midst of the stones of fire. You were blameless in your ways From the day you were created Until unrighteousness was found in you. . . . Your heart was haughty because of your beauty; You corrupted your wisdom by reason of your splendor. I threw you to the ground; I put you before kings, That they may see you. (Ezekiel 28:12-15,17 - NASB)

Once the devil had successfully separated the human race from God, they were his to do with as he wished. We have the example of Job to see what the devil’s agenda is....and what he is capable of doing to humankind.....and with God’s permission. But we have to know why God has permitted the devil to wreak such havoc in the world....and to allow him relative freedom to do his best to become mankind’s “god” and ruler...to their detriment. (2 Corinthians 4:3-4)

Whose world are we living in? (1 John 5:19)
 

Aunty Jane

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It doesn't take too much to imagine Satan's devious mind thinking... I'm going to confuse the issue. I'm going to counterfeit the real Godhead in every pagan religion in the planet. That way, when God reveals Himself as a Father/Son unity, everyone will think, aaah, just another pagan counterfeit.
Or you can read the scriptures as they are written and see him create a counterfeit religious empire that encompasses the whole world, and they all believe the same lies.....the devil is a deceiver and those deceived don’t know that they are.....it’s why we must never take any belief for granted....find its source. Is it really biblical or a suggestion that it is? Can you trace its origins back to Babylon?

The irony is that every Christian in the planet believes that Jesus is the Son of God. The gospels proclaim it. The apostles proclaimed it. The many letters by the apostles proclaimed it. John wrote his gospel and his letters to specifically prove it. Jesus is absolutely the Son of God, sent from heaven to become a man and die for mankind in order to save man from sin.
It’s true, because there are clear and unambiguous statements even from Jesus himself to establish it. But since there is no clear and unequivocal statements that Jesus is “God” himself, or even an equal part of him, that is where we need to exercise caution because that means that it is a suggestion grafted over ambiguous verses in the Bible that were never written to establish a trinity. Even the church who introduced this doctrine admits that it is not scriptural.

The New Catholic Encyclopedia stated: “The formulation ‘one God in three Persons’ was not solidly established, certainly not fully assimilated into Christian life and its profession of faith, prior to the end of the 4th century. But it is precisely this formulation that has first claim to the title the Trinitarian dogma. Among the Apostolic Fathers, there had been nothing even remotely approaching such a mentality or perspective.”—(1967), Vol. XIV, p. 299.

John didn't bother trying to prove a trinity. Nor did he try to prove Jesus'divinity. All He had to prove was His Sonship, based on prophecy, Jesus' own declarations regarding His identity, and the testimony of the other apostles. Job done. One would have to all manner of spiritual and scriptural gymnastics to prove that a perfect God begets other than God begotten.
Not to many of us here who see no such thing in anything he wrote.
John never mentioned a trinity because it didn’t exist in Judaism, nor was it ever mentioned except in paganism, when he lived in the first century. The first Christians had no trinity belief, any more than they believed that Mary was the “Mother of God”. They had no belief in hellfire either.

Can such an important doctrine about the very nature of the God they claimed to worship, be so obscure as to NOT be introduced into official church teachings until over 300 years after Christ was executed? Doesn’t that raise some red flags? It did to me.

If the apostles, who were taught by Jesus himself stated collectively.....
“For even if there are so-called gods whether in heaven or on earth, as indeed there are many gods and many lords, yet for us there is only one God, the Father, from whom are all things, and we exist for Him; and one Lord, Jesus Christ, by whom are all things, and we exist through Him.” (1 Corinthians 8:5-6 - NASB)
We have to accept what is clearly stated, not fall back on those ambiguous verses to prop up beliefs because we have been led to believe that they are true.
 

RLT63

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Which translation(s] of the Bible do you routinely read?

(When I was a Southern Baptist I was KJVO).
I like the NKJV but when just reading I have been reading the NLT but find places where they interpreted scripture instead of just translating. But it's an easy read. I have several versions and 2 interlinears. The modern versions omit verses, because scholars prefer the Alexandrian texts. I don't always agree with the decisions the scholars made but I'm not a King James only advocate. I like to know what was omitted and why.
 
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Aunty Jane

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Someone told me welcome to Cultianity board
Why do you assume that because people disagree with the majority view that they must in be a cult?

Was Jesus a cult leader? Would you have followed him? He taught that the religious establishment of his day was completely corrupted by “the traditions of men” and that their worship was “in vain” (Matthew 15:7-9).....history repeats because people do not consult the lessons from the past to assess the events of the present....and that will affect their future.
 

Wrangler

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A bit harsh, don't you think?...and the question is fair.
Yes the question is far but my point is not harsh. It is rude (if not harsh) to sweep aside a question and ask one of your own. Why not answer the OP's question AND THEN pose one of your own? That seems more conversational.
 
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BeyondET

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He is 100% man. You got that right. However, John 1 says nothing about Jesus being God. It's just not there no matter how many times you assert it.

Reading verse 2 right after 1 is a whole other understanding.

2 The Same was in the beginning with God.
 
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1stCenturyLady

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Since you came late I will explain. The question is not is he God. But rather why does he need to be God? I gave 2 verses that said why he needed to not be God. Can you give 2 verses that say why he needs to be God?

I already gave more than that in my post.
 
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