REFLECTIONS ON THE LIFE AND DEATH OF NABEEL QURESHI AT AGE 34

But, as it is written,
“What no eye has seen, nor ear heard,
nor the heart of man imagined,
what God has prepared for those who love him”—
these things God has revealed to us through the Spirit. For the Spirit searches everything, even the depths of God. (1 Cor. 2:9-10, ESV)

For my thoughts are not your thoughts,
neither are your ways my ways, declares the LORD.
For as the heavens are higher than the earth,
so are my ways higher than your ways
and my thoughts than your thoughts. (Isaiah 55:8-9, ESV)

God has a master plan and purpose through every step of life's journey. Randy seemed like a random, poorly educated prisoner - a career criminal - but he had come to resolute faith in the truth of God's Word. He read the Word and shared the Word and didn't back down. Randy shared and modeled Christ to his very bright, arrogant, atheist prison cellmate, David. David determined to destroy Randy and Randy's God, but lost that battle, surrendering his life to Jesus. 

Fast-forward to David in college. He encounters a personable, charismatic, devout Muslim, who is determined to draw others into the Muslim faith. David's relationship with that Muslim leads to a journey for both of them that sees that brilliant, articulate, devout Muslim, Nabeel Qureshi radically surrender his life to Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. That costly decision hurt his loving family and cost him many friends. Yet, in tears, and with an undying commitment to the truth, Nabeel forsook all others for the sake of embracing Jesus. 

Nabeel completed medical school, secured his M.D., but chose to leave a promising medical career for the sake of devouring everything that he could learn about the God of the Bible and his Savior and Lord, Jesus Christ. Everything that he learned, he shared. His faith was grounded in truth, but filtered through a gracious and loving spirt that captivated others. Nabeel joined RZIM and was mentored by Ravi Zacherias. He quickly became one of the world's leading apologetic voices, especially in the Muslim world. His story and message resonated with people from all over the world. Three books followed. God was clearly in all of this, starting with saving Randy's life. 

Then the devastating news came at the end of Nabeel's 32nd year of life - stage 4, terminal stomach cancer. What in the world was God doing? Why should God allow the Hugh Hefners of the world to live long and prosper while taking out an effective evangelist who was leading hundreds of thousands into the kingdom of God? 

Nadeel attacked the cancer by moving his wife and infant daughter to Houston, where he would receive cutting edge cancer therapy. Nabeel also embarked on a video-cast prayer journey, prayerfully documenting each step in his painful bodily digression, all the while faithfully trusting and expecting God to heal him. Thousands of faithful believers from around the world daily prayed for Nabeel, expecting God to heal him. Nabeel was anointed with oil and prayed for by numerous evangelical leaders. 

Yet, despite the overwhelming onslaught of faithful prayer and the best medical treatment, Nabeel's cancer progressed and painfully worsened. Even as the pain was intensifying, Nabeel faithfully ministered and preached to local congregations. He compared his painful journey to that of Christ and reminded us that there was no comparison. Nabeel found comfort in Jesus' suffering for him and embraced the cross like very few people ever do. Nabeel's faith would not die, even if his body was dying. Nabeel and Jesus were about the same age as they faced death. 

It was difficult for us to watch Nabeel's faith in the midst of the struggle and not weep for him, and for Michelle and Ayah. We do not weep as those who have no hope, but we weep because of the courage and faith that is on display when hope in this world is exhausted. 

When hurricane Harvey hit Houston, many of us wondered why God was allowing such difficulties to be poured down on the life of His faithful servant. Then the news came, Nabeel left this earth and graduated to glory in the presence of the Savior that he faithfully served. Grief, such deep grief for Michelle and Ayah and the entire family, but such peace and confidence in the certainty of Nabeel's presence with Jesus. 

Nabeel's memorial service has been watched by about 350,000 people from around the world last time I checked. How many 34 year olds in this world who did not hold office or were not entertainers or famous athletes would have a memorial service watched by so many people? Perhaps not another 34 year old on this planet. 

So, why would a loving, all-powerful, gracious, merciful God allow the abnormal (Ravi's phrase) premature death of someone like Nabeel? Doesn't this show that God, if there is a God, doesn't care, that he doesn't answer prayer, and that faith is an illusion? Those, of course, are the questions of the skeptic, the person who does not understand that our God's ways are higher than our ways, and His thoughts higher than our thoughts. 

How thankful we are that He sees the whole picture, the story from beginning to end, and we know that all of His ways are perfect. That is why Nabeel's young wife, Michelle, just ten days after Nabeel's death, could share a video on "A More Glorious End," that has been seen by nearly 150,000 people on Youtube. Her statement of biblical grief by a young widow is extraordinary. 

We are thankful that God does not answer to us, but we answer to Him. We are thankful that our prayers are filtered through His Spirit who intercedes for us according to God's will, not ours. We are thankful that God helps us see and understand all of life from an eternal perspective. Long life is not to be cherished, but a faithful life, and Nabeel set a high standard as he wholeheartedly sought to live out faithfulness. Thank you Nabeel and thank you Michelle and all of those who walked beside them, and who continue to walk with Michelle on this journey. 

In God's economy, Nabeel's work in his physical body was done. He has left videos and books that will continue what he started. The Holy Spirit will take care of the rest. God will continue raise up others. I am reminded that with the death of Jim Elliott at age 29, God raised up an army of tens of thousands to go to the mission fields and take his place - including my parents. God does not waste time. God does not waste cancer. God does not waste dying and death. All of this has a glorious purpose as we all journey to the same end reached by Nabeel - to faithfully finish our work in this world whenever that may be. 

Hugh Hefner died just two weeks after Nabeel. I hate to even pollute my screen with his name. His 91 years were invested in every vice and evil that corrupts the heart and mind of mankind. Long life was God's mercy, because God takes no pleasure in the death of the wicked but desires every person to repent and come to a knowledge of the truth. Long life is not a mark of blessing, but a sign of God-provided space for repentance - space that was wasted in HH's life. 

This week I saw the documentary on Steve McQueen, who died at age 50. The first 49 years of his life were spend pursuing the same lusts that HH peddled, and they devastated Steve McQueen's life. By God's grace, a flight instructor shared and modeled Christ and invited Steve to church, where Steve surrendered to Jesus. Shortly after that surrender, he was diagnosed with terminal lung cancer - he had less than six months to live. Steve did not get the chance to grow in faith and share that faith with the world, but he took the little faith that he had and embraced it and trusted Christ with it, dying with Billy Graham's personal Bible clutched in his hands on his chest. Again, long life is not the measure of success and blessing, but the measure is faith and faithfulness. 

In Luke 18:8, Jesus says that He is coming again, but when he comes, "will He find faith (faithfulness) on the earth"? None of us know the day or hour that we will meet Jesus, but the only question for us is not when we go, but whether we are faithful. Nabeel modeled faithfulness. He used the many rich gifts entrusted to him by his Heavenly Father as a faithful steward to advance the kingdom of God in grace and truth. How about us? How will we use what God has entrusted to us in the time left for us. What kind of stewardship are we practicing and what kind of legacy will we be leaving? Until we meet Jesus, may He find each of us faithful. 

Prayer Walking Apple's New Cupertino Campus (Fortress)

Linda and I are in Cupertino with our son for my aunt's 95th birthday party. Linda is making a cake for 45 people. Our son lives directly across the cul-de-sac from Apple's new spaceship HQ. So, I prayer-walked around as much of the perimeter of the campus as was accessible, praying for God to be glorified, one way or the other, in the people and enterprise of Apple. May God raise up and transform and remove in ways that bring Him glory and bring blessing to His kingdom.

Apple is a new type of kingdom. You can watch monthly drone flyover's of the Apple HQ construction progress at this link: https://youtu.be/eyzvBKnVw98.

The recently fired Google employee described the atmosphere as an ideological echo chamber. Employees are there for their technical prowess and management brilliance, but anything that runs against the cultural grain is forbidden. These massive, super popular, super wealthy companies become small empires that both reflect and influence culture, for good or evil and often for both.

I like the photo above, because it shows a colorful, but rusty and eccentric mechanical windmill in front of the Apple HG. This object is a type of art, but is ultimately just a flashy, but rust set of parts that are destined for decay and ultimately destruction. What we cherish about Apple is a lot like that rusty, flashy windmill. It catches are attention for the moment. It has a useful function, but ultimately it will decay and is destined for the dustbin of history. No king or emperor or CEO of an empire ever seems to realize how temporary the stuff is and how long eternity is. As Christians, we are called to place our hope in eternal things - the God stuff of forever - that does not rust or decay or get stolen. 

Apple likes the long, smooth lines, consistent with its Infinite Loop address. There is only One who is Infinite, with no beginning and no end. When we become related to Him by repenting of our rebellion against Him and accepting His adoption of us as children, we are given an address in eternity that will never decay or fade away or be taken from us. 

The Apple HQ is surrounded by a fence embedded in concrete. The fence has no cross bars, but it is intended to communicate an illusion of openness and symmetry. The reality is that Apple uses extreme security precautions. While that is understandable, there can also be a fortress mentality - a kingdom mentality - that leads to both an attitude of superiority and arrogance and a desire to exclude ideas and people that are inconsistent with the Apple kingdom values.

We too have kingdom values - values established by our King - but we don't have to hunker down in security behind a fortress, but be out in culture taking on the gates of Hades, because Jesus is with us and He who is in us is greater than he who is in the world. We don't have to fear. The kingdoms of this world can only hurt our bodies, not our souls. We must remember that we are souls with temporary bodies. One of Jesus' favorite greetings is, "fear not." We have a coming King who is King of kings and Lord of lords.

So, what did I pray? I prayed that God would raise up Apple board members and leaders with godly values. I prayed that existing board members and leaders would be transformed by the Gospel and the Holy Spirit. I prayed that the less significant employees doing the menial work would wear the cross boldly and represent Jesus well. I prayed that leaders there who are bent on evil would be transformed or removed and that people who have godly values will be elevated there. I prayed that Apple would be a force for good and not for evil. I prayed that God will be glorified there and through that enterprise.

As I walked, I looked for signs of the Gospel, the "Christian Church" down the street, the tall white cross on a church across the street, the crosses hanging from car mirrors and around people's necks. I prayed that the Gospel and the cross would become embedded in the hearts and minds of the employees of Apple.

As you walk through life, pray with your eyes open. What businesses and people around you need your prayers in order to bring the values and hope and Gospel of Jesus' kingdom into your world?

Aaron Hernandez And The Easter Story

Most of you probably heard the news today about Aaron Hernandez, the once Patriot tight end who had the world and a $40 million dollar contract at his fingertips. He died today at age 27, the same age as my son. He spent the last 3.5 years in prison, convicted of one murder and charged with two others. Just days after being acquitted in the murder of the two men, Hernandez reportedly hung himself in his jail cell. He was found with "John 3:16" written across his forehead. He was a former teammate of Tim Tebow at the University of Florida. 

So, what does the death of someone who many viewed as a punk and gangster have to do with Easter? In the book of Ezekiel, God says that, "I take no pleasure in the death of the wicked." God instead desires that the wicked would "turn from his wicked way and live, turn back, turn back from your evil ways." See Ezekiel 33:11, 14-16. Aaron Hernandez had the opportunity to live as a prince, but he chose to live as a gangster. He had the opportunity to live a life that people only dream about, but he chose to live a nightmare life instead. Why? The world will debate the answer to that question. 

The Bible, however, makes it very clear that an enemy of our souls is roaming this world seeking to steal and kill and destroy and devour. John 10:10, 1 Pet. 5:8. In contrast, Jesus says that He came to give life - abundantly and eternally. John 10:10, 28. In John 10, Jesus says that He is the good shepherd, the one who cares for and protects the sheep who listen to his voice. As the "good shepherd," He lays down His life for the sheep. 10:15. As the author of life, however, He is able to take His own life up again after giving Himself up for the sheep. 10:15-18. 

Jumping back to Ezekiel, in the very next chapter, 34, God condemns the shepherds who fail to protect and nurture the sheep. "... you do not feed the sheep. The weak you have not strengthened, the sick you have not healed, the injured you have not bound up, the strayed you have not brought back, the lost you have not sought, and with force and harshness you have ruled them. So they were scattered, because there was no shepherd and they became food for all the wild beasts." 

Because there was no shepherd for the sheep, God told the people, "I myself will be the shepherd of my sheep." "I will rescue my flock and they will no longer be prey." See Ezekiel 34:8, 15, 22. God Himself must become the good shepherd. 

Jesus became the good shepherd by becoming the "Passover lamb that takes away the sin of the world." John 1:29. He did exactly what he said - He lay down his life for the sheep and then He took it up again, conquering death for us. 

So, what does that have to do with Aaron Hernandez? Aaron represents everything that the enemy of the sheep is trying to do in our lives: steal our calling and squander our gifts; kill our soul and eventually our bodies; and destroy every good thing that would otherwise direct us toward our Creator and Redeemer, the good shepherd of our souls. In the Gospels, Aaron is represented by Barabbas, whom the Gospels tell us was a thief, a murderer and an insurrectionist (destructive rebel). Barabbas represents everything that the enemy is trying to do in our lives and everything that the enemy did in Aaron's life. 

The life of Jesus, perfect and holy, was exchanged for the life of Barabbas - the most unfair exchange in history. Barabbas was set free and Jesus took his place on the cross. Barabbas represents Aaron Hernandez, and you and me. We are guilty. We are victims of a vicious enemy. We deserve a terrible punishment, because our sin is so evil. Yet, Jesus exchanged His life for the penalty of our sin. He exchanged our sin for His own righteousness, so that our sin separated Him from God the Father for a brief and wretched period in time on the cross. 

God offers us, as He did with another confessed murderer, Saul/Paul, life abundant and eternal if we are willing to confess our sin, repent (turn) from our sin, and trust Jesus to give us the righteousness needed for relationship with a holy God. That is the message of John 3:16 - that God so loved everyone in this world that He sent His only Son (eternal, pre-existent, triune God) to die in our place. There is no need for us to take our own life, because Jesus substituted His life in our place. God did this that whoever believes (faith) in Jesus will inherit (have fully vested rights to receive) eternal life. 

That takes us back to Ezekiel 34:23-24. God says that in a latter day, King David will return (from the dead) to be the shepherd of His people. This either refers to a resurrected David or to David's descendent, Jesus. Either way, we remember that David too was a confessed murderer and adulterer. His self-centeredness destroyed his own family and alienated him from his children. Yet, he confessed his sin and repented and was given a covenant promise that the Messiah would come from his descendants and rule over the house of Israel forever. Thus, Aaron and David have this in common, they are murderers. Yet, they knew they needed a holy Savior to redeem them. 

Like David, we can be raised up from our sin into new life that is abundant and eternal. The enemy of our souls can and will be defeated. God calls us to faith in what Jesus has accomplished for us. Did Aaron have that faith? I don't know, but I do know that one of the last thoughts in his mind and heart was to cling to the promise of John 3:16. How about you? Have you embraced that promise and chosen to accept the great exchange that Jesus accomplished for you through His life, death and resurrection? I pray that you will before it is too late. There are too many Aarons in this world who die without ever realizing the full benefits of the abundant and eternal life that Jesus offers to them. 

Jesus Is The Eternal Son of God

JESUS AS THE ETERNAL SON OF GOD – ONE GOD IN THREE PERSONS

Galatians 1:6-9 says that there is only one Gospel of Christ, and even if “we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed.” (1:8-9.) The purpose of this paper is to encourage people not to abandon the historic and biblical Christ for a fake, inadequate Jesus!

The triune nature of God is a fundamental tenant of each of the three major branches of Christianity: (1) the Eastern Orthodox Church; (2) the Roman Catholic Church; and (3) the Protestant church. They have all always been in agreement that there is one God who exists in three persons with one nature or essence. The word, “persons,” refers to qualities of nature and character – things like intellect, emotion, planning, organization, purpose, creativity, expression, communication, etc. – all qualities that distinguish God from an impersonal force.

Protestants, Catholics and Orthodox all subscribe to the Apostles Creed, from about 140 AD, in which belief is directed to one God in three persons: the Almighty Father, Jesus Christ the Son and the Holy Spirit:

I believe in God, the Father Almighty, the Maker of heaven and earth, and in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord: Who was conceived by the Holy Ghost, born of the virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and buried; He descended into hell. The third day He arose again from the dead; He ascended into heaven, and [sits] on the right hand of God the Father Almighty; from thence he shall come to judge the quick and the dead. I believe in the Holy Ghost; the holy catholic church; the communion of saints; the forgiveness of sins; the resurrection of the body; and the life everlasting. Amen.  (Justin S. Holcomb (2014-04-29). Know the Creeds and Councils (KNOW Series) (p. 27). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.)

From that creed alone we know that faith in a God who exists in three persons is essential to the Christian faith. The Council of Nicaea, in 325 (slightly modified in 381), issued a statement that addressed the heresy of Arius – that there was a time in eternity past when Jesus was not. The Nicene Creed described Jesus as “very God of very God” and “of one substance with the Father.” The Nicene Creed also stated that the Holy Spirit is to be worshipped as God.

Where did the church fathers and these creeds derive these ideas about the triune nature of God – three persons with one nature and essence? Those ideas came from the Word of God. We have the same Word today and we can study it for ourselves. Any creed that does not square with the Word is not worth following. The tri-unity of God also came from the traditions passed down by the original apostles and their disciples, but those traditions were always secondary to the Word of God itself. Any tradition without a foundation in the Word was not and is not worth keeping.

Jesus Is God: Specific Examples Where The Greek Word, Theos (“God”), Is Applied To Jesus (ESV)

John 1:1	In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
John 1:18	No one has ever seen God; the only God, who is at the Father’s side, he has made him known.
John 20:28	Thomas answered him, “My Lord and my God!”
Rom. 9:5	To them belong the patriarchs, and from their race, according to the flesh, is the Christ who is God over all, blessed forever. Amen.
Titus 2:13	… waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ …
Heb. 1:8	But of the Son he says, “Your throne, O God, is forever and ever, the scepter of uprightness is the scepter of your kingdom.”
2 Pet. 1:1	To those who have obtained a faith of equal standing with ours by the righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ …

The Jewish, Monotheistic Context of the New Testament

Jesus and His disciples were guilty of blasphemy, unless Jesus is God. For a monotheistic Jew to attribute the name and quality of God to a man would clearly be blasphemy and would arguably violate the oneness of God at the heart of Judaism – Deut. 4:35, 6:4, Exod. 3:14, Is. 42:8, 43:11, 44:6, Zech. 14:9. Monotheism is taught throughout the New Testament by the same authors who describe Jesus as God: John 5:44; Romans 3:30; 16:27; 1 Corinthians 8:4-6; Galatians 3:20; Ephesians 4:6; 1 Timothy 1:17; 2:5; James 2:19; Jude 25.

Jesus clearly claimed to be and do things that only the one true God Himself could do. Jesus claimed, or is represented in Scripture to be (this is a very incomplete list):

1.     The One who is able to forgive the sins of others – Matt. 9:1-6, 26:28; Mark 2:5-11; Luke 5:20-26, 7:47-49, 24:47; Act 13:38-39; Eph. 1:7; Col. 1:4; 1 John 2:12

2.     The One who has authority over nature – Matt. 8:23-27; Matt. 14:22-33; Matt. 15:32-39, 21:18-24; Luke 8:22-25; John 2:6-11, 6:1-15, 6:16-21

3.     The One who has authority to heal – Matt. 8:1-4, 14-17, 9:27-34; 11:4-6; 12:9-14; 14:34-36; 15:28-31; 20:29-34; Luke 4:38-39, 5:12-26, 6:6-11, 7:1-10, 21-23

4.     The One who has authority over spiritual beings – Matt. 8:28-33, Matt. 17:14-18; Luke 4:31-37

5.     The One who has authority to raise the dead – Matt. 9:18-26; 28:1-10; Luke 7:11-17; John 11:17-27, 32-40, Ch. 20

6.     The One who created everything – John 1:3, 10; Rom. 11:36; 1 Cor. 8:6; Col. 1:16-17; Heb. 1:2-3, 11:3; Rev. 4:11

7.     The One who existed before He was born and before Abraham – Matt. 17:1-5 (cf. Deut. 18:15); John 1:1-5, 9-12, 14-15, 18, 8:56-59, 17:5; Psalm 110:1 (Matt. 22:44, Luke 20:42-43); Isaiah 9:6-7; Micah 5:2; Zechariah 12:1, 10. In John 6:20, 8:24, 28, 58 and 18:5, Jesus made absolute “I AM” statements – statements that he always, eternally existed, making Himself equal to the “I AM” statement of YHWH in Exodus 3:14-15 – “I AM that I AM.”

8.     The One who is greater than the Temple, greater than the Sabbath, and greater than the prophets and kings – Matt. 12:1-8, 36-42

9.     The One who accepts worship as God – Matt. 14:22-33 (note that Jesus accepted the “worship” of the disciples in Matt. 14:33, as they proclaimed that, “truly (amen) you are the Son of God.” Matt. 16:15-20; John 6:68-69, 20:26-29

10.  The One who is the eternal, pre-existent Messiah promised in the Hebrew Scriptures – Luke 24:25-27, 44-47; Psalm 2:1, 7, 10; Isaiah 7:14, 9:6-7, 42:1-4, 44:6, 49:6-7, 50:6-10, 52:13-53:12; Micah 5:2; Zechariah 12:1, 10

11.  The One who knows things that only God could know – Matt. 12:38-42, 17:21, 27, 18:22-23, 20:17-19

12.  The One who said things about himself that only the crazy and gullible would believe, unless they were true – John 6:33-36, 40, 44, 48, 50-51, 53-57, 62, 8:12, 23b, 34-38, 46, 51-52, 56-58, 10:28-30, 37-38, 14:1-11, 17:1-5, 18:36-37

13.  The One who is the “lamb of God that takes away the sin of the world.” - John 1:29.

14.  The One who is the Son of Man described in Daniel – 7:13-14. The religious leaders sentenced him to death for claiming to be the person described in Daniel 7:13-14. See Matt. 26:63-68.

15.  The One who always was and is and is to come, the Alpha and Omega, the beginning and end of all things and the One in whom all things hold together – Rev. 1:8, 22:13 – compare Is. 41:4, 44:6, 48:12, which say that YHWH is the first and last, beginning and end.

The Witness of the Early Church Fathers

Bishop Irenaeus was the disciple of Bishop Polycarp, of Smyrna, who was the disciple of the apostle John. Irenaeus wrote one of the first major defenses of the Christian faith against heretical attacks. Around 180 AD, he wrote the a defense of the three-in-one nature of God:

“God the Father uncreated, who is uncontained, invisible, one God, creator of the universe; this is the first article of our faith…And the Word of God, the Son of God, our Lord Jesus Christ…who, in the fullness of time, in order to gather all things to Himself, He became a human being amongst human beings, capable of being seen and touched, to destroy death, bring life, and restore fellowship between God and humanity. And the Holy Spirit…who, in the fullness of time, was poured out in a new way on our human nature in order to renew humanity throughout the entire world in the sight of God.”

… the Son of God became a son of David and a son of Abraham; for in the accomplishment of these things, and in their summing up in Himself, in order to give us His own life, the Word of God was made flesh through the instrumentality of the Virgin, to undo death and work life in man ….

Therefore the Father is Lord, and the Son is Lord, and the Father is God and the Son is God; for He who is born of God is God. And thus God is shown to be one according to the essence of His being and power; but at the same time, as the administrator of the economy of our redemption, He is both Father and Son: since the Father of all is invisible and inaccessible to creatures, it is through the Son that those who are to approach God must have access to the Father. Moreover David speaks clearly and most manifestly of the Father and the Son, as follows: Thy throne, God, is for ever and ever; Thou hast loved justice, and hated iniquity, therefore God hath anointed Thee with the oil of gladness above Thy fellows. For this means that the Son, being God, receives from the Father, that is, from God, the throne of the everlasting kingdom, and the oil of anointing above His fellows. And " oil of anointing " is the Spirit, through whom He is the Anointed, and "His fellows " are the prophets and the just and the apostles, and all who receive fellowship of His kingdom, that is, His disciples. (From his work, Proof of the Apostolic Preaching. See also, his multi-volume apologetic, Against Heresies.)

The Paradox Of Ascribing Human Reason To A Doctrine That Could Not Be Invented

We have been blessed with intellect and reason. We want to understand how things work. We do the same in trying to understand God. The problem, of course, is that our intellect and reason are finite and God, if there is a God, is by nature infinite. To finite people, the idea of the infinite is incomprehensible. How can a perfect, infinite God explain and reveal Himself to flawed, finite people?

There is no parallel idea about a triune God in any other religion, although a strong argument for the tri-unity of God can be made from the Hebrew Scriptures – as discussed below. The triune nature of God revealed in the New Testament is necessarily revealed, because it could not be logically invented. If God is in fact the Creator of everything that exists, then it naturally follows that there are things about God that are necessarily incomprehensible to the creation. If we can fully and logically explain our God, then He is likely to be a god of our invention. Thus, the incomprehensible nature of the Trinity is something that actually supports the truth of so unlikely a characterization of the nature of God.

The Witness of Secular Historical Sources

Around 112 AD, Pliny the Younger, a Roman governor, wrote a letter to the Emperor Trajan, asking what to do with the Christians. In describing the Christians, he includes the following language:

“They asserted, however, that the sum and substance of their fault or error had been that they were accustomed to meet on a fixed day before dawn and sing responsively a hymn to Christ as to a god, and to bind themselves by oath, not to do some crime, but not to commit fraud, theft, or adultery, not falsify their trust, nor to refuse to return a trust when called upon to do so. When this was over, it was their custom to depart and to assemble again to partake of food — but ordinary and innocent food.”

Thus, Pliny’s investigation of the Christian faith included the fact that the Christ was worshipped as a god, and that led to the worshippers to embrace exceptional morals and values.

In the work of Josephus, the Jewish/Roman historian, The Antiquities of the Jews, Book 18, Chapter 3, Josephus makes the following historical statement about Jesus. Josephus wrote this in the mid-70s AD.

About this time there lived Jesus, a wise man, if indeed one ought to call him a man. For he was one who performed surprising deeds and was a teacher of such people as accept the truth gladly. He won over many Jews and many of the Greeks. He was the Christ. And when, upon the accusation of the principal men among us, Pilate had condemned him to a cross, those who had first come to love him did not cease. He appeared to them spending a third day restored to life, for the prophets of God had foretold these things and a thousand other marvels about him. And the tribe of the Christians, so called after him, has still to this day not disappeared.

In other words, very early after Jesus’ resurrection, Josephus documents the resurrection and the fact that Jesus seemed other-worldly, even though Josephus never put his trust in Jesus. Can a mere man rise from the dead – that was the question that Josephus asked, and seemed afraid to answer. He affirms, however, that Jesus’ followers’ faith did not waiver, but increased after the resurrection.

The Witness of the Hebrew Scriptures

            (1) YHWH, (2) The Angel of the LORD or of His Presence, and (3) The Spirit of the LORD

The triune nature of God can be established through the Hebrew Scriptures, which we understand better because of what God has revealed through the New Testament. There are many examples and a complete Hebrew Scripture assessment of the triune nature of God is well beyond the scope of this brief paper.

What we call the Old Testament is the Hebrew Bible, although some of the books in the Hebrew text are in a different order. The third word in the Hebrew text of the Bible, in Genesis 1:1, is אֱלֹהִ֑ים or ʾĕ•lō•hiym, which is the masculine, plural, absolute form of God. It sometimes refers to angels. Despite the plural form of the word, it is always used with a singular verb when it refers to the one true God. Thus, within the first three words of the Hebrew Scriptures, we see that there is both a plurality and oneness about the one true God. This is a clue that should cause us to look carefully at what this means in the rest of Scripture. In fact, ʾĕ•lō•hiym is the word used for God throughout Genesis 1.

As if to highlight the plurality of the name, ʾĕ•lō•hiym, Genesis 1:26 says, “let us make man in our image, after our likeness.” Genesis 1:27 then summarizes what occurred by stating that God made man in “his own image,” and “he created,” thus using the singular pronouns in place of the plural of 1:26. We deduce that there is no inconsistency in using both the plural and singular pronouns to describe the one true God. In addition, since mankind (singular) is described in the plural, as male and female, that plural is together representative of the image of God. The plural form of God, ʾĕ•lō•hiym, is then used at various times throughout the Hebrew Bible. While this word does not prove the “trinity,” it gives us insight that the one true God is somehow both plural and singular.

The chief objection to the Trinity is that God is one (Deut. 6:4) and cannot be divided. That is a fundamental tenant of Judaism and Christianity (and even of Islam). However, as described by Nabeel Quereshi in, No God But One: Allah or Jesus (Zondervan, 2016) (hereafter, “Quereshi”) at pages 67-68, the word for “one” in Deuteronomy 6:4 is the Hebrew word, ʾe•ḥāḏ (echad), which is frequently used throughout the Hebrew Scriptures to refer to the oneness of multiple or complex parts, such as morning and evening being parts of “one” day (Gen. 1:5) or such as two sticks becoming “one” in Ezekiel 37:17. In the Zohar (pre-Christianity), Jewish mystical thought explained the oneness of God in Deuteronomy 6:4 as a “mystery of the threefold Divine manifestations … three modes which yet form one unity.” [Quereshi cites Zohar, Bo, 2:43b; found in The Zohar, ed. M. Berg (New York: Kabbalah Centre International, 2003), at p. 121.]

Quereshi goes on to cite non-mystical Jewish scholars who observe that before the time of Christ there were Jewish rabbinical scholars who argued for an interpretation of Torah that viewed the one God as more than one person. Those views were later suppressed as a reaction to the Christian doctrine of the Trinity. (See Quereshi, at page 68.)

From the very beginning of the Hebrew Scriptures we see God described in the plurality. The Spirit of God is referenced in Genesis 1:2. The Holy Spirit is referenced in Psalm 51 and Isaiah 63. The Spirit of the LORD is referenced in Samuel 10:6 and 16:13-14, 2 Samuel 23:2, 1 Kings 18:12. There are many other Hebrew references to the Spirit of the LORD and Spirit of God. Thus, we know that God manifested Himself in the Hebrew Scriptures through His Spirit, who often came upon people. Thus, between the Spirit of the LORD and the Spirit of God, at a minimum, there is a duality of God – YHWH manifested in and through the Spirit.

We also know that YHWH manifested Himself through the angel of His presence, who is usually referenced as “the angel of the LORD.” We see various appearances of God in human or angelic form in the Hebrew Scriptures. (Gen. 16:7, 10–11, 13, 18:1–33; Ex. 3:1–4:31, 32:20–22; Num. 22:35, 38; Judg. 2:1–2, 6:11–18). One of the most striking manifestations is in Genesis 18, where God himself appears as a man with Abraham and two angels and eats dinner and drinks milk with him. How is it that YHWH can appear as man?

18:1, 10, 13-14 - And the LORD [YHWH] appeared to him by the oaks of Mamre, as he sat at the door of his tent in the heat of the day. … The LORD [YHWH] said, “I will surely return to you about this time next year, and Sarah your wife shall have a son.” And Sarah was listening at the tent door behind him. … The LORD [YHWH] said to Abraham, “Why did Sarah laugh and say, ‘Shall I indeed bear a child, now that I am old?’ 14 Is anything too hard for the LORD [YHWH]? 22 … but Abraham still stood before the LORD [YHWH]. … 33 And the LORD [YHWH] went his way ….

Some rabbis teach that this wasn’t really God, but an angel that was representing God or it was someone speaking for God. The text never represents the men as angels, although as to the non-speakers, that can be implied, especially when we see the two angels in chapter 19. The man speaking in chapter 18, however, is speaking as YHWH and asserts authority to judge and act as YHWH. When this man departs, we learn that YHWH departed from Abraham’s presence. There is no textual reason not to believe that this is a bodily manifestation of the one true God who eats and drinks with Abraham. In his work, Proof of the Apostolic Preaching, Irenaeus says that Genesis 18 describes the Son of God appearing in human form, speaking and eating with Abraham and having the authority to judge sin in the world – as he judges Sodom.

In Genesis 32:22-32, we see another bodily manifestation of God, this time wrestling with Jacob. Again, some rabbis would say that this was an angel or something else, but the text quotes Jacob as stating, ‘I have seen God (YHWH) face to face, and yet my life has been delivered.” (32:30, ESV.) The text describes Him as a “man.” That God-man wrestled with Jacob and dislocated his hip. (32:25.)

In Judges 6:11-27, we are told the story of the LORD’s appearance to Gideon. The person speaking to Gideon in the narrative to called both, “the angel of the LORD” and “the LORD” [YHWH]. In 6:34, the “Spirit of the LORD” clothed Gideon. Thus, we have YHWH, the Sprit of YHWH and the visible manifestation of YHWH  - all three persons of the trinity.

In Judges 13, the “angel of the LORD,” also called, “the angel of God,” appeared to Samson’s parents. This angel had the appearance of a “man.” (13:6, 8, 11.) Samson’s father, Manoah, describes this man as “God” in 13:22. The “Spirit of the LORD” [YHWH] stirred in Samson in 13:25, 14:6, 19, and 15:14. Thus, we again see the three-part manifestation of God.

Romans 8:9 refers to the Spirit of God dwelling in believers, and then refers to that same Spirit as the Spirit of Christ. Jesus said that God the Father is Spirit and those who worship Him must worship Him in Spirit and truth (John 4:24). If God the Father is Spirit (as Jews believe and as Jesus stated in John 4:24), then who came to earth and ate bread cakes, curds, milk and lamb with Abraham in Genesis 18? If God is Spirit, then who wrestled with Jacob and dislocated his hip in Genesis 32:22-32? Who appeared to Gideon and Manoah?

The Hebrew Scriptures clearly distinguish between God and the Spirit of God, or the Spirit of the LORD. The Hebrew Scriptures also clearly and strongly suggest that the “angel of the LORD” or the “angel of the LORD’s presence” was a physical, human manifestation of God. In Luke 24:25-27 and 44-47, Jesus teaches that the Hebrew Scriptures were describing Him. He told His disciples to read the Hebrew Scriptures looking for Him. As a Christian looking for Jesus as the God-man, we can rationally and logically see that the “angel of the LORD” and the manifestations of God in human form are likely the pre-incarnate Christ, who has always been interceding for God’s people. See 1 Cor. 10:4.

Isaiah 9:6, in speaking of the Messiah, says:

            For to us a child is born,

                        to us a son is given;

            and the government shall be upon his shoulder,

                        and his name shall be called

            Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,

                        Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

            Of the increase of his government and of peace

                        there will be no end,

            on the throne of David and over his kingdom,

                        to establish it and to uphold it

            with justice and with righteousness

                        from this time forth and forevermore.

            The zeal of the LORD of hosts will do this.

Thus, the Messiah is a son who is also called mighty God and everlasting (eternal) Father. In John 14:9-11, Jesus told his disciples, “whoever has seen me has seen the Father.… Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? … Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father is in me, or else believe on account of the works themselves.”

Isaiah 63:7-10, starts with the “steadfast love of the LORD” in 63:7, and then says at the end of verse 8 and following:

“And he (YHWH) became their Savior. In all their affliction he was afflicted, and the angel of his presence saved them; in his love and in his pity he redeemed them; he lifted them up and carried them all the days of old. But they rebelled and grieved his Holy Spirit ….” (ESV)

Thus, we see (1) the LORD God, (2) the angel of His presence, and (3) the Holy Spirit – three persons who are all personifications of the One true God.

            Savior/Redeemer, Messiah/King

Throughout the Hebrew Scriptures, we are told that both YHWH and the Messiah – the Anointed One – are “Savior” and “Redeemer” and the One who pays the “ransom price.” How was the ransom price paid? How are people redeemed and how is YHWH their Savior? The coming Messiah will both save His people from their sins (something only God can do) and rescue and redeem them from their enemies, becoming their eternal king, whose reign will never end. Since both YHWH and the Messiah are said to do the same things, the question has to be asked, is the Messiah also in some way YHWH as opposed to just being a representation of YHWH?

In Psalm 2, the nations are raging against YHWH and His Anointed (2:2). YHWH sets His king on Zion (2:6). That king is YHWH’s Son – begotten of YHWH – meaning that He shares the nature and character of YHWH, coming from YHWH. In 2:12, the nations are told (in Aramaic – fitting to the language of the surrounding nations) to “kiss the Son” and “take refuge in Him.” In other words, demonstrate loyalty to and surrender to the Son in exchange for the blessing of the Son.

Jumping to Psalm 110:1, and tying it into Psalm 2, we see YHWH say to David’s Lord (master/king), “Sit at my right hand, until I make your enemies your footstool.” To sit at the right hand of YHWH is to be a co-regent with YHWH. The statement makes David’s Lord (whoever that is) equal with YHWH. This is one of the most cited Hebrew texts in the New Testament, mentioned either directly or by inference in Matt. 22:42-45, 26:64; Mark 12:35-37; Luke 20:41-44; Acts 2:34-25; 1 Cor. 15:25; Eph. 1:20, 22; Heb. 1:3, 13, 2:8, 8:1, 10:12-13, 12:2; 1 Peter 3:22.

In referring to Psalm 110:1, Jesus asked the Pharisees in Matt. 22:42-45, “If then David calls Him [the Christ/Messiah] Lord, how is He [Messiah] his [David’s] son?” In other words, the Messiah is both in David’s royal lineage and is David’s Lord/Master – how is that possible? Jesus is trying to get the Pharisees to understand that this Messiah pre-existed his birth – He is not just another man, but came into the world as David’s Master/Lord. The Messiah both pre-existed and came after David, which is not something that can be said about mere mortals. In addition, this Messiah/Lord/King will be a “priest forever” (110:4; Heb. 7:21). He is not a Levitical priest, but a forever priest as well as being king in the Davidic lineage. Only Jesus satisfies this requirement. Jesus came first as priestly intercessor and he is returning as the conquering King of kings.

In Job 19:25, Job prophesies that his Redeemer lives (present tense for Job) and that in the last day, that same Redeemer will “stand on the earth.” Again, how does the God who is the Redeemer of Job and of the Jewish people in the Hebrew Scriptures, “stand upon the earth,” unless He stands as the man who is also God, and who pre-existed His birth as man?

In Psalm 16:10, David says, “For you (YHWH) will not abandon my soul to Sheol (the place of the dead), or let your Holy One see corruption (or dwell in the pit of death).” Throughout the Hebrew Scriptures, the term, Holy One, is almost always a reference to YHWH himself. There are a few exceptions, such as for Moses and Aaron as holy ones interceding before God for the people. Psalm 16:10 was and is believed to be a reference to David as a “holy one” before the ultimate Holy One. However, the text says that this “holy one” will not have a body that is corrupted by death.

If you go to Israel today, there is a place in the basement of a building in the Mt. Zion area of Jerusalem where the orthodox Jews have a shrine to David. They call it the Tomb of David, because they believe that David was buried in that area, but they have not been able to identify the actual tomb. In that same building, on the second floor, is what is called the Upper Room. It is the place that tourists are taken as the Upper Room. The building is only about 1,000 years old, so it is too new to be the actual upper room, but the Upper Room was likely in that area, perhaps even on that spot.

This brings us to Acts 2. The disciples were likely in the Upper Room in that same area of Mt. Zion. Peter has been filled by the Holy Spirit and is announcing to the “men of Israel,” who are in town from the nations, that Jesus who was crucified, has risen from the dead. He then quotes from Psalm 16:8-11. After quoting those verses that the Jews believed were about David, Peter says, “I may say to you with confidence about the patriarch David that he both died and was buried and his tomb is with us to this day … He foresaw and was speaking about the resurrection of the Christ (Messiah/Annointed One), that he was not abandoned to Hades, nor did his flesh see corruption. This Jesus God raised up, and of that we all are witnesses.” (Acts 2:22-32.) Peter then quotes Psalm 110:1 as a reference to Jesus ascending to the right hand of God and being the Davidic king. (Acts 2:33-36.)

Thus, to this day, in the place where David was buried, the Jews remember David’s life and death and the fact that David cannot be the subject of Psalm 16:10. In that same place, Christians are reminded that the prophecy of the Holy One was that his body would not decay through death, but would be resurrected to demonstrate that He alone conquered death for those who believe in Him. Jesus is the Holy One who is a priest forever in Psalm 16:8-11. He alone is the Redeemer of His people and the King of kings. He alone is qualified to serve in all of these roles because of His eternal, pre-existent divine nature.

Isaiah 52:13-53:12, describe the suffering and atonement that the Messiah would make for His people. Somehow, this Messiah would carry the sins of the people and the nations on Himself. He would be afflicted and suffer on their behalf for their sins. In doing so, He alone would be the perfect offering that would take away the sins of the people and would “make many to be accounted righteous” before YHWH. He not only bore the sins of many, but continues to make intercession for them (see the last clause of 53:12).

How is it possible for any mere man to supernaturally accomplish what is described in these verses? Only a perfectly holy person can be such a perfect and eternally effective sacrifice, and only God alone is perfect. How can a mere man eternally intercede for transgressors? This theme is picked up in both Romans 8:34 and Hebrews 7:24-25. Only Jesus as the Son of God was qualified for this role. The Son of God is the only means that God uses to redeem His people who trust in His Anointed One. See John 14:6.

In Daniel 7:13-14, Daniel has a vision of a person in heaven who looks like a “son of man,” but to whom is given an eternal, everlasting “dominion and glory and a kingdom that all peoples and nations and languages should serve him....”

     “I saw in the night visions,

            and behold, with the clouds of heaven

                 there came one like a son of man,

            and he came to the Ancient of Days

                 and was presented before him.

            And to him was given dominion

                 and glory and a kingdom,

            that all peoples, nations, and languages

                 should serve him;

            his dominion is an everlasting dominion,

                 which shall not pass away,

            and his kingdom one

                 that shall not be destroyed.”

Thus, there is a heavenly person, who is not the “Ancient of Days” – who is given the authority of YHWH to rule over all things forever. Who is this person who looks like the “son of man” – i.e., who looks like a human being? Who is this “son of man” who will come with the clouds of heaven?

Jesus’ favorite self-designation in the New Testament is “son of man.” In Matthew 26:64, Jesus applies the words of Daniel 7:13-14 to himself: 

Jesus said to him, ’… But I tell you, from now on you will see the Son of Man seated at the right hand of Power and coming on the clouds of heaven.”

For that reason, the high priest tore his robe, accused Jesus of blasphemy (calling himself God) and sentenced him to death. (Matt. 26:65-66.) Under the Jewish law, Jesus deserved to die for blasphemy, unless what He said was true and He was in fact God. (See John 8:56-59 where Jesus was also accused of blasphemy for making himself equal with God. See Rev. 1:7, where we are again told that Jesus is the Son of Man from Daniel 7:13-14.)

In Zechariah 12, The LORD (YHWH) speaks of a day of both judgment and salvation for Judah and Israel. As he is speaking, He says in 12:10 that He will,  

“pour out on the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem a spirit of grace and pleas for mercy, so that, ‘when they look on me, on him whom they have pierced, they shall mourn for him, as one mourns for an only child, and weep bitterly over him, as one weeps over a firstborn.’”

This raises the question of how it is possible for God, who is spirit, to be “pierced”? And why does YHWH change the pronoun from “me,” to “him”? How can whoever is pierced be both “me” (YHWH) and “him” (someone else)?

These are the kinds of questions, of course, that are perfectly answered in Jesus. Jesus alone can be both YHWH and “him” if the trinity is a true description of God in all His fullness. Jesus, as Messiah, was “pierced for our transgressions” (Isaiah 53:5). He “was crushed for our iniquities, upon Him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with His wounds we are healed … YHWH has laid on Him the iniquity of us all.” (Isaiah 53:5-7 – see the rest of the chapter which is all about the suffering of the Messiah for his people.)

Jesus is the answer to so the questions raised and to the prophecies given by the Hebrew Scriptures. We are called to worship Jesus as the eternal Son of God, because no other Jesus is sufficient to meet the descriptions of Scripture and fulfill the divine mandate. How tragic for someone to miss heaven because they have embraced the wrong Jesus!

Galatians 1:6-9 says that there is only one Gospel of Christ, and even if “we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed.” (1:8-9.) Don’t abandon the historic and biblical Christ for a fake, inadequate Jesus!

COMPREHENSION AND COMPLEXITY

Quereshi observes that the laws of physics were seemingly well understood in the late 19^th century. However, in the twentieth century, physicists began to observe conduct at the subatomic level that did not comply with the known laws. Eventually, the study of quantum mechanics arose, which posits that subatomic particles can be in more than one place at the same time – a counter-intuitive idea. Our understanding of quantum mechanics then led to many modern technological developments. (See Quereshi’s discussion at pp. 64-65.) If our understanding of the laws of physics had remained stuck in the 19^th century, much of the technology that we take for granted would not exist. At the same time, physicists concede that what they observe, they do not truly understand – because of the counter-intuitive nature of the observations. (See the Wikipedia article on quantum mechanics, under Philosophical Implications - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quantum_mechanics.)

When we determine to understand God in a way that we can comprehend – something simple enough to wrap our mind around – we necessarily limit God to the limits of our human capacity to think and understand. If there is a God who exists outside of time and space (as He must if He created everything), then that God must be far more complex than what we can experience and understand within the created order. A God who can perfectly predict and even pre-determine the future is a God for whom time and space is not a limitation, much as the sub-atomic particles identified by quantum mechanics. If that is true of quantum mechanics, it is infinitely truer of the God who created the laws of physics and put everything in perfect order.

Conclusion – The Only Jesus Worth Staking Your Life And Your Eternity Upon

One of the great rational arguments for the eternal divinity of Jesus Christ as God the Son came from Athanasius, the eventual Bishop of Alexandria. Athanasius reasoned that only a perfect sacrifice could forgive sin once and for all time. Only God is perfect, so only God could be the necessary sacrifice. Only the Son of God could be both man and perfect. Thus, only the Son of God could be the perfect sacrifice for sin. (John 1:29.) No one other than a man who was also eternal God could be that sacrifice. No one other than God could be perfect and sinless and holy and know that He came into the world for that purpose. (See John 18:36-37.) No other form of Jesus is adequate for the salvation necessary to make us right with an eternally holy God. Any other Jesus is not the gloriously eternal and perfect Jesus, the Son of God, the Messiah presented in the Scriptures. Faith in any other Jesus is ineffective for salvation, because no other kind of Jesus can save people from their sins and give to them His righteousness. May you exclaim to Jesus with Thomas, “my Lord and my God.” (John 20:28.)

[See the charts below.]

CHART: CO-ATTRIBUTES OF THE TRIUNE GOD
Attribute	Father	Son	Holy Spirit
Source of Life	Joshua 3:10	John 1:4	Romans 8:2
Omniscience	Psalm 139:1–6	John 4:17–18	1 Corinthians 2:10–12
Omnipotence	Genesis 1:1	John 1:3	Job 33:4
Omnipresence	Jeremiah 23:23–24	Matthew 28:20	Psalm 139:7–10
Eternal	Psalm 90:2	John 1:1	Hebrews 9:14
Holy	Leviticus 11:44	Acts 3:14	Matthew 12:32
Loving	1 John 4:8	Romans 8:37–39	Galatians 5:22
Truth	John 3:33	John 14:6	John 14:17
Creator	Gen. 1-2; Job 38:4-7; Ps. 8:3; Is. 40:28; Neh. 9:6	Jn. 1:3; Heb. 1:2; Col. 1:16-17	Gen. 1:2

The Following Is From The ESV Study Bible, Focused On The Trinity In The Gospel Of John

The Work Of The Trinity

Though the word, “Trinity,” does not appear in the Bible, by presenting the Father, Son, and Spirit all doing what no one else ever does, the Gospel of John gives us the raw material on which this doctrine is based. Observing what God says and does helps us to know him, and observing which actions are done by which members of the Godhead helps us to see which roles they play.

Action	Father	Son	Spirit
Give life	5:21, 26; (6:33); 17:3	5:21, 25–26, 40; 6:33; 17:3	3:6, 8; 6:63
Proclaim future	1:33	13:19, 26, 36–38; 14:3, 29; 16:1–4, 16–28, 32; 20:18	16:13
Indwell believers	14:23	14:20, 23; (15:4–7); 17:23, 26	14:17
Teach	6:45; 7:16, 17; 8:28	7:14; (8:2); 8:20; 13:13–14	14:26
Testify to Jesus	5:32, 37; 6:27; 8:18	8:12–14, 18	15:26
Glorify Jesus	5:22–23; 8:50, 54; 13:31–32; 17:1, 22	(1:14); 2:11; 13:31–32; 17:5, 24	16:14

Actions Common to Father and Son

Action	Father	Son
Glorify the Father	4:23; 12:28; 13:31–32	(2:16); (9:3–4); 11:40; 12:28; 13:31–32; 14:13; 17:1, 4–5
Give the Spirit	3:34; 14:16	(4:10–14); (7:37–39); 20:22
Send the Spirit	14:26	15:26; 16:7

Actions Common to Son and Spirit

Action	Son	Spirit
Be given by the Father	3:16	(4:10–14); 14:16
Be sent by the Father	3:17; 4:34; 5:23–24, 36; 6:29, 57; 7:28–29, 33; 8:16, 26, 29, 42; 9:4; 10:36; 11:42; 12:44–45; 13:20; 15:21; 17:3, 8, 18, 23, 25; 20:21	14:26; 15:26
Speak not from himself	(5:19); 5:30; (6:38); 7:16; 12:49–50	16:13
Speak only what he hears	3:32; (3:34); (5:30); 8:26, 40; 12:50; 15:15	16:13
Convict	3:19–20; 4:16, 18; (5:27); (8:7); 8:34, 40; 11:40; 12:7–8; 13:8	16:7–11
Be received	1:12 (cf. 1:10–11)	7:39 (cf. 14:17)
Disclose what belongs to God	1:18	16:13–14

God and Jesus Are Both Alpha and Omega In The Book of Revelation

God is the Alpha and the Omega (1:8; 21:6; cf. Is. 41:4, 44:6, 48:12)	God is the beginning and the end (21:6)
Jesus is the Alpha and the Omega (22:13; cf. 2:8; 22:13)	Jesus is the beginning and the end (22:13; cf. 2:8; 22:13)