More, or Less?

[mikesw]

They are of the same nature, they are not the same person. You and I are both human, but we are distinct persons within that human nature; we are both humankind.

The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are three individual personalities who are united in a common nature, being God, as opposed to being some other type of being.

They are one and the same in their nature of existence, but distinct in their persons. I don’t know how to say it any clearer. There are many more here that are more eloquent than I, perhaps they can express it better!


Doug

I was trying my hand at explaining the concept in more detail if perhaps with less eloquence. Maybe this idea will help for those exploring the deity of Christ.


The idea of theos could be said to be a class of existence and beings. We learn that the Father is the true God (John 17:5) but this reads more as a contrast to the false conceptions and so-called gods. God also exists uniquely without anything equal. Thus the term "god" is solely applied to the One shown as the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

The so-called gods are roughly treated as if fitting into the class of existence and of being designated or termed "god." Christ Jesus, as seen walking on Earth, is the preexisting One designated as the Word but also as being God (in the broader essence as aspect but also in that uniqueness) and being with God (effectively the Father) indicates two who are God (in essence and uniqueness).

John 1:1 shows minimally a binitarian situation since the Word was God, as the being of the class of God and thus of the uniqueness. With that, the Word was with God and thus show a distinction of existence with two who are unified but also are distinguished. As much as I can discern, it was would be useless to add that the Word was with God if the meaning was to show that words or wisdom was with God rather than the conscious One being in mind.