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Did Jesus have a Pre-Existence?
There are some who have argued that Jesus was an ordinary man who received miraculous powers and status after
He was anointed with the Spirit at His baptism (Matt. 3:16-17; Mark
1:9-11; Luke 3:21-22; John 1:32-34). These people argue that there is only one
person who is identified in Scripture as God, and that person is named
Yahweh in the Old Testament. They cite Deuteronomy 6:4 as proof that
there is only one God. They believe that the description of God as a
Trinity, or better yet, a Tri-Unity is blasphemous and unsupported from
Scripture.
To such individuals I offer some questions that must be answered. (1) The generic name for God in the OT is Elohim. It is a plural noun. It appears some 2600 times in the OT. Can you explain adequately why it is a plural noun? (Examples in Genesis 1 alone include the following: Gen. 1:1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 14, 16, 17, 18, 20, 21, 22, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 31.) (2) Why did God, in Gen. 1:26 say, "Let us make man in our likeness and in our image?" (3) How do you explain the "Angel (Messenger) of the LORD"? (Note: Both in the OT and the NT, the original nouns translated "Angel" mean "Messenger." (malák, 4397); (ággelos, 32) a.
He appeared to Hagar (Gen. 16:7-14) and promised he would muliply her
descendants beyond number (Gen. 16:10). Moses identified the Messenger as
Yahweh; Hagar identified him as God (Elohim) (Gen. 16:13). Who was this Messenger?
b. Elohim tested Abraham, asking him to sacrifice his only son on a mountain in the land of Moriah (Gen. 22:1-2). When Abraham started to kill his son, the Messenger of Yahweh called to Abraham from heaven and told him to stop (Gen. 22:9-12). Abraham had proven he feared Elohim since, the Messenger said, "You have you withheld your son, your only son, from Me." The Messenger thus identified Himself as Elohim (Gen. 22:12). The Messenger of Yahweh called to Abraham a second time out of heaven (Gen. 22:15). He said, "By Myself I have sworn, declares Yahweh, because you have done this .... I will greatly multiply your seed as the stars of heaven and as the sand on the sea. Your seed shall possess the gate of their enemies" (Gen. 22:16-17). "And in your seed all the nations of the earth will be blessed" (Gen. 22:18). Who was this Messenger? c. The Messenger of God said to Jacob in a dream ... I am the God of Bethel where you anointed a pillar and where you made a vow to me; now arise, leave this land, and return to the land of your birth" (Gen. 31:11-13). Who was this Messenger? d. On his way back to meet Esau his brother, Jacob wrestled with a man until daybreak. Even though the man dislocated Jacob's thigh, Jacob kept wrestling. He would not let the man go until he blessed him. The man changed Jacob's name to Israel because he had striven with God and with men and had prevailed. Jacob asked for the man's name, but the man would not say, but he blessed Jacob. Jacob named the place "Peniel," which means, "Face of El" (God), for, he said, I have seen God face to face, yet my life has been preserved." (Gen. 32:24-30). Who was this man? (4) What is the identity of the Lógos (3056), "Word" or "Message" in John 1:1-14? It is my contention that the person who, in the OT was called the Messenger of God or Messenger of Yahweh is, in the NT, called by the Apostle John the Message of God. a. "In the beginning the Message was existing" (John 1:1). The Message (Nominative Case) was existing (Imperfect Tense) in the beginning. "Was existing" is the 3rd Singular Imperfect Indicative Active of the verb eimí (1510), "to be, exist" (Accordance); "to be, to exist, to happen, to be present" (OBU).
This indicates continuous action in past time. That means that when the
beginning of the entire universe and the world took place, the Message
was already
existing. Who is this Message?
b. "and the Message was existing with God" (John 1:1). Once again, "was existing" is the 3rd Singular Imperfect Indicative Active of the verb eimí (1510), "to be, exist" (Accordance); "to be, to exist, to happen, to be present" (OBU). The presposition "with" (prós, 4314), indicates differentiation and communion. "God" is the Accusative Case of the noun theós (2316), "God." By "differentiation" I mean that there are two different persons. (One cannot be "with" himself.) He can only be "with" some other person, in this case, God. By communion I mean that there was intimate association between these two persons, the Message and God. We know who God is. Who is this Message? c. "And the Message was being (Imperfect Tense) God" (John 1:1). Even though the Message was a different person than God, in the beginning He was sharing the same essence of Godness that God is. Two different persons with the identical essence – both are God. Who is this Message? d. "This one was was existing in the beginning with God" (John 1:2). When the beginning began this same person, the Message, was already existing (Imperfect Tense) with God. So He predated the creation of the entire universe, including the world, and He was in association with God. Who is this Message? e. "All things through Him came into being" (John 1:3). "Through Him" refers to the Message. "Came into being" is the 3rd Singular Aorist Middle Indicative of the verb gínomai (1096), "came into existence" (excerpted and adapted from OBU); "were made to be, were created" (excerpted and adapted from Accordance). Who is this Message through whom everything in f. "and without Him came into being nothing which has come into being" (John 1:3). Apart from the Message, nothing came into existence (Aorist Tense) that has come into existence (Perfect Tense). Who is this Message apart from whom nothing that exists in the universe today has come into existence? g. "And the Message became flesh and tented among us, and we observed His glory – glory as from the only-born from the Father, full of grace and truth" (John 1:14). The Message, who previously had been existing as a Spirit being, at a point in time became [Aorist Tense of the verb gínomai (1096)] human flesh, the Nominative Case of the noun sárx (4561), and he tented, the Aorist Tense of the verb skēnóō (4637), "to pitch one's tent, live among" us. This refers to the Incarnation of the Message. Who was He? h. John (John 1:14) says that he and other Apostles looked upon His glory, the Accusative Case of the noun dóxa (1391), in this context, a brilliant display of light, magnificence, and power (see Matt. 17:1-8; Mark 9:2-8; Luke 9:28-36; John 2:1-11). He described this glory of the Message as that of the only-born, the Masculine Genitive of the noun monogenēs (3439) from the Father, full of grace and truth (John 1:14). (See my Word Study of monogenēs.) Who is this glorious Message who is the onyborn from the Father? i. John the Apostle continued, "God – no one as seen at any time. "Only-born God – the One existing, the Present Active Participle, Nominative Masculine Singular of the verb eimí (1510), "to be, exist" (Accordance) – that One explained (Him)!" "Explained is the 3rd Singular Aorist Middle Indicative of the verb exēgéomai (1834), "to explain, interpret, exposit, exegete" (acapted from Accordance). (4) How do you explain the statement of John the Baptist that Jesus existed before he did (John 1:29-30)? (5) What did Jesus mean when He said that He had descended from heaven? (John 3:13) (6) What did Jesus mean when He said that He, the Bread of Life, had come down from heaven to give life to the world (John 6:33)? (7) What did Jesus mean when He said that He had come down from heaven not to do His own will, but the will of Him who sent Him (John 6:38)? (8) What did Jesus mean when He said, "What if you were to see the Son of Man ascending to where He was before?" (John 6:62) (9) What did Jesus mean when He said to the Jews, "You are from below, I am from above; you are of this world. I am not of this world" (John 8:23)? (10) How do you explain Jesus' statement to the Jews in the temple, "Truly, truly I say to you, before Abraham was born, I am!" (John 8:58)? How do explain the fact that the Jews picked up stones to throw at Him? (John 8:59) (11) How do you explain Jesus' statement to His disciples, "I came forth from the Father and have come into the world; I am leaving the world again and am going to the Father" (John 16:28)? (12) How do you explain Jesus' High Priestly prayer, in which He prayed, "Now, Father, glorify me together with Yourself, with the glory which I had with You before the world was" (John 17:5)? (13) How do you explain the statement of Paul that, by the beloved Son of the Father "all things were created, both in the heavens and on the earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities – all things have been created through Him and for Him" (Col. 1:13, 16)? (14) How do you explain the statement of Paul that the beloved Son of the Father (Col. 1:13) "is before all things, and in him all things hold together" (Col 1:17)? (15) How do you explain the statement of the author of Hebrews, who wrote that "God ... in these last days has spoken to us in His Son, whom He appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the world" (Heb. 1:1-2)? And how do you explain that this Son "upholds all things by the word of His power" (Heb. 1:3)? |
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