Program 283
Yahushua: Yahuwah’s servant

Scripture’s description of Yahushua contradicts any possibility of divinity on his part. He was fully human.

Welcome to WLC Radio, a subsidiary of WLC Radio Ministry, an online ministry dedicated to learning how to live in constant readiness for the Savior's return.

For two thousand years, believers of every generation have longed to be the last generation. Contrary to popular belief, though, Christ did not give believers “signs of the times” to watch for. Instead, he repeatedly warned that his coming would take even the faithful by surprise. Yahushua urgently warned believers to be ready because, he said, “The Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.” [Matthew 24:44]

WLC Radio: Teaching minds and preparing hearts for Christ's sudden return.

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Part 1: (Miles & Dave)

Miles Robey: The trinity doctrine is widely viewed as the foundational doctrine on which Christianity is built. It’s an interesting doctrine to choose as your foundation because there is so much confusion over how to reconcile a three-in-one godhead with other, very contradictory, statements in Scripture.

And trinitarians admit this. Charles Spurgeon was a nineteenth-century English minister who, to this day, is held in high regard by many different denominations for his deep theological insights and his clear love of Yahuwah. But even Spurgeon, a man who has been called the “Prince of Preachers,” wrestled with trying to understand this doctrine. He once publicly wondered, quote, “whether any man is able to pry into the mystery of the Trinity without great risk.” Unquote.

Risk! Risk?! And yet, to Spurgeon, the trinity doctrine was an essential part of the gospel. As Sean Stone explains: “The Trinity in Unity, and Unity in Trinity was not an optional appendage to the gospel, rather [Spurgeon believed] a ‘gospel without belief in the living, and true God… [was] a rope of sand.’ When it came to the Trinity, life and death hung in the balance.”

If this is all very confusing, you’re not alone. That’s what happens when you try to entwine truth with error. Only confusion results.

Hello, I’m Miles Robey and you’re listening to World’s Last Chance Radio where we cover a variety of topics related to Scripture, prophecy, practical piety, Biblical beliefs, and living in constant readiness for the Savior’s unexpected return.

Today, Dave Wright is going to be covering some passages of Scripture we haven’t looked at before which prove, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that Yahushua is fully human. And I mean that literally. He didn’t “set aside” his divine nature as some believe; he never had a divine nature to begin with.

Recently, a listener in Germany asked why we’ve been doing so many programs on the topic of the trinity. It’s a fair question. The answer is two-fold: First, different minds are convicted by different arguments, different lines of reasoning. You may already be convicted as to the truth of the unitarian nature of God. Only Yahuwah is God; no one else. But I would encourage you to keep listening because the evidence we’ll be looking at today might be what convicts someone else when other arguments have failed to do so. Secondly, the true nature of God is important. It’s extremely important. Your belief about the nature of God influences your beliefs about salvation.

Sometimes we talk about “salvational issues” and “non-salvational issues.” Can someone be saved believing in a triune godhead? Of course. Yahuwah reads the heart and we’re assured that He “winks” at our times of ignorance.

That said, if we have the opportunity to learn the truth, we need to study it out because the truth reveals Satan’s lies as nothing else can. So. With that said, I’m going to turn the time now over to Dave Wright.

Dave?

Dave Wright: Thank you, Miles. Have you heard of phrenology?

Miles: Yeah, wasn’t that the belief that the bumps on a person’s skull could predict specific mental traits?

Dave: Yes. It was believed that the brain was comprised of different muscles. Brain muscles that were used more frequently would be stronger and this could be observed by measuring the bumps on a person’s skull.

Miles: That’s crazy!

Dave: It’s obviously now known to be pseudoscience. But people truly used to believe this. Another example, probably more profound, was the belief that illness was due to having “bad blood” or too much blood. The cure, naturally, was to get rid of the bad blood so the body could heal.

Miles: It’s so crazy! Wasn’t America’s first president, George Washington, killed that way? I seem to remember he’d gotten pneumonia and, in their attempts to heal him, the physicians took too much blood, and he ended up dying.

Dave: You see my point: no matter how sincerely you believe something, if the belief is wrong, you can get into trouble. George Washington died in 1799. Within just a couple of decades, medical science figured out that lessening the blood volume of an already sick person was not a good idea. But it had had disastrous consequences before then because they truly, sincerely, deeply believed that blood leeching was a viable treatment option.

I’m using this as an illustration because, while many people will be saved despite their ignorance of the truth, not knowing truth can leave you vulnerable to Satan’s lies. And that’s the problem with accepting the trinity doctrine. Scripture is clear: there is only one God and that’s Yahuwah. His very nature is one. It’s unitarian not trinitarian.

Let’s start with Isaiah 44. Would you please turn there and read verse 6? And as you read this, leave in any titles that appear in the original and put in the sacred name as it appears in the original.

Miles:

This is what Yahuwah says—
Israel’s King and Redeemer, Yahuwah Almighty:
I am the first and I am the last;
apart from me there is no God.

Dave: This is a very clear statement that links the title “God” to the personal name of the only true God: Yahuwah. If Yahushua were also God, his name should be included here because, as God, he’d have to have had an existence prior to his birth. If the Holy Spirit were also God, he should have been named here, too. But only Yahuwah is named, meaning only He is God.

Now let’s contrast that with what Yahushua told Mary Magdalene after his resurrection. Read John 20 verse 17.

Miles:

Yahushua said, “Do not hold on to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father. Go instead to my brothers and tell them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’”

Dave: This is an interesting verse we’ve sort of glossed over in the past. But it’s significant because Yahushua is stating that he has a God. Not that he is God, but that he has a God, and his God is the same as ours. We share a God.

Miles: We can see that in what he said on the cross. “My God, My God! Why have You forsaken me?” I don’t mean to be blasphemous, but I just want to point out he didn’t say, “Myself! Myself! Why have I forsaken me?”

Dave chuckles: That does sound strange, doesn’t it? And you’re right. That’s not what he said. And for those who would try to argue that it was Christ’s human nature calling out, I want to point out that even in Revelation, after Yahushua’s ascension to the throne of Heaven, he still clarifies that he shares a God with us. Read Revelation 3 verse 12. And as you do, notice how many times Yahushua draws a distinction between himself and Yahuwah.

Miles:

The one who is victorious I will make a pillar in the temple of my God. Never again will they leave it. I will write on them the name of my God and the name of the city of my God, the new Jerusalem, which is coming down out of heaven from my God; and I will also write on them my new name.

Dave: He’s not saying, whoever is victorious I will make a pillar in—my—temple. He’s not saying I’ll write on them the name of my city which is coming down from me. He finishes by saying that he will write on them his own new name, but that’s clearly different from the name of his God.

Yahushua himself stated that only Yahuwah is God. This would have been a lie if, in any way, Yahushua were divine.

Miles: Where does he say that?

Dave: After Yahushua healed the cripple at the Pool of Bethesda, the Jews got angry because he’d healed on the Sabbath. John 5 records a long conversation between the Jewish leaders and Christ. Why don’t you turn there and read verses 43 and 44 for us?

Miles: ^“I have come in my Father’s name, and you do not accept me; but if someone else comes in his own name, you will accept him. How can you believe since you accept glory from one another but do not seek the glory that comes from the only God?”

Dave: Yahushua repeats this in a prayer recorded in John 17. This was the night he was betrayed. Would you please read verse 3 of John 17?

Miles: “Now this is eternal life: that they know you, the only true God, and Yahushua Christ, whom you have sent.”

Dave: Again, we’ve got that coordinating conjunction in there linking Yahuwah as “the only true God”—and—Yahushua Christ whom Yahuwah sent. If Yahushua were also “God,” this statement wouldn’t make sense.

Miles: Yeah. If Yahushua were one-third of a trinity, and he knew the Holy Spirit was also one-third of the same trinity, it’s being artfully dishonest to say that Yahuwah is “the only true God.”

Dave: In other programs, we’ve looked at the many passages of Scripture where Yahushua clearly placed himself as subservient to Yahuwah. Now, some people will try and argue that this was only for his lifetime on earth; that when he ascended to Heaven and was exalted to the right hand of Yahuwah, his divine prerogatives were restored to him. But, again, Scripture says something completely different. What does Paul say in 1 Corinthians 15 verses 24 to 28? As you read this, I want you to pay close attention to the hierarchy being presented here. Keep the titles in as they appear in the original. This will really clarify the differences between Father and son.

Miles:

Then the end will come, when he [Yahushua] hands over the kingdom to God the Father after he has destroyed all dominion, authority and power. For he must reign until He has put all his enemies under his feet. The last enemy to be destroyed is death. For He “has put everything under his feet.” Now when it says that “everything” has been put under him, it is clear that this does not include God Himself, who put everything under Christ. When He has done this, then the son himself will be made subject to Him who put everything under him, so that God may be all in all.

Dave: Does this sound like Father and son are equal here?

Miles laughs: No! It spells right out that the son is subject to the Father; the Father has never been subject to the son.

Dave: If, throughout all of eternity future, Yahushua is subject to the Father as this passage states, then the idea that they’re “co-equal” partners is wrong!

Miles: Okay, what about Philippians 2 verse 6? I hear what you’re saying, I’m just not sure how this verse fits in with this understanding.

Dave: Could you read it for us?

Miles: Uh, yeah. Give me just a sec to turn there …

Okay. Starting with verse 5, it says: “Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Yahushua who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped.”

The evidence is clear that Yahushua is not divine, but then what are we to make of this verse?

Dave: Great question. There is a bit of debate amongst scholars as to how best to translate this verse. That’s why there’s a bit of variety between translations. The point, though, is that Yahushua was highly exalted by the Father precisely because he was humble. He wasn’t trying to make himself equal with Yahuwah.

Miles: I can see that. And here’s another point: if Yahushua were indeed equal with Yah, he wouldn’t have needed to seek equality with Yah. It would have been his by right.

Dave: That’s true. See, all of these passages, once you remove the trinitarian lens, make a lot more sense.

Let’s turn now to the Old Testament. In the prophecies, the Messiah is referred to as Yahuwah’s servant. Isaiah 52 to 53 is a long description of the coming Messiah. What does verse 13 of chapter 52 say?

Miles: “See, my servant will act wisely; he will be raised and lifted up and highly exalted.”

This is interesting. If Yahushua were divine, he’d have been alive already when this prophesy was given. So how does a God get “raised and lifted up and highly exalted”?

Dave: That’s an excellent question. You set aside the obvious contradiction of “God” raising, lifting up and highly exalting Himself, and you’re still left with the fact that the pre-existent Christ, if he were indeed divine, would already be highly exalted.

But this isn’t the only place Yahushua is described as a servant. In Acts 4:25, David is described as being Yahuwah’s “servant.” He served Yahuwah. Then, just a few verses later, Yahushua is described as Yahuwah’s servant, too.

Miles: Where?

Dave: Acts 4:30.

Miles: Let me see …

Oh, this is interesting! This is actually a prayer where the disciples are praying. Starting in verse 29, it says: “And now, Lord, look upon their threats and grant to Your servants to continue to speak your word with all boldness, while You stretch out Your hand to heal, and signs and wonders are performed through the name of Your holy servant Yahushua.”

Dave: “Holy” doesn’t mean the same thing as “divine.” Patriarchs and prophets were sometimes described as “holy men of old.” Holiness is simply agreement with Yah. And here, Yahushua is described as both “holy” and Yah’s “servant.” And this is after Yahushua’s ascension! So, any “laying aside” of his divine nature had served its purpose and come to an end, and yet he’s clearly not on equal standing with Yahuwah since they’re referring to him still as Yahuwah’s servant.

Miles: That’s a big difference between being “God” and “God’s servant.”

Dave: But that’s what Scripture teaches. And it does so repeatedly.

I’ve printed off several passages I’d like you to read. It’s a list of things Scripture says were given to Yahushua. If Yahushua were “God,” he wouldn’t need to be given anything. They’d already be his by right of being divine.

Go ahead. What’s the first one there?

Miles: Uh …. Matthew 28:18: “Then Yahushua came to them and said, ‘All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.’”

Dave: If Yahushua were God, how could “all authority” be given to him? It would already be his!

What’s next?

Miles: Philippians 2:9: “Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name.”

Dave: Here we see that God—Yahuwah—has highly exalted Christ and bestowed on him—gifted him with—a name that’s above every other name. Again, if Christ were God, he would be exalting himself. It doesn’t work like that. The greater exalts the lesser.

Miles: Uhhh … John 5:36: “The works that the Father has given me to finish—the very works that I am doing—testify that the Father has sent me.”

Dave: So here we’ve got two points that make clear Yahuwah is greater than Yahushua. First, Yahuwah, as God, gave Yahushua a work to finish. Secondly, Yahuwah sent Yahushua. Again, these are acts the greater delegates to the lesser.

Miles: John 17:22: “I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one.” And then verse 24 adds, “Father, I want those you have given me to be with me where I am, and to see my glory, the glory you have given me because you loved me before the creation of the world.”

Dave: So Yahushua’s “glory” itself is a gift from the Father. Where does Yahuwah’s “glory” come from?

Miles: It’s just His. It’s part of being God.

Dave: So how can Yahushua be “God” if his glory had to be gifted to him?

Miles: Ephesians 1 verses 19 to 22. Speaking of Yahuwah, it says:

That power is the same as the mighty strength He exerted when He raised Christ from the dead and seated him at His right hand in the heavenly realms, far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every name that is invoked, not only in the present age but also in the one to come. And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church.

Dave: Here we see Christ being the recipient of the mighty power of God.

Yahuwah … did what?

Miles: Uh … raised him from the dead.

Dave: And seated him at His right hand. What else?

Miles: Um, placed all things under Yahushua’s feet.

Dave: And?

Miles: Appointed Christ to be head over everything for the church.

Dave: None of these verses make sense if Yahushua were a co-eternal, co-equal partner of Yahuwah. And even if you try to say, “Oh, this is only describing his human nature, not his divine nature,” you’ve still got problems. For one thing, Scripture never divvies up his nature that way. And secondly, if we want to accept the ridiculous premise that Christ had a split nature, these statements still wouldn’t make sense because part of him would still be divine.

Miles: That’s true. When the rich young ruler called Christ “good,” Yahushua didn’t praise him for his faith in seeing “God” in Christ. Instead, Christ corrected him. He said, “Why are you calling me ‘good’? There’s only one ‘good’ and that’s God.”

That reminds me. I recently did a word search on the phrase “deity of Christ.”

Dave: Oh, really? What did you learn?

Miles: Well, “deity” comes from the Latin word, deus. It’s the Latin word for “god.” So “deity of Christ” literally means the “godness of Christ.” And even if we’ve heard it a lot in sermons, it never appears in the Bible.

Dave: No. Because he was human. He wasn’t God.

Miles: We’re going to have to take a break here in a minute, but I’ve got a quick question for you.

Speaking of Yahushua, Colossians 2:9 says, “For in him the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily.” Isn’t that just another way of saying he’s divine?

Dave: That’s a good question, but no. Think about it for a minute: there’s a difference between saying Yahushua himself is divine versus what this text is saying, which is that Yahuwah placed the entirety of His fullness in Christ. If Christ were divine, “God” wouldn’t need to place His fulness within him as he’d already have it.

Miles: Okay. I can see that.

Dave: We get some clarity on what Paul means here in the chapter just before this one. Would you please read Colossians 1 verse 19? This passage is describing Yahushua.

Miles: “For God was pleased to have all His fullness dwell in him.”

Dave: Yahuwah’s “fulness” is something that He bestowed upon the Messiah as a gift. It wasn’t Yahushua’s as a matter of course, which it would be if they were co-equal partners.

But even with Yahushua being filled with the fulness of Yahuwah, it still doesn’t make him divine. What was Paul’s prayer for believers? Ephesians 3, verses 17 to 19.

Miles:

And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.

Dave: If being filled with all the fullness of God was enough to make a person divine, then I’d be divine! You’d be divine!

Miles laughs: I don’t care what your mummy told you, Dave: you’re not divine!

Dave chuckles: No. But you know what I mean. In order to receive the gift of being filled with all the fulness of Yahuwah, you can’t be divine. It’s a gift you receive from the divine.

Miles: That’s very interesting.

All right. We’re going to take a very short break. When we return, Dave’s got a list of the ways Yahushua is different from Yahuwah. If they were both part of a triune godhead, they would be the same. They couldn’t have all these differences that Scripture says they have. Up next when we return.

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* * *Part 2: (Miles & Dave)

Dave: In our rush to view Father and son as co-eternal, co-equal partners in a triune godhead, we’ve overlooked some major, major differences between Yahuwah and Yahushua.

Miles: Such as?

Dave: Well, for one thing, Luke tells us that the boy Yahushua “increased in wisdom and stature and in favor with God and man.”

“God” doesn’t need to increase in wisdom. He is Himself the embodiment of all wisdom! The three characteristics of the true God is that He is omnipotent—He’s all powerful—He’s omnipresent meaning that He’s everywhere at once and …? What’s the third “omni”?

Miles: Uh … om-omniscient.

Dave: Correct. He’s all-knowing. So, as the source of all wisdom, it’s not possible for God to increase in wisdom.

But wisdom isn’t the only area in which Yahushua had to learn. What else did he have to learn? Hebrews 5 verses 7 to 10.

Miles:

During the days of Yahushua’s life on earth, he offered up prayers and petitions with fervent cries and tears to the one who could save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverent submission. Son though he was, he learned obedience from what he suffered and, once made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him and was designated by God to be high priest in the order of Melchizedek.

Dave: All right. There’s a lot to unpack here. First, Christ—learned—obedience. As we’ve covered in other programs, Yahushua’s will was not naturally aligned with the Father’s. That’s why he had to surrender it. And he suffered! He learned obedience through the things that he suffered.

Notice, too, that it says he was “made perfect.” No one can make God perfect. The only true God is already perfect. If He weren’t, He couldn’t be God!

And finally, Yahushua was designated by God to be a high priest forever after the order of Melchizedek. He was designated by God. That’s the lesser being appointed by the greater.

Another area of difference—and there’s a bit of overlap here—is that Yahuwah, as God, has all knowledge. We know that Yahushua didn’t because Scripture speaks of Yahuwah telling him what he needed to know. Read Mark 13:32. Statements that Yahushua learned from Yah are throughout the gospels, but this one in particular is good.

Go ahead. Mark 13:32.

Miles: “But about that day or hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the son, but only the Father.”

Dave: How could Yahushua be divine and not know something this important?

Miles: Well, maybe it was just his human nature that didn’t know.

Dave: No. No, because you either know something or you don’t. Besides, it doesn’t differentiate between two natures here. Furthermore, even after his ascension and being seated on the throne of Heaven, Yahushua still lacked all knowledge. Read Revelation 1 verse 1. What’s the first sentence say there?

Miles: “The revelation from Yahushua Christ, which God gave him to show his servants what must soon take place.”

Dave: Who gave this revelation to Yahushua?

Miles: “God.”

Dave: That’s right. And that title clearly is referring only to Yahuwah, because if Yahushua were God, what? He gave this revelation to himself?

Miles laughs: That doesn’t really work, does it?

Dave: No. As you read in Hebrews 5, Yahushua “learned obedience.” But he also learned more than that. Yahushua was refined just as we must all be refined, through full surrender to the Father’s will. He was made perfect. This shows personal growth.

I can see you’re looking at me like, “Prove it!”

Miles: Wellll …

Dave: All right. Let’s go back to Hebrews. Turn to chapter 2 and read verse 10.

Miles: “In bringing many sons and daughters to glory, it was fitting that God, for whom and through whom everything exists, should make the pioneer of their salvation perfect through what he suffered.”

Dave: The “pioneer of our salvation,” of course, is Yahushua. He was made perfect through the things he suffered.

Now let me ask you: does Yahuwah have to be “made perfect”?

Miles: No! He is!

Dave: Because He’s God. The fact that Yahushua had to be “made perfect” is one of the biggest proofs we have that he’s not God.

Miles: How, specifically, did that work? How was he made perfect?

Dave: Well, he didn’t have a fallen nature. To redeem the world where the first Adam fell, he had to have the nature of Adam before the fall. But he was “made perfect,” he matured, I guess you could say, spiritually through being tempted and consistently surrendering his will to the Father.

One thing that set Yahushua apart as the second Adam was the gift of the Holy Spirit he was given at his baptism. What does Matthew 3:16 say?

Miles: “As soon as Yahushua was baptized, he went up out of the water. At that moment heaven was opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting on him.”

Dave: In order to consistently and without fail surrender his will to Yahuwah, Yahushua had to have the baptism of the Holy Spirit. This was something he received. Now, does it make sense for God the Son to receive God the Holy Spirit from God the Father? They’re supposedly all three united in one: one in purpose, one in will, one in essence. So how could one-third, give another third to the third third?

Miles laughs: That’s ridiculous.

Dave: And yet, that’s what we’re supposed to believe!

It was Yahuwah’s spirit that enabled Yahushua to do the work that he did. This means he didn’t have it as part of himself naturally. Read Luke 4 verse 18. What does that say?

Miles:

The Spirit of Yahuwah is on me,
because He has anointed me
to proclaim good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners
and recovery of sight for the blind,
to set the oppressed free.

Dave: If Yahushua were God, he wouldn’t need to receive God from God. The gift of Yah’s spirit is given to humans to fulfill the work that Yahuwah has assigned them. We see this in the Old Testament. Read Number 11 verse 17. This is when Yahuwah directed Moses to appoint 70 elders to help him bear the burden of ruling so many people.

Miles: “I will come down and speak with you there, and I will take some of the power of the Spirit that is on you and put it on them. They will share the burden of the people with you so that you will not have to carry it alone.”

Dave: So, what enabled the 70 elders to do this work with Moses, was the spirit of Yah.

Miles: Wasn’t this body of 70 elders where the Jews got the Sanhedrin from?

Dave: That’s correct. The Sanhedrin had 70 members plus a president for a total of 71. Just like Moses and the 70 elders under him. These original 70 began to prophesy. Joshua, Moses’ helper, was upset. He thought it took from Moses’ authority to have all these other elders prophesying. Drop down and read verses 28 and 29 of Numbers 11.

Miles:

Joshua son of Nun, who had been Moses’ aide since youth, spoke up and said, “Moses, my lord, stop them!”

But Moses replied, “Are you jealous for my sake? I wish that all Yahuwah’s people were prophets and that Yahuwah would put His Spirit on them!”

Dave: Moses’ desire wasn’t to just have a nation full of prophets. What he wanted was a nation full of people so dedicated to doing Yah’s will that He could put His spirit upon them. Read Judges 3 verse 10. This is talking about Othniel, Caleb’s nephew. You know: Caleb and Joshua?

Miles: A godly lineage. Uh, it says: “The Spirit of Yahuwah came on him, so that he became Israel’s judge and went to war. Yahuwah gave Cushan-Rishathaim king of Aram into the hands of Othniel, who overpowered him.”

Dave: We see this same point being made in the story of Gideon. Read Judges 6:34.

Miles: “Then the Spirit of the Lord came on Gideon, and he blew a trumpet, summoning the Abiezrites to follow him.”

Dave: The same with Jephthah. Judges 11:29?

Miles: “Then the Spirit of Yahuwah came on Jephthah. He crossed Gilead and Manasseh, passed through Mizpah of Gilead, and from there he advanced against the Ammonites.”

Dave: The spirit of Yahuwah is given for the accomplishment of His will on earth. And it’s a promise we can still claim to this day! What does 1 Samuel 10 verses 6 and 7 say?

Miles: “The Spirit of Yahuwah will come powerfully upon you, and you will prophesy with them; and you will be changed into a different person. Once these signs are fulfilled, do whatever your hand finds to do, for God is with you.”

Dave: So even today, believers can ask for and claim the promised gift of the Holy Spirit. It’s given for doing Yahuwah’s will, and that’s why it was given Yahushua. This is an important point. It suggests that even the Messiah was not ready to do his great work until he’d received an endowment of Yah’s spirit.

This point is even covered in the prophecies of the Messiah. What does Isaiah 11 verse 2 say about the coming Messiah?

Miles:

The Spirit of Yahuwah will rest on him—
the Spirit of wisdom and of understanding,
the Spirit of counsel and of might,
the Spirit of the knowledge and fear of Yahuwah.

Dave: And the first verse of Isaiah 42?

Miles:

Here is my servant, whom I uphold,
my chosen one in whom I delight;
I will put my Spirit on him,
and he will bring justice to the nations.

Dave: And Isaiah 61 verse 1.

Miles:

The Spirit of the Sovereign Yahuwah is on me,
because Yahuwah has anointed me
to proclaim good news to the poor.
He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted,
to proclaim freedom for the captives
and release from darkness for the prisoners.

Dave: This prophecy was directly fulfilled when Yahushua was baptized with the Holy Spirit. Luke 4 tells us that “Yahushua, full of the Holy Spirit, left the Jordan and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness, where for forty days he was tempted by the devil.” [Luke 4:1-2] Then, after the temptation in the wilderness, in verse 14 we read that “Yahushua returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit, and news about him spread through the whole countryside.”

He went to Nazareth and, on the Sabbath, went to the synagogue where he was invited to read. Read verses 17 to 19.

Miles:

And the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was handed to him. Unrolling it, he found the place where it is written:

“The Spirit of Yahuwah is on me,
because he has anointed me
to proclaim good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners
and recovery of sight for the blind,
to set the oppressed free,
to proclaim the year of Yahuwah’s favor.”

Dave: Yahuwah gifts His spirit to those who commit to working for Him. Yahushua, like Gideon, and Jephthah, and Moses, and … so many others in the Old Testament, needed the Holy Spirit in order to complete his mission as the Messiah. Without it, he was, you could say, incomplete. This is a huge difference between Yahushua and Yahuwah!

Miles: That’s true. They can’t be “equal” if one has power to give to the other, which the other lacks.

Dave: Another big difference between Yahuwah and Yahushua is that Yahushua, like every other human being, can be–and was!—tempted. What does Hebrews 4:15 tell us about the Savior?

Miles: “For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin.”

Dave: Being tempted, and withstanding temptation in the power of Yahuwah, was an integral part of being the Messiah. I’d go so far as to say that if Yahushua lived a life in which nothing ever tempted him, he could not have redeemed the race where Adam fell.

Miles: Good point. Because he had to overcome temptation to redeem us.

Dave: Exactly. So, compare that now with James 1 verse 13.

Miles: “When tempted, no one should say, ‘God is tempting me.’ For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does He tempt anyone.”

Dave: That’s a huge difference between Father and son! And don’t try and squirm around this fact by saying, “Oh, it was just Yahushua’s human nature that was tempted. His divine nature wasn’t.” It doesn’t work that way. If any part of him wasn’t tempted, then that part did not overcome temptation and he failed of redeeming the race where Adam fell.

Miles: Wow.

Dave: You see how serious this is? Yahushua had to be fully and completely human in order for the plan of salvation to work.

Miles: Well, the fact that Yahushua was fully human can also be seen in the fact that he wasn’t even as strong as angels. We’re told that after the temptation in the wilderness, angels came and ministered to him.

Dave: Also, in Gethsemane. Luke 22 tells us that an angel from heaven came and strengthened him. Well, Yahuwah doesn’t need anyone, even an angel, to strengthen Him!

Another huge difference between Yahuwah as God and Yahushua, His fully human son, is the very obvious fact that Yahushua died. God, by definition, cannot die.

Miles: Well, Paul in … I think it’s 1 Timothy 6:16 says that only Yahuwah has immortality. Yahushua didn’t have it as a matter of course or he couldn’t have died. The fact that Yahushua’s immortality is a gift from Yah shows he’s just as human as we are.

Dave: Romans 1:23 also states that Yahuwah is immortal. Now, I know trinitarians will say that only Yahushua’s human nature died. But there’s two problems with that. If any part of him did not die—say, for example, his supposed divine nature; if that didn’t die—then he didn’t truly and fully die. Also, there’s no Bible verse that clarifies only his divine nature died. That’s an assumption we’ve made but, like most assumptions, it’s incorrect.

I’d like you to turn now to Hebrews 2 and read verses 10 and 11. This passage explains the relationship we have with Yahuwah and Yahushua, and you’ll see that the relationship we have with the Father is different from the relationship we have with His son.

Go ahead. Hebrews 2:10 and 11.

Miles:

In bringing many sons and daughters to glory, it was fitting that God, for whom and through whom everything exists, should make the pioneer of their salvation perfect through what he suffered. Both the one who makes people holy and those who are made holy are of the same family. So Yahushua is not ashamed to call them brothers and sisters.

Dave: “God” here is clearly a reference to Yahuwah, not Yahushua, because He is mentioned as separate from Yahushua who is the “pioneer” of our salvation. And what’s our relationship to Yahushua? Are we sons of Yahushua?

Miles: No. We’re brothers and sisters of Yahushua.

Dave: We’re brothers and sisters of … Yahushua. We’re not brothers and sisters of God. If Yahushua were God, we’d be brothers and sisters of God, but we’re not. Again, for those who would argue that we’re brothers and sisters of the human part of Christ, nowhere does Scripture say that. We’ve got to quit reading into Scripture ideas and concepts that just aren’t there!

Turn now to John 14. There’s a fascinating statement here that has long intrigued me. We know from the gospels that Christ’s reputation spread far and wide even throughout all of Decapolis. That’s a large area!

Miles: Yeah, that covers modern-day Israel, Jordan and Syria.

Dave: A big area. And Christ’s reputation was known throughout the entire region. Why? Because of the works that he did through the power of God.

So, you’ve got John 14? Read verse 12. What does that say?

Miles: “Very truly I tell you, whoever believes in me will do the works I have been doing, and they will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father.”

Dave: Isn’t that amazing? Christ himself said that believers will do greater works than he did!

Miles: So, clearly, the miraculous works don’t make you divine.

Dave: Not only that, but if Christ were God, then that statement would be telling us that we’re to do greater works than God Himself. And that’s just not possible.

Here’s the thing: if Yahushua were indeed “God” in the trinitarian sense of the word, and if he were a co-equal partner in a godhead, made of the same substance, the same essence as Yahuwah, then he’d have to have all the same divine attributes that Yahuwah possesses. But he doesn’t. Clearly!

Let’s think about Yahuwah’s attributes as God. Number 1: He’s all-knowing. Well, we’ve seen that Yahushua, by his own admission, doesn’t know everything.

What else?

Miles: All-powerful. Self-existent. Yahuwah has always been. There was never a point in time in which he came into being.

Dave: Yes. Yes. All of that. He’s also omni-present. But clearly Yahushua wasn’t and, to this day, isn’t.

Miles: Good. Wise. Yahushua himself said not to call him “good” since only God is good.

Dave: Thus excluding himself from being likened to Yahuwah. We’ve got to quit ignoring these differences between Father and son, because it’s these very differences that prove Yahushua isn’t divine.

When you take a careful look at the statements Christ made, there is no question whatsoever that he was fully human. These comments are throughout the gospels, but we’ve overlooked them because of the trinitarian lenses we’ve been looking through.

Take, for example, self-existence. Only Yahuwah is self-existent, natural and underived from any other source. By contrast, what does Yahushua say about how he came to be? Read John 6 verse 57.

Miles: Umm … “Just as the living Father sent me and I live because of the Father, so the one who feeds on me will live because of me.”

Dave: Did you catch that? He said, “I live because of the Father.” That is not self-existence, which he would have to have had, if he were divine.

We know Yahushua wasn’t omni-present like Yahuwah is because … what did he tell the disciples after Lazarus died? John 11 verses 14 and 15.

Miles:

Then Yahushua told them plainly, “Lazarus has died, and for your sake I am glad that I was not there, so that you may believe. But let us go to him.”

Dave: If, as trinitarians claim, Christ had a dual nature, this statement would still have been incorrect because, while his human nature might not have been present, his divine nature still would have been making this statement false.

Another example. In Luke 1, Mary asks the angel how she could get pregnant since she was a virgin. The angel tells her, in verse 37, that nothing is impossible with God.

By contrast, how does Yahushua describe his ability to get things done? John 5 verse 19.

Miles:

Yahushua gave them this answer: “Very truly I tell you, the son can do nothing by himself; he can do only what he sees his Father doing, because whatever the Father does the son also does.

Dave: That’s a mighty big difference from “nothing is impossible” with Yah!

Again: we’ve got to quit reading into Scripture what isn’t there:

• Yahushua never claimed divinity. Instead, he repeatedly called himself “son of man,” or the Greek equivalent of “human being.”
• His miracles do not prove he was divine, because humans have performed miracles before. It’s always Yahuwah working through humans that accounts for miracles.
• Furthermore, he never taught the doctrine of the trinity! If this were truly the foundational doctrine of the gospel message, you’d think Yahushua and the apostles would have taught it, but none of them ever did.

One last point I want to squeeze in really quick: John 4:24 says “God is spirit.” But Yahushua, even after his resurrection, was still flesh and bone. He said so! He told Thomas in Luke 24:39: “See my hands and my feet, that it is I myself. Touch me, and see. For a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see that I have.”

So, again. Yahushua is fully human, and if we want to love and honor him for who he truly is, we’ll accept this fact as Scripture teaches it.

* * *

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When a person or even an organization has been blessed with great light, it is easy to slip into what is widely known as the Laodicean condition. In other words, spiritual pride slips in. Boasts are made of what they know while overlooking what they still lack.

A sobering example of this can be seen in the handful of denominations that grew out of the Great Disappointment of 1844. Most notably is this seen in the history of the Seventh-day Adventist Church. Adventists were among the first of the Protestant denominations to understand and accept that the law of Yahuwah is still binding, including the fourth commandment. But when more light came, revealing the ancient biblical calendar by which the Sabbath is to be calculated, the Seventh-day Adventist denomination has repeatedly rejected this truth.

The history of this denomination, once blessed with great light, should be a solemn warning to all Christians regarding the dangers of assuming one has all the light necessary to be saved. On WorldsLastChance.com, look for the three-part article series called “Rejection of Divine Light by the SDA Church.” Once light has been rejected, it becomes very easy to reject any future light that comes. Read “Rejection of Divine Light by the SDA Church.” Learn what happens when a person or organization turns its back on the truth.

* * *Daily Promise:

Hello! This is Jane Lamb with your daily promise from Yah’s Word.

Hebrews 13, verses 1 and 2 tells us: “Keep on loving one another as brothers and sisters. Do not forget to show hospitality to strangers, for by so doing some people have shown hospitality to angels without knowing it.”

Rob Harshman lived just outside Toronto, Canada. It had been a life-long dream of his to visit the Amazon. He was fascinated by the pictures he’d seen of the exotic plant and animal life there. It was all so different from what he was used to seeing. Finally, during his last summer break at university, he decided to make his dream a reality. Studying maps of South America, he plotted his journey.

He didn’t have a lot of money, so he found the cheapest flight he could get from Toronto to Lima, Peru. From there, he would take a taxi to a town called La Merced. On the map, it looked to be perched on the very edge of the jungle. It shouldn’t be hard at all to find a way into the jungle from there.

Rob arrived at the taxi dispatch at 4 o’clock in the morning. People often share taxis for long trips in South America, and Rob’s taxi contained three nursing mothers in the back seat. Rob settled in the front seat next to the driver for the 14-hour trip to La Merced. By the time they finally reached the town, Rob was beyond exhausted. It was all he could do to find a hotel. As he was checking in, he asked the man if there were any roads into the jungle.

The man replied, “No.” In fact, the only way to get into the jungle was to hire a boat. That was out of the question for Rob as it was beyond his budget. Exhausted, hungry, and disheartened, Rob decided to find someplace to eat before trying to figure out what to do next. As he walked down the main street of the small town looking for a place to eat, the skies opened and rain poured down as it does only in the Andes.

Rob dashed for the nearest restaurant. So far, his big adventure was turning out to be one huge disappointment. As he finished his meal, a group of men walked into the restaurant. One man in particular stood out among the rest. He was tall, blond and light-skinned just like Rob. The man smiled a friendly smile.

“Hi! I’m Fritz,” he introduced himself.

Rob shook his hand and introduced himself. As the men settled in, he told Fritz about his dream of visiting the jungle, how he’d driven 14 hours from Lima to La Merced, only to discover there was no way to get down into the jungle. It was clear Rob was discouraged and didn’t know what to do.

“Well, hey,” Fritz suggested. “Come stay with me and my wife. We’ve got a coffee plantation in the jungle. You can stay with us as long as you like and see what it’s like.”

The other men smiled and encouraged Rob to go with Fritz. So, early the next morning, Fritz showed up outside Rob’s hotel and drove the young man to his home deep in the rainforest. It was everything Rob had ever envisioned the jungle being. Vines swept across the vehicle’s windows. Macaws looked like flying rainbows as they rose in flight from some of the biggest trees Rob had ever seen.

During the two-hour drive, Fritz told Rob that he had moved to Peru from Germany to follow his dream of having a coffee plantation. Finally arriving at their destination, Fritz introduced Rob to his wife, Helga, and showed him around their home. Over the next five days, Rob was a grateful guest in their home. Helga let Rob choose what vegetables he wanted from their large vegetable garden and then prepared them in delicious and creative ways. Rob and Helga told Fritz about their children at school in Lima and Rob told them about his life in Canada. The two Germans showed a genuine interest in the university student and Rob was warmed by their friendly interest.

The adventure that had almost never happened turned out to be one of the most fulfilling times of Rob’s life. The hospitality two strangers showed an exhausted young man stayed with Rob. To this day, he remembers with gratitude how their kindness provided him with everything he needed to make his dream come true.

Second Peter chapter 1 tells us:

Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of [Yahuwah] and of Yahushua our Lord, for His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness, through the true knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and excellence. Through these He has granted to us His precious and magnificent promises, so that by them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world on account of lust. [2 Peter 1:2-4]

We have been given great and precious promises. Go and start claiming!

* * *Part 3: (Miles)

Miles: Thank you for joining us for today’s program called “Yahushua: Yahuwah’s Servant.” If you want to share it with a friend, you can find it on our website at WorldsLastChance.com. Just click on the WLC radio icon and look for program 183 called “Yahushua: Yahuwah’s Servant.”

We hope you can join us again tomorrow, and until then, remember: Yahuwah loves you . . . and He is safe to trust!

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This program and past episodes of WLC Radio are available for downloading on our website. They're great for sharing with friends and for use in Bible studies! They're also an excellent resource for those worshipping Yahuwah alone at home. To listen to previously aired programs, visit our website at WorldsLastChance.com. Click on the WLC Radio icon displayed on our homepage.

In his teachings and parables, the Savior gave no “signs of the times” to watch for. Instead, the thrust of his message was constant … vigilance. Join us again tomorrow for another truth-filled message as we explore various topics focused on the Savior's return and how to live in constant readiness to welcome him warmly when he comes.

WLC Radio: Teaching minds and preparing hearts for Christ's sudden return.