Author: Ryan Moody

“Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven. Whosoever therefore shall humble himself as this little child, the same is greatest in the kingdom of heaven.” (Mat 18:3-4), “Whosoever shall not receive the kingdom of God as a little child, he shall not enter therein” (Mar 10:15). Children are impressionable, open-minded, and receptive—they’re teachable. Adults, on the other hand, many times are adamant, obstinate, and set in their ways. But Jesus the Savior said that if we won’t humble ourselves as a little child, we won’t be entering the kingdom—we won’t be saved.

Children are like a tabula rasa or blank slate in that they don’t know much but are very open and responsive to learning. The downside, of course, is that when they’re taught wrong, it can be very difficult for them to ever unlearn later. And the way it is with children is similarly how it is with salvation. We’ve been taught so much false doctrine that’s keeping us blinded from the truth that we must lay aside or put on the table all our assumptions and beliefs, then approach the Scriptures as objectively as possible in search of the truth. We must become as little children. And that’s what I did after being a Trinitarian for 30 years—I started over as a child.

Our enemy doesn’t just want to keep us from the truth but wants us bound with false doctrine and beliefs to such a degree that if the truth ever does come to our hearing, we’ll turn our ears away from it and even fight against it. Thus, the agenda of all religions and cults is to get us bound with error so that we’ll perish. All religions consider themselves the truth while all others are false, and Trinitarianism, both Catholic and Protestant, is no different. It’s simply false religion no better than Jehovah’s Witness, Mormonism, Unitarianism, Buddhism, and Islam. All keep people bound in stubbornness to false beliefs so that they won’t hear the truth. The only hope is to be converted back to a child as a blank slate eager to hear the truth, “Except ye be converted, and become as little children.”

The wretched condition of God’s people throughout their history is that they would become hardened and stubborn so that they wouldn’t listen to God: “look not unto the stubbornness of this people, nor to their wickedness, nor to their sin” (Deu 9:27); “they ceased not from their own doings, nor from their stubborn way” (Jdg 2:19); “For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry” (1Sa 15:23); “Notwithstanding they would not hear, but hardened their necks, like to the neck of their fathers, that did not believe in the LORD their God” (2Ki 17:14); “But they and our fathers dealt proudly, and hardened their necks, and hearkened not to thy commandments” (Neh 9:16); “And might not be as their fathers, a stubborn and rebellious generation” (Psa 78:8); “Yet they hearkened not unto me, nor inclined their ear, but hardened their neck: they did worse than their fathers” (Jer 7:26); “they have hardened their necks, that they might not hear my words” (Jer 19:15).

The writer of Hebrews quoted this same statement from Psalm 95 three times, “To day if ye will hear his voice, harden not your hearts” (Heb 3:7-8,15, 4:7). When we become hardened and set in our beliefs, we won’t listen even to Jesus Himself! We won’t hear His voice yet we’ll eagerly hear the voices of preachers teaching us contrary to what Jesus taught. In His ministry on earth, He said “Who hath ears to hear, let him hear” (Mat 13:9), “He that hath ears to hear, let him hear” (Mar 4:9). And from His position at the right hand of God, “He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit [breath] saith unto the churches” (Rev 2:7,11,17,29, 3:6,13,22).

Pharaoh kept hardening his own heart until eventually he crossed a point of no return where God began hardening his heart as He had foretold, “And I will harden Pharaoh’s heart” (Exo 7:3), “And the LORD hardened the heart of Pharaoh” (Exo 9:12). When there was respite or a period of relief from the plagues, Pharaoh gained false confidence and became hardened again, “But when Pharaoh saw that there was respite, he hardened his heart, and hearkened not unto them; as the LORD had said” (Exo 8:15). Likewise, when all is going well, we become hardened. It’s when the “plagues” of life come that we become desperate. But unlike Pharaoh, we don’t want to keep hardening ourselves to the point that we can never return.

Many years ago I had a family member who didn’t start seeking God until she was diagnosed with cancer and died just 10 months later. Once we’re desperate and short on time to find the truth, we’ll discover that it’s difficult to find. Although the Scriptures are everywhere, even on our phones in our pockets, false teachers are also everywhere bent on making sure we won’t find the truth in the Scriptures. Their sermons and books give us a certain amount of truth to entice us but also a false view of God and His Son, and a false gospel to ensure we’ll perish. Please don’t wait until you’re desperate. Be converted as a little child now and hear His voice.

“But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtilty, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ. For if he that cometh preacheth another Jesus, whom we have not preached, or if ye receive another spirit [breath], which ye have not received, or another gospel, which ye have not accepted, ye might well bear with him” (2Co 11:3-4). Preaching a different Jesus than Christ’s own apostles preached is tantamount to the original deception of the serpent, “For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil” (Gen 3:5).

The Jesus that Paul preached to the Corinthians, that God is not only the Father but also the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, is what Paul stated toward the end of this same chapter, “The God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ” (2Co 11:31). It’s also what he had taught them in his first letter: “And ye are Christ’s; and Christ is God’s” (3:23); “But to us there is but one God, the Father, of whom are all things, and we in him; and one Lord Jesus Christ, by whom are all things, and we by him” (8:6); “But I would have you know, that the head of every man is Christ; and the head of the woman is the man; and the head of Christ is God” (11:3); “And when all things shall be subdued unto him, then shall the Son also himself be subject unto him that put all things under him, that God may be all in all” (15:28). Trinitarianism, on the other hand, preaches a different Jesus—a Jesus that is co-equal with God.

The Roman Catholic Church forced the Trinitarian view of God and Jesus on the world by locking away the Scriptures and putting to death any that opposed them. And the Protestant Reformation about 500 years ago wasn’t an improvement. It’s still the same false view of God and His Son Jesus Christ.

In context with “the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtilty” (2Co 11:3), Paul went on to say, “And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel [messenger] of light. Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers of righteousness” (2Co 11:14-15). That “Satan himself is transformed into an angel [messenger] of light,” refers to the message he gave to Eve, “then your eyes shall be opened” (Gen 3:5). His message of “light” was to convince her that she was in darkness but would see if she just listened to him. From that Paul drew this conclusion about Satan’s ministers, “his ministers also be transformed as the ministers of righteousness.” They do the same as the serpent in the beginning—they convince people that they’re messengers of “light” and righteousness before God. If we’ll listen to them, we’ll see and be right with God.

Those that preach a different Jesus, Paul said have “another spirit [breath]” than the breath of God. Jesus Himself said, “Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves” (Mat 7:15). This category of “false prophets” includes all that present themselves as ministers of God yet preach a different Jesus: “For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ” (2Co 11:13); “But there were false prophets also among the people, even as there shall be false teachers among you, who privily shall bring in damnable heresies, even denying the Lord that bought them” (2Pe 2:1); “Beloved, believe [trust] not every spirit [breath], but try the spirits [breaths] whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world” (1Jo 4:1). If “many false prophets” had already gone out while the apostles were still alive, then there are far more today.

This isn’t simply an academic dispute that can be resolved using hermeneutics and apologetics. It’s that there’s “another spirit [breath]” in them than “the Spirit [breath] of truth” (Jhn 14:17, 15:26, 16:13) Jesus Christ taught about and sent. It’s two antithetical breaths, “the spirit [breath] of truth, and the spirit [breath] of error” (1Jo 4:6). They never can be pacified, but always will be polarized.

Trinitarianism is a different God and a different Jesus. It’s a fruit that’s rotten at its core but made “pleasant to the eyes” (Gen 3:6) through many means: vast numbers of churches all over the world and in some places on every street corner; around 2 billion Trinitarians worldwide; esteemed seminaries training men and bestowing degrees upon them; credentialed and experienced men pastoring churches and living on mission fields; a never-ending stream of resources including books, commentaries, study tools, references, sermons, broadcasts, and conferences.

Jesus never called Himself “God” but called His Father “the only true God” and even “my God” (Mat 27:46; Jhn 20:17; Rev 3:12). Paul and Peter both preached the same, “Blessed bethe God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ” (Eph 1:3; 1Pe 1:3). But Trinitarianism preaches a different Jesus than He Himself preached, and different than His apostles, who knew Him personally, preached.

In John chapters 14-16, Jesus taught about His coming advocacy at the Father’s right hand as the Holy Breath of God, and three times called God’s Breath “the Spirit [Breath] of truth” (Jhn 14:17,15:26,16:13). The only other time in the New Testament this phrase is ever repeated is in John’s first letter: “Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world. They are of the world: therefore speak they of the world, and the world heareth them. We are of God: he that knoweth God heareth us; he that is not of God heareth not us. Hereby know we the spirit [breath] of truth, and the spirit [breath] of error.” (1Jo 4:4-6).

John taught that everyone in this world has one or the other dwelling in them—if we don’t have “the breath of truth,” then we have “the breath of error.” The entire world belongs to the devil because “For all have sinned” (Rom 3:23), “sold under sin” (Rom 7:14). Belonging to the devil means that he is our lord and master, and his breath dwells in us. We’re powerless against him unless someone greater drives him out and takes his place. This is what happens at conversion—Jesus Christ becomes our Lord and displaces that breath with God’s Breath: “If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children: how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit [Breath] to them that ask him?” (Luk 11:13), “But when a stronger than he shall come upon him, and overcome him, he taketh from him all his armour wherein he trusted, and divideth his spoils” (Luk 11:22).

John said “Ye are of God” (v. 4) and “We are of God” (v. 6). Being “of God” or belonging to Him is having His Holy Breath dwelling in our hearts which comes only through the Lord Jesus Christ, “But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit [Breath] of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit [Breath] of Christ, he is none of his” (Rom 8:9). But how can we know for certain that His Breath is dwelling in us?

The litmus test for whether or not we have God’s Breath in our hearts is if we’re hearing Christ and His apostles, “he that knoweth God heareth us; he that is not of God heareth not us.” This is how we know which breath is in us, “Hereby know we the spirit [breath] of truth, and the spirit [breath] of error.” It has nothing to do with the sign of tongues given to the church in the days of the apostles because the apostle John himself said that it’s all about whom we’re hearing.

At the beginning of his letter, John stated three times that what he and the other apostles declared is what they heard from Christ, “That which was from the beginning, which we have heard … That which we have seen and heard declare we unto you … This then is the message which we have heard of him, and declare unto you” (1Jo 1:1,3,5). They were sent by Him and taught the truth they heard from Him. Therefore, “the breath of truth” corresponds to hearing the truth from Christ and from them, while “the breath of error” doesn’t hear them.

Of course, “hearing” isn’t just being a sounding board. It’s taking to heart and governing our lives by the words of the one whom we belong. If we’re being led by Christ—obeying His commandments and living by His teaching—then we belong to God, “For as many as are led by the Spirit [Breath] of God, they are the sons of God” (Rom 8:14).

Because of a flood of false teaching in this world from “the god of this world” (2Co 4:4), we deal with much confusion, deception, and ignorance of the truth. But if God’s Breath is in our hearts, as the truth comes to our understanding, we’ll embrace it and abide by it. Once we’re no longer confused, deceived, or ignorant about the truth Christ taught, God requires it of us—we must own it and be unashamed of it. When Paul began his letter to the Romans with “For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ” (Rom 1:16), it wasn’t about the “gospel” being preached today. In agreement with how he ended his letter, he wasn’t ashamed of the gospel Christ Himself preached, “Now to him that is of power to stablish you according to my gospel, and the preaching of Jesus Christ” (Rom 16:25). We also must be unashamed of Him and His words, “For whosoever shall be ashamed of me and of my words, of him shall the Son of man be ashamed, when he shall come in his own glory, and in his Father’s, and of the holy angels” (Luk 9:26).

Sadly, very few people truly “hear” Christ and His apostles. When the truth they taught about God, man, and salvation comes to their understanding, they “turn away their ears from the truth” (2Ti 4:4). They won’t hear because they’re not of God, “he that is not of God heareth not us.” This is how we know if we belong to Him, “Hereby know we the spirit [breath] of truth, and the spirit [breath] of error.”

“And God said, Let there be light: and there was light” (Gen 1:3). John and Paul both taught that Jesus Christ’s preaching was “Let there be light” of the truth into the darkness of deception, “And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not” (Jhn 1:5), “For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts” (2Co 4:6). Those that abide in His Son’s preaching are His people that He calls “Day” and divides from all others, “God divided the light from the darkness. And God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night” (Gen 1:4-5). And the “Day” are ruled by the Greater Light now seated at His right hand, “And to rule over the day and over the night, and to divide the light from the darkness” (Gen 1:18).

The “Day” were chosen before “the casting down” of the world, “According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation [casting down] of the world” (Eph 1:4). God’s people were “in him” before “the casting down” and will be “taken out of” Him when He returns, “she was taken out of Man” (Gen 2:23), “in Christ shall all be made alive” (1Co 15:22), “the dead in Christ shall rise first” (1Th 4:16).

God gave His people bread from heaven, “I will rain bread from heaven for you” (Exo 16:4), which Jesus said was figurative and prophetic of Himself coming from heaven, “my Father giveth you the true bread from heaven” (Jhn 6:32). And the bread came down based on the Sabbath week, “Six days ye shall gather it; but on the seventh day, which is the sabbath, in it there shall be none” (Exo 16:26), which in turn was based on the creation week, “For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the LORD blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it” (Exo 20:11). Therefore, God’s Son coming from heaven to save His people was foretold in the creation week before “the casting down.”

It was at “the casting down” that man was appointed to die, “For then must he often have suffered since the foundation [casting down] of the world: but now once in the end of the world hath he appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself. And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment” (Heb 9:26-27), “till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return” (Gen 3:19).

Before “the casting down,” the Son had called to Adam, “And the LORD God called unto Adam” (Gen 3:9). And “the hope of his calling” (Eph 1:18), is the hope of resurrection from the dead, “For the creature was made subject to vanity, not willingly, but by reason of him who hath subjected the same in hope” (Rom 8:20). Salvation is this hope, “For we are saved by hope” (Rom 8:24).

Gentiles can now be joined with God’s people in unity of the same hope, “Endeavouring to keep the unity of the Spirit [Breath] in the bond of peace. There is one body, and one Spirit [Breath], even as ye are called in one hope of your calling; One Lord, one faith, one baptism, One God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all” (Eph 4:3-6). In unity, both belong to the same body, have the same Breath, share the same hope, serve the same Lord, have the same faith, are baptized into the same name, and worship the same God.

“Which he wrought in Christ, when he raised him from the dead, and set him at his own right hand in the heavenly places, Far above all principality, and power, and might, and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this world, but also in that which is to come: And hath put all things under his feet” (Eph 1:20-22). Paul was quoting from the Psalms about Adam, “Thou madest him to have dominion over the works of thy hands; thou hast put all things under his feet” (Psa 8:6). But before Adam named “every name that is named,” God had already determined to make a wife for him, “I will make him an help meet for him” (Gen 2:18), “And out of the ground the LORD God formed every beast of the field, and every fowl of the air; and brought them unto Adam to see what he would call them: and whatsoever Adam called every living creature, that was the name thereof” (Gen 2:19). Before “the casting down,” Christ’s authority at the right hand of God over every name that is named was shown in Adam’s dominion.

Paul prayed earnestly that the Ephesians would understand these things, “Cease not to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers … The eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that ye may know what is the hope of his calling, and what the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints” (Eph 1:16,18). And for what purpose? To simply be amazed? It’s so that we’ll not be deceived by men about salvation, “That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men,andcunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive” (Eph 4:14).

John stated his purpose for writing his Gospel, “But these are written, that ye might believe [trust] that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing [trusting] ye might have life through his name” (Jhn 20:31). To have eternal life we must trust in the name of Jesus—that He is the Messiah, the Son of God. A person’s name is their reputation, distinction, and honor—it’s who they are. All that Jesus lived and died for is invested in His name. Therefore, trusting in His name is agreeing with, submitting to, and standing for everything He claimed, commanded, taught, and testified. We can be ignorant about some things but we can’t be willfully against anything He said and still be trusting in His name for eternal life.

Invested in His name is that He is the only begotten Son of God because He claimed this of Himself, “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth [trusts] in him should not perish, but have everlasting life … He that believeth [trusts] on him is not condemned: but he that believeth [trusts] not is condemned already, because he hath not believed [trusted] in the name of the only begotten Son of God” (Jhn 3:16,18). That He was begotten of God is that He was literally born of God by proceeding forth from Him, “I proceeded forth and came from God” (Jhn 8:42), “I came forth from the Father, and am come into the world” (Jhn 16:28). His life began when He was begotten of God. That He is the “Son of God” speaks of God as His very cause, origin, and source.

At Christ’s baptism, God spoke from heaven attesting that He is His Son: “And lo a voice from heaven, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased” (Mat 3:17), “And there came a voice from heaven, saying, Thou art my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased” (Mar 1:11), “and a voice came from heaven, which said, Thou art my beloved Son; in thee I am well pleased” (Luk 3:22).

Christ’s own testimony and His Father’s is what He meant by, “It is also written in your law, that the testimony of two men is true. I am one that bear witness of myself, and the Father that sent me beareth witness of me” (Jhn 8:17-18). The law of Moses stipulated that the testimony of two or three men established a matter as true, “at the mouth of two witnesses, or at the mouth of three witnesses, shall the matter be established” (Deu 19:15). And John later wrote, “If we receive the witness of men, the witness of God is greater: for this is the witness of God which he hath testified of his Son. He that believeth [trusts] on the Son of God hath the witness in himself: he that believeth [trusts] not God hath made him a liar; because he believeth [trusts] not the record that God gave of his Son” (1Jo 5:9-10). If the testimony of two men establishes a matter, then how much more the testimony of God Himself and His Son? Affirming anything different is tantamount to making God a liar. And Trinitarianism does just that. It calls Jesus the Son of God but defines Him as God Himself. It denies the Son’s beginning, therefore denies the Son’s begetting. It testifies against the Father and the Son!

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God … And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth” (Jhn 1:1,14). The Son of God was “the Word” because everything He said is what His Father sent Him to say: “My doctrine is not mine, but his that sent me” (Jhn 7:16); “I speak to the world those things which I have heard of him” (Jhn 8:26); “For I have not spoken of myself; but the Father which sent me, he gave me a commandment, what I should say, and what I should speak” (Jhn 12:49); “the words that I speak unto you I speak not of myself” (Jhn 14:10); “the word which ye hear is not mine, but the Father’s which sent me” (Jhn 14:24); “all things that I have heard of my Father I have made known unto you” (Jhn 15:15); “For I have given unto them the words which thou gavest me” (Jhn 17:8). And John later wrote, “And he was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood: and his name is called The Word of God” (Rev 19:13). Invested in His name is everything His Father sent Him to say.

John’s concluding statement of his first letter, “And we know that the Son of God is come, and hath given us an understanding, that we may know him that is true, and we are in him that is true, even in his Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God, and eternal life.” (1Jo 5:20), Trinitarianism claims he was identifying the Son as “the true God.” But John was simply restating what the Son Himself claimed, “Father, the hour is come; glorify thy Son … And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent” (Jhn 17:1,3). The Son identified His Father as “the only true God” and Himself as His Son. Eternal life is by trusting on His name, “These things have I written unto you that believe [trust] on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe [trust] on the name of the Son of God” (1Jo 5:13). And His name is invested with everything He claimed, commanded, taught, and testified.

“All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made … He was in the world, and the world was made by him” (Jhn 1:3,10); “God, who created all things by Jesus Christ” (Eph 3:9); “For by him were all things created” (Col 1:16); “by whom also he made the worlds” (Heb 1:1-2). The apostles of the Lord revealed that God the Father created all things by the agency of His Son. If someone, for example, sold their house by employing the service of a real estate agent, although the agent actually did the work, the homeowner still says that they sold their house.

Judaism which rejects Jesus Christ as the Son of God claims that only one person was present at the creation. Trinitarians, however, claim there were three. The plural personal pronouns in the creation account certainly indicate at least a second person but not necessarily more, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness” (Gen 1:26). That there were exactly two persons—the Father and the Son—is attested by John, “the Word was with God … in the beginning with God” (Jhn 1:1,2), “That which was from the beginning … the Word of life … which was with the Father” (1Jo 1:1,2).

We’ve been taught that all the times “God said” in the creation account, He was speaking everything into existence. But if God the Father spoke it all into existence, then how was it created by His Son? The Scriptures tell us that it was the work of His hands: “When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained … “Thou madest him to have dominion over the works of thy hands” (Psa 8:3,6); “The sea is his, and he made it: and his hands formed the dry land” (Psa 95:5); “I have made the earth, the man and the beast that are upon the ground, by my great power and by my outstretched arm” (Jer 27:5); “concerning the work of my hands command ye me. I have made the earth, and created man upon it: I, even my hands, have stretched out the heavens” (Isa 45:11-12); “the heavens are the work of thy hands” (Psa 102:25); “the heavens are the works of thine hands” (Heb 1:10); “didst set him over the works of thy hands” (Heb 2:7). We’re even told this in the creation account, “And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground … And out of the ground the LORD God formed every beast of the field” (Gen 2:7,19).

Of the nine times we’re told “God Said” (Gen 1:3,6,9,11,14,20,24,26,29), one time it’s clearly the Father speaking to the Son, “And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness.” Here, He wasn’t speaking anything into existence but telling His Son what to create—creating by the agency of His Son. This one occurrence indicates the case with all the others. Therefore, “And God said, Let there be light: and there was light,” it wasn’t God speaking light into existence but the Father telling His Son “Let there be light,” then His Son creating the light. He was commanding His Son: “For he spake, and it was done; he commanded, and it stood fast” (Psa 33:9); “Let them praise the name of the LORD: for he commanded, and they were created” (Psa 148:5); “For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness” (2Co 4:6). The creation is the work of the Son of God’s hands.

Also, throughout the six days of creation and on the seventh day of rest, only the term Elohim for “God” is used. But beginning in chapter two, Yehova Elohim is used for “the LORD God.” Since it was the Father telling His Son to make both male and female, “And God [Elohim] said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness … male and female created he them” (1:26,27), and the Son made them, “And the LORD God [Yehova Elohim] formed man of the dust of the ground” (2:7), “And the rib, which the LORD God [Yehova Elohim] had taken from the man, made he a woman” (2:22), we can deduct that Elohim is the Father and Yehova Elohim is the Son. And as the Father spoke to His Son using plural pronouns, “And God [Elohiym] said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness” (1:26), the Son also spoke similarly, “And the LORD God [Yehova Elohim] said, Behold, the man is become as one of us, to know good and evil” (Gen 3:22).

Yehova Elohim revoked man’s access to the tree of life, “And the LORD God [Yehova Elohim] said, Behold, the man is become as one of us, to know good and evil: and now, lest he put forth his hand, and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live for ever” (Gen 3:22), and it is He that restores it, “He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit [Breath] saith unto the churches; To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the tree of life” (Rev 2:7).

We must “hear what the Spirit [Breath] saith” (Rev 2:7,11,17,29, 3:6,13,22). “And the LORD God [Yehova Elohim] called unto Adam … I heard thy voice” (Gen 3:9,10), “that ye may know what is the hope of his calling” (Eph 1:18), “Wherefore as the Holy Ghost [Breath] saith, To day if ye will hear his voice” (Heb 3:7).

Many times Jesus Christ Himself “broke” the Sabbath day: “Wherefore it is lawful to do well on the sabbath days. Then saith he to the man, Stretch forth thine hand. And he stretched it forth; and it was restored whole, like as the other” (Mat 12:12-13); “And the ruler of the synagogue answered with indignation, because that Jesus had healed on the sabbath day” (Luk 13:14); “Is it lawful to heal on the sabbath day? And they held their peace. And he took him, and healed him, and let him go” (Luk 14:2-4); “And therefore did the Jews persecute Jesus, and sought to slay him, because he had done these things on the sabbath day” (Jhn 5:16); “This man is not of God, because he keepeth not the sabbath day” (Jhn 9:16).

Christ also directed others to break the Sabbath day as well: “At that time Jesus went on the sabbath day through the corn; and his disciples were an hungred, and began to pluck the ears of corn, and to eat. But when the Pharisees saw it, they said unto him, Behold, thy disciples do that which is not lawful to do upon the sabbath day.” (Mat 12:1-2); “Jesus saith unto him, Rise, take up thy bed, and walk. And immediately the man was made whole, and took up his bed, and walked: and on the same day was the sabbath.” (Jhn 5:8-9).

Christ also pointed out times when His enemies broke the Sabbath day: “Thou hypocrite, doth not each one of you on the sabbath loose his ox or his ass from the stall, and lead him away to watering?” (Luk 13:15); “Which of you shall have an ass or an ox fallen into a pit, and will not straightway pull him out on the sabbath day?” (Luk 14:5); “and ye on the sabbath day circumcise a man” (Jhn 7:22). They broke the Sabbath to help animals, while He broke the Sabbath to help people. They broke the Sabbath to cut flesh, while He broke the Sabbath to heal flesh.

Of course Christ never sinned. That He broke the Sabbath day to uphold a greater moral good indicates that Sabbath keeping isn’t moral in nature. When questioned about it once, He appealed to David and his men eating the showbread, “How he entered into the house of God, and did eat the shewbread, which was not lawful for him to eat, neither for them which were with him, but only for the priests?” (Mat 12:4). That He put the Sabbath day on the same level as priestly duties which weren’t moral in nature, indicates that Sabbath keeping isn’t either. Furthermore, He also argued “and ye on the sabbath day circumcise a man” (Jhn 7:22). The priests circumcised male babies on the eighth day from birth even if it fell on the Sabbath day. If circumcision was deemed superior to the Sabbath day, and circumcision isn’t required of Christians, why then would Sabbath keeping?

The concept of the Sabbath day is quite simple but we complicate it. Christ said “The sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath” (Mar 2:27). God imposed labor upon man, “In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread” (Gen 3:19), and could very well have required daily work without any rest. It was His mercy to give His people a day of rest which began when manna came down from heaven, “Six days ye shall gather it; but on the seventh day, which is the sabbath, in it there shall be none … So the people rested on the seventh day” (Exo 16:26,30). It wasn’t a duty, “not man for the Sabbath,” but a mercy.

The Sabbath day was given, not for rulers to be sure and give themselves a day of rest but “that thy manservant and thy maidservant may rest as well as thou” (Deu 5:14). When the Law was given, God’s people were told to “Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy” (Exo 20:8). And 40 years later it was explained, “And remember that thou wast a servant in the land of Egypt” (Deu 5:15). They hadn’t been given a day of rest when they were servants in Egypt. Reminding themselves what it had been like as servants themselves would prompt them to be merciful to their own households. And Moses stated that as its purpose, “therefore the LORD thy God commanded thee to keep the sabbath day” (Deu 5:15). Commanding everyone to rest for a day ensured everyone got a day of rest.

The Decalogue, including the Fourth Commandment “Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy” (Exo 20:8), was the law of the Old Covenant, and God’s people are now under the New—the Lord’s commandments. When Paul wrote “One man esteemeth one day above another: another esteemeth every day alike” (Rom 14:5), it was toward the Lord, “He that regardeth the day, regardeth it unto the Lord; and he that regardeth not the day, to the Lord he doth not regard it” (Rom 14:6). Christ commanding “Judge not, that ye be not judged” (Mat 7:1), concerned these very issues, “Who art thou that judgest another man’s servant?” (v. 4), “But why dost thou judge thy brother?” (v. 10), “Let us not therefore judge one another any more” (v. 13). It’s because the Lord didn’t command the Sabbath day that He did command us to not judge. We’re all striving to be faithful to our Lord, “for whatsoever is not of faith [faithfulness] is sin” (v. 23).

Paul penned his last words to Timothy, “And that from a child thou hast known the holy scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus” (2Ti 3:15). Of course, Timothy only had the Old Testament growing up but Paul’s words apply to it all, including the Scriptures still being written. His point is that it’s the Scriptures that give us the wisdom we need to be saved. It’s not preachers, ministries, churches, denominations, creeds, theology books, “Christian” books, podcasts, or websites—it’s the Scriptures.

The entire world is evil because it’s deceived and ruled by the devil: “Of judgment, because the prince of this world is judged” (Jhn 16:11); “To open their eyes, and to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God” (Act 26:18); “In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not” (2Co 4:4); “Who gave himself for our sins, that he might deliver us from this present evil world” (Gal 1:4); “Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air” (Eph 2:2); “Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God?” (Jas 4:4); “And we know that we are of God, and the whole world lieth in wickedness” (1Jo 5:19); “And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world” (Rev 12:9).

If we’re looking to the world for answers, we’re going to get wrong answers because the whole world is deceived. In this utterly “dark” world there’s only one beacon of “light.” There’s only one source for the truth about God, ourselves, salvation, and all essential matters of life—the Scriptures. But we must have the correct understanding of the Scriptures or we still won’t have the truth. For example: if you wrote a letter to someone but they misunderstood the message you intended to convey, then they don’t have your message. God’s message to us is in the Scriptures but we must understand the message He intended to convey. And it all begins with the teaching of Jesus Christ. God sent His Son into this evil world so we would no longer be deceived but know the truth: “grace and truth came by Jesus Christ” (Jhn 1:17); “And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free” (Jhn 8:32); “And if I say the truth, why do ye not believe me?” (Jhn 8:46); “I am the way, the truth, and the life” (Jhn 14:6); “Every one that is of the truth heareth my voice” (Jhn 18:37); “the truth is in Jesus” (Eph 4:21).

Jesus Christ endorsed the Old Testament Scriptures by quoting from them many times and by His statements about them: “Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled” (Mat 5:18); “And it is easier for heaven and earth to pass, than one tittle of the law to fail” (Luk 16:17); “all things must be fulfilled, which were written in the law of Moses, and in the prophets, and in the psalms, concerning me” (Luk 24:44).

Jesus Christ commissioned the New Testament Scriptures by giving His apostles the understanding of the Old and also giving new revelation: “Then opened he their understanding, that they might understand the scriptures” (Luk 24:45); “But their minds were blinded: for until this day remaineth the same vail untaken away in the reading of the old testament; which vail is done away in Christ” (2Co 3:14); “How that by revelation he made known unto me the mystery” (Eph 3:3); “And we know that the Son of God is come, and hath given us an understanding” (1Jo 5:20); “The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave unto him, to shew unto his servants things which must shortly come to pass” (Rev 1:1).

Paul had written to Timothy earlier, “Take heed unto thyself, and unto the doctrine [didaskalia 1319]; continue in them: for in doing this thou shalt both save thyself, and them that hear thee” (1Ti 4:16). And “the doctrine” of which he was speaking is the good doctrine of Jesus Christ as contrasted with doctrines of devils, “giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines [didaskalia 1319] of devils” (v. 1), “thou shalt be a good minister of Jesus Christ, nourished up in the words of faith and of good doctrine [didaskalia 1319]” (v. 6). If we’ll heed the teaching of Jesus Christ, we’ll be saved and we’ll save those that will listen. But if people won’t listen, then they can’t be helped.

What’s great about the information age is that the truth can be spread far and wide very quickly. However, the huge downfall is that there’s much more junk out there than the truth. When searching the internet, we’ll hardly find the truth because what little there is has been buried beneath a massive garbage pile. We have to study the Scriptures ourselves. If any of us think we can be saved apart from understanding the Scriptures, then we think we know better than God Himself. God is the Author of the Scriptures and sent His Son for us to understand His message to be saved, “the holy scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation.”