The One God Revealed in Jesus Christ
A Scripture-first case for God's absolute oneness, Christ's full deity, and Christ's genuine humanity.
Start with the confession Scripture repeats
We do not begin with a philosophical model and then force the Bible to fit it. We begin where Scripture begins: there is one God, YHWH, and there is none beside him.
Deuteronomy 6:4 is not a warm-up verse that becomes less important once we reach the New Testament. Jesus repeats it in Mark 12:29 as the first commandment. Isaiah says the same God is the first and the last, the only Creator, and the only Savior.
Deuteronomy 6:4Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD.
Jesus is not placed beside that God
The New Testament does not introduce Jesus as another divine being standing next to YHWH. It reveals the one God in flesh.
John says the Word was God and that the Word was made flesh. Thomas looks at the risen Jesus and says, “My Lord and my God.” Hebrews addresses the Son as God. Colossians says all the fullness of the Godhead dwells in him bodily. Those are not weak statements. They are direct.
Colossians 2:9For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily.
The incarnation explains the distinction
The Father is the eternal invisible Spirit. The Son is the holy human life conceived in Mary and born in time. That distinction is real because the incarnation is real.
Jesus could pray, obey, suffer, hunger, and die because he was genuinely human. At the same time, the Father was dwelling in him, speaking through him, and doing the works. The distinction does not require two Gods. It requires us to take both deity and humanity seriously.
John 14:9–11He that hath seen me hath seen the Father... the Father that dwelleth in me, he doeth the works.
Read the whole biblical case
A strong doctrine of Christ should not need to explain away the oneness of God, the deity of Jesus, or the humanity of Jesus. It should allow every one of those truths to remain fully stated.
The one God did not send another God to save us. God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself. That is the center of the biblical confession: one God, revealed and present in Jesus Christ for our salvation.
2 Corinthians 5:19God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself.
What this study establishes.
The passages in this study establish the central claim clearly: Jesus Christ is the full revelation of the invisible God in genuine humanity. Read the surrounding chapters, compare every connected passage, and let the explicit testimony of Scripture control the conclusion.
Open the passages for yourself.
Apostolic Guide gives you a starting point, not a substitute for the text. Read each reference in its surrounding chapter, compare Scripture with Scripture, and let the Bible shape your conclusion.
Deuteronomy 6:4
Colossians 2:9
John 14:9–11
2 Corinthians 5:19
Mark 12:29
Take the study further.
Search Scripture, follow doctrine pathways, prepare for conversations, and organize your own studies.
John 1 and Genesis 1
John's opening reveals the eternal Word of the one Creator becoming flesh.
Continue through the Apostolic Guide study series.Read next article