R
RebeccaJ
Guest
Christians believe Jesus IS GOD, not a God.Do you believe Christ was a God before he became human? Do you believe he was human and then ascended to Heaven as God?
Whether you like it or not…Christ is a God with a resurrected human body. He lived a human experience went back to heaven with that body as God.
You must be referring to Isaiah…here it goes.
Code:Thus saith the LORD the King of Israel, and his redeemer the LORD of hosts; I am the first, and I am the last; and **beside me there is no God**.
Passages such as Isa 44:6,8 and 45:5,21 that read “no God beside me” or a variation of that phrase are traditionally interpreted by mainstream anti-Mormons as meaning that other than Yahweh no form of deity exists at all, including exalted men. This type of interpretation at first seems obvious, but after considering similar passages in other parts of scripture it is clear that this interpretation is incorrect.
For example, Isaiah 47:8-10 depicts the city of Babylon as saying:
Code:Therefore hear now this, thou that art given to pleasures, that dwellest carelessly, that sayest in thine heart, I am, and **none else beside me**; I shall not sit as a widow, neither shall I know the loss of children:
Code:For thou hast trusted in thy wickedness: thou hast said, None seeth me. Thy wisdom and thy knowledge, it hath perverted thee; and thou hast said in thine heart, I am, and **none else beside me. **
These passages use the exact same phrase as Isa 44 and 45, yet they certainly do not exclude the existence of any city other than Babylon. The city of Ninevah would be very upset if this were the case, as Zephaniah depicts Ninevah in Zephaniah 2:15 as saying:
Code:This is the rejoicing city that dwelt carelessly, that said in her heart, I am, and there is **none beside me**: how is she become a desolation, a place for beasts to lie down in! every one that passeth by her shall hiss, and wag his hand.
Again it is clear that this phrase does not exclude the very existence of other cities. Using these parallel phrases makes it clear that Isaiah is not excluding the very existence of any other deity when he quotes Yahweh as declaring “there is no God beside me.”
The other so-called gods being referenced here are pagan gods. There are no other gods. Get it? Israel struggled for a long, long time, believing the pagan gods of their neighbors to be real gods, subordinate to their God. God leads them out of this idolatrous belief, eventually. Mormonism is an attempt to revert to error.
This, along with your comments on Ashera, is evidence that Mormons are a paganized version of Christianity, ie, not the True religion, and certainly not Christian.
There are, in fact, several scriptures in the Old Testament that imply that Yahweh is in fact one of a number of Gods, albeit supreme. Compare the following passages from the KJV, NIV and ESV versions of the Bible:God is greatly to be feared in the assembly of the saints, and to be had in reverence of all them that are about him. O Lord God of hosts, who is a strong Lord like unto thee? or to thy faithfulness round about thee? (KJV Psalms 89:5-8)Code:And the heavens shall praise thy wonders, O Lord: thy faithfulness also in the congregation of the saints. For who in the heaven can be compared unto the Lord? who **among the sons of the mighty can be likened unto the Lord?**
There isn’t anything in these passages about gods. God is,served by a heavenly host, most often called angels by us, but given other names as well.Code:The heavens praise your wonders, O LORD, your faithfulness too, i**n the assembly of the holy ones**. For who in the skies above can compare with the LORD? Who is like the LORD **among the heavenly beings** [fn. Lit "sons of god(s)]? In **the council of holy ones** God is greatly feared; he is more awesome than all who surround him. O LORD God almighty, who is like you? You are mighty, O LORD, and your faithfulness surrounds you (NIV Psalms 89:5-8).
, O Lord; neither are there any works like unto thy works (Psalms 86:8).Code:**Among all the gods there is none like unto thee**
Again, a reference to pagan gods who the Israelites viewed as real, and subordinate, to their own God.
he holds judgment (ESV Psalms 82:1)Code:God has taken his place in the divine council; **in the midst of the gods **
Who were the judges of Israel? See Isaiah 3:13-15.
13
The LORD rises to accuse,
stands to try his people.
14
The Lord enters into judgment
with the people’s elders and princes:
You, you who have devoured the vineyard;
the loot wrested from the poor is in your houses.
15
What do you mean by crushing my people,
and grinding down the faces of the poor?
says the Lord, the GOD of hosts.
The judges of Israel were likened to God, for their office of being the judges of the people, as it is proper to the jurisdiction of God to judge. This does not mean the elders and princes of Israel were divine. They were human.
Even the apostle Paul acknowledged the existence of other gods when he said…) 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. 1 Cor 8:5-6For though there be that are called gods, whether in heaven or in earth, (as there be gods many, and lords many,
Please, Paul is talking about the Roman gods, and making a comparison of belief. The same can be said for you: though you call many gods, god, and whether these gods be of heaven or earth, there is but to us One God. We don’t believe your so-called gods are real, and neither did Paul. Christians were martyred for the fact they rejected the Roman gods.
Christians are not pagan, and clearly, in Paul’s time he clarified this. Heed his words.