“The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is understanding” (Proverbs 9:10). Let us take a closer look at the Holy One as He relates to us.
In man, there is a division between the mind and the heart. The mind is the center of knowledge, reason, and our will. The mind is our brain which processes our five senses. The heart is the center of our feelings and emotions, being centered in our chest.
Consider the text found in Genesis chapter 1:
26 Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to
26 Our likeness; and let them rule over the fish of the sea and over
26 the birds the sky and over the cattle and over all the earth, and
26 over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.”
27 And God created man in His own image, in the image of God He
27 created him; male and female He created them.
Since God created man in His image, perhaps it is reasonable to conclude that there is also a division in God from which He patterned us, where God the Father is the mind and Jesus the heart. In the above passage, who was God speaking to when He said, “Let Us make man in Our image?”
Relationship
The heart is centered in the chest. “No man has seen God at any time; the only begotten God (Son KJV) who is in the bosom of the Father, He has explained Him” (John 1:18). The only begotten God refers to Jesus, being in the bosom or chest of the Father. A foundation for the division of God begins to be laid.
In man, the mind is the center of the will and rules over the heart, which is in submission to the mind. Consider what Jesus said, “Father, if You are willing, remove this cup from Me; yet not My will, but Yours be done” (Luke 22:42). Jesus was in submission to the Father, just as the heart surrenders to the authority of the mind.
The spirit of man can search his innermost being (Proverbs 20:27), and so can the heart of God. The heart cannot see or hear and is dependent upon the mind. The heart searches and makes inquiries, and the mind guides the heart.
Consider what Jesus said concerning the His second coming, “But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father alone” (Matthew 24:36). It seems a paradox that Jesus as God might not know something, but since Jesus is the heart of God this begins to make sense. The Father has fixed the times and epochs by His authority (Acts 1:7) and has set a seal upon this knowledge to be revealed later (Revelations 5:1,5).
The heart is also active in decision-making, which indicates the heart has “thoughts and intentions” (Hebrews 4:12). PascalBlaise Pascal (1623-1662) was a French mathematician, physicist and philosopher. saw this when he said, “The heart has its reasons which reason cannot know.”
Faith and Love
True faith comes from the heart. The mind looks at a ladder to determine whether it can be trusted to hold a person’s weight. The heart trusts in a ladder it cannot see (Genesis 28:12 → John 1:51).
“By faith we understand that the worlds were prepared by the word of God” (Hebrews 11:3), and “All things came into being by Him (Jesus), and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being” (John 1:3). By faith Jesus spoke creation into being. When you consider the magnitude of the universe, Jesus must possess infinite faith.
There are two Greek words for love – φιλέω and ἀγαπάω. The greater love is ἀγαπάω. Consider the verse with greater love, “Just as the Father has loved (ἠγάπησέν)Active Voice • Indicative Mood • Aorist Tense • 3rd Person Singular Me, I have also loved (ἠγάπησα)Active Voice • Indicative Mood • Aorist Tense • 1st Person Singular you” (John 15:9). Then consider the verse with the lesser love, “For the Father Himself loves (φιλεῖ)Active Voice • Indicative Mood • Present Tense • 3rd Person Singular you, because you have loved (πεφιλήκατε)Active Voice • Indicative Mood • Perfect Tense • 2nd Person Plural Me.” (John 16:27). The heart of man has the greater capacity for love, which is also true for the heart of God.
Distinction
Let us suppose there is a polarity with God like the poles of a magnet. One side is repulsed by man because of sin. The other side is drawn to man by compassion and concern. This speaks of two kinds of spirits. When the Samaritans did not receive Jesus as he was traveling to Jerusalem, James and John said, “Lord, do You want us to command fire to come down from heaven and consume them?” But He turned and rebuked them, [and said, “You do not know what kind of spirit you are of; for the Son of Man did not come to destroy men’s lives, but to save them”] (Luke 9:54-56).
The Father must be portrayed as a stern judge, who although he loves us, cannot error in judgment. We are all guilty of sin and worthy of punishment (Romans 3:10-18,23). We cannot come to the Father directly but must come through His Son who said, “No one comes to the Father but through Me” (John 14:6).
If you want access to God you must come through Jesus. You must be cleansed and properly dressed before being presented to the Father. Consider the parable of the Marriage Feast. When the king looked over the guests he saw a man not dressed in wedding clothes. The king said, “Friend, how did you come in here without wedding clothes? And the man was speechless. Then the king said to the servants, ‘Bind him hand and foot, and throw him into the outer darkness’” (Matthew 22:12-13). You must come to the Father through His heart.
Equality
In the fifth chapter of the gospel of John, the Jews were upset that Jesus called God his Father, claiming a special relationship with God. They were also upset that He was healing on the Sabbath, which they considered working on the Sabbath.
17 But He (Jesus) answered them, “My Father is working until now, and I Myself am working.”
18 For this cause therefore the Jews were seeking all the more to kill Him, because He not only was
18 breaking the Sabbath, but also was calling God His own Father, making Himself equal with God.
The Greek word ἴσον translated equal above is an adjective – ἴσοςmasc., ἴσηfem., ἴσονneut. – which means equal in size or quality. For further discussion, go to the Greek Neuter Study.
On another occasion, the Jews were ready to stone Him for blasphemy, “Because You (Jesus), being a man, made Yourself out to be God” (John 10:33). The Jews were having trouble understanding His relationship with the Father.
Shown below is the pivotal text found chapter 2 of Philippians:
05 Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus,
06 who, although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God (the Father) a thing
06 to be grasped,
07 but emptied (ἐκένωσεν)κενόω – to empty, make void • Active Voice • Indicative Mood • Aorist Tense • 3rd Person Singular Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness
07 of men.
08 Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of
08 death, even death on a cross.
09 For this reason also, God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every
09 name,
10 so that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under
10 the earth,
11 and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
Taking a closer look at the original Greek in verse 6, consider the quality of being equal:
Theologians talk about the pre-incarnate Christ, which is Jesus in the Old Testament:
• Melchizedek, King of Salem (Genesis 14:18, Hebrews 7:1-3)
• Abraham at the Oaks of Mamre (Genesis ch. 18)
• Jacob wrestles with Man (Genesis 32:24-30)
• Angel of the Lord in the Burning Bush (Exodus 3:2)
• Joshua with Captain of the Lord’s Host (Joshua 5:13-15)
• Manoah, Samson’s Father (Judges 13:2-24)
Jesus was in a position where He could have made himself equal to the Father, but He emptied Himself. When did He “empty” Himself? Jesus emptied Himself at the beginning (John 17:5), so that the man Melchizedek is the pre-incarnate Jesus. The two angels who rescued Lot took bodily form (Genesis 18:1-2; 19:1), as did the Holy Spirit when He descended as a dove upon Jesus at His baptism (Luke 3:22). The pre-incarnate Christ also appeared in bodily form.
After Jesus emptied Himself He was presented to the angels as someone they could relate to, just as He is presented to us as someone we can relate to. At that time it was said, “Let all the angels of God worship Him” (Hebrews 1:6). It would seem Satan and the forces of spiritual darkness did not truly understand who Jesus was, otherwise “they would not have crucified the Lord of glory” (1 Corinthians 2:8). Jesus was presented as someone less than who He is both then and now. Satan must have thought he could overthrow the Lord of glory.
When Jesus emptied Himself, is there a limit to how much He emptied himself? If there is a limit, it must be the baby born in a stable and placed in a manger – helpless and vulnerable.
Considering the pre-incarnate state of Jesus, it causes one to wonder if Jesus, during His earthly ministry, could travel through time. On one occasion, Jesus caused a boat to move from one point to another instantaneously (John 6:21). Although Jesus altered physical laws (turning water to wine, multiplying food, walking on water, calming a storm, and healing), there is no scriptural evidence of time travel.
Time travel was a question the author pondered as a young Christian. Jesus was already there in the past, so there was no need to travel back in time.
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There is a claim by John Paul JacksonJohn Paul Jackson (1950-2015) was an American author, teacher, and conference speaker. He had an eleventh-hour prophetic ministry, notably the Coming Perfect Storm, and was a leader in dream interpretation. of traveling to Jerusalem and meeting David before he became king. His experience is on YouTube entitled Time Travel, Open Portals, Cloud of Witnesses Experience.
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This study takes a literal interpretation of scripture. The analogy of water is used with the Spirit, such as the living water (John 4:10) and the water of life (Revelation 22:1,17). All scripture quotations are from the New American Standard Bible (NASB 1995) unless otherwise noted. This is one of the best literal translations.
Adonai
The word Adonai translated as Lord occurs 456 times in the Old Testament. In chapter 6 of the book of Isaiah, the prophet Isaiah saw Adonai, the LORD of hosts:
1 In the year of King Uzziah’s death I saw the Lord (Adonai) sitting on a throne, lofty and exalted,
1 with the train of His robe filling the temple.
2 Seraphim stood above Him, each having six wings: with two he covered his
face, and with two he
2 covered his feet, and with two he flew.
3 And one called out to another and said,
3 “Holy, Holy, Holy, is the LORD (Yahweh) of hosts,
3 The whole earth is full of His glory.”
4 And the foundations of the thresholds trembled at the voice of him who called out, while the temple
4 was filled with smoke.
5 Then I said,
5 “Woe is me, for I am ruined!
5 Because I am a man of unclean lips,
5 And I live among a people of unclean lips;
5 For my eyes have seen the King, the LORD (Yahweh) of hosts.”
The apostle John said, “No one has seen God at any time” (John 1:18), which Jesus clarified by saying that no man has seen the Father (John 6:46), so Isaiah must have seen the pre-incarnate Christ (John 12:41).
One might ask, would the Lord be willing to share such glory as Isaiah saw? “I am the LORD, that is My name; I will not give My glory to another” (Isaiah 42:8). If Jesus was only a man or a created being, would the LORD be willing to give His glory to him? The LORD would be willing since “He (the Son) is the radiance of His (the Father’s) glory and the exact representation of His (the Father’s) nature” (Hebrews 1:3).
Consider the following verse in chapter 110 of Psalms:
1 The LORD (Yahweh) said to my Lord (Adonai), “Sit at My right hand until I make Your enemies
1 a footstool for Thy feet.”
Jesus knowing this verse in Psalms referred to Him, asked a question being found in Mark chapter 12:
35 Howis it that the scribes say that the Christ is the son of David?
36 David himself said in the Holy Spirit,
36 “The Lord said to My Lord,
36 ‘Sit at My right hand,
36 Until I put Your enemies beneath Your feet.’”
37 David himself calls Him ‘Lord’; so in what sense is He his son?
If indeed this verse in Psalms refers to Jesus, then God the Father was talking to His son addressing Him as Adonai. Furthermore, the Father promised to put “All things in subjection under His(Jesus)feet” (Ephesians 1:22), including His enemies.
Wisdom
Consider the scripture, “Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God” (1 Corinthians 1:24). Where does wisdom reside? “Wisdom will enter your heart, and knowledge will be pleasant to your soul” (Proverbs 2:10), and “Wisdom rests in the heart of one who has understanding” (Proverbs 14:33). The heart is the storehouse of wisdom and Jesus is the heart of God, it follows that Jesus is the wisdom of God. As a youth, this quality became evident since “Jesus kept increasing in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and men” (Luke 2:52).
The word of knowledge and the word of wisdom are two “knowing”The third knowing gift is the discerning of spirits. gifts empowered by the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 12:8), and their messages proceed from their respective sources. The word of knowledge resides in the mind of the gifted believer and aligns itself with the Father. The word of wisdom resides in the heart and aligns with the Son. Their messages differ just as the heart differs from the mind.
The first recorded instance of the word trinity was by Theophilus of Antioch (120-190 A.D.), an early bishop in the church. He considered the trinity to be God, Logos, and Wisdom, where the latter term is the Holy Spirit. Let us consider that the Holy Spirit aligns with the heart of God.
A God?
Consider the verses, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He (Jesus) was in the beginning with God” (John 1:1-2). These verses appear straightforward, but there is a problem with the Greek.
The description below is an experience the author had when he was a young man:
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Another Christian challenged the author, who showed him an article in a magazine. The heading of the section in question read, HOW WISE IS MAN? As the scribe read aloud this heading, he felt something in his chest flip over, and words came out of his mouth, “Man is as wise as his god.” These words came directly from my heart to my mouth without my mind initially understanding them.
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As a teaching moment, the Spirit indicated these words were from Him and not from myself. There are many times when the Spirit speaks quietly, and we do not realize it is Him speaking through us.
John 1:1
Ἐν
preposition • with dative
ἀρχῇ
noun fem. • dative • singular
ἦν
verb • εἰμί • imperfect • 3rd per. sing.
ὁ
definite article • nominative • singular
λόγος
noun masc. • nominative • singular
καὶ
conjunction
ὁ
definite article • nominative • singular
λόγος
noun masc. • nominative • singular
ἦν
verb • εἰμί • imperfect • 3rd per. sing.
πρὸς
prepostion • with accusative
τὸν
definite article • accusative • singular
θεόν
noun masc. • accusative • singular
,
comma
In
[the] beginning
was
the
word
and
the
word
was
with
the
God
,
καὶ
conjunction
θεός
noun masc. • nominative • singular
ἦν
verb • εἰμί • imperfect • 3rd per. sing.
ὁ
definite article • nominative • singular
λόγος
noun masc. • nominative • singular
.
punctuation • full-stop
and
God
was
the
word
.
The definite article usually translates as the, and when a noun does not use a definite article, it may translate as a or an. A large group in America believes the latter part of this verse must translate as “and the Word was a god” (John 1:1 NWT) since the definite article is missing.
Is it a hard and fast rule to always translate a noun without the definite article as a or an? Consider the verse below where the definite article is missing but translated as if it was present. “For this we say to you by the (a the) word of the (a the) Lord (κυρίου), that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord (τοῦ κυρίου), will not precede those who have fallen asleep” (1 Thessalonians 4:15). If this rule was consistent the missing articles in question should translate, a word of a lord or a lord’s word.
Now consider the same verse translated by another translator, “For this is what we tell you by Jehovah’s word, that we the living who survive to the presence of the Lord will in no way precede those who have fallen asleep in death” (1 Thessalonians 4:15 NWT). If the NWT translator was consistent, it should translate a word of a jehovah or jehovah’s word. The original Greek may indicate that the Lords (κυρίου) are the same, where two identical nouns may share a definite article.
There is no problem with John 1:1 when you consider that Jesus is the heart of God. He is neither a god nor the totality of God.
Takes Two
Consider the two verses, “God is love” (1 John 4:8) and “Hear, O Israel! The LORD is our God, the LORD is one” (Deuteronomy 6:4)! Philosophically, it takes two to love, so if God is love and at the same time He is one, who can He Love? God the Father as the mind and Jesus as the heart have always existed; their relationship based on love transcends time (John 17:24).
If there is a dispute between two parties, it takes a mediator to settle the dispute. Consider the verse, “For there is one God, and one mediator also between God (the Father) and men, the man Christ Jesus” (1 Timothy 2:5). Jesus is “the mediator of a new covenant” (Hebrews 12:24). Therefore Jesus was sent out of heaven to settle the dispute between God and man. He was the only one who could arbitrate this dispute since He was God manifest in the flesh. The agreement hammered out now needs to be ratified by men.
Salvation
In man, the head and heart working together result in salvation, “That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation” (Romans 10:9-10 KJV). Similarly, the Father and the Son working together brought about salvation for man.
An understanding that Jesus is part of the Godhead is essential for salvation. Jesus spoke to the Jews, “You will die in your sins; for unless you believe that I am He, you will die in your sins” (John 8:24). The I AM is about the message at the burning bush where God (Elohim) said to Moses, “Thus you shall say to the sons of Israel, ‘I AM has sent me to you’” (Exodus 3:14).
What is the basis of salvation? “For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, that no one may boast” (Ephesians 2:8-9). In keeping with the character of God, He offers salvation as a gift. The more it costs God to give His gift of salvation, the more difficult it would be for the recipient to try to repay. Therefore the cost of salvation would be too great for anyone to earn it through their good works.
This salvation worked out by the Father and purchased with the blood of Christ is exclusive, there being no other. The apostle Peter said, “There is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name (the name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene, verse 10) under heaven that has been given among men by which we must be saved” (Acts 4:12). Since there is no one greater than the Father and the Son, they determine the requirements for salvation. Satan, though he is an archangel having great authority, does not have authority to offer a different gospel (Galatians 1:8).
It was no small task to be victorious over the devil and to endure the cross. What kind of sacrifice could atone for the magnitude of sin in the world (1 John 2:2)? Jesus did as “the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world” (John 1:29).
The apostle Paul said, “We maintain that a man is justified by faith apart from works of the (the a) Law” (Romans 3:28).
This seems to contradict what James said, “What use is it, my brethren, if someone says he has faith, but he has no works? Can that faith save him?” (James 2:14). James goes on to say, “You see that a man is justified by works, and not by faith alone” (James 2:24).
Although James was a wise teacher, it is necessary to find fault with him. Consider the verse, “For just as the body without the spirit is dead, so also faith without works is dead” (James 2:26). Rewriting this verse to give it life, “For just as the spirit gives life to the body, so also works give life to faith.” Does this verse stand up to a logical analysis? Consider which statement is true:
A. The body : the spirit :: faith : works.
B. The body : the spirit :: works : faith.
Statement B seems correct, where the body agrees with works, and the spirit agrees with faith. Therefore the above verse should read, “For just as the body without the spirit is dead, so also faithworks without worksfaith is dead” (James 2:26 Adjusted). Rewriting the above verse to give it life, “Just as the spirit gives life to the body, so also faith gives life to works.” Therefore faith is primary, and works follow. It must be a living faith to make our otherwise dead works (Isaiah 64:6) come to life.
There is a big difference between putting your trust in Christ and putting your trust in your good works. “If righteousness comes through the (the a) Law, then Christ died needlessly” (Galatians 2:21). Any righteousness we have comes from Christ and not from ourselves (2 Corinthians 5:21).
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Going Further
In the tabernacle built by Moses in the wilderness, there was a division – The Holy Place and the Holy of Holies, being separated by a veil, which represents Jesus’ flesh (Hebrews 10:20). The tabernacle had a court enclosed by a fence with a gate at the east end. If the Holy Place corresponds to Jesus the Son, then the Holy of Holies corresponds to God the Father. Is this another way of saying we have had access to the Father through the Son? Is this another way of saying that Jesus stands in the gap between the Father and men? Therefore, “we have confidence to enter the holy place by the blood of Jesus” (Hebrews 10:19).
Once a year on Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement, the high priest would enter the Holy of Holies to burn incense and to atone for “The sins of the people committed in ignorance” (Hebrews 9:7). Therefore, the sins of ignorance or unconfessed sins must be dealt with before we have total forgiveness, which will happen after we give an account of ourselves at the judgment (Ecclesiastes 12:14, Matthew 12:36). Those saved are under grace (Romans 6:14), so God can deal favorably with us even though we are not spotless.
We were created in the image of God, so the tabernacle must apply to us in some way. In man, there is a cistern located in the chest. When the heart and mind begin to talk to one another, a “channel” opens up from the top of the cistern to the base of the brain. The channel is active during communications and then disappears after.
Perhaps this is what PascalBlaise Pascal (1623-1662) was a French mathematician, physicist and philosopher. meant when he said, “There is a God-shaped vacuum in the heart of each man which cannot be satisfied by any created thing but only by God the Creator.” God intended to fill this void with His Spirit, but after the fall of man, it remains unfilled and corrupted (Jeremiah 17:9).
A teaching moment occurred with implications concerning our spiritual makeup, where an object in my chest became observable.
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At first glance, it looked like a hillbilly-like jug, tapered at the top with no door or opening seen. At first, the author thought it was a temple, but there was no door where you might expect one. Since it looked like a container of sorts, the term cistern seemed to apply. The size of the cistern was about a pint or a litter.
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When communications started, a narrow straight tube formed from the top of the object to the base of my brain. A good term to describe this link is a channel.
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This container may be the flasks or vessels mentioned in the parable of the Ten Virgins (Matthew 25:4).
All Things New
God will begin a new chapter in his Lordship since He said, “Behold, I am making all things new” (Revelation 21:5). Jesus was “the mystery which for ages has been hidden in God” (Ephesians 3:9), but now “He is the Lord of lords and King of kings” (Revelation 17:14). As a result of Jesus fulfilling His ministry, the Father has highly exalted Him and given Him the name above every name (Philippians 2:9). Therefore the Father can trust Him with all things, and we can trust him for eternal salvation (Hebrews 5:9).
A change has also occurred with the Father. When He sees the blood of His Son on a redeemed person, He cannot see the sin the blood is covering. The Father will not investigate further but has chosen not to remember the sin (Hebrews 8:12, Jeremiah 31:34). Does this mean God is no longer omniscient, all-knowing?
God remembers the sparrows and has numbered the hair on our heads (Luke 12:6-7), yet He has chosen to forget some aspects of our lives. God has not forgotten the sins of the world, For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men” (Romans 1:18). Jesus provided a way as “the propitiationAtoning sacrifice, appeasement, expiation, sin-offering. for our sins; and not for ours only, but also for those of the whole world” (1 John 2:2).
Creation
Let us consider the role Jesus had in creation. “He was in the world, and the world was made through (δι᾽) Him, and the world did not know Him” (John 1:10), and again, “There is but one God, the Father, from whom are all things, and we exist for Him; and one Lord, Jesus Christ, by (δι᾽) whom are all things, and we exist through (δι᾽) Him” (1 Corinthians 8:6). The preposition διά or δι᾽ with the genitive case may translate as either through or by means of, so the world came into being through Him or by means of Him.
Consider the scripture found in chapter 1 of Colossians:
15 He(the beloved Son) is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation.
16 ForbyThe preposition ἐν means in or by. Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether
16 thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities – all things have been created through (δι᾽) Him and for
16 Him.
17 He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together.
18 He is also the head of the body, the church; and He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; so
18 that He Himself will come to have first place (preeminence KJV, supremacy NIV) in everything.
Some reason that Jesus is himself a created being, having been created before all the other created things. Their reasoning is based on the phrase “firstborn of all creation.” As demonstrated, Jesus is more than a created thing since He existed with the Father for eternity.
Jesus holds the first place in all things – being the first man resurrected and having the first place in creation. According to the law of inheritance, the firstborn was to receive the double portion (Deuteronomy 21:17). Jesus, the firstborn of the Father, has been “appointed heir of all things” (Hebrews 1:2). So when does Jesus receive His inheritance?
Under normal circumstances, the son receives the inheritance after the father dies. In the parable of the Prodigal Son (Luke 15:11-32), the father divided his estate between his two sons while the father himself was still alive. Perhaps God the Father will do the same thing. We know that Jesus has been given all authority in heaven and on earth (Matthew 28:18) and all judgment given to Him (John 5:22).
Now as to creation itself, consider the verses, “For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it, in hope” (Romans 8:20), and “The whole creation groans and suffers the pains of childbirth together until now” (Romans 8:22). The verses above have two meanings, both of which may be true. On the one hand, creation has a will and is in submission to the Father. Does this mean the Spirit of God has an active role in holding all things together (Colossians 1:17)? On the other hand, creation is governed by the laws of physics, the plants, and animals by their genetic coding. After God made the heavens and the earth, He rested from the His work (Genesis 2:2-3). Although God has finished this phase of creation, He did not abandon us but remains very close to each of us (Acts 17:27-28). God is holding all things together, and at the same time, creation remains subject to the laws He established.
Until the new heaven and earth come into being (Revelation 21:1), the headship of the Father will continue. The Father has made agreements that He must keep, and His anger quenched. Even though Satan is an adversary, the Father will keep His agreement with him.
Jesus is the heart of creation, and the Father is the designer, and the plans for the new heaven and earth are already on the drawing board, ready to be implemented (1 Corinthians 2:9).
According to the study of eschatology, the area of theology dealing with the end times, Satan is given seven years during which the Antichrist reigns. Within this time, the Great Tribulation occurs. Jesus spoke of this time in Matthew chapter 24:
21 “There will be a great tribulation, such as has not occurred since the beginning of the world until now, nor ever will.
22 Unless those days had been cut short, no life would have been saved; but for the sake of the elect those days will be cut short.”
Things become so bad that God has to step in and stop the carnage, which means He cuts Satan’s time short. Consider chapter 20 of the book of Revelation:
2 “And he (an angel) laid hold of the dragon, the serpent of old, who is the devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years;
3 and threw him into the abyss (bottomless), and shut it and sealed it over him, so that he would not deceive the nations any longer, until the thousand years were completed; after these things he must be released for a short time.”
Satan is released from the abyss to complete the agreed-upon time. This event is similar to the movie StarTrek with Chris Pine and Zachary Quinto. Spock prepares for a technical career in Star Fleet, only to have his world destroyed by a man from another time.
Division Summary
“And by common confession, great is the mystery of godliness:
He who was revealed in the flesh,
Was vindicated in the Spirit,
Seen by angels,
Proclaimed among the nations,
Believed on in the world,
Taken up in glory” (1 Timothy 3:16).
God the Father is the head, and Jesus is the heart of God. The various characteristics of the Father and Son, as they relate to the head and heart, were shown to confirm the division found in the Godhead. The two work together as one, but each is unique in its own right.
The Father and the Son complement each other. When you consider that God the Father (A) and Christ Jesus (B) are equal (Philippians 2:6), this does not mean two equal parts, two identical halves, which the verse, “I and the Father are one” (John 10:30), might seem to indicate.
(A = B and A + B = 1 ∴ A = B = ½)
Jesus gives heart, feelings, and emotions to the Godhead. It is good to know that Jesus, as the heart of God, is just as big as the mind of God.
The question of the divinity of Jesus will be discussed further in the Is Jesus Good? webpage. The part the Father and the Holy Spirit have in the Godhead is discussed next.
Regarding the question asked earlier, who was God talking to when He said, “Let Us make man in Our image” (Genesis 1:26). The Father and Son were talking to one another, which is the division found in the Godhead.
