|
"Take
Heed" Ministries
|
|
Cecil Andrews, 29 Edengrove Park, Ballynahinch, BT24 8AZ, Northern Ireland Telephone/Fax 028 9756 5511. E-MAIL - takeheed@aol.com WEBSITE - http://www.takeheed.net Quick Links - Home - Assorted Articles - Audio/Video - Ministry Newsletters - Words of Wisdom |
The central error of ‘ONENESS’ refuted
Alan Cairns in his ‘Dictionary of Theological Terms’ has this entry
on page 121 under he heading of ‘Sabellianism’ – ‘A form of Unitarianism
named after Sabellius, a third century African Bishop; the heresy of modalistic
monarchianism. It is the view that God is not only one single essence but
one single person. Thus the names Father, Son and Holy Spirit are
not personal names but modes or relations of the one divine person in His
dealings with man. According to Sabellians the term Father referred
to this one divine person when His incomprehensible greatness and sovereignty
were in view. Son referred to His revelation to men and His becoming
incarnate. Holy Spirit referred to His operating immediately upon the
creature in the works of creation, providence or grace. In modern times Swedenborgianism
and some so-called “ONENESS” sects have adopted Sabellian views’.
In early January I was contacted by a sister in Christ from Canada who
was seeking information on what ‘Oneness’ groups believe as a friend’s
daughter had apparently recently become involved with one such grouping. Worldwide one of the largest of these
groupings would be the United Pentecostal Church and locally here in
Northern Ireland we have The Churches of God.
The ‘Oneness’ movement arose as a result of a claimed
‘revelation’ [of ‘oneness’] supposedly given to R E
McAllister at a Camp Meeting held near Los Angeles in 1913. The fall-out from
this ‘revelation’ eventually led to a split by adherents of this ‘Oneness’ teaching
from the Assemblies of God in 1916.
This teaching was, according to what we read on page 27 of John
Montgomery’s booklet - ‘Evangelical or Heretical? An examination of the
Churches of God in Ulster’ - “brought to Ulster by Gordon Magee about
1955. The following statement from his book confirms this – ‘The author of
this booklet [Gordon Magee]
was used by God to
pioneer the Oneness revelation in the British Isles. His ministry was
particularly fruitful in Ireland’ [p 2]. The ‘fruitful’ ministry in Ireland means Mr
Magee’s success in converting the Churches of God from Trinitarianism to
Oneness”.
One of the early pastors/preachers in the Churches of God, James
Forsythe stated ‘We believe that there is one God who has manifested Himself
as Father, as Son and as Holy Spirit, He is the Father in the manifestation of
His deity, He is the Son in the manifestation of His humanity, and He is the
Holy Spirit dwelling in the hearts of His people…. Father, Son and Holy Spirit
are merely 3 offices of Jesus Christ in the same way as He is prophet, priest
and king’ [John Montgomery –
page 9].
Some years ago [as you will
see at a time when Tony Blair was Prime Minister of the UK] I spoke by invitation on the subject of the local ‘Oneness’
grouping here, the Churches of God and this is how I addressed
their views of ‘Oneness’ and their use of the terms Father, Son
and Holy Spirit.
The Church of God as we have just seen claim that
‘Jesus ALONE’
is GOD and as God He holds 3 ‘offices’
Now let’s reduce this to ‘human terms’ –
it’s like saying that
Tony Blair could
hold ‘3 cabinet posts’
Prime Minister
Chancellor of the Exchequer
Foreign Secretary
Now let’s suppose there is a ‘court case’
and Tony’s friend Peter Mandelson is in the dock
and in his defence Peter Mandelson says
and he then proceeds to call
The Chancellor of the Exchequer
The Foreign Secretary
Each time it would be Tony Blair
stepping into the witness box.
Of course not! In their view only 1 witness
[holding multiple offices] would have testified
Multiple offices but only 1 witness
Now, let me quote from John chapter 8
13 The Pharisees therefore said unto him, Thou bearest
record of thyself; thy record is not true. 14 Jesus answered and said unto them, Though I bear
record of myself, yet my record is true: for I know whence I came, and
whither I go; but ye cannot tell whence I come, and whither I go. 17 It is also written in your law, that the testimony of
two men is true. 18 I am one that bear witness of myself, and the Father that sent me
beareth witness of me.
According to the Church of God theology,
Jesus would be ‘bearing witness’ in 2 ‘roles’ OR ‘offices’
as FATHER and SON
Multiple offices but only 1 witness
YET JESUS QUOTED DEUTERONOMY 17:6
TO SHOW THAT HE AND HIS FATHER ARE
TWO SEPARATE WITNESSES
The Church of God does not honour
the God of the Bible
for Jesus Himself said in John 5:23
“He that honoureth not the Son honoureth
not the Father which hath sent him”
The
‘Oneness Doctrine’ of the Church of God is simply a
‘dressed-up’ version of the 3rd Century heresy known as
[named after a 3rd
Century African Bishop who introduced it]
Is the teaching of ‘Oneness’ a matter over which to be seriously
concerned – emphatically the answer is ‘yes’ for we read from the opening 7
verses in 2nd John of the apostle John’s absolute delight
with those believers to whom he is writing and it is couched in these terms “unto
the elect lady and her children whom I love in the truth and not I only
but also they that have known the truth. For the truth’s sake
which dwelleth in us and shall be with us forever… I rejoiced greatly that I
found of thy children walking in truth… for many deceivers are entered
into the world”.
Adherence to gospel truth brought immense joy to John and then in verse
9 he plainly stated the seriousness of holding to or teaching error pertaining
to the Person of the Lord Jesus Christ – “Whosoever transgresseth and
abideth not in the doctrine of Christ, HATH NOT GOD. He that abideth in the
doctrine of Christ, he hath BOTH the Father and the Son”.
‘Oneness’ which is a
clear violation of ‘the doctrine of Christ’ and indeed of the whole
Godhead is serious to the point where, according to John, those who believe it ‘have
not God’.
Cecil Andrews – ‘Take Heed’ Ministries - 12th
January 2010