The “Jesus Only” movement, also known as Oneness Pentecostalism or oneness theology, teaches that there is only one God, but denies the tri-unity of God. In other words, oneness theology does not recognize the distinct persons of the Godhead: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. It has various forms—some see Jesus Christ as the one God, who sometimes manifests Himself as the Father or the Holy Spirit. The core doctrine of Oneness Pentecostal / Jesus Only is that Jesus is the Father, and Jesus is the Spirit. There is one God who reveals Himself in different “modes.”
Before we look at where Modalism comes from, let’s take a look at the biblical view of the Trinity with this illustration:
Biblical model of the Trinity
Trinitarians believe that just like H2O can be water, vapor or ice and be the identical substance, so too with the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Remember the “Egg illustration” for the trinity? It goes like this: Imagine God as an egg. You have the yolk, the shell and the white part. All the same egg–but very different from one another. The shell is not the yolk, the yolk is not the white, and etc.
If Trinitarians view God as one egg with three parts (white, yolk and shell), Modalists view God as one whole egg with three different names, at different times.
Where did Modalism come from?
Modalism was condemned as heretical as early as the second century A.D, but it is making a big comeback worldwide. What this name means is that God operated in different forms or modes at different times—sometimes as the Father, sometimes as the Son, and sometimes as the Holy Spirit. But passages like Matthew 3:16-17, where two or all three persons of the Godhead are present, contradict the modalism view.
Those associated with this movement are broadly referred to as “Oneness Pentecostals.” Oneness Pentecostalism (also known as Apostolic Pentecostalism or One God Pentecostalism), refers to a grouping of denominations and believers within Pentecostal Christianity, all of whom subscribe to the nontrinitarian theological doctrine of Oneness. This movement first emerged around 1914 as the result of doctrinal disputes within the nascent Pentecostal movement and claims an estimated 24 million adherents today. Not all Pentecostals are in this camp of belief.
A False View of God:
What is a Modalism view of God? Think of a being that can “morph” or “shape shift” from one form into another. There is only one being at any one time. Modalism views God as a being that has three different forms. Sometimes God exists in the “form” the “Father”, sometimes the “Son”, sometime the “Holy Spirit”, BUT NEVER ALL THREE AT THE SAME TIME. The essential difference between Modalism and the Biblical trinity, is that in Modalism, the three members of the Godhood never exist at the same time and in Trinity, they always co-exist at the same time.
Modalists believe that the “role/mode” of the “Son” did not exist before the incarnation and it will cease at the second coming as per 1 Cor. 15:23-28. Modalists teach that generally, God took the role of Father in the OT, the Son during Jesus’ life on earth, and the Holy Spirit during the “church age.” Which begs the question: “Whom was Jesus praying to?” Modalism, therefore, not only contradicts the Bible, it assaults common sense by destroying the utterly obvious distinction in persons between the Father and the Son.
If you want to find out the truth that what the Bible teaches for the Lord Jesus, so you must research in prayer by the Holy Spirit all passages that show who Jesus is. These all passages are in harmony and consistently describe that who the Lord Jesus is. All passages are in the same line and do not conflict one another.
Heretic or wrong doctrine about the Lord Jesus arises thus that a man believes only certain verses, which support his opinion, but he continually passes over verses, which don’t support his opinion. For this reason, he doesn’t see the whole truth, but remain astray. When you want and have courage to research position of the Lord Jesus with all passages, so you will find consistent teaching that who Jesus is. You will see that Jesus is God and in the same the Son of God, but not the Father.
John 14:
8 Philip saith unto him, Lord, shew us the Father, and it sufficeth us.
9 Jesus saith unto him, Have I been so long time with you, and yet hast thou not known me, Philip? he that hath seen me hath seen the Father; and how sayest thou then, Shew us the Father?
10 Believest thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in me? the words that I speak unto you I speak not of myself: but the Father that dwelleth in me, he doeth the works.
This Bible place is one of the favorite passages the supporter of Jesus is the Father doctrine. The wrong teaching says that Jesus’ words that he have seen Me have seen the Father mean that Jesus is the Father. When we read the whole context, so we understand what Jesus meant.
In the verse, the Jesus tells that in a what way they can see the Father. The Father did works through Jesus, in other words; they could see the Father through the works of Jesus, which Father did through Him.
John 1:18 No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him.
John 6:46 Not that any man hath seen the Father, save he which is of God, he hath seen the Father.
The gospel of John chapters 1 and 6 the Lord Jesus says that no man has seen the Father God at any time. These passages prove that when Jesus said that he who has seen Me has seen the Father, so He meant that they had seen the Father through the works of Jesus, but not the Father, because no man has seen the Father at any time. The words of John’s gospel 1:18; 6:46 Jesus brought forth that He is not the Father.
Isa 9:6 For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.
Isa 9:6 is also one of the favorite passages the supporter of Jesus is the Father doctrine. They say that this place proves that Jesus is the Father. Isa 6:9 says that the Son (Jesus) should call the name everlasting Father, but not that the Father is the everlasting Father. The Bible proves this:
Matt 1:23 Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us.
Matt 1:21 And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins.
Jesus comes the Hebrew word Yehoshua, which means God (Yhvh) is salvation. Yehoshua comes from words Yhvh and yasha. Yhvh means the Lord and yasha means save and saviour. Emmanuel means God with us. We see that the Son should be called as God and Yhvh, which are names of the Father. Like this way Isa 6:9 has been fulfilled, and Jesus is not the Father, but must call the names of the Father.
Site reference; http://koti.phnet.fi/petripaavola/JesusisnottheFather.html
Amy, I applaud you for standing up for the doctrine of the Trinity. You are correct to say that the doctrine of modalism has been historically rejected by the ecumenical councils.
The Trinitarian doctrine remains the only metaphysical formulation of God accepted by the mainstream Christian churches, including Orthodox Christianity.
However, you have failed to make a case for why this doctrine is “dangerous,” which is not to say that it isn’t. It very well may be a dangerous heresy, but your program also promotes views that have been historically deemed heretical, which makes your argument rather puzzling.