Is There a Rank among the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit?

 

At that time, the Jews regarded Jesus as a mere man. Therefore, when they heard Jesus say, “I and the Father are one,” they considered His words blasphemy and tried to stone Him.

 

John 10:33 “The Jews answered him, For a good work we stone thee not, but for blasphemy; and because that thou, being a man, makest thyself God.”

 

In other words, the Jews regarded Jehovah God as “high,” and Jesus of Nazareth as “low.” What about us today? Since the Holy Spirit of truth has already made known to us, through the written word of God in the Scriptures, that Jesus has been made both Lord and Christ (Acts 2:36), we have come to know and believe that Jesus is not merely a man, but God. Nevertheless, it seems that some people, even without realizing it, think of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit as though there were some kind of hierarchy among them. I can only guess vaguely that perhaps this is because of the words “Father” and “Son.” In any case, today I would like to consider this matter.

 

I once had an experience related to this with a person who prayed in the name of Jehovah. When I told him that now we must pray in the name of Jesus (John 16:24), he said that people say “Jesus, Jesus” only when their faith is still like that of a child, but mature faith calls upon the name of Jehovah of hosts. He said that he believed in the Trinity, but from the content of the conversation, it was clear that, between “Jehovah” and “Jesus,” he regarded Jehovah as greater.

 

As we know, the name “Jehovah” is not recorded even once in the New Testament. Even when the New Testament directly quotes words written in the Old Testament, we can see that, as in the following passages, it changes “Jehovah” to “the Lord.”

 

Psalm 110:1 “Jehovah saith unto my Lord, Sit thou at my right hand, Until I make thine enemies thy footstool.”

Acts 2:34-35 “34For David ascended not into the heavens: but he saith himself, The Lord said unto my Lord, Sit thou on my right hand, 35Till I make thine enemies the footstool of thy feet.”

 

There are various opinions about the reason for this. But based on the testimony of Scripture, we can know that it is because there are not two names of God given to us.

 

Acts 4:12 “And in none other is there salvation: for neither is there any other name under heaven, that is given among men, wherein we must be saved.”

 

Because the “Jehovah” God recorded in the Old Testament is “Jesus” recorded in the New Testament, only one name, “Jesus,” has been given to us. Therefore, we do not have “two Lords,” but only “one Lord.”

 

Romans 10:12-13 “12For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek: for the same Lord is Lord of all, and is rich unto all that call upon him: 13for, Whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.”

 

Verse 13 in this passage quotes the words of the book of Joel in the Old Testament, where it originally says:

 

Joel 2:32 “And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of Jehovah shall be delivered...”

 

Nevertheless, in the passage from Romans above, “Jehovah” written in Joel is changed to “the Lord.” And since it first says that there is only “one Lord” for both Jews and Greeks, we can know that it is ultimately proclaiming the name of Jesus, saying, “Whosoever shall call upon the name of Jesus shall be saved.”

 

1 Corinthians 12:3 “...and no man can say, Jesus is Lord, but in the Holy Spirit.”

 

Thus, the Holy Spirit of truth causes anyone to confess that “the Lord Jehovah” recorded in the Old Testament is “the Lord Jesus” recorded in the New Testament. Amen. Truly, He is the same “one Lord.”

 

Ephesians 4:5-6 “5one Lord, one faith, one baptism, 6one God and Father of all...”

1 Corinthians 12:4-6 “4Now there are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit. 5And there are diversities of ministrations, and the same Lord. 6And there are diversities of workings, but the same God, who worketh all things in all.”

 

Therefore, we can know that the word written in Joel, “Whosoever shall call upon the name of Jehovah shall be saved,” was not testifying of the name Jehovah, but of the name of Jesus, which would be revealed far later (Acts 2:16-21). For this reason, the Old Testament serves as a shadow that proclaims the true image revealed in the New Testament.

 

Hebrews 10:1 “For the law having a shadow of the good things to come, not the very image of the things...”

 

That is why Jesus also said to the Jews, “The Scriptures bear witness of me.”

 

John 5:39 “Ye search the scriptures, because ye think that in them ye have eternal life; and these are they which bear witness of me.”

 

That is right. All Scripture, written by the inspiration of God (2 Tim. 3:16), bears witness only of Jesus. Therefore, after Jesus, the true image of God (John 1:18), came to this earth, it is only natural that only the name of Jesus should exist. This is why it must be the truth that the name Jehovah does not appear in the New Testament, but only the name of Jesus appears. Jesus Himself also revealed that His name is the Father’s name.

 

John 5:43 “I am come in my Father’s name, and ye receive me not: if another shall come in his own name, him ye will receive.”

 

The Comforter, the Holy Spirit of truth, also came in the name of Jesus. This is because they are all the same one God.

 

John 14:26 “But the Comforter, even the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said unto you.”

 

That is why, when Jesus told His disciples to baptize “into the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,” they baptized only in one name, that is, “in the name of Jesus.”

 

Matthew 28:19 “Go ye therefore, and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them into the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.”

Acts 2:38 “And Peter said unto them, Repent ye, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ unto the remission of your sins; and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.”

 

This is because the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit is “Jesus.” Nevertheless, the reason the same God is distinguished as “Father” and “Son” is that, although Jesus is the form of God, He came to this earth in the form of a servant for our salvation, and as the Son, He personally showed us the example of what it means to fear God and obey Him.

 

Philippians 2:6-8 “6who, existing in the form of God, counted not the being on an equality with God a thing to be grasped, 7but emptied himself, taking the form of a servant, being made in the likeness of men; 8and being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, becoming obedient even unto death, yea, the death of the cross.”

 

John 1:1-3, 14 “1In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2The same was in the beginning with God. 3All things were made through him; and without him was not anything made that hath been made. 14And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we beheld his glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth.”

 

1 Peter 2:21 “For hereunto were ye called: because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, that ye should follow his steps.”

 

Thus, Jesus is God, and even today He is with us as the Holy Spirit of truth (Acts 16:6-7). Therefore, of course, there is no rank among the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. This is because, as we have seen above, for us there exists only Jesus, who is one Lord and one God. This is why we call Him “the Lord Jesus Christ.” Therefore, truly, whoever calls upon the one name, the name of Jesus, shall be saved.

 

John 16:24 “Hitherto have ye asked nothing in my name: ask, and ye shall receive, that your joy may be made full.”

 

Amen.