God is One and God is a Family

Shema Yisrael Yahweh Elohim Echad Yahweh

Hear O Israel, the Lord is God, One is the Lord [Jews call it the SHEMA]

I’d rather not wrangle about the Hebrew grammar and syntax… the gist of it is “there is one God, YHWH [the LORD]”. That much most people agree upon.

Deuteronomy 6:4 the SHEMA trips people up. Misunderstanding this verse and this concept can take you right out of the Church of God! So, who needs to know about this stuff? You do [1 John 5:5].

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How Does The Shema Affect Doctrine?

The Jewish people use the Shema as a proof text to deny that Jesus Christ is the Son of God... on the
same plane as the Father. To them, Jesus’ claims to be on the God level are considered blasphemous and therefore He deserved execution. Many try to take the sharp pointy edges off but the Jewish position is still about the same.

The Catholic Fathers read this verse and developed the Trinity concept to reconcile this “SHEMA” with other clear statements found in the new testament claiming both the Father and the Son Jesus Christ are God. Good examples are: Hebrews 1:8, John 1:1,14.

The new testament scriptures are not offering up something contrary to what we read in Deuteronomy. They also teach that God is one. Good examples are: 1 Corinthians 8:4, 1 Timothy 2:5.

How do we get these seeming contradictions to all work out? We answer that question by asking a question about our assumptions: Is the SHEMA [and other similar biblical statements] commenting on numerical one or as something different?

Definitions of One/Echad

The Hebrew language of the bible has a very limited vocabulary. Often a single word stands for multiple things or concepts. Echad, the Hebrew word for one, can be used in multiple ways:

• Numeric: the number 1: the NC Panthers are number 1 [first] in their division
• One and the same: yep, she’s the one I am going to marry
• Together, unified: the NC Panthers defense played as one
• Each and every: the ants go marching one by one, hurrah, hurrah!
• Alone: there is only 1 Michael Jackson

Three of these fit the grammar and context of the SHEMA. Lets see how:

First

The true God is to be our first priority. This would have been a necessary shift of thinking for the people coming out of Egypt with its many Gods.

The context of the SHEMA supports this approach. Let’s take a look at the following verses: Deuteronomy 6:5 love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength.

Jesus quotes this verse in Matthew 22:36-38. The way it reads here definitely gives you the sense of making God your top priority. So, this seems like a valid interpretation of the use of the word one in the SHEMA.

Alone

YHWH and no other is truly God.

Mark 12:28-34 the Jewish scribe’s reply in verse 32 indicates that this is how he understood the SHEMA… YHWH and no other is truly God. Jesus did not correct this man, or redirect him, so understanding the word ONE as ALONE, or ONLY is definitely a valid interpretation of what the word Echad or ONE means.

Unity

Understanding the Hebrew word ECHAD as unity is how we take all the various statements about who and what God is and reconciling them with the SHEMA. Also, using this definition does not mean we have to throw out the previous two [use example of the Panthers].

Here are some examples of ECHAD used this way: Judges 20:1, 8-11; Genesis 11:6; Genesis 2:24

In all these instances we understand ONE as involving multiple unique individuals. We do not have to perform strange mental gymnastics to merge them all into one single being.

Does Jesus also use this definition of ONE? Yes He does!

• He describes the Father and the Son as, of one mind and purpose – John 4:34; 5:30
• He describes this relationship of the Father and Son as being one – John 10:30
• He uses this idea of being one as a model of unity for the church – John 17:20-22

We certainly don’t need to take these statements and try to conceive of the members of the church as merged into a single being!

All three of these definitions or understandings of the word ECHAD or ONE are useful for understanding the SHEMA.

• God is a unity of Father and Son who think and act as ONE
• God is #1 or top priority
• There is only ONE God who is supreme, and no other

God as a UNITY is also found in the old testament

Understanding God as more than one individual, yet acting as one, is also an old testament concept [although the new testament certainly draws it out more].

Genesis 1:26 the Lord God [YHWH ELOHIM] said “let us make man in our image”

Genesis 3:22-24 the Lord God [YHWH ELOHIM] said “the human has made himself like one of us”

The word ELOHIM is a Hebrew word meaning mighty ones. It comes from the word ELOAH [mighty one] with the suffix IM added to it ELOAH + IM = mighty ones.

How Does This Apply?

Understanding the oneness of God as a unity instead of as one being has two direct applications:

• It guides our teaching and practice of marriage – which is a unity of husband and wife
• It guides our teaching and practice of Church life – which is a unity of many different types of people with a unity or purpose and intent

I have had people tell me they want more practical messages… how do I regulate my life using Godly principles… family, sex, finances, fellowship, depression, suffering etc. Let’s call it the How To model.

My thinking on the matter is that doctrine directs what we like to call Christian living. I can tell you all kinds of principles for improving your marriage or church life. But the doctrinal teaching tells you WHY.

Why we do what we do… is driven by what we hold to be true.

The Unity Of Marriage… Why is it important?

Two separate, unique individuals become one. Their oneness is expressed sexually, legally, and in submission:

Sexually: in marriage the husband and wife come together physically to create new life. Having a child together is a oneness we can grasp using our senses such as sight, touch… mother and father, sperm and egg, your DNA and his DNA, molecules, atoms, etc..

It’s a picture of how God’s spirit works together with our spirit bring about a new eternal life. Which is WHY we should take matters related to human sexuality very seriously. Operating outside the sexual boundaries God has given shows a disregard and disrespect for the spiritual process He is working out. People who have no respect for what God is doing will have no place in the future He is building.

Legally: in marriage the husband and wife come together in a covenant or binding agreement. Promising to remain faithful and exclusive as long as they live.

The marriage covenant is a picture of the loyalty and faithfulness we have towards God… and the loyalty and faithfulness He has towards us. WE will never turn our back on Him now or at some point off in eternity… GOD will never reject or abandon us either now or at some point down the road of eternity. This is why we take matters related to the legal status of marriage very seriously.

Submission: in marriage the husband and wife come together in a relationship of authority: one is in charge, one is not. But they are both responsible to see to the needs, concerns, and well-being of the other.

Making your own needs and desires subordinate to the well being of the other is the very model of how a joy filled eternity will be lived. The structure of authority in marriage is a picture of our own future role in the family of God as the bride of Christ. This is why we take the ROLES given to husband and wife very seriously.

The Unity of Church Life… Why is it Important?

Galatians 3:28 the church is a spiritual organism composed of a variety of origins, race, gender, social status etc. That diversity presents a challenge… but also an opportunity to grow in understanding of the way of life God is trying to teach.

1 Corinthians 12:4-6 the church is a spiritual organism composed of a variety of skills, strengths, personalities, talents etc.

Verses 13-14 go on to echo the same teaching found in Galatians. The church is ONE because we share the same spirit… we are convicted of the same truths… we are committed to the same path of action… we share in one another’s ups and downs.

To be one does not mean we all must be the same.

In God’s reality… variety, individuality, uniqueness and oneness are not mutually exclusive.

Understanding how individuality, variety and uniqueness can come together in harmony and oneness is the key to understanding God’s amazing plan for eternity. Its an understanding that we must learn. It’s a reality we move towards when we live within the boundaries of self control, gentleness, loyalty, honorable, helpful, patient, and concerned for one another.

Some of these lessons we learn through the good times and bad times of church life. That is why God puts you into the organized fellowship of the church. It is your personal responsibility to stick with it… learn the hard lessons and prepare for the future. You simply cannot fully develop as the spiritual creation God intends you to be without active participation in His church.

The Family of God

Some truths of the divine family of God are revealed to us through marriage and the families they create. Some truths about the divine family of God are revealed to us through the fellowship and family of the church.

God is one… God is first… God is the only… God is a family. For now composed of the Father and the Son but poised to include many more.

Romans 8:29 God has always known and determined that there would be additions to the family.

Even though you are not yet resurrected to eternal life, you do not yet have a spiritual body... you are already considered part of the family through the Holy Spirit within you.

A human father and mother conceive a child and watch it grow in the womb. That growing child is theirs, already part of the family, but they are still waiting for that special day when it will come forth to take its first breath of its new life… “you were always my child but now you have taken on a life of your own”.

For the children of God that is the resurrection.

1 John 3:1-2 this is WHY we pursue righteousness and godly living

Conclusion:

Clear doctrinal understanding of what the oneness of God really means is more than just a philosophical debate and wrangling over words. It’s a presentation of the inter connectivity, interdependence, cooperation, and variety of eternal life.

The oneness of God is more than an intellectual construct we must affirm. The oneness of God gives us a model for our marriages, and the biological families which spring from them. Unique individuals… yet one.

The oneness of God gives us a model for our church life [and hopefully our extended social life]. A road-map of cooperation, and loving interaction with others that gives us a classroom, a text book, and lab assignments for eternal living. Diverse… yet one.

A clear understandi9ng of the oneness of God gives us a hope and an open door to be born into the eternal family of God.