1 Corinthians 8:6 - yet for us there is but one God, the Father, from whom are all things and we exist for Him; and one Lord, Jesus Christ, by whom are all things, and we exist through Him.
The JW will attempt to use this verse to show that the Father and Jesus are two separate beings. They may start by saying “See there is only one God, the Father, therefore Jesus cannot be God because the Bible says the Father is the only God.” This type of hermeneutical interpretation is flawed and I will demonstrate that in this article.
I might respond by testing the waters of the Jehovah’s Witnesses knowledge by asking, “If the Father is the one God and Jesus is the one Lord then is the Father ever called Lord?”
They will respond by stating that LORD (all caps) in the Bible refers to the Father but Lord in the Bible refers to Jesus. Well let’s see if that rule always applies. Shall we?
In 1 Corinthians 8:6 the word “Lord” in the Greek which refers to Jesus is Kyrios. It simply means “Supreme in authority”. Below are many examples where the same exact word is used in relation to the Father.
• Greek – Ho Kyrios = The Lord
Matthew 1:22 - Now all this took place to fulfill what was spoken by the Lord through the prophet:
Mark 5:19 - And He did not let him, but He said to him, "Go home to your people and report to them what great things the Lord has done for you, and how He had mercy on you."
Luke 1:6 - They were both righteous in the sight of God, walking blamelessly in all the commandments and requirements of the Lord.
Luke 1:28 - And coming in, he said to her, "Greetings, favored one! The Lord is with you."
Romans 4:8 - BLESSED IS THE MAN WHOSE SIN THE LORD WILL NOT TAKE INTO ACCOUNT."
Hebrews 7:21 - "THE LORD HAS SWORN AND WILL NOT CHANGE HIS MIND, 'YOU ARE A PRIEST FOREVER' ");
1 Peter 1:25 - BUT THE WORD OF THE LORD ENDURES FOREVER."
• Greek – Kyrios = Lord
Mark 13:20 - "Unless the Lord had shortened {those} days, no life would have been saved; but for the sake of the elect, whom He chose, He shortened the days.
Luke 1:58 - Her neighbors and her relatives heard that the Lord had displayed His great mercy toward her; and they were rejoicing with her.
Acts 7:49 - 'HEAVEN IS MY THRONE, AND EARTH IS THE FOOTSTOOL OF MY FEET; WHAT KIND OF HOUSE WILL YOU BUILD FOR ME?' says the Lord, 'OR WHAT PLACE IS THERE FOR MY REPOSE?
• Greek – Kyrios Ho Theos = The Lord God
Matthew 4:7 - Jesus said to him, "On the other hand, it is written, 'YOU SHALL NOT PUT THE LORD YOUR GOD TO THE TEST.' "
Matthew 4:10 - Then Jesus *said to him, "Go, Satan! For it is written, 'YOU SHALL WORSHIP THE LORD YOUR GOD, AND SERVE HIM ONLY.' "
Matthew 23:37 - And He said to him, " 'YOU SHALL LOVE THE LORD YOUR GOD WITH ALL YOUR HEART, AND WITH ALL YOUR SOUL, AND WITH ALL YOUR MIND.'
Luke 1:16 - "And he will turn many of the sons of Israel back to the Lord their God.
• Greek – Kyrios Sabaoth = Lord of Hosts
Romans 9:29 - And just as Isaiah foretold, "UNLESS THE LORD OF SABAOTH HAD LEFT TO US A POSTERITY, WE WOULD HAVE BECOME LIKE SODOM, AND WOULD HAVE RESEMBLED GOMORRAH."
James 5:4 - Behold, the pay of the laborers who mowed your fields, {and} which has been withheld by you, cries out {against you;} and the outcry of those who did the harvesting has reached the ears of the Lord of Sabaoth.
• Greek – Kyrios Pantokrator = Lord Almighty
2 Corinthians 6:18 - "And I will be a father to you, And you shall be sons and daughters to Me," Says the Lord Almighty.
• Greek – Kyrios Ho Theos Ho Pantokrator = Lord the God, The Almighty
Revelation 4:8 - And the four living creatures, each one of them having six wings, are full of eyes around and within; and day and night they do not cease to say, "HOLY, HOLY, HOLY {is} THE LORD GOD, THE ALMIGHTY, WHO WAS AND WHO IS AND WHO IS TO COME."
Revelation 11:17 - saying, "We give You thanks, O Lord God, the Almighty, who are and who were, because You have taken Your great power and have begun to reign.
• Greek – Kyrios Ton Kurieuonton = Lord of Lords
1 Timothy 6:15 - which He will bring about at the proper time--He who is the blessed and only Sovereign, the King of kings and Lord of lords,
• See also…Lord of Heaven and Earth
Matthew 11:25 - At that time Jesus said, "I praise You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from {the} wise and intelligent and have revealed them to infants.
Luke 10:21 - At that very time He rejoiced greatly in the Holy Spirit, and said, "I praise You, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from {the} wise and intelligent and have revealed them to infants. Yes, Father, for this way was well-pleasing in Your sight.
Acts 17:24 - "The God who made the world and all things in it, since He is Lord of heaven and earth, does not dwell in temples made with hands;
Ok. Now that we have proven that the Father is called Kyrios in the Greek, which is the same word that refers to Jesus let’s get to the part of logically and hermeneutically refuting the JW’s claim.
Let’s now revisit the JW’s claim to 1 Corinthians 8:6. The JW claims that since the verse states that there is only one God, which is the Father that Jesus cannot be God. I might say something to the JW as follows:
“In order to be consistent with your interpretation you would have to say that the Father cannot be Lord since Jesus is the “one Lord”. So I ask you, Is Jehovah not your Lord? If the JW says yes then he is being inconsistent with his interpretation of the verse since Jesus in the only Lord. If he says no then he is in direct violation of what the Watchtower teaches. They simply cannot get around this logically. If the JW interprets “one God” as only applying the Father then he would have to be consistent in applying “one Lord” only to Jesus.
Something else to take note of is Jude 4.
“For certain persons have crept in unnoticed, those who were long beforehand marked out for this condemnation, ungodly persons who turn the grace of our God into licentiousness and deny our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ.”
Notice that Jesus is called our “only Master and Lord”. Once you have answered the JW’s questions ask if he is willing to be consistent with his view in the interpretation of this verse.
Now let’s spend a few minutes detailing exactly what 1 Corinthians says about the Father and the Son.
The Father – 1 Corinthians 8:6 --------The Son – Colossians 1:16
From whom are all things ---------------For by Him “all things” were created
We exist for Him------------------------All things have been created though Him and for Hin
The Son – 1 Corinthians 8:6 -----------The Father – Romans 11:36
By whom are all things -----------------“From Him…all things”
We exist through Him ------------------“through Him….all things”
It seems the terms “from whom” and “by whom” are synonymous. The logic behind that statement is as follows. If I make or create something is it not from me and by me that it is made? If something comes into being by someone (God) then it is naturally from Him as well.
It should also be noted that the same Greek word is used for “from whom” and “by whom”. I’m not a Greek scholar and why it is translated as such is a question for another article. I simply just find that interesting.
Conclusion: 1 Corinthians 8:6 is a powerful and clear affirmation of the essential equality of God the Father and God the Son.
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