Thor Can't Save You: The Risks of Arianism

Eventually, while on earth, Thor recovers his famous hammer and discovers his true identity as the god of Thunder…and begins to defend humanity against the forces of darkness.

Thor possess super human strength, power, and can command the weather…yet Thor is not omnipotent, omniscient, or preeminent.

He is the son of the creator of the universe…but because he was born, there was a time when he did not exist. Thor is not eternal but was created. He is a god…but he is not the God. In the words you guys use today…Thor is “him” but he is not HIM!!!

And some people today think the same about Jesus...

Jesus is the Son of God, he is a god, but he is not THE GOD. He is powerful, can perform miracles, took on human flesh, died for our sins, rose from the grave, but he has not always existed…instead he was the first created being born of God.

This is known as the Thor heresy and as we will learn tonight, if we view Jesus like Thor, he cannot save us.

The Heresy

The Thor heresy is famously known in church history as Arianism.

Now, there was a Church founded in Alexandria, Egypt in the 3rd century. The bishop was named Alexander.

Alexander had a church leader under him named Arius.

Arius wanted Alexander’s position as bishop of the church and thought he was next in line until Alexander begin to develop another man as his protege by the name of Athanasius.

When Arius knew he would not take Alexander’s place after he passed (Athanasius would), he knew the only way to become Bishop was to discredit Alexander’s ministry.

Arius did this by painting Alexander as modalist (Ant-Man heresy).

Yet, to separate himself from Alexander’s accused modalism, Arius made a complete distinction between the Father and the Son…so much so, that the Father and Son were not just different persons, but were also different in essence.

Arius said the Father brought the Son into existence…He believed Jesus was god…but he was not THE GOD…the Father was the creator and the Son was the creature…albeit, the first creature.

Arius also believed that after the Father created the Son, he used Son to create everything else.

So for Arius, the Son is similar to the Father in essence but does not contain the same divine essence the Father contains…The Father is superior to the Son…the Son was a god…but not THE GOD.

Arius’ argument was pretty convincing because it made the Trinity easy to understand. It also still allowed for everything the Son did to still be true…the Son created all things (except himself), upholds all things, became a man, lived a perfect life, died for the sins of the world, rose from the dead, and is savior to all those who trust in him.

Arius also defended his position with Scripture from passages such as Colossians 1:15 that says Jesus was the firstborn of all creation…and any passage that referred to Jesus as the “only begotten son,” which seems to imply that Jesus was born and there was a time where he did not exist.

The heresy continued until a council in Nicea was convened in 325 AD to settle the matter and 300 bishops came to make their case either for or against Arius.

Those who were against Arius made clear that the Son was of the same essence (homoousios in the Greek) as the Father and they ended up winning the day.

Arius was declared a heretic and was exiled and the council formulated what we know today as the Nicene Creed....which reads:

The Lexham Bible Dictionary (The Creed of 325)

We believe in one God, the Father Almighty, Maker of all things visible and invisible.And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, begotten of the Father [the only-begotten; that is, of the essence of the Father, God of God], Light of Light, very God of very God, begotten, not made, being of one substance with the Father; by whom all things were made [both in heaven and on earth];Who for us men, and for our salvation, came down and was incarnate and was made man;He suffered, and the third day He rose again, ascended into heaven; from thence He shall come to judge the quick and the dead.And in the Holy Ghost.

However, after Alexander’s death, Athanasius did become Bishop, but Constantine removed Arius’ exile and most of the church followed Arius and not Athanasius and embraced the Thor heresy.

It was not until the late 5th century that the church understood the error in their thinking and embraced the teachings of Athanasius and Nicene Creed on the person of the Son…which shows how this heresy can be easily believed…even still today.

Who Commits the Thor Heresy Today?

Jehovah’s Witnesses

Thinking the Son as inferior to the Father in essence and that the Father is really the one who is God.

Is your view of Jesus as high as the Bible’s view?

What about all the lostness around the world?

Can Jesus actually save all of these wicked and rebellious people? Is following Jesus (which is the main thing that separates us from other religions) worth the high price that conversion would demand them to pay? Because most people of other religions will lose their lives if they choose to follow Jesus....is he really worth it?

Can’t they just believe in God and that be enough (Religious pluralism…Jesus is just one of many ways to God).

This understanding makes Jesus a tribal deity…he is my god but not THE GOD for all people for salvation.

What the Bible Says?

Jesus is the eternal logos (word)

John 1:1-4 “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made. In him was life, and the life was the light of men.”

Jesus is the word: John 1:14.

Before the word became flesh, where was he?

“In the beginning”

The verb form of the Greek word “to be” is the word “was” in verse one, and indicates an action that had already been going on.”

So, when it says, “in the beginning was the word,” means the word was already existing before the beginning of all things in creation!!

Notice that the word is both with God and is God…but how can this be??

The Son is a distinct person from God the Father, but shares the same divine nature with God the Father and God the Holy Spirit.

What is a Jehovah’s Witnesses rebuttal to this verse??

They change the translation:

“In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and the Word was a god...” -New World Translation

No credible Greek Scholar…Christian, agnostic, or atheist, says this is a legitimate translation.

One other issue JW’s have is verse three says the Word created all things. As we learned a few weeks ago, only God can create…which means either the Son is fully God along with the Father and Spirit or there are two different Gods who are both equal.

If the Son was created by God the Father, how could something that is made be the maker of ALL things as verse three states?

Draw line down the middle of paper analogy

What about Jesus being the “only begotten Son” or “firstborn of creation?”

In John 3:16, the KJV says Jesus is the only begotten son. “only begotten” comes from the Greek word monogenes, which can also be translated as “unique” or “one and only.” It does not always necessarily imply a physical birth of the son who is born first.

Example: Hebrews 11:17 “By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac, and he who had received the promises was in the act of offering up his only son,”

Isaac is referred to as the monogenes not because he was Abraham’s first born and only son (Ishmael was born first) but because Isaac was unique because it was Isaac whom the promise of God was given.

Some believe that “only begotten” is still the best translation as it communicates Jesus’ eternal sonship among other things.

But the big thing we must remember is no matter which option we choose…when it comes to interpretation…CONTEXT IS KING!

John has already made clear in chapter 1 that the Son was not created but has always existed with God and is God and all things were made through him.

Therefore, the Son, whether you call him God’s one and only Son or only begotten son was never created and is of the same essence of the Father.

In Colossians 1:15. when it says Jesus is the “firstborn over all creation,” this does not mean Jesus was literally the firstborn but that he holds the highest rank and supremacy over all things.

In verse 16 (again CONTEXT IS KING) it says all things were made through him (Jesus)…therefore, again, how can Jesus be created and the maker of all things?

Why is this Important?

If Jesus is just a demi-god like Thor who is powerful but created, at best we are worshipping two gods, at worst we are worshipping an idol in the place of the one true God and worshipping something much lesser than the Father.

There are three specific reasons why this is important for us today:

We were created by, through, and for the Son

Colossians 1:16 “For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him.”

This means that all people, including you and me, Christians and non-Christians, people in America, Asians in the Pacific, Muslims in the middle east, and everyone in between were created by Jesus, through Jesus, and FOR JESUS.

Jesus is not like Thor who is a god among other gods…a good option for you who live in America, but for us who were raised in the Middle East, we worship Allah…for us who were raised in India we worship Vishnu…for us who were born in China, we follow Buddah....NO.... Jesus is the Lord and King of the Universe and has a claim on every person who has ever lived. This is true whether people accept it or not.

This also means that for us as followers of Jesus, we are called to live for the glory of King Jesus…for we were MADE FOR HIM!

DO YOU LIVE YOUR LIFE LIKE THIS???

The Lord of the Universe is Lord of the Church

Colossians 1:18 “And he is the head of the body, the church...”

Jesus is the Lord of the Church, he identifies himself with the his people.

When Saul was persecuting the people of God, Jesus asked him, “why are you persecuting ME?”

This implies the Lord is in control of his church, all the power and resources of God Almighty are at Jesus’ disposal to lead and grow the church.

The sovereign Lord of the universe is also Lord of the Church, whom he calls his bride, whom he gave his life for. Jesus came to establish a kingdom, to create a people for that kingdom, and then to nurture, guide, and grow them along the way....that is Jesus’ mission!

So, when things seem to be spinning out of control in the world and even in the church today…tsunamis are destroying cities....hurricanes are ravaging towns…a pandemic is killing millions…corrupt leaders are ruling countries…and evil and injustice are running rampant …know that the one who holds all things together with his powerful word is also the one who is Lord over the church....and Matthew 16:18 says Jesus will “build his church…and the gates of hades will not prevail against it!”

This begs the question though…if Jesus identifies himself with his people, the church, can you really say you love Jesus if you do not love his church?

Can you really say Jesus is Lord of your life but you will not submit to the authority of the elders of the church and covenant yourself in church membership?

Can you really say you love Jesus but often refuse to serve at events or outreaches to minister to others in the church or in the community?

Or to look at it a different way…since the church is the body of Christ...Can I really tell Ashley I love her but I don’t love her body?

The real reason why we do not love the local church and the people of God is not because there are hypocrites in the church, or the church is corrupt, or the church does not have good leadership, or the church is not cool enough…but it is due to the fact we do not want to submit our lives to the Lord of the universe who is the Lord of the church....instead, we want to be Lord, we want to be sovereign, we want to be god.

Jesus is YOUR LORD

Not only is Jesus Lord of the Universe and Lord of the Church…if you are in Christ, he is Lord of YOUR LIFE.

This means everything that Jesus is…He is FOR YOU.

He is not only the God who laid his life down to save you…he is the all-powerful God who rose from the dead to keep you, sanctify you and glorify you until he returns.

As Paul says in Romans 8:31-32 “What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things?”

Guys…we have ALL THINGS IN JESUS!! We have all that we need!

Forgiveness, salvation, redemption, life, friendship, contentment, satisfaction, joy, hope, peace, love, comfort, protection…and the list goes on and on.

So may we say as the old hymn goes…TAKE THE WORLD BUT GIVE ME JESUS…O the height and depth of mercy..O the length and breadth of love…o the fullness of redemption..pledge of endless life above!

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