Arian (Jehovah's Witness) Subordination Refuted

Arian Subordination Refuted

Arian Subordination Defined	"Arian subordination" is taught by Jehovah's Witnesses and Christadelphians. These false teachers use the fact that of Christ's subordination, to prove Jesus is not God, but a creature. They reason it is impossible for God to serve, and if He does, he ceases being God.
"Dogwoman" copyright Paula Rego	Are Jehovah's Witness females sub-human? When a female Jehovah's Witness tells you Christ is a lower "life form" than the God because He submits to the Father, ask her if she is a lower life form than her husband because she must submit to him! Ask, "Are you not human because you submit to your husband?" Neither is Jesus less than God because He submits to the Father!

Jehovah's Witnesses are generally not honest enough to actually answer the question. Instead they will start babbling on some irrelevant tangent as a smokescreen to hide the fact they were outright refuted by our question! Here is the obvious answer to the question they knew in their hearts to be true:

Is a wife equal to her husband? Yes and no. She is equal as a class of being (human), but not equal in rank. Wives must submit to their husbands (1 Peter 3:1; Eph 5:22;33) and are not permitted to teach men or hold oversight positions over men in the church. (1 Tim 2:11-12). Yet men are commanded to "grant her honor as a fellow heir of the grace of life, so that your prayers may not be hindered" (1 Peter 3:7). This illustrates in exact parallel, the relationship between the Father and Christ. Although the wife is a lower rank below the man (submit), she is his equal as a human (fellow heir).
Is Christ equal to Father? Yes and no. Christ is equal as a class of being (God), but not equal in rank. "But I want you to understand that Christ is the head of every man, and the man is the head of a woman, and God is the head of Christ." (1 Corinthians 11:3)
If God being head over Christ makes God a higher life form than Christ, then man being head over woman makes man a higher life form than woman. Conversely, if a wife is a lower class of being than man because she submits to him, then Christ is a lower class of being than God because He submits to God.
If the Father is greater because Jesus served Him, then Christians are greater than Christ, because Christ served us! Mark 10:45 "For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many."

When Anti-Trinitarians can properly understand this concept, they will never again use the submission of Christ to the Father as proof Jesus is a creature!

Is Christ equal to God? Yes and No!

God is head over man and animals because he is a higher class of being.
Man (human) is head over all animals (fish, dogs, birds etc.) because humans are a higher class of being than animals.
The Father is head over Christ in rank and authority, not class of being.
Man is head over woman in rank and authority, not class of being.
Christ submitting to the Father does not mean Christ is a lower class of being than Him.
Although a wife is equal to her husband as a class of being (human), he holds a higher position in rank order over her by virtue of the appointment of God.
Although an employee is equal to the boss as a man (class of being), the employee must submit to him because he holds a higher rank since he is the boss.
The Prime Minister of Canada is by virtue of his office greater in position than all other citizens, but they are all his equal as a men.
Children must obey their parents, but are still counted as equals humans.


	Class of being	Rank order
God and Christ	Equal beings	Christ submits
God and man	Man inferior beings	Man submits
Man and wife	Equal beings	Wife submits
Man and animals	Animals inferior beings	Animals submit
Parents and children	Equal beings	Children submit
Boss and employee	Equal beings	Employee submits

The subordination of Christ to the Father:


Choices that cause us to be "down ranked" in authority!
	Before making the voluntary choice	After making the voluntary choice
Man and his employer	Equal to the boss: doesn't have to submit to the boss	A lower rank than Boss: Must submit to the boss
Woman and her wedding day	Equal to her fiancée: doesn't have to submit to her fiancée before marriage	A lower rank than her husband: Must submit to her husband
Christ and the incarnation	Equal to God: doesn't have to submit to God	A lower rank than God: Must submit to God
Phil 2:5-8 says that before the incarnation, Christ was equal to God, but when Christ chose to empty himself of this equality with God, he became obedient to the Father.

Conclusion:

Anti-Trinitarians create a false dilemma in the mind of the reader by projecting the false illusion that if Jesus is subordinate to the Father, that he cannot be God! A wife is subordinate to her husband, but is equal in nature. Her rank is lower, but she is made of the identical stuff as the man!
Arians don’t understand that many Trinitarians openly teach the subordination of Jesus and the Holy Spirit to the Father. Biblical Trinitarians teach that the Divine, eternally pre-existent Jesus, is subordinate to the Father.
The Athanasius creed is nothing more than human attempts to describe the raw Biblical data of the trinity, namely the deity of Christ and the personality of the Holy Spirit. Although they correctly define the Son and Holy Spirit as persons of God, they err in their view that the three are equal and not subordinate.

By Steve Rudd

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