Reply to Anba Takla website: (What does “My Father is greater than I” mean?)

 

Questions of theology, faith and doctrine
Question: What is the meaning of the verse that says: "My Father is greater than I"?! The priest's answer: This verse does not indicate that the Father is greater than the Son, because they are one in essence, nature and divinity. I would like to point out here the danger of using a single verse. Whoever wants to extract a doctrine from the Bible must understand it as a whole, and not take a single verse independently from the rest of the books, to deduce from it a special concept that contradicts the spirit of the entire Bible, and contradicts the rest of the Bible! It is sufficient here to record what the Lord Christ said: "I and the Father are one" (John 10:30). One in divinity, in nature, and in essence. This is what the Jews understood from this, because when they heard it, "they took up stones to throw at Him" ​​(John 10:31). The Lord Christ repeated the same meaning twice in his communion with the Father, when he said to Him about the disciples: “Father, keep them in your name whom you have given me, that they may be one, as we are one” (John 17:11). He also repeated this phrase, “that they may be one,” just as we are one divinity and one nature. How many phrases did He say about His unity with the Father? Such as His saying: “He who has seen me has seen the Father” (John 14:9). And His saying to the Father: “All that is Mine is Yours, and all that is Thine is Mine” (John 17:10). And His saying about this to His disciples: “All that the Father has is Mine” (John 16:15). (You will find the full text of the Holy Bible here on St-Takla.org ) So He is not less than the Father in anything, since everything that the Father has is His.. And also His saying, "I am in the Father, and the Father in me" (James 14:11; 10:37, 38), and His saying to the Father, "You, Father, are in me, and I am in you" (John 17:21).. And what does it mean that the Father is in Him? This explains the Bible's saying about Christ that "in Him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily" (Col. 2:9). So, what is the meaning of the phrase "My Father is greater than I"? And on what occasion was it said? And what does it indicate? He said "My Father is greater than I" in the case of His emptiness of Himself. This article is taken from the website of St-Takla.org Church. As stated in the Bible, "He did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a servant, and coming in the likeness of men..." (Philippians 2:6,7). That is, being equal or equivalent to the Father was not something that was considered stealthy, that is, taking something that was not His. Rather, while He was equal to the Father, He emptied Himself of this glory, in His incarnation, when He took the form of a servant. And in His union with human nature, He became in the likeness of men. So on earth He was in an image that seemed not to be glorified, and not to be like the greatness of the glorified Father. On earth, He was exposed to people’s criticism, insults, and accusations, and He had no place to rest His head (Luke 9:58). It was said of Him in the Book of Isaiah that He was “a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief… despised and rejected by men… having neither beauty nor comeliness, nor appearance that we should desire Him” (Isaiah 53:2-3). It was said of Him in His sufferings that “He was oppressed, and He was afflicted, yet He opened not His mouth” (Isaiah 53:7). This is the state about which He said, “My Father is greater than I.” Because he took on our nature, which can get tired, suffer and die.



















But He took it of His own will for our benefit. He took this human nature in which the glory of His divinity was hidden from people, so that He could perform the work of redemption. However, the concealment of the divinity by human nature was a temporary work that ended with His ascension to heaven and His sitting at the right hand of the Father. Therefore, before He said, “My Father is greater than I,” He said directly to His disciples, “If you loved Me, you would rejoice because I said, ‘I go to the Father,’ for My Father is greater than I” (John 14:28). That is, you are sad now because I will be crucified and die. But in this manner: on the one hand, I will redeem the world and save it. On the other hand, I will leave My emptying of myself and return to the glory from which I emptied myself. If you loved Me, you would rejoice that I am going to the Father. Because My Father is greater than I. That is, because the state of My Father in His glory is greater than my state in my incarnation. So this greatness is specific to the comparison between the state of incarnation and the state before incarnation. It has absolutely nothing to do with the essence, nature, and divinity, the things about which He said, “I and the Father are one” (John 3:10). For if you loved Me, you would rejoice because I am returning to that greatness and glory which I had with the Father before the world was” (John 5:17). Therefore it was said of Him in His ascension and sitting at the right hand of the Father that “when He had by Himself purged our sins, He sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high” (Hebrews 3:1). And it was said of His second coming that He would come with that glory which He had. He said that He “will come in the glory of His Father, with His angels. And then He will reward each one for the love of his work” (Matthew 16:27). Since He will come in the glory of His Father, then He is not less than the Father. He also said that He will come “in His own glory and the glory of His Father” (Luke 9:26). The phrase “My Father is greater than I” can be taken from the mere dignity of fatherhood. Although they are one nature and one divinity. Any son can give honor to his father and say “My Father is greater than I” even though he is of the same nature and essence. The same human nature, perhaps the same form, the same blood type... the same human nature, the same gender and color. Although he is equal to his father in nature, he says in honor of fatherhood: My Father is greater than I. That is, greater in terms of fatherhood, not in terms of nature and essence. I - in sonship - am in the state of one who obeys. And He - in fatherhood - is in the state of one who wills. And in my sonship I obeyed unto death, the death of the cross (Phil. 2:8).













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The response:
In the words of the priest " He is not less than the Father in anything, since everything that the Father has is His..."
The priest's statement that Christ is not less than the Father in anything is conclusive evidence of the priest's confession in himself that the Father is God and Christ is no less than God, meaning that we have departed from monotheism.
This is supported by his statement, "Although He is equal to His Father in nature, there is no equality except between two different beings, even if they are of the same essence, meaning two gods."
That is, when the priest tries to defend the fact that the Father is not greater than the Son, he is forced to depart from monotheism without realizing it. Therefore, he said, explaining the fact that the Father is greater than the Son, as follows: That is, greater in terms of fatherhood, not in terms of nature and essence.


I - in sonship - am in the state of one who obeys.
And he - in fatherhood - is in the state of one who wills.
Well, priest, let us suppose that the Father and the Son are equal in essence, this also means that there is more than one God but they are equal in essence, and that two human beings
are equal in essence means that they are also two and not one. And that the Son in sonship is in the state of one who obeys, and the Father in fatherhood is in the state of one who wills confirms that your defense
is directed towards polytheism without you realizing it.
In the priest’s saying: “He says in honor of fatherhood: My Father is greater than I.”
Well, you, priest, and your father are of the same essence, right? But that does not prevent you from acknowledging your father’s favor upon you, and his higher degree than you because he is your father, right?
The same thing Christ said, for he acknowledges to the Father his higher status than him, and I do not think that Christ is lying, for he is certain of the Father’s real higher status than him,
otherwise: can the Father say that my Son is greater than me? In the priest’s words: “So this greatness is specific to the comparison between the state of incarnation and the state before incarnation.” Reply: No, I will give you more than one proof to the contrary: First: Is it appropriate for the Father to be incarnate himself and not the Son? Of course, that is not possible. If the Father’s incarnation was without the Son, they would have been equal in greatness before the incarnation actually, but since the Son is the incarnate and exposed to humiliation, then that would undoubtedly be lower in status than the Father. Second: Since eternity, the Father has been of a higher status than the Son, and the proof is:











The Catholic translation of
Proverbs 8:22: The Lord created me, before his works, from the beginning
Proverbs 8:23: From eternity I was established from the beginning, before the earth was.
Proverbs 8:24: I was brought forth when there were not deeps and abundant springs of water
Proverbs 8:25: Before the mountains were planted, before the hills I was brought forth.
The statement is clear, the Lord created me, but playing with translations may be healing. Other translations instead of creating me, translate them as “Qanaani,” meaning he acquired me!!
As if the Lord bought it, for example, or owned it from eternity (from where?)

Van Dyke translation Proverbs 8:22
: (( The Lord created me as the first of his works before his acts of long ago New International Version - UK The LORD brought me forth as the first of his works, before his deeds New Living Translation The Lord formed me from the beginning Well, when was this ? It was from eternity in the world of divinity, meaning before the incarnation there was a clear difference between the Father and the Son For more details on this topic see: https://www.kalemasawaa.com/vb/t15090.html Until the Day of Judgment The Father is greater than the Son:














Van Dyke Translation - 1 Corinthians
15:28-15 And when all things are subjected to him, then the Son himself also will be subjected to him who put all things under him, so that God may be all in all.
The question now is, when will the Son be subjected to the Father?
1 Corinthians 15:24: And after this comes the end, when he delivers the kingdom to God the Father, when he abolishes all rule and all authority and power.
1 Corinthians 15:25: For he must reign until he has put all enemies under his feet.
1 Corinthians 15:26: The last enemy to be abolished is death.
1 Corinthians 15:27: For he has put all things under his feet. But when he says, “All things are put under him,” it is clear that he is not the one who put all things under him.
1 Corinthians 15:28: And when all things are subjected to Him, then the Son Himself also will be subjected to Him who subjected all things to Him, so that God may be all in all.
It is clear that this is the day of judgment in which even the Son was subjected, meaning this happens after Christ’s ascension and the return of His glory to Him. However, He was also subjected, so
the incarnation here has nothing to do with greatness. Before the incarnation, the Father was higher in status, and after the incarnation, the Father was higher in status, and in between, the Father was higher in status.
How could it not be, when the Epistle to the Hebrews acknowledged this:
Hebrews 2:7: You have made Him a little lower than the angels; You have crowned Him with glory and honor, and set Him over the works of Your hands.
Who made Christ a little lower than the angels?
It is the Father
; how could He not be greater than He? In the priest’s words: “He is on earth in an image that appears to be non-glorious, and not the greatness of the glorified Father. We say to him: And after the alleged resurrection and ascension, did he get rid of this non-glorious image, which is the human body? God, no, he rose, as they claim, with the human body, but he ate and drank fish and honey, and he showed them that he was not a spirit and ascended in that non-glorious form. Otherwise, what is the evidence of Christ’s return from union with the human body after the resurrection? Thus, the argument of the “non-glorious image” is invalidated. Finally, we say to these people:








Say, “Do you worship, besides God, that which has no power to harm you or to benefit you? And God is the Hearing, the Knowing .” (76 Al-Ma’idah)