Modalistic Monarchianism & The Praxaen Heresey

I don't want to get overly theological and or technical, as I do not consider myself the one to lead into indepth or comprehensive theological discourse, but I have noticed that in debate and conversation with most believers who oppose trinitarianism in favor of Sabellianism or what is otherwise known as modalism or oneness teachings, there is often a caveat or an idea that emerges that can be rather disturbing. The thought is summarized in the following statement:

"Jesus is the Son of God according to the flesh and the very God Himself according to the Spirit"

This is a statement that can be found on many Apostolic church web sites and within statements of faith. It  is often thought to be a purely oneness statement. But in reality it is a belief system taught by an excommunicated late second century early third century priest named Praxeas and is the root of a heretical teaching that could be called Praxeanism. 

To draw a distinction, I must lay a little ground here.

Modalism 

First, modalism, often referred to as monarchianism and Sabellianism (after a priest named Sabellius who taught the idea) is a Christiological theory that God has revealed himself to man in 3 manifestations, roles or modes as opposed to 3 persons with mind, will, intellect and awareness of one another. Under modalistic belief, the Son has no personal independence or subsistence. A modalist contends that there is only one God and he is revealed as the Father, Son and Holy Ghost. Oneness Pentecostals further contend that the name of that one God, that is common to all three modes, is the name Jesus. Therefore Jesus is not only God, but ontologically the Father and the Holy Ghost and each mode is summarized by the name Jesus, thus "Jesus only" is often an appellation applied to those who hold this belief.

Praxeanism 

The teaching that Jesus is forever and always the God/Man or theantropist, describes what is called the hypostatic union of Christ. Praxeanism essentially denies the unalterable hypostatic union of Jesus's nature as both 100% man and 100% God. Praxeanism in its endeavor to emphasize the oneness of God in his being, actually dissolves the hypostasis of Jesus as God, by contending that  the "flesh" (or physical body) of Jesus is human only, while his Spirit, is God only, therefore creating two distinct beings within one, as opposed to one complete inseparable being known as Jesus. 

Church apologist Tertullian (Quintus Septimius Florens Tertullianus) who lived roughly at the same time as Praxeus and Sabellius, noted the following in his defense of the faith regarding Praxean teaching:

"For, confuted on all sides on the distinction between the Father and the Son, which we maintain without destroying their inseparable union... they endeavour to interpret this distinction in a way which shall nevertheless tally with their own opinions: so that, all in one Person, they distinguish two, Father and Son, understanding the Son to be flesh, that is man, that is Jesus; and the Father to be spirit, that is God, that is Christ. Thus they, while contending that the Father and the Son are one and the same, do in fact begin by dividing them rather than uniting them."

Further, phrases of Jesus such as "nevertheless, not my will but thy will be done" (Lk. 22:42; Matthew 26:36-46; Mark 14:32-42) under Praxean interpretation,  could be seen as the man Jesus, surrendering his will to Christ (aka: God), as there would have been a distinction between the two.   

Now, at first glace some of this may make sense, as we know that God cannot die, neither can his spirit or any spirit bleed. However, Jesus as God, took upon himself the limitations of humanity (John 1:14) and lived, suffered and died to redeem us from our sins. It was not the corpuscles of his blood that saved us, but it was the act of Jesus, pouring out his passion and love for us as God that actually redeems us. That is what is inferred when we speak of being redeemed by his blood.  

Of A Certainty This Is A Great Mystery
Paul told Timothy that this whole and complete story of the nature of Jesus is without any argument, a topic and subject full of great "mystery":

1 Tim. 3:16 ~ And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory.

Immediately the focus of most oneness adherents when looking at this verse, is the word "manifest".  But that is not the point of the scripture or the emphasis of the verse. The emphasis is the how, why and method of God in doing what he did through and by Jesus in redeeming us. What Paul is saying that everyone agrees that it is a great mystery. The thought of God's method of redemption is "without controversy" a mysterious event and fact.  

Back to the point of the article:

At no point and time was Jesus not God, even as a baby or even on the cross. A God/man union was born at Jesus birth. Mary did not birth a "God essence" (whatever that ridiculous teaching could possibly mean) From birth Jesus was fully human and fully divine. In addition, God never departed from Jesus, although at times he hid himself behind the veil of flesh. He was 100% human but he was also 100% divine his whole and complete life. To believe to the contrary, is to construct a Jesus that is not taught within the scriptures. 

God In Salvation 

The fact is that if he were just a man, and if the nature of his deity could depart from him on the cross then, (as I would contend) his death as a man only would not be sufficient to redeem us from our sins, but as a mere man his death, as righteous as it may have been, could not take away our sins. The remission of sins is an act that only God can perform. 

Ephes. 1:7 ~ In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace; (Also Col. 1:14) 

I know, the critic here may assert that the scripture says that "whosoever sins ye remit, they shall be remitted" (John 20:23) but the whole and complete issue is that without the shedding of the blood of Jesus on the cross, and faith in HIS works noone has the power to remit anything. Nobody can be saved without the atoning work of Christ on the cross, so the scripture is indicating whosoever(s) sins are remitted through that process of us bringing the souls to Christ through the cross, those sins are the only sins that can be remitted indeed. 

I keep getting distracted...back to the point 
The Revelation Reality

In addition, since according to Revelation 4 and 5 that all heaven worships both the one who "sits on the throne" and the "lamb" who took away the sins of the world, we can only be reminded that it is only God, not men nor angels, that is worshiped in heaven and in earth. 

Rev. 4:8-11~ 8-And the four beasts had each of them six wings about him; and they were full of eyes within: and they rest not day and night, saying, Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, which was, and is, and is to come. 9-And when those beasts give glory and honour and thanks to him that sat on the throne, who liveth for ever and ever, 10-The four and twenty elders fall down before him that sat on the throne, and worship him that liveth for ever and ever, and cast their crowns before the throne, saying, 11-Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honour and power: for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created.

And

Rev. 5:11-14 ~ 11-And I beheld, and I heard the voice of many angels round about the throne and the beasts and the elders: and the number of them was ten thousand times ten thousand, and thousands of thousands;12-Saying with a loud voice, Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength, and honour, and glory, and blessing. 13-And every creature which is in heaven, and on the earth, and under the earth, and such as are in the sea, and all that are in them, heard I saying, Blessing, and honour, and glory, and power, be unto him that sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb for ever and ever. 14-And the four beasts said, Amen. And the four and twenty elders fell down and worshiped him that liveth for ever and ever.

Only GOD is worshiped especially in heaven. There would be no flesh that would be worshiped in heaven unless that flesh is in a glorified state or condition and is God.
Arianism In The Mix

Arianism, which was a rejected doctrine during the same era of time, survived the Council of Nicea in 325AD and was rehashed by demons and adopted in more modern times by what would become known as Jehovah's Witness cult and its founder Charles Taze Russell. This antibiblical and anti-Christian belief contends that Jesus is not God as in the same substance but a lesser god, one who created according to the instructions of God, but one that is also a created being himself, not co-existent and certainly not co-equal with God. However, Jesus was commissioned to do the work of saving the word. 

It would seem that there are some elements of Praxeanism in Arianism or vice-versa and most certainly in modalism or oneness theology as it is taught in most modern circles. If Jesus was a created being, or if Jesus could be separated or divided into a human part and a spiritual part, he would certainly not be God.  Neither could he become God, except in the minds of people who believed in him, but his spirit would have been and must have been "empowered" in some manner to endure saving the world. Either way, all these teachings whether independent of one another or together are contrary to how scripture presents Jesus and are not biblical. 

 

I will end this in as abrupt fashion as John when he spoke in 1 John 4:6:

"We are from God. Whoever knows God listens to us; whoever is not from God does not listen to us. By this we know the Spirit of truth and the spirit of error."

 

These heresies have existed for thousands of years and as we can see, through the years and in every generation these teachings faced the truth of scripture and were put down. They are attempts to comprehend and incomprehensible God, we know that, however, we do not have to contrive or create God to suit our understanding. If he is God, of a certainty he is also incomprehensible and beyond our understandings.

I certainly don;t accept the word of God especially as it pertains to the nature of God because I fully understand it. I accept it because this is what God says about himself and how he has used scripture to describe himself and I submit to HIS understanding of those facts not my rationalizations.

I invite all of my oneness friends to follow that path and to lay down the effort of reinventing or recreating God to suit, but simply follow the scriptures where they lead in the sense that they lead. It is much more easy to believe the truth, rather than contort a lie. That Jesus is God is not the question or issue. But that he is God eternally and of the same substance of the Father forever inseparable as 100% God and 100% man is  the difference maker, and the God that the early church was willing to lay down their lives for...That's the ONE I serve!!!!

Blessed!

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