Buddhist Catholic Contemplative Evangelical General Christian Hindu Jewish Latter-day Saint Muslim New Visions Progressive Christian

Beliefs

Topics

Columnists

Resource Library

Research Tools

Video

Podcasts

Thought Readers

Faith In Media Tracker

Newsletters

Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In Subscription Support

Follow Patheos

Home
About
Christology
Israel/Palestine
Publications
KermitZarley.com
Archives
Categories
- Angels
- Blog Description
- Book Reviews
- Christian Living
  - Unconditional Love?
- Christianity
- Christology
  - Deity of Christ?
  - Holy Spirit
  - Incarnation?
  - My Change
  - Trinity?
- Church History
- Current Events
- War on Terrorism
- Israeli-Palestinian Conflict
- Eschatology
- Ezekiel 38-39
- Last Empire
- Primitive Weapons
- Film Reviews
- God
- Golf
  - Billy Graham
  - Karsten Solheim
  - Lee Trevino
  - Major Championship Winners
  - Masters
  - Purpose
  - Ryder Cup
- Gospel Harmonization
- Interview
- Islam
- Jesus
- Literary Announcements
- Monotheism
- My Books
  - The Restitution of Jesus Christ
- Old Testament
- Politics
- Society of Biblical Literature
- The Bible
- Trinitarianism
- Uncategorized
FREE NEWSLETTER

Home
Progressive Christian
Religion News
Is Elizabeth Warren Right–“There’s God in Every One of Us”?

Is Elizabeth Warren Right–“There’s God in Every One of Us”?

Last updated on: August 17, 2019 at 12:19 pm by Kermit Zarley

Is Elizabeth Warren Right–“There’s God in Every One of Us”? 2019-08-17T12:19:37-07:00 Kermit Zarley

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

When Elizabeth Warren campaigns for the Democratic nomination for president, she says repeatedly, “there’s God in every one of us.” And sometimes she adds to this, “There’s Jesus in every one of us.” She claims to have a Methodist background. So do I. But that is not what the Methodist Church, nor the Bible, teaches.

The Bible begins by saying God is the Creator of “the heavens and the earth.” And the Bible says multiple times that God, whose name is Yahweh (Heb. yhwh), is the “Creator” (e.g., Isaiah 40.28; Romans 1.25; 1 Peter 4.19). He “created heaven and what is init, the earth and what is in it, and the sea and what is in it” (“heaven” should be “the heavens;” Revelation 10.6). In fact, God as Creator is the first precept of biblical teaching. Accordingly, human beings are “creations” or “creatures” made by God. But this is not the same as saying “God is in every one of us” or the like.

My favorite verse in the Bible is in John 3.16. When I was a pro golfer on the PGA Tour and its Senior/Champions Tour (for thirty years full time), I often signed my autograph with “John 3.16” underneath it. This verse reads in the NRSV, “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life.” Accordingly, it is incumbent upon every human being who has heard the gospel (good news) about Jesus to believe in his dying on the cross for our sins. That is what “believe” in John 3.16 means. To see this, we need to go back.

A guy named Nicodemus came to Jesus one night, early in his itinerant ministry, to inquire of him. For we read, “Now there was a Pharisee named Nicodemus, a leader of the Jews. He came to Jesus by night and said to him, ‘Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God; for no one can do these signs that you do apart from the presence of God'” (John 3.1-2). Jesus acknowledged him as “the teacher” (Gr. ho didaskalos), meaning he was the most prominent Torah teacher, or one them, in Israel.

During antiquity, Jews generally believed they had God dwelling in them, as Elizabeth Warren says of all people, on the basis that they were Jews, “the chosen people” of God.

John the Baptist reflected this false notion of Jews about themselves when he was preaching and baptizing people in the River Jordan. He proclaimed to the people, “‘Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near’. . . . But when he saw many Pharisees and Sadducees coming for baptism, he said to them, ‘You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Bear fruit worthy of repentance. Do not presume to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our ancestor;’ for I tell you, God is able from these stones to raise up children to Abraham'” (Matt. 3.2, 7-9).

That is why Jesus later said to Nicodemus, “I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God without being born from above” (John 3.3). Some versions translate “born again.” Jesus explained that everyone must have a spiritual birth to enter the kingdom of God (vv. 5-8). He said to be born again is to be “born of the Spirit” (v. 8).

Jesus was not saying anything new. The prophets had foretold this necessity many times, further saying God would completely remake his people with his Spirit, giving them a “new heart,” which would happen in the resurrection (e.g., Joel 2.28-29; Jer 31.33; Eze 36.26-27).

Jesus then explained to Nicodemus how one is born of the Spirit of God. He said, “just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up [in crucifixion], that whoever believes in him may have eternal life” (John 3.14-15).

Jesus later said to his disciples, “I am in my Father [God], and you in me, and I in you. They who have my commandments and keep them are those who love me; and those who love me will be loved by my Father, and I will love them and reveal myself to them. . . . Those who love me will keep my word, and my Father will love them, and we will come to them and make our home with them” (John 14.20-21, 23).

It is the same with being a “child” of God. People are creations of God but not children of God unless they have a relationship with God. For example, the author of the Gospel of John relates concerning Jesus and Jews, “He came to what was his own, and his own people did not accept him. But to all who received him, who believed in his name, he gave power to become children of God, who were born, . . . of God” (John 1.11-13).

The Apostle Paul’s favorite identification of believers in Jesus is that they are “in Christ.” He says this repeatedly in his New Testament letters. For instance, he writes to the Corinthian believers, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation” (2 Corinthians 5.17 NIV). Paul also teaches conversely, that believers having Christ indwelling them only on the basis that they have genuinely believed in Jesus as the Christ. Paul further writes:

“Examine yourselves to see whether you are living in the faith. Test yourselves. Do you not realize that Jesus Christ is in you?” (2 Cor 13.5).

“I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but it is Christ who lives in me” (Galatians 2.20).

“I pray . . . that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith” (Ephesians 3.17).

“Christ in you, the hope of glory” (Colossians 1.27).

In sum, people are creations of God, made in the image of God, but not children of God, with God thereby living in them, until they have been born again by the Spirit of God. When that happens, both God and Jesus come to dwell inside them.

Previous Post

August 15, 2019

"May Nazarim and Minim Instantly Perish"

Next Post

August 17, 2019 Justin Thomas Shoots 61 to Lead the BMW Championship after Three Rounds

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category Angels Billy Graham Blog Description Book Reviews Christian Living Christianity Christology Church History Current Events Deity of Christ? Disarmament Eschatology Evangelicalism Ezekiel 38-39 Film Reviews God Golf Gospel Harmonization Health History Holy Spirit Incarnation? Interview Islam Israeli-Palestinian Conflict Jesus Last Empire Literary Announcements Major Championship Winners Masters Monotheism My Books New Testament Old Testament Politics Primitive Weapons Ryder Cup Science Society of Biblical Literature The Bible The Restitution of Jesus Christ Trinitarianism Trinity? Uncategorized Unconditional Love? War on Terrorism

Select a Month October 2026 September 2026 August 2026 July 2026 June 2026 May 2026 April 2026 March 2026 February 2026 January 2026 December 2025 November 2025 October 2025 September 2025 August 2025 July 2025 June 2025 May 2025 April 2025 March 2025 February 2025 January 2025 December 2024 November 2024 October 2024 September 2024 August 2024 July 2024 June 2024 May 2024 April 2024 March 2024 February 2024 January 2024 December 2023 November 2023 October 2023 September 2023 August 2023 July 2023 June 2023 May 2023 April 2023 March 2023 February 2023 January 2023 December 2022 November 2022 October 2022 September 2022 August 2022 July 2022 June 2022 May 2022 April 2022 March 2022 February 2022 January 2022 December 2021 November 2021 October 2021 September 2021 August 2021 July 2021 June 2021 May 2021 April 2021 March 2021 February 2021 January 2021 December 2020 November 2020 October 2020 September 2020 August 2020 July 2020 June 2020 May 2020 April 2020 March 2020 February 2020 January 2020 December 2019 November 2019 October 2019 September 2019 August 2019 July 2019 June 2019 May 2019 April 2019 March 2019 February 2019 January 2019 December 2018 November 2018 October 2018 September 2018 August 2018 July 2018 June 2018 May 2018 April 2018 March 2018 February 2018 January 2018 December 2017 November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, yet I will rejoice in the Lord. What will God make my feet like?

Select your answer to see how you score.

A gazelle's legs The feet of a deer Eagles' wings Lions' paws

Books by This Author Books by Kermit Zarley Blog

See All Titles »