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Watch the Tower: The Head of Christ is God?

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In the Reasoning book, p.410 Jehovah's Witnesses cite several texts they say ‘proves’ Jesus is not God:

'The Father is greater than I' John 14:28

'The head of Christ is God' 1 Cor.11:3

'...then the Son himself will also be subjected to him who put all things under him, that God may be everything to every one.' 1 Cor.15:27,28

Is Jesus, after all, not God but a creature? Is the Father alone God, and Jesus a created heavenly being sent to carry out God's will?



The Father is Greater - John 14:28

As we consider Jesus’ words in John 14:28 we must take into account, in the same chapter, the gospels clear witness to the full deity of Jesus and his equality with the Father:

‘Whoever has seen me has seen the Father.’ (v9)

‘Believe me that I am n the Father and the Father is in me.’ (v11)

And earlier:

'I and the Father are One' - (10:30)

All three members of the Trinity are fully God, equal in substance, separate in person. In the Godhead there are economic distinctions, different roles to be played. The Father purposes, the Son accomplishes, the Spirit applies. Jesus came to do the Father’s will, not because he isn’t equal to the Father, but because his role is different from that of the Father. He also veiled his glory in becoming the God-man Jesus. The Father has the greater role in creation and redemption.

The Head of Christ is God – 1 Cor.11:3
Paul uses the same thought in Ephesians, where Christ is the head:

‘...and he put all things under his feet and gave him as head over all things to the church, which is his body, the fulness of him who fills all in all.’ (Eph.1:22/23 cf. 5:23; Col.1:18; 2:10)

This, as in the point above, has to do with authority, function, not nature. Jesus is still the one described in these verses as seated, ‘above every name that is named,’ (Eph.1:21), the one in whom, ‘all the fulness of God was pleased to dwell.’ (Col.1:19)

The Son Will be Subject – 1 Cor.15:27/28

I am grateful to Bavesh Roger for material he shared on the Reachout Facebook page in answer to this point.

From the context of 1 Cor. 15, it becomes clear that Paul is talking about Christ's role as the Messiah and the successful completion of His messianic mission which began at Christ's resurrection:

‘...and he was declared to be the Son of God in power according to the Spirit of holiness by his resurrection from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord.’ (Rom 1:4).

Paul talks about the "order" of resurrection, focusing on Christ's actions as a man (v.21)

‘For as by a man came death, by a man has come also the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive. But each in his own order: Christ the firstfruits, then at his coming those who belong to Christ.’ (1 Cor.15:22/.23)

If we only pay attention to these verses, we can say that Christ is just a man, but in another place in the same epistle, Christ is called "the Lord of Glory":

‘None of the rulers of this age understood this, for if they had, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.’ (1 Cor. 2:8), a title reserved for God alone (Acts 7:2, Eph. 1:17, Ps. 24:7-10).

Christ is also called the one in whom we are to boast:

‘...no human being might boast in the presence of God. And because of him you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, righteousness and sanctification and redemption, so that, as it is written, ‘Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord.’ (1 Cor. 1:29-31) Here Paul quotes Jer. 9:24, where YHWH tells people to boast only in knowing him as the Lord.

Paul names Christ as the co-creator in the creation of all things by lifting the title "Kurios" of the Shema and laying it on Christ:

‘- yet for us there is one God, the Father, from whom are all things and for whom we exist, and one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom are all things and through whom we exist.’ (1 Cor.8:6) In this text, again, we see the economic order of heaven, with the Father purposing, the Son accomplishing.

We are also, finally, told not to provoke the Lord (Christ) to jealousy by partaking the cup of the Lord and the cup of the demons:

‘You cannot drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons. You cannot partake of the table of the Lord and the table of demons. Shall we provoke the Lord to Jealousy? Are we stronger than he?’ (1 Cor. 10:21/22) This language is borrowed from Deut. 32:21 where YHWH is not to be provoked to jealousy.

We must conclude Paul clearly sees Christ as fully man and fully God. I am reminded of the words of the late and much missed RC Sproul:

‘You are required to believe, to teach and to preach what the Bible says is true, not what you want the Bible to say is true.’

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