Editing Oneness Pentecostalism (section)

===Son of God===
According to Oneness theology, the Son of God did not exist (in any substantial sense) before the incarnation of [[Jesus of Nazareth]] except as the ''[[Logos (Christianity)|logos]]'' (or word) of God. They believe that the humanity of Jesus did not exist before the [[Incarnation (Christianity)|Incarnation]], but that Jesus [[Pre-existence of Christ|pre-existed]] in his deity (not his humanity) as the eternal God. This belief is supported by the lack of Jesus' incarnate presence anywhere in the Old Testament (Hebrew Bible).<ref name=":5">{{cite book|last1=Bernard|first1=David|url=http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/pentecostal/One-Ch5.htm|title=The Oneness of God|publisher=Word Aflame Press|year=1993|isbn=978-0-912315-12-6|chapter=Begotten Son or Eternal Son?|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080411183805/http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/pentecostal/One-Ch5.htm|archive-date=11 April 2008}}</ref> Thus, Oneness Pentecostals believe that the title "Son" only applied to [[Christ (title)|the Christ]] when he became flesh on earth. The Father in this theology embodies the divine attributes of the Godhead, and the Son embodies the human aspects. Oneness Pentecostals believe that Jesus and the Father are one essential person, though operating in different modes.<ref name=":4" />

Oneness author W. L. Vincent writes, "The argument against the 'Son being his own Father' is a red herring. It should be evident that Oneness theology acknowledges a clear distinction between the Father and Son–in fact this has never been disputed by any Christological view that I am aware of."<ref name=":12" />

====The Word====
Oneness theology holds that "[[Logos (Christianity)|the Word]]" in [[John 1:1]] was God's mind or plan. Oneness Pentecostals believe that the Word was not a separate person from God but that it was the plan of God and God itself. Bernard writes in his book ''The Oneness View of Jesus Christ'', 
{{Blockquote|In the Old Testament, God's Word (dabar) was not a distinct person but was God speaking, or God disclosing Himself (Psalm 107:20; Isaiah 55:11). To the Greeks, the Word (logos) was not a distinct divine person, but reason as the controlling principle of the universe. The noun logos could mean thought (unexpressed word) as well as speech or action (expressed word). In John 1, the Word is God's self-revelation or self-disclosure. Before the Incarnation, the Word was the unexpressed thought, plan, reason, or mind of God.<ref name=":OnenessJesus">{{cite book|last1=Bernard|first1=David|title=The Oneness View of Jesus Christ|publisher=Word Aflame Press|year=1994|isbn=1-56722-020-7}}</ref>}}
Bernard additionally claims that the Greek word ''pros'' (translated as "with" in John 1:1) could also be translated as "pertaining to", meaning that John 1:1 could also be translated as (in his view) "The Word pertained to God and the Word was God."<ref name="The Oneness of God">{{cite book |first1=David |last1=Bernard |url=http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/pentecostal/One-Top.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080216034825/http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/pentecostal/One-Top.htm |pages=60–61 |archive-date=16 February 2008 |title=The Oneness of God |publisher=Word Aflame Press |year=1993 |isbn=978-0-912315-12-6}}</ref>

In the incarnation, Oneness believers hold that God put the Word (which was his divine plan) into action by manifesting himself in the form of the man Jesus, and thus "the Word became flesh".<ref>{{bibleverse|John|1:14|KJV}}</ref> As an extension, Oneness Pentecostalism argues that the incarnation was a singular event unlike anything God has done prior or will ever do again.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Norris |first1=David |title=I AM: A Oneness Pentecostal Theology |date=4 September 2009 |publisher=Word Aflame Press |isbn=978-1565630000 |page=161 |chapter=The Man Who Preexisted |quote=...and of course, the Incarnation is one of a kind-it is unique, as it is expressed in the rest of the verse.}}</ref> Oneness Pentecostals believe that the Word of John 1:1 does not imply a second pre-existent, divine person but that the Word is simply the plan of God, which was put into action through the incarnation.<ref name="The Oneness of God"/>

====The dual nature of Christ====
{{Main|Hypostatic union}}

When discussing the [[Incarnation (Christianity)|incarnation]], Oneness theologians and authors often refer to a concept known as the dual nature of Christ, which is understood as the union of human and divine natures in the man Jesus. Bernard describes this concept in his book ''The Oneness of God'', stating that Jesus "is both Spirit and flesh, God and man, Father and Son. On his human side, He is the Son of man; on his divine side, He is the Son of God and is the Father dwelling in the flesh."<ref>{{cite book |first1=David |last1=Bernard |url=http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/pentecostal/One-Top.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080216034825/http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/pentecostal/One-Top.htm |archive-date=February 16, 2008 |title=The Oneness of God  |chapter=Jesus is God |publisher=Word Aflame Press |year=1993 |isbn=978-0-912315-12-6 |pages=69–70}}</ref> Oneness Pentecostals see this not as two persons in one body but instead as two natures united in one person: Jesus.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Dulle |first1=Jason |title=The Dual Nature of Christ |url=https://www.onenesspentecostal.com/dualnature.htm |website=Institute for Biblical Studies |access-date=6 November 2021 |quote=...Jesus' natures never worked independent of one another. His two natures exist "without confusion, without change, without division, without separation; the difference of the natures having been in no wise taken away by reason of the union, but rather the properties of each being preserved...."}}</ref> Oneness believers see the mystery referred to in [[1 Timothy 3:16]] as referencing this concept of two natures being united in the one person of Jesus.<ref>{{cite book |first1=David |last1=Bernard |url=http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/pentecostal/One-Top.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080216034825/http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/pentecostal/One-Top.htm |archive-date=February 16, 2008 |title=The Oneness of God |publisher=Word Aflame Press |year=1993 |isbn=978-0-912315-12-6 |pages=63–64 |chapter=Jesus is God}}</ref>

Although the Oneness belief in the union of the divine and human into one person in Jesus is similar to the [[Chalcedonian]] formula, Chalcedonians disagree sharply with them over their opposition to Trinitarian dogma. Chalcedonians see Jesus as a single person uniting God the Son—the eternal second person of the Trinity—with human nature.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Catholic Encyclopedia: Hypostatic Union |url=https://www.newadvent.org/cathen/07610b.htm |access-date=2025-03-03 |website=www.newadvent.org}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Weinandy |first=Thomas |title=The Hypostatic Union: History and Dogmatic Reality |url=https://churchlifejournal.nd.edu/articles/the-hypostatic-union-history-and-dogmatic-reality/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240223032701/https://churchlifejournal.nd.edu/articles/the-hypostatic-union-history-and-dogmatic-reality/ |archive-date=2024-02-23 |access-date=2025-03-03 |website=Church Life Journal |date=3 April 2023 |language=en-US |url-status=live }}</ref> Oneness believers, on the other hand, see Jesus as one single person uniting the one God himself with human nature as the Son of God.