In Isaiah 9:6 there are two lines-one line is the line of the child, and the other is the line of the son. A child was born to us, and His name was called Mighty God, and a son was given to us, and His name was called Eternal Father. Today, however, those in Christianity believe the first line but not the second line. If we were to ask them whether the child born in the manger was the mighty God, they would strongly answer that He was. If, however, we asked them whether the son given to us was the eternal Father, they would not dare to answer. Even many pastors would not dare to answer because many of them are under the influence of traditional teachings. Therefore, when I visited America I strongly asked, “Should we believe only half of Isaiah 9:6, or should we believe the whole verse?” If we believe that the child is the mighty God, we should also believe that the son is the eternal Father.

If anyone condemns us of being heretical because we say that the Son is the Father, we should show them Isaiah 9:6 and read it to them. When I was in the United States, I taught the brothers and sisters there a very simple strategy of how to deal with these ones. First, we should ask them whether they believe that the Bible is true. If they do, we should ask them whether they believe that the book of Isaiah is true. If they do, then we should ask them whether they believe that Isaiah 9:6 is true. If they say that they do, then we should ask them whether they believe that the child is the mighty God. If they still say yes, we should ask them whether they also believe that the son is the eternal Father. In this way we will stop all their arguments. We should not argue with such people, because the more we argue, the more they will become confused, and the more they will argue with us. We do not need to say anything except to ask them these few questions. Then they will be unable to do anything except acknowledge that the Son is the eternal Father. There are many deep things pertaining to God that are beyond our understanding. However, every Christian must accept the plain words of the Bible. This is the first step.

The second step is to show them 2 Corinthians 3:17, which says, “The Lord is the Spirit.” We should ask them whether the Lord in this verse refers to the Lord Jesus. They will surely say yes. No one would say that the Lord in this verse is not the Lord Jesus. The Lord mentioned here is the Lord Jesus (cf. 4:5). Then we should ask them who the Spirit in this verse refers to. They would have to admit that the Spirit mentioned here is the Holy Spirit. There would then be no need for further argument. We could also show them 1 Corinthians 15:45b, which says, “The last Adam became a life-giving Spirit.” This is also irrefutable.

The critics will surely ask many other questions. They may ask, “If you say that the Son is the Father, then how could the Son pray to the Father? And how could the Father hear the Son’s prayer?” We can tell them that we do not know how to answer, and neither do we want to. However, we can ask them to explain John 14, where the Lord says to Philip, “Have I been so long a time with you, and you have not known Me, Philip? He who has seen Me has seen the Father;...I am in the Father and the Father is in Me” (vv. 9-10). We should not try to explain, because eventually we will become confused and will be unable to fight the battle. However, Isaiah 9:6 is very clear, as is 2 Corinthians 3:17. One verse says that the Son would be called the Father, and the other verse says that the Lord is the Spirit.

In one of his hymns, Brother Nee said, “Thou, Lord, the Father once wast called, / But now the Holy Spirit art” (Hymns, #490, stanza 5). This shows that Brother Nee saw this matter a long time ago.

I am not here to argue about doctrines but to give you an impression. We all need to see that our God is one and that this one God, as the mysterious One, is the Father, the Son, and the Spirit. He is the Father for a reason, He is the Son with an intention, and He is the Spirit for a purpose. The reason, intention, and purpose are that He would fully work Himself into us.
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