2 Corinthians 5:19

Joshua Perez

1/18/2025

"19 namely, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and He has committed to us the word of reconciliation." (2 Corinthians 5:19 NASB)

1. Some people believe that because Paul states "God was in Christ", that this must mean that Jesus is God or possesses a divine nature. This is simply a misunderstanding of biblical terminology. God being in Christ is very different than Christ just being God. One of the fundamental doctrines in Trinitarian Christianity is the hypostatic union; which states that Jesus was both 100% God, and 100% man. Christ being some fleshly "container" that God filled with himself is incompatible with Trinitarian theology, as it violates the 100% man aspect.

2. Jesus on numerous occasions stated that the father was in him, and he in the father (John 14:11). However, the Bible also states that Christ is in us, we are in Christ, and we are in the Father (John 17:21-23; Colossians 1:27). This does not make us as Christians God, or Christ, despite us being in them, and them in us. 

3. All of this terminology is simply in reference to God filling and empowering Yeshua with his holy spirit [1]. It is by this gift, the holy spirit, that the Father was in Christ, and Christ in the father. And now that we as Christians have been given the same gift [2], God can dwell within us as well. 

[1] John 3:34

[2] Acts 2:38; Ephesians 3:19; 2 Peter 1:4