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http://www.21stcr.org/21stcr_commentary/john10_30.html
B. What John 10:30 is not saying -
John 10:30 does not say that Jesus and the Father are one "person" nor does it say they are one "God."
The assertion of the Oneness point of view that Jesus is saying he is the Father doesn't make sense. It is ipso facto that Jesus in these very words is distinguishing himself from the Father. The one saying "I and the Father..." is in those words making a distinction between himself and God.
Likewise, the oft heard Trinitarian view that this verse is indicating that Jesus and his Father are of the same "substance" or "essence" completely misses the mark. This verse says nothing about "substance" or "essence." It is entirely mistaken to say that Jesus means by these words that he and the Father are both of the same "God" substance or the same "God" essence. That idea is clearly post-Biblical and efforts to read such a non-Scriptural notion back into John 10:30 are faulty at best and deliberately calculated at worst.
Let Jesus Decide -
If we allow Jesus himself to decide the matter about what sense he and the Father are one, then there is no room for doubt. Note for example statements he made regarding his people in the prayer he prayed to the Father in John 17 (NASB) -
11 "... so that they [the disciples] may be one, as we are one.
21 "...that they [the disciples] may all be one; even as You, Father, are in Me and I in You, that they also may be in Us, so that the world may believe that You sent Me.
22 "The glory which You have given Me I have given to them, that they may be one, just as We are one.
Jesus' words are "That they may be one, just as We are one." The sense in which Jesus and the Father are one is the exact same sense in which Jesus can pray that his people would be one. Jesus is not praying that his people would be one "person" nor that they would all be one "substance" or "essence." Such notions would not even make good sense.
His desire is that they would be one in will, purpose and work. Just as Jesus and his Father are one in will, purpose and in their work.
Conclusion -
Clearly, if one believes in the Oneness or Trinitarian points of view, they cannot rely on John 10:30 to support those ideas. John 10:30 is not a statement about the "composition" or "essence" of God nor is it a statement that Jesus and God are one "person."
When Jesus speaks of his being "one" with the Father, it is always set in the framework of unity, work and love. That is the exact same way in which Jesus desires that his people would be "one." John 10:30 is a statement about the unshakable unity between God and Jesus regarding their love and protection for his people – his sheep.
*Unless otherwise indicated Scriptures quoted in this article are from the NASB.
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