What do Jesus-only/Oneness Pentecostals believe?
The question of the beliefs of Jesus-only/Oneness Pentecostals, concerns a movement within the broader Pentecostal world that developed in the early twentieth century and continues to have significant influence today. Oneness Pentecostals affirm the authority of Scripture, emphasize the experience of the Holy Spirit, and maintain a strong focus on holiness. Yet they differ from historic Christian doctrine in their understanding of the nature of God and the person of Christ. Their central claim is that God is one divine Person who reveals Himself as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, with Jesus as the full manifestation of that one God. This conviction shapes their view of salvation, baptism, the work of the Spirit, and the Christian life.
1. The Oneness Understanding of God and Its Distinctive Claims
Oneness Pentecostals reject the doctrine of the Trinity. While historic Christianity confesses one God in three Persons—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit—Oneness believers argue that these terms describe roles, modes, or manifestations of the one God rather than eternal distinctions within God’s being. For them, Jesus is the single divine Person who reveals Himself in different relational forms.
Their basic convictions include:
God is absolutely one in Person and being.
They emphasize passages such as Deuteronomy 6:4—“The Lord our God, the Lord is one.”“Father,” “Son,” and “Holy Spirit” refer to God’s activity in salvation history.
The Father is God as Creator, the Son is God incarnate in Jesus, and the Spirit is God at work in believers.Jesus is the fullness of God.
Colossians 2:9—“In him the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily”—is taken to mean that Jesus is the Father and is the Spirit.The Son does not exist eternally as a distinct Person.
The “Son” is the incarnation itself—God manifest in flesh, not a pre-existent divine Person alongside the Father.
Because of this, Oneness teachers refer to themselves as “Jesus-name people,” emphasizing that Jesus alone is the revealed identity of the one God.
2. How Oneness Beliefs Differ From the Historic Christian Confession
While the Christian faith has always affirmed monotheism, Oneness beliefs diverge from the way Scripture describes the relationship between Father, Son, and Spirit. The New Testament presents:
Real communion between the Father and the Son (John 17:1–5).
The Son sent by the Father (John 3:16–17).
The Spirit proceeding from the Father (John 15:26).
Jesus praying to the Father (Luke 23:46).
The Son sitting at the Father’s right hand (Acts 7:55–56).
Historic Christianity reads these passages as descriptions of eternal relationships within the one God. Oneness Pentecostals view them as interactions between Jesus’ humanity and deity or as expressions of God’s various modes of activity.
The difference is not merely semantic. It touches the heart of the Gospel. The New Testament proclaims salvation through the Father’s sending of the Son, the Son’s obedience, death, and resurrection, and the Spirit’s indwelling presence. This relational pattern is central to Christian identity and worship.
3. The Oneness Pentecostal View of Salvation
Oneness Pentecostals teach a distinctive salvation pattern often summarized in three steps:
A. Repentance
Turning away from sin and committing to follow Jesus.
B. Water Baptism in Jesus’ Name
They insist on baptism exclusively “in the name of Jesus Christ,” interpreting passages like Acts 2:38 as prescribing a required formula. Traditional Trinitarian baptism (“in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit”) is considered incomplete.
C. Spirit Baptism With Speaking in Tongues
Oneness believers teach that receiving the Holy Spirit is accompanied by speaking in tongues as the initial sign. Without this experience, a person has not received the Spirit in the full New Testament sense.
They maintain that salvation is by grace through faith, but faith is expressed in these acts, making the sequence essential for full obedience to the Gospel.
4. Holiness and Lifestyle Expectations
Oneness Pentecostal churches often preserve strong holiness traditions. These include:
Separation from worldliness
Members avoid recreational activities seen as spiritually harmful.Modesty in dress
Women are often encouraged to wear dresses or skirts, avoid makeup, and refrain from cutting their hair.Conduct governed by righteousness
Entertainment, relationships, and speech are guided by strict moral standards.
Their emphasis springs from passages such as Hebrews 12:14—“Pursue… the holiness without which no one will see the Lord.” While holiness is a biblical value, the specific applications vary widely among Oneness congregations.
5. The Global Presence and Influence of Oneness Pentecostalism
Today millions identify with Oneness Pentecostal belief. The movement spans the United States, Latin America, Africa, and Asia. The United Pentecostal Church International (UPCI) remains the largest Oneness body, with tens of thousands of congregations worldwide. Their evangelistic zeal, strong community life, and emphasis on spiritual experience have allowed the movement to grow far beyond its early twentieth-century origins.
Oneness groups continue to affirm:
the authority of Scripture,
the necessity of conversion,
the expectation of Spirit empowerment,
the importance of moral transformation, and
the hope of Christ’s return,
even as they maintain their distinct beliefs about the nature of God.
6. Why the Christian Church Has Historically Rejected Oneness Theology
The early church confronted and rejected modalistic interpretations of God long before the rise of Pentecostalism. The reason is rooted in Scripture. The Father, Son, and Spirit appear in Scripture not merely as titles or modes but as genuinely related:
At Jesus’ baptism (Matthew 3:16–17)
In the Great Commission (Matthew 28:19)
In the apostolic benediction (2 Corinthians 13:14)
The Gospel is framed by the Father’s love, the Son’s work, and the Spirit’s renewal. Reducing these relationships to modes obscures the very structure of salvation.
Christians have therefore insisted that the God revealed in the Bible is one in essence and three in person—a mystery not invented by theologians but confessed because Scripture compels it.
Bible Verses About the Nature of God and Salvation
“The Lord our God, the Lord is one.” (Deuteronomy 6:4)
“In him the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily.” (Colossians 2:9)
“This is my beloved Son.” (Matthew 3:17)
“The Word was with God, and the Word was God.” (John 1:1)
“Baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.” (Matthew 28:19)
“I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper.” (John 14:16)
“God so loved the world that he gave his only Son.” (John 3:16)
“The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit.” (Romans 8:16)
“Repent and be baptized… in the name of Jesus Christ.” (Acts 2:38)
“The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ… the love of God… the fellowship of the Holy Spirit.” (2 Corinthians 13:14)
