A- The deviation of Christianity beliefs from Jesus (the prophet) to Jesus (the Son of God):
1. Quoted from Wikipedia: “Jewish Christians”:
Following the Crucifixion, Matthew along with Mary, and other close followers of Jesus, withdrew to the "Upper Chamber" (traditionally the Cenacle) , in Jerusalem. At about this time James the Just succeeded his brother Jesus of Nazareth as leader of this Jewish sect. They remained in and about Jerusalem and proclaimed that Jesus son of Mary was the promised Messiah. These early Jewish Christians were thought to have been called Nazarenes.
2. Quoted from Wikipedia: “Council of Jerusalem”
The Council of Jerusalem is generally dated to around the year 50 AD, roughly twenty years after the death of Jesus of Nazareth, which is dated between 26-36, (see Chronology of Jesus). It has not been established to have been the first council of the new community's leaders, but it is the first one of which records exists
At the time, most followers of Jesus (which historians refer to as Jewish Christians) were Jewish by birth and even converts would have considered the early Christians as a part of Judaism. According to Alister McGrath, the Jewish Christians affirmed every aspect of then contemporary (Second Temple) Judaism with the addition of the belief that Jesus was the Messiah.
3. Quoted from Wikipedia: “Ebionites”
The Ebionites, (from Hebrew אביונים ebyonim, ebionim, meaning the poor or poor ones), were a Jewish Christian sect that flourished throughout the Holy Land at the beginning of the Christian era. Their center was located on the east bank of the river Jordan. They regarded Jesus as the Messiah [2] and insisted on the necessity of following Jewish religious law and rites. The Ebionites used only the Jewish Gospels, revered James the Just and rejected Paul of Tarsus as an apostate from the Law.[4] Their name suggests that they placed a special value on voluntary poverty.
The Ebionites are described as emphasizing the oneness of God and the humanity of Jesus as the biological son of both Mary and Joseph, who by virtue of his righteousness, was chosen by God to be the messianic "prophet like Moses" (foretold in Deuteronomy 18:14–22) when he was anointed with the Holy Spirit at his baptism.
Some scholars argue that the Ebionites regarded James the Just as their leader, after Jesus' death rather than Peter. Some scholars argue that the Ebionites claimed a dynastic apostolic succession for the relatives of Jesus. They opposed the Apostle Paul, who claimed that gentile Christians did not have to be circumcised or otherwise follow the Law of Moses, and named him an apostate. Epiphanius relates that some Ebionites alleged that Paul was a Greek who converted to Judaism in order to marry the daughter of a high priest of Israel but apostatized when she rejected him.
4. Quoted from Wikipedia: “Nontrinitarianism ”
All nontrinitarians take the position that the doctrine of the earliest form of Christianity (see Apostolic Age) was not Trinitarian. Typically, nontrinitarians believe Christianity was altered by the edicts of Emperor Constantine I, which resulted in the eventual adoption of Trinitarian Christianity as the official religion of the Roman Empire. Because it was during a dramatic shift in Christianity's status that the doctrine of the Trinity attained its definitive development, nontrinitarians typically consider the doctrine questionable. Nontrinitarians see the Nicene Creed as an essentially political document, resulting from the subordination of true doctrine to state interests by leaders of the Catholic Church, so that the church became, in their view, an extension of the Roman Empire.
Nontrinitarians typically argue that the primitive beliefs of Christianity were systematically suppressed (often to the point of death), and that the historical record, perhaps also including the scriptures of the New Testament, was altered as a consequence. Nontrinitarian followers of Jesus fall into roughly four different groups:
Those who believe that Jesus is not God, but that he was a messenger from God, or prophet, or the perfect created human. This view was espoused by ancient sects such as the Ebionites. A specific form of nontrinitarianism is Arianism.
Nontrinitarians claim the roots of their position go back further than those of their counterpart Trinitarians. The biblical basis for each side of the issue is debated chiefly on the question of the divinity of Jesus. Nontrinitarians note that in deference to God, Jesus rejected even being called "good", that he disavowed omniscience as the Son,[6] and that he referred to ascending unto "my Father, and to your Father; and to my God, and to your God", and that he said "the Father is the only true God." Additionally, Jesus quoted Deuteronomy 6:4 when saying in Mark 12:29 "'The most important [commandment],' answered Jesus, 'is this: Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one.'"
Some scholars investigating the historical Jesus assert that Jesus taught neither his own equality with God nor the Trinity (see, for example, the Jesus Seminar).
The text of the Athanasian Creed states that the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are "coequal"; nontrinitarians dispute this, citing Jesus' statement at John 14:28: "for my father is greater than I".
They also dispute the veracity of the Nicene Creed based on its adoption approximately 300 years after the life of Jesus as a result of conflict within pre-Nicene early Christianity. Nontrinitarians also cite scriptures such as Matthew 15:9 and Ephesians 4:14 that warn the reader to beware the doctrines of men.
The author H. G. Wells, later famous for his contribution to science-fiction, wrote in The Outline of History: "We shall see presently how later on all Christendom was torn by disputes about the Trinity. There is no evidence that the apostles of Jesus ever heard of the Trinity, at any rate from him."
5. Quoted from Wikipedia: “First Council of Nicaea”
The council did not create the doctrine of the deity of Christ as is sometimes claimed but it did settle to some degree the debate within the early Christian communities regarding the divinity of Christ. This idea of the divinity of Christ along with the idea of Christ as a “messenger from the one God” (The Father) had long existed in various parts of the Roman empire. The divinity of Christ had also been widely endorsed by the Christian community in the otherwise pagan city of Rome.
One purpose of the council was to resolve disagreements arising from within the Church of Alexandria over the nature of Jesus in relationship to God the Father; in particular, whether Jesus was the literal son of God or was he a figurative son, like the other "sons of God" in the Bible. St. Alexander of Alexandria and Athanasius claimed to take the first position; the popular presbyter Arius, from whom the term Arianism comes, is said to have taken the second.
The council decided against the Arians overwhelmingly (of the estimated 250–318 attendees, all but two voted against Arius.
Summary:
The first followers of Jesus believed that he was the messiah, a great prophet like Mosses, and formed the Council of Jerusalem. (50 AD)
Ebionites followed the Council of Jerusalem believing the oneness of God and the humanity of Jesus as the biological son of both Mary and Joseph, who by virtue of his righteousness, was chosen by God to be the messianic "prophet like Moses". (1st Century)
Nontrinitarians following Ebionites believed that Jesus was a messenger from God, or prophet, or the perfect created human.
Christianity was altered by the edicts of Emperor Constantine I, which resulted in the eventual adoption of Trinitarian Christianity as the official religion of the Roman Empire. (2nd Century)
A specific form of nontrinitarianism is Arianism (derived from Arius).
First Council of Nicaea was to settle the debate over the nature of Jesus whether Jesus was the literal son of God or was he a figurative son, like the other "sons of God" in the Bible (Arius).
The council decided against the Arians overwhelmingly (3rd century). The result that the original Christianity was modified because of the pressure and force of the Roman Emperor Constantine I, so it becomes similar to his original pagan religion.
Conclusion:
“Was Jesus Son of God, or Part of God, or God himself?”
Historically, the answer is definitely NO.
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