1.On Proverbs 8, the idea isn't that before wisdom was brought forth, it didn't exist, is it? The chapter is not talking about creating wisdom, correct?

2.On the comment of Christ's giving the first commandment, "Thou shalt have no other Gods before Me," I didn't undersand the significance of your question. The Father and Christ are One, so He was doing the will of both. I suppose you could include the Holy Spirit in there too.

Hello James.

The Father and the Son are separate persons, separate physical beings.

The Bible and Spirit of Prophecy confirm this.

Most New Testament letters make this distinction in their salutation:

Romans 1:7 - Grace to you and peace from God our Father, and the Lord Jesus Christ.

The Judgment scene in Revelation 5 proves that both the Father and the Son will be in heaven as separate persons:

Rev. 1:5 - (The Father) And I saw in the right hand of him that sat on the throne a book written within and on the backside, sealed with seven seals.

Rev. 1:6,7 - (Christ) And I beheld...in the midst of the elders, stood a Lamb as it had been slain...And he came and took the book out of the right hand of him that sat upon the throne.

Early Writings 77 - ‘I have often seen the lovely Jesus that He is a person. I asked Him if His Father had a form like himself. Said Jesus, “I am in the express image of my Father’s person.” ‘ (Italic emphasis in original)

Early Writings 54 - ‘I saw a throne, and on it sat the Father and the Son. I gazed on Jesus’ countenance and admired his lovely person. The Father’s person I could not behold, for a cloud of glorious light covered Him. I asked Jesus if His Father had a form like Himself. He said He had, but I could not behold it, for said He, “If you should once behold the glory of His person, you would cease to exist.” ‘

The Bible uses the term ‘God the Father’.
The Bible does not use the term ‘God the Son’ or ‘God the Spirit’. These are confusing church expressions borrowed from Roman Catholicism.

Christ was the Son of God since He was brought forth in the days of eternity. Micah 5:2 describes both His birth in Bethlehem and His birth in the days of eternity. “But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from old, from everlasting. margin ~ the days of eternity.

Proverbs 8:22-30 describes when the Son was brought forth. Note that there are three different Hebrew words translated as wisdom in this chapter. We also read that Christ is called ‘the wisdom of God’ in 1Corinthians 1:24, 30. Ellen White says that Proverbs 8:22-30 refers to Christ speaking about himself when she writes “And the Son of God declares concerning Himself...[Prov. 8:22-30 quoted]” Patriarchs and Prophets 34. It is somewhat significant that she places this foundational declaration at the very start of her five volume Conflict of the Ages series, the second page in fact. That none may be left in doubt.

Another landmark statement is found on the first page of the original 1858 Great Controversy. “I saw that when GOD said to his SON, Let us make man in our image, Satan was jealous of JESUS” (Emphasis in original) 1858 Great Controversy 17. She well understood and taught that Jesus was the Son of God, before creation, before Bethlehem.

Gordon

James, this is a topic which Tom and I have not discussed, but this should be interesting.

We need to remember:
Mat 16:16 … Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God.

Mat 16:17 And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven.
Mat 16:18 And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.

Christ said that he would build his church upon this immovable rock: the revelation that “he is Son of the Living God”.

A doctrine that teaches: that he is God in such a way, so as that he is not the “Son of God” is contrary to the revelation from the Father to which Christ himself attested.

Christ is the Son of the living God. It is verily in the reality that he is the Son of God that the issues of the controversy between good and evil; sin and righteousness, salvation and destruction have their meaning. The gospel is Christ; Christ is the gospel. Whatever concept of salvation one has; accordingly the concept of Christ is altered.

Christ indeed has a beginning. The scriptures are clear on that. Interestingly enough he specifically points it out to Laodicea.

Rev 3:14 And unto the angel of the church of the Laodiceans write; These things saith the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of the creation of God;

Col 1:15 Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature:

Heb 1:5 … Thou art my Son, this day have I begotten thee? And again, I will be to him a Father, and he shall be to me a Son?

What is so important about him being the Son of God?

That which is important about it is the relationship / fellowship that exist between the Son and the Father; the reality of it; the revelation of it; the truth of it; the life of it. These are not roles, and as such cannot be interchanged.

It is this very relationship that Satan wishes to alter and void.

The scriptures do not speak of what transpired before the beginning. To propose doctrines and questions on ‘before the beginning’ is not scriptural nor of faith.

Silence fell upon the vast assembly. The name of God, given to Moses to express the idea of the eternal presence, had been claimed as His own by this Galilean Rabbi. He had announced Himself to be the self-existent One, He who had been promised to Israel, "whose goings forth have been from of old, from the days of eternity." Micah 5:2, margin. (DA 469)

This seems clear to me. "Self-existent" describes one whose existence does not depend upon another.

"The beginning of the creation of God." "The firstborn of creation" are texts the Jehovah's Witnesses use to prove Christ was created. Here's what Waggoner comment on these texts.

The view in question is built upon a misconception of a single text, Rev. 3:14: "And unto the angel of the church of the Laodiceans write, These things saith the Amen, the faithful and true Witness, the Beginning of the creation of God." This is wrongly interpreted to mean that Christ is the first being that God created--that God's work of creation began with Him. But this view antagonizes the scripture which declares that Christ Himself created all things. To say that God began His work of creation by creating Christ is to leave Christ entirely out of the work of creation.

The word rendered "beginning" is arche, meaning, as well, "head" or "chief." It occurs in the name of the Greek ruler, Archon, in archbishop and the word archangel. Take this last word. Christ is the archangel. See Jude 9; 1 Thess. 4:16; John 5:28, 29; Dan. 10:21. This does not mean that He is the first of the angels, for He is not an angel but is above them. Heb. 1:4. It means that He is the chief or prince of the angels, just as an archbishop is the head of the bishops. Christ is the commander of the angels. See Rev. 19:19-14. He created the angels. Col. 1:16. And so the statement that He is the beginning or head of the creation of God means that in Him creation had its beginning; that, as He Himself says, He is Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last. Rev. 21:6; 22:13. He is the source whence all things have their origin.

Neither should we imagine that Christ is a creature, because Paul calls Him (Col. 1:15) "The First-born of every creature" for the very next verses show Him to be Creator and not a creature. "For by Him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones or dominions or principalities or powers; all things were created by Him, and for Him and He is before all things, and by Him all things consist." Now if He created everything that was ever created and existed before all created things, it is evident that He Himself is not among created things. He is above all creation and not a part of it. (Christ And His Righteousness)

I think Waggoner's explanation here is correct.

I agree that Christ is the begotten Son of God, from the days of eternity. I agree that Christ was brought forth, or proceeded from the Father. I don't believe this implies there was a time when Christ existed. Indeed, as I mentioned before, I don't think it's possible for this to be the case given that Christ created all things, which must include space/time, it seems to me.

Obviously we cannot conceive of what existence apart from space/time consists of, but it seems clear to me that it must have been created because otherwise we would never have gotten here, if that makes any sense. I also think that space cannot exist apart from time, and vice versa. This appears to agree to me with the law of physics, especially the theory of Relativity.

This is getting a bit beyond a typical theological discussion, isn't it?