Some of the most important, yet difficult areas of the Bible
and Christianity to defend is often the Doctrine of the Trinity. The Doctrine
of the Trinity states that God eternally exists as three persons: the Father,
the Son, and the Holy Spirit, and each person is fully God, and there is only
one God.
The word, “trinity”, is never found in the Bible, but it is
taught throughout Scripture. Trinity means, “tri-unity” or “three-in-oneness”.
The Trinity in the
Old Testament
The Trinity is not exclusive to the New Testament. Several
passage in the Old Testament suggest that God exists in more than one person.
“Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And
let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the
heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping
thing that creeps on the earth.” (Genesis 1:26)
Notice here that God appears to be speaking in plural when
he says, “Let US make man in OUR image, after OUR likeness.” Some may say that
God is speaking to angels, but angels did not participate in the creation of
man, and man was not created in the image of angels. The best explanation would
seem to be that God exists as more than one person.
“Then the Lord God said, “Behold, the man has become like one of us in
knowing good and evil. Now, lest he reach out his hand and take also of the
tree of life and eat, and live forever—” (Genesis 3:22)
“Come, let us go down and there confuse their language, so that they
may not understand one another's speech.” (Genesis 11:7)
These are just some examples in the Old Testament where it
would appear that God has existed in a Trinitarian form. As the New Testament
begins and Jesus comes to Earth, we would expect that there would be more
teachings about the other persons of God. As we will see shortly, there is much
about the Trinity in the New Testament.
God is three
persons, and all three persons are distinct from each other.
“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word
was God. He was in the beginning with
God. All things were made through him,
and without him was not any thing made that was made.” (John 1:1-2)
Since the “Word” is with God, it shows distinction from God
the Father.
“But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name,
he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said
to you.” (John 14:26)
The Father will send
the Spirit, showing distinction between all three persons.
“Nevertheless, I tell you the truth: it is to your advantage that I go
away, for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you. But if I go, I
will send him to you.” (John 16:7)
This indicates that
Christ will go back to Heaven, while the Sprit will be sent for the Church.
“Father, I desire that they also, whom you have given me, may be with
me where I am, to see my glory that you have given me because you loved me
before the foundation of the world.” (John 17:24)
In the way Jesus
speaks to the Father shows a distinction, yet they still share the glory.
“My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may
not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus
Christ the righteous.” (1 John 2:1)
In order to advocate for us, the Son must be distinct from
the Father.
Each person is
fully God.
God the Father is clearly God. This is clear from the
first verse of the Bible in Genesis in creation, and is evident throughout the
Old Testament and the New Testament. The Son is fully God.
“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word
was God. He was in the beginning with
God. All things were made through him,
and without him was not any thing made that was made. In him was life, and the life was the light
of men.” (John 1:1-4)
Again, here it clearly shows the deity of Christ. John
refers to Christ as “the Word” and states that he was “with God” and “was God”.
It is significant that John 1 is so similar to Genesis 1.
“Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I
am.” (John 8:58) By declaring himself, “I AM”, Jesus was declaring himself as
Yahweh. And as a result, the Jews attempted to stone Jesus, but he hid himself.
“And now, Father, glorify me in your own presence with the glory that I had
with you before the world existed.” (John 17:5)
During the High
Priestly Prayer, Jesus asked to return with the Father where they co-existed
before the world began.
“So the other disciples told him, “We have seen the Lord.” But he said
to them, “Unless I see in his hands the mark of the nails, and place my finger
into the mark of the nails, and place my hand into his side, I will never
believe.” Eight days later, his disciples were inside again, and Thomas was
with them. Although the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and
said, “Peace be with you.” Then he said
to Thomas, “Put your finger here, and see my hands; and put out your hand, and
place it in my side. Do not disbelieve, but believe.” Thomas answered him, “My Lord and my God!”
(John 20: 25-28)
Thomas was a devout Jew and for him to say “My God” in a way
that he was surprised would have been blasphemy for a Jew. Also, Jesus, if not
divine, would have rebuked him, as the angel did when John tried to worship
them in Revelation.
The Holy Spirit is fully God. Since we can see that
the Father and the Son are both God, we can see significance in a verse like Matthew 28:19:
“Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the
name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,”
It shows the Holy
Spirit on the same footing as the Son and the Father.
“But a man named Ananias, with his wife Sapphira, sold a piece of
property, and with his wife's knowledge
he kept back for himself some of the proceeds and brought only a part of it and
laid it at the apostles' feet. But Peter
said, “Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and
to keep back for yourself part of the proceeds of the land? While it remained unsold, did it not remain
your own? And after it was sold, was it not at your disposal? Why is it that
you have contrived this deed in your heart? You have not lied to man but to
God.” (Acts 5:1-4)
Peter stated that if you lie to the Holy Spirit, you have
lied to God.
“Where shall I go from your Spirit? Or where shall I flee from your
presence? If I ascend to heaven, you are there! If I make my bed in Sheol, you
are there!” (Psalm 139:7-8)
Here David is acknowledging God’s omnipresence and the
Spirit is mentioned with it. Omnipresence is not a characteristic of any of
God’s other creations. David has put God and the Spirit together and
acknowledges that if you flee from the Spirit, you flee from God, which is
impossible because God is always there.
“But, as it is written,“What no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the
heart of man imagined, what God has prepared for those who love him”— these
things God has revealed to us through the Spirit. For the Spirit searches
everything, even the depths of God. 11 For who knows a person's thoughts except
the spirit of that person, which is in him? So also no one comprehends the
thoughts of God except the Spirit of God.” (1 Corinthians 2:9-11)
Paul writes here and explains that the Holy Spirit has the
omniscience characteristic, where it is all knowing.
There is one God.
Scripture is crystal clear that there is only one God. There
are not three gods, only one God. But there are three different persons in one
God. They think the same way, and their nature is the same.
-
“Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. You shall love the
Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your
might." (Deuteronomy 6:4-5)
-
“Who is like you, O Lord, among the gods? Who is like you, majestic in
holiness, awesome in glorious deeds, doing wonders?" (Exodus 15:11)
-
"I am the Lord, and there is no other, besides me there is no God; I equip
you, though you do not know me, that people may know, from the rising of the
sun and from the west, that there is none besides me; I am the Lord, and there
is no other." (Isaiah 45: 5-6)
-
"Declare and present your case; let them take counsel together! Who
told this long ago? Who declared it of old? Was it not I, the Lord? And there is no other god besides me, a
righteous God and a Savior; there is none besides me. “Turn to me and be saved,
all the ends of the earth! For I am God, and there is no other." (Isaiah 45:21-22)
-
"For there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the
man Christ Jesus..." (1 Timothy 2:5)
- "...yet for us there is one
God, the Father, from whom are all things and for whom we exist, and one Lord,
Jesus Christ, through whom are all things and through whom we exist." (1 Corinthians 8:6)
Beware of
analogies
When attempting to describe the Trinity to others in a way
to make it easier to understand, we must be very careful of using analogies.
We’ve all heard various analogies that are good meaning, but fail to give a
true understanding of the Trinity. When we use faulty analogies to teach
others, we then have a generation full of people who have a faulty
understanding of the Trinity.
A three leaf clover is one analogy that is often used. They
say that because a clover has three leaves, but is one clover. However, each
leaf is only part of the clover and each leaf is not the whole clover.
Another analogy that is popular and on the surface may seem
to make sense. Steam, water, and ice are all forms of water. However, they all
have different characteristics. And when we start teaching using this analogy,
we are using modalism, the teaching that God has revealed himself in three
different modes. This is in contrast to Trinitarian teaching and has been
condemned throughout Church history. We should be very careful in using
analogies to describe the Trinity. There really is not a good analogy to
describe the Trinity.
Know the arguments
against the Trinity
Not only should you be aware of what Scripture has to say
about the Trinity, you should also be aware of some of the argument against the
Doctrine of the Trinity. Arianism was created by Arius, an elder of Alexandria
born in 256 AD. His views were condemned at the Council of Nicea in 325 AD.
Arius taught that the Son and the Spirit are created beings and not equal with
the Father.
“He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all
creation. For by him all things were
created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or
dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for
him. And he is before all things, and in
him all things hold together.” (Colossians 1:15)
Arius would argue that “first born” here would indicate that
Christ was created. However, when properly understood, it means that Christ has
the rights of a first born, which in biblical customs would mean he has
leadership and authority.
Jehovah’s Witnesses claim that Jesus was not divine and that
the Holy Spirit is an “active force” and not a person. Based on their belief,
Jesus can not be a part of the Trinity because he was a created being. Jehovah
Witnesses also point to Colossians 1:15 as Arians do. John 1:1 is a verse that
their translation, the New World Translation, differs from all other
translations. The NWT says, “the Word was a god.” However, to show the
inconsistencies of the NWT, that is the only time is says “a god”, when other
times it never prefaces god with that.
Mormonism was founded by Joseph Smith in 1830. Those who
adhere to this belief are called Latter-day Saints or Mormons. Mormons believe
that Jesus is a created being, born to the Father and a celestial mother.
Therefore, Jesus could not be part of the God-head. They also teach that the
Father and Son are men with bodies of flesh and bone. They are separate people
and can not be considered one.
What to expect
when defending the Trinity
We have to understand that the Doctrine of the Trinity is
hard for us to understand, which also means it will sound like a contradiction
to non-believers. We must defend the Trinity and give a good, solid defense for
it. But understand, that even though we are to give a defense for it,
unbelievers will not respond to it. Christ’s sheep hear his voice, which in
turn means that those who are not Christ’s sheep will not hear his voice. Only
when God takes action on the sinner, will the Trinity make sense to them, and
they will then respond to what the word of God says.
The Doctrine of the Trinity is a biblical teaching. If we
are to be consistent in our study and belief, we must affirm these three
truths: there is one true God, there are three persons revealed to be God, and
they are equal but have unique natures. There is one being of God that is
shared by three persons. This is an issue that there can be no compromise on.
If Jesus wasn’t God, and is a created being, then how can he pay the debt for
our sins? The Gospel itself is a Trinitarian act of God: the origin is in the
Father, it is accomplished in the Son, and its application is in the Spirit.
