1.0
INTRODUCTION
1.1
Many have found this topic difficult to understand. Some went so far as to say that the doctrine of the Holy Trinity is far beyond human comprehension and that it is one of the deepest of all divine mysteries. But sincerely and humbly, we do not think that it is a mystery at all. If readers can readily accept what is written in the Bible, they too will not find it a mystery. The answer was always there in the Bible. In this article we will attempt to explain this doctrine to the best of our ability, in hope that readers can understand this doctrine better.
1.2
We wish to reiterate that every article in this website including this article, is written for Christians only. Readers are encouraged to use our sub-headings for each paragraph, and serial numberings that are provided on the left-hand column for better navigation. They are also encouraged to have their Bibles always open to the relevant section for quick reference.
2.0
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
2.1
Doctrine of the Holy Trinity: The doctrine of the Holy Trinity is a Christian statement declaring that there is one God who exists as three distinct Persons – the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Each of the three Persons is fully God, equal to each other and each of them is expressly called “God” in the New Testament. Thus, even though there are three distinct Persons, there exists only one God.
2.2
The Heresy of Modalism: Till today, there are still many who believe that God changes modes whenever the occasion requires it. Sometimes, He is God the Father and sometimes He is God the Son or God the Holy Spirit. There is a popular Christian literature that supports this heresy, it explained the doctrine of the Holy Trinity by saying that God is similar to a man who might be a worker at work, or a husband to his wife, or a father to his children. Also unacceptable is the explanation using water that exists as solid ice, liquid water, or gas steam. Modalism is heresy and it is not the right way to explain the Trinity.
2.3
The Heresy of Tritheism: Tritheism is the opposite of Modalism and is also a heresy. In Tritheism, God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit are three separate Gods. Each of these Gods are not united as one God. All three Gods have different purpose and viewpoints. Whereas in the doctrine of the Holy Trinity, the three distinct Persons are fully united as one God. But the meaning of oneness of the “one God” will be discussed further as we continue on in this article.
3.0
EXPLAINING THE DOCTRINE OF THE HOLY TRINITY (EVIDENCE OF THREE PERSONS)
3.1
In this section, we will provide evidence showing that there have always been three distinct Persons, not one Person.
3.2
1 John 4:9 (NASB95) states:
(9) By this the love of God was manifested in us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world so that we might live through Him.
3.3
1 John 4:9 Commentary: We see here that it was God the Father, who sent God the Son to save the elect (those predestined to be saved). If the Father and the Son were the same Person, then the Bible would have said that God sent Himself to us. Or that the Father has transformed Himself into His Son before going to the cross. Therefore, there are clearly two Persons mentioned here in this verse, not one Person. The Father did not change into His Son and neither did the Son change into His Father. This is evidence of two distinct Beings – the Sender and the One who was sent. Two not one.
3.4
John 15:26 (NASB95) states:
(26) “When the Helper comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, that is the Spirit of truth who proceeds from the Father, He will testify about Me,
3.5
John 15:26 Commentary: The Father sent His Son, and the Son sent the Holy Spirit (after asking the Father in John 14:16). The Father is not the Holy Spirit, otherwise Jesus would have said that He was sending His Father to us. Jesus is also not the Holy Spirit, otherwise He would have said that He was sending Himself to us so that He can testify about Himself. Here again, it can clearly be seen that there are three Persons, not one Person. This is evidence of three distinct Persons. Three distinct Persons means three distinct Persons, how did it become one Person? Or are they not reading Scripture?
3.6
John 12:49-50 (NASB95) states:
(49) For I did not speak on My own initiative, but the Father Himself who sent Me has given Me a commandment as to what to say and what to speak. (50) I know that His commandment is eternal life; therefore the things I speak, I speak just as the Father has told Me.
3.7
John 12:49-50 Commentary: It can be seen that there are two Persons in these verses. Additionally, these verses also tell us that even though the Son is equal to the Father, the Son submits to the Father and will only say what is commanded of Him by the Father. If readers notice, it is never the other way around. The Son will never command the Father to speak what He wants His Father to speak. So, both the Father and the Son are equal in rank, but their attitude and behavior towards each other are different. The Father is always the first amongst equals and the Son always submits to Him. We have never read anywhere in the Bible that says, “the Father speaks just as the Son has told Him.” With regard to the word, “submits” we will discuss more about this later in the article. Therefore, this again is evidence of two distinct Beings – the Speaker and the One who commanded the Speaker as to what to say. Two not one.
3.8
John 16:13-15 (NASB95) states:
(13) But when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own initiative, but whatever He hears, He will speak; and He will disclose to you what is to come. (14) He will glorify Me, for He will take of Mine and will disclose it to you. (15) All things that the Father has are Mine; therefore I said that He takes of Mine and will disclose it to you.
3.9
John 16:13-15 Commentary: Similar to the Son, the Holy Spirit also does not speak on His own initiative, but only whatever He hears, He will speak. Verse 14 tells us that the Holy Spirit will take the words from the Son to make known to His disciples. Thus, the Son will say what is commanded of Him by the Father, and the Holy Spirit will take of what was spoken by the Son to reveal them to His disciples. To put it another way, no words came independently from the Son or the Holy Spirit, as all the words came from the Father. So, the work done by the three Persons are coordinated according to the Father’s purpose with none going off on their own paths. Evidence clearly shown here that three distinct Persons exist. Three not one.
3.10
In this section, we have shown with evidence from the Bible there are three Persons, not one Person. We will provide evidence later to show that all three Persons bear the rank of God. So if God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit exist as three distinct Persons, then there are three Gods. People cannot ignore this fact and then conveniently say that there is numerically only one God. We emphasize again that there are numerically three Gods, not one God. Yes, this sounds heretical, but the oneness of the “one God” is not referring to the number one that can be added, subtracted or calculated. The oneness is referring to unity (we will later discuss this further). Just because we say that there are numerically three Gods, does not mean we believe in Tritheism. In Tritheism, all three Gods act independently. Whereas in the Trinity, all three Gods are fully united and coordinated in all things. Please read further on this article. We assure readers we are not heretics.
4.0
EXPLAINING THE DOCTRINE OF THE HOLY TRINITY (THEIR POSITIONS AMONG THEMSELVES)
4.1
In this section, we will provide evidence to show that God the Father is the first among equals, and the greatest of the three Persons.
4.2
Heb 1:1-2 (NASB95) states:
(1) God, after He spoke long ago to the fathers in the prophets in many portions and in many ways, (2) in these last days has spoken to us in His Son, whom He appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the world.
4.3
Heb 1:1-2 Commentary: In these two verses, three things can be seen. Firstly, it was the Father who spoke to us in His Son. The words of Jesus came from God the Father, not from Jesus. This confirms what Jesus already said in John 12:49-50. Secondly, it was the Father who made the world through the Son. The Son is not the Creator, the Father is. Thirdly, it was the Father who appointed the Son to be heir of all things. In other words, the Son was not automatically in ownership of all things, He had to be appointed heir by the Father. All that the Son has came from the Father. It is not difficult to see why Jesus said that the Father is greater than Him (John 14:28). The One who speaks is greater than the Speaker’s Representative, the One who creates is greater than the Instrument of the Creator and the One who appoints is greater than the Appointee.
4.4
As for the Holy Spirit, it is written that He proceeds from the Father to testify about the Son. The Father is not the Holy Spirit and neither did the Father proceed from the Holy Spirit. It is the Holy Spirit who proceeds from the Father to testify about the Son (John 15:26). Thus, in reading these verses, it can be seen that although the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit are equal, the position of the Father is clearly the first among equals. Additionally based on their placings in Matt 28:19, it appears to us that the Holy Spirit is the third placed among equals. The Father is mentioned first, then the Son and then finally the Holy Spirit.
4.5
1 Cor 15:27-28 (NASB20) states:
(27) For He has put all things in subjection under His feet. But when He says, “All things are put in subjection,” it is clear that this excludes the Father who put all things in subjection to Him. (28) When all things are subjected to Him, then the Son Himself will also be subjected to the One who subjected all things to Him, so that God may be all in all.
4.6
1 Cor 15:27-28 Commentary: These verses could have simply said that everything in heaven and on earth, seen and unseen are under the rule of God – simpler and less complicated is it not? Yet we see that even the rule of God has a hierarchical order to it. This is another important piece of evidence that God is not numerical one Being. The order to God’s rule is to first put all things in subjection under the Son and then after that, the Son Himself will also be subjected to the Father who subjected all things to Him. This so that God may be all in all. But readers should note that there is a difference in the type of subjection between the Son and all things, and the Son and the Father. For the Son and all things, all things are in subjection under His feet. This speaks of Christ’s absolute power and authority over them, whereas for the Son and the Father, the Son’s subjection is not under the Father’s feet. The phrase, “under His feet” is not applied to the Son’s subjection to the Father because the Son is equal to the Father, so His subjection to His Father is the attitude of His heart towards Him. The Son willingly submits and subjects Himself to the Father because it was the Father who gave Him all things and it was the Father who put all things in subjection under His Son’s feet. Therefore, the Son is God and the Father is also God. But the Father is clearly the first among equals. But let us imagine for a moment that all three Persons of the Holy Trinity are all heavenly Father’s and none are subjected to each other. Some parts of the universe are subject to Father A and other parts are subjected to Father B and C. In this unlikely scenario, it is almost certain that all three of them will each go in different directions. If it sounds familiar, then it probably sounds like Tritheism. Unity among them would be difficult to achieve. Even if they rotate ruling the universe among themselves, there will not be uniformity and consistency. One millennium under Father A, the universe moves more towards holiness and the next millennium under Father B, the universe moves away from holiness towards mercy. So, has holiness become less important? It will not be too long before cracks start to appear among the lesser occupants of the universe over loyalties to the different Father Gods. Thus we consider the Son and the Holy Spirit coming under the leadership and direction of the Father, to be of great importance to the unity of the Triune God. In any event, John 15:26 states that the Holy Spirit proceeds from the Father. If without the Father, or if the Father does not allow it, would the Holy Spirit still proceed forth? As for the Son, we have read that it was the Father who gave all things into the hands of His Son (John 13:3). If the Father had not given all things to the Son, would the Son have inherited all things? Therefore, the source of all things is from the Father (1 Cor 8:6) and the reason why the Son and the Holy Spirit are equal to the Father is because it was He (the Father) who caused them to be equal to Him. Therefore the Father is the ultimate first among equals.
4.7
John 14:28 (NASB95) states:
(28) You heard that I said to you, ‘I go away, and I will come to you.’ If you loved Me, you would have rejoiced because I go to the Father, for the Father is greater than I.
4.8
Matt 24:36 (NASB95) states:
(36) “But of the day and hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but the Father alone.
4.9
John 14:28 and Matt 24:36 Commentary: Some commentators have explained that when Jesus said that the Father is greater than Christ Himself in John 14:28, He was referring to the point in time when He was made a little lower than the angels (Heb 2:9) or when He emptied Himself by taking the form of a bond servant, being made in the likeness of men and going to the cross (Phil 2:6-8). In other words, they are saying that when Jesus was making that statement found in John 14:28, He was only referring to the short period of time when He was still in the likeness of men. This implies that when Jesus goes back to the Father, the Father is no longer greater than Him. We disagree with their analysis. If what they say is true, then why is the Son subjected to the Father as read in 1 Cor 15:27-28 (NASB20)? Why is Jesus subjected to the Father after He has put all things in subjection under His feet. And why does the Son Himself not put all things in subjection under His own feet and just leave the Father out of it? Better efficiency and more straightforward is it not? The Son does His own thing and the Father does His own thing and leaves the Son to His own devices, for God the Son is more than able to subdue all nations and powers seen and unseen all by Himself. But God is one. None of the members of the Triune God will go their own separate way. They think as one and They operate as one. They are one God.
Therefore, the Father is and always will be greater than the Son because that is the Father’s role. So, when Jesus said that the Father is greater than Him, He meant it to be eternally greater, not temporarily greater. Jesus was not describing His temporary status when He was on earth, but rather His permanent status in relation to His Father. But how can this be since the Father and the Son and including the Holy Spirit are all equal to each other? Additionally, in Matt 24:36, we read that only the Father alone knows the exact date of the second coming of Christ. If Christ is God, how can He not know? Again, there are people who used Phil 2:6-8 to explain that Christ voluntarily restricted His knowledge because He emptied Himself by taking the form of a bond-servant and being in the likeness of men. But being humble and obedient has nothing to do with having knowledge. In fact, there is nothing in Phil 2:6-8 that says Jesus voluntarily restricted His knowledge, and even if Jesus actually knew the date of His return, it would not have affected His ability to remain humble and obedient to the Father. To say that Christ voluntarily restricted His knowledge is just speculation with no Biblical basis. Actually, the amount of critical information that Jesus had in His knowledge far exceeded any man ever lived – we doubt that Christ restricted His knowledge in any way. When Jesus said that He did not know the date of His return, He meant that He really did not know and not because He restricted His knowledge for the sake of humility.
So back to the question. How can the Father be eternally greater than the Son and also the Holy Spirit if they are all equal to each other? Well, they are equal to each other in terms of their rank but not in terms of their roles. In military terminology, all three Persons hold the rank of God – God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. But the Father is greater in terms of the role He is performing. To understand this better, let us take for example a team of three sergeants in a modern battle tank equipped with automatic munitions loader (so you do not need 4 persons). The tank driver drives the tank, the gunner operates the main gun including the machine gun, and the tank commander commands the tank crew including handling communications. Usually, the tank commander is of a higher rank but in this example all three crews are of the same rank – all sergeants. While they all have the same rank, the tank commander is their leader because of the role he is performing. Amongst other things, he is responsible for communications and the success of the mission. He will know which direction the tank should take and when to fire the main gun because he is communicating and coordinating with other tanks of the same side. Who, then, is the greatest of the three? Who knows the most among the three? If all three are tank commanders, who will operate the main gun and who will drive the tank? There can only be one tank commander per tank. And they must operate as one unit or else the mission will fail. So, because of the role the Father is in, the Father is greater than the Son and the Holy Spirit, even though all three Persons are equal, and all three Persons hold the rank of God. With regard to the exact date of the second coming of Christ, we do not know why the Father has withheld this information, even from His Son. We can only speculate that it was probably because the Triune God wanted us to understand that the three Persons of the Holy Trinity are completely distinct from each other, even as they are fully united. But Christ will return as He said He would. When the “Tank Commander” gives the command to Christ, He will come back for us as promised, without delay.
5.0
EXPLAINING THE DOCTRINE OF THE HOLY TRINITY (THEIR RANK WITHIN THE GODHEAD)
5.1
In this section, we will provide evidence showing that all three distinct Persons of the Trinity hold the rank of God.
5.2
[God the Father]
1 Peter 1:2 (NASB95) states:
(2) according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, by the sanctifying work of the Spirit, to obey Jesus Christ and be sprinkled with His blood: May grace and peace be yours in the fullest measure.
5.3
Eph 1:3 (NASB95) states:
(3) Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ,
5.4
1 Pet 1:2 and Eph 1:3 Commentary: Everyone knows that the Father is God – this is indisputable. But for the sake of this discussion, two verses are provided to show that God the Father is God Himself and He is one of the three Persons who holds the rank of God. What about the Son?
5.5
[God the Son]
2 Pet 1:1-2 (NASB95) states:
(1) Simon Peter, a bond-servant and apostle of Jesus Christ, to those who have received a faith of the same kind as ours, by the righteousness of our God and Savior, Jesus Christ: (2) Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord;
5.6
2 Pet 1:1-2 Commentary: In verse 1, apostle Peter called Jesus Christ, God and Savior. But this has been disputed by some commentators who say that the “God and Savior” actually means two persons that is, God and Jesus Christ the Savior. They refuse to accept that Jesus is God Himself and holding the rank of God. So, we have provided another two verses to support our claim. This time from apostle Paul who said almost the same thing as Peter in calling Jesus Christ, God.
5.7
Titus 2:13-14 (NASB95) states:
(13) looking for the blessed hope and the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Christ Jesus, (14) who gave Himself for us to redeem us from every lawless deed, and to purify for Himself a people for His own possession, zealous for good deeds.
5.8
Titus 2:13-14 Commentary: Titus 2:13-14 is very clear in telling us that Christ who will be appearing soon and who also gave Himself for us to redeem us is also called, “our great God and Savior.” There are of course many more verses to put here in this article in order to show the deity of Christ, but in the interest of time and memory space we will discuss two more verses.
5.9
Heb 1:8-9 (NASB95) states:
(8) But of the Son He says, “Your throne, O God, is forever and ever, and the righteous scepter is the scepter of His kingdom. (9) “You have loved righteousness and hated lawlessness; therefore God, Your God, has anointed You with the oil of gladness above Your companions.”
5.10
Heb 1:8-9 Commentary: These two verses are the most significant evidence from Scripture that the Son is God Himself. In verse 8, the Father Himself has called His Son, God. There is no mistaking this, Scripture is clear. Jesus Christ is God Himself, the second Person of the Godhead. Thus, He is also one of the three Persons who holds the rank of God. So even if some people do not recognize the Son, the Father recognizes His Son as God. And the Father’s recognition alone is more than enough. As for those who fail to recognize the Son, they do so at serious risk to themselves (Ps 2:10-12). And what about the Holy Spirit, is He also God?
5.11
[God the Holy Spirit]
Acts 5:3-5 (NASB95) states:
(3) But Peter said, “Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and to keep back some of the price of the land? (4) While it remained unsold, did it not remain your own? And after it was sold, was it not under your control? Why is it that you have conceived this deed in your heart? You have not lied to men but to God.” (5) And as he heard these words, Ananias fell down and breathed his last; and great fear came over all who heard it.
5.12
Acts 5:3-5 Commentary: Ananias and Sapphira his wife lied to Peter (who was filled with the Holy Spirit), when they kept back some of the price of the property that Ananias sold. The result was instant death for both of them. Notice what Peter said in verse 3, “Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit…” And in verse 4, “…you have not lied to men but to God.” In other words, when a person lies to the Holy Spirit, he is lying to God. It is clear that the Holy Spirit is God, that is, He also holds the rank of God. And He is the third Person among equals within the Godhead. Commentators from the Jehovah’s Witnesses keep saying that the Holy Spirit is God’s active force, like a kind of electricity to provides power to accomplish what God has willed. We disagree. Is the Holy Spirit an active force of God?
5.13
John 16:13 (NASB95) states:
(13) But when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all the truth; for He will not speak on His own initiative, but whatever He hears, He will speak; and He will disclose to you what is to come.
5.14
As seen from John 16:13, the Holy Spirit is not a force or some kind of active power from God. The Holy Spirit is a Person, He is one of the member of the Holy Trinity, and He is always referred to as ‘He.” The Holy Spirit is always described in the masculine gender. We have shown in this section that all three Persons within the Triune God, holds the rank of God, and masculine pronouns are always used when referring to Them because all of Them are male.
6.0
EXPLAINING THE DOCTRINE OF THE HOLY TRINITY (UNITY AMONG THREE EQUALS)
6.1
We have mentioned earlier that there is only one God who exists in three distinct Persons. Not three Personalities, not three Natures but three actual Persons, three actual Beings. Each of these Persons is fully God and are equal to each other in rank. They are different only in terms of the roles they perform. But why are they called “one God” when clearly there are three Persons? It is because the oneness is not referring to numerical oneness but to unity, that is, they are eternally in agreement with each other in everything, in terms of their thoughts, their speech, their actions and their purpose. We wish to reiterate that there is a total of three Gods in ONE GODHEAD, not three personalities in one Being. God does not have an identity disorder, nor does He morph from three Persons into one Person and then back into three Persons. Three Persons means three Persons – plain and simple. There is no morphing.
6.2
What, then, is this Godhead? Readers can think of the Godhead as an entity, much like a firm, or a family unit, or an organization. Within this Godhead entity are the three Gods. We need to emphasize again that this is not Tritheism because in Tritheism, the three Persons are three separate Gods, each acting independently. Whereas in the Holy Trinity, the three Beings or three Gods, operate as ONE GOD in unity.
6.3
One More Attempt to Clarify: Some commentators say that God is one in essence. And what is this essence? They say that God’s essence is His being. The word, “essence” means the “stuff” that God is made of. So we thought to ourselves – what stuff? They said that since God is spirit, or Spirit depending on the Bible version (John 4:24), the stuff that makes God is not some ingredients being combined together to make God, rather the “stuff” that makes God is God. To make things more complex sounding, they say that the three Persons subsist within one divine nature, coequal in terms of their shared essence. That to us is just a very convoluted way of saying God is three Persons in one Being. Firstly, it does not explain much and secondly, we disagree that God is three Persons in one Being. If God is just one Being, and the three Persons are just personalities inside that one Being, then it sounds like God is possessed by three spiritual personalities or worse, God has what psychiatrists might call it, “Dissociative Identity Disorder” where two or more personalities control God’s behavior. No, most definitely not. Once again, there are a total of three distinct Beings, each of them with the rank of God, each of them equal to each other and each of them are so united in all aspects that they consider themselves ONE GOD. This singular Godhead is like a family unit or an organization and within this singular family unit are three Members. Let us discuss this further.
7.0
EXPLAINING THE DOCTRINE OF THE HOLY TRINITY (ONENESS NOT REFERRING TO A NUMBER)
7.1
What evidence do we have to say that the words, “one God” is not referring to a mathematical numerical one. Please read the following verses and our comments on them.
7.2
Matt 19:4-6 (NASB95) states:
(4) And He answered and said, “Have you not read that He who created them from the beginning made them male and female, (5) and said, ‘For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh‘? (6) So they are no longer two, but one flesh. What therefore God has joined together, let no man separate.”
7.3
Matt 19:4-6 Commentary: Is the husband and his wife literally one piece of flesh. Obviously not. There are two human persons walking about, yet God considers them, not two but one flesh. The words, “the two shall become one flesh” are not referring to having children but referring to unity. Otherwise, couples who do not have children will not be considered married in the sight of God. Similarly, when Jesus said in John 10:30 (NASB95), “I and the Father are one”, Jesus was not referring to numerical oneness but to the unity of the Father and the Son. Are readers still not convinced? Let us see more evidences. Let us now look into the word, “one” in following two verses.
7.4
Gen 2:24 (NASB95) states:
(24) For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother, and be joined to his wife; and they shall become one flesh.
7.5
Deu 6:4 (NASB95) states:
(4)”Hear, O Israel! The Lord is our God, the Lord is one!
7.6
Gen 2:24 and Deu 6:4 Commentary: From what we understand, both the book of Genesis and Deuteronomy was written in Hebrew and the Hebrew word for, “one” in Gen 2:24 and Deu 6:4 is the word, “echad.” So, it is not that they are both different words in the Hebrew language. Since the word, “one” is exactly the same for both verses, then both should be interpreted the same way, is it not? Yet Deu 6:4 is interpreted by commentators as one Being. Whereas Gen 2:24 is not interpreted as one human being. Why is this so? In our view, their interpretation of these words do not make logical sense. Is the husband and his wife blended together into one flesh? If not, then why should the Trinity be considered one Being? Therefore, Gen 2:24 and Deu 6:4 should only be referring to unity and not the number one numerically.
7.7
John 17:20-23 (NASB95) states:
(20) “I do not ask on behalf of these alone, but for those also who believe in Me through their word; (21) that they 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; (23) I in them and You in Me, that they may be perfected in unity, so that the world may know that You sent Me, and loved them, even as You have loved Me.
7.8
John 17:20-23 Commentary: We wish to highlight verse 22 where Jesus in His prayer to the Father said, “…that they may be one, just as We are one.” Are all believers in Christ going to be blended together to form one being? If not, then why is God one Being or one in essence? Even as the oneness of all believers is referring to unity, the oneness between the Father and the Son is also referring to unity. In John 10:30 Jesus said, “I and the Father are one.” Is this referring to one Being or one in essence? Clearly neither. The oneness refers to unity. God is three distinct Beings united as one God. Similarly, all true born-again Christians are millions of beings, all of us united as one. It was never numerically one, but one in unity.
8.0
EXPLAINING THE DOCTRINE OF THE HOLY TRINITY (ONE SPEAKING REPRESENTATIVELY FOR THREE)
8.1
In this section, we will provide evidence to show that although God is three Persons, He uses either the singular or the plural pronouns, both singular and plural pronouns together, as the situation requires. From what we can remember so far, there has only been three or four occasions that the Triune God used plural pronouns. They are Gen 1:26, Gen 3:22, Gen 11:7 and Isa 6:8. In these verses, except Isa 6:8, the Triune God was talking among Themselves, interacting with each other. Some say that in Gen 1:26, God could be talking to His angels. But we disagree. Firstly, when God said, “Let Us make man…” He was referring to the three Beings within the Godhead because only God creates (Heb 1:2 and Col 1:16), angels do not create. Secondly, when God said, “Let Us make man in Our image…” readers can be certain that God was definitely not talking to His angels because some of them look nothing like a man. While some angels do look like men (Heb 13:2), others look a bit strange based on the descriptions found in Dan 10:5-6, Isa 6:2, Eze 1:15-19 and Eze 10:12. Thus if God was really talking to His angels (Let Us make man in OUR IMAGE), then some of us should have wings, some without and some should have other faculties of different configurations. But we do not have them. So, if God was not talking to angels, who were They talking to? It is obvious that They (the Triune God) were having a conversation among Themselves.
8.2
Gen 1:26 (NASB95) states:
(26) Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; and let them rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over the cattle and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.”
8.3
Gen 1:26 Commentary: This leads us to the next question. So why did God use plural pronouns on some occasions but on other occasions He used singular pronouns such as, “I”, “You”, or “Me”, etc.? Is God trying to confuse us? Just look at Gen 1:26 again. It should have read, “Then God said, ‘Let Me make man in My image, according to My likeness…” But God used plural pronouns instead of singular. We have already established that He could not be talking to His angels, so God was definitely talking among Themselves. On other occasions He used singular pronouns, making it look like there is only one Being in the Godhead. Why? Why sometimes singular and why sometimes plural? We believe that whenever He used plural pronouns, He was demonstrating to us that there are three Beings in the Godhead and whenever He used singular pronouns, He was speaking representatively for all three Beings of the Triune God. Let us explain further.
8.4
Exodus 20:2-6 (NASB95) states:
(2) “I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery. (3) You shall have no other gods before Me. (4) You shall not make for yourselves an idol, or any likeness of what is in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the water under the earth. (5) You shall not worship or serve them; for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children, on the third and fourth generations of those who hate Me, (6) but showing lovingkindness to thousands, to those who love Me and keep My commandments.
8.5
Exodus 20:2-6 Commentary: Imagine if the Triune God, instead of giving commands like what we have read above in Exodus 20:2-6, gave commands like the one following: “We are the Lords, your Gods, who have brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery. You shall have no other gods before Us. You shall not make for yourselves an idol, or any likeness of what is in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the water under the earth. You shall not worship or serve them; for We, the Lords your Gods, are jealous Gods, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children, on the third and fourth generations of those who hate Us, but showing lovingkindness to thousands, to those who love Us and keep Our commandments.
If the Triune God gave commands with plural pronouns, the result would have been very unacceptable to Him. Men will likely treat the Triune God just like the rest of the false gods they have been worshipping. They will categorize God – The Father as a strict disciplinarian; the Son probably as merciful and the Holy Spirit as powerful but mysterious. Or worse, this God for wisdom, that God for fertility, or that other God for plentiful harvests, etc. The point is, if the Triune God gave commands or spoke to any of the prophets using plural pronouns all the time, those commands would very likely have confused all men as to who they should put their focus on. It would encourage divisions among men and/or church attendees. Some would be of the Father, some would be of the Son and others would be of the Holy Spirit, just like what happened to the church in Corinth where Christians divided themselves into groups based on whether a person is loyal to Paul, Apollos, Peter or Christ (1 Cor 1:12-13). But God is one! So, God in His wisdom spoke representatively for all three Persons within the Godhead on most occasions. And only on one occasion, He spoke using both singular and plural pronouns like the one below. Please see Isa 6:8.
8.6
Isa 6:8 (NASB95) states:
(8) Then I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, “Whom shall I send, and who will go for Us?” Then I said, “Here I am. Send me!”
8.7
Isa 6:8 is a very good example of God speaking representatively, that is, one Person speaking for three Persons. The Lord started by asking in singular pronoun and then ended by asking using the plural pronoun. Again, people might say that when God used the word, “Us” He was probably referring to Himself and His angels. If this is true, why then did God not say, “Whom shall We send…?”, right from the beginning? Could it be possible that God suddenly remembered His angels, thereby causing Him to change His pronouns later? When He used both the singular and the plural pronoun, it was because He wanted to. The most probable reason, in our view, was to show prophet Isaiah and to us, that one Person of the Godhead was speaking representatively for all three Persons within the Godhead. There can be no other reason for using both the singular and plural pronouns within one question. Besides, we have not encountered anywhere in Scripture where God gives His instructions on behalf of His angels, there is always a certain distance between Him and His angels. We have not come across God being so chummy with His angels. Angels do not give instructions, they take instructions from God.
9.0
ANALYSIS AND COMMENTARY – DEFENDING AGAINST NON-TRINITARIANS
9.1
NON-TRINITARIAN ARGUMENT
9.2
John 17:3 (NASB95) states:
(3) This is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent.
9.3
John 17:3 Commentary: Nontrinitarians often use this verse to refute trinitarians. They say that Jesus is just an agent, or a special person, or even a messiah sent by God, but definitely not God Himself. And since it was Jesus who made this statement in John 17:3, they insist that their assertions have been proven correct. But the problem with nontrinitarians is that they ignore other parts of the Bible. Let us take a look at John 17:10, John 14:10 and Heb 1:8-9.
9.4
TRINITARIAN ARGUMENT – SHARING ALL THINGS
9.5
John 17:10 (NASB) states:
(10) and all things that are Mine are Yours, and Yours are Mine; and I have been glorified in them.
9.6
John 17:10 Commentary: Reasonably, would a person share all things with another person? All things mean all things with nothing being left out. A generous employer may share some things, but would he share all things with his employee? If he shared all things, then what is the difference between the employer and the employee? The employee can walk in and out of the workplace like an employer because that workplace actually belongs to the employee as well. Or if a master shares all things with his slave, then what is the difference between the master and the slave? The slave could also behave like the master since the slave also owns everything that his master owns. In fact, that slave could walk off with everything that his master owns, leaving him with nothing but just his life, thereby turning the master into a slave. Thus, a person would only share all things with another person if they are both very close familiy members or if they are best friends who trust each other with their lives. Many times even family members do not trust each other as much as to share all things. Thus, for Jesus to declare that both the Father and Him are sharing all things, it is the same as saying both the Father and the Son are equal to each other and that they trust each other with everything that they have
9.7
TRINITARIAN ARGUMENT – EXACT REPRESENTATION
9.8
John 14:8 (NASB95) states:
(8) Philip said to Him, “Lord, shows us the Father, and it it is enough for us.”
9.9
John 14:8 Commentary: What Philip requested of the Lord is quite similar to what Moses requested very much earlier. In Exo 33:18, Moses said, “I pray You, show me your glory!” After Moses made that request, the Lord replied in Exo 33:20 and said that no one can see His face and live. Yet we see in Exo 33:11 that the Lord used to speak to Moses face-to-face. So how is it possible that Moses can speak to the Lord face to face and not die? Is the Lord contradicting Himself in Exo 33:20? In our view, the Bible has to be describing the activities of two Persons, that is, the two Gods within the Godhead. Otherwise, there is no way of reconciling the contradiction of Moses being able to speak to Him face-to-face on the one hand, and not being able to see His face and live, on the other. In other words, Moses was speaking to God the Son (who can be seen) in Exo 33:11, and in Exo 33:20, God the Father (who cannot be seen) was likely the one speaking to Moses. Let us take a look at another four verses which on the face of it look like they were contradicting Exo 33:20.
9.10
Gen 32:30 (NASB95) states:
(30) So Jacob named the place Peniel, for he said, “I have seen God face to face, yet my life has been preserved.”
9.11
1 Kings 22:19 (NASB95) states:
(19) Micaiah said, “Therefore, hear the word of the Lord. I saw the Lord sitting on His throne, and all the host of heaven standing by Him on His right and on His left.
9.12
Isa 6:1 (NASB95) states:
(1) In the year of King Uzziah’s death I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, lofty and exalted, with the train of His robe filling the temple.
9.13
John 6:46 (NASB95) states:
(46) “Not that anyone has seen the Father, except the One who is from God; He has seen the Father.
9.14
Gen 32:30, 1 King 22:19, Isa 6:1 and John 6:46 Commentary: Jacob declared in Gen 32:30 that he has seen God face to face. Micaiah and Isaiah have also seen the Lord sitting on His throne as written in 1 Kings 22:19 and Isa 6:1 respectively. Yet in John 6:46, Jesus declared that no one has seen the Father except Himself. Could Jesus be mistaken? If Jesus is not mistaken, then who did Moses and all the rest of the Old Testament figures see? They all say that they saw the Lord, did they not? Readers will find it hard to understand this unless they accept that they are three Persons in the Godhead, all with the rank of God. All who claimed to have seen God, were actually seeing the One who allowed Himself to be seen, and that is the Son. They did not see the Father, they saw the Son and He is also God. But how can seeing the Son be equivalent to seeing the Father? Does that not make the Son equal with the Father? Let us read John 14:9-10.
9.15
John 14:9-10 (NASB95) states:
(9) Jesus said to him, “Have I been so long with you, and yet you have not come to know Me, Philip? He who has seen Me has seen the Father; how can you say, ‘Show us the Father? (10) Do you not believe that I am in the Father, and the Father is in Me? The words that I say to you I do not speak on My own initiative, but the Father abiding in Me does His works.
9.16
John 14:9-10 Commentary: In verse 9, Jesus tells Philip (and us) that anyone who has seen Christ has seen the Father. Thus seeing the Son is equivalent to seeing the Father because the Son is the exact representation of the Father in everything. In verse 10, Jesus said that He is in the Father, and the Father is in Him. What does this mean? To be clear, Jesus did not say that He is the Father. For example, when people say, “football is in me” or “archery is in me,” they are expressing a deep fundamental connection to that particular sport. That sport has become an integral part of their identity, their passion and their way of life. Similarly, the Son is so fully connected to the Father that He is like a mirror image, or a “carbon copy” of the Father. And what did the Father say of His Son? Let us take a look at Heb 1:8-9 again.
9.17
Heb 1:8-9 (NASB95) states:
(8) But of the Son He says, “Your throne, O God, is forever and ever, and the righteous scepter is the scepter of His kingdom. (9)”You have loved righteousness and hated lawlessness; therefore God, Your God has anointed You with the oil of gladness above Your companions.”
9.18
Heb 1:8-9 Commentary: These verses are clear that the Father has also called His Son, God. So not only do the Father and Son share ownership of all things and not only is the Son the exact image of the Father, but the Father has also recognized the Son as God Himself. There is no mistaking this. The Father is God and the Son is also God. They are both of the same rank.
9.20
TRINITARIAN ARGUMENT – THE ONLY TRUE GOD
9.21
Back to the argument presented by nontrinitarians. So, was Jesus telling the truth in John 17:3, when He said that the Father is the only true God? Nontrinitarians should take notice that Jesus did not say that the Father is the only God, He said that the Father is the only true God. This is not to say that the Son and the Holy Spirit are false Gods. Jesus never said that. And Jesus was also not comparing the Father to other false gods of the world; for why would Jesus make such a prayer to the Father Himself in the presence of His disciples who are already true believers? With Judas Iscariot gone off to do his evil deed, not one of them is an unbeliever praying to other false gods. So there had to be other reasons why Jesus said that the Father is the only true God. Once again, Jesus said that the Father is the only true God, not the only God.
9.22
Trinitarians and nontrinitarians alike should take notice that even though the Son and the Holy Spirit are equal to the Father in rank, it was the Father who made the Son equal to Him:
- It was the Father who gave all things into the hands of the Son (John 13:3).
- It was the Father who gave the Son authority over all flesh (John 17:2).
- It was the Father who showed the Son what He Himself was doing (John 5:20).
- It was the Father who gave the Son to have life in Himself (John 5:26).
- It was the Father who gave the Son authority to execute judgement (John 5:27).
- It was the Father who commanded the Son as to what to say (John 12:49).
- It was the Father, the Lord of heaven and earth (Matt 11:25) who gave all authority in heaven and on earth to His Son (Matt 28:18) making Him equal to the Father.
- And it is the Son who imitates the Father (John 5:19) not the other way around.
- There is more that is not mentioned here.
9.23
As for the Holy Spirit, He proceeds from the Father (John 15:26), not the other way around. And He too, does not speak on His own initiative but He takes of what the Son has spoken to disclose it to His disciples (John 16:13-15). The Father tells the Son what to say and the Spirit takes of what was spoken by the Son to reveal it to His disciples. The original source of power, authority, even the words to speak, comes from the Father (not the Son and not the Holy Spirit). The Father is the ultimate First among equals and the Source of all things (1 Cor 8:6). With regard to 1 Cor 8:6, we wish to highlight that the titles of “God” and “Lord” are of equal standing. They have been used together to describe God Himself on several occasions (Luke 1:46-47, Matt 22:37 and Luke 1:68). Thus, from all of the verses provided until now, we have shown that the Son and the Holy Spirit are equal to the Father only because He (the Father) was the One who caused Them to be equal to Himself. It is no wonder that Jesus called the Father the only true God despite the Son also holding the rank of God Himself.
9.24
To understand this better, let us take for example a master chef named John. John created all his recipes by himself and owned only one large restaurant. Although his restaurant is always packed every day, he never expanded his operations as he did not want other chef employees to spoil his good name by cooking less than perfect dishes for his loyal customers. Due to his lack of time, he had only one son. He called him Johnny. One day John asked his father if he could learn how to cook as good as him. John said to his son, “Yes, come to the restaurant and learn from daddy!” So, the father showed the son what he himself was doing. After many years of learning, Johnny was made the chef of his father’s restaurant. Old customers came to Johnny and said, “Johnny, your cooking is very very good, you are a master chef!” To which Johnny respectfully replied, “No, my father alone is the only true master chef, because all my skills and knowledge came from him alone.” John was the one who caused Johnny to be equal to him in terms of his cooking skills. John showed his son what he himself was doing and withheld nothing from his son. So, although John’s restaurant now has two master chefs, Johnny recognizes that the only true master chef is John, his father. Similarly, God the Father alone is the only true God for the Son does everything the Father does in like manner because He shows Him all things that He Himself is doing (John 5:19-20). The Son is equal to the Father only because the Father caused Him (the Son) to be equal to Him. This is the reason why the Son has declared that the Father is the only true God.
10.0
CONCLUSION AND SUMMARY
10.1
One of the most important doctrines of the Christian faith is the doctrine of the Holy Trinity. Most within Christendom have accepted this doctrine to be defined as a belief in the one God that eternally exists in three distinct Persons, that is the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. These 3 Persons are co-equal, co-eternal and co-existent and they also share the same attributes, glory and divine nature. Each Person of the Trinity is fully God. Yet they insist that the Trinity is not three Gods but one God in three persons. This is where the confusion starts. They say that each Person of the Trinity being fully God does not amount to three Gods, but one God in three Persons. It is like saying, there are 3 glasses of water. Each glass of water having 250ml. Yet, those 3 glasses of water somehow magically became 1 glass of water still holding only 250ml. What happened to the other 2 glasses of water amounting to 500ml? then some suggested that maybe the Trinity is like each Person amounting to one-third God, so when all three Persons are added together, one-third plus one-third plus one-third, becomes one full God. This suggestion was also rejected because each Person is supposed to be fully God. But if each Person is fully God, we should have three Gods is it not? Yet, they insist that all three of them are numerically just one God. How can three persons be just one person? Clergymen and Bible scholars over the years could not explain it, so they called it a divine mystery and concluded that mere men with their finite minds cannot understand. We, however do not think that this doctrine is a mystery. Rather, it is more likely that those Bible scholars have understood the matter, incorrectly.
10.2
Firstly, we would like to affirm that we also believe that one God eternally exists in three Persons. However, we do not believe that the “one God” is referring to God being numerically one. In our view, the oneness is referring to unity. This is similar to married couples being considered as “one-flesh” by God. The Bible in Gen 2:24 says, “…a man shall leave his father and mother, and be joined to his wife; and they shall become one flesh.” One flesh, yet there are still 2 persons. Obviously, the oneness of the married couple is referring to very close unity, so that they both are like one being. But are they numerically one person? Are they numerically one being? Clearly not. It is clear as day that they are still numerically two persons, still two human beings. Similarly, the Holy Trinity is still numerically three Persons. They are not numerically one Being, not numerically one God with three personalities and certainly not numerically one God who switches between three different roles on different occasions or as the need requires. The Holy Trinity is a total of three Gods, fully united, fully in agreement and fully coordinated with each other in every aspect, including their thoughts, their speech, their actions and their purpose. Their unity is so complete and so perfect that They are considered one God. Christians can think of the Holy Trinity like a single unrivalled family organization of three Persons all holding the rank of God. But the Father is the first among equals because it was He who caused the other two Persons to be equal to Him. This was discussed extensively in the main body of this article. Finally, it is with gladness and also with fear and trembling, to read that all true born-again Christians together in unity, will also be part of this Holy Trinity (John 17:20-23).