The Trinity

Trinity

The doctrine concerning the trinity is essential to the Christian Faith. It is a no holds Barr situation. If we miss the Trinity when we come to conclusions we miss the reality of who God is. However, when we think of the trinity it can be hard to understand. First thing that we want to do is make some distinctions concerning the God head.

God is one.

This is clear when we think through the ten commandments. The first command is that I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of Egypt out of the land of slavery. You shall have no other gods before me. (Exodus 20:2-3)

We are also called in the second command to not worship any other gods except the one true God.

Lets define some terms here.

Monotheism - the worship of one God. (Christians)

Tri-theism- Worship of three separate Gods

Polytheism - worship of multiple Gods.

Christians are Monotheist. We confess that there is one God.

Deut 6:4 ““Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one.”

James 2:19 “You believe that God is one; you do well. Even the demons believe—and shudder!”

1 cor. 8:4 “Therefore, as to the eating of food offered to idols, we know that “an idol has no real existence,” and that “there is no God but one.””

Christians believe also that there are three distinct persons in the one God.

The Father

The Son

The Holy Spirit

We understand that there is one God in three persons.

This doesn't mean that there is one God who has shown himself through three different persons throughout the history . that would be the heresy of Modalism.

How can God be three but also one?

we need to be clear in our doctrine and make sure that it is found in scripture.

We understand that the father is God. There are many places in scripture that shows that the father is God.

Matthew 6:26 “Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?”

Other places that we see this is Matt. 19:23-26; 27:46; Mark 12:17, 24-27

There are many places in scripture that we can see Jesus’s deity.

Philippians 2:5-11 “Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”

Hebrews 1 ESV

Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world. He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power. After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, having become as much superior to angels as the name he has inherited is more excellent than theirs. For to which of the angels did God ever say, “You are my Son, today I have begotten you”? Or again, “I will be to him a father, and he shall be to me a son”? And again, when he brings the firstborn into the world, he says, “Let all God’s angels worship him.” Of the angels he says, “He makes his angels winds, and his ministers a flame of fire.” But of the Son he says, “Your throne, O God, is forever and ever, the scepter of uprightness is the scepter of your kingdom. You have loved righteousness and hated wickedness; therefore God, your God, has anointed you with the oil of gladness beyond your companions.” And, “You, Lord, laid the foundation of the earth in the beginning, and the heavens are the work of your hands; they will perish, but you remain; they will all wear out like a garment, like a robe you will roll them up, like a garment they will be changed. But you are the same, and your years will have no end.” And to which of the angels has he ever said, “Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet”? Are they not all ministering spirits sent out to serve for the sake of those who are to inherit salvation?

1 John 5:7-8 “For there are three that testify: the Spirit and the water and the blood; and these three agree.”

The us in Genesis 1:26 “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.””

Gen 1:27 “So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.”

The name of God “Elohim”

Matthew 28:18-20 “And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 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, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”” “And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.”

John 1:1-4 “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.”

In 381 the Council of Constantinople formulated a definitive statement in which the church made explicit the beliefs previously held implicitly. The formula used was that there are one ousia in three hypostases or one substance three persons (erickson 116, Intro to Christian Doctrine)

This can be confusing at times to think through. here are 6 elements that Erickson gives concerning the trinity that he believes are essential.

God is one

God is made up of three. The Father, the son, and the holy spirit each one are God.

God is not three in the same way that he is one. God the father is not the son, God the son is not the Spirit and God the Spirit is not the Father.

The Trinity is eternal

the trinity is incomprehensible

we can not fully understand its mystery. When we see God we shall see him as he is and understand him better than we do now.

Pitfall to avoid when explaining the trinity.

We do not want to use analogies.

Egg analogy

An egg consists of a yolk, white and shell that forms one egg

water

water can be a solid a liquid or steam.

Both of these shows to be modalistic in nature

I am a father, a husband, and a pastor

These are showing different ways that i am perceived from others. Rather than different persons