The Trinity Series: The Father, Son And Spirit Are God

The Scriptures teach that God is one and this is in reference to nature or essence.

However, they also teach that God is three persons who are identified as Father, Son and Spirit.

God is only rarely recognized as Father in the Old Testament (Exodus 4:22-24; Deuteronomy 32:6, 9, 18).

The Scriptures ascribe the following attributes to the Father, which ascribe deity to Him: (1) Sovereign (Matthew 6:10). (2) Righteousness (John 17:25). (3) Justice (Romans 3:24-26) (4) Love (Romans 5:8; John 3:16) (5) Eternal life (John 1:1; 17:2-3). (6) Omniscience (Matthew 6:8). (7) Omnipresence (Ephesians 4:6). (8) Omnipotence (Mark 14:36a). (9) Immutability (Jam. 1:17). (10) Veracity (John 7:28).

God the Father is head over all creation and His royal family (1 Corinthians 8:6).

The title “Father” emphasizes the absolute authority that the first person of the Trinity has over all creation.

The first person of the Trinity is the author of the plan of salvation for all of sinful humanity (Ephesians 1).

Ephesians 4:6 one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all. (NIV)

God is the Father of all believers who are sons of God through regeneration (John 1:12-13; Romans 8:15; Galatians 3:26-28; 4:6; Ephesians 2:18).

The Bible teaches that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.

The second person of the Trinity, the Lord Jesus Christ, is the only member of the Trinity to become a human being (John 1:14, 18; 14:9).

The Lord Jesus Christ is undiminished deity and true humanity in one person forever (Rom. 1:2-6; Phil. 2:6-8; 1 Tim. 3:16).

He is eternally related to the other members of the Trinity (Isa. 48:16; John 1:1-4; Colossians 2:9; Hebrews 5:5) and is the “exact representation of His (God the Father's) nature” (Hebrews 1:3).

His deity is manifested by the fact that He has all authority (Matthew 28:18), possesses eternal life in Himself (John 5:26), gives eternal life to those who believe in Him (John 10:28) and executes judgment (John 5:22) and forgives sins (Matthew 9:6; Mark 2:7).

He spoke of the glory He had with the Father before the foundation of the world.

John 8:58 “Very truly I tell you,” Jesus answered, “before Abraham was born, I am!” (NIV)

John 17:5 And now, Father, glorify me in your presence with the glory I had with you before the world began. (NIV)

In John 16:26-28, He claimed preexistence in explicit and unmistakable terms.

In the very first paragraph of his gospel, the apostle John testifies to the fact that Jesus of Nazareth, the incarnate Word of God, existed from eternity past.

John 1:1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was with God in the beginning. 3 Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. 4 In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. (NIV)

John 1:14 The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth. (NIV)

The Lord Jesus Christ is the Creator and Sustainer of the universe (John 1:3, 10; Colossians 1:16-17; Hebrews 1:3, 10).

The apostle Paul teaches in Philippians 2:6 that Jesus Christ existed from eternity past.

There are several titles ascribed to Jesus Christ that signify His deity.

He is called “the Son of God” (Luke 1:35), “the Son of the Most High” (Luke 1:32), “mighty God” (Isaiah 9:6), “eternal Father” (Isaiah 9:6),

“His goings forth are from long ago, from the days of eternity” (Micah 5:2) “Lord” (Rom. 15:30; Ephesians 1:22; Phil. 2:11) and “God” (Titus 2:13).

The Scriptures teach that He is sovereign (Matthew 28:18a; Colossians 2:10b), that He is perfect righteousness (John 8:46a; 2 Corinthians 5:21; Hebrews 7:26; 1 Peter 2:22; 1 John 2:21b) and justice (John 8:16a; 2 Tim. 4:8; Ps. 9:8; Deut. 32:4; Rev. 15:3b).

Furthermore, the attribute of love is ascribed to Him (John 13:34; Rom. 5:8; Ephesians 3:19; 1 John 4:9-10) as well as eternal life (1 Tim. 1:17; 1 John 5:11), omniscience (Luke 11:17; John 2:24-25; 6:64; 21:17), omnipresence (Matthew 18:20; Prov. 15:3), omnipotence (John 1:3, 10; 5:21; 1 Corinthians 1:23-24; Phil. 3:21; Hebrews 1:3; Rev. 1:8), immutability (Mal. 3:6; Hebrews 1:10-12; 13:8) and veracity (John 1:14; 14:6a; 1 John 3:16).

His deity is referred to in that He is said to have authority to forgive sins (Matthew 9:6; Luke 5:24; Colossians 3:13) and He has the power to raise the dead (John 5:21; 6:40; 11:25).

The Bible teaches that all judgment belongs to the Lord Jesus Christ (John 5:22; 1 Corinthians 3:11-15; 2 Corinthians 5:10; Rev. 20:11-14), and that He receives worship from both men and angels (Ps. 99:5; Phil. 2:10; Rev. 5:13-14) since He is equal with the Father (John 10:30, 37-38; 14:9; 17:5, 24-25).

In theology, God the Holy Spirit is identified as the third person of the Trinity.

The Scriptures teach that the Spirit is a person not a thing (John 15:26; 16:7; 2 Corinthians 13:14; 1 Peter 1:2).

The Holy Spirit is the unseen power of God and reveals the plan of God on earth and is the agent for executing the Christian way of life.

God the Holy Spirit is a separate and distinct Person in the Godhead and is called “Lord” in 2 Corinthians 3:17 just as God the Father and God the Son are.

The Holy Spirit’s role in man’s salvation reveals He is God: (1) Common Grace: Makes the gospel understandable (John 16:7-11; 2 Corinthians 2:14b). (2) Efficacious Grace: Makes faith in Jesus Christ effective for salvation (2 Corinthians 6:1-2; Ephesians 2:8-9). (3) Regeneration: Creates a human spirit for the purpose of the imputation of eternal life (John 3:1-16; Titus 3:5). (4) Baptism of the Spirit: Places every believer in union with Jesus Christ (John 7:37-39; 1 Corinthians 12:13; Ephesians 4:5; 1 Peter 3:21). (5) Indwelling: Creates a temple for the indwelling of Jesus Christ (Romans 8:11; 1 Corinthians 3:16; 6:19-20; 2 Corinthians 6:16). (6) Filling: Influences the soul of the believer in executing the plan of God for the church age (Ephesians 5:18). (7) Sealing: Puts His stamp on the believer to guarantee their salvation (2 Corinthians 1:22; Ephesians 1:13; 4:30). (8) Distribution of Spiritual Gifts: Gives every believer a spiritual gift (1 Corinthians 12:4-11).

As we can see from our study of the person and work of the Father, Son and the Spirit, they are irreducibly different from one another.

Robert Letham writes “God is one being, three persons and three persons, one being. The indivisible Trinity consists of three irreducibly distinct persons. Their distinctness or difference is in no way whatever erased, obliterated or eroded by the union. But the union is real, eternal and indivisible. The three are one identical being.”

That the three persons of the Trinity are irreducibly different from one another is illustrated by the incarnation of the Son of God.

Psalm 110:1 The Lord says to my lord: “Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet.” (NIV)

In this passage, the Lord addresses the Lord but not in self-deliberation but as distinct agents.

The Lord receives authority and power greater than David’s.

This Psalm points forward to the person of Jesus Christ and is cited frequently in the New Testament, both by Jesus of Himself (Mark 12:36 and parallels) and by Peter of Jesus (Acts 2:33-35).

Isaiah 6:3 And they were calling to one another: “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord Almighty; the whole earth is full of his glory.” (NIV)

The prophet Isaiah is transported to the throne of God where he hears the song of the Seraphim where they sing “Holy, holy, holy,” which in light of the New Testament speaks clearly of the Trinity.

Matthew 3:17 And a voice from heaven said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.” (NIV)

Notice that when the Lord Jesus emerges from the water the Holy Spirit descended upon Him, and the Father expressed His approval audibly to all present at the baptism, “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well-pleased.”

That the Father and Son are distinct is manifested at the Transfiguration of Jesus, where again the Father expressed audibly His approval of Jesus.

Matthew 17:5 While he was still speaking, a bright cloud covered them, and a voice from the cloud said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased. Listen to him!” (NIV)

The distinction between the Father and the Son is also seen in the gospel of John (see John 5:32-35).

Then there are procession passages, where the Father is said to send the Son (John 3:16-17; 17:4; Romans 8:3-4; Galatians 4:4; 1 John 4:9-10).

These teach not only the preexistence of the Son and His eternality but also His distinct personhood.

The Scriptures not only distinguish the Father from the Son but also they distinguish the Son from the Spirit (John 14:26; 15:26-27).