UNDERSTANDING THE TRINITY OF GOD

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Have you found it hard to explain the Trinity of God to an unbeliever, new believer, friend or work colleague?

Do you, yourself, have a hard time wrapping your head around the concept of the Trinity of God as a believer?

This blog post is to help you understand the doctrine of the Trinity of God in a theological yet clear and effective way.

Frequently Asked Questions about the Trinity

The doctrine of the Trinity of God can be a difficult concept for some to fathom and comprehend, and therefore there are lists of questions that you may have come across from others when evangelising or questions you have had yourself. 

As you read the questions below ask yourself if you would be able to answer them, if an unbeliever approached you with these questions.

Here are the lists of questions which I will later answer in this blog post:

The Foundation of the Trinity 

Before I break down the doctrine of the Trinity of God, I believe it is imperative to preface the foundation of the Trinity. There is a misconception that the doctrine of the Trinity of God believes in polytheism. This cannot be any further from the truth. 

What is polytheism you may ask? To believe in polytheism is to worship more than one god. If you look at the Abrahamic religions such as Judaism, Christianity and Islam, they all believe in the opposite. They believe in only one God, which is supporting the idea of monotheism.

The doctrine of the Trinity of God does not support polytheism, but rest assured it believes there is only one true living God. 

Don’t believe me? Here are some verses which support monotheism:

Isaiah 43:10 – ““You are my witnesses,” declares the Lord,  “and my servant whom I have chosen, so that you may know and believe me and understand that I am he. Before me no god was formed, nor will there be one after me.”

Isaiah 44:6-8 – “6 This is what the Lord says—Israel’s King and Redeemer, the Lord Almighty: I am the first and I am the last; apart from me there is no God. 7 Who then is like me? Let him proclaim it. Let him declare and lay out before me what has happened since I established my ancient people, and what is yet to come—yes, let them foretell what will come. 8 Do not tremble, do not be afraid. Did I not proclaim this and foretell it long ago? You are my witnesses. Is there any God besides me? No, there is no other Rock; I know not one.”

Isaiah 45:21-22 – “21 Declare what is to be, present it—let them take counsel together. Who foretold this long ago, who declared it from the distant past? Was it not I, the Lord? And there is no God apart from me, a righteous God and a Savior; there is none but me. 22 “Turn to me and be saved all you ends of the earth; for I am God, and there is no other.”

In a nutshell, these verses are coming from the very mouth of God, God is speaking about Himself. He was telling the prophet Isaiah, and He is telling us that there is only one God and that God is Him. There is no one like Him. There is no one but Him. There was no God before Him and there will be no God after Him. He does not know of any other god because He is the only God. There is no other God besides “a righteous God and a Saviour” (Isaiah 44:8). 

Throughout the Bible, God commands the Israelites and us Christians that we should not worship any other god besides Him because that would be committing idolatry which is a sin.

I don’t know how much more God needs to state, explain and reiterate that there is only one God and that God is Him, who we should worship.

So, let’s clear that up once and for all, the doctrine of the Trinity does not believe in nor support polytheism but rather monotheism.

Okay, then how do you explain the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit are one God? 

Well, let me break it down for you…

The Breakdown of the Trinity

To simply explain the Trinity, if you take the word ‘Trinity” it is made up of the words ‘Tri’ and ‘unity’. ‘Tri’ means three. ‘Unity’ means one. Therefore, you get 3 in 1. You may have heard this before, that the doctrine of the Trinity is believing that the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit are 3 in 1. 

Now, let me also break this common misconception that this means there are 3 gods in 1 God. That is not true, nor does that make any sense. As I have prefaced that the doctrine of the Trinity believes in one God and we see scripture backs that. So, that already refutes this misconception. 

So, then what does it mean?

It means that there are 3 who’s and 1 what. The who’s are the three Persons, who are the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. The what is the ‘unity’ part of the Trinity which is the essence of who God is, is that there is one God. 

There are three Persons and in the one God.

To sum all of that up the doctrine of the Trinity is: They are co-equal and co-eternal Persons namely the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit wholely exist in the one being of God.

make your own version of this diagram

Let’s now break down further and explain how the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit are distinctly different in Personhood but are co-equal in being one God.

Is the Father God?

Now, there are not many, if any disputes in regard to the Father being God, so I will not spend too much time on this point. However, I will show you how the Father and the Son are two distinct Persons, yet one God.

In Matthew 3:16-17, Jesus is being baptised by John the Baptist, as He gets baptised a voice from heaven proclaims that Jesus is His Son. We can see from here that the voice from heaven was God, but specifically the Father as He called Jesus His Son. We can also clearly see a relational interaction happening between the Father and the Son, showing two distinct Persons. This shows us that the Father is God but He is not the Son.

Is Jesus God?

Moving on to the most debated and controversial topic on the doctrine of the Trinity of God is whether Jesus is God. 

Well, let’s find out, shall we?

Colossians 2:8-9 starts with a warning that people will take you away from the truth of Jesus by feeding you with empty philosophies and intellectual thinking that sounds good to the ears but are in fact nonsense. The truth of Jesus Christ which verse 9 tells us that the fullness of the deity is in Him. Therefore, He is fully human and fully divine.

Now, you may have heard or even believe that Jesus is 50% God and 50% human, or that He is even 100% God and 100% human. But He is neither of those things. The identity of Jesus cannot be quantified through percentages. It is not even biblical. The biblical term to use is that He is truly God and truly human.

Titus 2:13 explains to us that as Christians we look forward to the day when our “great God and Saviour, Jesus Christ” will be revealed to the whole world. This clearly shows us Jesus is our “great God and Saviour”. So, Jesus is not a godly figure, He is God. However, some people may argue that the verse is talking about two different people, God being one Person and the Saviour, Jesus Christ being the other Person. But the Granville Sharp rule will say otherwise. 

The Granville Sharp rule is when two singular common nouns are used to describe a person, and those two nouns are joined by an additive conjunction, and the definite article precedes the first noun but not the second, then both nouns refer to the same person. Example: 

We spoke with the owner and the builder of the house, Mr Davidson. 

Using the example above, we see that the owner (noun) and the builder (noun) are joined by an additive conjunction ‘and’ referring to the same person, who is Mr Davidson. 

This rule is applied in all languages including Greek.

So, when reading Titus 2:13 which is originally written in Greek, the Granville Sharp rule is applied:

“…God (noun) and (additive conjunction) Saviour (noun)…” = referring to the same Person, “Jesus Christ”.

We can use the same rule with verse 2 Peter 1:1 – “…Jesus Christ, our God and Saviour”.  

So, it is clear that Jesus is God with the example of these verses.

Some, may argue and say but doesn’t Jesus refer to Himself as God in the Bible? And to that I say, in fact, He does. 

In John 8:58, Jesus tells the people that before Abraham was born, “I AM”. When Jesus made this claim about His identity, it was significant. So significant to the point you will understand why the Jews responded to His claim in the way they did in the following verse. Jesus is saying not only was He pre-existent before Abraham but He was existent, He was eternal. 

He was also quoting Yahweh in the Old Testament in Exodus 3:14. When God instructed Moses to deliver the Israelites from Egypt, Moses asked God to reveal His identity to him so that he could tell the people who sent him. God responded, “I AM WHO I AM. Say this to the people of Israel; I AM has sent me to you”. 

From then on, the people of Israel knew that “I AM” was a claim to deity. So, when Jesus said this He was claiming to be God. This is the statement of existence, there is no other but Him because God is the ground of all reality. 

So, that’s why in John 8:59 the Jews’ reaction says it all. The Jews knew He was claiming deity. They would believe that either Jesus was God, or He was blaspheming. 

Jesus makes the same claim to deity, that He is God in John 13:19 and John 8:24. 

Jesus also claims to be eternal. To say that you are eternal means that you are the Beginning and the End. You are not a created thing or being because you existed before creation. Only God can be eternal and we see Jesus refers to Himself as just that in Revelation 22:12-13 and Revelation 1:8.  

Also, Jesus would confirm when people would believe that He is Lord and God. We see this with Thomas and Jesus commends Him for believing that He is Lord and God (John 20:28). 

The most propelling argument that Jesus is God is seen in John 1:1. There are 3 simple statements shown in this verse about who Jesus is. 

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” 

1. He was the Word = existence
2. He was with God = relational
3. He was God = identity

The Word is referred to as Jesus. 

Jesus was in the beginning. This goes hand in hand with Genesis 1:1; the creation account. This shows that Jesus is uncreated because He existed before creation. All things are made through Him. 

Jesus was with God. If you continue reading John 1, you will see that the Word is referred to as He, which means the Word is a Person and that Person is Jesus Christ, as He is God in flesh (John 1:14). This attributes to the relationship Jesus had with God, the Father and the Holy Spirit. God has a loving relationship with Himself (three Persons) so that He can be Love before any of us exists (1 John 4:10). 

Jesus was God. He can be with God and be God because that is the doctrine of the Trinity. Jesus as a Person has a relationship with God (with the Father and the Holy Spirit). Jesus as a being (HIs essence/nature) makes Him God. 

To clarify, Jesus is not the Father. Jesus and the Father have different roles but are co-equally God. 

To those who believe this proves that the doctrine of the Trinity supports modalism, you are wrong. To those who may not know what modalism is, it is the belief that the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit are not three distinct Persons but rather are modes under which God manifest Himself. Simply put, it is the belief that God puts on different hats to be a different member of the Trinity. 

Some people believe this, including those who identify themselves as Christians because they view the Bible as the Father revealed Himself in the Old Testament, Jesus revealed Himself in the New Testament, and when the 1st-century church began up until now the Holy Spirit revealed Himself. 

However, John 17:5 shows us that we should refute the doctrine of modalism. The verse shows us, Jesus, praying to the Father, which already shows the distinction between Persons, but also Jesus says to the Father that He wants to go back to sharing the glory He had with the Father before the world began. This clearly demonstrates to us that Jesus was with the Father before creation. He didn’t exist once He became flesh, He existed before then; He existed in the Beginning which is what makes Him God.

Is the Holy Spirit a Person?

Last, but certainly not least we have the Holy Spirit. The argument with the Holy Spirit is people do not believe He is a Person, but rather an active force. I believe people get this notion because He is referred to as fire, wind and a dove. Let’s be clear, He is not fire, nor is He wind or a dove. He is a Person and He is God.

The Holy Spirit is described as fire, wind or a dove to depict the presence of God. We cannot see the Holy Spirit, but it doesn’t make Him any less real. He exists and He lives inside of us. Just like the wind, you can not see it but you know it exists due to its presence. You see the effect it has on the environment, likewise, the Holy Spirit.

But to emphasise the Holy Spirit is a Person. How? Can an active force be lied to, grieved, or blasphemed? The answer to that would be no. But, yet the Holy Spirit can. To be lied to, grieved or blasphemed means you not only have to be a Person, but also you would have to be God. 

We see with Ananias and Sapphira lied to the Holy Spirit (Acts 5:1-11). We see Jesus saying that if you blaspheme against Him you will be forgiven, but if you blaspheme against the Holy Spirit you will not be forgiven (Mark 3:29). We see the Holy Spirit speaking to Himself as a Person because He is a Person (Acts 13:2). We see the Holy Spirit speaking as God and as having a Personhood (Acts 10:19). We see Paul teaching us that we should grieve the Holy Spirit (Ephesians 4:30). You cannot bring sorrow to a non-person. An active force does not have bad feelings about things but a person can.

It is clear that the Holy Spirit is a Person. 

And to prove that He is God. Jesus commissions us to baptise people in the “name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit” (Matthew 28:19).  Jesus is telling the people to baptise people in one singular name, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit because whilst there are three Persons, there is one being, God.

So, I hope that clears things up. The Holy Spirit is a Person and He is God which explains and supports the doctrine of the Trinity of God.

Answers about the Trinity of God

If you remembered at the beginning of this blog post I presented to you the most FAQs about the Trinity and asked if you could answer them. If you are someone who has wrestled with the idea of the Trinity or someone who struggled to answer some of them or even all when evangelising, these answers I have below will help get you to the bottom of them all.

1. The word Trinity is a theological term which comes from the concept which is found in the Bible. It is the same as omnipresent and omniscient which are terms not found in the Bible but the concept or teaching of it is. 

2. When Jesus says that the Father is the one true God, He is also referring to Himself and the Holy Spirit because this is the doctrine of the Trinity, they all make up the one true God. Three Persons who make up one true God. Not three gods. This is backed up by John 1:1.

3. This verse is Person-specific. Jesus does not say “God is greater than I”, therefore it has nothing to do with the Being of the Trinity. The verse is focused on the distinct differences between the Personhood of the Father and the Son. The context of this verse which is supported by John 17:5 and Philippians 2:6-9 depicts that it was good for Jesus to go back to be with the Father because when He became a human He laid aside His glory. He was still God when He became flesh, but He was bodily, He was humbled and lowly. Thus, He was looking forward to the glorification that comes when He returns to the Father. So, “the Father is greater than I” was a temporary situation. It was a matter of Personhood not Being. 

4. God praying to God is tritheism (i.e. three gods) and modalism (i.e. the members of the Trinity are not three distinct Persons but rather modes or forms of activity under which God manifests Himself) which is not the doctrine of the Trinity. The doctrine of the Trinity is clear on the relationship between the Persons of the Trinity. Therefore, it is the Son praying to the Father.

5. The doctrine of the Trinity is the answer. Jesus is the Son (the Person of the Trinity of God) and He is God (the Being of the Trinity of God). 

6. The scripture does not say that Jesus was created. The first thing it says is that Jesus “is the image of the invisible God”, meaning if you want to see God you look at Jesus because He took on human form. Jesus is God in human form. Then when it says “the firstborn of all creation”, it means Jesus is in charge of all creation. “Firstborn” doesn’t always mean ‘the first one born’ especially when you are talking about preeminence. Firstborn is talked about here in the sense of ranking, not in the sense of genes or being. And it wouldn’t make sense if it was talking about ‘the first one born’ in the sense of genes because He wasn’t the first one born, it was Adam. So this has nothing to do with that but everything to do with preeminence, that He is in charge of all creation. We can see this with other examples in the Bible which uses the word “firstborn” in the sense of ranking such as Psalm 89:27 (“firstborn” used to describe the king of kings) and Exodus 4:22 (“firstborn” used to describe God selecting Israel to be special amongst all the other nations). 

7. He did. We see examples of Jesus claiming to be God in John 8:58-59 which is why the Jews reacted in the way that they did, they knew what He was saying about who He was; that He is God. But He was careful about distinguishing His Personhood from the Father because He did not want to confuse us about the Trinity.

Now, you have the answers to explain the doctrine of the Trinity of God to an unbeliever, new believer or to also better understand it for yourself. 

But I still don’t understand the Trinity

Your job is not to comprehend all things, your job is to trust what God reveals. When God speaks to us and tells us who He is in the Bible, we should trust what He says about Himself and follow. It becomes dangerous when we see what He says about Himself in His word and then we don’t believe or follow what He says about Himself because we do not understand. That is arrogance. We should humbly follow and submit to God.

So, the next time you are asked about anything to do with the Trinity, you are now better equipped to give a clear and theological answer to defend the faith. 

If this theological breakdown of the doctrine of the Trinity of God sparked some interest to know more theology about God, then you will love R.T. Kendall’s book on Understanding Theology Volume III which explains the concept of the Trinity further and many other topics and doctrine in the Bible in a simple yet effective way. 

Leave a comment below saying something new you have learnt about the Trinity. Also, share this blog post with someone so that we all can have a clear and better biblical understanding of the Trinity. 

Stay blessed, 

Divine L.