The Trinity

You won’t find the word Trinity in the Bible, yet the doctrine of the Trinity is clearly revealed in Scripture.  The Trinity means there is one God who is revealed in three distinct Persons, all of the same Substance, co-equal, co-existent, and co-eternal—known as the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

Tertullian (born 145 A.D.), first employed the word "Trinity," but the doctrine was accepted by all the early Church fathers including Irenaeus (died 190 A.D.) and Cyprian (250 A.D.).  At the Council of Nicaea in 325 A.D., 318 church leaders, along with over 1500 other bishops, elders, and deacons, met to discuss the Trinity and the deity of Christ.  Of the 318 bishops, all but two agreed with the doctrine of the Trinity.

Explaining the Trinity

Syllogism: If it can be shown that:

1. There are three persons mentioned in the Bible,
2. That these three persons are all called "God"
3. And that there is only one God

Then the three persons must be the one God whether we understand it or not.

First, There is only one God.

James 2:19--"You believe God is one. You do well, the demons also believe, and shudder."

1 Cor. 8:4--"…there is no God but one."

Deut. 6:4--"Hear, O Israel! The Lord is our God, the Lord is one!"

Second, The Hebrew word for "God" (Elohim) is plural, but is used with a singular verb.

Gen. 1:26--"Then God said, 'Let us make man in our image'..."

Gen. 1:27--"And God created man in His own image."

Gen. 11:7--"Come, let us go down and there confuse their language."

Gen. 11:9--"There the Lord confused the language of the whole earth."

Note: This is not the "plural of majesty" as some claim.  The "plural of majesty" was a term invented in the 13^th century A.D.

Third, the Hebrew word for "one" (Deut. 6:4) is not yachid, which means "absolute mathematical oneness," but echad meaning "composite unity" or "united one."

Gen. 1:5--"And there was evening and there was morning, one (echad) day."

Gen. 2:24--"a man shall leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave to his wife; and they shall become one (echad) flesh."

Num. 13:23--they cut down one (echad) cluster of grapes.

Deut. 6:4--Jehovah our God is one (echad) God

Fourth, Jesus revealed God as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

Matt. 28:19--"baptizing them in the name (singular) of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit."

Fifth, The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are all called "God."

The Father is God--1 Pet. 1:2, 2 Pet. 1:17

The Son is God--Heb. 1:8, Titus 2:13, Rom. 9:5

The Holy Spirit is God--Acts 5:3-4, 1 Cor. 6:19 with 2 Cor. 6:16

Sixth, The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit exist as three eternal and distinct persons.

John 14:16 says, "And I (Jesus) will ask the Father, and He (the Father) will give you another Helper (the Holy Spirit, v.26), the He may be with you forever."  Some have incorrectly taught that the Father becomes the Son, who becomes the Holy Spirit.  John 14:16 disproves that theory.

The Father is not the Son, the Son is not the Spirit, and the Spirit is not the Father.  Jesus is sent by the Father, and He and the Father send the Spirit (John 14:26, 15:26, 16:7, 17:8, 20:21). Therefore, the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are three persons of the one God, not three manifestations of God, which was the heresy of Sabellius.

Conclusion: This proves that God (Elohim--plural) is one (echad--composite unity) and who exists in three separate persons—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

Trinitarian Verses

Matt. 28:19—"Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit…"

[Jesus said to baptize in the "name" (singular), not "names" (plural).  One name, but three separate persons: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.  The Greek uses "and the" between each person—distinguishing each person as separate, yet retaining the composite unity.]

2 Cor. 13:14—"The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit, be with you all."

1 Pet 1:2—"According to the foreknowledge of God the Father, by the sanctifying work of the Spirit, that you may obey Jesus Christ…"

Matt. 3:16-17—The Father speaks, the Son is baptized, and the Holy Spirit descends.

John 15:26—"When the Helper (Holy Spirit) comes, whom I (Jesus) will send to you from the Father…"

Other verses—Acts 7:55, Luke 1:35, 3:21-22, Eph. 2:18-20, 4:4-6, 5:18-20, 1 Cor. 12:4-6, Isa. 48:16, Zech. 12:10, John 14:16-17, 26, 1 Thess. 1:2-5, 2 Thess. 2:13-14, Titus 3:4-6 1 John 5:6-9

Who Indwells the True Believer?

God the Father—2 Cor. 6:16-18, Phil. 2:13

Jesus Christ—2 Cor. 13:5, Gal. 2:20, Col. 1:27

The Holy Spirit—1 Cor. 6:19, John 14:17, 2 Tim. 1:14, Rom. 8:9

Who Raised Jesus From the Dead?

God the Father—Acts 3:15, 26, 1 Thess. 1:9-10, Acts 2:32, 17:30-31

Jesus raised Himself—John 2:19-22

The Holy Spirit—Rom. 8:11, 1 Pet. 3:18

Who Will Raise the True Believer from the Dead?

God the Father—1 Cor. 6:14

Jesus Christ—John 5:25-29, 6:40, 44, Phil. 3:20-21

The Holy Spirit—Rom. 8:11

Whom Do Christians Fellowship With?

The Father—1 John 1:3-6, John 14:23

Jesus Christ—1 John 1:3, 1 Cor. 1:9

The Holy Spirit—2 Cor. 13:14, Phil. 2:1

Who Searches Our Hearts?

The Father—1 Chronicles 28:9, Jer. 17:10

The Son—Rev. 2:23 (v.18)

The Holy Spirit—1 Cor. 2:10, Rom. 8:26-27

Who Gives the Christian the Words to Speak?

The Father—Matt. 10:17-20

The Son—Luke 21:12-15

The Holy Spirit—Luke 12:11-12

Who Abides With the True Believer?

The Father—John 14:23

The Son—John 14:23

The Holy Spirit—John 14:17