THERE is but one living and true God: One of the most common objections
alleged against the doctrine of the Trinity is that it involves tritheism, or a
belief in three Gods. The fact of the matter, however, is that it stands unalterably
opposed to tritheism as well as to every other form of polytheism. Scripture,
reason, and conscience are in perfect agreement that there is but one selfexistent,
eternal, Supreme Being in Whom all of the divine attributes or perfections
inhere1 and from Whom they cannot be separated. That both the Old and
New Testaments do teach the unity of God is clearly set forth in the following
verses:
“Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD” (Deu 6:4). “Thus saith the
LORD the King of Israel, and his redeemer the LORD of hosts; I am the first, and
I am the last; and beside me there is no God” (Isa 44:6). The Decalogue,2 which is
the foundation of the moral and religious code of Christianity, as well as of Judaism,
has as its first and greatest commandment, “Thou shalt have no other gods
before me” (Exo 20:3). “I and my Father are one,” said Jesus (Joh 10:30). “Thou
believest that there is one God; thou doest well” (Jam 2:19). “We know that an
idol is nothing in the world, and that there is none other God but one” (1Co 8:4).
There is but “one Lord, one faith, one baptism, One God and Father of all, who is
above all, and through all, and in you all” (Eph 4:5-6). “I am the Alpha and the
Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end” (Rev 22:13). From Genesis
to Revelation, God is declared to be one…
Certainly the Unitarians have no monopoly on the doctrine of the unity of God.
Trinitarians hold this just as definitely. The unity of God is one of the basic postulates3
of theism,4 and no system can possibly be true that teaches otherwise.
WHILE GOD IN HIS INNERMOST NATURE IS ONE, HE, NEVERTHELESS, EXISTS AS
THREE PERSONS. The best concise definition of the doctrine of the Trinity, so far
as we are aware, is that found in the Westminster Shorter Catechism: “There are
three persons within the Godhead: the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost; and
these three are one God, the same in substance, equal in power and glory.” We
would prefer, however, to use the term Spirit rather than Ghost, since a ghost is commonly understood to be a spirit that once had a body but lost it, and the Holy
Spirit has never possessed a body of any kind.
We have seen that the Scriptures teach that there is but one true and living God.
They teach with equal clearness that this one God exists as three distinct persons,
as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit:
(a) The Father is God: “To us there is but one God, the Father, of whom are all
things” (1Co 8:6). “Paul, an apostle…through Jesus Christ, and God the Father”
(Gal 1:1). “There is…one God and Father of all” (Eph 4:6). “At that season Jesus
answered and said, I thank thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth” (Mat 11:25).
“For him [the Son] hath God the Father sealed” (Joh 6:27). “According to the
foreknowledge of God the Father” (1Pe 1:2). “That every tongue should confess
that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father” (Phi 2:11). “I ascend unto
my Father, and your Father; and to my God, and your God” (Joh 20:17). “But
the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father
in spirit and in truth” (Joh 4:23). Jesus prayed to God the Father (Mar 14:36; Joh
11:41; 17:11, etc.).
(b) The Son is God:5
“Christ…who is over all, God blessed for ever” (Rom 9:5).
“For in Him [Christ] dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily” (Col 2:9).
“Thomas answered and said unto him, My Lord and my God” (Joh 20:28). “I and
the Father are one” (Joh 10:30). “Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious
appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ” (Ti 2:13). “Thou art the
Christ, the Son of the living God” (Mat 16:16). Christ assumed power over the
Sabbath, and “said also that God was his Father, making himself equal with God”
(Joh 5:18). He assumed the prerogatives6 of God in forgiving sins (Mar 2:5). “In
the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God”
(Joh 1:1).
The attributes that can be ascribed only to God are ascribed to Christ: Holiness—“…thou
art, the Holy One of God” (Mar 1:24); “Him…who knew no sin”
(2Co 5:21); “Which of you convinceth me of sin?” (Joh 8:46); “Holy, harmless, undefiled,
separate from sinners” (Heb 7:26). Eternity—“In the beginning was the
Word” (Joh 1:1); “Before Abraham was, I am” (Joh 8:58); “But unto the Son he
saith, Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever” (Heb 1:8); “The glory which I had
with thee before the world was” (Joh 17:5). Life—“In him was life” (Joh 1:4); “I am
the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me” (Joh
14:6); “I am the resurrection and the life” (Joh 11:25). Immutability7
—“Jesus
Christ the same yesterday, and to day, and for ever” (Heb 13:8). “They [the heavens]
shall perish; but thou remainest…They shall be changed: but thou art the same” (Heb 1:11-12). Omnipotence—“And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying,
All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth” (Mat 28:18); “The Lord,
which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty” (Rev 1:8). Omniscience8
—“Thou knowest all things” (Joh 16:30); “Jesus knowing their thoughts”
(Mat 9:4); “Jesus knew from the beginning who they were that believed not, and
who should betray him” (Joh 6:64); “In whom are hid all the treasures of wisdom
and knowledge” (Col 2:3). Omnipresence9
—“I am with you alway” (Mat 28:20);
“The fulness of him that filleth all in all” (Eph 1:23). Creation—“ All things were
made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made” (Joh 1:3);
“The world was made by him” (Joh 1:10); “For by him were all things created,
that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be
thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him,
and for him: And he is before all things, and by him all things consist” (Col 1:16-
17); “Upholding all things by the word of his power” (Heb 1:3). Raising the dead—
“[The Father] hath given him authority to execute judgment also…for the hour is
coming, in the which all that are in the graves shall hear his voice, And shall come
forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life; and they that have
done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation” (Joh 5:27-29). Judgment of all men—
“When the Son of man shall come in his glory, and all the holy angels with him,
then shall he sit upon the throne of his glory: And before him shall be gathered all
nations: and he shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd divideth his
sheep from the goats: And he shall set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats
on the left. Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed
of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the
world… Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye
cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels… And these
shall go away into everlasting punishment: but the righteous into life eternal”
(Mat 25:31-46). Prayer and worship are to be directed to Christ—“If ye shall ask
any thing in my name, I will do it” (Joh 14:14); “He was parted from them, and
carried up into heaven. And they worshipped him” (Luk 24:51-52); “And they
stoned Stephen, calling upon God, and saying, Lord Jesus, receive my spirit” (Act
7:59); all are to “honour the Son, even as they honour the Father. He that honoureth
not the Son honoureth not the Father which hath sent him” (Joh 5:23);
“Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved” (Act 16:31); “Let all
the angels of God worship him” (Heb 1:6). “That at the name of Jesus every knee
should bow…And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to
the glory of God the Father” (Phi 2:10-11). “Our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ”
(2Pe 3:18); “Jesus Christ; to whom be glory for ever and ever” (Heb 13:21)—and when we compare these verses with statements such as we have in Isaiah, “Look
unto me, and be ye saved, all the ends of the earth: for I am God, and there is none
else” (45:22), and Jeremiah, “Thus saith the LORD; Cursed be the man that
trusteth in man, and maketh flesh his arm” (17:5), we are faced with this dilemma:
either the Christian doctrine of the Trinity must be true, or the Scriptures are
self-contradictory; either the Scriptures recognize more gods than one, or Christ,
together with the Father and the Holy Spirit is that one God.
All of these ascriptions10 of holiness, eternity, life, immutability, omnipotence,
omniscience, omnipresence, creation, providence, raising the dead, judgment of
all men, prayer, and worship due to Christ most clearly teach His deity. Such attitudes
of mind if directed toward a creature would be idolatrous.
(c) The Holy Spirit is God: “Peter said, Ananias, why hath Satan filled thine
heart to lie to the Holy Ghost?...thou hast not lied unto men, but unto God” (Act
5:3-4); “For what man knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man which
is in him? even so the things of God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God” (1Co
2:11); “But when the Comforter is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father,
even the Spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the Father, he shall testify of
me” (Joh 15:26). In the Baptismal Formula, “Go ye therefore, and teach all nations,
baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy
Ghost” (Mat 28:19), and in the Apostolic Benediction, “The grace of the Lord Jesus
Christ, and the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Ghost, be with
you all” (2Co 13:14), the Holy Spirit is placed on a plane of absolute equality with
the Father and the Son as deity and is regarded equally with them as the source of
all power and blessing.
There are many, even among professedly Christian people, who have no higher
conception of the Holy Spirit than that of an impersonal, mysterious, supernatural
power or influence of God. It is true that in the Old Testament, where the emphasis
was upon the unity of God, the references to the Spirit, while not incapable
of being applied to a distinct person, were more generally understood to designate
simply God’s power or influence. But in the more advanced revelation of the New
Testament, the distinct personality of the Holy Spirit is clearly seen. No longer
can He be looked upon as merely a divine power or influence, but as a divine person…
That the Holy Spirit is a person is clearly taught in the following verses: “Then
the Spirit said unto Philip, Go near, and join thyself to this chariot” (Act 8:29).
“The Spirit said unto him [Peter], Behold, three men seek thee. Arise therefore,
and get thee down, and go with them, doubting nothing: for I have sent them”
(Act 10:19-20). “The Holy Ghost said, Separate me Barnabas and Saul for the work whereunto I have called them” (Act 13:2). “For the Holy Ghost shall teach
you in the same hour what ye ought to say” (Luk 12:12). “When he, the Spirit of
truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself;
but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to
come. He shall glorify me: for he shall receive of mine, and shall shew it unto you”
(Joh 16:13-14). “And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter,
that he may abide with you for ever; Even the Spirit of truth; whom the
world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know
him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you” (Joh 14:16-17)—here the Holy
Spirit is called a “Comforter” (marginal reference “Advocate”), that is, one called
to stand by our side as our Guide, Teacher, Instructor, Sponsor; and in the nature
of the case, therefore, He must be a person. In a parallel passage, Christ is similarly
spoken of: “We have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous”
(1Jo 2:1). “The Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot
be uttered” (Rom 8:26). “And grieve not the holy Spirit of God” (Eph 4:30).
“He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches” (Rev
2:17). “All manner of sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven unto men: but the blasphemy
against the Holy Ghost shall not be forgiven unto men. And whosoever
speaketh a word against the Son of man, it shall be forgiven him: but whosoever
speaketh against the Holy Ghost, it shall not be forgiven him, neither in this
world, neither in the world to come” (Mat 12:31-32). The language here used implies
that it is impossible to commit a sin against a more divine personage than
the Holy Spirit; that of all possible sins, the sin against the Holy Spirit is the
worst—both in its nature and consequences—and thus implies His eternal dignity
and deity.
Words that in the Old Testament are ascribed to God are in the New Testament
more specifically said to have been spoken by the Holy Spirit (cf. Jer 31:33-34 with
Heb 10:15-17; Psa 95:7-11 with Heb 3:7-11; Isa 6:9-10 with Act 28:25-28). In the
Old Testament, we read that the Holy Spirit brought order out of the primeval11
chaos (Gen 1:2); and He strove to lead the antediluvians12 in the ways of righteousness
(Gen 6:3). He equipped certain men to become prophets (Num 11:26,
29). He instructed the Israelites as a people (Neh 9:20); He came upon Isaiah and
equipped him to be a prophet (61:1), and caused Ezekiel to go and preach to those
of the captivity (3:12, 15). In the New Testament, the miracle of the virgin birth of
Christ was wrought through His power (Luk 1:35). He descended on Jesus at the
baptism and equipped Him for the public ministry (Mat 3:16). He was promised
as a Comforter and Teacher to the disciples (Joh 16:7-13). He came upon the disciples
on the day of Pentecost and equipped them to be world missionaries (Act 2:1-42). He kept Paul from going in one direction and sent him in another (Act
16:6-10); He equips different individuals with different gifts and talents (1Co
12:4-31); He performs the supernatural work of regenerating the souls of men (Ti
3:5; Joh 3:5). He inspired the prophets and apostles so that what they spoke or
wrote in God’s name was truly His word to the people (2Pe 1:20-21). In the works
of regeneration13 and sanctification,14 He applies to the heart of each of the Lord’s
people the objective redemption that was wrought out by Christ, and in general
He directs the affairs of the advancing Church. He is thus set forth as the “Author”
of order and beauty in the physical world and of faith and holiness in the
spiritual world.
Throughout the Scriptures the Holy Spirit is thus set forth as a distinct person,
with a mind, will, and power of His own. Baptism is administered in His name.
He is constantly associated with two other persons—the Father and the Son—
Whose distinct personalities are recognized, a phenomenon that could lead only
to confusion if He, too, were not a distinct person. The personal pronouns He,
Him, I, and Me are applied to [the Holy Spirit], pronouns that can be used intelligently
only when applied to a person. They occur so repeatedly through the prose
narratives and cannot be set aside as a tendency to personify an impersonal force.
That two and two make four does not appear more clear and conclusive than that
the Holy Spirit is a living agent, working with consciousness, will, and power.
After the personality of the Holy Spirit is established, there are but few who will
deny His deity. It is certain that He is not a creature, and consequently those who
admit His personality accept His deity readily enough. Most of the heretical sects
that have maintained that Christ was a mere man have, in accordance with that,
maintained that the Spirit was only a power or influence…
THE TERMS “FATHER,” “SON,” AND “HOLY SPIRIT” DESIGNATE DISTINCT PERSONS
WHO ARE OBJECTIVE TO EACH OTHER. The terms Father, Son, and Spirit do not
merely designate the different relations that God assumes toward His creatures.
They are not analogous15 to the terms Creator, Preserver, and Benefactor, which
do express such relations, but are the proper names of different subjects Who are
distinct from one another as one person is distinct from another. That this is true
is clear from the following personal relations that they bear toward each other:
(a) They mutually use the pronouns I, Thou, He, and Him when speaking to or
of each other. “This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased; hear ye him”
(Mat 17:5). “Father, the hour is come; glorify thy Son, that thy Son also may glorify
thee” (Joh 17:1). “I came forth from the Father, and am come into the world:
again, I leave the world, and go to the Father” (Joh 16:28). “When he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself;
but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to
come” (Joh 16:13).
(b) The Father loves the Son, and the Son loves the Father. The Spirit glorifies
the Son. “The Father loveth the Son, and hath given all things into his hand” (Joh
3:35). “…even as I have kept my Father’s commandments, and abide in his love”
(Joh 15:10). “He [the Holy Spirit] shall glorify me: for he shall receive of mine, and
shall shew it unto you” (Joh 16:14).
(c) The Son prays to the Father. “And now, O Father, glorify thou me with
thine own self with the glory which I had with thee before the world was” (Joh
17:5). “And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that
he may abide with you for ever” (Joh 14:16).
(d) The Father sends the Son, and the Father and the Son send the Holy Spirit
Who acts as Their Agent. “He that receiveth you receiveth me, and he that receiveth
me receiveth him that sent me” (Mat 10:40). “As thou hast sent me into
the world” (Joh 17:18). “And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only
true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent” (Joh 17:3). “But the Comforter,
which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall
teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have
said unto you” (Joh 14:26). “It is expedient for you that I go away: for if I go not
away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I depart, I will send him unto
you” (Joh 16:7).
Thus, we see that the persons within the Godhead are so distinct that each can
address the others, each can love the others, the Father sends the Son, the Father
and the Son send the Spirit, the Son prays to the Father, and we can pray to each of
them. They act and are acted upon as subject and object, and each has a particular
work to perform. We say they are distinct persons, for a person is one who can say I,
who can be addressed as thou, and who can act and be the object of action.
The doctrine of the Trinity, then, is but the synthesis16 of these facts. When we
have said these three things, that there is but one God, that the Father and the
Son and the Spirit are each God, and that the Father and the Son and the Spirit
are each a distinct Person, we have enunciated the doctrine of the Trinity in its
fullness. This is the form in which it is found in the Scriptures, and it is also the
form in which it has entered into the faith of the Church.
1 inhere – exist essentially or permanently in.
2 Decalogue – Ten Commandments.
3 postulates – principles.
4 theism – belief in a god or gods.
5 See FGB 230, The Deity of Christ, available from CHAPEL LIBRARY.
6 prerogatives – exclusive privileges or rights.
7 immutability – unchangeableness.
8 omniscience – having infinite knowledge.
9 omnipresence – present in all places at the same time.
10 ascriptions – assigning qualities or characters to a person or thing.
11 primeval – earliest ages of the history of the world.
12 antediluvians – persons that lived before Noah’s flood.
13 See FGB 202, The New Birth, available from CHAPEL LIBRARY.
14 See FGB 215, Sanctification.
15 analogous – similar or equivalent.
16 synthesis – combination of ideas into a complex whole.
From Studies in Theology, Chapter III, “The Trinity,”
used with permission of P&R Publishing Co.,
P.O. Box 817, Phillipsburg, N.J. 08865.
Free Grace Broadcaster, "The Triune God"
https://www.chapellibrary.org/
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