The Doctrine of the Trinity
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. – Matthew 28:19
The most complex doctrine in Christianity by far is that of the Trinity. The doctrine of the Trinity explains that the God of the Bible is eternally existent in three distinct but co-equal persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Three persons, yet one God. How is this possible? Again, this is a complicated doctrine that is beyond our complete comprehension, and at the end of the day, we need to accept God as He has revealed Himself in His word. That doesn’t mean that we cannot understand this doctrine at least in part. So, in this week’s article, I will set out to explain the doctrine of the Trinity.
The Immutability of God
Before we dive into the Trinity, it would be good for us to understand that God is unchanging. Psalm 90:2 says, “Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever you had formed the earth and the world, from everlasting to everlasting you are God.” Why does this matter? For a few reasons, (1) The way God has revealed himself to be is the way He has been from eternity past and is the way He will eternally remain. Our God never ever changes. (2) This is a source of stability for His people. In a world that is in a constant state of change, where what is acceptable and understood today may not be acceptable and understood tomorrow and vice versa, God is always the same.
Further, if something (or someone in this case) were to change, it means they are getting better or worse. If God changed for the better, it would mean He was less than perfect to begin with. If God changed for the worse, that would mean He is becoming imperfect. If this happens enough, someone or something can become greater than God. Consider the implications of that. We could, in theory, face a situation that God was unprepared for or that He was previously unaware of. Understandably, this is not good for anyone. God does not get better, nor does He get worse. He is eternally perfect (Matthew 5:48).
Where Does the Term “Trinity” Come From?
We serve a trinitarian God, but what does this mean? Trinity, as I’m sure you know, means three. So a trinitarian God would be three in one. The term trinity never occurs in Scripture, so where does it come from and why do we use it? It was first used by Tertullian somewhere between AD 160-225 as a means of simply explaining the nature of the Godhead as Scripture taught it. The application of the term trinity was officially accepted by the Church at the Council of Nicea in AD 325 and has been in regular use ever since. Because the term is consistent with the Scriptures teaching on the nature of God, trinity is an acceptable term to explain the Godhead.
Understanding (as much as we can) the Trinity
The statement of faith for our church and for many churches will include a statement on the Godhead that will sound something like this, “There is one God who is infinitely perfect and is eternally existent in three distinct and co-equal persons: Father, Son, and Spirit.” This statement explains (1) God is perfect and without sin, (2) there are three persons within the Godhead, and (3) those persons, while distinct, are equally God. By calling them distinct, we mean they are not the same person. The Father is not the Son, the Son is not the Spirit, The Spirit is not the Father, etc. But by calling them equally God, we are saying that are of the exact same substance. We could say that the three persons are “made of the same stuff,” and are therefore God. So, distinct in their personhood, but equal in their divine substance.
The distinction of personhood is why Jesus can pray in the Garden of Gethsemane to the Father, for example, but the divine equality with the Father is why He could die on the cross for us. We needed a divine, perfect sacrifice for our sins. We needed an eternal being to satisfy eternal wrath against sin. Jesus was able to do this because of His divinity. It’s also why at the baptism of Jesus, we see all three persons present.
Let me give you an example that may help, albeit an imperfect one. Every person is distinct in their personhood, but all persons share the same nature. I’m distinct from everyone, but I have a human nature and I’m made of the same stuff, flesh, blood, bones, water, etc. So, I can speak to another person, I can relate to another person, and I can do different things than other persons, (pardon the grammar) but I will always have the same human nature and physical substance as other persons. I am distinct in my personhood but equal to other people in my nature. This is how it is with God. Distinct persons relating to one another, speaking to one another, but all existing simultaneously and sharing the same exact nature, therefore being God. You may have heard some illustrations to explain the Trinity like water being a solid, liquid, or gas, but still being water. The problem with this analogy (and many others) is that water cannot be all three at the same time, so it paints an inaccurate image of the triune nature of God because He is eternally all three persons at the same time.
Trinitarian Heresies
Because of the complex and mysterious nature of this doctrine, there have been a myriad of heresies that have come up throughout Church history regarding the nature of God. I will briefly go over four of them. You’ll note that three out of four of them have to do directly with Christ.
Docetism
This comes from the Greek word dokein which means “to seem.” Docetism teaches that Jesus was divine, but only appeared to have a body. It is closely related to Gnosticism which teaches that physical matter is inherently evil so Jesus, being divine, could not have had a physical body. What are the problems with Docetism? By its nature, Docetism denies the gospel because if Jesus didn’t have a real body He couldn’t be crucified for sin. Docetism would say that His suffering, like His body, was an illusion. 1 Peter 1:24 says, “He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree. By his wounds you have been healed.” John 1:14 says, “The Word became flesh.” The Greek for flesh is sarks, which quite literally means “meat.” The Word (Jesus) became meat "(flesh). In essence, the Word became a physical being. God the Son took on our nature in addition to His divine nature for the purpose of living our lives and dying our death. According to the gospel, we need a substitutionary sacrifice for sin; someone like us in every respect to bear the penalty we deserved as a sacrifice. You cannot sacrifice an illusion. Christ's human form was not an illusion as Docetism would teach, but He was a literal, physical man like us in every way (Hebrews 2:17).
Adoptionism
Adoptionism teaches that Jesus was only a man whom God adopted as His Son because of His sinless life and then bestowed divinity upon Him. The biggest issue with adoptionism is that Scripture tells us that Jesus is pre-existent. Col.1:17, “He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together.” Paul says here that Jesus was not made, He always was, and He holds creation together as we speak. Additionally, Old Testament prophecies make no sense if Jesus was not pre-existent and God just noticed He was sinless while He lived. Jesus’ claims of divinity during His life make no sense because according to adoptionism, He wasn’t divine yet. From eternity past, Christ has always been, and will always be fully God.
Arianism
Named after Priest and noted heretic Arius in the fourth century, Arianism teaches that Jesus was the first created being made by God (Before Adam and Eve) and that He was unlike God the Father, and, while having some divine attributes, was no more than a man, therefore not having full equality with God. Arianism came about through a misinterpretation of the Scriptures related to Christ’s humanity. Arius held that since Jesus was weak, (got tired, hungry, thirsty, etc.) He could not be divine. However, Jesus took on the weakness of the flesh in order to (1) be our representative, (2) identify with our weakness, (3) overcome the weakness of the flesh, and (4) die in our place. He did not have to surrender His divinity to do this, He added the flesh to His divinity. Jesus is one hundred percent God and one hundred percent man. In theology, this is known as the hypostatic union. Hypo means “more than one,” so the term means more than one nature (two in this case) while static (from the word stasis) means existing, and union shows us they are unified. Within Christ are two natures existing together in unity; divinity and humanity.
Modalism
Sometimes referred to as Sabellianism after its founding teacher Sebelius, Modalism is the most popular trinitarian heresy and is held by some teachers/denominations today (Oneness Pentecostalism for example). Modalism teaches that there is one God, but that He only appears in one form at a time. He is the Father, the Son, or the Spirit, but never at once. In the Old Testament, He was the Father, in the gospels He was the Son, and now He is the Spirit. By nature, then, there are no distinctions between the persons of the Trinity because they are merely manifestations of one God, not persons. Biblically, this presents an issue when Jesus prays to the Father in the Garden in John 17. If Jesus is only a manifestation of God, He’s praying to no one, or perhaps Himself. Further, Jesus could not intercede for us before the Father because He would be the Father (Romans 8:34). Modalism makes no distinction between the persons of the Godhead. The Father is the same as the Son is the same as the Spirit, etc.
In Matthew 3:16-17, Modalism is clearly refuted. “And when Jesus was baptized, immediately he went up from the water, and behold, the heavens were opened to him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and coming to rest on him; and behold, a voice from heaven said, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.” You’ll notice that all three persons of the Trinity are present here at Jesus’ baptism. I’d also call attention to the fact that Jesus told His disciples to baptize in the NAME of the Father, Son, and Spirit. One name, but three persons; all equal, all distinct, all co-existent.
Summary
The God of the Bible is eternally existent in three distinct but co-equal persons: Father, Son, and Spirit. There is no doubt that this doctrine is difficult to fully comprehend, but this is how our God has revealed Himself to be, and difficult or not, we are to accept this. We should not be surprised to encounter something like this from God. As finite beings, we will not be able to fully comprehend an infinite God. He is eternally and gloriously three in one.
Soli Deo Gloria
