Our Triune God
In these articles covering The Triune God, we have finally come to the doctrine of the Trinity: God consists of three Persons in one Being (Matt 28:19); all three are co-equal, co-eternal, and co-substantial in the Persons known as God the Father (Phil 1:2), God the Son (Titus 2:13), and God the Holy Spirit (Acts 5:3-4). Monotheism is essential to Christianity; so, in the same manner, the doctrine of the Trinity is as fundamental to our faith. Without the Trinity, there is no Christianity. Any person or group who denies the Trinity is not Christian regardless of what they claim to the contrary (I Jn 2:20-25).
I would encourage you to read the earlier articles on The Triune God to help your understanding of this doctrine before you read further here. Considerable foundational material has been covered. Those articles will be very beneficial for you.
Most of the names of God point to the Godhead rather than just a single member. Some terms can be used either way, such as God, which can be used individually for the Father, the Son, or the Holy Spirit, and for all three as a whole. The name Yahweh is not the name of just the Father, but of all three. Most of the time in the OT, terms used for God do not distinguish which Person is in mind as the doctrine of the Trinity had not been fully presented yet. Therefore, they generally apply to the whole.
Just as understanding the One was foundational (see our post on The One), so is the fact that each member of the Trinity is fully God. They are not part of God or lesser gods. This is the point of the simplicity of God that we covered in The One. God is not a composite, made up of parts. The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are not pieces which make up the whole of God, nor are they three separate gods. Each is co-equal, co-eternal, and co-substantial. The co-substantial indicates they are of the same essence or Being. Essence is what you are; the “stuff” you consist of (this carries too much of a physical implication, but hopefully you get the idea). The term “nature” is also used with essence or being. Nature would be ”the basic or inherent features of something, especially when seen as characteristic of it” (Oxford Languages).
Below is an illustration which has been helpful for years on behalf of many seeking to understand the Trinity. Note there is a set of three Is Not’s and a set of three Is’s. For the Is Not’s, the reverse is also true. Therefore, the Father is not the Son, and the Son is not the Father, and the same is true between the Father and the Holy Spirit, and between the Son and the Holy Spirit. The point is to understand that each member is distinct from each other.
Yet, they are not separate beings, because we also have the “IS” statements. The Father is God. The Son is God. The Holy Spirit is God. In this case, the reverse is not true. The Father is God, but God is not just the Father. The same is true of the other members, for that would limit God to just one member. It would be incorrect to indicate God is just a single member without including all. So God is the Father, Son and Holy Spirit is a correct formulation but stopping short of all three would be misleading.
At the same time, there are not three gods. Even though some have claimed so, Christians do not endorse nor does the Bible teach tritheism (three gods). There is only one true God, but God exists as three Persons in one Being or essence. Their essence makes them them. By “person” we mean the self. The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit would speak of themselves as “I.” They are self-aware persons. They speak to the other members as “you,” for they see each member as distinct. They are not separate individuals as they share the same essence, nature, or Being, but they are distinct from one another. Think of the essence as what you are and person as who you are. One what, three who’s.
So, each member is fully God (Col 2:9) (this is a better way of expressing it than saying “100% God”); and, at the same time, they are different from the other members who are also God. There is not a quality or attribute of God which the members do not fully and completely share. The Holy Spirit is just as loving, powerful, wise, knowledgeable, etc. as the Father and the Son. No member is an inferior god.
The misunderstanding of this point has brought about another heresy called partialism. Partialism teaches us that the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, while fully God, are only part of the whole God. Therefore, each is said to be “100% God” but not “100% of God.” Those who support partialism would use the oceans as an example. While each ocean consists of 100% water, they are not 100% of all the water that exists. This means there is a part of God which the Father is not and the same with the Son and the Holy Spirit. This is very close to tritheism as they are separate “oceans,” therefore pointing to separate Gods. Partialists come in many flavors and can be quite confusing with some taking the position that God is God only when all three Persons are “together;” then claiming they are never apart, so it is not an issue. Like I said, confusing.
Observe how important terminology is to help us stay within the lines of correct or orthodox teaching. Orthodox is one of those words that can turn people off. It simply means correct belief. What makes it correct? The belief, teaching, or doctrine agrees with the Bible. In the use of our terms, we are careful to say the three Persons are not separate but distinct; for, while distinct, they are together in the one Being.
The key points to see in our illustration above are that there is One God, and three Persons are distinct from each other, yet each is fully God. They are distinct Persons in one Being. This is the kicker. How can there be three but one? I don’t know if there is a “how” which will satisfy us, even in glory. We may just be too limited to grasp the how of the infinite, transcendent God. As finite beings we are in time and space so we expect things to work based on our mathematical understanding; but God, being outside of our universe, is above and beyond time and space, therefore is not limited by our math.
You can breathe now. We made it to the end! Wow, this has been a lot to take in. Almost makes our brains hurt. We want to take bite-sized pieces, but this is plainly a very large bite. So, spend some time working through this. Don’t get frustrated if it doesn’t click with you right away. It will take time. Read this a few times. Take some time to think; then read it again. Pray and meditate on the “what.” Don’t get caught up in the “how.” Stick to the main points for now.
1. There is only one God.
2. God has one Being, essence, or nature (the “what”).
3. The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are distinct Persons (the “who”).
4. Each Person is fully God.
This will take some Big Thinking but remember, we have a Big God!
God bless you as you work on this (2 Tim 2:15), and we will see you next time here at CultivatingFaith.org! #CultivatingFaithOrg