Posted on 12/19/2004 12:23:19 PM PST by missyme
Perhaps the single most misunderstood doctrine regarding the nature of God is the doctrine of the Trinity. Believers and nonbelievers alike have a difficult time comprehending God’s triune nature, and those that do understand have a difficult time explaining it.
As critics of the Trinity are quick to point out, the word “Trinity” is not found in the Bible, and no single verse provides a summary of the Trinitarian doctrine. In an email we received, LDS apologist D.L. Barksdale said, “The homoousion Trinitarian dogma is heretical to anyone who cherishes the Bible. It is an unbiblical doctrine…”
Complicating the issue are various misconceptions about the Trinity within Christianity as well as from without. Jehovah’s Witnesses and Mormons disregard the Trinity, believing that Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are three distinct gods, with the Father being a greater God than the other two.
Jehovah’s Witnesses especially emphasize the subordination of the Godhead, believing Jesus to be Michael the Archangel – a created being, and a lesser “god” than Jehovah. Mormon doctrine is polytheistic (worship of multiple gods), though some Mormons will stress that their belief is henotheistic (belief in multiple gods, but worship of only one). Mohammad’s misunderstanding of the Trinity was apparently affected by the hyperdulia veneration of Mary seen in the Eastern and Roman Catholic churches, as the Qur’an accuses Christians of believing the Trinity to be composed of God the Father, Jesus, and Mary. Indeed, the doctrine of the Trinity can pose a stumbling block for some people. A Jehovah’s Witness sent us an email that included the following (the English is poor, but you’ll see the point):
“And when I can not find in any Bible that I read that there is a 3 headed god that will resurrect anyone on this earth, both now or ever. If this 3 headed god is your belief? I have never read about such a god in any Christian Bible that I have ever read!” As I told this man, we agree that the Bible does not teach of a three-headed god. That sounds more akin to the hydra of Greek mythology. Yet this illustrates the extent of the misunderstandings.
Even Christian churches have been victimized by erroneous doctrines such as modalism, particularly Oneness theology.
We may never fully understand the nature of God until we get into heaven. God is omnipotent, omniscient, omnipresent, and eternal. Our finite created minds are unable to fully grasp these characteristics of God. However, it is possible to have a basic understanding of the triune nature of God, and to be able to defend this doctrine with the Word of God. In this article, we’ll assess the Scriptural evidence and put the pieces together until they form a full picture. A triune God will be the only possible verdict based on an objective analysis of the Scriptural evidence.
The doctrine of the Trinity can be summed up as follows: Within the one Being that is God, there exist eternally three coequal and coeternal Persons, namely, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.[1] In order to prove this doctrine we must prove the following:
There is only one God
The Father is God
Jesus is God
The Holy Spirit is God
The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are three distinct Persons.
Each point above is very important, and we will clearly illustrate each. Heresy arises when these distinctions are blurred. For instance, modalism (also known as Oneness theology) would agree with items one through four, but item five is where modalism fails. However, as James White said in regards to the doctrine of the Trinity, “For some reason many feel that there is a hierarchy of ‘error’ when it comes to the Trinity…. We are to worship God in spirit and in truth, and two-thirds of the truth is not a valid substitute, no matter which one-third of His truth we choose to reject.”[2]
There is a treasure trove of Scriptures to support each of the points we’ll be studying. To keep this article at a reasonable length, where there are several relevant verses, I’ll limit the full verse quotation to two verses (in NIV, unless stated otherwise), and give the Scripture references for the rest.
1. There is only one God:
Islam, Judaism, and Christianity are known as the big three monotheistic religions. You won’t find many arguments among Muslims, Jews, and Christians that there is more than one God, except perhaps among some aberrant sects. Nevertheless, let us establish this Scripturally before we move on to areas where disagreements will arise.
A. There is only one God:
“You were shown these things so that you might know that the LORD is God; besides him there is no other.” – Deuteronomy 4:35
"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.” – Isaiah 44:6
Other Old Testament Verses: Deut. 4:39; 32:39; 2 Sam. 22:32; Isa. 37:20; 43:10; 44:6-8; 45:5, 14, 21-22; 46:9.
“How can you believe if you accept praise from one another, yet make no effort to obtain the praise that comes from the only God?” – John 5:44
“…since there is only one God, who will justify the circumcised by faith and the uncircumcised through that same faith.” Romans 3:30
Other New Testament Verses: Rom. 16:27; 1 Cor. 8:4-6; Gal. 3:20; Eph. 4:6, 1 Tim. 1:17; 2:5; James 2:19; Jude 25.
B. There is only one true God:
“But the LORD is the true God; he is the living God, the eternal King. When he is angry, the earth trembles; the nations cannot endure his wrath.” – Jeremiah 10:10
“We know also that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding, so that we may know him who is true. And we are in him who is true--even in his Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God and eternal life.” – 1 John 5:20.
Other verses: 2 Chron. 15:3; John 17:3; 1 Thess. 1:9.
C. All other so-called “gods” are false gods.
“For all the gods of the nations are idols, but the LORD made the heavens.” – Psalm 96:5
“So then, about eating food sacrificed to idols: We know that an idol is nothing at all in the world and that there is no God but one.” – 1 Corinthians 8:4
Other verses: Deut. 32:21; 1 Sam. 12:21; Isa. 37:19; 41:23-24, 29; Jer. 2:11; 5:7; 16:20; 1 Cor. 10:19-20.
The verses above are clear evidence that there is only one God. This is known as monotheism. Judaism, Islam, and Christianity are known as the three great monotheistic religions. However, Islam and Judaism will fall off as we continue our support of the Trinity.
2. There is a plurality to God.
The Hebrew word for God is el in its singular form. The most common form used for God is elohim, which is plural in form. How can there be plural form used for only one God? Some suggest that the answer is found in the three persons of the Trinity. Others contend that the plural construct denotes a fullness of deity as opposed to plurality. I submit that both interpretations are correct. I’m getting ahead of myself now though. Rather than look at all the verses that use the plural elohim, let’s look at other verses that point to a plurality within the one God.
“Let us make man in our image” – Genesis 1:26, emphasis added.
“God said, ‘Behold, the man has become like one of us…’” – Genesis 3:22, emphasis added.
Some would say that God could be speaking to the angels in these verses, but that's simply not correct. God was speaking to co-creator(s) in these verses (“Let us make man…”). Who could be a co-creator? Not the angels. The answer is found later in this article.
3. The Father is God.
This isn’t really an item that is in question. While God the Father is only known as the Father in the New Testament, Christians, Jews, Muslims, and pseudo-Christian cults understand that the Father in the New Testament is the Yahweh of the Old Testament, though some disagree with the characterization of “Father”. However, it is important to establish that the Father of the New Testament is the true God referred to in the Old Testament, known often as Yahweh, or “Jehovah”.[3]
A. The Father is God.
“Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort,” – 2 Corinthians 1:3
“Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ.” – Ephesians 1:3
Other verses: John 17:3; 1 Cor. 8:6; 1 Peter 1:3; (Note: Some verses seem to indicate that Jesus is not God at first glance. These will be explained later).
B. The God of the Old Testament is known as Yahweh/Jehovah (“The LORD”).
“You were shown these things so that you might know that the LORD is God; besides him there is no other…. Acknowledge and take to heart this day that the LORD is God in heaven above and on the earth below. There is no other.” – Deuteronomy 4:35, 39.[4]
“Know that the LORD is God. It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people, the sheep of his pasture.” – Psalm 100:3
Other verses: Gen. 9:26; 24; Exo. 3:14-18; 4:5; 2 Sam. 7:22, 25.
From the verses above, it is clear that Yahweh/Jehovah in the Old Testament is the one God. It is also clear that the Father in the New Testament is that one God. Now, let’s look at whether Jesus Christ is God. Remember, there is only one God. There is also a mysterious plurality to this one God. We have established that the Father is Yahweh, the God of the Old Testament. We now explore the plurality in the one true God.
4. Jesus is God.
There is a great deal of Scriptural evidence that Jesus Christ is God. The evidence is comprised not only of specific statements, but also in prophecy fulfillment and his attributes. Let’s first look at some of explicit Scriptural evidence. In this section, we won’t limit ourselves to only giving the text of two verses.
“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God…. No one has ever seen God, but God the One and Only, who is at the Father's side, has made him known.” – John 1:1
“Thomas said to him, ‘My Lord and my God!’” – John 20:28
I want to pause just a moment to discuss the verses above. The Greek word for God is theos. In John 1:1, we read that the Word (Jesus) was with theos and was indeed theos. Jesus was (and is) God! This is a very powerful statement! The word theos is used not only in John 1:1, but also in verse 18 and in John 20:28. Theos is used in the New Testament in reference to Jehovah/Yahweh God. Theos is also used in reference to Jesus. We’re beginning to see the plurality found within the one God.
Ping
Great apologetic piece!
Hi Malakhi,
I thought I would ping you on this as I was interested in doing more research in regards to Genesis:
Let us create man in our own image..
What's your thoughts...Thanks!
The word "Barah" in fact describes well both these actions: make
something in the shape of a former spiritual mold, using unorganized
and invisible elements. The same thing happens every time a flower
blossoms.
"Elohim" (God).
Wonderful word that reveals much richer and more profound meanings
than those offered by the English term God. It is the plural form of
the term Elohà, which is a combination of two ancient roots: El and
Hoa. Hoa is a root to indicate the Supreme Being, "He who exists by
Himself", who is not begotten but has life in Himself. The prefix El
means He and indicated the abstract person. "He who has life in
Himself" is therefore the meaning of the term Eloha.
Adam, in the image of God.
When Elohim decides to create Man (the verb used in Genesis for the
creation of Man is the same used for the creation of the heavens and
the earth) He says: "Let us make Man in our image, after our
likeness". Here the verb is plural: since the Hebrew tongue does not
have the Majestic Plural used in other languages,
I totally agree!
Hebrews 1:7-14 And as to the angels he says, Who makes his angels spirits and his ministers a flame of fire; but as to the Son, Thy throne, O God, is to the age of the age, and a sceptre of uprightness is the sceptre of thy kingdom. Thou hast loved righteousness and hast hated lawlessness; therefore God, thy God, has anointed thee with oil of gladness above thy companions. And, *Thou* in the beginning, Lord, hast founded the earth, and works of thy hands are the heavens. They shall perish, but *thou* continuest still; and they all shall grow old as a garment, and as a covering shalt thou roll them up, and they shall be changed; but *thou* art the Same, and thy years shall not fail. But as to which of the angels said he ever, Sit at my right hand until I put thine enemies as footstool of thy feet? Are they not all ministering spirits, sent out for service on account of those who shall inherit salvation?
In the Name of Jesus Christ, Amen
Then why was this not official until the Council of Nicea? Just curious. That's the same Council which "confirmed" Sunday as the church's sabbath day as well.
Newton had a lot of trouble with the trinity doctrine, but probably didn't want to get the Galileo treatment by the church.
Enough Biblical teaching has been botched over a couple thousand years, that nothing should be taken for granted. If that is considered a "crisis of faith", the question that follows should be, "Faith in what?". God does not change.
I don't recall where it is written in the Scripture, "Thus theorizeth the Lord", or, "Thus speculateth the Lord." It seems more likely that rather than examine Scripture, many people would rather silence/slay/corrupt the witnesses (Law and Prophets).
Besides, I've seen for myself where verses have layers of meaning, which serve to complete the whole. That's still a long way from 70, if that's the case, but enough to recognize that false prophets abound. They are the ones who think they can pervert what's on the surface of the text, unaware that there's a depth of meaning which reveals the truth, despite their lame attempts to disfigure the surface.
And so it goes...
I would go with whatever Religion keeps you out of hell. JW's don't have hell so you can just skip it. I mean, whats the worst that could happen?
360 years after the death of Yeshua the same people that brought you the perpetual virginity of Mary, apostolic succession & transubstantiation decided that a human was
God. Apprx a hundred years later the same people that brought you the perpetual virginity of Mary, apostolic succession and transubstantiation decided that the Holy
Spirt is God. The same people that conjured up the aforementioned doctrines are the people whose mystic interpretations of Hebrew Scripture regarding "trinity" you readily accept.
As I mentioned before this community is not the product of NT writings, the NT writings are a product of this community.
I believe your post consists of the same ol' scriptural interpretations that are retroactive, forced, & mystical.
I encourage you to read some "chumash" and consider
the interpretations of those (Jews) who really have legitmate claims to history.
SO does the Hebrew meaning of GOD EL-Hoa singular or plural?
Teh biblical evidence is scant, if not non-existent on this point.
For example:
Luk 1:35 And the angel answered and said to her, The Holy Spirit shall come on you, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow you. Therefore also that Holy One which will be born of you shall be called Son of God.
Jesus Christ was conceived by the holy spirit. Yet througout the NT Jesus refers to God the father as his father. He never calls the Holy spirit his father.
Another glaring example are Paul's letters, specifically the salutations:
Rom 1:7 to all those who are in Rome, beloved of God, called to be saints. Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
1Co 1:3 Grace be to you, and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
2Co 1:2 Grace be unto you, and peace from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ.
Gal 1:3 Grace be to you, and peace from God the Father and from our Lord Jesus Christ,
Eph 1:2 Grace be to you, and peace from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ.
Phi 1:2 Grace to you, and peace from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ.
Col 1:2 to the saints and faithful brothers in Christ at Colosse. Grace to you, and peace from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ
1Th 1:1 Paul and Silvanus and Timothy to the church of the Thessalonians, in God the Father and in the Lord Jesus Christ. Grace to you, and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
2Th 1:2 Grace to you, and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
1Ti 1:2 to Timothy, my own son in the faith. Grace, mercy and peace from God our Father and Jesus Christ our Lord.
2Ti 1:2 to Timothy, my dearly beloved child. Grace, mercy, peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord.
Tit 1:4 to Titus, a true child according to our common faith. Grace mercy and peace from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ our Savior.
Phm 1:3 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
In every Pauline epistle, there is not one greeting from a separate person called "the holy spirit". Always from God the father and Christ the son. This would be inexcusable and an incredible insult to God if Paul or anyone else at the the believed that the Holy spirit was a distinct person.
Go here: http://www.torahofmessiah.com/elohim.html
this addresses quite nicely you "El" as plural contentions.
he doug long time. how are ya?
I'm good steven. I'm done with classes for a little while so a little more free time...at least beteen everything else going on. How about you? Still well on the road to Judaism?
Good to hear. How much longer do you have of school? I'm 23 weeks out of 26 into my Judaism classes. I have a few months of Hebrew ahead of me as well and then its up to the Rabbi.
I've been going for a business degree..only two more classes and then I'm done. I'm also taking up a new venture...starting my own business. I figured if someone as dumb as Mack could be successful then I might have a chance.:-)
Good luck in your studies. God promises to deliver all of Israel so I know I'll see you in the resurrection.
A question:
What did God mean in Genesis 1:26:
"And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the heavens, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth."
Does the use of the words US and OUR indicate more than one person in the creation?
A smart, intelligent person picks up the Bible, reads it, prays about it, and decides he agrees with the Lutheran interpretation.
One of these people is committing heresy; either by denying the divinity of God, or worshiping a mere man.
How do you, missyme, know which interpretation is heretical? Why is one honest, prayerful interpretation any better than the other? Clearly one is the truth, and the other is a lie. Only one can be correct. But how is a person supposed to choose between them?
1 Corinthians 2:14 But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.
The Word of God is not 'holy information', it is Spirit and Life and is God Himself. If the Word of God were indeed some neutral language that God 'used' to 'inform' man as what man should an dshould not do, then indeed, some interpretational rubric would be necessary. But implying that's God's Word is mere 'holy information' goes directly against what God has said of Himself. God is His Word and creates what He speaks, namely us as real, literal new creation in Jesus Christ/Word of God.
John 1:1-5 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made. In him was life; and the life was the light of men. And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not.
So there is no decision at all because the whole of the Holy Scriptures is spirit and life--God's Spirit.
John 6:63 It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life.
There is only actual and real new creation as an outright new spiritual being in Jesus Christ; no decision. Saying there IS a decision is denying God in a word that cannot be God Himself. That speech that is not-God is a living creature named sin and is the only language men know. To be born again is to be delivered from that speech/creature and to hear the voice of God. The Word o fGod is not and never has been the speech fallen men grew up in. It's actual and real new birth or hell--no decision.
John 1:12,13 But as many as received Him, to them gave He power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on His name: Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.
James 1:18 Of his own will begat he us with the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures.
In the Name of Jesus Christ, Amen
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