How Important Is It To Believe In The Trinity?
How important is it to believe in the Trinity?
“Trying to explain the Trinity to anyone is way too complicated.” “Is it really that important?” “There have been many people through the history of the church that could never really explain the doctrine of the Trinity so why do we need to believe it?”
On the surface this all sounds good. I have had many discussions with those from other religions that attack the Christian faith precisely on this topic. Many of my Islamic friends cannot see how the doctrine of the Trinity allows us to worship only one God. They see the Christian faith as a polytheistic faith that argues semantically to sidestep the issue. I could avoid a lot of difficulty if I just avoided the topic. Just how important is this doctrine in our faith? Hang on to your hat, this discussion will stretch your brain capacity, which for most of us will be a good thing.
It is imperative to state at the outset that no one can ever fully grasp the nature of the God of Scripture since He exists outside of time and space and is without limit or end. Therefore, we must say very clearly that whatever we conclude about the nature of God will always be an understatement. We will never fully comprehend all there is to God since He is eternal and infinite and we are not.
Knowing these truths let us press on with humility to seek God’s wisdom and instruction in these matters. If we were to understand this doctrine of the Trinity, where would we start?
“At the beginning.”
Great answer! Let’s do that!
In Genesis chapter one, verse one, we see that the Bible indicates that God has always existed apart from time and space. We understand this since He created space and the material world; therefore He must have been before time and space and matter. The Scripture is clear on this point, that God is Spirit and does not possess a physical body like we do. (John 4:23-25)
Yet Scripture speaks of God in human terms so we can relate to Him. Psalms 91 speaks of God protecting us under his wings. Certainly we agree that God does not have feathers or is like a chicken or any other bird! This descriptive language is used to describe how he relates to us. A rule of interpretation we must follow is to always interpret the unclear in light of the clear and always allow Scripture to tell us what Scripture means. We are not free to decide for ourselves what we think the passage means. We believe that the Bible contains all that we need to know about God for this life (II Peter 1:2-4), so we must allow the Scripture to teach us what different passages mean.
Genesis 1:2 indicates that the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters. Is this just a metaphorical statement, or does this indicate that the nature of God also reveals there to be a Spirit that can hover over and participate in creation in cooperation with the One God that spoke the universe into existence? We cannot get our answer from this passage; we must let the entirety of Scripture speak to this issue. Let us press on.
Genesis 1:3-1:25 declares that the God who spoke the universe into existence was actively involved in the process of creation. By the time we reach Genesis 1:26, we begin to see even more light on the nature of God when he speaks using the plural pronoun “Us.” “Let us make man in Our image after Our likeness.” Something at the very beginning of Scripture indicates that there is one God and we now have an insight into his nature being revealed.
We have a God who exists independent of time and space, who was before all time space and matter, who has within his nature the ability to speak things into existence totally and completely independent of any one or anything. The God who exists eternally is now creating time and space.
Now when we arrive at Gen. 1:26-27, we see there must be at least two persons in the nature of God, as He has chosen to reveal Himself to us through the written word. He uses the plural pronoun for Himself when He says Us and Our.
Some have suggested that his passage refers to the plural of majesty, a form of speech a king would use when granting special permission. For example, “We are pleased to allow your safe passage.” However, in the Old Testament there are no examples of a monarch using plural verbs or pronouns in such a way. Others have suggested that God was speaking to the angels. But angels did not participate in creation, nor was man created in the image of angels but in the image of God.
What takes place in the text now is very interesting. God desires to create man after his image, in his likeness. So how does he create man? If God were just a monad that existed in isolation, then he would have only created Man. But he did not create just the man; he also made the female. “So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created them, male and female he created them.”
We now see that when God speaks in his creation he has begun to reveal his nature as being not just one in isolation but also one in community and unity. When he speaks of Man, he speaks of both male and female. Both are completely human and yet both are uniquely separate. You do not have the human race without both male and female, and yet both male and female are separate
From the very beginning, there has been the mystery of having one God. God, not gods, created the heavens and the earth. However, we also see that this one God reveals himself as having a Spirit who is equal with and in relationship to Him. There are many other places in the Old Testament where the plural is used to speak of God. Consider Genesis 3:22 and Genesis 11:4-7.
We see this triune nature of God revealed in the prophecies of the coming Messiah in Isaiah 9:6 “For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” Notice the name of the Messiah would be “mighty God, everlasting father.” It is clear from this passage that the Messiah would be God, come in the flesh.
We have just a few more passages to consider for our discussion. In the book of Mark, Chapter 2:1-9, we see the clear teaching of Scripture as to the person and work of Christ. Look carefully at the passage:
A few days later, when Jesus again entered Capernaum, the people heard that he had come home. 2 So many gathered that there was no room left, not even outside the door, and he preached the word to them. 3 Some men came, bringing to him a paralytic, carried by four of them. 4 Since they could not get him to Jesus because of the crowd, they made an opening in the roof above Jesus and, after digging through it, lowered the mat the paralyzed man was lying on. 5 When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, "Son, your sins are forgiven."
6 Now some teachers of the law were sitting there, thinking to themselves, 7 "Why does this fellow talk like that? He's blaspheming! Who can forgive sins but God alone?"
8 Immediately Jesus knew in his spirit that this was what they were thinking in their hearts, and he said to them, "Why are you thinking these things? 9 Which is easier: to say to the paralytic, 'Your sins are forgiven,' or to say, 'Get up, take your mat and walk'? 10 But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins...." He said to the paralytic, 11 "I tell you, get up, take your mat and go home." 12 He got up, took his mat and walked out in full view of them all. This amazed everyone and they praised God, saying, "We have never seen anything like this!" Mark 2:1-12 (NIV)
Here are very strong pieces of evidence that Jesus was not only claiming to be God but also demonstrated those claims by signs, wonders, and miracles. Not only does Jesus heal a man that was paralyzed for years in full view of everyone, he makes some very specific claims. He claims to have the power to forgive this man’s sins. “Son, your sins are forgiven.”
When Jesus makes this statement, the religious leaders in the crowd think to themselves, “Who can forgive sins but God alone?” Then they discover that He also reads their minds perfectly. Now the question is not only, “Who can forgive sins?, but, “Who can read the minds of everyone present with complete accuracy?”
The answer is none other than God himself. The claim is supported by the evidence. Jesus was not just a good teacher or a good prophet; he was and is God come in the flesh. According to the Scripture, we now have a God who has revealed himself to be One God in Deuteronomy 6, but He has also indicated that there was more than one person in the One God in Genesis and Isaiah.
In John 16:16, Jesus teaches his disciples about the Holy Spirit when he says, "I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may be with you forever.” The word for another is the Greek word Allos. Allos is a word that means another of the same kind.
Jesus also indicates that this helper will be able to remain with them forever, indicating that this other helper has the nature of eternity. There is only one thing that abides forever and that is God. So when Jesus says, ‘I will give you another helper that will abide with you forever,’ He is saying, “I will give you another helper that is just like me that will remain with you forever. This Spirit that will be given by Jesus is exactly like God the Father and God the Son and yet He functions in a different way than the Father or the Son.
So we see from our limited perusal of Scripture that God reveals himself to be a triune God in the person of the Father who created, the Son who secured our redemption, and the Spirit who applies the benefits of our redemption.
So it is entirely appropriate to sing Holy, Holy, Holy, God in Three Persons, Blessed Trinity. This is the foundation of our faith and the bedrock on which we stake our claim. Now go out and allow your concept of God to grow and expand.
Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and unfathomable His ways! 34 For WHO HAS KNOWN THE MIND OF THE LORD, OR WHO BECAME HIS COUNSELOR? 35 Or WHO HAS FIRST GIVEN TO HIM THAT IT MIGHT BE PAID BACK TO HIM AGAIN? 36 For from Him and through Him and to Him are all things. To Him be the glory forever. Amen. Romans 11:33-36 (NASB)
Small Group Discussion Questions:
How has your view of God been challenged or changed as a result of this discussion?
What other questions do you have concerning the Trinity that are still to be answered?
If the Holy Spirit is just like Jesus and He will remain with you forever, how does this truth affect your life?
Read Ephesians 1:13-14 and Colossians 2:9-10. Is there anything you lack after you have received Christ?
Pick a few verses from our discussion and commit them to memory. Be ready to quote them when you meet together next time.