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The doctrine of the Trinity is at the very core of the Christian faith. The belief that God is triune is not only supported in Scripture but also in the early ecumenical creeds of the church—specifically, Nicaea (A.D. 325) and Constantinople (A.D. 381). Essentially, the doctrine states that God is one in essence while existing as three co-equal, co-eternal Persons: God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit.
One common objection to the Trinity is that the doctrine implies tritheism (belief in three gods). Is this criticism valid? Does Trinitarian theology contradict the clearly stated monotheism of the Hebrew Scriptures? Or did the early Christians correctly maintain the monotheism of the Old Testament while also affirming the full deity of three distinct Persons? To address this issue, we must examine the biblical evidence. The Bible unequivocally declares that there is only one God (Isaiah 43:10;1 Corinthians 8:4). Furthermore, the Bible teaches the divinity of the Father (John 6:27;Romans 1:7;1 Peter 1:2), the Son (John 1:1-3;Hebrews 1:2;Titus 2:13;Colossians 1:16-17), and the Holy Spirit (Acts 5:3-4;1 Corinthians 3:16). Additionally, the biblical authors emphasize that all three Persons are distinct from one another (Matthew 28:19;Romans 15:30;2 Corinthians 13:14). Therefore, although the term “trinity” is accurate, it is important to understand that the doctrine of the Trinity is not a belief in three gods.is not found in the Bible, the concept most certainly is.
Does the fact that there exist three divine Persons entail that there exist three separate gods? The answer is no. The same Scriptures that affirm that all three Persons of the Trinity are divine also unequivocally affirm monotheism (Deuteronomy 6:4;1 Timothy 2:5). So, what are we to do with this tension between the idea of three divine Persons and monotheism? A helpful clarification involves what we mean by the word person.
Person can be defined as “a center of self-consciousness.” A person has a mind, emotions, and a will, can communicate with others, and is capable of performing actions. When we speak of the concept of personhood as it relates to the Trinity, we are describing self-distinctions in God. All three Persons of the one triune God possess the complete attributes of deity. All three Persons are truly divine, yet eternally distinct from one another. The divine Persons can and do communicate with each other (John 17:1-26;Hebrews 1:8-9). Essentially, God has three centers of self-consciousness. Yet this one Being (the triune God of Scripture) possesses one indivisible essence. There is only one Being that is God, and this one Being is tri-personal, with each of the three Persons having full possession of the divine nature.
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