GOD IS ONE

God the Father

God is one and yet He is Three.  The belief that God is One, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, may be confusing to some, but it is not a new concept.  The Bible never uses the word trinity.  However, it strongly suggests the unity of the three deities.  This inference has been substantiated over the centuries by biblical scholars.

(Justin Martyr, The First Apology, 150 A.D.) makes this trinitarian statement about God: “having learned that He is the Son of the true God Himself, and holding Him in the second place, and the prophetic Spirit in the third, we will prove. For they proclaim our madness to consist in this, that we give to a crucified man a place second to the unchangeable and eternal God, the Creator of all; for they do not discern the mystery that is herein, to which, as we make it plain to you, we pray you to give heed.”[1]

(Theophilus of Antioch 180 A.D.) The term “Trinity” is not found in the Bible. Theophilus of Antioch around 180 A.D. first used the Greek term trias (a set of three) in reference to God, his Word, and his Wisdom. However, Tertullian in 215 A.D. was the first one to state this doctrine using the Latin term, Trinitas (Trinity), referring to the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit (W. Fulton in the Encyclopedia of Religion and Ethics).[2]

(The Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed 325 A.D.) We believe in one God, the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth, and of all things visible and invisible; And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the Only-begotten, Begotten of the Father before all ages, Light of Light, Very God of Very God, Begotten, not made; of one essence with the Father, by whom all things were made: Who for us men and for our salvation came down from heaven, and was incarnate of the Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary, and was made man; …And we believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, and Giver of Life, Who proceeds from the Father, Who with the Father and the Son together is worshipped and glorified, Who spoke by the Prophets.[3]

(The Fourth Council of the Lateran 1214 AD) According to this central mystery of most Christian faiths, there is only one God in three persons: while distinct from one another in their relations of origin (as the Fourth Council of the Lateran declared, "it is the Father who generates, the Son who is begotten, and the Holy Spirit who proceeds") – The Fourth Council of the Lateran[4]

God the Son

It would appear from scripture that there is a hierarchy within the Trinity.  1 Corinthians 11:3 indicates that God the Father is the “Head of Christ” when it says, “But I want you to realize that the head of every man is Christ, and the head of the woman is man, and the head of Christ is God.” 

But how can this be when according to John 10:30 (NIV, ESV, NASB, KJV, and NKJV) Jesus says, “I and the Father are One” or the HCSB or NLT, “The Father and I are One?”  Can the Father and Son be one and at the same time one be subservient or submissive to the other? 

All three members of the Trinity have the same essence and nature.  They are three reflections of the same deity.  They have the same nature but have chosen different assignments.  Each duty is commensurate with the needs of creation. 

God the Father is the Overseer.  He is the one who establishes the plans for our lives.  Proverbs 19:21 explains, “Many are the plans in a person's heart, but it is the LORD's purpose that prevails.”

Jesus is the Redeemer.  He has saved us from eternal damnation through His personal blood sacrifice.  1 Peter 1:18-19 proclaims, “knowing that you were not redeemed with perishable things like silver or gold from your futile way of life inherited from your forefathers, but with precious blood, as of a lamb unblemished and spotless, the blood of Christ.  He is responsible for the justification that leads to salvation.  Galatians 1:4 asserts, “who gave himself for our sins to rescue us from the present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father.” 

Jesus chose His role in the redemption of Man (Luke 19:10).  He did not consider Himself to be greater than God.  Jesus says in Philippians 2:6, “Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage.”

As a reflection of the subordination of Jesus, He taught the disciples and us to pray, “OUR Father in Heaven, Hallowed be your Name” (Matthew 6:9).

God the Holy Spirit

The Holy Spirit is subordinate to both God the Father and Jesus the Son.  However, just as Jesus is not inferior to God, so the Spirit is inferior to neither God nor Jesus.  They are all one in essence. 

The primary role or responsibility of the Holy Spirit as an integral part of the Trinity is that of the teacher.  Jesus relates this truth in John 14:26 where He says, "But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said to you.”

For example, The Spirit of God taught us to cry out, “Abba, Father” (Galatians 4:6).  “Abba, Father” or “Daddy,” is the most intimate name given to God in all the Bible.  The Creator of the universe cares for each one of us as if we were an only child.  Romans 8:15, “The Spirit you received does not make you slaves, so that you live in fear again; rather, the Spirit you received brought about your adoption to sonship. And by him we cry, ‘Abba, Father.’”

The Holy Spirit will teach God’s people only.  In addition, the Spirit is restricted in His teaching to the things that Jesus has said.  Since Jesus is the Word, the Spirit’s instructions are limited to the Bible and anything that Jesus wants to say to us.  In John 16:14-15, Jesus expands on this thought when he says, “He (the Spirit) will bring me (Jesus) glory by telling you whatever he receives from me.  All that belongs to the Father is mine; this is why I said, ‘The Spirit will tell you whatever he receives from me.’”

These statements strongly indicate the subordinate role of the Holy Spirit.  He is equal to God and Jesus; however, The Spirit has chosen to be the teaching partner of the work to be completed in believers.

Spiritual Application:

God is our Father and also the Son

God is the Spirit, three in One

From the beginning and beyond the end

His goodness and mercy Transcend

There are some who seem to suppose that Jesus Christ is our Savior to the exclusion of God the Father and of God the Holy Ghost, but this is a most erroneous idea. It is true that we are saved by the precious blood of Christ, but it is equally true that God the Father and God the Holy Spirit have had their share in the great work of our salvation. In order that we might not fall into the error in which some have been entangled, it pleased God to give us, at the very beginning of Christ’s public ministry, a very distinct intimation that He did not come alone and that He did not undertake the work of our redemption apart from the other adorable persons of the ever-blessed Trinity.[5] – Charles Spurgeon

[1] Justin Martyr, The First Apology, 13:6, newadvent.org/fathers/0126.htm

[2] Trinity, theopedia.com/trinity.

[3] westernseminary.edu/transformedblog/2014/01/16/3-things-christians-should-understand-about-the-nicene-constantinopolitan-creed/

[4] CCC 254, Lathin Est Pater, qui generat, et Filius, qui gignitur, et Spiritus Sanctus, qui procedit (DS §804).

[5] Charles Spurgeon, Trinitarian Salvation, Ibid.