APO:The Holy Trinity, a definition of the Trinity

   What is the Trinity? If someone were to ask you that question, what
would you say?

   A. The Holy Trinity is the person of God, seen in the manifestations
of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

   B. The Holy Trinity is the term used to describe God as He has
revealed Himself-3 persons, (God the Father, God the Son, and God the
Holy Spirit) but one God.

   C. The Trinity is the 1 God, revealed unto man through the person of
Jesus Christ.

   D. The Holy Trinity is God the Father God the Son, and God the Holy
Spirit.

   It's easy to see from these hair-splitting examples how it can be
very easy to go astray on the issue. Our understanding of the Trinity
came from God Himself.

   The Biblical explanation of God is that within the God-head there
are 3 distinct and separate Persons, functioning in complete and total
harmonious unity.

   "God does not consist of parts nor can He be divided into parts. His
being is simple, numerically one, free from composition."

   The Old Testament

   The Old Testament does not plainly and directly teach the trinity,
and the reason is evident. In a world where the worship of many gods
were common, it was necessary to impress upon Israel the truth that God
was One, and that there was none beside Him. (Is.43:10)

   However, each member of the Trinity is mentioned in the Old
Testament:

   1. The Father: Is. 63:16; Mal. 2:10 2. The Son(Messiah):Jer. 23:5,6;
Is. 9:6 3. The Holy Spirit:Gen. 1:2; Is. 11:2; Is. 61:1, 63:10

   Foreshadowing of the Trinity have been seen in the triple
benediction of Numbers 6:24-26 and the triple doxology of Is. 6:3. (See
also Gen 1:26 and 11:7)

   The New Testament

   One of the clearest pictures of the Trinity comes from Matt.3:16,17.
The New Testament provides a wealth of information regarding the
Trinity.

   1. General statements: Jesus prayed that the Father would send
ANOTHER Comforter (John 14:16). The disciples were told to baptize in
the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. (Matt. 28:19).
The three Persons of the Trinity are associated together in their work:
I Cor. 12:4-6; I Peter 1:2, 3:18; II Cor. 13:14.

   2. The Father is recognized as God: John 6:27; Gal.1:1 (and numerous
others)

   3. The Son is recognized as God: The doctrine of the deity of Christ
is crucial to the Christian faith. It can be demonstrated that He is
God in several ways.

   a. He is eternal - John 8:58 b. He is omnipresent - Matt.18:20,
28:20 c. He is omniscient - John 16:29-30; 21:17.

   Note: Now it is true there are certain statements which seem to
indicate something less than omniscience. Jesus was ignorant of the
date of His return (Mark 13:32), marveled at the people's unbelief
(Mark 6:6) and went to the fig tree expecting perhaps to find figs
(Mark 11:13). However, it must be recognized that in the days of His
earthly ministry, Jesus surrendered the independent exercise of divine
attributes. Without a doubt, Jesus now knows the time of His second
coming.

   d. He is omnipotent - Matt.28:18 e. He is immutable - Heb. 1:12, 13:8

   4. The Holy Spirit is recognized as God: Before it can be
demonstrated that the Holy Spirit is God it must first be established
that He is a person, not a mere influence or power.

   a. Jesus in John 14:26 and 16:13 used the masculine demonstrative
pronoun "he" of the Holy Spirit. b. He is called Helper (Comforter).
This designation is applied to both the Holy Spirit and Jesus (John
14:16, 26). Since the title implies personality when applied to Jesus,
it must also do, when applied to the Holy Spirit. c. Personal
characteristics are ascribed to Him. Intellect- I Cor. 2:11;
sensibilities- Rom. 8:27, 15:30; and will- I Cor. 12:11 d. Personal
acts are performed by Him. He regenerates- John 3:5, teaches-John
14:26, bears witness- John 15:26, convicts- John 16:8-11, guides into
truth- John 16:13, glorifies Christ- John 16: 14, calls man into
service- Acts 13:2, speaks- Rev.2:7, intercedes Rom.8:26, searches out-
I Cor. 2:10. e. He is susceptible of personal treatment. He can be
tempted- Acts 5:9, lied to- Acts 5:3, grieved- Eph.4:30, resisted- Acts
7:51, insulted- Heb.10:29, and blasphemed- Matt.12:13 f. Now that we've
established the fact that the Holy Spirit is a person, we must go on to
assert that He is a divine person.

   1. He is eternal (Heb.9:14) 2. He is omniscient (I Cor.2:10, John
14:26) 3. He is omnipotent (Luke 1:35) 4. He is omnipresent
(Ps.139:7-10)

   Works of the Deity are ascribed to Him:

   1. Creation (Gen 1:2) 2. Regeneration (John 3:5) 3. Inspiration of
scriptures (II Peter 1:21) 4. Raising the dead (Rom 8:11)

   Finally, He is expressly called God in Acts 5:3, II Cor. 3:17.

   "The doctrine of the Trinity, as I have said before, is truth for
the heart. The fact that it cannot be satisfactorily explained, instead
of being against it is in its favor. Such a truth had to be revealed;
no one could have imagined it."

   Heresies

   Some persons who reject all they cannot explain have denied that God
is a Trinity. They conclude that it is impossible that He could both
one and three. God is not triplex (1+1+1)- He is triune (1x1x1).

   False views of God's nature include:

   1. There are 3 Gods: Father, Son and Holy Spirit or Tri-Theism. 2.
God the Father is God; Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit are lesser
Gods. 3. The One God is manifested as the Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
4. The Father's name is Jesus, the Son's name is Jesus, the Spirit's
name is Jesus. (In fact, the Father and the Spirit are manifestations
of Jesus. 5. God the Father exists; His Spirit is His life force (not a
separate person) and Jesus was a mere prophet- not God.

   Other areas of improper thinking:

   "We evangelical Protestants are sometimes prone to relegate the
Father & the Holy Spirit to lesser important. It is to be expected that
we would feel close to the one who "pitched his tent" among us, who
died for us, wept for us, is coming to translate us. Stressing the
deity of Christ as we need to do, we might tend to make the Begotten
One the 1st instead of the 2nd person of the Trinity."

   The truth is, the three are of equal dignity, majesty, glory, power,
and eternity.

   from Lightline BBS
