¶1Muslims, Jews, and Christians all believe that there's only one God. But only Christians [music] affirm that the one God is tri-personal. Three persons [music] in one being. Let's just admit right off the bat that God's triune nature is mind-boggling. >> [music] >> We're more familiar with human nature, where there's just one person [music] per being.
¶2So, if you find it hard to wrap your head around the Trinity, [music] you're not alone. Over the centuries, artists have struggled to properly convey God's [music] triune nature. And here is an attempt [music] to portray the Trinity in a diagram. But critics have claimed that such a doctrine is logically incoherent. For if the Father is God, and the Son is God, wouldn't that mean that the Father is the Son?
¶3And therefore, they are not distinct persons. Well, that depends, as Bill Clinton once said, on what the meaning of the word is is. There are two different senses in which the word is is used here. In the first sense, is indicates a relationship of identity. For example, when I say, "Elton John is Reginald Dwight," I mean that they are one in the same person.
¶4In the second sense, is indicates predication. So, for example, if I say, "Elton John is a famous British musician," I'm ascribing the quality of being a famous British musician to Elton John. Since there are many famous British musicians, that's a quality he shares with many others. So, when we say the Son is not the Father, we're using is in the first sense. We're saying the Son is not identical to the Father, just as the Father is not identical to the Spirit, and the Spirit is not identical to the Son.
¶5Each person of the Trinity is distinct from the others. But when we say the Son is God, we're using is in the second sense. We're predicating something about the Son. We're saying that he has the quality of being divine. All three of the persons of the Trinity share that quality.
¶6People who think the doctrine of the Trinity is logically incoherent are invariably confounding these two senses of the word is, mistaking the is of predication for the is of identity. They are simply philosophically confused. The doctrine of the Trinity is logically coherent, but what reason do we have to believe it's true? Why do followers of Christ believe that God is a tri-personal being? The reason is that the writings of the New Testament authors support this view.
¶7Obviously, God the Father is God. But if we're going to make a biblical case for the doctrine of the Trinity, we'll need some good reasons for believing that Jesus is also God. The New Testament authors expressed the divine status of Christ in a dazzling variety of ways. He occupies exclusively divine roles such as creator, savior, and judge. He possesses divine attributes such as preexistence and eternity.
¶8He is ascribed the full range of divine honors such as power, majesty, and glory. He is the recipient of worship and prayer. And he bears many of the titles and names used of God in the Old Testament. Let's explore five remarkable biblical texts that directly apply theos, the Greek word for God, to Jesus. Let's begin with the first chapter of Hebrews.
¶9The whole point of the opening section of Hebrews is to show Christ's superiority to the angels. God the Father is said to have created the world through Christ, his son, and made him heir of all things. He reflects the glory of God and bears the very stamp of his nature, upholding the universe by his word of power. Nothing of this sort could be said of any earthly king or angelic being. God the Father then says to the son, "Your throne, O God, is forever and ever.
¶10And you, Lord, founded the earth in the beginning." Calling Christ both God and Lord in contrast to angels thus fits the context perfectly. It shows that the author regarded Christ as fully divine. Our next verse is Titus 2:13. We wait for the blessed hope and the manifestation of the great glory of our great God and savior Jesus Christ. The interpretive question here has to do with the Greek words for God and savior, Theos and Soter.
¶11Do they designate one person, our great God and savior, or two persons, the great God and our savior? To answer this, let's look at what's going on grammatically. It's a firmly established principle of Greek grammar called Sharp's rule that when you have a conjunction of two common nouns governed by the same definite article, as they are in this case, the nouns have the same referent. So, in this verse, God and savior refers to one person, Jesus Christ. Now, let's explore the opening verse of the Gospel of John.
¶12In the beginning was the word, and the word was with God, and the word was God. The only question here is whom are we talking about? Who is the word, the Logos? Again, let's consider the context. Later in this same chapter, we read that the Logos became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld his glory, glory as of the only son from the Father.
¶13It's clear that John identifies the Logos with the pre-incarnate Christ who entered human history, the word who is God. In our next verse, John 1:18, we read, "No one has ever seen God. It is God the only son who is close to the Father's heart who has made him known." The author's choice of words here is breathtaking. This remarkable designation of Jesus Christ as monogenes theos indicates more powerfully than anything else could both the shared deity of the Son and Father and their personal distinction. By means of the stunning appellation, the only begotten God, John differentiates God the Son from God the Father while regarding both as God.
¶14Finally, let's look at John 20:28, where Thomas says to Jesus, "My Lord and my God." Here, we confront no grammatical issues, no interpretive conundrums, no translation difficulties, just a blunt and straightforward confession. As a fitting climax to the entire gospel. Thomas declares who Jesus truly is, both Lord and God. And notice that Jesus confirms his confession, blessing him along with those who believe similarly. Together, these passages alone show that in the pages of the New Testament, Jesus Christ is unambiguously presented as God.
¶15Christ is declared to be divine, just as the Father is divine. We find that the same is true for the Holy Spirit. The Spirit of God is not an impersonal force. He's not an it. He's a person.
¶16In the Bible, he has personal relationships, conducts personal activities, and has personal attributes. The Bible differentiates the Holy Spirit from God the Father and Christ the Son, while calling all three God. So, we have strong scriptural grounds for affirming that there are three distinct but co-equal persons who are properly called God. So, how can three persons be one being? Here's a thought starter to help us get a handle on this.
¶17In Greco-Roman mythology, a three-headed dog named Cerberus guards the gates of Hades. We may suppose that Cerberus has three brains, and therefore three distinct states of consciousness of whatever it's like to be a dog. Therefore, Cerberus, while a sentient being, does not have a single consciousness, as you and I do. He has three consciousnesses. We could even assign proper names to each of them.
¶18Rover, Bowser, and Spike. Despite the diversity of his mental states, Cerberus is clearly one dog. He is a single biological organism exemplifying a canine nature. Rover, Bowser, and Spike may each be said to be canine, too, though they are not three dogs. Now, while not a close analogy for the Trinity, Cerberus does give us a rough idea of what three centers of consciousness in one being might be like.
¶19Each of us is one center of consciousness because we each have one set of cognitive faculties sufficient for personhood. We can think of God as an immaterial being endowed with three complete sets of cognitive faculties, each sufficient for personhood. That means God has three centers of self-consciousness, intentionality, and volition. He is therefore a tri-personal being, just as each of us is a uni-personal being. This model of the Trinity is straightforward, logically coherent, and explanatorily deep.
¶20As a name for this view, I suggest tri-personal monotheism. The doctrine of the Trinity not only helps us to understand who God is, but it also helps us to understand how he relates to us. The Father, out of his great love for us, sent the Son. The Son died in our place, and the Holy Spirit regenerates us spiritually and lives within us to empower us for Christian [music] living. Pray in the Holy Spirit.
¶21Keep yourselves in the love of God. >> [music] >> Wait for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life.