THE TRINITY
The word "Trinity" comes from the Latin noun "trinitas" meaning "three are one." The Trinity expresses the belief that God is one Being made up of three distinct Persons who exist in co-equal, co-eternal communion as the Father, Son and Holy Spirit.*
It is difficult without the Guidance of the Holy Spirit to grasp this very Scriptural Concept that God is one as well as God is three in one.
In Matthew 28:19, 20 our Lord Jesus made the following declaration:
Then
Jesus came to them and said, "All authority in heaven and on earth has
been given to me. 19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations,
baptizing
them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,
20 and
teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am
with you
always, to the very end of the age."
NIV
The Apostle Paul also referred to the three Persons of the Godhead in the following Scripture...
2 Cor 13:14
14
May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the
fellowship
of the Holy Spirit be with you all.
NIV
It is true that in the Old Testament, God did refer to Himself as one..
"Hear,
O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one!" (Deut 6:4).
But Scriptural revelation is progressive and when the Lord Jesus came to earth, He repeatedly referred to God the Father as a Person of the Godhead (and also to Himself as a Person of the Godhead)....
John 8:42
42
Jesus said to them, "If God were your Father, you would love me, for I
came from God and now am here. I have not come on my own; but he sent
me.
NIV
John
10:30
30 I
and the Father are one."
NIV
Our Lord Jesus also referred to the Holy Spirit as the Counsellor, A Person (of the Godhead)...
John 14:25-26
25
"All this I have spoken while still with you. 26 But the Counselor, the
Holy
Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things
and
will remind you of everything I have said to you.
NIV
John 15:26-27
26
"When the Counselor comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, the
Spirit of truth who goes out from the Father, he will testify about me.
NIV
Suffice it to say, that the Scriptures are both implicit and explicit that God is one but in three Persons (Godhead of Father, Son and Spirit) eternally fulfilling a common purpose which we call in simple terms ‘God’s Will’. Humans who are created and exist as single persons find it hard to comprehend and understand this concept with the natural mind. Only by divine revelation can a person accept and understand this principle. But it is not only a principle; it is the basis of Christianity itself. Without the trinity, there will be no salvation (God the Father sent His Son Jesus to die on the cross) and without the Holy Spirit none will be born again...
John 3:5-6
5
Jesus answered, "I tell you the truth, no one can enter the kingdom of
God
unless he is born of water and the Spirit. 6 Flesh gives birth to
flesh, but
the Spirit gives birth to spirit
NIV
John 16:7-9
7
But I tell you the truth: It is for your good that I am going away.
Unless I go
away, the Counselor will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him
to you.
8 When he comes, he will convict the world of guilt in regard to sin
and
righteousness and judgment:
NIV
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