THE TRINITY:

TOWARDS AN UNDERSTANDING
OF THE ONE GOD

People many times find it hard to understand the oneness of God. The concept of the oneness of God is not only misunderstood by non-Christians but also by some Christians. Some writings seem to suggest that Christians believe that God is the "third of three" Gods. This is far from the truth as revealed in the Bible. Others suggest that there are three separate Gods. This is also far from the truth.

This article is not intended to be a full treatise on the oneness of God. It's purpose is to address some of the issues that are commonly misunderstood about the One True God. The majority of the article will focus on the roles of God the Father and God the Son, Jesus Christ. It is at this point where I feel, most misunderstandings occur.

We must agree that it is difficult to comprehend and explain the oneness of God. BUT, it is something that we can accept and believe because it is revealed by God. Many people stumble because they try to understand who God is, or deny him, before they read what God has revealed about himself. This is a great error. God has revealed himself to man in history through his actions. He has also told us many things about his character. This has been recorded for us in the Holy Bible. The problem comes when people try to find out the HOW (how there is plurality in unity) which God has not revealed to us and refuse to understand the WHAT (what he has told us about Himself and man) and the WHY (why there needs to be a plurality in the One God), which he has told us about. In this booklet, I will address the what and the why. The first thing to consider when looking at why there needs to be plurality in the One God, is to discover what God has revealed concerning his plan--specifically his plan for mankind. A central theme that runs through the Bible, is the coming of a man who would wield the full power of God. A careful student of the Bible will soon discover that this is none other than Jesus Christ. It is said about Jesus Christ, "For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form, " (Injil, Colossians 2:9) "For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him." (Injil, Colossians 1:19), but to simply make the statement, "Jesus Christ is God" could be very misleading. It would be wrong to say that all of Jesus Christ, flesh and spirit, was God. That is why while Jesus was in the flesh on the earth, he never asked people to worship himself. But to say that all of the fullness of God dwelt in Jesus Christ, is different than saying that Jesus Christ was God.

Some people have had a hard time believing how this could be, for when asked about the events of the end times, Jesus said, "No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father." (Injil, Matthew 24:36) The question comes up, how can all the fullness of God dwell in him when he has made statements like this? This is a good question. If we are really serious about getting an answer it will cause us to read more about what God has already said to us.

WHAT God Has Revealed

ABOUT MAN

Don't we all agree that man has sinned against God and caused him shame? The result has been that man has been separated from God. This was proved by the fact that Adam and Eve were thrown out of the Garden of Eden. A holy God cannot let sin go unpunished. Since God is just and his standards do not change, man tries hard to reach God's standards. But this too is impossible, because God himself has declared,

As it is written: 'There is no one righteous, not even one; there is no one who understands, no one who seeks God. All have turned away, they have together become worthless; there is no one who does good, not even one.' 'Their throats are open graves; their tongues practice deceit.' 'The poison of vipers is on their lips.' 'Their mouths are full of cursing and bitterness.' 'Their feet are swift to shed blood; ruin and misery mark their ways and the way of peace they do not know.' 'There is no fear of God before their eyes.' (Injil, Romans 3:10-18)

He has also said, "for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God." (Injil, Romans 3:23) God wanted to deliver man from this shame that man had caused God. Man had been shown the way, but had turned away from the right path. Therefore, God chose to come to man's rescue. A mediator between God and man was needed.

ABOUT JESUS CHRIST

The fact that the One God has plurality allows him to provide a mediator. As mentioned before, the fact of Jesus being both God and man is the point where many stumble in their understanding of the oneness of God. This is partly because they fail to read the Bible thoroughly and/or simply rely on hearsay. The phrase "God became man" seems to suggest to some that God ceased being God and became a man. This is not what the Bible teaches. God who was from all eternity took on a human body, which did not conflict with him being God. This was possible by choosing to limit his visible power and glory in the body of the Lord Jesus Christ. An illustration of this is an adult shaking hands with a child. If he used his full strength, he could hurt the child. For the child's own good, he chooses to limit the strength of his handshake. Yet, while limiting his strength out of love, he still possesses the full strength.

In Philippians 2:5-6 in the Injil, we can read the thoughts of Jesus Christ and the resulting actions of those thoughts,

Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus, who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death - even death on a cross! Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

ABOUT HIS PLAN FOR AN ACCEPTABLE SACRIFICE

From the beginning of creation God was providing a way for this to happen. When man sinned, God threw him out of the garden. Cain and Abel were born to Adam and Eve and as time went on they brought sacrifices to God. Cain brought an offering of produce from the ground, but Abel brought an offering from the flock. God accepted Abel's sacrifice but not Cain's. God also told Abraham to sacrifice his son and after seeing the obedience of Abraham, God provided a ram as a substitute instead. God also gave the law to Moses and then gave him a whole system of sacrifices and offerings to keep. Each year God commanded the priests to offer sacrifices that would cover the sins of the people. The sacrifice had to meet three qualifications. It had to be from the correct species of animal, a goat; it had to be a sacrifice where blood was shed; and it had to be a perfect male without any blemish. This sacrifice only covered the people of one nation for a year, but could neither take away sin nor offer a permanent solution. God Himself spoke concerning the sacrifice he had chosen that would satisfy his anger toward our sin and take our sin away. This came through the prophet Isaiah,

See, my servant will act wisely; he will be raised and lifted up and highly exalted. Just as there were many who were appalled at him--his appearance was so disfigured beyond that of any man and his form marred beyond human likeness--so will he sprinkle many nations, and kings will shut their mouths because of him. For what they were not told, they will see, and what they have not heard, they will understand. Who has believed our message and to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed? He grew up before him like a tender shoot, and like a root out of dry ground. He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him, nothing in his appearance that we should desire him. He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows, and familiar with suffering. Like one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not. Surely he took up our infirmities and carried our sorrows, yet we considered him stricken by God, smitten by him, and afflicted. But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed. We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all. He was oppressed and afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth; he was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is silent, so he did not open his mouth. By oppression and judgment he was taken away. And who can speak of his descendants? For he was cut off from the land of the living; for the transgression of my people he was stricken. He was assigned a grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death, though he had done no violence, nor was any deceit in his mouth. Yet it was the LORD's will to crush him and cause him to suffer, and though the LORD makes his life a guilt offering, he will see his offspring and prolong his days, and the will of the LORD will prosper in his hand. After the suffering of his soul, he will see the light of life and be satisfied; by his knowledge my righteous servant will justify many, and he will bear their iniquities. Therefore I will give him a portion among the great, and he will divide the spoils with the strong, because he poured out his life unto death, and was numbered with the transgressors. For he bore the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors. (Anbia, Isaiah 52:13 - 53:12)

WHY The One God Has Plurality

NEED FOR A MEDIATOR

In the law that God gave to Moses, the high priest was the mediator between God and man. Listen to what the scriptures say about Jesus Christ being the high priest/mediator in the New Covenant, "Every high priest is selected from among men. . . ." (Injil, Hebrews 5:10a) Since Jesus Christ was a man, he is entitled to be a high priest. Of his priesthood it is said, "Others became priests without any oath, but he became a priest with an oath when God said to him: 'The Lord has sworn and will not change his mind: 'You are a priest forever.'' (Injil, Hebrews 7:20-21) As God he could be high priest forever. A human high priest had various responsibilities. As high priest, Jesus also had these responsibilities. Let's look at a few of them.

As a high priest he is a counselor. He can deal gently with us since he experienced our weaknesses. "Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has gone through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are--yet was without sin. Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in our time of need." (Injil, Hebrews 4:14-16)

As a high priest he is the one who offered the sacrifice to God. "Every high priest is selected from among men and is appointed to represent them in matters related to God, to offer gifts and sacrifices for sins." (Injil, Hebrews 5:10) "How much more, then, will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself unblemished to God, cleanse our consciences from acts that lead to death, so that we may serve the living God!" (Injil, Hebrews 9:14)

Normally, under the law of Moses, a high priest needed to first offer a sacrifice for his own sin, so that he would be qualified and pure in offering the sacrifice for the people. Since Jesus was from God, he was perfect and could offer the sacrifice for mankind. In order for the high priest to enter the "holy of holies" where the blood of the sacrifice was offered to God and accepted by God, he needed to be pure. If he was impure or had not administered the sacrifice in the proper manner, God would strike him dead when the high priest entered into his presence. (Taurat, Leviticus 16) So when he came out of the "holy of holies" alive the people rejoiced, because this was a guarantee that their sins were forgiven for that past year. In the same manner, Christians rejoice in the fact that Jesus came out alive from the tomb. It is a guarantee that God has accepted Jesus' sacrifice for their sins.

Under the Law of Moses, the high priest offered this sacrifice for the people each year to cover past sins. (Taurat, Leviticus 16:16) He could not offer the sacrifice to cover the sins of the coming year, because he could not guarantee that he would live for another year. But, Christ, being eternal, could guarantee that he would be alive forever. From the time of Jesus' resurrection until this very day we have the guarantee that the sacrifice he offered to God for sin has been effective and will continue to be for all eternity. (See Injil, Hebrews 4:14-16; 5:1-10; 7:11-28; 8; 9; 10:1-14)

As a high priest he is the one who has the right to intercede for us. "Therefore he is able to save completely those who come to God through him, because he always lives to intercede for them. Such a high priest meets our need--one who is holy, blameless, pure, set apart from sinners, exalted above the heavens." (Injil, Hebrews 7:25-26)

THE NEED FOR A RIGHTEOUS RULER FOR GOD'S RIGHTEOUS KINGDOM

Let's look more into the why of the plurality of God. We have seen that a mediator was needed and Jesus Christ is that mediator. But we must also realize that God had other important work for Jesus Christ to do. He was bringing in a "kingdom of righteousness." Who was going to rule in this kingdom? He has told us how to recognize him through the prophet Micah, "But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come for me one who will be ruler over Israel whose origins are from of old, from ancient times. He will stand and shepherd his flock in the strength of the Lord, in the majesty of the name of the Lord his God, and they will live securely, for then his greatness will reach to the ends of the earth and he will be their peace " (Anbia, Micah 5:2,4) Again God speaks through the prophet Isaiah, "Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel." (Anbia, Isaiah 7:14) "For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government and peace there will be no end. He will reign on David's throne and over his kingdom, establishing and upholding it with justice and righteousness from that time on and forever. The zeal of the Lord Almighty will accomplish this." (Anbia, Isaiah 9:6) All of these things were, are, and/or will be fulfilled in Jesus Christ. Many other scriptures from the Old Testament clearly speak of Jesus Christ, as well.

THE NEED FOR AN EXAMPLE

The Scriptures say other things specifically about Jesus Christ as a man. As a man, he provided us with an example. "To this you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps." (Injil, I Peter 2:21)

THE NEED OF SALVATION

As a man in his glorified body, he will bring salvation, "so Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many people; and he will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him." (Injil, Hebrews 9:28) "For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first." (Injil, I Thessalonians 4:16)

THE NEED FOR A JUST JUDGE

Finally, we must look at who has the last say, because as a man, he has the right to judge, "For he has set a day when he will judge the world with justice by the man he has appointed. He has given proof of this to all men by raising him from the dead." (Injil, Acts 17:31) " 'I tell you the truth, a time is coming and has now come when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God and those who hear will live. For as the Father has life in himself, so he has granted the Son to have life in himself. And he has given him authority to judge because he is the Son of Man.' " (Injil, John 5:25-27)

The Role of The Spirit

In order to accomplish this work, Jesus Christ had to live among men, as a man, in the context of our five physical senses. But in addition to these, he came in the Spirit of God, because our physical senses still could not completely understand him. "Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit." (Injil, John 3:6) "And just as we have borne the likeness of the earthly man, so shall we bear the likeness of the man from heaven. I declare to you, brothers, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable." (Injil, I Corinthians 15:49-50) Without this Spirit no one could know God, "For through him [Jesus Christ] we both have our access to the Father in one Spirit." (Injil ,Ephesians 2:18)

Conclusion

God has wanted to demonstrate in the best way possible, his love and character, so he sent us his very own "Son" who came in the flesh to demonstrate the love and character of God. In coming in this way, Jesus Christ completed the work that could only be done by God in the flesh.

Even though Jesus Christ is a man, we must never forget the fact that he is God. This has allowed him to do all things perfectly up to God's standard. No other prophet can claim this!

When we believe these truths that God has revealed to us, we are able to trust him regarding how it all could happen. Then you will be able to experience the forgiveness of the almighty, loving God in your own life. In the gospel of John 5:16-47, Jesus addresses the question of his relationship to God, his Father. It is very enlightening. It shows a definite consistency in the teaching of the Bible. There is a plurality in the unity of God. Please note verse 31. Can you find other places in the Bible where God testifies concerning who Jesus Christ is? May God bless you as you search out these matters.

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