Trinitarian Apologetics

Trinitarian Apologetics

by David Scott

I'm sometimes asked what I believe about the Godhead in view of all I say about the Lord Jesus Christ. For some reason, my emphasis on Jesus makes some people wonder if I advocate the Jesus Only doctrine. While I'm not Jesus Only, it is accurate to say I'm a Jesus' name preacher/teacher. This is because we become God's children by believing in Jesus' name (John 1:12). We are justified in His name (1 Cor. 6:11). We not only pray in His name (John 16:23&24), but also give thanks to the Father in His name (Eph. 5:20). We gather in His name (Matt. 18:20). Miracles are performed, (Mark 9:39), the sick can be healed, and demons cast out in Jesus' name (Mark 16:17&18). We're admonished to do everything in His name (Col. 3:17). There is no other name under heaven whereby we must be saved (Acts 4:12). Most of all, no one can come to the Father apart from Jesus (John 14:6).

To avoid getting bogged down in the details of the Jesus Only doctrine, I will emphasize the reasons why I believe the Trinitarian view is the best explanation of the Godhead from what is revealed in the Bible. Let's begin at the beginning -- in the book of Genesis. The Hebrew word for God in Gen. 1:1 is Elohim. Most Christians know this word has a plural ending. Most Christians do not know, however, that the plural ending on this word specifically denotes three. Elohim would be spelled with a different plural ending if God is a plural of two. If He is a plural of more than three, there is yet another plural ending to reveal that. I always use this as a witnessing truth when talking to Jews. Some checked me out with their rabbis, who admitted I was correct. Yet, for some reason, their minds never consciously thought of it before I pointed it out to them. The Bible explains the reason for this in 2 Cor. 4:3&4).

Going a little further into Genesis we find God saying, "Let us make man in our image." Note the plural pronouns He used – "us" and "our." God then made man with three parts – body, soul, and spirit. Paul pointed out (Rom. 1:20) that God's invisible attributes can be understood by the things He made since the beginning of creation. It seems to me that man being created in the image of God as a three-part being is one of the things Paul had in mind when he wrote this.

Another aspect of creation that helps us understand the Godhead is light. In comparing Gen. 1:3 with 1 John 1:5, I'm reminded from my high school science that light is comprised of three rays -- ultraviolet, infrared, and white. Ultraviolet rays can neither be seen nor felt. Infrared rays can be felt, but they cannot be seen. White rays can be both seen and felt. Ultraviolet corresponds to the Father, infrared to the Holy Spirit, and white to Jesus. This is because the Father has never been seen or felt. The Holy Spirit is invisible, but His presence can be felt. Since Jesus came in the flesh, He was both seen and felt.

The creation of elements also reveals something of the Godhead. This is because the elements exist in three forms – solid, liquid, and gas. This is also true for compounds, which are made from a mixture of elements. Water is a compound that can exist in all three forms – ice, liquid, and vapor. If you take a moment to think about it, Jesus is like a solid, the Holy Spirit is like liquid, and the Father is like gas.

In view of the above, some people accuse Trinitarians of believing in three Gods. This really is not true because the Bible also indicates that the three Persons in the Godhead exist in one essence. To understand this, you need to compare the Hebrew word for "one" (echod), as it is used in Deut. 6:4, with how it is used in Num. 13:23. Echod does not refer to a numerical one. It refers to an essence of one because there were many grapes in the cluster of Num. 13:23. If the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit were not of the same essence, then it would be accurate to accuse Trinitarians of believing in three Gods. But we recognize the three Persons of God as being of the same essence. Thus, God is one in essence, but three in Persons. Another Hebrew word would have been used in Deut. 6:4 if God intended us to understand Him to exist as a numerical one instead of an essence of one. The number, 1, in Hebrew is the first letter of their alphabet, aleph.

Another Hebrew word for God with a plural ending is Adonai. English versions of the Bible translate this word as "Lord." However, this word was sometimes used with its singular ending, Adoni. English versions also translate this as "Lord." Thus, without knowing something about the Hebrew text, it is not easy to understand why the Bible uses the plural form in some verses, yet the singular form in others. Whenever Adoni was used, it always was prophetic of Jesus Christ. The most outstanding example of this is in Psa. 110:1 "The LORD said to my Lord, sit at my right hand." Adoni is used for the word translated "Lord." This verse is quoted four times in the N.T. to prove that Jesus is Adoni (Matt. 22:44; Mark 12:36; Luke 20:42; Heb. 1:13). Thus, the Father was speaking to the Son in this verse.

The fact that God has a Son can not only be seen throughout the N.T., but also in the O.T. The two most obvious verses are Psa. 2:12 and Pro. 30:4 because they very specifically refer to God's Son. Jesus is not the Son of Himself as the Jesus Only doctrine implies. He is the Son of the Father. There is a distinction to be made here between the Father and the Son. While they are the same in essence, they are not the same in Persons.

There are also several places in scripture where more than one Person in the Godhead was manifest at the same time. The most outstanding example of this was when the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit were all present in different ways at Jesus' baptism by John. The fact that God inspired Matthew, Mark, and Luke to all record this event is why this is the most outstanding example of God as a Trinity. Everything in the Word of God is important, but when something is mentioned twice, God is using the hermeneutical principle of repetition to stress its importance. When something is mentioned three times, it is even more important. Very few things in the Bible are repeated more than twice.

Let's look at this more closely. Matthew records Jesus' baptism in ch. 3:13-17. Mark records it in ch. 1:9-11, and Luke in ch. 3:21-23. All three contexts report that the Spirit of God appeared as a dove descending upon Jesus when He was baptized. All three records also quote the voice from heaven, Who said, "Thou are My beloved Son, in Whom I am well pleased." Jesus was not a ventriloquist on this occasion. It was the Father, Who spoke from heaven. Even John wrote about Jesus' baptism, but He only included the presence of the Holy Spirit without saying anything about the Father (John 1:29-34).

The reason why John's account differs somewhat from Matthew, Mark, and Luke was explained by Eusebius in his book, Ecclesiastical History, which was written in 320A.D. Eusebius explained that Matthew wrote his gospel narrative for the purpose of evangelizing the Jews. Mark wrote to evangelize the Romans. Luke wrote to evangelize the Greeks. However, John wrote to the saints for the purpose of providing details that were omitted by Matthew, Mark, and Luke. Therefore, it is very foolish to ignore what Matthew, Mark, and Luke said about the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit simply because John's account varies from theirs. John did not write to contradict their testimonies. He wrote to augment their accounts with extra details.

The Father not only spoke from heaven at Jesus' baptism, but also on some other occasions. Jesus was not being a ventriloquist on the mount of transfiguration when the Father again expressed His pleasure in His Son (Matt. 17:5). This event was also recorded by Mark (ch. 9:2-13), Luke (ch. 9:28-36), and Peter (2 Pet. 1:17-18). This fourfold repetition proves how important Jesus' transfiguration was. Although John did not mention this event, he did record how the Father spoke from heaven on another occasion in ch. 12:28-30.

There are so many places where the N.T. records the prayers of Jesus that I will not list them all here. If you want to examine them for yourself, you can find them with any good concordance and center-reference. Suffice it to say that Jesus always prayed to the Father, not to Himself. He taught that we should also to pray to the Father in His name. For example, the Lord's prayer is addressed to the Father, not to Jesus.

There is something Jesus taught about the Holy Spirit, which is also quite interesting. When Jesus referred to the Holy Spirit as "another Comforter" (John 14:16), He used the Greek word for "another" that literally means, "another of the same kind." This Greek word is allos. If the Holy Spirit was not of the same essence as Jesus, the Greek word, heteros, would be used to describe Him instead. But allos indicates that since Jesus is God, the Holy Spirit is also God.

The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are all mentioned together in Matt. 28:19. This is the baptismal formula that Jesus gave shortly before He returned to heaven. Since Jesus taught us to consider the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit together, how can Jesus Only people say otherwise? We should be agreeing with Jesus, not those who contradict Him.

All three Persons of the Godhead are also linked in 2 Cor. 13:14 and 1 John 5:7. Some critics try to discredit this latter reference by pointing out how it only appears in the Received Text, but not in the Majority or Nestlé Texts. However, the research conducted by Drs. Ivan Panin and Gustave Hoyer into the mathematical structure of the Bible proves that the Received Text was inspired and the other Greek manuscripts were corrupted copies of it.

Just as the N.T. linked the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit in several passages, the O.T. did as well. The most obvious O.T. cites about the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are found in Isa. 48:16 and 63:7-10. The first reference is prophetic of Jesus, Who said that the Lord God (Father) and His Spirit sent Him. The latter passage refers to the Father in verses 7 and 8a. Jesus is the Savior, Who was afflicted in verses 8b and 9. The Holy Spirit is mentioned in verse 10.

Unfortunately, others like the Jehovah's Witnesses and Jesus Only deny God's existence as a Trinity. However, all antithetical views fail to adequately address the things I previously stated. I find it interesting how Trinitarians are able to address their disagreements with heretics in great detail, but their opponents are unable to refute the scriptural evidence with equal detail. This is because those on the side of truth are able to refute every heretical point with a scriptural counterpoint. But those on the side of error are unable to prove everything with scripture. The few verses they do use in an attempt to prove their points are a prime example of the axiom, “prooftext out of context is pretext.”