It is the doctrine that there is only one god, not three, and that the one god exists in three persons. And god seeks people to worship him in spirit and truth john 4. Trinity, in christian doctrine, the unity of father, son, and holy spirit as three persons in one godhead. The doctrine of the trinity can only be known by divine revelation human reason cannot discover anything about the personal nature of god. Introduction in this chapter we shall attempt to set forth in as clear language as possible the basic truths which the church holds concerning the doctrine of the trinity. The biblical basis of the doctrine of the trinity an. In our material existence, the concept that god is one god, yet exists as three distinct persons, is foreign to us. Our purpose, then, is to demonstrate that the doctrine of the trinity triunity of the godhead is another biblical revelation that teaches us more about the nature of god or how he exists. Sep 28, 2011 second, where is the doctrine of the trinity found in the bible. Jan 23, 2006 the trinity is first of all important because god is important. Although the word trinity is famously absent from scripture, the theology behind the word can be found in a surprising number of verses. The church rejected the concept, since scripture is clear in demonstrating that the three persons of the trinity are distinct.
The readers should go bible gateway and look up these verses. Macleoda on february 4, 1962 i was baptized by immersion by brethren assembly elder, cecil. There is much about god the father, about jesus who is called the son, and about the holy spirit. Surely the ignorance and audacity of this, from a scriptural point of view, takes our breath away. Some challenge the doctrine of the trinity as a relic of the traditional past. The evolution of the doctrine of the trinity was far the most important fact in the doctrinal history of the church during the first five centuries of its post apostolic existence. What is the significance of the trinity to my life. The roman emperor constantine the great, while himself not really a christian, convened and played a major role in the council of nicaea, which laid the groundwork for acceptance of the trinity doctrine. This does not mean that a doctrine must be noncontroversial in order to be considered a fundamental article.
Crawford, is the doctrine of the trinity scriptural. The article is about 15,000 words 20 columns in the encyclopedia. Within israelpaganism it was kether, hokhmah, and binah. And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free john 8. However, the doctrine of the godhead trinity is without questions revealed in gods word. The doctrine of the trinity is foundational to the christian faith. Neither the word trinity nor the explicit doctrine appears in the new testament. It could be meneutical argument of the argued, that this doctrine of implication of biblical text trinity has caused more con suggest that the trinity is im troversy. Jan 02, 2020 the origin of the doctrine of the trinity is the bible, although the word trinity is not used in the bible. This also would never have happened without a prior knowledge of this one in three god principle that was only made known through greek philosophy a very long time ago, which had its roots in pagan sun and satan worship. It is only natural, therefore, that the apostles would repeat his doctrine. May 16, 2011 this outline study presents a biblical case for the doctrine of the trinity, citing roughly 1,000 references drawn from well over 300 different chapters of the bible, including references from all 27 books of the new testament. Further, we should allow the fact that god is triune to deepen our worship. One can only conjecture that he thought the biblical evidence did not.
The doctrine of the trinity is not merely speculation, but lies at the root of every mans. Related to the divine being, his nature and mode of being. The doctrine of god in scripture, history and modernity. The tripersonality of god is exclusively a christian doctrine and a truth of scripture. Pdf this paper contends that origens christology which presented. The father, son, and holy spirit are three persons i. To a large number of christians, however, it is a doctrine fundamental to christianity since it deals with a correct knowledge of god. Brief declaration and vindication of the doctrine of the trinity, etc. The biblical basis of the doctrine of the trinity an outline. When we look at what the scripture has to say we discover that one god exists in three persons the father, son, and holy spirit. God is three distinct individuals god the father, the son jesus, and the holy spirit in one true god. And the definition of a biblical doctrine in such unbiblical language can be justified only on the principle that it is better to preserve the truth of scripture than the words of scripture. All the elements of the doctrine are taught in scripture. As jonathan edwards noted, after studying the topic extensively, i think the doctrine of the trinity to be the highest and deepest of all divine mysteries an unpublished treatise on the trinity.
It should be noted that the word trinity is never given in the bible. Tertullian, often called the father of the trinity for being the first person to use the latin trinitas, wrote in a. Understanding the biblical doctrine of the trinity. The doctrine of the trinity recognizes that god is one god, coexisting in three distinct persons of the father, son and holy spirit.
It is rooted in the fact that god came to meet christians in a threefold figure. The didache and the epistle to diognetus do not contain information directly relating to the development of the doctrine of the trinity. The doctrine of the trinity is the foundation stone of a distinctively christian theology, and interest in it continues to grow. Download video high standard download audio mp3 download manuscript word pdf. A brief declaration and vindication of the doctrine of the.
So the human analogy fails to describe the trinity and would in fact confuse this doctrine if we took the example seriously. Nonetheless, it is critical to state at the outset that the truthfulness of trinitarian doctrine rests, finally and fully, on the authority of biblical truth. The trinity is an unfathomable, and yet unmistakable doctrine in scripture. The surprising origins of the trinity doctrine united. The word trinity comes from tri meaning three and unity meaning one. If it is false, the trinitarians, by paying divine honor to the son and to the holy spirit, are equally guilty of idolatry. If the doctrine of the trinity is true, then those who deny it do not worship the god of the scriptures. Many christian denominations teach that god is a trinity. Historical development of the doctrine of the trinity and of. The below bible verses and scriptures about the trinity will help you have a better understanding of who god is. The doctrine of the trinity, for example, is certainly essential to true christianityand it is very clear in scripture but you will find no comprehensive statement of the trinity from any single passage of scripture. The origin of the doctrine of the trinity is the bible, although the word trinity is not used in the bible. Ever since the late first century, the trinitarian triune godhead and unitarian one god views have sparred back and.
A supplement to the series we believe in god that focuses on the personal attributes and responsibilities of the individual persons within the trinity. The doctrine of the trinity, simply stated, is as follows. God has one nature, but three centers of consciousness. The answer must be no, because the bible also indicates that the father, son, and holy spirit are distinct persons. The scripturedoctrine of the trinity samuel clarke. The doctrine of the trinity as taught by most churches states that there are three coequal equal in every respect, coeternal the same age, omniscient all knowing, omnipotent all powerful gods, who are not three gods, but one god. The biblical basis of the doctrine of the trinity by. Historical development of the doctrine of the trinity and. A survey of biblical evidence for the doctrine of the trinity. The doctrine of the trinity is considered to be one of the central christian affirmations about god. When jesus told the apostles that he was leaving them to go to the father in order to send the.
The doctrine of the trinity lies in scripture in solution. The doctrine of the trinity does not appear in the bible. The doctrine of the trinity in biblical perspective ctsfw. Box 8500, charlotte, nc 28271 phone 704 8878200 and fax 704 8878299 1 statement dt160 the biblical basis of the doctrine of the trinity i. No trinitarian doctrine is explicitly taught in the old testament. As christians we even separate ourselves from jews who believe, in one sense, in the same god. A11 scripture is given by inspiration of god and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness. In one passage christ is referred to as the son of god and preexistent.
Sophisticated trinitarians grant this, holding that the. Yet, though the fullness of the trinity is far beyond human. The doctrine of the trinity, for example, is certainly essential to true christianityand it is very clear in scripturebut you will find no comprehensive statement of the trinity from any single passage of scripture. The word trinity doesnt appear in hebrew scripture or the english bible. However, the biblical doctrine of the trinity does not rest on one verse of scripture, but is found throughout the old and new testaments. The simple, indeed, i will not call them unwise and unlearned, who always. Jan 01, 2001 originally, this idea was known as modalism, sabellianism, or patripassianism. Consequently we do not presume to give a full explanation of it. How to defend the doctrine of the trinity catholic answers. The biblical basis of the doctrine of the trinity by robert. In this revised version of his earlier study, bob letham takes us through its many aspects, including the controversies that have surrounded it, and guides us to an understanding based on scripture, faithful to the orthodox tradition and sensitive to todays needs. In the nature of the case we can know only as much concerning the inner nature of the godhead as has been revealed to us in the scriptures.
The doctrine of the trinity in history and scripture. The account of jesus baptism is a striking manifestation of the doctrine of the trinity there stood christ in human form, visible to all. The following chart provides a nonexhaustive sampling of the evidence from scripture. The doctrine of the trinity distinguishes christianity from other religions including, judaism. This outline study presents a biblical case for the doctrine of the trinity, citing roughly 1,000 references drawn from well over 300 different chapters of the bible, including references from all 27 books of the new testament. In platos philosophy it was the unknown father, nouslogos, and the world soul. Warfield, trinity, from the international standard. Crawford, objections to the trinity, evangelical quarterly 45. The doctrine developed gradually over several centuries and through many controversies. Doctrine of the trinity biblical research institute.
However, in recent times some adventists have begun to question its validity. At the 1995 general conference in utrecht, fred allaback distributed a paper entitled no new leaders. Samuel clarkes the scripture doctrine of the trinity was uploaded perfectly. Tertullian, cyprian, augustine, and jerome mention it. To understand more fully what god is like is a way of honoring god. Therefore i have tried to state the doctrinal positions of this book clearly and to show where in scripture i find convincing evidence for those positions.
However, within the nature of this one god are three persons, or three centers of consciousness. In fact, the god of the bible is never described as. At the 1995 general conference in utrecht, fred allaback distributed a. We shall first present the scripture evidence on which the doctrine rests and then we shall present the credal statements. The orthodox definitionthat the father is god, the son is god, the holy spirit is god, they are coequal and coeternal and together the three of them make one godhas been a traditional but not a biblical position. Trinity history of trinitarian doctrines stanford encyclopedia of. The bible teaches that there is one eternal god who is the creator and sustainer of the universe.
The history of the doctrine of the trinity the true. May 19, 2019 and the definition of a biblical doctrine in such unbiblical language can be justified only on the principle that it is better to preserve the truth of scripture than the words of scripture. The three great ecumenical creedsthe apostles creed, the nicene creed, and the athanasian creedare all structured around our three in one god, underlying the essential importance of trinitarian theology. It is used to summarize the teaching of scripture that god is three persons yet one god. The doctrine of god in scripture, history and modernity holmes, stephen r. Trinity doctrine, too, the son derives his being from the father. By the words of the athanasian creed it is, the father is god, the son is god, and the holy spirit is god, and yet there are. It is this doctrine that will be investigated in what follows. For example, when jesus prayed to the father in the garden of gethsemane, it is clear that he was not talking to himself. This verse accurately states the doctrine of the trinity that god is one god in three persons.
But the trinity doctrine does not exist in scripture and it has to be manipulated to try and imply it. No scripture explicitly states that angels are gods 2. Pdf the doctrine of the trinity paigepatric j d samuels. Understanding the biblical doctrine of the trinity godhead. In the nt there are no such words as trinity or trinitarian. In the book, a statement of reasons, andrews norton says of. Therefore, the doctrine of the trinity is arrived at by looking at the whole of scripture, not in a single verse. If any doctrine makes christianity christian, then surely it is the doctrine of the trinity. In terms of the content itself, samuel clarke is one of the most brilliant men who urges men to return to the primitive trinitarianism of the new testament and of the early church. As all orthodox christians agree, the doctrine of the trinity holds that god is one essence but three persons. The doctrine of the trinity in history and scripture teacher. What is the trinity doctrine, and from where does it originate. For starters there are verses that speak of gods oneness deut.
1338 1016 128 1493 1133 411 687 208 1604 669 1574 180 1419 1218 1546 736 166 613 791 862 51 840 1582 1010 1633 857 1471 636 422 999 773 555 1139 733 501 1033 355