The Trinity Flashcards
Articulate the orthodox doctrine of the Trinity, using Scripture to support your assertions.
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From our Cohort Review
- God eternally exists as three persons, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, and each person is fully God and there is one God.
1. God is three persons:
The three persons specifically discussed in Trinitarian passages like the Baptism of Jesus and the Great Commission -
Matthew 3:16-17 (the Baptism of Jesus)- “…the heavens were opened and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and alighting on him; and lo, a voice from heaven, saying ‘This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased’…”
Matthew 28:19 (the Great Commission) – “…and make disciples of all nations baptizing them in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit.”
We see the Trinity in creation –
Genesis 1:26 – “Let us make man in our image…”
John 1:1-2 – “In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God…”
John 1:10 – “and the world was made through him, yet the world did not know him.”
John 17:24 – “…the glory you have given me because you loved me before the creation of the world…”
We see the Trinity in God’s plan for salvation through Christ Jesus
John 3:16-17 – “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son… For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him…, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God.”
We see the Trinity in Jesus’ role as our High Priest and Advocate before God
1 John 2:1 – “…we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous…”
The Father is not the Holy Spirit, and the Son is not the Holy Spirit (several verses distinguish them) –
John 14:26 – “But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you…”
John 16:7 – “…if I do not go away, the Counselor will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you.”
Romans 8:27 – “…the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God.”
- Each person is fully God:
God the Father is fully God.
Genesis 1:1 – “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.”
The Son is fully God.
John 1:1-4 – “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God; all things were made through him, and without him was not anything made the was made. In him was life and the life was the light of men.”
John 20:28 – “Thomas answered him, My Lord and my God”
Isaiah 9:6 – “For to us a child is born…and his name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God.”
Isaiah 40:3 – “In the wilderness prepare the way of the Lord, make straight in the desert highway for our God.” — quoted by John the Baptist in Matthew 3:3
Colossians 2:9 – “In him the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily.”
The Holy Spirit is also fully God.
Matthew 28:19 – “baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit”
Acts 5:3-4 – “Why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit…? You have not lied to men but to God.”
1 Corinthians 2:10-11 – “For the Spirit searches everything, even the depths of God. For what person knows a man’s thoughts except the spirit of the man which is in him? So also no one comprehends the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God.”
- There is one God:
Deuteronomy 6:4-5 – “Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength.”
1 Timothy 2:5 – “For there is on God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus.”
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Summary written on Test
God eternally exists as three persons, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost…each person is fully God and there is only one God.
God eternally exists as three persons: Baptism of Jesus (Matthew 3:16-17) & Great Commission (Matthew 28:19).
Each person is fully God: the Father (Gen 1:1), the Son (John 1:1-4 “In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God…), the Holy Ghost (return back to Matthew 28:19 “in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit”)
There is one God: Deut. 6:4 “The Lord our God, the Lord is one”
Identify two common heresies related to this doctrine. Demonstrate, using Scripture, why each heresy is wrong. Provide how each heresy can play out in the life of the believer.
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Cohort Review
- “…Christianity stands or falls with the confession of the deity of Christ and of the Trinity…. In the confession of the Trinity throbs the heart of the Christian religion: every error results from, or upon deeper reflection may be traced to, a wrong view of this doctrine.”
1. Modalism (also called Sabelianism) – claims God is not really three distinct persons, but only one person who appears to us in three different forms (or modes) at different times.
Why Modalism is wrong:
It must deny the personal relationship within the Trinity that appears in so many places in Scripture. Baptism of Jesus – Matthew 3:16-17 - “…the heavens were opened and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and alighting on him; and lo, a voice from heaven, saying ‘This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased’…”
Modalism can play into the life of believers by:
- Arianism – denies the full deity of the Son and the Holy Spirit.
Why Arianism is wrong:
Arianism can play into the life of believes by:
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Summary written on Test
Modalism –vs- Arianism
Modalism: there’s only one person who appears to us in 3 modes at different times. It does a great job identifying a single God, but falls short because it denies that all three exist at the same time. However, we see that all three persons exist at the same time with the baptism of Jesus in Matthew 3:16-17 where the three ‘modes’ are reference at the same time and even in Gen 1-26 where God spoke in plural “let us make man in our image, after our likeness.” I think of the breakdown occurring if we think that God existed as the Father during creation and the Old Testament, but then was no longer the Father but became Jesus on earth, and now exists as the Holy Spirit. Imagine a believer who prays to only the Holy Spirit because the Father and the Son are no longer in existence. Our relationship with God requires an active relationship with all three persons all the time.
Arianism: Denies the full deity of the Son and the Holy Spirit. This one is tougher for me to recall due to the lengthy explanations – Grudem has at least 3 categories to explain the history of Arianism. I recall that all of the controversy was over one or two scriptures, but that what resulted has a huge effect on atonement and justification – this is also where I bog down – Jesus had to bear all of the sins of the word and how can any being be able to do this if He were not fully God; justification by faith (e.g. Jehovah’s Witnesses) can’t fully count on Jesus to save us. The only example I remember is that of idolatry if we don’t believe Jesus is fully God and the NT spells it out that we shouldn’t worship idols…and Philippians 2:9-11 request that ‘every tongue confess…Jesus Christ is Lord). I must admit that I have weakness over this area and need to shore up my understanding…even though I have memorized much of this I still have questions and wrestle with full understanding.
