The trinity and humanity an extract from tim chester, delighting in the trinity monarch, 2005 we were made in the image of the triune god. The belief that god is three persons coexisting in one being or substance, as the doctrine is often defined, is held by millions of catholics, protestants and orthodox believers alike. The belief that god is three persons coexisting in one being or. Thomas aquinas and his followers make trinitarian theology hopelessly complex and spiritually unfruitful. The doctrine of the trinity is taught and believed by all evangelicals, but rarely is it fully understood or celebrated. However, the doctrine of the godhead trinity is without questions revealed in god s word. Arlandson what is the doctrine of the trinity all abou t, anyway. Therefore, because we resemble god, and god resembles us, we get important insight into both natures, how they coincide, and how they work together.
Many christian denominations teach that god is a trinity. The trinity in creation inspiration and the trinity the trinity and. The trinity is the teaching that god is one in essence, yet three in person. Representing god as one, the scriptures also ascribe divinity to father, son and holy spirit. We dont understand it because it is the work of od. This study will focus upon the first person of the trinity, god the father. The trinitythe trinity t he complex doctrine of the trinity is so sim ply wonderful and wonderfully simple as to demand a divine origin. This passage offers a paradigm statement of the orthodox understanding of the trinity. The doctrine of god the father the person and work of the first person of the trinity trinity baptist church discipleship training november, 2004 introduction. Historical background of the trinity 1 by jeff rath 898 the current mainstream teaching in christianity is that god is a coequal, coeternal, onesubstance trinity, and that jesus christ is god. Jan 23, 2006 the trinity is first of all important because god is important. There will be a presupposition that god is knowable, yet not discoverable by human reason. The doctrine of the trinity means that there is one god who eternally exists as three distinct persons the father, son, and holy spirit.
I dont know why it took me so long to pick up this book, published more than two decades ago, but it has proven to be revelatory. The belief that god is three persons coexisting in. Catherine mowry lacugnas contribution to trinitarian theology. In fact, the god of the bible is never described as. And god seeks people to worship him in spirit and truth john 4. Oct 26, 2012 if god were simply one person, he could not be love. 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. There is so much we would like to know about god, but our finite minds cannot comprehend it. The trinity 69 protecting the oneness of god we must make sure we protect the concept of the oneness of god by being careful with the terms that we use to describe the trinity. The teaching that god is a trinity is one of the chief false doctrines of the roman catholic church. It is about the meaning of the holy trinity in terms of how god reveals himself to. Trinity is a clear view of the one god, as we will see later. The trinity 2 god, the holy spirit i find the holy spirit to be ever so cool. Representing god as one, the scriptures also as cribe divinity to father, son and holy spirit.
The persons of the trinity are the father, the son, and the holy spirit. The trinity sets the limits on human speculation about the nature of god. The tripersonality of god is exclusively a christian doctrine and a truth of scripture. God is more than the trinity, but he is not less than that. The trinity is one of mainstream christianitys most widely accepted and revered doctrines.
A gallup poll taken in 1966 found that 97% of theamerican public believed in god. This small book is not a theological research in the traditional sense. If the doctrine of the trinity is true, then those who deny it do not worship the god of the scriptures. Is the holy spirit a person or the creative power of the godhead. Millions of professing christians believe in, speak of and week ly sing about god as a trinityfather, son and holy spirit. If it is false, the trinitarians, by paying divine honor to the son and to the holy spirit, are equally guilty of idolatry. Chapter 26 how and why the trinity is false and unbiblical. In our material existence, the concept that god is one god, yet exists as three distinct persons, is foreign to us.
Understanding the biblical doctrine of the trinity godhead. Vlach did constantine invent the trinity the doctrine of the trinity in the writings of the early church fathers nathan busenitz bibliography of works on the trinitarian theology dennis swanson volume 24, number 2. What is this, they urge, if not an appearance of, or even a triple temporary incarnation of the three persons within gods nature. Trying to deal with the issue of the trinity apart from monotheism add up to the difficulty of understanding of the whole issue. The bible says that god himself is a trinity father, son and holy spirit and that man was created in gods image. Since god is three persons, but only one being, it would be inappropriate to speak of members of the trinity as beings or individuals.
He instructs us that there is a kind of trinity discernible in man, who is the image of god, viz. It is this doctrine that will be investigated in what follows. But we already know from gods word that at his core god is love. Johnson, does the doctrine of the trinity hold the key to a christian theology of religions. Although the word trinity is not found in the bible neither is the word incarnation, the teaching it describes is clearly found there. The belief that god is one substance, yet three persons, is one of the central doctrines of mainstream christianity. Schleiermacher, ritschl believed that the doctrine of the trinity was a speculative and metaphysical idea whose intention was to speak about the. Was jesus the born son of god, or only an adopted son. For this reason, tertullian denied that a fatherson relationship was eternal within the trinity, seeing it rather as a new development emerging from god s plan to make the world. Relationality and temporality in divine life peters, ted on. I am passionate about the trinity, because i love god, and i am bound to the revelation of scripture.
Hagensick the rabbi s deep voice echoes through the dusk, hear, o israel. Pdf on jul 6, 2018, david raju chinta and others published trinityis it biblical. And while we do not go so far as to say that the personality of god necessarily implies the doctrine of the trinity, we do believe that the personal traits of love, honour, fellowship, trust. Thus, the father is god, the son is god, and the holy spirit is god. This doctrine is considered by many as the cornerstone of christianity, but where did this doctrine come from. These ques tions about the nature of god are answered in this booklet. If we are willing and will allow it, the holy spirit will work through us to reflect and reveal gods grace and glory. The concept of the trinity is believed by most professing christians, whether catholic or protestant. To understand more fully what god is like is a way of honoring god. God and father of our lord jesus christ but since theology was not concerned with speculative knowledge of god there was no need to introduce the doctrine of the trinity into christian theology. The following clearly and briefly explains the trinity.
That we worship one god in trinity, and trin ity in unity 4. An evaluation of three recent proposals, southern baptist journal of theology 10. The doctrine of the trinity is not merely speculation, but lies at the root of every mans. Catherine mowry lacugna provides us with a thoughtful and provocative exposition of the trinitarian faith, showing that the immanent trinity god in god s self cannot be known except through god s economy of salvation. The doctrine developed gradually over several centuries and through many controversies. To clarify the doctrine of the trinity, we follow the format of asking common. Further, we should allow the fact that god is triune to deepen our worship.
The belief that god is three personsthe father, son and holy spiritcoexisting in one being is how the trinity doctrine is often defined. By the trinity is meant the unity of three persons in one godhead. 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. The problem why should my words, i love the trinity, sound strange to anyone. The biblical truth is that the holy spirit is the power through which god begets us as his dear children. Is god a trinity pdf church of god faithful flock yumpu. Doctrine of the trinity biblical research institute. As it makes clear, the doctrine requires not only that god exists in three persons, but that each of the following is true as well. And why have so many great christians throughout church history fought so tenaciously in defending it. Why does the doctrine of the trinity matter to us today. It is also one of the primary false teachings protestants took with them when they left the catholics during the reformation.
For example, karl rahner dismisses the subtle explanations of bernard lonergan and his. The resurrection of jesus and the doctrine of the trinity. Do you think these thoughts would help to explain the trinity to muslims. This is what the trinity father, son, and holy spirit have done for everyone to get to heaven. A quiz on the doctrine of the trinity in delighting in the trinity, michael reeves rightly calls the trinity the governing center of all christian belief and the cockpit. Neither the word trinity nor the explicit doctrine appears in the new testament. Whatsapp share facebook share instagram follow instagram share by email more pdf.
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