What the heck is a 'Trinity'?

God the Father

God the Son

God the Holy Ghost

The Trinity can be a difficult concept to understand. Some think it is a logical contradiction. Others call it a mystery. Does the Bible teach it? Yes it does, see trinity, but that doesn't automatically make it easier to comprehend.

The Trinity is defined as one God who exists in three eternal, simultaneous, and distinct persons known as the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Such a definition may suffice for some, but for others this explanation is insufficient.

Therefore, to help understand the Trinity better, I offer the following analogy that, I think, is hinted at in Rom. 1:20: "For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made."

Notice that this verse says God's attributes, power, and nature, can be clearly seen in creation. What does that mean? Should we be able to learn about God's attributes, power, and nature by looking at what He has made? Apparently, according to the Bible, this is possible.

When a painter paints a picture, what is in him is reflected in the painting he produces. When a sculptor creates a work of art, it is from his heart and mind that the source of the sculpture is born. The work is shaped by his creative ability. The creators of art leave their marks, something that is their own, something that reflects what they are. Is this the same with God? Has God left His fingerprints on creation? Of course He has.

The equation for the Trinity is not 1 + 1 + 1 = 3, where they all just add together. The correct equation is 1 x 1 x 1 = 1, where they each multiply each other.

Trinitarians do NOT believe that there is more than one God. They believe that, "the Father, Son, & Holy Spirit" are each fully God; but, not that each is a god. The closest, but not perfect, human analogy, that comes to mind, is the sun: God the Father is the sun, the rays that radiate from the sun is Jesus, and the warmth we feel on us is the Holy Spirit. Although imperfect, the analogy can give us a small glimmering concerning the nature of the divine, spiritual, being, who is "God."

Hope that helps!

definitely Catholics weren't the 1st to return up with the trinity, they borrowed it from the pagan Gods of historical Babylon. Jesus on no account taught the trinity and neither did the 1st century christians. It got here approximately as a effect of the excellent apostasy that the Apostle Paul warned of which began to infiltrate the christian church approximately 4 hundred years after the dying of Jesus. Many trinitarians whilst confronted with the idiocy of the belief will attempt to alter it and water down the training of their very own church to such an escalate that what they finally end up with isn't even the trinity doctrine in any respect. you may pin them down via utilizing The Catholic Encyclopedia to tutor an expert clarification of the trinity doctrine, then flow to artwork on it. For one element, ask them to describe Acts 7:fifty 5,fifty six. "yet he, being packed with holy spirit, gazed into heaven and caught sight of God's glory and of JESUS status AT GODS suitable HAND.." whilst Stephen gazed into heaven he did no longer see some 3-area God. Jesus is status next to God. there is no point out of the holy spirit as being considered one of three of them. additionally, Stephen substitute into 'packed with holy spirit'. If the holy spirit is someone, area of God, how ought to Stephen be packed with 'him'?? etc...that's rather undemanding because of the fact the trinity isn't interior the bible and because there are a great form of scriptures that contradict the belief.

Saint Patrick used the example of the shamrock when the pagan king of Ireland asked him the same question. Just like the shamrock has one stem and three parts, so too is there one God and three Divine Persons: Father, Son and Holy Spirit. The King accepted this answer and was baptized.

We call this a Mystery. It is something we will never be able to understand in this life.

Jesus referred to the Trinity when He told us to Baptize in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.

The best way I've found to describe the Holy Trinity is thus:

Suppose you know a man named Tom. Tom is married and has three children.

From Tom's mother's perspective he is her "son"

To Tom's wife, he is her "husband".

When Tom's children need him to provide something for them, he is their "dad"

But there are times when Tom's children are out on their own and they're tempted to do something they know is wrong. That's when they hear that little voice inside them reminding them of the price they'll pay if they disobey "dads" rules. In that case Tom is their silent "voice of authority".

Tom is one man, but viewed from all these different perspectives he is all these different entities.

In the case of God, He is

God the Father in Heaven

God, Jesus come to earth as Messiah

God, the Holy Spirit that remains inside those who accept God the Father and the Son. One God, three perspectives.

The thing is that people try to make this more difficult than it is. Whereas they fully accept that Tom could become many more entities such as "uncle", "supervisor at work", "grandfather", and on and on, people find it difficult to accept that God almighty can be represented in three different ways. It's actually nothing more than putting limitations on God that do not exist.

I'm with Thomas too but imagine the laws that rule matter could rule spirit as well and then look a the sea: what do you see?

Fluid Water (dynamic matter)

Vapor (loose matter)

Ice (structured matter)

The three different forms remaining essentially water.

Now,

Discourse (fluid thinking)

Dream (misty thinking)

Reason (ruled thinking)

The three different systems remaining essentially mind.

Is there any difference?

Maybe this quality of Nature led St. Paul to conceive the same Presence in Heaven (the Father), inside our Heart (the Son) and in Water (the Holy Spirit) Maybe he simply explained as well as he could what Oxygen does: it fills the atmosphere, our bodies and the sea as well.

The concepts of substance (God) and persons (Father, Son and Holy Ghost) are well defined.

Please refer to a scholawstic manual.

It's only confuse in YOUR mind.

The Trinity IS monotheism.

You didn't understand Trinity well.

(One God, three persons).

Take my standard text for Moslim:

The Trinity exists.

The Bible resumes Christian believe "Baptize in the Name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost"

(The Name designs the substance: God)

If you don't believe to the holy Bible take the koran.

It says "Jesus is the Word of God".

As a Christian I ask: Is this Word created, then the God of the Koran was without word before the creation.

Because Muslim don't want to believe they say "No the Koran is our Word of God. It is not created."

So they prefere to have a Book as God at the place of Jesus.

(...and there is ABSOLUTELY NO ARGUMENT in the Koran, for saying, that the Koran was not created.)

Romans, Greeks, Agypts were polytheists, like your Mohammed before he found the Richness and Power of Kadidscha.

The Trinity is Monotheism.

But I didn't find one Mulim who understands that. How do you want to argue against Christians, if you don't understand their teaching. I understand your theology. Look in the Holy Bible, look in your false Koran. Please convert from the false Prophet Mohammed to the Truth, that it Jesus. Follow your Koran and accept that Jesus is God and not the Koran, a book without intelligence.

Yes in the catholic church we have mysteries. In the Koran there are none. All things moslims believe about God Aristotle could prove it without revelation. The Koran is completely empty. Because it doesn't contain anything you need a revelation for. Moslim have to believe what intelligent men like Aristotle can prove, because moslim are not intelligent enough to understand the proves of Aristotle.

Aristotle has proved the Monotheism without any revelation.

A revelation you need only for the Trinity and the Hypostatic Union BECAUSE they are mysteries.

The Moslim have killed billions and billions of people for a false revelation that contained a Monotheism that the killed people were able to prove without revelation.

The stupid Koran is completely useless because the monotheism it contains doesn't need any revelation.

And Aristotle doesn't need satanic verses and polytheistic Godesses at the Kaaba to explain what monotheism is.

Revelation and Mystery go together.(HOLY BIBLE)

Revelation without mystery is useless. (KORAN)

BIBLE

The proofs of the bible are very many. I have given them here in Yahoo so many times.

If you don't accept one it's up to you to prove why.

Jesus is the Son of God. The Word that is God. Jesus is before Abraham was. Jesus and the Father are one. The Baptism is in the only name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost. Jesus can forgive sins, exorcise, make miracles by his own authority. He is resurrected from the deads. The Church he has founded confirms his divinity. ...

The Fathers of the councils of the church have confirmed what they have learned from Jesus.

One example that is seldom used: Letter to the Hebrews (Jews)

2,9:

Only for a short time he was HUMILIATED under the angels.

This says it was a HUMILIATION for the Christ to be under the Angels for a short time (Incarnation until Ascension).

But the other time he was ABOVE the angels. This is about the divinity:

5,5 God says: My Son are you, ...

(This is from the OLD Testament, also the TRUE jews believed that, our fathers of the Old Testament!!!)

H2o = Water = Solid, Liquid, Gas

3 but still 1 no matter what state water is in it is still H2o

God = Jesus

Baptize in the Name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit

Name = singular

in the beginning

God said Let US make Man in OUR image.

Father = GOD in Heaven

Jesus = GOD in the Flesh

Holy Spirit = GOD in Believers

1 GOD but 3 distinct relationships

Here is an illustration that you may not have seen before, but as will all illustrations it isn't a perfect representation...No one has actually seen the sun just as no one has seen the Father. Yet we learn a great deal about the sun by studying the sunlight just as we learn about the Father through Jesus Christ the Son who is the radiance of His glory (Heb. 1:3). We see the power of the sun as it is involved in the growth of seeds and trees and plants, and when asked what makes things grow, we say the sun does. The Holy Spirit is like the power of the sun and He is God.

Keep Seeking!

Good question. This is a subject that has divided many Believers for many years. What saddens me is that too many Christians have allowed it to be so. When in reality, both points of view are closer than either one would dare admit. There is far more that unites us, than devides us. Let me share with you what I have come to understand about the nature of God over the twenty five I've been saved.

First, the Bibles teaches us that there is one God, and that His nature is decribed as trinity. Though I believe that the word "triune" best describes the nature of God. You see, too many who believe in the trinity teach the plurality of God so strong that they are more tri-theists (the belief in 3 gods) that trinitarians. While on the other side, those who emphises the unity of Gods nature so strong they fall into the false teaching of "modalism" (that God changed from Father, then to Son, then to Holy Spirit: ergo modes, or modalism).

The Bible teaches us that there is one God. The Word declares that He is the eternal, omnipotent, omniscient, omnipresent, sovereign, and immutable triune God; and it declares the unity of the Godhead where three personalities, equal in every divine perfection and attribute, execute distinct, harmonious offices, in the great work of redemption.

This does not mean that there are three "people" called God, but rather a way of saying God eternally exists in three personally distinct ways. Scriptures declare that there is only one God, Who is eternally (past, present, and future) manifested/revealed as Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.

2 Cor. 13:14, John 1:1,2, Rev. 4:2-5 & 5:1-7

1 John 5:7

For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one.

The Father - Co-existent, co-eternal, and co-equal with the Son and the Holy Spirit. He is the Creator and Giver of life. He is God revealed as Father in creation.

Scripture References: Isa. 43:10; 44:8, John 3:16, James 1:17, John 4:24

The Son - Co-existent, co-eternal, and co-equal with the Father and the Holy Spirit. Jesus was conceived by the Spirit and born of a virgin, to take upon Himself the form of man. By becoming obedient unto death, Jesus bore the curse of sin, sickness and sorrow redeeming us back to Himself. He arose the third day and ascended unto heaven, there He sits on the right hand of the Father, where He ever lives to make intercession for us. He is God revealed as Son in redemption.

Scripture References: John 1:1-3, Matt. 1:23 , 1 Tim. 2:5, Eph. 2:18 , Phil. 2:6-11

The Holy Spirit - Co-existent, co-eternal and co-equal with the Father and the Son. Sent by the Father, through the Son, He reproves the world of sin, prepares the church for Christ's return, and empowers the believer to follow the Lord. He is God revealed as Holy Ghost in regeneration.

Scripture References: John 14:26 ; 15:26 ; 16:8

Another way of understanding this definition of the nature of God, is to understand His attributes. By attributes I mean His omniscience (He knows all things), His omnipotence (He is all powerful), and His omnipresence’s (He is everywhere at the same time, and at all times). His omnipresence’s allows us to (in a very simplistic way) to see how He can be Father, Son, and Holy Spirit at the same time. Being omnipresent He is not only everywhere at the same time, He is everywhere at every time. God is here, now, at this present time. But He is also in the future. He is already there because He is not limited by time. He is also in the past. You see, time is linier. Time had a starting point (Gen. 1:1) and it will come to an end (Rev. 10:6). But God is eternal. He has no beginning, and He will have no end. Therefore time itself existents within God, God is not limited within time. Therefore the One God is the Father, Son, and Spirit eternally (in the past, in the present, and in the future). I know this is deep, but it does help understand how the One true and Living God is eternally manifested as Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.

Hope this helps.

Elder Greg

(((SFCU)))