The Trinity: Father, Son and Holy Spirit... One God in Three Persons

To walk with God in the spiritual realm, to walk by the Spirit... we must understand the three persons of God, how they interact with each other. Then we can understand how we interact with them in the spiritual realm.

First, I will describe the Trinity, how three can be one.  We will see how three can be one... relationally, scientifically, mathematically, scripturally and spiritually.

Then we will explore the authority structure within the Trinity... to show the interaction between the Father, Son and Holy Spirit... revelation from scripture that there is one God, in three persons.

After you understand this page, I will direct you to the next step... towards walking by the Spirit.

One God in Three Persons: Three Can Be One

There are three persons of the Trinity: the Father, Son and Holy Spirit: 

The Father is God (Romans 1:7, 15:6). 

The Son is God¹. 

The Holy Spirit is God². 

¹  Hebrews 1:8, Hebrews 1:5-6, Titus 2:13, 2 Peter 1:1, 1 John 5:20, John 1:1-2, 14-18, 1 Timothy 1:1, Philippians 2:5-11, Isaiah 9:6 (a child will be born named "Mighty God"), Isaiah 7:13-14 (promise made to "house of David, in other words, the lineage of David, of a child to be born to a virgin to be named Immanuel, which means God with us, the promise being fulfilled in Matthew 1:23), Acts 16:29-34 (In verse 31 the Philippian jailer hears that salvation comes by faith in Jesus. In verse 33 he was baptized as profession of that faith and in verse 34 we see that his faith was in God, revealing that faith in Jesus is faith in God, because Jesus is God.) 

² Jesus, the Son of God, was born through Mary, a virgin, because she "was found pregnant by the Holy Spirit" (Matthew 1:18). Because of this impregnation by the Holy Spirit, Luke states: "Therefore also the Holy one who is born from you will be known as the Son of God" (Luke 1:34-35). So, Jesus was the Son of God, because God the Holy Spirit impregnated her. See also Acts 5:3-4.

When I wrote above that the Father is God... the Son is God... the Holy Spirit is God... I did not say, "the Father = God"... "the Son = God"... "the Holy Spirit = God". An apple is fruit but that doesn't mean that apple = fruit.

The Bible reveals one God in three persons... Father, Son and Holy Spirit. 

After much prayer, I will show you how three can be one... relationally, scientifically, mathematically, scripturally and spiritually.

I am a father, son and brother. So, I am three persons because of three different personal relationships. But I am still just one being. God is also three persons but one being. I can't totally explain the Trinity. But, I can't totally explain everything about an automobile either. And the world would suffer greatly if we didn't use things we couldn't fully explain, like the automobile. 

So, I will attempt to explain the Trinity to the extent that the Bible explains it... ONE God in three persons.

"Hear, Israel: Yahweh is our God. Yahweh is one" Deuteronomy 6:4 (World English Version). "Yahweh" is the personal name of God. Click here for more on this. Matthew 28:19 commands, "Go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit". Notice that the word name is singular, not plural. His name is "Yahweh". He has one name because he is one God. The name Jesus literally means Yahweh saves. The singular name, Yahweh, applies to the Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

The Father is not the Son¹. 

The Son is not the Holy Spirit¹. 

The Holy Spirit is not the Father¹.

¹The scriptures below will reveal that... The Holy Spirit conceived Jesus, filled Jesus, empowered Jesus and led Jesus. Then, at Jesus' request, the Holy Spirit was sent by the Father to dwell within us. This new age of the Holy Spirit began in Acts 2:1, at Pentecost. After Pentecost, the Holy Spirit chose which spiritual gifts to distribute to each child of God. So, the three persons of the Trinity interact with each other.  Therefore, the Father is not the Son. The Son is not the Holy Spirit. And the Holy Spirit is not the Father.

The Trinity is difficult to explain. I was praying one night for a friend who is a Muslim... praying for how to explain the Trinity to him. As I prayed... color came to my mind. 

Color

Perhaps color can help us understand the Trinity. 

The primary colors are blue, red and green. These colors cannot be created by mixing other colors. But every other color can be created from these three by mixing them in various proportions. 

Well, blue is color. Red is color. Green is color. Blue is not red. Red is not green. Green is not blue. When blue, red and green light all shine in the same spot the result is white light. The three colors together form ONE color... ONE color which includes ALL color. Comparing this to the Trinity: The Father is God. The Son is God. The Holy Spirit is God. But the Son is not the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is not the Father. The Father is not the Son. The three persons together form ONE person... ONE God which includes ALL of God... just like three colors form ONE color, which includes ALL color. 

Red easily stands for the Son of God, representing the blood of Christ shed for us (1 Peter 1:18-19). Green can stand for the Holy Spirit since he regenerates and renews (John 3:5-6, Titus 3:5-6). Blue may represent the Father since the Israelites were required to wear blue tassels on garments to remind them of God's commandments (Numbers 15:38-39). So, blue would stand for the authority of the Father. 

   1 color (blue)

+ 1 color (red)

+ 1 color (green)

= 1 color (white).

   God the Father

+ God the Son

+ God the Holy Spirit

= One God whose name is Yahweh

By the way, white is a color. Though some in artistic fields may not consider white to be a color, according to physics white is a color. That's because it is formed by combining three colors. Colors combined are color. Three colors combine to produce one color. So three are one... Just like the Trinity. The Father, Son and Holy Spirit interact with each other. So do the three colors. 

And we have the express statement from scripture that Jesus is light (John 8:12). And 1 John 1:5 says, "God is light". So, scripture clearly uses light to describe what God is. The authority structure between Father, Son and Holy Spirit may be seen in color as one color shines more than another, resulting in dominance of one color over the other. The color blue, representing the Father is dominant in our world, as the sky and ocean are most typically blue... though the ocean can appear green or red at times. Each color in the light spectrum has a different effect on humans, plants and animals. But they are all color. When we see the magnificent colors in a sunset, we naturally think of... God. Our hearts are instantly drawn into worship!

For those of you who are in the scientific world, infinity plus infinity plus infinity equals infinity. So, the sum of three infinities is one infinity. The sum of three is one. Since the sum of three being one works in science, why would it not work in the spiritual realm, in the Trinity? In the present day, we know that one plus one plus one can equal one scientifically with both colors and with infinity. But, those who wrote the scriptures presenting the Trinity in the first century did not know this science regarding color and math. Why would someone make something up like the Trinity which would appear foolish in their culture? Well, they didn't make up the Trinity. They had God's divine revelation of the Trinity which they accepted by faith. So, the Trinity is evidence of the accuracy and authenticity of the Bible, since it contains doctrine which would have appeared foolish in the first century, doctrine which we now know makes perfect sense, through science.

Perhaps also the Trinity is a little like water. Water can be liquid, solid or gas. Consider the ice cube.  Ice is solid water. Ice can melt to become liquid water. Liquid water can evaporate to form water vapor, a cloud. Solid water is not liquid water. Liquid water is not water vapor. Water vapor is not solid water. But liquid water, solid water and water vapor are all water. Well, the Father is God. The Son is God. The Holy Spirit is God. But the Son is not the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is not the Father. The Father is not the Son. Water is not a perfect symbol for the Trinity. But our knowledge of what we have seen and understood about water can at least partially explain things which we have not seen and cannot totally understand about God. If every aspect of God could be perfectly understood by man, God wouldn’t be God. 

Charles Ryrie says that the Trinity is also somewhat like the sun. The Father, Son and Holy Spirit could be represented by the sun, its light and power respectively. Jesus is the light of the world (John 8:12)), who came from the Father (John 16:28). The Holy Spirit comes from the Father (John 14:26, 15:26, Acts 2:33) bringing power to the child of God to hope, comprehend, witness, guard the Gospel and do combat in the spiritual realm (Romans 15:13, Ephesians 3:14-19, Acts 1:8, 2 Timothy 1:14 and Matthew 12:28). 

So, the Trinity is somewhat like human relationships, color, infinity, the sun and water. 

Your human body has many parts but is still one body. Your stomach sends a signal to the brain indicating hunger. Your brain signals your hand to select and eat food. Your stomach performs its role for the body, while communicating with the brain. Many parts, in communication with each other, but one body, under the control of the brain. So, the human body has some similarities with the Trinity. 

So, the human body, human relationships, color, infinity, the sun and water can help us understand how one God can exist in three persons. But each of these analogies has a flaw, because we are attempting to use things from the physical, natural realm to explain the Trinity, which is in the spiritual, supernatural realm. To my knowledge, a perfect analogy for the Trinity doesn't exist in the physical world.

I you were to go back in time six-thousand years to visit the people of South America... how would you explain what a traffic light is? They have never seen a wheel, car, paved road or electric lights. To explain a traffic light, you would need to use things familiar to them. You could describe two half coconuts stacked on top of each other, one of the half coconuts containing a six inch diameter eye of a red eyed frog and the other half coconut containing a six inch diameter panther eye (green). If the frog eye opened, you would stop. If the panther eye opened, you would go. They would say that the colors couldn't be seen in daylight and no one could make them open and close at the correct time. They would probably think that a traffic light could not possibly exist. 

In the same way, any analogy from our physical, natural world, can not perfectly explain the spiritual, supernatural reality of the Trinity. And, as I said earlier... it is a delusion to live as if the unseen world does not exist.

Now, let's move on to the next topic in this micro-subchapter... 

Authority Structure Within the Trinity

There is an authority structure within the Trinity. This spiritual authority is apparent in the scriptures below. An impersonal reading of these scriptures for content is insufficient. It is very important to PRAY these scriptures. We need to interact with the living God in His living word (Hebrews 4:12). Now we shall see how the authority structure and interactions between the Father, Son and Holy Spirit reveal that there are three persons in God. Here are some scriptures about spiritual authority within the Trinity:

Jesus was conceived by the Holy Spirit: 

• "Mary... was found pregnant by the Holy Spirit" (Matthew 1:18). 

See Luke 1:31-35

Jesus was Filled with and Led by the Holy Spirit:

• "Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan, and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness for forty days, being tempted by the devil" (Luke 14:1).

Holy Spirit Empowered Jesus:

• Jesus said, "if I by the Spirit of God cast out demons, then God's Kingdom has come upon you" (Matthew 12:28).

Jesus asked the Father to send the Holy Spirit:

• Jesus said, "I will pray to the Father, and he will give you another Counselor (Holy Spirit), that he may be with you forever: the Spirit of truth, whom the world can't receive; for it doesn't see him and doesn't know him. You know him, for he lives with you, and will be in you" (John 14:16-17).

Yes, the Holy Spirit was sent by the Father at the request of Jesus. 

But some critics of the Bible have said, if Jesus is God... and if the Father is God... then this verse sounds like God is asking himself to do something. They complain that the God of the Bible talks to himself. Well, they are mistaken in that they think that God is merely one person. Scripture teaches that there is one God in three persons. We call this the Trinity. When God created man, God referred to himself in the plural. "And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness..." (Genesis 1:26a, ASV). It is clear that Christians didn't change this scripture after the first coming of Christ to make Genesis 1:26 consistent with the Christian doctrine of the Trinity with Jesus as God, being the second person in the triune God. You can go to Chabad.org and see that the Jewish Bible has the same exact quote as I have shown for Genesis 1:26a. God the creator is clearly in the plural... "us"... in both the Jewish and Christian Bible. God did not refer to himself in the plural to reflect multiple attributes. All people also have multiple attributes. I have multiple attributes. But that doesn't mean that I am "we". 

So, the three persons of the Trinity are all God in essence, but separate persons who communicate with each other.

One God in three persons.

Regarding the doctrine of the Trinity, my Hindu friends have little difficulty, my Christian friends have some difficulty but my Muslim friends have much difficulty. But, like the Jewish and Christian Bibles, the Quran also presents God in the plural: Allah is called "We" in the Quran. In the Quran, "We" created the earth and vegetation, constellations and man (Surah 15:19, 16, 26 respectively). Allah then refers to himself as man's creator in the singular as "I" in Surah 15: 28. Allah (in the plural as "We") sends wind and rain (Surah 15:22), causes life and death (Surah 15:23) and sent the flood in Noah's day (Surah 54:9-13). Allah (in the plural as "We") breathed of "Our Spirit" into Mary the mother of Jesus (Surah 66:12). 

Corpus.quran.com has multiple English translations of these verses but "Our Spirit" for 66:12 is not in all of them. Quran.com shows both Arabic and English. You can hover over the Arabic words to see the Arabic words which mean "Our Spirit".

So, the scriptures of Judaism, Christianity and Islam all present God in the plural... but as one God. 

The Christian Bible adds detail to the doctrine, the Father, Son and Holy Spirit... because these three persons are deeply involved in the way that God expresses his infinite love for his children. Praise to his name!

As the two year old can not understand the internal combustion engine or how the body digests food, we are not able to fully understand God in this age. 

We must accept one God in three persons with humility:

"For now we see in a mirror, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know fully even as also I was fully known" (1 Corinthians 13:12). 

"For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts" (Isaiah 55:9).

Now, let's continue to consider scriptures which reveal the authority structure  within the Trinity...

Holy Spirit was Sent by the Father:

• "Or don't you know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, (1 Corinthians 6:19).

The Holy Spirit Has a Will:

•  "the same Spirit produces all of these, distributing to each one separately as he desires" (1 Corinthians 12:11). (1 Corinthians 12:1-11 reveals that the Holy Spirit distributed spiritual gifts. So, the Holy Spirit was granted discretion regarding spiritual gifts. He distributed gifts "as he desires.") 

To learn more about spiritual gifts, click here.

Jesus Prayed to the Father for Simon:

• "The Lord said, "Simon, Simon, behold, Satan asked to have all of you, that he might sift you as wheat, 32 but I prayed for you, that your faith wouldn't fail. You, when once you have turned again, establish your brothers" (Luke 22:31-32).

Prayerful Observations:

Here we have the Son praying to the Father for Simon. So, the non-failure of Simon's faith is to be attributed to the Father's answer to the prayer of Jesus. Perseverance of faith is a spiritual grace, granted in response to prayer.

Whether faith perseveres or not is an issue of authority. It is granted by one who has the power and authority to grant it. This may be one of the prayers that the Holy Spirit prays for us (Romans 8:26-27 below). In John 17, just before His arrest and crucifixion, Jesus prayed for the disciples and for you. He asked the Father to "keep them through your name" (v 11) and to "keep them from the evil one" (v 15). We know that His prayers apply not only to the disciples present with Him two thousand years ago but to you as well since He said "Not for these only do I pray, but for those also who will believe in me through their word" (v 20). Their word has been passed from person to person for two thousand years until it came to you. You are one who has believed "through their word". The Father will grant the request of Jesus. If you have true faith, your faith will not fail. This is discussed more fully in subchapter 2.3.

The chapter on Endorsed Prayer will reveal that other spiritual graces are granted by the same authority. For example: knowledge of God's will, enlightened eyesight, revelation, power, strength, wisdom, love, unity, obedience, faith, forgiveness, words of the gospel, tranquility and etc.

The Holy Spirit Prays to the Father for Us:

• "In the same way, the Spirit also helps our weaknesses, for we don't know how to pray as we ought. But the Spirit himself makes intercession for us with groanings which can't be uttered. 27 He who searches the hearts knows what is on the Spirit's mind, because he makes intercession for the saints according to God" (Romans 8:26-27).

Prayerful Observations:

In the previous passage, Luke 22:31-32, Jesus prayed that Peter's faith would not fail. In this verse, another person of the Trinity, the Holy Spirit, prays for us now. He appeals to the same authority.

What does the Holy Spirit pray for and to what effect? Possibly He prays that our faith will not fail. Possibly He prays for other graces from the Endorsed Prayers. In the Endorsed Prayers the scriptures have provided a detailed account of appeals to authority for spiritual graces in the spiritual realm.

Jesus and the Holy Spirit spoke as the Father directed

The Father Had Knowledge that Jesus Didn't Have

• Jesus said, "But no one knows of that day and hour, not even the angels of heaven but my Father only. ³⁷ As the days of Noah were, so will the coming of the Son of Man be" (Matthew 24:36-37).

The Son, as God, can deny himself any particular trait of deity to accomplish any objective he chooses. People must do this as well. In my country, a jury may be instructed to ignore some evidence which was presented in a trial. In other situations, a person may come to accidentally receive information which is illegal to possess. This person must destroy such evidence and act as if he did not have this information. God the Son can do the same thing... only he can do it much better than we can. So, Jesus can perfectly make himself to not know certain information to accomplish a particular purpose. Possibly he did this to experience human life as humans experience life... to make the following scripture true, "For we don't have a high priest who can't be touched (can't empathize) with the feeling of our infirmities, but one who has been in all points tempted like we are, yet without sin" (Hebrews 4:15).

Additional clues about spiritual authority in the heavenly realm are apparent in the following verses. It is apparent that neither Jesus nor the Holy Spirit spoke from their own initiative. They both said what the Father instructed them to say.

Jesus and the Holy Spirit Under Authority:

• Jesus said, "For I spoke not from myself, but the Father who sent me, he gave me a commandment, what I should say, and what I should speak" (John 12:49).

• Jesus said, "13 However when he, the Spirit of truth, has come, he will guide you into all truth, for he will not speak from himself; but whatever he hears, he will speak" (John 16:13).

The Father Adjusts Spiritual Authority According to His Will

• "You made him (Jesus) a little lower than the angels. You crowned him with glory and honor. 8 You have put all things in subjection under his feet". (Hebrews 2:7-8).

• "An angel from heaven appeared to him, strengthening him" (Luke 22:43). (The angel strengthened Jesus.)

• "Jesus Christ, who is at the right hand of God, having gone into heaven, angels and authorities and powers being made subject to him" (1 Peter 3:21-22).

• "he raised Christ from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms, far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every name that is invoked, not only in the present age but also in the one to come" (Ephesians 1:20-21).

• Jesus said, "He who overcomes, I will give to him to sit down with me on my throne, as I also overcame, and sat down with my Father on his throne" (Revelation 3:21). (Regarding "overcomes", see 1 John 5:5.)

Prayerful Observations:

The Father brought Jesus low and then raised Him high. It may seem strange to some that the Son of God would be strengthened by an angel. Here is the context: Jesus was in the Garden of Gethsemane, praying in anticipation of His arrest and crucifixion. The response of the Father was to send an angel to strengthen Jesus. Jesus was at this point "a little lower than the angels".

But this changed after His crucifixion, resurrection and ascension. Jesus is now sitting on the throne of the Father, with the Father. And we will sit with them on that throne as well in the coming age (Revelation 3:21 above). We will judge the world (1 Corinthians 6:2).

The Father apportions and adjusts spiritual authority within His realm, according to His will.

Summary

We have seen how three can be one... relationally, scientifically, mathematically, scripturally and spiritually. We have seen how the authority structure and interactions between the Father, Son and Holy Spirit reveal that there are three persons in God. 

To walk with God in the spiritual realm, to walk by the Spirit... we must understand the three persons of God, how they interact with each other. Then we can understand how we interact with them in the spiritual realm. Now that you understand the Trinity, click here to open the page titled, "Spiritual Authority in the Spiritual Realm". You have just read all of the content for section 3.1a. So, read to that section and skip down to 3.1b.