Q: How many persons are there in the Godhead?

A: There are three persons in the godhead, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit; and these three are one God, the same in essence, equal in power and glory.

   The doctrine of the Trinity is a strong pillar of orthodox Christianity. To deny the Trinity is to deny the gospel of Christ itself. This doctrine teaches that God eternally exists as three persons, and each person is fully God, and there is one God. The testimony of Deuteronomy 6:4 is true because there is one being who is God. However, further revelation in God’s word teaches that this one Godhead has three persons, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. While the word “Trinity” cannot be found in scripture, the concept is clearly taught. This word means “tri-unity” or “three-in-oneness”. 

   Before we are too quick to call this a contradiction, we must recognize that a contradiction would be to say “A equals B and A does not equal B”. This is not what is being said with the doctrine of the Trinity. We are not teaching God is one being and God is three beings. We are teaching that God is one being and God is three persons. A being and a person are not the exact same thing, so it isn’t a contradiction to say that God is one being and three persons. In fact, the plan of redemption is dependent upon the one God working as three persons.

Scriptural Basis:

Matthew 28:19 (ESV) “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,”

   When Jesus gave this Great Commission to His disciples, He commanded them to baptize disciples in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. We are baptized in the name of the Trinity. This is one of the clearest presentations of the Trinity in one passage. Baptism testifies to the work that God has done in a believer’s life. The Father elected sinners to be saved and decreed the means by which they would be saved. The Son took on flesh, earned righteousness, suffered the wrath for sin, resurrected, and acts as our high priest. The Spirit applies this redemption to individuals in regeneration, justification, and the continuing process of sanctification. There is one God who eternally exists as three persons acting in perfect unity to redeem us; therefore, we are baptized in the name of the Trinity.

John 14:9 (ESV) “Jesus said to him, "Have I been with you so long, and you still do not know me, Philip? Whoever has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, 'Show us the Father'?” 

   The disciples struggled throughout the gospels in understanding many of the truths which Jesus taught. In this passage, Philip desired to see the Father; however, Jesus rebukes him for not recognizing that to see Jesus is to see the Father. As God the Son, Jesus shares all the attributes of the Father. Hebrews 1:3 says this about Jesus, “He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power.” Jesus is the perfect revelation of the Father because He is the Son, perfectly united within the Godhead. Therefore, Jesus told Philip, “Whoever has seen me has seen the Father.”

John 14:26 (ESV) “But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you.” 

   Jesus was giving the disciples instructions for the future in this passage because He was about to leave them. The disciples feared the day when Jesus would depart from them, but Jesus promised that when He left a helper would come. This helper was the Holy Spirit sent by the Father in the name of the Son. In some passages, the Spirit is described as both the Spirit of God and the Spirit of Christ interchangeably.  

“You, however, are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if in fact the Spirit of God dwells in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him.” Romans 8:9

This is where we get the classic formulation of the Divinity of the Holy Spirit in the Nicene Creed: “And I believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord and Giver of Life; who proceeds from the Father and the Son;”

     Worldview Challenge:

   In the world of philosophy, one of the most prominent issues is the problem of the one and the many. Namely, how can we explain why the world is so diverse, yet functions as a unified whole. We look around and see so many differences in the world, but these differences work together for the universe to function. Every worldview struggles to get to the root of the issue because they do not have a foundation for the one and the many to rest on. Christians have this foundation. We are the only ones who worship a Triune God. In a sense, the Creator of the universe is the one and the many. He is one God eternally existing in three persons who function in diverse ways but are unified. Christians can confidently answer the problem of the one and the many by looking to our Creator who created the universe as a testimony to Himself.

Remember: Catechisms should be used as a helpful tool alongside a healthy intake of Holy Scripture. They should never replace God’s Word because their usefulness depends upon their accurate representation of God’s Word. When using these tools, always ground the answers in the scripture references provided.