Condensed Theology, Lecture 16: Theology, God As Trinity: Each Person Fully God

Condensed Theology
A Primer in Systematic Theology

Theology Proper:
The Doctrine of God
What does the Bible teach about
God?
Where We’re Going
• Twelve lectures covering four subjects:
– The existence of God
– The attributes of God
– God as Trinity
– God’s works of creation & providence
God as Trinity
God as Trinity: Preliminaries
• The Bible nowhere uses the word “Trinity.”
• So there is no way that anyone can cite a
singular text of Scripture to prove the
Trinity;
• Rather, to speak about the doctrine of the
Trinity is to speak summarily about three
interrelating doctrines that may be set forth
in the following propositions:
1. There is only one true and living God.
2. God exists in three persons.
3. The three persons are each fully God.
• Each of the propositions may be
demonstrated from Scripture.
• Taken together, these three propositions
have come to be known as the doctrine of
the Trinity:
• The one God exists in three fully divine
persons.
Proposition 1
There is only one true and living

God
Proposition 1: Only One God
• Deut 6:4: Hear, O Israel! The LORD is our
God, the LORD is one!
• Isa 45:21: Declare and set forth your case;
Indeed, let them consult together. Who has
announced this from of old? Who has long
since declared it? Is it not I, the LORD? And
there is no other God besides Me, A righteous
God and a Savior; There is none except Me.
• 1 Cor 8:4: Therefore concerning the eating of
things sacrificed to idols, we know that there is
no such thing as an idol in the world, and that
there is no God but one.
• Is it really necessary
in a discussion of the
Trinity to say that
there is only one true
and living God?
• You bet!
• There are two reasons to say that there is
only one true and living God in a
discussion of the Trinity:
– First, the Bible teaches that God exists in
three persons (Prop. 2).
– Second, the Bible teaches that the three
persons are each fully God (Prop. 3).
• From these two propositions alone we
may conclude that there are three
Christian gods; thus denying monotheism.
Proposition 2
God exists in three persons

Proposition 2:
God in Three Persons
• There are three persons who make up the
Godhead:
– Father
– Son
– Holy Spirit
• Matt 28:19: Go therefore and make disciples of
all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the
Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.
• 2 Cor 13:14: The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ,
and the love of God, and the fellowship of the
Holy Spirit, be with you all.
Proposition 2:
• To understand this proposition more clearly, we
can formulate it in this way:
– The Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit are one God;
yet…
– The Father is not the Son
– And neither the Father nor the Son is the Holy Spirit
• To say that the Father is not the Son and that
neither the Father nor the Son is the Holy Spirit
indicates that there are genuine distinctions
within the Godhead.
Proposition 2: God in Three
Persons
to say that the Father
is not the Son and
that neither the Father
nor the Son is the
Holy Spirit?
• Absolutely!
Proposition 2:
• There are two reasons to say that the Father is
not the Son and that neither the Father nor the
Son is the Holy Spirit:
– First, as we have seen, the Bible teaches that God is
one (Prop. 1).
– Second, the Bible teaches that the Father is God, the
Son is God, and the Spirit is God (Prop. 3).
• From these two propositions alone we may
conclude that the language of Father, Son, and
Spirit are simply different modes or expressions
or behaviors of the one God; thus denying that
God exists in three distinct self-conscious egos.
Proposition 2:
• The Father is not the Son
– John 1:1-2, 14: In the beginning was the Word, and
the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He
was in the beginning with God….14And the Word
became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His
glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father,
full of grace and truth.
– John 17:1, 24: Jesus spoke these things; and lifting
up His eyes to heaven, He said, “Father, the hour has
come; glorify Your Son, that the Son may glorify
You….24Father, I desire that they also, whom You
have given Me, be with Me where I am, so that they
may see My glory which You have given Me, for You
loved Me before the foundation of the world.”
Proposition 2:
• Neither the Father nor the Son is the Holy
Spirit
– Acts 10:38: You know of Jesus of
Nazareth, how God anointed Him with the
Holy Spirit and with power, and how He
went about doing good and healing all who
were oppressed by the devil, for God was
with Him.
Distinctive Persons with
Distinctive Roles
The Economic Trinity
Proposition 2:
• The distinction between the Father, Son,
and Holy Spirit, evident in the previous
Scriptures, indicates differences in role
and relationship.
• These differences are most apparent to us
in what has come to be known as the
economy of the Trinity, or the Economic
Trinity, where “economy” refers to the
activities of the different members of the
Godhead with respect to creation and
redemption.
Proposition 2:
• The Son is subordinate to the Father in
role and relationship
– 1 Cor 11:3: But I want you to understand that Christ
is the head of every man, and the man is the head of
a woman, and God is the head of Christ.
• Like a human father and son relationship,
the Heavenly Father directs, guides, leads,
and commands while the Eternal Son,
submits, follows, and obeys.
Proposition 2:
• The Holy Spirit is subordinate to the Father and
the Son in role and relationship
– John 14:26: But the Helper, the Holy Spirit,
whom the Father will send in My name…
– John 15:26: When the Helper comes, whom I will
send to you from the Father…
• The Holy Spirit is the Father’s and Son’s agent
in carrying out their purposes in creation and
redemption.
Proposition 2:
• The roles and relationships of the members of
the Godhead are depicted below.
– The Holy Spirit is subordinate in role and in
relationship to the Father and the Son.
– The Son is subordinate in role and in relationship to
the Father.
Father
Son
Holy Spirit
Distinctive Persons with
Distinctive Roles
The Ontological Trinity
Proposition 2:
• Summary of Economic Trinity:
– The distinction between the Father, Son, and
Holy Spirit indicates differences in role and
relationship.
– These differences are most apparent to us in
what has come to be known as the economy
of the Trinity, or the Economic Trinity, where
economy refers to the activities of the different
members of the Godhead with respect to
creation and redemption.
Proposition 2:
• In addition, the differences in role and
relationship are not arbitrary or artificial or
even a product of the members’ activities;
• Rather, the differences in role and
relationship exemplified by the Economic
Trinity flow from the differences in role and
relationship that inhere in God as God.
Proposition 2:
• In other words, God has always
existed as three persons, eternally,
before creation and redemption.
• This is what has come to be known
as the Ontological Trinity, or the
ontology of the Trinity, where
“ontology” refers to the being of God.
Proposition 2:
• We can say that the tri-personality of
God is an eternal, ontological reality
for the following reasons:
– God is immutable (he cannot change).
Therefore if he exists now as Father,
Son, and Holy Spirit, he has always
existed as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
Proposition 2:
• We can say that the tri-personality of God
is an eternal, ontological reality for the
following reasons:
– The Father and the Son acted together as
Father and Son before time began.
• Eph 1:3: Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus
Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the
heavenly places in Christ, just as He chose us in Him before
the foundation of the world, that we would be holy and
blameless before Him.
• See also John 3:17; Gal 4:4
Conclusion to
the First Lecture on the Trinity
Conclusion to Lecture 1
• Proposition 1: There is only one true and
living God.
• Proposition 2: God exists in three persons.
– The persons are self-conscious egos.
– The persons have different roles and
relationships in the very being of God (the
Ontological Trinity) that work themselves out
in the activity of God (the Economic Trinity).
Proposition 3
The three persons of the Trinity

are each fully God
Proposition 3: Each Fully God
• When we say that each person of the
Trinity is fully God, we mean that each
member possesses full deity;
• That is, each member possesses all the
attributes of the one true and living God.
• Put negatively, to assert that each
member of the Trinity is fully God is not to
say that each member is divine (tritheism);
• Rather, it means that each of the members
are of one essence with the other (Greek:
homoousios = of the same nature or
substance).
• Thus each of the persons is essentially
identical, not simply similar.
• One of the upshots of the members’
identity in nature is that we can say that
the attributes of God apply equally to each
member of the Trinity.
• For example, since God is omniscient,
then the Father is omniscient, the Son is
omniscient, and the Holy Spirit is
omniscient; a fact that, incidentally, is well-
attested in the Scriptures.
• So when we say that each member of the
Godhead is fully God, we mean that each
member possesses full deity and does not
lack any of the divine attributes.
in a discussion of the
Trinity to say that
each of the persons is
fully God?
• Without question!
• There are two reasons to say that each person
of the Trinity is fully God:
– First, the Bible teaches that there is only one true and
living God (Prop. 1).
– Second, the Bible teaches that God exists in three
persons (Prop. 2).
• From these two propositions alone we may
conclude that the three persons have attributes
unique to themselves that make up the one God,
that each person is merely an ingredient in the
recipe that is God, thus denying the full deity of
each member.
• The Father is God
– The divinity of the Father is so well attested in
Scripture that the Arians (4th century ad), who
denied the divinity of Jesus, concluded that
the Father alone is God.
– We will give a small sample.
– “God the Father”
– Gal 1:1: Paul, an apostle (not sent from men
nor through the agency of man, but through
Jesus Christ and God the Father, who raised
Him from the dead).
– See also Eph 6:23; Phil 2:11; Col 3:17; 1
Thess 1:1; 2 Thess 1:2; 1 Tim 1:2; 2 Tim 1:2;
Titus 1:4; 1 Pet 1:2; 2 Pet 1:17; 2 John 1:3;
Jude 1:1.
– “God our Father”
– Rom 1:7: …to all who are beloved of God in
Rome, called as saints: Grace to you and
peace from God our Father and the Lord
Jesus Christ.
– See also 1 Cor 1:3; 2 Cor 1:2; Gal 1:3; Eph
1:2; Phil 1:2; Col 1:2; 2 Thess 1:1; 2:16; Phlm
1:3
– “The/One God and Father”
– Eph 1:3: Blessed be the God and Father of
our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us
with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly
places in Christ.
– See also Rom 15:6; 1 Cor 15:24; 2 Cor 1:3;
11:31; Gal 1:4; Eph 1:3; 4:6; Phil 4:20; 1
Thess 1:3; 3:11, 13; Jas 1:27; 1 Pet 1:3; Rev
1:6.
– “Our Father who is in heaven”; “Heavenly Father”
– Matt 6:9: Pray, then, in this way: “Our Father who is
in heaven, Hallowed be Your name.”
– Matt 6:14: For if you forgive others for their
transgressions, your heavenly Father will also forgive
you.
– See also Matt 5:16, 45, 48; 6:1, 14, 26, 32; 7:11, 21;
10:32-33; 12:50; 15:13; 16:17; 18:10, 14, 19, 35; 23:9;
Mark 11:25-26; Luke 11:13.
• The Son is God
– We will address the deity of Jesus Christ in
more detail when we come to our lectures on
Christology;
– But for now, make note of the following
important texts…
• The Son is God
– Isa 9:6-7: For a child will be born to us, a son will be
given to us; And the government will rest on His
shoulders; And His name will be called Wonderful
Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of
Peace. There will be no end to the increase of His
government or of peace, On the throne of David and
over his kingdom, To establish it and to uphold it with
justice and righteousness From then on and
forevermore. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will
accomplish this.
• The Son is God
– John 1:1, 14, 18: In the beginning was the
Word, and the Word was with God, and the
Word was God. 14And the Word became
flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His
glory, glory as of the only begotten from the
Father, full of grace and truth. 18No one has
seen God at any time; the only begotten God
who is in the bosom of the Father, He has
explained Him.
• The Son is God
– John 20:26-29: After eight days His disciples were
again inside, and Thomas with them. Jesus came, the
doors having been shut, and stood in their midst and
said, "Peace be with you." Then He said to Thomas,
"Reach here with your finger, and see My hands; and
reach here your hand and put it into My side; and do
not be unbelieving, but believing." Thomas answered
and said to Him, "My Lord and my God!" Jesus said to
him, "Because you have seen Me, have you
believed? Blessed are they who did not see, and yet
believed."
• The Son is God
– Heb 1:8-9: But of the Son He says, "Your throne, O
God, is forever and ever, and the righteous scepter is
the scepter of his kingdom. You have loved
righteousness and hated lawlessness; therefore god,
your god, has anointed you with the oil of gladness
above your companions.”
– John 5:18: For this reason therefore the Jews were
seeking all the more to kill Him, because He not only
was breaking the Sabbath, but also was calling God
His own Father, making Himself equal with God.
• The Son is God
– Titus 2:13: ...looking for the blessed hope
and the appearing of the glory of our great
God and Savior, Christ Jesus.
– 2 Pet 1:1: Simon Peter, a bond-servant and
apostle of Jesus Christ, To those who have
received a faith of the same kind as ours, by
the righteousness of our God and Savior,
Jesus Christ.
• The Holy Spirit is God
– John 3:5-7: Jesus answered, "Truly, truly, I say to
you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit he
cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That which is
born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the
Spirit is spirit. Do not be amazed that I said to you,
'You must be born again.’
– 1 John 3:9: No one who is born of God practices sin,
because His seed abides in him; and he cannot sin,
because he is born of God.
– Ps 139:1, 7-8: O LORD, You have searched
me and known me. 7Where can I go from
Your Spirit? Or where can I flee from Your
presence? 8If I ascend to heaven, You are
there; If I make my bed in Sheol, behold, You
are there.
– Acts 5:3-4: But Peter said, "Ananias, why has
Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit
and to keep back some of the price of the
land? While it remained unsold, did it not
remain your own? And after it was sold, was it
not under your control? Why is it that you
have conceived this deed in your heart? You
have not lied to men but to God."
– Acts 28:25-26: And when they did not agree with one
another, they began leaving after Paul had spoken
one parting word, "The Holy Spirit rightly spoke
through Isaiah the prophet to your fathers, saying, 'Go
to this people and say, ”You will keep on hearing, but
will not understand...
– Isa 6:8 Then I heard the voice of the Lord, saying,
"Whom shall I send, and who will go for Us?" Then I
said, "Here am I. Send me!" He said, "Go, and tell this
people: 'Keep on listening, but do not perceive; Keep
on looking, but do not understand.'
– Matt 28:19: Go therefore and make disciples of all
the nations, baptizing them in the name [singular] of
the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.
– 1 Cor 12:4-6, 11: Now there are varieties of gifts, but
the same Spirit. And there are varieties of ministries,
and the same Lord. There are varieties of effects, but
the same God who works all things in all persons.
11But one and the same Spirit works all these things,
distributing to each one individually just as He wills.

– Therefore the Holy Spirit is personal.
– He is a he and not simply a vivid way of
refering to the power of God (John 14:26;
15:26; 16:13-14).
– The Holy Spirit is not a force, but a divine
person, capabable of all the divine attributes
of personality, such as intellect (1 Cor 2:10-
13), emotions (Eph 4:30), and will (1 Cor
12:11).
– If the Holy Spirit were not personal, certain
passages of Scripture would become absurd;
for example:
• Acts 10:38: You know of Jesus of Nazareth, how
God anointed Him with the Holy Spirit [power?]
and with power, and how He went about doing
good and healing all who were oppressed by the
devil, for God was with Him.
• See also Luke 4:14; Rom 15:13; 1 Cor 2:4.
Conclusion
Conclusion
• Proposition 1: There is only one true and
living God.
• Proposition 2: God exists in three persons.
– The persons are self-conscious egos.
– The persons have different roles and
relationships in the very being of God (the
Ontological Trinity) that work themselves out
in the activity of God (the Economic Trinity).
Conclusion
• Proposition 3: The three persons are each
fully God.
– The Father is God
– The Son is God
– The Holy Spirit is God
Conclusion
• Taken together these three propositions
are known as the doctrine of the Trinity.
Next time on…
Condensed Theology
Next Time on
“Condensed Theology”
• Seeds of Trinitarian theology from the Old
Testament
• Historical denials of one or more of the
Trinitarian propositions
• What’s at stake in the doctrine of the
Trinity

Condensed Theology, Lecture 16: Theology, God As Trinity: Each Person Fully God

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Condensed Theology, Lecture 16: Theology, God As Trinity: Each Person Fully God

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Condensed Theology

A Primer in Systematic Theology

There is only one true and living

God exists in three persons

The three persons of the Trinity

distributing to each one individually just as He wills.

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