Our Triune God     “No study in Scripture is more interesting or profitable to the Christian than the revelation which is given to us concerning the sacred Trinity, and the various parts which the divine persons take in the work of salvation.”     Charles Spurgeon   “Keep the existence of the Trinity prominent in your ministry.  Remember, you cannot pray without the Trinity.  If the full work of salvation requires a Trinity, so does that very breath by which we live.  You cannot draw near to the Father except through the Son and by the Holy Spirit.”  C.H. Spurgeon     “If Christianity was something we were making up, of course we could make it easier. But it is not. We cannot compete, in simplicity, with people who are inventing religions. How could we? We are dealing with fact. Of course anyone can be simple if he has no facts to bother about.” C.S. Lewis   “The church fathers insisted that it is precisely the Scriptures that lead one to the doctrine of the Trinity.  Put all together, the Bible serves as a remarkable painting which seen only in dots and brush strokes are hard to discern.  But viewed in full splendor presents a God one and three, both mysterious and yet clearly visible. Indeed, who would ever invent a concept that at first glance defies logic and took centuries to define.”  Dr. Scott Horrell   “God eternally exists as three Persons, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, and each Person is fully God, and there is one God.”  Wayne Grudem     NICENE CREED   "We believe in one God the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth, and of all things visible and invisible.

“And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only-begotten Son of God, begotten of the Father before all worlds, God of God, Light of Light, Very God of Very God, begotten, not made, being of one substance with the Father by whom all things were made; who for us men, and for our salvation, came down from heaven, and was incarnate by the Holy Spirit of the Virgin Mary, and was made man, and was crucified also for us under Pontius Pilate. He suffered and was buried, and the third day he rose again according to the Scriptures, and ascended into heaven, and sitteth on the right hand of the Father. And he shall come again with glory to judge both the quick and the dead, whose kingdom shall have no end.

“And we believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord and Giver of Life, who proceedeth from the Father, who with the Father and the Son together is worshiped and glorified, who spoke by the prophets. And we believe in one holy catholic and apostolic Church. We acknowledge one baptism for the remission of sins. And we look for the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the world to come. Amen."     ATHANASIAN CREED   Whosoever wishes to be saved, before all things, it is necessary that he hold the catholic (i.e. universal) faith, which faith, if anyone does not keep it whole and unharmed, without doubt he will perish everlastingly.             Now the catholic faith is this, that we worship one God in Trinity, and Trinity in unity, neither confusing the Persons nor dividing the divine Being.  For there is one Person of the Father, another of the Son, and another of the Holy Spirit, but the Godhead of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit is all one, their glory equal, their majesty co-eternal.  Such as the Father is, such is the Son and such is the Holy Spirit; the Father is uncreated, the Son is uncreated and the Holy Spirit is uncreated; the Father is infinite, the Son infinite and the Holy Spirit infinite; the Father is eternal, the Son eternal and the Holy Spirit eternal.  And yet they are not three Eternals, but one Eternal, just as they are not three Uncreateds, nor three Infinites, but one Uncreated and one Infinite.  In the same way, the Father is almighty, The Son is almighty and the Holy Spirit almighty, and yet they are not three Almighties but one Almighties.             Thus, the Father is God, the Son is God and the Holy Spirit is God, and yet there are not three Gods but one God.  Thus the Father is Lord, the Son is Lord and the Holy Spirit is Lord, and yet there are not three Lords but one Lord.  Because, just as we are compelled by Christian truth to confess each Person singly to be both God and Lord, so we are forbidden by the catholic religion to say, there are three Gods, or three Lords.             The Father is from none, not made nor created, but begotten; the Son is from the Father alone, not made nor created, but begotten; the Holy Spirit is from the Father and the Son, not made nor created nor begotten, but proceeding.  So there is one Father, not three Fathers; one Son, not three Sons; one Holy Spirit, not three Holy Spirits.             And in this Trinity there is no one before or after, no greater or less, but all three Persons are co-eternal with each other and co-equal.  So that in all things, as has already been said, the Trinity in Unity, and Unity in Trinity, is to be worshipped.  He therefore who wishes to be saved let him think thus on the Trinity.                     OLD TESTAMENT PLURALITY PASSAGES   “Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness…”  (Gen. 1:26a)   “Then the Lord said, “Behold, the man has become like one of Us, to know good and evil.” (Gen. 3:22a)   “Come let Us go down and there confuse their language.”  (Gen. 11:7a)   “And one cried to another and said: “Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lord of hosts…” (Is. 6:3:a)                         “…I heard the voice of the Lord, saying: “Whom shall I send, and who will go for Us.” (Is. 6:8)   “And I {God the Father} will pour on the house of David and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem the Spirit of grace and supplication; then they will look on Me {Jesus} whom they pierced…” (Zec. 12:10a)       NEW TESTAMENT PLURALITY PASSAGES   “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”   (Matt. 28:19)   “There is one Spirit…one Lord…one God and Father of all.”  (Col. 4:4-6)   “The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you all. Amen.” (2 Cor. 13:14)     BIBLICAL LOOK AT THE UNITY OF GOD   “Hear, O Israel: the Lord our God, the Lord is one.” (Deut. 6:4)   “…We know that an idol is nothing in the world, and that there is no other God but One.”            (1 Cor. 8:4b)   “No illustration can possibly capture all that is involved in the biblical revelation of the Trinity.  Most are at best only parallels of a ‘three-in-one’ idea.”   Charles C. Ryrie       Practical Benefits of Understanding the Trinity   Tactfully understand the role of each Member of the Godhead Realize the distinct difference between Christianity and other World Religions Instruct other people in biblical truth Notice how relationships are supposed to function. Increase in biblical wisdom and more meaningful prayer Treat Scripture with accuracy and integrity. Yearn to experience true biblical worship       A Closing HYMN “Holy, Holy, Holy”   Holy, Holy, Holy, Lord God Almighty! Early in the morning our song shall rise to thee; Holy, Holy, Holy! Merciful and mighty! God in three Persons, blessed Trinity!   Holy, Holy, Holy! All the saints adore Thee, Casting down their golden crowns around the glassy sea; Cherubim and seraphim falling down before Thee, Who wert, and art, and evermore shalt be.   Holy, Holy, Holy! Though the darkness hide Thee, Though the eye of sinful man Thy glory may not see, Only Thou art holy, there is none beside Thee Perfect in power, in love, and purity.   Holy, Holy, Holy!  Lord God Almighty! All Thy works shall praise Thy name, in earth and sky and sea; Holy, Holy, Holy! Merciful and mighty! God in three Persons, blesses Trinity!   Author: Reginald Heber, 1826