Doctrines Concerning

God in General

B. That God exists eternally in three distinct persons: Father, Son and Holy Spirit, and that these
three are one God having the same essence and attributes.

1. All three persons of the Trinity are called God.

a. God, the Father

Pertinent Scripture:

Rom 1:17 For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith.

Rom 9:5 Whose are the fathers, and of whom as concerning the flesh Christ came, who is over all, God blessed for ever. Amen.

b. God, the Son

Pertinent Scripture:

Tit 2:13 Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ;

c. God, the Holy Spirit

Pertinent Scripture:

Act 5:3 But Peter said, Ananias, why hath Satan filled thine heart to lie to the Holy Ghost, and to keep back part of the price of the land?

Act 5:4 Whiles it remained, was it not thine own? and after it was sold, was it not in thine own power? why hast thou conceived this thing in thine heart? thou hast not lied unto men, but unto God.

Heb 9:14 How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?

Personal Opinion:

It could well be and I don't doubt it for a minute that all three persons of the Trinity are called God.  However, I am surprised that the Bible verses brought forward to support this fact are so unconvincing or so not to the point.  There must be better verses somewhere that would make a better proof for so important a Christian doctrine. 

I am not going to dwell on this statement too much as it makes my head spin.

2. Each person of the trinity is distinct in personality and exercises distinct offices
in the work of creation and redemption.

Pertinent Scripture:

Act 5:30 The God of our fathers raised up Jesus, whom ye slew and hanged on a tree.

Act 5:31 Him hath God exalted with his right hand to be a Prince and a Saviour, for to give repentance to Israel, and forgiveness of sins.

Act 5:32 And we are his witnesses of these things; and so is also the Holy Ghost, whom God hath given to them that obey him.

 

Heb 1:1 God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets,

Heb 1:2 Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds;

Heb 1:3 Who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high;

 

Heb 9:14 How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?

 

1Pe 1:2 Elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through sanctification of the Spirit, unto obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ: Grace unto you, and peace, be multiplied.

Personal Opinion:

There must be something in the revelation of the trinity of God that God wants us to comprehend.  Something about His essence that our human minds, if we apply ourselves, we can grasp even here on earth before we meet Him face to face.

From the first few verses of Genesis chapter one, I get the impression that the Holy Spirit has the function of replacing darkness with light.  From the fact that God "spoke", used words and that Jesus was "the Word", from these facts I gather that Jesus and words or language are in some way closely connected.

Also, I want to keep in mind the fact that humans are the only earthly creatures with the ability to use language and without this ability we would be without the ability to lie and deceive.

Also, Jesus is pure truth.

All are to me parts of the puzzle.

3. Each person of the Trinity is the same in essence and possess the same attributes.

Pertinent Scripture:

Psa 86:10 For thou art great, and doest wondrous things: thou art God alone.

 

Isa 43:10 Ye are my witnesses, saith the LORD, and my servant whom I have chosen: that ye may know and believe me, and understand that I am he: before me there was no God formed, neither shall there be after me.

Isa 43:11 I, even I, am the LORD; and beside me there is no saviour.

 

Isa 44:6 Thus saith the LORD the King of Israel, and his redeemer the LORD of hosts; I am the first, and I am the last; and beside me there is no God.

Isa 44:7 And who, as I, shall call, and shall declare it, and set it in order for me, since I appointed the ancient people? and the things that are coming, and shall come, let them shew unto them.

Isa 44:8 Fear ye not, neither be afraid: have not I told thee from that time, and have declared it? ye are even my witnesses. Is there a God beside me? yea, there is no God; I know not any.

 

Isa 45:18 For thus saith the LORD that created the heavens; God himself that formed the earth and made it; he hath established it, he created it not in vain, he formed it to be inhabited: I am the LORD; and there is none else.

 

Mar 12:29 And Jesus answered him, The first of all the commandments is, Hear, O Israel; The Lord our God is one Lord:

Personal Opinion:

So, essence is a noun, an attribute is an adjective.

No, that's not it.  Essence is "substance" as distinguished from a supporting attribute.

Yes, that's it. When we are talking about God, "God" is the noun, is the essence.  All other words describing God are attributes, are adjectives.

Now, when each person of the Trinity has distinct personalities and works in creation and redemption, don't we have to be describing persons of different essence?  No, can't be, they are all "One God". 

Who am I to question it?