UNDERSTANDING THE TRINITY

In no other subject is error more dangerous, inquiry more difficult, or the discovery of truth more rewarding. —Augustine, De Trinitate The doctrine of the Trinity poses a deep and difficult problem. On the one hand, it says that there are three distinct Persons—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit—and that each of these Persons “is God”. On the other hand, it says that there is one and only one God. So it appears to involve a contradiction. It seems to say that there is exactly one divine being, and also that there is more than one. How are we to make sense of this? This is a difficult question, but one that Christians ought to take very seriously. The difficulty isn’t just that the doctrine of the Trinity is mysterious. Rather, it is that the doctrine appears to be logically inconsistent—the sort of thing that couldn’t possibly be true. And yet we must believe it if the rest of our faith is to make sense. For example, the Bible forbids us to worship any being other than God. (e.g., Ex. 20:3-5; Is. 42:8) So Jesus is worthy of our worship only if he is God. But the Bible also makes it clear that the Father deserves our worship (e.g., Mt. 5:9-13; Mt. 7:21; Jn. 2:16), and that Jesus is not the Father (e.g., Mt. 24:36; Lk. 22:42; Jn. 1:14, 18). So, if we are to go on worshipping both Jesus and the Father, w