"Trinity. The trinity of God is defined by the Church as the belief that in God are three persons who subsist in one nature. The belief as so defined was reached only in the 4th and 5th centuries AD and hence is not explicitly and formally a biblical belief. The trinity of persons within the unity of nature is defined in terms of "person" and "nature" which are Gk philosophical terms; actually the terms do not appear in the Bible. The trinitarian definitions arose as the result of long controversies in which these terms and others such as "essence" and "substance" were erroneously applied to God by some theologians. The ultimate affirmation of trinity of persons and unity of nature was declared by the Church to be the only correct way in which these terms could be used. The elements of the trinity of persons within the unity of nature in the Bible appear in the use of the terms Father*, Son*, and Spirit*. The personal reality of the Spirit emerged more slowly than the personal reality of Father and Son, which are personal terms. On the application of the name of Spirit to the Son in the Pauline writings Cf SPIRIT. The unity of nature does not appear as a problem in the Bible, and indeed could only arise when a philosophical investigation of the term nature as applied to God was begun. In the NT the Father is "the God" (Gk ho theos), and Jesus is "the Son of the God" (ho hyios tou theou). The Spirit is "the spirit of the God" or "the holy spirit," in this context a synonymous term. Deity is conceived not in the Gk term of nature but rather as a level of being, "the holy"; between this level and the level of "flesh" there is an impassable gulf. Impassable, that is, by man; it is bridged by Jesus, the Son, who renders it possible for men to be adopted sons. Without an explicit formula the NT leaves no room to think that Jesus is Himself an object of the adoption which He communicates to others. He knows the Father and reveals Him. He therefore belongs to the divine level of being; and there is no question at all about the Spirit belonging to the divine level of being. What is less clear about the Spirit is His personal reality; often He is mentioned in language in which His personal reality is not explicit. This distinction between God and flesh is the NT basis for the affirmation of the unity of nature; the very identification of the Father with "the God" shows that the NT writers intend to distinguish the Son and the Spirit from the Father. The NT does not approach the metaphysical problem of subordination, as it approaches no metaphysical problem. It offers no room for a statement of the relations of Father, Son, and Spirit which would imply that one of them is more or less properly on the divine level of being than another. In Jewish thought of the time the son and the spirit are angels; it does not even take the trouble explicitly to deny it. At the same time, it is necessary to recall that in Catholic belief the trinity of persons within the unity of nature is a mystery which ultimately escapes understanding; and in no respect is it more mysterious than in the relations of the persons to each other. "Son" and "Spirit" do not express perfect identity and are not intended to express it; the distinction of persons is not merely numerical but reposes upon a mysterious personality or character in each one which is unknown in its ultimate reality. The Church has declared that any statement of this distinction which reduces the divinity of any of the persons is a false statement; equally false would be a statement which would deny their personal distinction. The notions of Father, Son, and Spirit are revealed that we may know God better; and the theologian should explore these ideas. The OT does not contain suggestions or foreshadowing of the trinity of persons. What it does contain are the words which the NT employs to express the trinity of persons such as Father, Son, Word, Spirit, etc. A study of these words shows us how the revelation of God in the NT advances beyond the revelation of God in the OT. The same study of these words and their background is the best way to arrive at an understanding of the distinction of persons as it is stated in the NT." (Dictionary of the Bible, John L. McKenzie, Trinity, p899)

GOD: NT. The word theos is used to designate the gods of paganism. Normally the word with or without the article designates the God of the Old Testament and of Judaism, the God of Israel: Yahweh. But the character of God is revealed in an original way in the NT; the originality is perhaps best summed up by saying that God reveals Himself in and through Jesus Christ. The revelation of God in Jesus Christ does not consist merely in the prophetic word* as in the OT, but in an identity between God and Jesus Christ. Jn 1:1"-18 expresses this by contrasting the word spoken by the prophets with the word incarnate in Jesus. In Jesus the personal reality of God is manifested in visible and tangible form. In the words of Jesus and in much of the rest of the NT the God of Israel (Gk. ho theos) is the Father* of Jesus Christ. It is for this reason that the title ho theos, which now designates the Father as a personal reality, is not applied in the NT to Jesus Himself; Jesus is the Son of God (of ho theos). This is a matter of usage and not of rule, and the noun is applied to Jesus a few times. Jn 1:1 should rigorously be translated "the word was with the God [= the Father], and the word was a divine being." Thomas invokes Jesus with the titles which belong to the *Father, "My Lord and my God" (Jn 20:28). "The glory of our great God and Savior" which is to appear can be the glory of no other than Jesus (Tt 2:13) * And the identity of Jesus and the Father is expressed clearly without the title in Jn 10:30, "1 and the Father are one." The application of the noun is less certain in Rm. 9:5; Paul's normal usage is to restrict the noun to designate the Father (cf I Co 8:6), and in Rm 9:5 it is very probable that the concluding words are a doxology, "Blessed is the God who is above all." 2 Pt 1: 1 is slightly more ambiguous than Tt 2:13, to which it is not strictly parallel; it may be rendered "our God and Jesus Christ savior." The pronoun "this" in I Jn 5:20 is easily referred to God, who is implicit in Jn 5:19, although "Jesus Christ" is the nearest noun. It should be understood that this usage of ho theos touches the personal distinction of the Father and the Son and not the divinity i.e., the divine sonship of Jesus Christ. The identity of ho theos (theos) with the Father appears in the large number of texts in which the word is joined with father: Rm 1 -'7; 15:6; 1 Co 1: 3; 15:24; 2 Co 1: 2 f; Gal 1: 3; Eph 1: 2; 5:20; 6:23; Phl 1: 2; 2: 11; Col 1:2 f; 2 Th 1:2; 2 Tm 1:2; Tt 1:4; Phm 3; Js 1: 27; 1 Pt 1: 2 f; 2 Jn 3. The revelation of God in and through Jesus Christ is often expressed in the complete union of Jesus with God and of the entire integration of the mission of Jesus with the will of God. God sends Jesus (Jn 3:34; AA 7:35), constitutes Him (AA 10:42), demonstrates Him (AA 2:22), seals Him (Jn 6:27), exalts Him (AA 5:3 1; Phl 2:9); Jesus comes from God (Jn 8:42; 3:2; 9:16, 33; 13:3; 16:27 f). God pardons in Jesus (Eph 4:32), empowers Him (Mt 28:18; Jn 3:35; 5:22; 13:3; Eph 1:21 ), reconciles in Him (2 Co 5:19). The Christian belongs to Christ, and Christ belongs to God (I Co 3:23). In Christ the fullness I] of deity dwells bodily (Col 2:9). In His preexistent state Christ existed in the form of God (Phl 2:6). In Jesus Christ therefore not only the word of God is made flesh, but all of the saving attributes of Yahweh in the OT. In Him God is known (Cf. knowledge) in a new and more intimately personal manner, and through Him God is attained more nearly; for He speaks of "my Father and your Father, my God and your God" (Jn 20:17). (Dictionary of the Bible, John L. McKenzie, God, p317)

Go To Alphabetical Index Of Deceptive Quotes

Written By Steve Rudd, Used by permission at: www.bible.ca

Go To Start: WWW.BIBLE.CA