During the journey of discovering the errors in the three-in-one god doctrine, you may come across many books and materials which try to explain the three-in-one (3-in-1) god. The same happened to us. Many brothers, when we questioned the obvious errors of the 3-in-1 god doctrine, referred us to some books. It is thought that such books make clear the 3-in-1 god doctrine. There are so many of these books out there. For example, we came across a book titled “The Trinity: What Has God Revealed” by Glyn Parfitt. When we read the book, we immediately saw the same errors as all the other trinitarian writings. Except that in this book, the errors were nicely packaged into one large book. Despite its huge volume, and our time-poor life, we have always wanted to explain why we see errors in this book and in the trinitarian thought process itself.
After thinking for some time about how to explain the errors, we decided it was better not to produce many pages tackling verse by verse and point by point, even though we could. If we did that, we would be explaining the same underlying errors across many of the different points that allegedly explain the three-in-one god. For example, as we will show in this writing, the error made in using Matthew 28:19 to construct the 3-in-1 god doctrine is the same error made in many other verses including Acts 5:4, 2 Corinthians 13:14 and 1 John 5:7.
Therefore, we thought the most effective way to help the authors of such books and those who refer to the books as trusted sources of doctrine, is to plead with them to reflect on how trinitarian interpretation works. In this writing we focus on the trinitarian interpretation of the Bible. God willing, in a future writing, we will explain the three-in-one god errors based on Ellen G. White’s writings. For a primer on our view of what EGW wrote, we refer you to our critique of George R Knight’s article, “Adventist and change”. You can find this article titled “A Critique of George R. Knight’s article Adventist and Change” freely available online.
And so here is the reflection on the trinitarian thought process as it navigates verses to formulate the three-in-one god doctrine. We pray that you will not find this writing to be adversarial, but rather that it will be an eye opener to you, or at least lead you to make an honest search for yourself, with no dependence on the church doctrinal statements, but more importantly, a simple “Thus saith the Lord”.
Matthew 28:19 Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost.
Another verse which has the three mentioned in one sentence is Matthew 28:19. However, there is no ONE mentioned here. In Matthew 28:19, there is an instruction to baptise in the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost. In this verse there is no talk of forming a One God out of the three. There is only baptism and a name. But what does the Bible teach about baptism, the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost? Let us start with baptism.
Baptism symbolises the death and resurrection of Christ. The death and resurrection of Christ reconciles us with God. To support that we read:
Romans 6:4 Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.
Colossians 2:12 Buried with him in baptism, wherein also ye are risen with him through the faith of the operation of God, who hath raised him from the dead.
In baptism, we are baptised with the Holy Spirit, and we receive the Holy Spirit by whom we are sealed to salvation.
Acts 19:2 He said unto them, Have ye received the Holy Ghost since ye believed? And they said unto him, We have not so much as heard whether there be any Holy Ghost. 3 And he said unto them, Unto what then were ye baptized? And they said, Unto John’s baptism. 4 Then said Paul, John verily baptized with the baptism of repentance, saying unto the people, that they should believe on him which should come after him, that is, on Christ Jesus. 5 When they heard this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. 6 And when Paul had laid his hands upon them, the Holy Ghost came on them; and they spake with tongues, and prophesied.
So in short, in baptism, we are reconciled with the Father, through the sacrifice of Christ, to receive the Holy Spirit. That if the baptismal formula. None of that demands that the three be One God for baptism to takes place. Nowhere does Matthew 28:19 teach that the Father, the Son and the Spirit form One God.
But how about the name. About the name of God we read:
Exodus 6:3 And I appeared unto Abraham, unto Isaac, and unto Jacob, by the name of God Almighty, but by my name JEHOVAH was I not known to them.
In this verse we see the name of God. How about Christ?
Hebrews 1:4 Being made so much better than the angels, as he hath by inheritance obtained a more excellent name than they.
We hear that Christ inherited a name and this name was from his Father. Only a father’s name can be inherited by a son. So, the Father’s name is his name. The inspired writer confirms this by saying.
“Jehovah is the name given to Christ.” (The Signs of the Times, May 3, 1899, p. 2.; 7ABC 439.3) (emphasis added)
And about the Spirit we read:
John 14:26 But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name…
So, we see that the Spirit came in the name of Christ, and Christ inherited the same name that belongs to his Father. The Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit do come to us in three different independent names. There is only one name, that of God, the Father. The name was inherited by God’s Son, and the Spirit was given in the same name. It is no surprise then that we have one name for baptism whilst God, His Son and His Spirit are all involved in the same baptis.
Again, in all this, there is nowhere where the forming of One God out of three persons is taught.
There is a bit more about this name. We quote the inspired writer again.
“The creation of the worlds, the mystery of the gospel, are for one purpose, to make manifest to all created intelligences, through nature and through Christ, the glories of the divine character. By the marvelous display of his love in giving “his only-begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life,” the glory of God is revealed to lost humanity and to the intelligences of other worlds. The Lord of heaven and earth revealed his glory to Moses, when he offered his prayer to Jehovah in behalf of idolatrous Israel, and pleaded, “Show me thy glory.” And the Lord said: “I will make all my goodness to pass before thee, and I will proclaim the name of the Lord before thee; and will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will show mercy on whom I will show mercy…. And it shall come to pass, while my glory passeth by, that I will put thee in a clift of the rock.” { ST April 25, 1892, par. 2 } (emphasis added)
We see here that the name of the Lord, is his character of love. We see that character and identity (name) go together. Then the Bible says:
Revelation 14:1 And I looked, and, lo, a Lamb stood on the mount Sion, and with him an hundred forty and four thousand, having his Father’s name written in their foreheads.
Those who are going to be triumphant over the world have the Father’s name written on their foreheads. That same one name (both identity and character) is on them too. They identify with God and have God’s character.
Therefore, at baptism we are to receive the one name of the One God, who gave his name to his Son, sent His Spirit in the same name and gives us a seal by the same name. In all that, there is no forming of a God made up of three, God remains One God from whom the name, the character, the Son and the Spirit all come.
2 Corinthians 13:14 The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Ghost, be with you all. Amen.
We could also search for this One God made up of three in 2 Corinthians 13:14 since it is another verse which mentions the three. What we see there is that Christ has grace, God has love and we communion through the Holy Ghost. There is nothing about forming a One God out of three persons. In fact, only one is identified as God in this verse and we know that is the Father.
If we read further in the Bible we will see that the Father also has grace and the Son has love.
Titus 2:11 For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men,
Romans 8:35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ?…
If we read even further, we will see that the communion/fellowship we have between ourselves is with the Father and the Son through the Spirit.
1 John 1:3 That which we have seen and heard declare we unto you, that ye also may have fellowship with us: and truly our fellowship is with the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ.
By the same Spirit, we have communion with the Father and the Son. Therefore, in 2 Corinthians 13:14, there is no reason to assume that the One God is formed out of three persons. God remains God, His Son remains the Son of God and His Spirit remains the Spirit of God.
Summary
We can check all the Bible, but we will never see any statement that says the One God we worship is made up of three persons. In fact, this fact that no passage teaches the one-in-three-god is so true it is agreed by the churches, even the churches which preach that the One God is made up of three persons. They all know that the one-in-three-god is not taught by the Bible. Here are two quotes to confirm that.
“While no single Scripture passage states the doctrine of the Trinity, it is assumed as a fact… only by faith can we accept the existence of the Trinity.” — (Adventist Review, Vol. 158, No. 31, p. 4) (emphasis added)
“The concept of the Trinity, namely the idea that the three are one, is not explicitly stated but only assumed.” — Fernando L. Canale, The Handbook of Seventh-day Adventist Theology, Seventh-day Adventist Encyclopaedia, Volume 12, page 138, ‘Doctrine of God’ (emphasis added)
Notice here that it is officially taught that the idea of a one in three god is an assumption. We wonder how many times an assumption can be made to turn it into truth. Yet, in the passages quoted from the modern SDA theology. We wonder how this world would be if assumptions were treated as facts. More importantly, who would inspire such a move whether the forces of truth or the forces of error?
Therefore, if we all want the truth, whole truth and nothing but the truth, if we do not want truth mixed with a lie or an assumption, then we can embrace the truth that the idea of a One God formed by three persons is not there in the Bible. That the One God we worship is formed by three persons is a lie, and in God, there is no lie.
What would you expect of one sent by God the Father through the Son?
Brethren, I pray that you lend me your brotherly ear for a while, and carefully consider the points.
I want to present to you a question, from different angles. If you can answer this question, with a verse, then please teach the trinity. But if you cannot, I plead with you to re-study the subject.
Question 1 Context:
Irrefutable point – The Bible says God, sends his Spirit all the time (to us (John 14:16); to create (Job 26:13); to bless (Isaiah 44:3); to bring us his messages (Revelation 2:7); to give “wisdom, and in understanding, and in knowledge, and in all manner of workmanship” (Exodus 31:3); etc.
Question 1: If God sends someone or something to do that which God wants done, will that thing or someone be able to do that which God ONLY can do? (Ref the personal acts of the Spirit OF God)
Alternative question: Would you expect one sent to do what God wants to do, to do anything less than that which God only can do?
Alternative question: If God sent Moses to be a god to Pharaoh, would Moses do any less than that which God only can do?
My answer: One sent by God, to do that which God wants to do, will do that which God only can do, because God wants him to do it, but that does not make that person equal to God in nature and authority.
So to say, the Spirit sent by God, when it does that which God only can do, has become another being equal to, separate from, and of the same nature as the God who sent the Spirit is simple to stretch imagination too far.
That thinking that makes the Spirit of God another being equal to, separate from and of the same nature as God himself is a wild stroke of speculation going far beyond the simple clear statements of the Bible.
Question 2 context:
Irrefutable point – No man has in himself, in his nature, the ability to do miracles. God only inherently, as part of his nature has that ability.
Question 2: If a man does miracles, which ability is only from God, has the man become God, or another person equal to God? (Ref the personal acts of the Spirit OF God)
My answer: Having God’s power and being God’s power, as given by God, makes one able to do that which only God can do, but never equal to God who has given the power. Moses was never equal to God, though made a god by God, and able to perform that which God only can perform.
Hence the Spirit can never be another God by virtue of doing that which God has sent the Spirit to do.
Question 3 context:
Irrefutable point – The Bible says those who trust in God will “partake of divine nature” (KJV), “to share the divine nature”(GNB), “so that his nature would become part of us” (CEV), “have our part in God’s being” (BBE) (2 Peter 1:4).
Question 3: Does having a part in the nature of God, i.e. being members of the godhead, make man another person equal to God? (Ref SOP statements such as heavenly trio, dignitaries, etc.).
My answer: God does whatever he pleases with what is His, including His nature. If one receives the nature of God from God, then that does not mean one has become equal to God.
That the Spirit is the third person of the Godhead (according to EGW), does not make the Spirit another God as trinitarians speculate.
Question 4 context:
Irrefutable point – The Bible says thou shalt not bear false witness. If one bears false witness to his brother, he has borne false witness to God. Just like when we help others, we are doing that to Jesus. Lying to the church is lying to God. Lying to Peter is lying to God. Lying to the Pastor is lying to God. Lying to Moses is lying to God. All these are sent by God.
Question 4: If lying to a man is lying to God, by lying to one whom God has sent (one who is representing God), does that mean that man has himself become God, another person equal to God in nature and identity? Ref Acts 5:4.
My answer: The simple understanding is found right through the Bible.
Pharaoh rejected Moses who was sent by God, therefore rejected God.
Israel rejected prophets who were sent by God, therefore they rejected God.
When you do good to one of these little ones, you have done it to Christ and to God.
“And he that shall swear by heaven, sweareth by the throne of God, and by him that sitteth thereon.” (Matthew 23:22)
“He that hateth me hateth my Father also.” (John 15:23)
This is baby simple. If you lie to the Holy Spirit sent by God, you have lied to God who has sent the Spirit. Nothing there to make the Spirit equal to God in nature, identity and authority, or another person of God.
Question 5 context:
Irrefutable facts – SOP says the Holy Spirit, being sent by God from heaven, is a heavenly dignitary to God’s people {16MR 204.4}. The SOP also says, “The God of heaven uses His Spirit as it pleases Him.”
A dignitary is a person of a high office (1828 Webster Dictionary).
Question 5: If God sends a person as it pleases Him, is that person not a dignitary to those to whom he is sent (think of Moses, or Elijah, as dignitaries or high officers) and would that make that person equal in nature to God who has sent him?
Alternative question: If God wants His Spirit to be a dignitary to us, why would that make the Spirit equal to God in nature and identity?
My answer: God, His Son and His Spirit, (the latter two sent by God as he pleases all the time) are all of higher office and power, which authority and power comes from the God who has sent and given them the authority/power. That does not warrant an assumption that they are three co-equal in nature and authority. God remains the one who sent and the source of the power by which the Son and the Spirit are sent.
Question 6 context:
Irrefutable facts: In Genesis 18:2, Abraham received three men who were actually two angels and Christ. EGW comments on this as follows:
“We read [in Genesis 18] of visitors coming to Abraham as he was sitting in the door of his tent…. These were angels of God, and one of them was no less than the Son of God.” Manuscript 19, 1886. {CTr 73.5}
Question: If the Son of God, being equal to God, came with two men/angels, and were referred together as three men, and being on the same mission, does that mean they were three EQUAL men/angels?
Alternative question: Could Abraham say, “three men, three angels, three heavenly dignitaries, three powers, the heavenly trio, the three living persons, etc. came to me?”
My answer: The mere mention of three entities in a single sentence, collectively referred to such as dignitaries, men, powers, trio, etc. does not make them equal to each other in nature, identity or even in authority and power. There is no need to make such a wild assumption.
Summary:
I could continue with this line of thought with more examples, but the questions above make the point.
My brother, if you get the point you will see that it is illogical to assume that the nature or identity of someone based on what they do, that if they do that which God only can do as sent by God, or are lied to after being sent by God, then that someone has become equal to God Himself. If God appoints us into his divinity, or as third, fourth or hundredth person in His divinity, or makes you a dignitary carrying his words like Moses, or any such act and consciousness performed by any being on behalf of God, how can that make that person equal to God in nature and identity, when it is clearly stated that God has sent him? Does not the very fact that one is sent mean that his nature and identity has already been separated from the God who is sending?
This is what I am answering to. You see, if you ask the trinitarians, “why do you say the Spirit is co-equal to God”? The answer you will get is all about what the Spirit has done, felt, etc. which is what God alone can do, feel, etc. whilst ignoring that God has sent the Spirit to do and feel on His behalf. What would you expect the Spirit to do or feel if it has been sent by God, and acting on His behalf? Would you expect the Spirit to do and feel anything less than that which God can do and feel?
Or to put it in other words. Moses was sent by God, and he did that which only God can do (miracles, power over nature, power over death, etc.). Would you expect Moses to do anything less than that which God can do, while acting on behalf of God? And if Moses did that which God only can do, does that change the fact that Moses was sent to do that by God, with the ability of God given to him to do it? Would that make Moses equal to God in nature and identity because he has done that which God inherently can do?
Is there any way to make one see the unwarranted assumptions that are in this statement: “Father, Son and Spirit, three co-equal and co-eternal persons”?
Hence the truest and greatest statement ever made about the trinity doctrine was made by a Seventh Day Adventist trinitarians.
“While no single Scripture passage states the doctrine of the Trinity, IT IS ASSUMED AS A FACT… only by faith can we accept the existence of the Trinity.” — (Adventist Review, Vol. 158, No. 31, p. 4) (emphasis added)
“The concept of the Trinity, namely the idea that the three are one, is not explicitly stated BUT ONLY ASSUMED.” — Fernando L. Canale, The Handbook of Seventh-day Adventist Theology, Seventh-day Adventist Encyclopaedia, Volume 12, page 138, ‘Doctrine of God’ (emphasis added)
It does not get clearer than that. The idea of a three in one god is a wild unreasonable assumption, against all logic and biblical reasoning. It is tantamount to re-writing the Bible.
Let me put it in a more succinct form.
All the verses used by trinitarians to make God the Father’s own Spirit another person equal to God the Father and His Son tell us about the capabilities of the Spirit. By that I mean, the Spirit is lied to, intercedes, thinks, is grieved, is a dignitary, has divinity, plays a role in baptism, etc. From all these capability statements of the Spirit, the trinitarian mind assumes identity of the Spirit. That is unnecessary. The identity of the Spirit is clearly given. It is a Spirit belonging to God the Father, sent by God as God pleases. Simple!
iroquistore 