The Westminster Catechism defines the Trinity as “There are three persons in the Godhead; the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost; and these three are one God, the same in substance, equal in power and glory.” The concept of the Trinity is challenging. Many have reacted to the challenge by saying that it is not possible for God to be both One and Three. They forget that everything about God is shrouded in some element of mystery. We should expect that when we set out to know God, we will always end up overwhelmed. AW Tozer said, “Faith must precede all effort to understand.” As we believe what God has revealed, He will give us greater understanding. But the mystery of the Trinity is not because God has not revealed it to us; it is mysterious in that it is foreign to our thinking. We fail when we try to liken the Trinity to earthly things that we understand. Whether we try to liken it to an egg, or water, or a clover or a person operating in various capacities, at best these fall short. At worst, they end up in false teaching. God is unique. He is not “like” anything else that we know.
John 1:18 says, “No one has seen God at any time. The only begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, He has declared Him.” The Person of God has been revealed to us in the coming of Jesus Christ. Throughout the Bible, God refers to Himself as our Father. When Jesus taught us to pray, He said that we are to pray, “Our Father.” A father begets children. God is inherently life-giving. 1 John 4:7-8 says, “Beloved, let us love one another, for love is of God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. He who does not love does not know God, for God is love.” Knowing God results in a person becoming profoundly loving. God has always been who He is. He could not be love without there being someone to love. In John 17:24, Jesus said that the Father loved Him before the foundation of the world. Romans 5:5 says that the Holy Spirit stirs up love for God in the heart. From eternity past, the Holy Spirit has stirred delight for the Father and the Son. God could not eternally be love if He was alone. The Trinity demonstrates perfect love. Father, Son and Holy Spirit are distinct, yet inseparable.
