BLESSED TRINITY!

Stuart Olyott

By the evidence of Scripture, then, we are driven to the doctrine of the Trinity: there is but one God; there are three who are God–the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit; these three are distinct, and distinguished from each other by their personal properties. Generation is an act of the Father alone. Only the Son can be said to be begotten. Procession can be ascribed only to the Holy Spirit. We have thus been introduced to almost all the chief points of the doctrine of the Trinity. Only a very few points remain for us to clarify, and we come to them now.

More complicated books than this one talk of 'the ontological Trinity' (or sometimes of 'the essential Trinity'). This simply means that within the Godhead there is a certain definite order. The Father is first, the Son second, and the Holy Spirit third. This does not mean that one has existed before another, for each Person is eternally God. Nor does it mean that one Person is senior, the second lesser, and the third junior–for each Person is God in His own right, and the Persons are equal. It is simply a recognition of the eternal relations which exist between the Persons of the Godhead.

The Father is not begotten by any other Person. Nor does He proceed from any other Person. He is the Father of the Son, whom He has begotten from eternity. The Spirit proceeds from Him, and is His Spirit. He sends and operates through both the Son, and the Son and the Holy Spirit, and the reverse is never the case.

The Son is eternally the only-begotten of the Father, and is sent by Him and reveals Him. He also sends and operates through the Holy Spirit, who is His Spirit, while the reverse is never the case.

The Holy Spirit proceeds eternally from the Father and the Son, and acts for and reveals them both.

Each is equally God, and therefore equal in honour, power and glory. One is not God more than another. None is more wise or more holy than the other Persons are. None is subordinate to another–in other words, they do not have different ranks. Yet as far as the personal relations between them are concerned, this definite order exists, and in this sense, and in this sense only, a certain subordination is implied. There is a priority, but not a superiority. There is an order in the Godhead, but there are no ranks. When we use the expression 'the ontological Trinity', we are simply calling to mind this fact. This is the way it is within the Godhead. This is the way it is between the Persons of the Trinity.

These relationships within the Godhead are reflected in the way God acts. This is what is meant by the term 'the economic Trinity'. Everything that God does springs from the Father. He is first. It comes to pass through the Son. He is second. And it is effected by the Spirit. He is third. All God's works are works of the three Persons jointly. It is true that certain Scripture verses speak of creation as primarily the work of the Father, redemption as the work of the Son and sanctification as the work of the Spirit. But when we look at all that Scripture has to say, we see that in each case it is the Father who is the Cause, the Son who is the Mediator, and the Holy Spirit who is the One who applies and completes. Of course, we must stress again that the Persons of the Trinity are coequal. There is no senior or junior. Yet there is this harmonious order of the Persons when the Godhead acts. This is the way God works.

We can see this clearly when we consider God's work of creation. 'In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth' (Genesis 1:1). And yet it was His Son 'by whom ... he made the worlds' (Hebrews 1:2). But it is quite clear that it was the Holy Spirit who effected the work (Genesis 1:2), for He is often described as the Agent of creation (Psalm 104:30). God the Father did it, through the Son, by means of the Holy Spirit.

We see it in God's work of salvation. It was God the Father who eternally gave a chosen people to His Son, and sent Him into the world to save them (John 6:37-40). It was God the Son who was delivered to death for their offences, and was raised again for their justification (Romans 4:24-25). It is God the Holy Spirit who brings them into the enjoyment and benefit of what Christ has obtained for them (1 Corinthians 2:1-5; I Thessalonians 1:5-10). The work of the Holy Spirit follows the work of the Son, just as the work of the Son follows that of the Father. There is not just a certain definite order within the Godhead. This is reflected outwardly in the way God works. When we use the expression 'the economic Trinity' we are simply calling this truth to mind.

However, from the first century and until the present day, a large number of people have tried to discover and use various analogies and illustrations to make the truth of the Trinity understandable (for example–three leaves in a shamrock; mind, emotions and will in one man; the sun, its beams and its heat; etc.). Every one of these has been defective in one way or another. It has either said less than what the Bible says, or something more, or something different. We must face it–the doctrine of the Trinity is without analogy. There is no way at all in which we can illustrate it. There is nothing like it anywhere. It is the first and greatest mystery of all. How can a finite illustration ever portray the infinite God? It is the being of God we are considering, and He is, by definition, beyond mortal understanding.

It is impossible to know the truth about God without studying His Word. It follows that we cannot help people to believe this mystery unless they are willing either to hear the Bible explained, or to open it for themselves. If you get the opportunity to talk about this subject with an enquiring friend, why not, with a Bible open before you, follow the method and order of this book?

If circumstances do not allow a lengthy explanation, we cannot do better than to take our friends to a Scripture verse which we surveyed in chapter 6. At least this will help them to begin thinking about the subject. The verse in question is Matthew 28:19, where Jesus commands that we go and make disciples of all nations, 'baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit'. He did not say 'names', but 'name'. This makes it plain that He is referring to but one Being. There is only one God. Nor did He say, 'of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit', as if these were merely three terms with the same meaning, rather like 'I, me and myself'. He is careful to maintain that each has His own identity, and distinguishes between them by saying 'of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit'. There is only one God. There are three who are God. They are one, in one sense; and three, in an entirely different sense. The Father is first, the Son is second and the Holy Spirit is third. There is, of course, much more to be said–as we have seen. But none the less that, in essence, is the doctrine of the Trinity.