Hello

 

I am, occasionally, asked by readers why I do not talk about the Trinity.  It is something I have been reluctant to do because, simply, I am not convinced that the doctrine of the Trinity is true.  OK, the time has come.  Here are my carefully prayed-over thoughts as to why I think the doctrine of the Trinity may not be true.  I trust that you, the reader, will consider them prayerfully.  I want our loving heavenly Father to guide you into his truth, not mine.  I am a fallible human being and, therefore, make mistakes and get things wrong sometimes.

 

If you disagree strongly with what I am saying in this post please let me know (after considering my thoughts prayerfully).  You can leave a comment below or contact me at peter@followtheteachingsofjesus.com.

 

All I am doing is taking part in a conversation.  It’s all I can do.  It’s probably all that any of us can do.

 

A quick summary of what I want to say.  The doctrine of the Trinity is a human teaching.  There is no clear teaching in Scripture that the Holy Spirit is equal to, or co-existent with, the Father and the Son.  Jesus’ teaching indicates that the Holy Spirit is subservient to the Father and the Son.

 

Here we go.

 

 

Addressing some of the religious leaders of his day, Jesus said:

 

^“You charlatans! Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you: “‘These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. They worship me in vain; their teachings are merely human rules. ‘” (Matthew 15:7-9.  See Isaiah 29:13)

 

And the writer to the Hebrews said, “…let us throw off everything that hinders …and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus…” (Hebrews 12:1-2).

 

I believe that human rules can be things that hinder, and I believe that the doctrine of the Trinity is a human rule.

 

My main concern with the doctrine is that it claims that the Holy Spirit is equal to the Father and Son.  I do not find this in Jesus’ teachings or anywhere in our Bible.  Indeed, my reading of Jesus’ teachings about the Spirit indicates, to me, that the Spirit is subject to, and under the authority of, both the Father and the Son.

 

Jesus said that he and the Father are the same being (John 10:30; John 12:45; John 14:9). And the religious leaders of Jesus’ time had no doubt that Jesus was making himself equal to God by calling God “Father” (John 5:18).  Although Jesus was subservient to the Father during his time on earth, he claimed to be one with the Father and, after his resurrection, claimed to have been given all authority in heaven and on earth (Matthew 28:18).

 

Jesus talked on more than one occasion about the Holy Spirit being sent, or given, by the Father or the Son.  I conclude that these passages indicate that the Father and the Son have authority over the Spirit.  If the Father and the Son have authority over the Spirit, then the Spirit is not equal to them.  The words of Jesus that speak to me most strongly on this issue are these:

 

“But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you.” (John 14:26).  The Holy Spirit is sent by the Father in the name of the Son. Therefore, he is under the authority of both the Father and the Son.

 

Also: “But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come. He will glorify me because it is from me that he will receive what he will make known to you. All that belongs to the Father is mine. That is why I said the Spirit will receive from me what he will make known to you.” (John 16:13-15).  The Holy Spirit speaks only what he hears from Jesus, therefore the Spirit does not speak on his own authority but only under the authority of the Son.

 

Here are 4 other passages that indicate that the Spirit is given, or sent, by the Father or the Son and is therefore under their authority:

 

“If you love me, keep my commands. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another advocate to help you and be with you forever– the Spirit of truth.” (John 14:15-17)

 

“When the Advocate comes, whom I will send to you from the Father– the Spirit of truth who goes out from the Father– he will testify about me.” (John 15:26)

 

“If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!” (Luke 11:13)

 

“For the one whom God has sent speaks the words of God, for God gives the Spirit without limit.” (John 3:34)

 

 

What about Matthew 28:19?

 

Of course, I cannot finish these thoughts without addressing Jesus’ words in Matthew 28:19:

 

“Therefore, go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit”.

 

This is going to be a bit technical, but I pray and trust that you will understand what I am saying.

 

Those of us who have studied scripture at Seminary are brought face to face with some passages that don’t seem to fit, for various reasons, and scholars debate whether they were part of the original manuscript or whether they may have been added later (as some passages were).  I think the words “in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit” may not be words that Jesus spoke but words that were added later.  I think this for the following reasons:

• The phrase “In the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit” was not used at the time of Jesus. It does not occur anywhere else in the New Testament. I understand that it also does not occur in any of the writings of the early church until the doctrine of the Trinity was established more than 300 years after Jesus’ time on Earth.  I’m happy to be corrected on that last point.

There is no record anywhere in the New Testament of anyone being baptized in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit.  If Jesus explicitly told his followers to baptize new disciples in this way, it seems very surprising that there is no record of any of them doing so. All accounts of baptism in the New Testament either say the converts were baptized in the name of Jesus, or there is no indication of whether they were baptized in a particular name.  It is particularly noteworthy that Peter, in his speech at Pentecost, tells his listeners to be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ (Acts 2:38).  According to the account in Acts, this speech occurred only 9 days after Jesus’ ascension.  (Jesus’ resurrection happened the day after Passover, Jesus appeared to the disciples for 40 days before his ascension (Acts 1:3 and 1:9) and Pentecost (the Jewish holiday Shavuot) is celebrated 49 days after Passover).  It is unlikely that Peter would have forgotten Jesus’ instruction about baptism in just 9 days – especially as he would not have heard those words “in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit” before.  Those words would have been memorable.

If Jesus’ followers heard him instructing them to baptize new disciples in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, it would be reasonable to expect to find records of them doing so.  There are none.

• Also, the early church leader, Eusebius, writing in the early part of the fourth century quotes the verse we know as Matthew 28:19.  (It is important to remember that Eusebius was quoting from manuscripts of Matthew’s gospel that were older than any we have today).  He quotes Jesus saying, “in my name”, not “in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit”.  Here is what Eusebius wrote:

“But they (the apostles) travelled into every land, teaching their message in the power of Christ, who had told them, ‘Go and make disciples of all nations in my name.’” Eusebius “The Church History”, Book 3:5.

 

I hope I have demonstrated that the precise nature of the relationship between the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit is not clear in scripture.  That is my point.  I respectfully suggest that the truth is that we do not know how that relationship works, and I would suggest that we do not need to know. One day, we will understand all these things.  Until then, I think we just need to accept that we do not understand them and get on with the work our loving Father has for us to do, loving him and loving each other.

I asked for comments on this article from a number of friends who are Christian academics.  This was the one that, for me, summed the whole topic up:

“If we so very finite and corrupt human beings could understand the intricacies of the partnership, common-mindedness, equality, and all else in this threefold relationship, then this would not be God. God by virtue of who and what he is, must be far beyond the capacities of our finite minds to comprehend. The long statements on the vast uniqueness of God in Job and Isaiah make this clear. In other words, mystery is inevitable for us.”

I’m happy to discuss this further, of course.  And I’m happy to be shown to be wrong.

I pray that our loving Father will bless us and strengthen us as we serve him.

 

Jesus is Lord.

 

Peter O

 

 

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