Rethinking the Trinity Doctrine - a Fresh View of God for 2015

Rethinking the Trinity for the 21^st Century

(or, “A Fresh View of God for 2015”)

1 Corinthians 4:6 (GW): "Learn from us not to go beyond what is written in Scripture."

Romans 14:1 (CEB): "Welcome the person who is weak in faith--but not in order to argue about differences of opinion."

I am jumping right into this topic, without going into a lot of historical background information. Please visit the Wikipedia "Trinity" article or the Encyclopedia Britannica "Trinity" page to get all of the juicy historical facts surrounding the development of the Trinity Doctrine and the battles between Trinitarians and Arians. (Oh, and don't forget to read up on the Nicene Council!)

It is my belief that it is long overdue for Christians to update and improve the Trinity Doctrine for the 21st Century. We should not be blindly clinging to creeds and "traditions of the elders" (Mark 7:3-13) which were created 300 years after Jesus.

As Martin Luther declared, "a simple layman armed with Scripture is greater than the mightiest pope without it," and "The true rule is this: God's Word shall establish articles of faith, and no one else, not even an angel can do so."

So I will be going back to the Bible! I won't be appealing to any creeds, traditions, commentaries, books about the Bible, or the opinions of others (with the exception of Greek or Hebrew language experts or translation experts, which are always necessary for those of us who don't know the original languages of the Scriptures).

___________________________________________

But how did the Trinity Doctrine originate?

Basically, in the simplest terms, early Christians were trying to figure out the logical answers to how there can only be One God (Deuteronomy 6:4), but yet, also honor, praise, and serve Jesus who was also called "God," (John 20:28) and then they tried to figure who or what the mysterious "Third Person” was, called the Holy Spirit or Advocate. (John 16:7-16; Matthew 28:19)

One Christian thinker after another added their ideas and theories about this onto the already existing ones, and eventually the Doctrine known as "The Trinity” was developed.

___________________________________________

So What is the Trinity Doctrine?

1. There is only one God.
2. This one God exists as three distinct Persons.
3. These three Persons are each co-equal, co-eternal, and fully God (Jehovah/Yahweh).
4. The Son was eternally-begotten from the Father.
5. The Spirit eternally-proceeds from the Father and Son.
6. The 2nd Person of the Trinity (Jesus) has two distinct natures, but remains one Person, not two.

(Some Trinitarians believe the Son has always been in subjection to the Father, while others believe the Son only subjected Himself to the Father when He became a Man.)

(Some Trinitarians believe the Son was eternally-begotten by the Father before time began in a mysterious way, as the Nicene and other creeds declare. Others think the Son wasn't begotten until He came to earth as a Man. But nowadays certain Trinitarians no longer believe Jesus was ever the "Only-Begotten Son," but instead was the "Unique Son.")

That is the doctrine we will be discussing here, in the attempt to update and improve it by reconciling it with the Bible.

I still think the Trinity Doctrine and the belief that Jesus is Yahweh, can be beautiful man-made attempts to logically harmonize and make sense of seemingly contradictory Bible passages while giving honor and glory to God and His Son. I have nothing but love and respect for my Trinitarian brothers and sisters, and they are just as saved as I am. I do not view these doctrines as a salvation issue. All Christians should read Romans chapter 14 before condemning or judging any Christian who doesn't agree with your interpretation of the Bible.

My goal is not to convert anyone away from traditional Trinitarianism, but rather, to promote acceptance and tolerance among all Christians for a wider variety of interpretations of the Bible. My hope is to inspire you to look at the Scriptures in a fresh way and let the Holy Word of God speak the truth to you, without being obligated to believe in the creeds and traditions of men.

Please don't think I'm trying to downgrade or diminish the Lord Jesus in any way. I'm attempting to let the Bible tell us who Jesus is, not the creeds and traditions of men added centuries later.

So let's begin with...

___________________________________________

What Does the Trinity Doctrine Get Right?

The Trinity Doctrine (and related sub-doctrines of the Hypostatic Union and Eternal-Begetting of the Son) is correct that Jesus Christ is Divine/Deity in His nature (John 1:1; Colossians 2:9), who existed in Heaven with God before He became a Man on earth (John 1:1-2; Proverbs 8:22-23; John 8:57-58; John 6:38-42). Yes, Jesus is our Lord and He is God over us (John 20:28). The Doctrine of the Trinity is also right when it says there is only One Supreme God (Mark 12:29-33; James 2:19).

Trinitarians also speak the truth when they say that Jesus deserves an equal level of honor and praise together with God the Father (John 5:23; Philippians 2:9-11; Hebrews 1:6; Revelation 5:8-14). It is also true that people in the Bible prayed or made appeal to Jesus after He ascended into Heaven. (Acts 7:59; 2 Corinthians 12:8-10; 1 Timothy 1:12; Revelation 22:20; John 14:13-14)

Also, the Trinity Doctrine gets it right when it says all things were created through Jesus, the Son (John 1:3; Colossians 1:16-18; Hebrews 1:2) and that the Father and Son are two different Persons (John 8:16-18).

___________________________________________

So What is the Problem with the Trinity Doctrine then?

1 Corinthians 14:33 (NKJV): "For God is not the author of confusion but of peace, as in all the churches of the saints.”

Unfortunately, all too often, the Trinity Doctrine has become a confusing, contradictory stumbling block for Christians. What was originally meant to harmonize the Scriptures and make logical sense of them, in the long run ended up creating many contradictory ideas.

The worst part of all, is when Christian churches, denominations, or groups make acceptance of the Trinity Doctrine the ultimate litmus test for whether or not you are a "true Christian."

Some churches or church leaders simultaneously declare that the Trinity Doctrine is a mystery that cannot be understood, yet, it is also the "most essential" or "greatest fundamental" Christian doctrine, and if you don't 100% agree with it, you'll go to Hell forever!

How can that attitude be justified after reading Romans chapter 14, or the passage about the thief on the cross next to Jesus being saved with very little knowledge about Jesus or the nature of God? (Luke 23:42-43) That thief on the cross next to Jesus was saved, likely without knowing anything about any kind of Trinity Doctrine or a Dual-Nature inside of Jesus.

Christians need to be humble too and acknowledge our ignorance on many things that the Bible doesn't make crystal clear. For example, the Bible says that we humans don't really know all that much about spirit nature or spirit beings (Jude 1:10; 1 John 3:2; 1 Corinthians 15:35-57). If we don't even know what spirit being/nature is, how can we make up complex rules about specific things we must believe about this nature, and tell people they will go to Hell if they don't believe all of these details?

We shouldn't place any unnecessary stumbling blocks or illogical teachings in front of those who are seeking the truth about God and Jesus (Matthew 18:6), so I am going to try simplify our view of God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit, by going back to the Bible, and not going beyond what was written:

1 Corinthians 4:6 (God's Word Translation): "Learn from us not to go beyond what is written in Scripture. Then you won't arrogantly place one of us in opposition to the other."

Romans 14:1 (CEB): "Welcome the person who is weak in faith--but not in order to argue about differences of opinion."

Continue Reading More in This New "Rethinking the Trinity" Series...

There is Only One God? (The Shema)

Jesus is Divine, but is He Equal to God?