When Three Are Named Together

Start with a question If you gathered every verse in the Bible that names the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit together, what would you expect to find? Would it be a definition of God, or would it be a description of how they work together to save us? We must not let a philosophical framework dictate what the text is allowed to say. We must let the text speak for itself.

The verses

What these verses show Look at what these verses have in common:

1. All three are named, and they are distinct. In the baptism of Jesus, they are all present at once: the Son in the water, the Spirit descending, the Father's voice from heaven. They are not the same Person.
2. They are named in a coordinated way. Paul puts them side by side easily in a benediction. They share a unified work in the plan of salvation.
3. The word "God" is used for the Father. Look closely at the texts. In 2 Corinthians 13:14, the three are "the Lord Jesus Christ," "God," and "the Holy Ghost." In 1 Corinthians 12:4–6, we have "the same Spirit," "the same Lord," and "the same God." In 1 Peter 1:2, we have "God the Father." Paul and Peter consistently use "God" for the Father, exactly as they did in 1 Corinthians 8:6.

What these verses don't show A list is not a definition. These verses say there are three, and they work together. They do not say that the three are one God, nor do they explain the metaphysical relationship between them. That has to come from other passages.

This is how the Trinity is argued. Since no single verse states it, it is built by joining links. So we apply the test of Lesson 7: is each link written in the text?

1. "The Father is God." Stated.
2. "The Son is God." Stated in a sense (John 1:1; 20:28; Hebrews 1:8), but as we have seen, He is God because He is the begotten Son, not because He is the Supreme Father.
3. "The Spirit is God." This is the link Module 7 examined. The Bible says “the Spirit of God” and “the Spirit of Christ”; it never says “God the Spirit.”
4. "There is one God, who is the three together." This is the link that is never written. Every text that says who the one God is says “the Father” (1 Corinthians 8:6; Ephesians 4:6; John 17:3).

The list texts do not state that the three are one God. The link that would make it a Trinity is missing from every one of them. As The Indwelling Hope highlights, when we receive the Spirit, we are not receiving a "third person" sent by Jesus. We are receiving the very Spirit of the Son, the personal presence of Jesus and the Father dwelling within us (John 14:23). The three are named together in our salvation because the Father sends the Son, and the Son sends His own Spirit to dwell in us.

"In the name of" Matthew 28:19 says "in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost." The word "name" is singular. Many read this as pointing to one divine being. But does the Bible support that?

Remember what "name" means in Scripture (Lesson 21): nature, authority, character. Notice how else "in the name of" is used: "Is Christ divided? was Paul crucified for you? or were ye baptized in the name of Paul?" (1 Corinthians 1:13) "And were all baptized unto Moses in the cloud and in the sea." (1 Corinthians 10:2)

To be baptized "in the name of Paul" or "unto Moses" is to be placed under someone's authority, to bear their character, to identify with their mission. Neither Moses nor Paul is God. Therefore, "in the name of" does not mean "of one being."

Notice too that in Acts, baptisms are described "in the name of Jesus Christ" (Acts 2:38; 8:16; 10:48; 19:5). This does not contradict Matthew 28:19. In Matthew, the One who gives the command says first: "All power is given unto me" (Matthew 28:18). It was given to Him by the Father. Baptism in the name of the Son acknowledges the supreme authority the Father gave to His Son.

1 John 5:7: An honest look at the text The King James Version reads: "For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one." (1 John 5:7)

This is the only verse in the KJV that explicitly says the three "are one" in heaven. But we must look at the historical evidence honestly. The words "in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one" do not appear in the oldest and most reliable Greek manuscripts. They show up in a few late Latin manuscripts and were added to the Greek text centuries later. Most modern translations leave them out, and many Trinitarian scholars acknowledge they were not part of John's original letter.

We cannot build a foundational doctrine on a verse that the original author did not write. We do not need it to prove that the Father, Son, and Spirit are united in purpose and presence, and we must not use it to prove they are one God.

What we can say The Bible clearly names the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. They are distinct, They are united, and They work together to save us. But the Bible never uses these listings to define the one God as a three-person being. When the Bible identifies the one God, it points to the Father. When it identifies the Savior, it points to the Son. When it describes the Comforter, it points to the Spirit of the Son.