What does the doctrine of the Trinity affirm about God?

What does the doctrine of the Trinity affirm about God?

• A. God exists in three persons—the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit
• B. God is a single person manifested in three modes
• C. There are three separate gods
• D. Only the Father is God

Answer: (A)

This item tests the doctrine of the Trinity: God exists in three persons—the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit—who are coequal, coeternal, and of one divine essence. Each person is fully God, yet they are distinct within the Godhead, so God is one in essence but three in person. That understanding allows us to relate to God as Father, worship Christ as God incarnate, and experience the Holy Spirit’s presence and work, without multiplying God into multiple gods. The alternate views don’t fit: treating God as one person appearing in three modes is modalism, which collapses the distinct persons into one mode of existence. Thinking there are three separate gods crosses into polytheism, undermining the biblical claim of the one true God. Saying only the Father is God ignores the Scriptural witness to the full fellowship of Father, Son, and Spirit.

This item tests the doctrine of the Trinity: God exists in three persons—the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit—who are coequal, coeternal, and of one divine essence. Each person is fully God, yet they are distinct within the Godhead, so God is one in essence but three in person. That understanding allows us to relate to God as Father, worship Christ as God incarnate, and experience the Holy Spirit’s presence and work, without multiplying God into multiple gods. The alternate views don’t fit: treating God as one person appearing in three modes is modalism, which collapses the distinct persons into one mode of existence. Thinking there are three separate gods crosses into polytheism, undermining the biblical claim of the one true God. Saying only the Father is God ignores the Scriptural witness to the full fellowship of Father, Son, and Spirit.