Understanding the Oneness of God
Talk about it @ www.pursueGOD.org/trinity.
Even though the Trinity is a mystery, it can be defined very simply: “There is one God who exists eternally in three persons.” While this paradox is hard to comprehend, we believe it because it is the only view of God that is faithful to everything God has revealed about himself in the Bible. That revelation starts with the oneness of God.
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The Trinity starts with the concept, deeply rooted in the Jewish Scriptures, that there is only one God.
Christianity was birthed out of Judaism, which is strongly monotheistic, based on the testimony of the Old Testament scriptures. Every day faithful Jews recited, “The Lord is our God, the Lord is one.” (Deuteronomy 6:4). This is the conviction Jesus’ disciples inherited and which they expressed in the New Testament. While people worship many different gods, only one God is real. Only one God created all things (1 Corinthians 8:5-6). As the first Christians wrestled with the identity of Jesus, they never wavered from the clear understanding that there is only one God (1 Timothy 2:5; Romans 3:30).
At some point in Christian history, each key part of the classic definition of the Trinity has been challenged. One challenge claims that the Father, Son and Holy Spirit are separate, distinct beings. Each has his own independent existence. This error takes the “three persons” part of the Trinity seriously, but it falls short on the “one God” side of the equation. This is a heresy called Tritheism.
“Tri-theism” is a heresy that misses the oneness of God, teaching that there are three distinct gods who work closely together.
This view is very rare in Christian history, because the teaching of monotheism in the Bible is so clear. But one contemporary expression is Mormonism. They teach that Father, Son and Holy Spirit form one “godhead”, but not one God. The members of the godhead are one in purpose or will, but not in essence.
But in the Bible, God states, “I alone am God! I am God, and
