A Triune God --- True or False?    
 

by Jefferson Davis Tant

 

There is a debate among some as to whether God exists in three persons—Father, Son and Holy Spirit—or in just one person. Among the prominent denominations claiming there is just one person are Jehovah’s Witnesses. They believe that Christ is not divine, but he is actually Michael, the archangel, and that the Holy Spirit is just a “wind,” the breath issuing from the mouth of God. There are many passages that support the existence of God in three persons, and it is our purpose to examine the teaching of the Bible. The Scripture begins with the familiar “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was formless and void, and darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was moving over the surface of the waters” (Gen. 1:1-2). So, what was this “Spirit of God?” Was it just the Father’s breath as he was speaking? Various translations use “fluttering” or “hovering,” but most use “moved” or “moving.”  One translation reads “…a wind from God swept over the face of the waters.” The word “God” in the Hebrew is “Elohym,” a plural noun. It is the plural of “Eloah”— “a deity or the Deity:--God” (Strong’s Hebrew Dictionary). That is one clue, since a plural noun obviously refers to more than just one. But what was this Spirit of God? “And the Spirit <ruwach> of God <'elohym> moved <rachaph> upon the face of the waters.” The Hebrew word “ruwach” can mean either a wind or a spirit. So, can we determine its meaning in this passage? The following verb helps to shed some light on the question. The verb “rachaph” (moved) is used only three times in the Old Testament. Its next usage is in Deuteronomy 32:11: “As an eagle stirs up her nest, flutters <rachaph> over her young, spreads abroad her wings, takes them, bears them on her wings…” Strong defines the word: “a primitive root; to brood; by implication, to be relaxed:--flutter…” The word expresses great care, love and affection as the mother eagle provides for her offspring and bears them up on her wings. Now, a “wind” cannot express the tender affection of a mother’s love. It just blows and is indifferent and impassionate. Thus the Spirit of God in Genesis lovingly “flutters” over His creation. In the New Testament, there are references to the Holy Spirit having a separate identity and personality. Jesus told the 12: “I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may be with you forever; that is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it does not see Him or know Him, but you know Him because He abides with you and will be in you” (John 14:16-17). Christ identifies the Holy Spirit as an entity, and refers to him as “He,” not a wind or a breath or an it. The baptism of Jesus provides another clue. “After being baptized, Jesus came up immediately from the water; and behold, the heavens were opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending as a dove and lighting on Him, and behold, a voice out of the heavens said, "This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well-pleased" (Matt. 3:16-17). If, as some claim, there is only one person in the God-head, there is a problem with deception here. The passage suggests three personalities—the voice in the heavens, the dove descending, and the person of Christ. Was Christ a ventriloquist? Did he project his voice into the heavens, and then conjure up a dove? Christ was not a stage magician, amazing audiences with sleight of hand illusions. Another passage to consider is from the pen of the apostle John. “This is the One who came by water and blood, Jesus Christ; not with the water only, but with the water and with the blood. It is the Spirit who testifies, because the Spirit is the truth. For there are three that testify: the Spirit and the water and the blood; and the three are in agreement” (I John 5:6-8). Christ’s Sonship was established at his baptism in water, as the voice from heaven said “This is my beloved Son…” Christ also came by blood, as he shed his blood for the sins of the world. Various Old Testament prophets had written about the death of the Promised One (Isa. 53:7, 12, Dan. 9:26, etc.). What part does the Holy Spirit have in this testimony? We have the written word, that which gives us the testimony, through the Holy Spirit’s inspiration. Christ had promised that the Holy Spirit would be sent to reveal all truth, and Paul wrote: “Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may know the things freely given to us by God, which things we also speak, not in words taught by human wisdom, but in those taught by the Spirit, combining spiritual thoughts with spiritual words” (I Cor. 2:12-13). – jdtant3@juno.com    .  Other Articles by Jefferson Davis Tant Let Love of the Brethren Continue Let It Go Why Marriages Fail Is "Once Saved, Always Saved" a Bible Doctrine? Immodest Dress When Do the Tears Stop? Studies by David Tant at the University church of Christ       For Past Auburn Beacons go to: www.aubeacon.com/Bulletins.htm   Anyone can join the mailing list for the Auburn Beacon! Send your request to: larryrouse@aubeacon.com