Introduction to the Trinitarian Concept

Have you ever felt confused when trying to understand the Trinity?  Well, if you haven’t then you don’t understand it at all.  In fact, it is impossible for us as rational humans to understand such a concept.  It is simply beyond us.  Well, it was beyond the Israelites as well.

The Israelites wouldn’t have understood the Trinity when Mark described it, for they had never heard of it before.  Yes, some would argue that the trinity is very evident in the Old Testament, and I would agree, but the Israelites wouldn’t have seen it that way.  Take, for example, in the creation account where God says “Let US make man in OUR own image”.  Although we might interpret that as evidence of a trinity, the Israelites would have probably interpreted this as God using the ‘royal we’.  This is the concept that royalty uses the plural in reference to himself to show his power and position.  Even if they didn’t interpret it this way, chances are the Israelites didn’t fully understand the concept of a Trinity.

Anyways, In Mark 1:9-11, all three persons of the trinity are present and interact with one another.

⁹ At that time Jesus came from Nazareth in Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan. ¹⁰ Just as Jesus was coming up out of the water, he saw heaven being torn open and the Spirit descending on him like a dove. ¹¹ And a voice came from heaven: “You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased.

Here the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are all present, and all three interact with one another.  For the Israelites, this was a new and confusing concept to wrap their heads around, and understandably!  If it’s hard for me to understand it having grown up being taught the concept, think about how hard it would be for the Israelites to accept and understand it.  It is very wise for Mark to start off the Gospel (well yes, Matthew is the start, but Mark restarts) with this concept, because the Israelites can begin their reading with this new and intensely important concept in mind.

Why is the concept of a trinity so important?

Because without the trinity, both creation and redemption would fall apart (among other things I won’t be able to cover in this post).

Creation was God’s magnificent… well… creation.  It brought him great joy to create beings that would bring him glory in all that they did.  Imagine for a moment, however, that there was and is no trinity.  Instead, God is one person and one being.  If this were true, than God would have needed to create humanity to glorify him, because there would be no one to do so.  This would imply that creation fills a NEED of God, a sort of gap that only we can fill.  This, of course, is utter heresy, for humanity filled no gap or hole of God.  God is completely ‘self-sustained’ (for lack of better phrasing).   The person of the son is the one who brings God ultimate glory, a glory that humanity and all of creation couldn’t even begin to match.  In John 14:13, Jesus speaks to the disciples saying, “And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Son may bring glory to the Father.”  Even all that we can say and do bring glory to the father through the son.  This is why the concept of a trinity is so important in creation.

Redemption was God’s great work in humanity, when the Son entered into his own creation to dwell among them and to teach them his commands.  Again, assume for a moment that God was and is only one person, and there is no Trinity.  If this were true, first of all the entire Bible would have to be tossed.  The Bible is constantly making reference to the Trinity throughout the old and new testament (specifically the new).  The gospel is packed full of trinity references (i.e. John 3:16, Luke 14:34, etc.).  Who would be brought glory in Jesus’ death and resurrection if he was the only person of God?  In the garden of Gethsemene, who would Jesus be praying to if he was the only person of God?  How would you explain Mark 1:9-11 as we looked at before?  These and other such questions are not easily answered, and only by labeling such passages as figurative or throwing them out of the Bible can one argue that there is no Trinity.