"But false prophets also arose among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, bringing upon themselves swift destruction." ~2 Peter 2:1~The Doctrine Of The Trinity...if we are followers of Jesus Christ, we must know and be able to articulate the correct Biblical view of The Trinity...we must also look out for destructive heresies...The Christian understanding of The Trinity is what separates us from heretical teachings and false religions...but more importantly, having the correct view of The Trinity will bring us closer to the Trinitarian God.
A real short rendering of the correct view of The Trinity is demonstrated here:
- The Trinity
- God is three persons - click on the schematic above!
- Each person is divine and coequal
- There is only one God. (Monotheism)
- God is three persons - click on the schematic above!
...if you ever hear anyone describe The Trinity using H2O (The water molecule) as an illustration, then you just heard a heretical teaching of The Trinity (and in this case, one who holds the view of modalism). This is important because the person teaching in this manner may be well intended, yet not know that this is incorrect. In this view, one attempts to describe God as having three "modes." Hence the three states or 'modes' of water existing as solid, liquid, and gas. God is not one entity with three manifestations. For instance, the Christian Apologetics & Research Ministry gives the following illustration that exposes the incorrect teaching that modalism holds, and I emphasize the word "mode" for clarity:
"[Modalism states]...God is a single person who first manifested himself in the mode of the Father in Old Testament times. At the incarnation, the mode was the Son. After Jesus' ascension, the mode is the Holy Spirit. These modes are consecutive and never simultaneous. In other words, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit never all exist at the same time, only one after another. Modalism denies the distinctiveness of the three persons in the Trinity even though it retains the divinity of Christ."
...opposite to modalism, the correct view of The Trinity shows how God is The Father, God is The Son, God is The Holy Spirit...One God, Three separate persons existing simultaneously...not one person manifested in three forms, nor at separate times in history...i.e. God is three persons, coexisting (simultaneously not consecutively) and coequal (equal Divinity)...
There are many, many other incorrect teachings of The Trinity, and it is very important to know these because The Trinity is one of the Doctrines that separates Christians from Jehovah's Witnesses, Muslims, Mormons, etc...
For more information, I highly recommend reading and viewing the following links (Note: the following readings are very short readings, but packed with clear understanding!)
Trinity (CARM) - great nutshell understanding of The Trinity
What Is The Trinity? another great nutshell understanding of The Trinity
Trinty (The Resurgence) - amazing page of resources
For His Glory - great teachings of The Trinity and a great schematic that illuminates an understanding of The Trinity juxtaposed with associated heretical beliefs... (8 part series, written in readable time saving chunks).
"Beware of false prophets. They come to you disguised as sheep,
but in their hearts they are vicious wolves. Matthew 7:15
but in their hearts they are vicious wolves. Matthew 7:15
