The Trinity Explained Simply
An Important Truth Explained with Humor
Donall and Connall's videos have been one of my favorite teaching tools for years. This video was created by a Lutheran pastor named Hans Fiene. In this video, he does an excellent and entertaining job of explaining what the Bible teaches and addressing many ancient heresies.
Many people struggle with understanding the concept of the Trinity, often feeling overwhelmed by its complexity. This struggle can lead to confusion, misconceptions, and even the temptation to rely on analogies that, while helpful, ultimately fall short of capturing the profound mystery of this doctrine. It’s easy to get lost in the nuances and try to wrap our minds around something that transcends human logic. Instead of seeking to fully comprehend the Trinity through comparisons, I encourage a posture of faith—one that accepts and embraces what Scripture reveals about God as three distinct persons in one essence.
If you are interested in learning the key Scriptures and historical explanations of the doctrine, here are key quotes from the Athanasian Creed, the London Baptist Confession, and the Baptist Faith and Message that explain the Trinity, along with the relevant Scriptures from which these truths are derived:
1. Athanasius Creed (350 AD)
“We worship one God in Trinity, and Trinity in Unity, neither confounding the persons nor dividing the substance.”
“For there is one Person of the Father, another of the Son, and another of the Holy Spirit; but the Godhead of the Father, of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit is all one.”
2. London Baptist Confession (1689)
"In the unity of the Godhead, there are three persons, of one substance, power, and eternity: God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Ghost."
"These three are one, the same in substance, equal in power and glory; although distinguished by their personal properties."
3. Baptist Faith and Message (2000)
“There is one and only one living and true God. He is an intelligent, spiritual, and personal Being, the Creator, Redeemer, Preserver, and Ruler of the universe.”
"God exists in three persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, and these three are co-equal and co-eternal."
God the Father is God
1 Corinthians 8:6: "Yet for us there is one God, the Father, from whom are all things and for whom we exist, and one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom are all things and through whom we exist."
John 6:27: "Do not work for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give to you. For on him God the Father has set his seal."
Jesus is God
John 1:1: "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God."
John 20:28: "Thomas answered him, 'My Lord and my God!'"
Colossians 2:9: "For in him the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily."
The Holy Spirit is God
Acts 5:3-4: "Peter said, 'Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit?... You have not lied to man but to God.'"
1 Corinthians 3:16: "Do you not know that you are God's temple and that God's Spirit dwells in you?"
There is only one God
Deuteronomy 6:4: "Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one."
Isaiah 45:5: "I am the Lord, and there is no other; besides me there is no God."
James 2:19: "You believe that God is one; you do well. Even the demons believe—and shudder!"
God the Father is not Jesus
John 1:14, 18: "And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us... No one has ever seen God; the only God, who is at the Father's side, he has made him known."
John 17:1-3: "Father, the hour has come; glorify your Son that the Son may glorify you..."
God the Father is not the Holy Spirit
John 14:26: "But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things..."
Romans 8:27: "And he who searches hearts knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God."
Jesus is not the Father
John 5:19: "So Jesus said to them, 'Truly, truly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of his own accord, but only what he sees the Father doing...'"
1 John 2:1: "We have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous."
Jesus is not the Holy Spirit
John 16:7: "Nevertheless, I tell you the truth: it is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you."
Romans 8:9: "You, however, are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if in fact the Spirit of God dwells in you..."
The Holy Spirit is not Jesus
John 14:16-17: "And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever, even the Spirit of truth..."
Acts 2:33: "Being therefore exalted at the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, he has poured out this that you yourselves are seeing and hearing."
The Holy Spirit is not the Father
John 15:26: "But when the Helper comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth, who proceeds from the Father, he will bear witness about me."
Romans 8:26-27: "The Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words. And he who searches hearts knows what is the mind of the Spirit..."
