This article is a broad-scale summary of a class I developed in my coursework at Forge Theological Seminary.

 

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It is popular to diminish the importance of the doctrine of the Trinity.​ Isn't missions more exciting? Are not seminars on church planting and evangelism more practical? Why does this heady, confusing doctrine matter so much?

If we are to have a basis for missions, if we are to believe that evangelism and church planting accomplish anything, we had best understand the doctrine of the Trinity.

 

The 1689 London Baptist Confession states the doctrine of the Trinity “is the foundation of all our communion with God, and comfortable dependence on Him (2.3)." That’s a bold claim, and nearly incomprehensible to modern ears. But it is true. And in this short article I hope to show you that the doctrine of the Trinity presents us with an invitation to spiritual life — because the Christian life is life in communion with the Triune God. 

 

Clarifications

We need to get a few clarifications out at the start. First, the doctrine of the Trinity cannot be confused with the Trinity. The Trinity proper refers to the one God who eternally exists in three persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. The doctrine of the Trinity refers to the theological formulation I just expressed.

 

This is important because I plan to prove the importance of the doctrine of the Trinity (in part) in relation to other doctrines. Without a doctrine of the Trinity, our doctrines of creation, redemption, and adoption, as well as our understanding of Scripture (and how it prescribes our worship), fall apart.

 

Furthermore, we are not positing "God" as a fourth entity beyond the three persons of the Trinity. God is Trinity. The three persons of the Trinity are God. It is appropriate to refer to any person of the Trinity as God, for God has no referent apart from the Trinity. 

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With those clarifications in mind, let's get started.

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The Trinity in Creation

The doctrine of the Trinity is the foundation of the entire Christian life. Creation was a Trinitarian act. And here we learn a special formula that has been useful throughout church history. Creation is:

 

• from the Father (Gen. 1:1)

• by the Son (John 1:3)

• and through the Holy Spirit (Gen. 1:2, Ps. 33:6-7)

 

God’s identity as Creator fundamentally distinguishes Him from creation — and the work of creation was Trinitarian.

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The Trinity in Redemption

Lest we think this pattern was a one-time occurrence, we see this in the work of redemption:

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• Jesus, as the Messiah, is sent from the Father (John 16:28)

• His incarnation achieved by the Holy Spirit (Luke 1:35)

• He accomplishes the work of redemption through His death, burial, and resurrection (1 Cor. 15:1-8)

 

Salvation itself mirrors this pattern, as we are saved:

 

• from the wrath of the Father (Rom. 5:9)

• through the Son (John 3:36)

• and by the work of the Holy Spirit in calling us to redemption (Eph. 4:30). 

 

The Trinity in Adoption

All of this has an end, or purpose. We are saved from the wrath of God and to the fullness of fellowship in the life of the Trinity in our adoption (1 John 3:1).

 

To be adopted in Christ is to be:

 

• sons and daughters of the Father

• brothers and sisters of Christ

• by the work of the Holy Spirit who is Himself the “Spirit of adoption” (Rom. 8:15; see also Gal. 4:5, Eph. 1:5).

 

To be adopted in God’s family is to be adopted into Trinitarian life.

 

The Trinity in Worship and Prayer
Lest this seem academic and disconnected, let us be clear that this adoption into Trinitarian life is the basis of our worship and prayer. Scripture itself is a work of the Triune God, by which He works in us. We pray:

 

• to the Father (Matt. 6:9)

• through the Son (Heb. 7:25)

• by the Holy Spirit (Rom. 8:26).

 

We worship the Triune God. To praise God for His works is to praise God as He is — our Triune God (Ps. 139:14). 

 

Conclusion

I hope this primer enriches you, inviting you to delight in the Trinity. We have only scratched the surface, and much about the Trinity remains a mystery. But the glory of theological mystery is that, rather than hiding God from us, it invites us to worship God for His infinitude.

 

In the doctrine of the Trinity, we are invited to the whole of the spiritual life itself. 

 

“But for me it is good to be near God;

I have made the Lord GOD my refuge,

that I may tell of all Your works.”

— Psalm 73:28

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