Belgic Confession Article 9: "The Scriptural Witness on the Trinity"

Guido focused on defining the Trinity in Article 8 and now he provides a great article on the biblical basis for the Trinity.

I love this article. It is lengthy, but awesome. It reads like this:

All these things we know from the testimonies of the Holy Scripture as well as from the effects of the persons, especially from those we feel within ourselves.

The testimonies of the Holy Scriptures, which teach us to believe in this Holy Trinity, are written in many places of the Old Testament, which need not be enumerated but only chosen with discretion.

In the book of Genesis God says, 

"Let us make man in our image, according to our likeness."

So "God created man in His own image"--indeed, 

"male and female He created them." (Genesis 1:26-27)

"Behold, man has become like one of us." (Genesis 3:22)

It appears from this that there is a plurality of persons within the Diety, when he says, "Let us make man in our image"--and afterwards He indicates the unity when he says, "God created."

It is true that he does not say here how many persons there are--but what is somewhat obscure to us in the Old Testament is very clear in the New.

For when our Lord was baptized in the Jordan, the voice of the Father was heard saying, 

"This is my dear son" (Matthew 3:17); 

the Son was seen in the water; and the Holy Spirit appeared in the form of a dove.

So, in the baptism of all believers this form was prescribed by Christ: 

"Baptize all people in the name of the Father, 

and of the Son, 

and of the Holy Spirit." 

(Matthew 28:19)

In the Gospel of Luke the angel Gabriel says to Mary, the mother of our Lord: 

"The Holy Spirit will come upon you, 

and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; 

and therefore that holy one to be born of you shall be called the Son of God." 

(Luke 1:35)

And in another place it says, 

"The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, 

the love of God, 

and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you." 

(2 Corinthians 13:14)

"There are three who bear witness in heaven--

the Father, 

the Word 

and the Holy Spirit

--and these three are one." 

(1 John 5:7)

In all passages we are fully taught that there are three persons in the one and only divine essence. And although this doctrine surpasses human understanding, we nevertheless believe it now, through the Word, waiting to know and enjoy it fully in heaven.

Furthermore, we must note the particular works and activities of these three persons in relation to us. 

The Father is called our Creator, by reason of His power.
The Son is our Savior and Redeemer, by His blood.
The Holy Spirit is our Sanctifier, by His living in our hearts.

This doctrine of the Holy Trinity has always been maintained in the true church, from the time of the apostles until the present, against Jews, Muslims, and certain false Christians and heretics, such as Marcion, Mani, Praxeas, Sabellius, Paul of Samosata, Arius, and others like them, who were rightly condemned by the holy fathers.

And so, in this matter we willingly accept the three ecumenical creeds--the Apostles', Nicene and Athanasian--as well as the ancient fathers decided in agreement with them.

In all honesty, I don't think I really need to write much more than already what was said by Guido. I could echo it or re-word it, but I don't think that would do it justice. Therefore, I am going to simply let it be.

Carry Your Candle

There is a song by Kathy Triccoli called "Carry Your Candle--Go Light Your World"

Click here for the song.

Here are the lyrics:

There is a candle, in every soul. Some brightly burning, some dark and cold.

There is a Spirit who brings a fire, ignites a candle and makes His home.

Carry your candle, 

run to the darkness, 

seek out the lonely, 

the tired and worn. 

Hold out your candle, 

for all to see it.

Take your candle, and go light your world.

Take your candle, and go light your world.

Frustrated brother, see how he's tried to light his own candle some other way. 

See now your sister, she's been robbed and lied to; still holds a candle without a flame.

Carry your candle, 

run to the darkness, 

seek out the lonely, 

the tired and worn. 

Hold out your candle, 

for all to see it.

Take your candle, and go light your world.

Take your candle, and go light your world.

We are a family whose hearts are blazing. So let's raise our candles and light up the sky.

Praying to our Father, in the name of Jesus; make us a beacon in darkest times.

Carry your candle, 

run to the darkness, 

seek out the lonely, 

the tired and worn. 

Hold out your candle, 

for all to see it.

Take your candle, and go light your world.

Take your candle, and go light your world.

Carry your candle, 

run to the darkness, 

seek out the lonely, 

the tired and worn. 

Hold out your candle, 

for all to see it.

Take your candle, and go light your world.

Take your candle, and go light your world.

Belgic Confession Article 8: "The Trinity"

Guido now turns to a section where he has four Articles (8-11) on the Trinity. However, even though we can easily lump them together, I feel it is necessary not only because of a great length that would be, but also to intricately look at each Article for details and important concepts.

Article 8 reads like this:

In keeping with this truth and Word of God we believe in one God, who is one single essence, in whom there are three persons, really, truly and eternally distinct according to their incommunicable properties--namely, Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

The Father 
is the cause,
origin and 
source of all things, 
visible as well as invisible.

The Son
is the Word,
the Wisdom,
and the image of the Father.

The Holy Spirit is the eternal power 
and might,
proceeding from the Father and the Son.

Nevertheless, this distinction does not divide God into three, since Scripture teaches us that the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit each has His own subsistence distinguished by characteristics--yet in such a way that these three persons are only one God.

It is evident then
that the Father is not the Son
and that the Son is not the Father,
and that likewise the Holy Spirit is neither the Father nor the Son.

Nevertheless, 
these persons,
thus distinct,
are neither divided nor fused or mixed together.

For the Father did not take on flesh, nor did the Spirit, but only the Son.

The Father was never without His Son, nor without His Holy Spirit, since all these are equal from eternity, in one and the same essence.

There is neither a first nor a last, for all three are one
in truth and power,
in goodness and mercy.

The Word "Trinity" never shows up in the Bible. It is a technical term in theology referring to the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit as a unified Godhead.

Here is a simple statement of the doctrine given to my by Dr. Douglas A. Felch through my Christian Doctrine I class in the Fall of 2008 at Kuyper College.

There is one God, who nevertheless exists in three persons; Father, Son and Holy Spirit , all of which share the same divine nature and are equal in power, glory and Godhead. 

Or we can take what Guido said in the first paragraph and simplify this a bit:

"...we believe in on God who is one single essence, in whom there are three persons..."

However, before we dig too much into this definition and article, we should realize the long strand of history that has gone before us in examining closely this doctrine.

In the 2nd Century AD the Christian faith was challenged by Gnosticism. They thought that Jesus was never human, therefore they denied the incarnation of Jesus Christ.

In the same time period as Gnosticism was challenging Christianity, there arose another group who challenged Christianity called the Ebionites. The Ebionites were a Jewish Christian Sect who believed and taught that Jesus was only human and not divine.

These two teachings obviously opposed each other; therefore this created a launching point to many similar discussions and debates often relating to the same topics.

The Apologists were known as the first ones who had to give a defense of their faith therefore this was their task: to defend the Christian faith to others objections. They are often looked down upon, but I can't even imagine being in their place in history--as the first "theologians of the church--attempting to defend their faith at such a young and lack of mature faith due to how fresh it was. Their weakness was that they often appealed to the culture; therefore they would mix Christianity with the Roman idolatry which caused great confusion among many. They earnestly wanted to defend the doctrine of the Trinity, but in doing this they were not always successful on how to defend this doctrine or articulate it very clearly. This is roughly what they believed

Before the creation of the world, God was alone except for Reason or Logos within Hi. To create the world He needed an agent to create it. Therefore He begot another divine being, the Son or the "Logos". The Son is therefore a created being.

They soon were proven that they got it wrong.

In the 3rd century a teacher in Rome named Sabellius began teaching what is known as "Modalistic Monarchianism". He taught and believed this:

He argued that there was one God, but they had three roles or three masks. The three persons merely were modes of divine action or manifestation, which God successively assumes, revealing Himself as Father in creation and in the giving of the law, as Son in the incarnation, and as Holy Spirit in regeneration and sanctification. Thus the three persons were reduced to one. If God were to manifest Himself as the Spirit, He could not at the same time manifest Himself as Jesus.

Therefore, the problem with this view is that God cannot reveal Himself at the same time. The manifestation of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit cannot be as present at one time which the Bible teaches otherwise as the Trinity is proven to have showed up in various places. One of these places is at Jesus' baptism found in Matthew 3:13-17. If we were to believe this, it would be like saying this. The Trinity is like me; my dad is a truck driver, a husband and a son all at the same time. You see, this is incorrect thinking because my dad is a husband and a son while being a truck driver, but he isn't a truck driver when he is being a husband and/or son. The "hats" that we were throughout our life is not equivalent to what Guido is describing here, nor is it what we believe.

Also in the 3rd century was the heresy of Adoptionism or "Dynamic Monarchianism". This view held this:

Jesus was born not as the Son of God only the Son of Man. Jesus was only a human until either His baptism, His resurrection, or His ascension (there are debates of the actually time between those who believe this) when God 'adopted' Him. Therefore, when this happened, He then became the Son of God and the Son of Man.

However can also be proven false because they don't take into account the pre-existent Jesus. The Bible speaks of Jesus existing (not in human form) before creation with God. He was at creation (Colossians 1:15-20). And a whole host of other verses which speak to Jesus' pre-existence can be noted as well. I will hopefully dig into this a bit deeper in the next article. [LINK]

These are the early centuries which not many people have known about. However, as we move through the 4th and beyond, there were many more councils and gatherings in discussion of the Trinity. The church has wrestled with objections time and time again due to this doctrine.

This doctrine has caused 

great pain, 

great divisions and 

great strength to the church.

Therefore, to be on this side of history after much wrestling has gone into this doctrine; I consider it a privilege to believe what I have today and I am thankful for the work that men in the past have done time and time again to preserve this doctrine and the faith which I believe.

Okay, back to Article 8 now.

The three members of the Trinity are as follows: the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.

They are all equal, unified and distinct at the same time. There are three persons, yet one essence between them.

Guido divides them into separate persons and names some attributes they each have. This is because there are attributes that the Father has that the Son does not have. These attributes are on a personal level though, not in essence. For if they all had the same attributes then they would be the same in essence and in person.

However, just as Guido points out. "..this distinction does not divide God into three...each has His own subsistence...that these three persons are only one God." 

They are all the same in equality from eternity, equal in power, strength and might and equal in affecting our salvation. For if you take one member of the Trinity away, then we cannot be saved.

This is going to wrap up this portion. My apologies if you are super confused. Guido lays it out very neat and nicely and I may have discombobulated you even more. I hope that isn't the case. However, if it is, head to the top of this blog post and read the article again, I believe that will be most helpful.

My hope and prayer is that it will become clearer as the next few posts will be in regards to the Trinity also.

Blessings.