48
a. Proverbs 30:4 “Who ascended to the heavens and descended? Who gathered
the wind in His fists? Who wrapped the waters in [His] garments? Who
established all of the ends of the earth? What is His name and what is the
name of His Son, for you know!”

Although mysterious and a bit inconclusive, we may have evidence for
a shadowy Trinitarian reference in this text.

Christ Himself may have been alluding to this very text to Nicodemus
in John 3:13 when He said: "No one has ascended into heaven, but He
who descended from heaven: the Son of Man.”
b. Daniel 7:13-14 “I was seeing in the visions of the night and behold, with the
clouds of the heavens, one like a Son of Man, He was coming and He came
up to the Ancient of Days and they presented Him before Him and to Him
was given dominion and majesty and a kingdom and all of the peoples,
nations and tongues shall serve Him. His dominion is a dominion of eternity
which shall not pass away and His kingdom which shall not be destroyed.”
II.
The Trinity in the Gospels
a. Passages in the Gospels where Christ is worshiped:

Matthew 2:11 After coming into the house they saw the Child with
Mary His mother; and they fell to the ground and worshiped Him.
Then, opening their treasures, they presented to Him gifts of gold,
frankincense, and myrrh.

Matthew 14:33 And those who were in the boat worshiped Him,
saying, “You are certainly God’s Son!”

Matthew 28:9 And behold, Jesus met them and greeted them. And
they came up and took hold of His feet and worshiped Him.

Matthew 28:17 When they saw Him, they worshiped Him; but some
were doubtful.

John 9:38 And he said, “Lord, I believe.” And he worshiped Him.
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o These are both surprising and not so surprising texts. They are
surprising in one sense because YHWH in the Old Testament
is rigidly inflexible when it comes to the reality that He is a
Jealous God and that He alone is to be worshiped and He will
share His glory with no one else (cf. Exodus 31:14; Isaiah 42:8;
48:11).
o And yet, even from the standpoint of rigid, Jewish monotheism,
these texts where Christ is worshiped are not surprising because
the Messiah was clearly portrayed and presented as being
nothing less than God Himself!
b. The Gospel of Matthew

Matthew 1:18-25 Now the birth of Jesus Christ was as follows: when
His mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came
together she was found to be with child by the Holy Spirit. 19 And
Joseph her husband, being a righteous man and not wanting to
disgrace her, planned to send her away secretly. 20 But when he had
considered this, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a
dream, saying, "Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as
your wife; for the Child who has been conceived in her is of the Holy
Spirit. 21 "She will bear a Son; and you shall call His name Jesus, for
He will save His people from their sins." 22 Now all this took place to
fulfill what was spoken by the Lord through the prophet: 23 "Behold,
the virgin shall be with child and shall bear a Son, and they shall call
His name Immanuel," which translated means, "God with us." 24 And
Joseph awoke from his sleep and did as the angel of the Lord
commanded him, and took Mary as his wife, 25 but kept her a virgin
until she gave birth to a Son; and he called His name Jesus.
o The opening events of Matthew’s Gospel are profoundly
Trinitarian as we see:

Jesus Christ, the predicted divine Messiah incarnated as a
human being

The “Lord” who both sent the angel to give Joseph the
earth-shattering news about the birth of Christ and who
spoke through Isaiah (cf. v. 22)
50

God the Holy Spirit who supernaturally caused Mary to
be pregnant (cf. vv. 18, 20)

Matthew 3:1-3 Now in those days John the Baptist *came, preaching
in the wilderness of Judea, saying, 2 “Repent, for the kingdom of
heaven is at hand.” 3 For this is the one referred to by Isaiah the prophet
when he said,
“THE VOICE OF ONE CRYING IN THE WILDERNESS,
‘MAKE READY THE WAY OF THE LORD,
MAKE HIS PATHS STRAIGHT!’”

Matthew 3:16-17 16 After being baptized, Jesus came up immediately
from the water; and behold, the heavens were opened, and He saw the
Spirit of God descending as a dove and lighting on Him, 17 and
behold, a voice out of the heavens said, “This is My beloved Son, in
whom I am well-pleased.”
o Here clearly we see all three Persons at the same time at the
same historical event.


The Spirit of God descending upon Christ serves both to
clearly identify Him as the Messiah and to indicate that
the One who empowers His Messianic ministry is none
other than God the Spirit Himself.

The voice of the Father speaking indicates His approval,
pleasure and affirmation of His Son as the One will carry
out and fulfill the sovereign, eternal plan of salvation.
Matthew 22:41-46 41 Now while the Pharisees were gathered together,
Jesus asked them a question: 42 “What do you think about the Christ,
whose son is He?” They *said to Him, “The son of David.” 43 He *said
to them, “Then how does David in the Spirit call Him ‘Lord,’ saying,
44
‘THE LORD SAID TO MY LORD,
“SIT AT MY RIGHT HAND,
UNTIL I PUT YOUR ENEMIES BENEATH YOUR FEET”’?
45
If David then calls Him ‘Lord,’ how is He his son?” 46 No one was
able to answer Him a word, nor did anyone dare from that day on to
ask Him another question.
o Notice first that we have all three Persons present in this text:
 Christ & Lord (vv. 42, 44)
51

The Spirit (a testimony to the divine inspiration of
David’s words) (v. 43)

The Father (v. 44)
o Notice the process of reasoning through which Christ takes the
Pharisees. Christ asks three questions all designed to draw them
to a stunning realization:

Question #1: “What is it seeming to you about the
Christ? Whose Son is he?” (v. 42)



Answer: “of David.” They agree!
Question #2: “How then is David, in the Spirit, calling
Him ‘Lord’ saying, ‘The Lord said to my Lord, sit from
My right hand until I should place Your enemies as a
footstool for Your feet?’” (v. 43)

In other words, if the Messiah is just a human,
then why does David portray Him as the Lord, as
deity?

Answer: they have none!
Question #3: “If therefore David, calling Him ‘Lord’;
how is He his Son?”

In other words, if the Messiah is divine, how
could He be merely a human, physical
descendant of David?

Answer: they have none!
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o “The terrible error of the Pharisees is here
exposed. Their conception of the Messiah
was that He was David’s son and only
David’s son, a mere human Messiah,
however great and mighty He might be in
His human glory and power. His deity
was a closed book to their blind reading of
Scripture. They dared not say that He was
not to be David’s son; they knew that He
would be. They dared not deny David’s
inspired word that the Messiah would at
the same time be David’s Lord and thus
very God. Yet the Pharisees would not
admit the Messiah’s deity.” (R.C.H Lenski,
The interpretation of Matthew, p. 891)

Matthew 28:18-20 18 And Jesus came up and spoke to them, saying,
“All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. 19 Go
therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the
name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them
to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always,
even to the end of the age.”
o Again, this text by itself does not prove decisively the deity of
the Holy Spirit, but like Isaiah 48:16 it does link and even
equate more than one Person who is identified in Scripture as
God.

Notice that Christ does not say “names” but “name.”

The Father is obviously God; the Son is clearly identified
to be God (several times throughout Matthew’s Gospel,
in fact1) and the singular use of “name” (τὸ ὄνομα) not
“names” indicates or, at least implies, that all three
Persons mentioned are regarded as both distinct and yet
as absolutely equal—and thus divine.

The implication is that each Person here is both equal
and yet distinct and different from one Another.
The deity of Christ is implicitly seen in Matthew’s Gospel when He is worshiped (cf. 2:11; 14:33; 28:9, 17); when
He is identified as the “Lord” in Matthew’s quotation of Isaiah 40:3 and it is explicitly seen in Christ claiming to be
the Lord of Psalm 110:1 (cf. Matthew 22:43-45).
1
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c. The Gospel of Mark

Mark 1:1-3 The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of
God. 2 As it is written in Isaiah the prophet:
“BEHOLD, I SEND MY MESSENGER AHEAD OF YOU,
WHO WILL PREPARE YOUR WAY;
3
THE VOICE OF ONE CRYING IN THE WILDERNESS,
‘MAKE READY THE WAY OF THE LORD,
MAKE HIS PATHS STRAIGHT.’”
o Observation #1: “Jesus Christ, the Son of God.”

The title “Son of God” in no way implies inferiority or
something less than God. The deity of the Son is not
diminished or faded in any degree from God the Father.

Rather, for Christ to be the “Son of God” is a distinctly
Trinitarian title that indicates the nature of His
relationship to the Father.

Possessing the identically same perfections and attributes
as the Father, He nevertheless is distinguished from the
Father, by being the Son and by His particular role in
the plan of salvation.

It can in no way be denied that Christ is fully and
eternally equal to the Father and Spirit in terms of His
perfections, worth, value and essence, but being the Son,
He has a role and function that is appropriate and
peculiar to Him as the Son, namely, He is:


Sent by the Father, does the will of the Father
and executes the sovereign, eternal plan of
salvation by being incarnated as a Man and dying
a sin-bearing, substitutionary, sacrificial death of
infinite value in the place of hell-deserving
sinners.
In summary, the title “Son of God” serves to denote an
ontological equality and a functional distinction
between Christ and the Father and the Spirit.
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
To be called the “Son of God” emphasizes the
absolute, full deity of Christ as God and yet
simultaneously distinguishes and differentiates
Him from the other Persons of the Trinity.
o Observation #2: notice who appears in the text:

“I”, “My” = God the Father

“You” = God the Son, the Messiah
o Observation #3: in vv. 2-3 Mark quotes Isaiah 40:3 which
records YHWH speaking to the messenger who would precede
the Messiah. And what does the messenger say?

“Prepare the way of the Lord!”

Those verses are a direct quotation and
fulfillment of Isaiah 40:3. And the “Lord” in the
Hebrew text is YHWH Himself.
o John the Baptist is the messenger and the
Lord about whom He speaks is God
Himself and yet, contextually Mark makes
it explicit that Christ, the Son of God is
that Lord/YHWH whose way it was
John’s duty to prepare!
o Observation #4: this text not only argues for the deity of Jesus
Christ, but also demonstrates two different people in the same
text being called God!
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
Mark 2:1-12 When He had come back to Capernaum several days
afterward, it was heard that He was at home. And many were gathered
together, so that there was no longer room, not even near the door;
and He was speaking the word to them. 3 And they *came, bringing
to Him a paralytic, carried by four men.4 Being unable to get to Him
because of the crowd, they removed the roof above Him; and when
they had dug an opening, they let down the pallet on which the
paralytic was lying. 5 And Jesus seeing their faith *said to the paralytic,
"Son, your sins are forgiven." 6 But some of the scribes were sitting
there and reasoning in their hearts, 7 "Why does this man speak that
way? He is blaspheming; who can forgive sins but God alone?" 8
Immediately Jesus, aware in His spirit that they were reasoning that
way within themselves, *said to them, "Why are you reasoning about
these things in your hearts? 9 "Which is easier, to say to the paralytic,
'Your sins are forgiven'; or to say, 'Get up, and pick up your pallet and
walk'? 10 "But so that you may know that the Son of Man has
authority on earth to forgive sins"--He *said to the paralytic, 11 "I say
to you, get up, pick up your pallet and go home." 12 And he got up
and immediately picked up the pallet and went out in the sight of
everyone, so that they were all amazed and were glorifying God,
saying, "We have never seen anything like this."
d. The Gospel of Luke

Luke 1:26-35 Now in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent
from God to a city in Galilee called Nazareth, 27 to a virgin engaged to
a man whose name was Joseph, of the descendants of David; and the
virgin’s name was Mary. 28 And coming in, he said to her, “Greetings,
favored one! The Lord is with you.” 29 But she was very perplexed at
this statement, and kept pondering what kind of salutation this was.
30
The angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary; for you have found
favor with God. 31 And behold, you will conceive in your womb and
bear a son, and you shall name Him Jesus. 32 He will be great and will
be called the Son of the Most High; and the Lord God will give Him
the throne of His father David; 33 and He will reign over the house of
Jacob forever, and His kingdom will have no end.” 34 Mary said to the
angel, “How can this be, since I am a virgin?” 35 The angel answered
and said to her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power
of the Most High will overshadow you; and for that reason the holy
Child shall be called the Son of God.
o God the Father
56

Sent Gabriel (v. 26)

Was “with” Mary (v. 28)

Was the One with whom Mary found favor (v. 30)

The Father of the Son Mary would bear (v. 32)

Would give the Son/Messiah the throne of David (v. 32)
o God the Son

The incarnate Son, to be named Jesus that Mary would
bear (v. 31)

The Son of the Most High (v. 32)

Recipient of the throne of David from His Father (v.32)

Have an eternal kingdom (v. 33)

Would be called the “Son of God” (v. 35)
o God the Spirit

The One who would empower and produce the
miraculous pregnancy in the womb of Mary (v. 35)

Here God the Spirit is seen as the life-giving agent
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
Luke 2:25-32 25 And there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was
Simeon; and this man was righteous and devout, looking for the
consolation of Israel; and the Holy Spirit was upon him. 26 And it had
been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death
before he had seen the Lord’s Christ. 27 And he came in the Spirit into
the temple; and when the parents brought in the child Jesus, to carry
out for Him the custom of the Law, 28 then he took Him into his arms,
and blessed God, and said,
“Now Lord, You are releasing Your bond-servant to depart in peace,
According to Your word;
30
For my eyes have seen Your salvation,
31
Which You have prepared in the presence of all peoples,
32
A LIGHT OF REVELATION TO THE GENTILES,
And the glory of Your people Israel.”
o God the Holy Spirit

Empowering Simeon to prophesy
o God the Son

The sent One, the Messiah, the bringer of salvation to
both Jews and Gentiles.
o God the Father

Blessed as the sovereign orchestrator of the plan
involving Christ and the salvation He brings.

Notice also the text Simeon alludes to in v. 32—
Isaiah 9:1-2!
e. The Gospel of John

John 1:1-3, 14, 18 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word
was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning
with God. 3 All things came into being through Him, and apart from
Him nothing came into being that has come into being.
o Notice that the Word was “with God” and yet “was God”
simultaneously.
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o Jehovah’s Witnesses will argue that Jesus is “a god” since the
term θεὸς doesn’t have a definite article.
o But that is bogus reasoning for several reasons:

A noun lacking the article in Greek doesn’t make it
indefinite—it stresses its quality. In other words, John is
saying that the Word possesses all of the qualities that
make Him God.

The Greek construction is ingenious—it is stressing that
the Word is God while making clear that He is a distinct
Person from God the Father who was just mentioned in
the previous phrase.

The natural reading of the text demands that you see the
Word (Christ) as both God Himself and yet a distinct
Person from God the Father.

The force of v. 3, which describes Christ as being the
creator of everything rules out Christ as anything less
than fully God Himself.
John 1:14 And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us,
and we saw His glory, glory as of the only One from the
Father, full of grace and truth.
John 1:18 No one has seen God at any time; the only God
who is in the bosom of the Father, He has explained Him.

John 5:19-30

John 8:58 Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, before
Abraham was born, I am.”
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o Cf. Exodus 3:13-14 Then Moses said to God, "Behold, I am
going to the sons of Israel, and I will say to them, 'The God of
your fathers has sent me to you.' Now they may say to me,
'What is His name?' What shall I say to them?" God said to
Moses, "I AM WHO I AM"; and He said, "Thus you shall say
to the sons of Israel, 'I AM has sent me to you.'"

John 14:26 26 But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will
send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your
remembrance all that I said to you.
o We see here the intricate roles and distinctions between the
Persons of the Trinity:


The Holy Spirit is sent by the Father for the particular
mission of teaching the apostles “all things” (i.e.,
inspiration of Scripture—the pre-authentication of the
New Testament) and bring to their remembrance the
words of Christ.

And yet the Spirit is sent in the “name” of Christ,
meaning, at the very least, as His emissary, delegate and
representative to empower the apostles for their
particular mission.
John 15:26 26 “When the Helper comes, whom I will send to you from
the Father, that is the Spirit of truth who proceeds from the Father, He
will testify about Me,”
o Here again we see the close intertwining of the Triune roles
and relationships in the plan of salvation.

Christ sends the Spirit of truth, but He sends Him from
the Father

God the Spirit proceeds from the Father, but testifies
about Christ.

There is a sweet and sophisticated Trinitarian
infrastructure and hierarchy displayed in the
unfolding of the plan of salvation.
60

John 16:12-14 “Still I am having many things to say to you, but you
are not able to endure them now: but whenever that One should
come, the Spirit of truth, He shall lead you in all truth, for He shall not
speak from Himself, but as many as things He shall hear He shall speak
and the things which are coming He shall announce to you. That One
shall glorify Me because He shall receive from Me and He shall
announce it to you.”
o Notice how Christocentric the Spirit is! He shall bring to the
disciples all that Christ said (cf. 14:26); He shall testify about
Christ (cf. 15:26) and here we see that He shall glorify Christ.


The implication is that the role of God the Spirit is not
to put Himself on display or be the center of attention,
but to take a willing backstage role and put Christ on
display as the captivating centerpiece of this plan of
salvation.

In the drama of salvation, God the Father is directing the
play; God the Son is on center stage; and God the Holy
Spirit is backstage, pulling back the curtain to put the
infinite worth of God the Son on display
John 17:1-26
a. The Trinity in Acts

Acts 1:6-8 6 So when they had come together, they were asking Him,
saying, “Lord, is it at this time You are restoring the kingdom to
Israel?” 7 He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or epochs
which the Father has fixed by His own authority; 8 but you will receive
power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My
witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to
the remotest part of the earth.”
o God the Father

The One who has supreme authority over the blueprints
of the plan of salvation (v. 7)
o God the Son
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
The King who restores the kingdom to Israel (v. 6)
o God the Spirit

The One who empowers Gospel witness to the ends of
the earth (v. 8)
b. The Trinity in the Pauline epistles
Looking at Romans as a whole, there is a well-developed doctrine of
the Trinity serving as the tapestry behind the entire book. God the
Father is seen to be the supreme authority and judge; God the Son is
the One who solves the dilemma of sin by His substitutionary death;
God the Spirit is indwelling agency who enables and empowers our
obedience.

Romans 1:1-4 Paul, a slave of Christ Jesus, called as an apostle, set
apart for the gospel of God, 2 which He promised beforehand through
His prophets in the holy Scriptures, 3 concerning His Son, who was
born of a descendant of David according to the flesh, 4 who was
declared the Son of God with power by the resurrection from the dead,
according to the Spirit of holiness, Jesus Christ our Lord,
o God the Son = the One owned and purchased Paul as a slave
and whose service Paul belonged (v. 1)

Also, the promised Son, the descendant of David, the
Messiah (v. 3).

Also, who was displayed to be God in human flesh “from
the resurrection from the dead” (ἐξ ἀναστάσεως
νεκρῶν).
o God the Father = the source of the Gospel, the Father of the Son
(vv. 2, 3)
o God the Holy Spirit = the One who empowered the
resurrection of Christ which thus displayed His deity.
62

Romans 15:30 30 Now I urge you, brethren, by our Lord Jesus Christ
and by the love of the Spirit, to strive together with me in your prayers
to God for me,
o God the Son = is the authority in which Paul speaks as an
apostle.
o God the Spirit = provides the loving motivation which compels
the Romans to pray.
o God the Father = the recipient of their prayers who sovereignly
orchestrates the plan of salvation

1 Corinthians 12:4-6 4 Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same
Spirit. 5 And there are varieties of ministries, and the same Lord. 6 There
are varieties of effects, but the same God who works all things in all
persons.
o Here we see that the Trinity is intricately involved in both the
varieties, dispersal and use of spiritual gifts in the church. Think
about this: your particular ministry and use of your particular
spiritual gift in that ministry is profoundly Trinitarian!
o Spiritual gifts are not just about the Holy Spirit, but the entire
Trinity as a whole!
o And here we see that each Person of the Trinity has a different
role and function with regard to spiritual gifts and their use in
the church:


God the Spirit distributes and parcels out the gifts as He
pleases.

God the Son provides the opportunities and impetus and
example by which to serve others with our gifts.

God the Father provides the effectual power that
empowers us to use the gifts sovereignly bestowed to us.
2 Corinthians 13:14 14 The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the
love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit, be with you all.
63
o Paul ends the book of 2 Corinthians with an explicit Trinitarian
benediction:


God the Son = the all-sufficient source of grace—grace
that both awakened us at Regeneration and grace which
empowers us to do what God commands.

God the Father = the inexhaustible fountain and
wellspring of love

God the Holy Spirit = the One who divinely creates and
empowers authentic fellowship and communion in the
church.
Galatians 4:6 6 Because you are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of
His Son into our hearts, crying, “Abba! Father!”
o Again, the complex, interweaving tapestry of the Trinity is
clearly seen as:


God the Father sends the Spirit of His Son resulting in
our prayer and communion with the Father.

While it may be a bit of a stretch to say that this is
referring to prayer per se, at this very least this text
indicates that Father, Son and Spirit are all intimately
involved in the transaction that allows us to call God our
Father.
Ephesians 1:3-14 3 Blessed is the God and Father of our Lord Jesus
Christ, the One who blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the
heavenly places in Christ 4 even as He chose us in Him before the
foundation of the world in order that we would be holy and blameless
before Him in love, 5 who predestined us to adoption as sons through
Jesus Christ unto Him, according to the good pleasure of His will,
6
unto the praise of the glory of His grace of which He granted us in
the One who has been loved, 7 in whom we are having redemption
through His blood, the forgiveness of trespasses according to the riches
of His grace 8 of which He caused to abound to us in all wisdom and
insight, 9
who made known to us the mystery of His will according to His good
pleasure which He purposed beforehand in Him 10 in the
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administration of the fullness of the times, in order to sum up all things
in Christ, the things in the heavens and the things on the earth in Him
11
in whom you also were made a possession having been predestined
according to the purpose of the One who works all things according
to the council of His will, 12 in order that we would be to the praise of
His glory—those who have hoped before in Christ, 13 in whom you
also, when you heard the Word of truth, the Gospel of your salvation,
in whom also, when you believed, you were sealed with the Holy
Spirit of promise, 14 who is the pledge of our inheritance, until the
redemption of the possession, to the praise of His glory.” (author’s
translation)
o There are several breathtaking, reality-shaping truths contained
in this text which ought to stagger us! Eternity is literally
condensed into this text, the bottom of which we will never get
to the bottom of in this life.
o What Paul is doing in this text is unfolding the sovereign,
eternal plan of salvation and the particular role of each
respective Person of the Trinity in that plan!
o The plan of salvation is Triune-shaped—it has a Trinitarian
structure and framework:

God the Father = chooses and predestines (vv. 3-5)


God the Son = provides redemption and forgiveness
through His sin-bearing, sacrificial, substitutionary death
(vv. 7-8)



“to the praise of the glory of His grace” (v. 6)
“that we would be the praise of His glory—the
ones who have hoped before in Christ” (v. 12)
God the Spirit = is the One with whom we are sealed
and is the pledge of our inheritance (vv. 13-14)
 “to the praise of His glory (v. 14)
Ephesians 3:14-17 14 For this reason I bow my knees before the
Father, 15 from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its
name, 16 that He would grant you, according to the riches of His
65
glory, to be strengthened with power through His Spirit in the inner
man, so that Christ would dwell through faith in your hearts, having
been rooted and having been established in love.
o We see here the Trinitarian structure and framework of Paul’s
prayer and the particular roles and functions of the Trinity:

God the Father is the recipient of Paul’s prayer.


God the Holy Spirit is the indwelling, mediating agency
through which God the Father’s invincible power is
supplied to us.


Although prayer to God the Son is permitted
(and expected, cf. John 14:13-14), here Paul prays
to the Father. And he prays to God the Father
here because what he is about to ask is in
accordance with God the Father’s role in the
Trinity as the chief architect and designer of the
sovereign, eternal plan of salvation.
But notice what it is that God the Spirit
empowers us to do in v. 17.
God the Son is the all-satisfying object of our soul’s
enjoyment.

For Christ to dwell through faith in our hearts
does not mean that Christ doesn’t normally dwell
there and that Paul is praying for the Ephesians
that He would. Christ is already dwelling in us
(cf. Galatians 2:20).

But what Paul does mean by Christ dwelling in
our hearts is the actual, practical, ongoing
experience and enjoyment of Christ who
indwells us.
o In other words, for Christ to dwell
through faith in your heart is to taste and
savor in your souls through the Word all
that Christ is!
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
Ephesians 4:4-6 4 There is one body and one Spirit, just as also you
were called in one hope of your calling; 5 one Lord, one faith, one
baptism, 6 one God and Father of all who is over all and through all and
in all.
o Verses 4-6 is essentially the theological peace treaty of the
church. These are the captivating doctrinal convictions that
unite radically different people groups in the church—like Jews
and Gentiles.
o And we see, once again, that this theological peace treaty has a
distinctly Trinitarian structure.

In v. 4 we see God the Spirit listed after the church.
There is a theological-Trinitarian reason for that.


In v. 5 we see God the Son and He is listed before faith
and baptism. There is a theological-Trinitarian reason
for that.



God the Holy Spirit is listed after the “body”
because Paul is emphasizing that the Spirit is the
One who makes the church possible by His
sovereign power. In other words, God the Spirit
brings the church into existence by regenerating
those from every nation that the Father had
chosen.
He is listed before faith because He Himself is the
all-satisfying object of saving faith.
He is listed before baptism because baptism is
both the graphic, visual depiction of being saved
by Christ and it is the bold, public display of
having yielded one’s life to Christ as their highest
allegiance.
3
Titus 3:3-6 For we also once were foolish ourselves, disobedient,
deceived, enslaved to various lusts and pleasures, spending our life in
malice and envy, hateful, hating one another. 4 But when the kindness
of God our Savior and His love for mankind appeared, 5 He saved us,
not on the basis of deeds which we have done in righteousness, but
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according to His mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewing
by the Holy Spirit, 6 whom He poured out upon us richly through
Jesus Christ our Savior,
o God the Father = love for mankind (v. 4); saved us according to
His mercy (v. 5)
o God the Spirit = saved through His washing of regeneration
and renewing (v. 5); poured out on us through Christ (v. 6)
o God the Son = the physical appearance of God’s love (v. 4); the
One who pours out the Holy Spirit (v. 6)
c. The Trinity in Hebrews

Hebrews 9:14 14 how much more will the blood of Christ, who
through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without blemish to God,
cleanse your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?
o God the Son = His blood cleanses our consciences
o God the Spirit = the eternal One through whom Christ offered
Himself as a sacrifice
o God the Father = the One to whom Christ offered Himself and
the One whom we now serve
d. The Trinity in Peter

1 Peter 1:1-2 Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, To those who reside as
aliens, scattered throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and
Bithynia, who are chosen 2 according to the foreknowledge of God the
Father, by the sanctifying work of the Spirit, to obey Jesus Christ and
be sprinkled with His blood: May grace and peace be yours in the
fullest measure.
o Notice the Trinitarian framework of our salvation:

We are chosen by the foreknowledge of God the Father

Theologically, the term “foreknowledge” is
virtually a synonym for election, but carries the
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nuanced meaning of having devotion to His
people before the ages began.


By the sanctification of God the Spirit


In other words, it is God’s favorable regard and
eternal intention to bless a particular people as
part of His deliberate plans and purposes.
This could refer to that initial, supernatural work
of the Spirit in Regeneration by which one then
became set apart from the rest of humanity as one
who now belongs to God in a saving way.
Resulting in obedience to Jesus Christ and being
sprinkled with His blood.

In other words, this is the atonement and the
bestowal of the innumerable salvation blessings of
the New Covenant.
e. The Trinity in the epistles of John

1 John 4:1-3 Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits
to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have
gone out into the world. 2 By this you know the Spirit of God: every
spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God;
3
and every spirit that does not confess Jesus is not from God; this is the
spirit of the antichrist, of which you have heard that it is coming, and
now it is already in the world.
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
1 John 5:20-21 20 And we know that the Son of God has come, and
has given us understanding so that we may know Him who is true;
and we are in Him who is true, in His Son Jesus Christ. This is the true
God and eternal life. 21 Little children, guard yourselves from idols.
o Notice John’s peculiar, almost baffling language:

We know Him who is true (lit., “the true One”) = God
the Father

We are in Him who is true (lit., “the true One”) = also
God the Father

We are also in His Son

End of v. 20: “…this One is the true God and the
eternal life” (οὗτός ἐστιν ὁ ἀληθινὸς θεὸς καὶ
ζωὴ αἰώνιος)
o Who is the “this”?! Who is the “true
God”? It is both Father and Son!

Verse 21: the admonition to guard yourselves
from idols means any god other than the God just
spoken about in v. 20 is an idol. And the God just
spoken about in v. 20 was the Father and Son!
f. The Trinity in Jude

Jude 1:20-21 20 But you, beloved, building yourselves up on your
most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit, 21 keep yourselves in the
love of God, waiting anxiously for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ
to eternal life.
o God the Spirit = the One who empowers our prayers
o God the Father = the One whose love in which we are to keep
ourselves
o God the Son = the One who gives the mercy for which we are
to wait eagerly until His return at the Rapture
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g. The Trinity in Revelation

Revelation 1:4-5 4 John to the seven churches that are in Asia: Grace
to you and peace, from Him who is and who was and who is to come,
and from the seven Spirits who are before His throne, 5 and from Jesus
Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of
the kings of the earth. To Him who loves us and released us from our
sins by His blood.
o Notice the Trinitarian structure of John’s greeting:


God the Father = “from Him who is and who was and
who is to come”

God the Spirit = “the seven Spirits before the throne” (a
poetic way to speak about the perfection and sufficiency
of the Spirit)

God the Son = “Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the
firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the
earth.”
Revelation 4:2 Immediately I was in the Spirit; and behold, a throne
was standing in heaven, and One sitting on the throne.
Revelation 4:5 Out from the throne come flashes of lightning and
sounds and peals of thunder. And there were seven lamps of fire
burning before the throne, which are the seven Spirits of God;
Revelation 4:8 And the four living creatures, each one of them having
six wings, are full of eyes around and within; and day and night they
do not cease to say, “HOLY, HOLY, HOLY is THE LORD GOD, THE
ALMIGHTY, WHO WAS AND WHO IS AND WHO IS TO COME.”
Revelation 4:11 “Worthy are You, our Lord and our God, to receive
glory and honor and power; for You created all things, and because of
Your will they existed, and were created.”

Revelation 5:12-14 saying with a loud voice,
“Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power and riches and
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wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing.”
13
And every created thing which is in heaven and on the earth and
under the earth and on the sea, and all things in them, I heard saying,
“To Him who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb, be blessing and
honor and glory and dominion forever and ever.” 14 And the four
living creatures kept saying, “Amen.” And the elders fell down and
worshiped.
o Notice very carefully: “Him who sits on the throne” is God the
Father. And “the Lamb” is Christ.
o Who do those in the heavenly bleachers worship? The Father
and the Lamb!


This is heavenly, Trinitarian worship!
Revelation 21:22-23 22 I saw no temple in it, for the Lord God the
Almighty and the Lamb are its temple. 23 And the city has no need of
the sun or of the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God has
illumined it, and its lamp is the Lamb.
o In the New Heavens and New Earth we see Father and Son
explicitly displayed.
o No mention of God the Spirit means that He retains His role of
being the backstage, unseen agent that displays Christ.