How is God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit? Are they all equal?

God is one God

When considering the Trinity that God is, it is imperative that we realise that there is only One God. God is not three separate Gods that then make up the Trinity. God is not made up of parts, with some more important than the other, as some people believe. No, God is one God. Deuteronomy 6:4 states, “Hear, O Israel: “The Lord our God is one Lord”.

Our God is a triune God. There is only One God. But God is a Trinity: the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Throughout the Bible we see each aspect of the Trinity and the different work each does.

All parts of the Trinity are as equal as the other and all parts are as much God as the other. The Lord Jesus Christ is just as much God as God the Father is. The Lord Jesus Christ is God. The Holy Spirit is just as much God as the other two beings. Some people may have a hard time understanding this, but it is not illogical.

To understand how God can be one and God can be three things consider an egg.

What is an egg? Well, to keep it simple - it is an egg! In its entirety, the egg cannot be described as more than an egg. But, if we look at what makes up an egg we will see that it is actually made up of three different parts: the shell, the white and the yolk. Each part is different. Each part serves a different purpose when the egg is fertilized, yet each part is just as much egg as the other. You would never say that an egg is three different things. The yolk is not an egg in itself, neither is the shell an egg in itself. All three components need to be present to make up the one egg.

It is the same of God. God is one God made up of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. All are equal and all are just as much God as the other. You cannot have just God the Father, or just the Holy Spirit. God is all three and all three are the one God.

The Trinity:

The Bible teaches us of the character of God, therefore it is of no surprise that the Trinity is introduced to us in the first three verses of God’s Word.

Genesis 1:1-3

In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. 2 The earth was without form, and void; and darkness was on the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters.3 Then God said, “Let there be light”; and there was light.

Here we already have the trinity in the first three verses of the Bible. In verse 1 we are introduced to God the Father (“God created the heavens and the earth”). In verse 2 we are introduced to the Holy Spirit (“And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters.”) And in verse 3 we are introduced to the Son, the Lord Jesus. (Then God said, “Let there be light”; and there was light.”)

We know that Christ is in verse 3 because He is the Word. God spoke the earth into being through the Word. John 1:1-2 “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.”

1 John 5:7 states, “For there are three that bear witness in heaven: the Father, the Word, and the Holy Spirit; and these three are one.”

Each part of God has a different purpose. The Father is the creator; the Holy Spirit the Spiritual Power that is able to bring about the Creator’s will on earth; and the Son who brings the creation into being and manifests the Father.

In our faith with God we can also see the different roles of each part of the Trinity.

1. God the Father:  is our creator whom we have been separated from through our sinful state.

Romans 1:20-21 “For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse, 21 because, although they knew God, they did not glorify Him as God, nor were thankful, but became futile in their thoughts, and their foolish hearts were darkened.”

2. The Lord Jesus Christ: is the Son sent down by God to save us out of our Sin. He is the Mediator between us and God the Father and is able to reconcile us.

Ephesians 2:14-18 “For He Himself is our peace, who has made both one, and has broken down the middle wall of separation, 15 having abolished in His flesh the enmity, that is, the law of commandments contained in ordinances, so as to create in Himself one new man from the two, thus making peace, 16 and that He might reconcile them both to God in one body through the cross, thereby putting to death the enmity. 17 And He came and preached peace to you who were afar off and to those who were near. 18 For through Him we both have access by one Spirit to the Father.”

3. The Holy Spirit: is the guarantor we have whilst on earth that we are reconciled to God. Just like a man who owes you a million pounds may give you £100,000 as a guarantee that he will repay the full amount at a later date, God has given us the Holy Spirit as security that we will one day be one with Him in heaven, if we accept Jesus Christ.  

Epehsians 1:13-14 “In Him you also trusted, after you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation; in whom also, having believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise, 14 who is the guarantee of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, to the praise of His glory.”

2 Corinthans 1:21-22 “Now He who establishes us with you in Christ and has anointed us is God, 22 who also has sealed us and given us the Spirit in our hearts as a guarantee.”

We all fall short of the glory of God. Due to our imperfections it is impossible for us to come into the presence of the perfect God, our Creator. Therefore out of His love for us He sent down His one and only Son (John 3:16). God became a man that was weak to the same things we are weak to, yet He remained strong. He was able to remain perfect. The Lord Jesus was all man, and all God. As He had no sin in Him, He was able to take the punishment that we have been sentenced to for our mistakes and wrong doings upon His own shoulders and pay the punishment on our behalf. Therefore now we have propitiation in Him. We have a peacemaker available through Him. If we put our faith in Him and what He has done for us then we will be reconciled to God our Father again. Once we have done this we will be filled with the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit will empower us to live as we are called to. The Holy Spirit will fill us with the Spirit of God so that our will shall be the same as God’s will. We will be sealed with the Holy Spirit, our sign that once we have been saved by the blood of Christ, the Son, God the Father will never let us go. Revelation tells us that our names will be written in the book of life.

Put your trust in the triune God, the Trinity, the One true God.

For further understanding, read:

•            Romans 3 , to understand how we fall short of God’s standard.
•       John 3, to understand what God did for us so that we may be saved. 
•      Hebrews 2, to see how the Lord Jesus is all God and yet came to earth as a man so that He may be able to provide salvation for you. 
•       Romans 6, to understand the effect of putting our faith in Christ and going from death to life.

-BACChristian