| by Wily Elder (Ocala, Florida) |
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| The short answer is: The Trinity is never mentioned in any scriptures. The next question would be: Where is the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost (Holy Spirit) mentioned together? Only two places in the Bible do we have this occurrence. One passage is in Matthew 28:19, second to the last verse in the book of Matthew. “Go you therefore, and teach all nations baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit” (Matthew 28:19). This scripture would appear to be an implicit endorsement of the Trinity, the three-in-one idea of divine power. One line of logic demolishes the idea of a Trinity. Just because the three are mentioned in the same verse does not mean there is any specific grouping proven. For example, read 1 Timothy 5:21. “I charge you before God, and the Lord Jesus Christ, and the elect angels, that you observe these things without preferring one before another, doing nothing by partiality” (1 Timothy 5:21). No one would logically identify God, Christ, and the elect angels as being a trinity simply because they are all mentioned in one verse of scripture. Looking at Matthew 28:19 without reading anything into it, we see a sensible train of logic for understanding. Why should nations be baptized “into” the name of the Father? It is because, if we are truly converted, we are, in fact, being initiated into the kingdom of God (Mark 1:14-15, Luke 9:62, 1 Thessalonians 2:12, 2 Thessalonians 1:4-5, Revelation 12:10), something only hinted at previously in the Old Testament. Why is the baptism of the Son? It is because baptism is the second step (after repentance) in the process of salvation, a gift to us that would be impossible without Jesus Christ (Acts 4:10-12). Also, it is because individual baptism is performed in the name of Jesus Christ (Acts 2:38, Acts 19:5, Acts 8:12), the only individual through whom salvation is available. Why is the baptism “of” the Holy Spirit? It is because the Holy Spirit, the Comforter, will teach us all the things that need to be remembered (John 14:26). The Holy Spirit is the presence (Psalms 51:11, Psalms 139:7) and power (Romans 15:19, Micah 3:8) of God, which establishes a sound mind (2 Timothy 1:7). The Holy Spirit seals us for the day of redemption (Ephesians 4:30). Although the Holy Spirit is a motivating (moving) force (2 Peter 1:21), it does not push. It leads (Romans 8:14). After a Christian is baptized, a servant of God lays hands upon him (places hands on his head) and prays. After this the Christian receives the Holy Spirit (Acts 8:17, Acts 19:6) and is a child of God. What about the other scripture? The main proof text used to prove the trinity is as follows: “For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one” (1 John 5:7). All the words after “bear record” are spurious. That is, they were inserted. Using backward engineering, the copyists borrowed from the corrupt Latin texts, translated it into Greek, back into Latin, and then into the English translations of the 1500’s AD. The purpose of this fraud was to promote the idea of a trinity. Unfortunately, it even crept into the King James Version in 1611. Most modern versions will leave it out or provide an explanation of the spurious text in the margin. Some may ask: “How can I really know this text is spurious”? Fortunately, in this modern age of computers, one of the oldest books used as a source document of the Bible, the Codex Sinaiticus, is now on the internet. Simply go to: http://www.codexsinaiticus.org/en/ Then dial into 1 John 5:7. You can see it in the Greek and in the English. It is a one liner: “For they that testify are three” (1 John 5:7). The Trinity is a doctrine of man, not God. |
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