Interpretations of the Godhead
If you believe Jesus and/or the Holy Spirit is not God, you are considered a "heretic" that blaspheme against God according to the council of Nicaea.
However, if you consider the opposite and belief Jesus and/or the Holy Spirit is God and you are wrong, then you commit idolatry because you worship someone or something other than God Almighty.
Both blasphemy and idolatry are considered very serious sin against God. So we need to carefully study the evidence to worship God correctly.
How many members does God have?
- Trinitarians: 3, namely the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit
- Unitarians: 1
| Scripture | Trinitarian argument | Rebuttal |
|---|---|---|
| Matthew 28:19 | List the member of the Godhead in the baptism formula. | interpretation |
| 1 John 5:7-8 | List the member of the Godhead as witnesses. | biased translation |
| 2 Corinthians 13:14 | List the member of the Godhead in Paul's blessing. | assumption |
| 1 Corinthians 8:6; Psalm 68:5; Matthew 23:9 | 1. The Father is God. | agree |
| 2. Jesus is God (variety of reasons). | multiple reasons | |
| Acts 5:3-4 | 3. The Holy Spirit is God. | wrong conclusion |
| many | God is addressed as "Elohim" (plural form of God in Hebrew) which refers to the members of the Godhead | assumption |
| Genesis 1:26 | God created mankind in partnership with the members of the Godhead. | interpretation |
| Genesis 3:22, 11:7 | God does divine things in partnership with the members of the Godhead. | interpretation |
| Genesis 18 | Abraham saw the 3 members of the Godhead. | assumption |
| 1 Corinthians 12:4-6 | Paul listed the 3 members of the Godhead. | bad correlation |
| John 1:18 | God only appears as Jesus. | biased translation |
| There are many theologies that explain how 3 members could be 1 God. | multiple reasons | |
| 1 Timothy 3:16; 1 Corinthians 13:12 | God is a mystery that we cannot understand with our limited minds. | assumption |
| Revelation 5:6 | The Lamb (Jesus) has 7 eyes which are the 7 Spirits (Holy Spirit) of God (Father), therefore they are all part of each other. | wrong conclusion |
| Scripture | Unitarian argument | Rebuttal | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Deuteronomy 6:4; Mark 12:29 | There is only 1 God. | godhead | |
| Exodus 20:1-3; 1 Samuel 2:2; 2 Samuel 7:18,22; Psalm 86:9-10; Isaiah 43:10; 44:6-8; 45:5-6,18,21-22; 46:9; Zechariah 14:9 | God refers to Himself as 1 God, not multiple members. | godhead | |
| Isaiah 63:16; 64:8; Jeremiah 3:19; Malachi 2:10 | There is only 1 God which is the Father. | ||
| John 5:41-44; 17:1,3 | Jesus believed only 1 God exist, not multiple members. | godhead | |
| Romans 16:27; 1 Corinthians 8:4-6; Galatians 3:20; Ephesians 4:6; 1 Timothy 2:5; James 2:19 | Paul believed only 1 God exist, not multiple members. | godhead | |
| Revelation 16:5-7 | John addressed God as "the Holy One" instead of "the Holy Trinity". | godhead | |
| Mark 12:28-32 | Jesus reinforced the Jewish belief of a single God. | ||
| Luke 7:36-50; Acts 2:14-47; 13:13-44; 17:22-34 | People got saved without understanding the Godhead | ||
| Daniel 7:10-27; Acts 7:55-56; Revelation 1:1; 1:4-5; 4:2; 5:2-6 | Daniel, Stephan and John saw Jesus separate from God and not also 2 equal men. | symbolic | |
| Daniel 7:10-27; Acts 7:55-56; Revelation 1:1; 1:4-5; 4:2; 5:2-6 | Daniel, Stephan and John saw Jesus saw Jesus, but not as 2 equal persons. | symbolic | |
| none | There are no scriptures that directly define God as being Father, Son, and Holy Spirit (except verse that only list them) | theology | |
| none | There are no scriptures that define God as 3, 3 in 1, or a kind of combination of 3. | theology | |
| none | The original Jewish nation never noticed any Godhead-like teaching in the original Tenach. | ||
| none | There are no scriptures that directly state that Jesus had 2 natures (except implications by fallacies). | ||
| none | There are no scriptures of people accusing Jesus of saying that he was a member of the Godhead. | ||
| none | There are no scriptures of people praying to Jesus (except face to face conversations). | godhead | |
| none | There are no scriptures of people praying to the Holy Spirit. | godhead | |
| none | There are no scriptures of people worshipping the Holy Spirit. | godhead | |
| The definition of the Godhead is inconsistent. | interpretation | ||
| The definition of the Trinity is inconsistent. | interpretation | ||
| John 20:17; Acts 10:38; Romans 8:34; 1 Timothy 2:5; Hebrews 3:1-2; many more... | Most definitions of the Trinity fails because one of the members is not God | ||
| Romans 1:1-3; 1 Corinthians 1:1-2; 2 Corinthians 1:1-2; Galatians 1:1-4; Ephesians 1:1-2; many more... | Paul name only 2 members of the Trinity. | interpretation | |
| James 1:1 | James name only 2 members of the Trinity. | interpretation | |
| 1 Peter 1:1-2 | Peter name only 2 members of the Trinity. | interpretation | |
| 1 John 1:1-4; 2 John 1:1-3; 3 John 1:1 | John name only 2 members of the Trinity. | interpretation | |
| Jude 1:1 | Jude name only 2 members of the Trinity. | interpretation | |
| Hebrews 13:20-21 | The author of Hebrews name only 2 members of the Trinity. | interpretation | |
| Exodus 20:2; Deuteronomy 6:4; Psalm 23:1; Isaiah 44:6; John 3:16; many more... | God is described more than 20,000 times with singular pronounce which do not make sense for a Trinitarian God. | godhead |
What are the members of the Godhead?
- Trinitarians: There are various theologies
- Unitarians: Only the Father is God as taught by Jesus
Does the bible mention the word "trinity"?
- Trinitarians: No
- Unitarians: No
| Trinitarian argument | Rebuttal | |
|---|---|---|
| It defines a complex concept for the layman. | assumption |
What does one God mean?
- Trinitarians: Unified God of 3 members
- Unitarians: 1 God
| Trinitarian argument | Rebuttal |
|---|---|
| "One God" should be understood as "the plural Godhead". | assumption |
| "One God" should be understood as "the unified Godhead". | interpretation |
To which member of the Godhead should we pray?
- Trinitarians: The Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit (it does not matter)
- Unitarians: Only God, the Father
| Scripture | Trinitarian argument | Rebuttal |
|---|---|---|
| Matthew 6:9-13; Luke 11:1-2; Philippians 4:6-7; 1 Timothy 2:1-4 | We should pray to the Father. | agree |
| John 14:12,16:23 | When we use Jesus' name in prayers, we pray to Jesus. | wrong conclusion |
| Ezekiel 37:9 | Ezekiel prayed to the Holy Spirit. | symbolic |
| Scripture | Unitarian argument | Rebuttal |
|---|---|---|
| Matthew 6:9-13; Luke 11:1-2 | Jesus taught that we should pray to our Father in heaven. | demo |
| Matthew 26:39,42; John 11:41, 17:1-26 | Jesus himself prayed to the Father. | demo |
| Philippians 4:6-7; 1 Timothy 2:1-4 | Paul taught that prayer requests should be made to God. | interpretation |
The truth is known by its "fruit" (Matthew 7:15-16), therefore it is also important to consider the effect of each doctrine on people's lives.