The Five Basic Doctrines by Sandy Simpson

The five basic doctrines of the Christian faith are taken from a book called “The Fundamentals” edited by R.A. Torrey with contributors such as H.A. Ironside and C.I. Scofield.


There are five basic doctrines of the Christian Church. These doctrines put into simple language the basic theology of our faith, taking into account the full teaching of the Word of God in context. Without these five doctrines any individual cannot consider themselves to be a Bible believing, Christ centered, Spirit baptized, Christian. Please understand that we believe that there are many, many Christians today from varied backgrounds and denominations who fully believe and teach the five core doctrines of the faith.

These doctrines permeate their teaching at every level. We also recognize that there are many false teachers today who call themselves “Christians” but deny one or more of these core doctrines by teaching explicitly or implicitly against them.

Is the gospel then hopelessly confusing? Not so, for even children can believe because the Bible says:




However, those that were addressed with this admonition had the true gospel preached to them, as it certainly was in Acts:

Ac 16:31 They replied, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved–you and your household.”

A child can believe if the true gospel, which always includes correct teaching on the five basic doctrines even at their most basic, has been presented to them.

For instance, if you ask a young child who are the persons of God, he would be able to say Father, Son and Holy Spirit if he had been taught that in his church. If you ask him whether Jesus was just a man or just God he would likely answer that Jesus was both God and man, even though none of us can fully understand that concept. If you asked him how we are saved, he would probably respond that we must believe on the Lord Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord. If you ask him if Jesus only came once, he would probably say that Jesus is coming again. If you ask him why the Bible is so important, he would say that the Bible is God’s Word. So even a very young child who has been taught the basics of the gospel can answer these fundemental questions correctly. But you would find that children of cults and false churches do not answer these questions correctly.

However, even if children believe they can still choose to listen to false doctrine and become deceived, as can older people. Those who are taught false doctrine, a false concept of Christ, the Godhead, salvation, His second coming, and the authority of Scripture cannot be saved unless they believe the true gospel:

Mt 15:9 They worship me in vain; their teachings are but rules taught by men.’



How many have “believed in vain” is only for God to know for sure, but we can know false teachers by their false teachings if we compare them with the Word of God and the teachings of Christ who was Himself the Word incarnate.

Can anyone, even a child be saved? Yes!

Can they be led astray by false teaching? Yes.


Lu 21:8 He replied: “Watch out that you are not deceived. For many will come in my name, claiming, `I am he,’ and `The time is near.’ Do not follow them.



We must continue in the grace of God not abandoning the true knowledge of Him to go after carnal lusts and false teaching that people would rather hear than the truth.


There are many Christian doctrines, but these five doctrines are primary. Any Christian or non Christian who does not hold to these doctrines is not really a “Christian” at all because he does not understand and has not believed in the full Gospel message, the law of Christ. If a person or movement or cult or religion is teaching anything that goes against or undermines these five doctrines, true Christians are to rebuke them (if they claim to be Christians) and, if they do not repent, are commanded by the Lord in His Word to separate themselves from them. They are to be considered the same as anyone else who is in need of repentance through hearing and believing the true gospel and by the conviction of the Holy Spirit. They are not our brothers in Christ until they believe in the true Gospel which is wrapped up in these five basic doctrines. This is a clear Scriptural mandate.

I am not some great theologian. The subject of the core doctrines is far beyond my small ability to explain fully. But in a sense we are all called to be theologians.




Doctrine is being put down by many people today, by Christians and non Christians alike. They not only put the idea of doctrine down but they twist the Scriptures to say what they want it to say to uphold their own false beliefs. This is hypocritical.


There are religions that do not even care about the Word of God. There are cults that pretend to care but do not hold to even the basic things taught there. There are also those, such as talked about by Peter, who distort the Word and pretend to be Christians but are really wolves in sheep’s clothing.


Ac 20:29 I know that after I leave, savage wolves will come in among you and will not spare the flock.

These wolves are here today and I will give them names and faces as we continue to study, proving from God’s Word that they are pretenders because they have denied one or more of the basic doctrines of Christianity.

Doctrine is THE MOST important thing!

Doctrine is simply what you believe.

What comes into our minds when we think about God is the most important thing about us.” – A.W. Tozer, The Knowledge of the Holy, 7.

If what you believe differs from what the Word of God says, you are in error in your doctrine. There is no person alive today who does not hold to doctrines. They may pretend to be free of doctrine and just “feeling” their way around the world, but they hold to doctrines just as tightly as you and I do. They just don’t realized how much they have been deceived by the enemy, by others, and by allowing themselves to be deceived.

The Five Basic Doctrines


    The major religions of the world all deny all of these major doctrines. The cults deny one or more, usually more than one and especially the dual nature of Christ. The wolves who pretend to be Christians today

    involved in the Third Wave, New Wave, New Age counterfeit revival pretend to believe these doctrines but don’t let them fool you. By what they teach they also deny one or more of these doctrines, and in fact I have more than one article that proves that many of them deny them ALL by what they teach. These are the most slick and dangerous pretenders of all. I will show by the end of this study which ones they go against, and that it is not just one of the five but ALL FIVE. I have already proven that the men mentioned later are false teachers by quotes, recording transcripts and video and by comparing them with Scripture just like the Bereans compared with Scripture everything Paul was teaching them. These facts are readily available on our Deception In The Church web site at:

    There are other doctrines that are also very important and a few I think ought to be added to this list, but I am not a learned man and I leave that to others more wise than I. I would add, for instance, that a Christian must believe that he was baptized and sealed with the Holy Spirit when He believed and was born again as it says in the Scriptures.



    2 Cor. 2:21-22 Now it is God who makes both us and you stand firm in Christ. He anointed us, set his seal of ownership on us, and put his Spirit in our hearts as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come.

    Those who teach that you need a second “baptism” or “anointing” that is transferable with human hands are in grievous and dangerous error. But actually their false teaching on the person and work of the Holy Spirit comes from a false teaching on the Trinity because many of them treat the Holy Spirit as an “it”, a substance rather than the third person of the Trinity. So because of that they say they can throw the Spirit around the room, press Him into people’s foreheads, etc. They deny by their actions and doctrine that the Holy Spirit is God and is all powerful, sovereign, omnipresent, omniscient, unchangeable. So again we come back to the basic doctrines of the Faith that we will be studying.

    It is also important to note a few other things before we start.

    1. There are secondary doctrines, or minor issues, on which we as Christians can debate but we must not separate over in terms of disfellowshipping or excommunicating, in the sense that we no longer consider someone to be our brother in Christ. There are denominations for people of like mind who have disagreed over secondary doctrines and find it more comfortable to be with those of like mind. That is fine as long as it does not lead to walls being built against fellowship and to no debate on these issues, which in some unfortunate cases it has. That is wrong. We are still one by virtue of the indwelling Holy Spirit. We need to be very careful to “major on the majors and minor on the minors”. That is why I am doing this study, to give you the majors so you can compare teaching you hear with the major doctrines of the faith.

      Some secondary doctrines would be:

      • Eschatology – what will happen in the end times and when the return of Christ will be, except where it denies that Christ will return bodily to rule and judge.
      • Bible versions – which one is a better translation. There are very bad translations out there that we should not use, but there are also good ones and some disagree on them. But there are also some who have made this a very big divisive issue in the Church. I do not agree with those who hold to a strict elitist view of KJV-Only, for instance.
      • Eternal Security versus Conditioal Security. Though this is a very important issue and I happen to disagree with both extreme sides of the Calvinism versus Arminianism debate, it is still not an issue to divide over, unless you begin to deny salvation by grace alone or clear teaching from Scripture on other points.
      • Method of Water Baptism – immersion or sprinkling, which has the stronger picture in the Bible?
      • Method of the Lord’s Supper – some pass around small cups and bread, some have everyone drink from one cup, some serve real wine, some serve grape juice or even other juice, some serve regular bread and some serve unleavened bread. I can tell you what my preferences are because of the pictures I see in the account of the Last Supper in the Bible, but to separate of this kind of issue would be wrong. Unless you begin to say that Jesus is crucified again and His blood and flesh is actually brought to life. This denies that Jesus Christ is with the Father in His resurrection body as well as going against Heb. 6:6 in crucifying Christ all over again. Over the Mass we separate with the false religion of Catholicism.
    2. We are called to be discerning and judge right from wrong as Christians, unlike what many false teachers are teaching today. Let’s do a short study to understand that we are to put teaching and prophesy to the test today, just like in the time of the early Church, and back into the Old Testament.

    A Study On Judging

    Read an excellent article on the subject of the words used in the Bible for “judge”. Paul to the Corinthians –

    1Co 10:15 I speak to sensible people; JUDGE for yourselves what I say.

    Paul on JUDGING people in the church who are sexually immoral, etc. –

    1Co 5:11-13 But now I am writing to you that you must not associate with anyone who calls himself a brother but is sexually immoral or greedy, an idolater or a slanderer, a drunkard or a swindler. With such a man do not even eat. What business is it of mine to judge those outside the church? Are you not to JUDGE those inside? God will judge those outside. “Expel the wicked man from among you.”

    John says we are to test, that also means judge, use our judgment –

    1Jo 4:1 Dear friends, 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.

    If a person or even a whole movement is found to have a different spirit and false prophets, God pleads with us to leave that movement or individual behind.



    Those who cling to “Judge not, that ye be not judged, ” to condemn those who expose error should read the entire chapter. Jesus said, “Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep’s clothing… ” (v. 15). How can we know false prophets unless we judge them by the Word of God? If we know the false prophets, how can we fail to warn the sheep of these “ravening wolves?” All through the Bible we find proof that they should be identified and exposed.

    More verses for you to consider –


    Another one —

    A fornicator is described in I Cor. 5:1-13. Paul “judged” (v.3) the man even though he was absent, and he told the Church at Corinth that they were to “judge” (v. 12) those that were within. The Greek word for “judge” is the same here as in Matt. 7: 1. Paul did not violate “judge not, that ye be not judged, ” in judging the man, nor in instructing the Church to judge also. All of this judgment was according to the Word of God.

    Is it right to expose error in the church? YES! We are to TRY them.


    All doctrine and teachers are to be tried according to the Word of God. “To the law and to the testimony: if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them” (Isa. 8:20). Every message, messenger, and method is to be judged according to the Word of God. The church at Ephesus was commended because they had “tried them which say they are apostles, and are not, and hast found them liars ” (Rev. 2:2). The church at Pergamos was rebuked because they tolerated those that held “the doctrine of Balaam, ” and “the doctrine of the Nicolaitanes, which thing I hate” (Rev. 2:14,15). It is never right to tolerate false teachers, but they are to be tried by the Word of God, and exposed. Of course those who want to disobey the Word of God will seek by every means to avoid this teaching.

    We are to MARK them and AVOID them.


    Those whose conduct and teaching contradicts the Word of God are to be marked and to be avoided. This requires discernment and judgment in the light of the Bible. The Third Wave movement will resist any effort to obey this Scripture. They cannot be marked and avoided, unless they are judged according to the Word of God.

    We are to REBUKE them.


    This was written to Titus, because there were those going from house to house and subverting whole houses with false doctrine (v. 10-16). Oral Roberts, Robert Schuller, Pat Robertson, John Kilpatrick, Steve Hill, and others are subverting whole houses with their false doctrine today. Are we to sit silently by, while they do this, without rebuking and admonishing people to avoid their teaching? No, the faithful servant of the Lord is to be “Holding fast the faithful word as he hath been taught, that he may be able by sound doctrine both to exhort and to convince the gainsayers” (Titus 1:9).

    We are to have NO FELLOWSHIP with them.



    We are to WITHDRAW from them.

    “Now we command you, brethren, in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, that ye withdraw yourselves from every brother that walketh DISORDERLY, and not after the tradition which ye received of us ” (II Thess. 3:6).

    We are to withdraw from those whose doctrine and conduct does not conform to the Word of God. The context clearly shows that obedience to sound doctrine is what Paul has in mind, for he says, “if any man obey not our word by this epistle, note that man and have no company with him, that he may be ashamed. Yet, count him not as an enemy, but admonish him as a brother” (II Thess. 3:14-15). Paul admonished Timothy to “withdraw thyself ” from those who “consent not to wholesome words … and to the doctrine which is according to godliness” (I Tim. 6:3-5).

    We are to TURN AWAY from them.

    Concerning the last days, he says that some will have “a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof. From such turn away” for such people are “never able to come to the knowledge of the truth” (11 Tim. 3:5,7).

    How can we turn away from them if we do not identify them, and this requires that their message be compared to the Word of God. It is the business of the true preacher to: “Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine ” (II Tim. 4:2). This is usually an unpopular and thankless task but it is the duty of the God-called man. If a movement does not preach the gospel, adding NOTHING, then that movement has no real power because “it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile.” Rom. 1:16 The displays of power in this movement are false signs and wonders. The real power of God is the power to change lives. Angels rejoice when a sinner repents. There is no mention in Scripture about angels rejoicing over signs and wonders. They know what a real miracle is.

    We are NOT to RECEIVE them into our house.

    “If there come any unto you, and bring not this doctrine, receive him not into your house, neither bid him God speed For he that biddeth him God speed is partaker of his evil deeds ” (11 John 10, 11).

    There is no doubt about who John is speaking about, it is ” Whosoever transgresseth, and abideth not in the doctrine of Christ… ” (v.9). By radio, TV, music and literature, false prophets are brought into the homes of many Christians today. Even by e-mail. This should not be.

    We are to REJECT HERETICS.

    “A man that is an heretic after the first and second admonition reject ” (KJV) (Titus 3: 10).

    We should reject those who teach a different atonement through Christ, as do Word-Faith prosperity gospel teachers. If you doubt, read Hanegraaff’s book “Christianity In Crisis” and read their statements. There are many who deny this and other basic doctrines and tenets of the Christian faith from the Word of God. If they will not respond to being admonished, then they are to be rejected.


    Paul warned the Galatians about those who “pervert the gospel of Christ.” He also said, “If any man preach any other gospel unto you than that ye have received, let him be accursed.” (See Gal. 1:6-9). Many televangelists and Third Wave leaders today are preaching a perverted gospel. Just read their books, listen to their tapes, watch them on TV. They expose themselves for who they are because they have departed from the authority of the Word. Those who teach salvation by baptism, or by works, or by signs and wonders, are teaching a perverted gospel. Those who preach a salvation that you can lose, are preaching a perverted gospel. The Third Wave movement is preaching a perverted gospel. Yet, we are

    supposed to cooperate with them in evangelism and Christian work, according to many today. If we fail to expose these false teachers and prophets, then we have betrayed Christ and His gospel.

    We are to SEPARATE from them.

    “Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch no the unclean thing; and I will receive you ” (II Cor. 6:17).

    This makes it plain. God’s people are to come out of apostasy and religious error. How can any Bible believer remain in the National Council or World Council of Churches? How can they remain in a movement that is bringing demonic control into the churches of the world, splitting apart families, bringing nightmares to children, bringing epilepsy and other abnormalities to otherwise healthy individuals, bringing the teaching of the “second blessing” to a whole new low whereby every Christian must now exhibit demonic manifestations to be considered holy?

    Consider these things.



    Part 1 ­ The Trinity

    The Trinity, or the Triune nature of God, is a very hard thing to explain. I looked for illustrations and could not find any that help us to really understand how God can be three persons in one. But I did find one illustration that helps us to see how our understanding of God may be limited to the fact that we live in space and time, whereas God is outside those limits and “the heavens, even the highest heaven, cannot contain (Him)” as it says in I Kings 8:27.

    Illustration (draw example):

    C.S. Lewis likened our concept of Trinity to our concept of space. We live in three dimensions. In one dimension there are only single lines. In two dimensions single lines can make a flat object (length and width). Single lines of the first dimension have not been done away with but now are used in a much more complex way to draw a square or rectangle. In three dimensions that same square can now become a cube, like a sugar cube (length, width and depth). Nothing has been done away with but now is given added meaning. The three dimensional world is what we live in and look how much depth and meaning there is added to simple one dimensional things like a dot or line. When you go on to the next dimension you do not leave behind the former things but add to them. They become more complex. We cannot fully understand the next dimension of the spiritual, but we can understand the basic concepts. This is what it is like to try to understand the Trinity. We know part of the picture, but we have no way to even imagine the rest.


    “What” is: some object or thing that exists, may have intelligence, power, life, not a person God, Deity “Who” is: a person, a personality, a separate being, in God possessing all the attributes of both “What” (Deity) and “Who” (Personality) Father, Son, Holy Spirit

    The “What” and “Whos” make one “God”.

    Our finite minds cannot understand how the Triune nature of God can exist, but we can understand by faith that the Word of God tells us that God is one “What” and three “Whos”.

    2Co 5:7 We live by faith, not by sight.

    It is vitally important that all teaching in the church affirm and teach the Trinity because so many doctrines of the Church would not be true without this basic understanding.

    The one “What” and three “Whos” that make up our Almighty God together and separately are mentioned as having created the universe. This is one of the many proofs of the Trinity.

    God (“What”) created the universe: Gen. 1:1

    Father (“Who”) created the universe: Mal. 2:10Mt. 25:34

    Son (“Who”) created the universe: Col. 1:15-16Heb. 1:2Mt. 13:35 Spirit (“Who”) created the universe: Ps. 104:30Job 33:4Jn. 6:63

    There are many direct proof texts in the New Testament for the Trinty.


    Jesus commanded:



    King James Version adds:


      We also have this verse:

    2. Cor. 13:14 [May] the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit, be with you all. (NAS)

      A very important proof is when Jesus was baptized by John the Baptist:


      Even in the Old Testament we find proof of two persons of the Triune nature of God.


      Study On The Trinity

      1. – There Is One God
        1. One God: Explicit Statements

          1. OT: Deut. 4:353932:392 Sam. 22:32Isa. 37:20: 43:10; 44:6-8; 45:5; 14;21-22; 46:9

          2. NT: John 5:44Rom. 3:3016:271 Cor. 8:4-6Gal. 3:20Eph. 4:61 Tim. 1:172:5James 2:19;

          Jude 25

        2. None like God (in His essence)

          1. Explicit statements: Ex. 8:109:1415:112 Sam. 7:221 Kgs. 8:231 Chr. 17:20Psa. 86:8; Isa.

          40:18, 25: 44:7; 46:5, 9; Jer. 10:6-7Micah 7:18

          1. Being like God a Satanic lie: Gen. 3:5Isa. 14:14John 8:44
          2. Fallen man become “like God” only in that he took upon himself to know good and evil, not that he acquired godhood: Gen. 3:22
      1. Only one true God: 2 Chr. 15:3Jer. 10:10John 17:31 Thess. 1:91 John 5:20-21
      2. All other “gods” are therefore false gods (idols), not gods at all: Deut. 32:211 Sam. 12:21Psa. 96:5Isa. 37:1941:23-2429Jer. 2:115:716:201 Cor. 8:410:19-20
      3. Demons, not gods, are the power behind false worship: Deut. 32:16-17Psa. 106:371 Cor. 10:20Gal. 4:8
      4. How men are meant to be “like God”
        1. The image of God indicates that man is to represent God and share His moral character, not that man can be metaphysically like God: Gen. 1:26-275:11 Cor. 11:7Eph. 4:24Col. 3:10
        2. The goals of being like Christ has the following aspects only:
          1. Sharing His moral character: 1 John 3:2Rom. 8:29
          2. Being raised with glorified, immortal bodies like His: phil. 3:21; 1 Cor. 15:49
        3. Becoming partakers of the divine nature refers again to moral nature (“having escaped the corruption that is in the world by lust”), not metaphysical nature: 2 Pet. 1:4; see also Heb. 12:10; on the meaning of “partakers,” see 1 Cor. 10:18202 Cor. 1:171 Pet. 5:1
      5. Are mighty or exalted men gods?
        1. Scripture never says explicitly that men are gods
        2. Powerful, mighty men are explicitly said not to be gods: Ezek. 28:29Isa. 31:32 Thess. 2:4
        3. Men and God are opposite, exclusive categories: Num. 23:19Isa. 31:3Ezek. 28:2Hosea 11:9Matt. 19:26John 10:33Acts 12:221 Cor. 14:2
        4. Moses was “as God,” not really a god: Ex. 4:167:1
        5. Ezek. 32:21 speaks of warriors or soldiers as “mighty gods,” but in context they are so regarded by their pagan nations, not by God or Israel; cf. Ezek. 28:29
        6. The elohim before whom accused stood in Exodus was God Himself, not judges, as many translations incorrectly render: Ex. 22:8-928; compare Deut. 19:17

          7 .The use of elohim in Psalm 82, probably in reference to wicked judges, as cited by Jesus in John 10:34-36, does not mean that men really can be gods.

          1. It is Asaph, not the Lord, who calls the judges elohim in Psa. 82:16. This is important, even though we agree that Psa. 82is inspired.
          2. Asaph’s meaning is not “Although you are gods, you will die like men,” but rather “I called you gods, but in fact you will all die like the men that you really are”
          3. The Psalmist was no more saying that wicked judges were truly gods than he was saying that they were truly “sons of the Most High” (v. 6b)
          4. Thus, Psa. 82:1 calls the judges elohim in irony. They had quite likely taken their role in judgment (cf. point 5 above) to mean they were elohim, or gods, and Asaph’s message is that these so- called gods were mere men who would die under the judgment of the true elohim (vss. 1-2, 7-8)
          5. Christ’s use of this passage in John 10:34-36 does not negate the above interpretation of Psalm
          6. The words, “The Scripture cannot be broken,” means “the Scripture cannot go without having

            some ultimate fulfillment” (cf. John 7:23Matt. 5:17). Thus Jesus is saying that what the OT judges were called in irony, He is in reality; He does what they could not do, and is what they could never be (see the Adam-Christ contrasts in Rom. 5:12-21 and 1 Cor. 15:21-2245 for a similar use of OT Scripture)

          7. The clause, “those against whom the word of God came” (John 10:35) shows that this “word” was a word of judgment against the so-called gods; which shows that they were false gods, not really gods at all
          8. Finally, these wicked men were certainly not “godlike” or “divine” by nature, so that in any case the use of elohim to refer to them must be seen as figurative, not literal

          8. Even if men were gods (which they are not), this would be irrelevant to Jesus, since He was God as a preexistent spirit before creation: John 1:1

      6. Are angels Gods?
        1. Scripture never explicitly states that angels are gods
        2. Demonic spirits are not gods, 1 Cor. 10:20Gal.4:8; thus, being “mighty spirits” does not make angels gods
        3. Satan is therefore also a false god: 2 Cor. 4:4
        4. Psalm 8:5 does not teach that angels are gods
          1. Psa. 8:5 is paraphrased in Heb. 2:7, not quoted literally (cf. Psa. 68:18 with Eph. 4:8). In Psa. 8:5, elohim certainly means God, not angels, since Psa. 8:3-8 parallels Gen. 1:18 1626-28. Note that the Psalmist is speaking of man’s exalted place in creation, whereas Hebrews is speaking of the lower place taken by Christ in becoming a man. Thus, Heb. 2:7 may not mean to equate angels with gods at all.
          2. Even if Heb. 2:7 does imply that angels are “gods,” in the context of Hebrews 1-2 these angels would be those falsely exalted above Christ: Note Heb. 1:6 (which quotes Psa. 97:7, which definitely speaks of “gods” in the sense of false gods); and cf. Col. 2:16 on the problem of the worship of angels
        5. Elsewhere in the Psalms angels, if spoken of as gods (or as “sons of the gods”), are considered false gods: Psa. 29:186:8-1089:6-795:396:4-597:7-9 (note that these false gods are called “angels” in the Septuagint); 135:5; 136:2; 138:1; cf. Ex. 15:1118:11Deut. 10:171 Chr. 16:252 Chr. 2:5
        6. Even if the angels were gods (which the above shows they are not), that would be irrelevant to Jesus, since He is not an angelic being, but the Son who is worshipped by the angels as their Creator, Lord, and God: Heb. 1:1-13Heb. 1:3-6

          I. Conclusion: If there is only one God, one true God, all other gods being false gods, neither men nor angels being gods, and none even like God by nature – all of which the Bible says repeatedly and explicitly – then we must conclude that there is indeed only one God.

    1. – This One God Is Known In The OT As “Jehovah/Yahweh” (“The Lord”)
      1. Texts where Jehovah is said to be elohim or el: Deut. 4:3539Psa. 100:3; etc. Elohim is the plural form of “el” so even in the OT we see a picture of the Triune Godhead.
      2. Texts where the compound name “Jehovah God” (Yahweh Elohim) is used: Gen. 2:39:2624:3Ex. 3:15-184:42 Sam. 7:2225; etc.
      3. Only one Yahweh/Jehovah: Deut. 6:4Mark 12:29
      4. Conclusion: Jehovah is the only God, the only el/elohim III – God Is A Unique, Incomprehensible Being
  1. Only one God, thus unique: See I.A.
  2. None are even like God: see I.B
  3. God cannot be fully comprehended: 1 Cor. 8:2-3
  4. God can only be known insofar as the Son reveals Him: Matt. 11:25-27John 1:18
  5. Analogical language needed to describe God: Ezek. 1:26-28Rev. 1:13-16
  6. God is transcendent, entirely distinct from and different than the universe, as the carpenter is distinct from the bench
  1. Separate from the world: Isa. 40:22Acts 17:24
  2. Contrasted with the world: Psa. 102:25-271 John 2:15-17

    3. Created the world: Gen. 1:1Psa. 33:6102:25Isa. 42:544:24John 1:3Rom. 11:36Heb. 1:2;

    1. – Is God One Person?
      1. God is one God (cf. I above), one Yahweh, one Lord (cf. II above), one Spirit (John 4:24)
      2. However, the Bible never says that God is “one person”
        1. Heb. 1:3 KJV speaks of God’s “person,” but the word used here, hupostasis, is translated “substance” in Heb. 11:1 KJV; also in Heb. 1:3 “God” refers specifically to the Father
        2. Gal. 3:20 speaks of God as one party in the covenant between God and man, not as one person
        3. Job 13:8 KJV speaks of God’s “person,” but ironically the Hebrew literally means “his faces”
      3. The use of singular and plural pronouns for God
        1. Over 7000 times God speaks or is spoken of with singular pronouns (I, He, etc.); but this is proper because God is a single individual being; thus these singular forms do not disprove that God exists as three “persons” as long as these persons are not separate beings
        2. At least four times in the OT God speaks of or to Himself using plural pronouns (Gen. 1:263:2211:7Isa. 6:8), and nontrinitarian interpretation cannot account for them
          1. Plural reference to God and the angels possible in Isa. 6:8, but not in the Genesis texts; in 1:26 “our image” explained in 1:27, “in God’s image”; in 3:22 “like one of us” refers back to 3:5, “like God”
          2. The “literary plural” (possibly, though never clearly, attested in Paul) is irrelevant to texts in which God is speaking, not writing
          3. The “plural of deliberation” is apparently unattested in biblical writings, and cannot explain Gen. 3:22 (“like one of us”)
          4. The “plural of amplitude” or of “fulness” (which probably does explain the use of the plural form elohim in the singular sense of “God”) is irrelevant to the use of plural pronouns, and again cannot explain Gen. 3:22
          5. The “plural of majesty” possibly attested in 1 Kgs. 12:92 Chron. 10:9; more likely Ezra 4:18; but none of these are certain; and again, it cannot explain Gen. 3:22; also nothing in the context of the Gen. Texts suggests that God is being presented as King
      4. The uniqueness of God (cf. III above) should prepare us for the possibility that the one divine Being exists uniquely as a plurality of persons
    2. – The Father Of Jesus Christ Is God
      1. Explicit statements: John 17:31 Cor. 8:6; etc.
      2. The expression, “the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ”: 2 Cor. 1:3Eph. 1:31 Pet. 1:3 VI – Jesus Christ Is God
    1. Explicit statements
      1. Isa. 9:6; note 10:21. Translations which render “mighty hero,” are inconsistent in their rendering of 10:21. Also note that Ezek. 32:21 is (a) not in the same context, as is Isa. 10:21, and (b) speaking of false gods, cf. I.G.5 above.
      2. John 1:1 Even if Jesus is here called “a god” (as some have argued), since there is only one God, Jesus is that God. However, the “a god” rendering is incorrect. Other passages using the Greek word for God (theos) in the same construction are always rendered “God”: Mark 12:27Luke 20:38John 8:54Phil 2:13Heb. 11:16. Passages in which a shift occurs from ho theos (“the God”) to theos (“God”) never imply a shift in meaning: Mark 12:27Luke 20:37-38; John :2; 13:3; Rom. 1:211 Thess. 1:9Heb. 9:141 Pet. 4:10-11
      3. John 1:18. The best manuscripts have “the unique God” (monogenes, frequently rendered “only- begotten,” actually means “one of a kind,” “unique,” though in the NT always in the context of a son or daughter). Even if one translates “only-begotten,” the idea is not of a “begotten god” as opposed to an “unbegotten god.”
      4. John 20:28. Compare Rev. 4:11, where the same construction is used in the plural (“our”) instead of the singular (“my”). See also Psa. 35:23. Note that Christ’s response indicates that Thomas’ acclamation was not wrong. Also note that John 20:17 does show that the Father was Jesus’ “God” (due to Jesus becoming a man), but the words “my God” as spoken by Thomas later in the same chapter must mean no less than in v. 17. Thus, what the Father is to Jesus in His humanity, Jesus is to Thomas (and therefore to us as well).
      5. Acts 20:28: “the church of God which He purchased with His own blood.” The variant readings (e.g. “the church of the Lord”) show that the original was understood to mean “His own blood,” not “the blood of His own [Son]” (since otherwise no one would have thought to change it). Thus all other renderings are attempts to evade the startling clarity and meaning of this passage.
      6. Rom. 9:5. While grammatically this is not the only possible interpretation, the consistent form of doxologies in Scripture, as well as the smoothest reading of the text, supports the identification of Christ as “God” in this verse.
      7. Titus 2:13. Grammatically and contextually, this is one of the strongest proof texts for the deity of Christ. Sharp’s first rule, properly understood, proves that the text should be translated “our great God and Savior” (cf. same construction in Luke 20:37Rev. 1:6; and many other passages). Note also that Paul always uses the word “manifestation” (“appearing”) of Christ: 2 Thess. 2:81 Tim. 6:142. Tim. 1:10; 4:1, 8
      8. Heb. 1:8. The rendering, “God is your throne,” is nonsense – God is not a throne, He is the one who sits on the throne! Also, “God is your throne,” if taken to mean God is the source of one’s rule, could be said about any angelic ruler – but Hebrews 1 is arguing that Jesus is superior to the angels.
      9. 2 Pet. 1:1. The same construction is used here as in Titus 2:13; see the parallel passage in 2 Pet. 1:112:203:218

        10.1 John 5:20. Note that the most obvious antecedent for “this” is Jesus Christ. Also note that the “eternal life” is Christ, as can be seen from 1:2.

    2. Jesus is Jehovah/Yahweh
      1. Rom. 10:9-13: Note the repeated “for,” which links these verses closely together. The “Lord” of 10:13 must be the “Lord” of 10:9, 12
      2. Phil. 2:9-11. In context, the “name that is above every name” is “Lord” (vs. 11), i.e., Jehovah
      3. Heb. 1:10: Here God the Father addresses the Son as “Lord,” in a quotation from Psa. 102:25 (cf. 102:24, where the person addressed is called “God”). Since here the Father addresses the Son as “Lord,” this cannot be explained away as a text in which a creature addresses Christ as God/ Lord in a merely representational sense
      4. 1 Pet. 2:34: This verse is nearly an exact quotation of Psa. 34:8a, where “Lord” is Jehovah. From 1 Pet. 2:4-8 it is also clear that “the Lord” in v. 3 is Jesus
      5. 1 Pet. 3:14-15: these verses are a clear reference to Isa. 8:12-13, where the one who is to be regarded as holy is Jehovah
      6. Texts where Jesus is spoken of as the “one Lord” (cf. Deut. 6:4Mark 12:29): 1 Cor. 8:6Eph. 4:5; cf. Rom. 10:121 Cor. 12:5
    3. Jesus has the titles of God
      1. Titles belonging only to God
        1. The first and the last: Rev. 1:1722:13; cf. Isa. 44:6
        2. King of kings and Lord of lords: 1 Tim. 6:15Rev. 17:1419:16
      2. Titles belong in the ultimate sense only to God

        a. Savior: Luke 2:11John 4:421 John 4:14Titus 2:13, cf. v. 10; etc.; cf. Isa. 43.1145:21-221 Tim 4:10; on Jesus becoming the source of salvation; Heb. 5:9, cf. Ex. 15:2Psa. 118:1421

        b. Shepherd: John 10:11Heb. 13:20; cf. Psa. 23:1Isa. 40:11

        c. Rock: 1 Cor. 10:4; cf. Isa. 44:8

    4. Jesus received the honors due to God alone
      1. Honor: John 5:23
      2. Love: Matt. 10:37
      3. Prayer: John 14:14 (text debated, but in any case it is Jesus who answers the prayer); Acts 7:59- 60 (cf. Luke 23:3446); Rom. 10:12-131 Cor. 1:22 Cor. 12:8-10 (where “the Lord” must be Jesus, cf. v. 9), etc.
      4. Worship (proskuneo): Matt. 28:17Heb. 1:6 (cf. Psa. 97:7); cf. Matt 4:10
      5. Religious or sacred service (latreuo): Rev. 22:13
      6. Faith: John 3:1614:1; etc.
    5. Jesus does the works of God

      1. Creation: John 1:31 Cor. 8:6Col. 1:16-17Heb. 1:2Rev. 3:14 (cf. 21:6 on “beginning”); on “through” and “in” cf. Rom. 11:36Heb. 2:10Acts 17:28; cf. also Isa. 44:24

      1. Sustains the universe: Col. 1:17Heb. 1:3
      2. Salvation:
        1. In General: See C.2.a above
        2. Forgives sins: Matt. 9:1-8Mark 2:1-12Luke 5:17-26; note that Jesus forgives sins not committed against Him.
      3. All of them: John 5:17-29 (including judgment, cf. Matt. 25:31-462 Cor. 5:10)
  1. Jesus has all the incommunicable attributes of God
    1. All of them: John 1:1Col. 1:152:9Heb. 1:3
    2. Self existent: John 5:26
    3. Unchangeable: Heb. 1:10-1213:8

      4. Eternal: John 1:18:5817:5Col. 1:17Heb. 1:2

      5. Omnipresent: Matt. 18:2028:20John 3:13Eph.1:234:10Col. 3:11

      6. Omniscient: John 16:3021:17; cf. 2:23-24

      7. Incomprehensible: Matt. 11:25-27

  2. Jesus is “equal with God”
    1. John 5:18: Although John is relating what the Jews understood Jesus to be claiming, the context shows they were basically right: In v. 17 claimed to be exempt from the Sabbath along with His Father, and in 5:19-29 Jesus claimed to do all of the world of the Father and to deserve the same honor as the Father
    2. Phil. 2:6: Jesus did not attempt to seize recognition by the world as being equal with God, but attained that recognition by humbling himself and being exalted by the Father (vv. 7-11)
  3. Jesus is the Son of God
    1. “Son” in Scripture can mean simply one possessing the nature of , whether literal or figurative (e.g. “Son of man,” “sons of thunder,” “sons of disobedience,” cf. Mark 3:7Eph. 2:1
    2. Usually when “son of” is used in relation to a person (son of man, son of Abraham, son of David, etc.) the son possesses the nature of his father
    3. Jesus is clearly not the literal Son of God, i.e.. He was not physically procreated by God
    4. On the other hand, Jesus is clearly the Son of God in a unique sense (cf. “only-begotten son,” John 1:143:16181 John 4:9) and in a preeminent sense (i.e. the term is more fitting for Him than for anyone else)
    5. Scripture is explicit that the Son possesses God’s essence or nature (cf. F. above)
    6. Jesus’ repeated claim to be the Son of God was consistently understood by the Jewish leaders as a blasphemous claim to equality with God, an understanding Jesus never denied: John 5:17-238:58-5910:30-3919:7Matt. 26:63-65
    7. Jesus is therefore God’s Son, not God’s creation, God’s servant, God’s agent, etc.; Jesus is God’s Son who became a servant for our sake and for the Father’s glory (John 13:13-1517:4Phil. 2:6-11Heb. 1:4-133:1-65:8; etc.)
  1. Objections
    1. Prov. 8:22: This text is not a literal description of Christ, but a poetic personification of wisdom (cf. all of Prov. 1-9, esp 8:12-21; 9:1-6), poetically saying that God “got” His wisdom before He did anything – i.e., that God has always had wisdom
    2. Col. 1:15: Does not mean that Christ is the first creature, since He is here presented as the Son and principal heir of the Father (cf. vv. 12-44); thus “firstborn” here means “heir” (cf. Gen. 43:3348;14- 20Ex. 4:221 Chron. 5:1-3Psa. 89:27Jer. 31:9); note that v. 16 speaks of the Son as the Creator, nor creature (cf. E.1. above)
    3. Rev. 3:14: “Beginning” (arche) in Rev. as a title means source or one who begins, i.e. Creator (cf. Rev. 1:821:622:13); elsewhere Christ is called the arche in the sense of “ruler,” Col. 1:18, cf. plural archai “rulers” in Col. 1:162:1015, also Luke 12:11Rom. 8:38Eph. 3:106:12Tit. 3:1; cf. Luke 20:20Jude 61 Cor. 15:24Eph. 1:21
    4. 1 Cor. 11:315:28: Jesus is still subordinate to God, but as the Son to the Father; i.e., they are equal in nature, but the Son is subordinate relationally to God
    5. John 20:17Rom. 15:61 Cor. 15:242 Cor. 1:3Rev. 1:63:12: Jesus calls the Father “My God” because He is still man as well as God; note the distinction between “My God” and “your God” in John 20:17 (i.e., Jesus never speaks of “our God” including Himself with the disciples)
    6. Mark 13:32: Jesus’ statement that He did not know the time of His return is to be explained by His voluntary acceptance of the humble form and likeness of a man (Phil. 2:7); in fact Jesus, as God, did know all things (John 16:30), and after His resurrection He does not including Himself as not knowing (Acts 1:6-7)
    7. Mark 10:17-18: Jesus does not deny being God, but simply tells the man that he has no business calling anyone “good” in an unqualified sense except God
    8. Heb. 5:14: Jesus was tempted, cf. James 1:13; but note that Jesus could not sin, John 5:19
    9. John 1:18: No one has seen God, but men have seen Jesus, e.g. 1 John 1:1-2; but note that no man can see the glorified Jesus either, 1 Tim. 6:16, and to see Jesus is to see the Father, John 14:9
    10. 1 Tim. 1:17: God cannot die, but Jesus did, e.g. Phil. 2:8; but note that no one could take Jesus’ life from Him, He could not remain dead, and He raised Himself: John 10:18Acts 2:24John 2:19-22
    11. 1 Cor. 8:6: Father called God, Jesus called Lord: but here “God” and “Lord” are synonymous (cf.

      v. 5; cf. also Rom. 14:3-12 for a good example of “God” and “Lord” as interchangeable); moreover, this text no more denies that Jesus is God than it does that the Father is Lord (Matt. 11:25); cf. Jude 4, where Jesus is the only Lord

    12. 1 Tim. 2:5: Jesus here supposedly distinct from God; but Jesus is also distinct from (fallen) men, yet is Himself a man; likewise Jesus is distinct from God (the Father), but is also God
    13. Deut. 4:1215-25; God not appear in a human form to Israel, lest they fall into idolatry; but this does not rule out His appearing in human form later after they had learned to abhor idolatry
    14. In many texts Jesus is distinguished from God: He is the Son of God, was sent by God, etc.; in all these texts “God” is used as a name for the person most commonly called God, i.e., the Father

VII – The Holy Spirit Is God

  1. Equated with God: Acts 5:3-42 Cor. 3:17-18
  2. Has the incommunicable attributes of God
    1. Eternal: Heb. 9:14
    2. Omnipresent: Psa. 139:7
    3. Omniscient: 1 Cor. 2:10-11
  3. Involved in all the works of God
    1. Creation: Gen. 1:2Psa. 104:30
    2. Incarnation: Matt. 1:1820Luke 1:35
    3. Resurrection: Rom. 1:48:11
    4. Salvation: Rom. 8:1-27
  4. Is a person
    1. Has a name: Matt. 28:19; note that even though “name” might be used of a non person, here, in conjunction with the Father and the Son, it must be used of a person
    2. Is the “Helper”
      1. Is another Helper: John 14:16, cf. 1 John 2:1; note also that “Helper” (parakletos) was used in Greek always or almost always of persons
      2. Is sent in Jesus’ name, to teach: John 14:26
      3. Will arrive, and then bear witness: John 15:26-27
      4. Is sent by Christ to convict of sin, will speak not on his own but on behalf of Christ, will glorify Christ, thus exhibiting humility: John 16:7-14
    3. Is the Holy Spirit, in contrast to unholy spirits: Mark 3:22-230, cf. Matt. 12:321 Tim. 4:11 John 3:24-4:6

4. Speaks, is quoted as speaking: John 16:13Acts 1:168:2910:1911:1213:216:620:23;

21:11: 28:25-27; 1 Tim. 4:1Heb. 3:7-1110:15-171 Pet. 1:11Rev. 2:71117293:613,22

  1. Can be lied to: Acts 5:3
  2. Can make decisions, judgments: Acts 15:28
  3. Intercedes for Christians with the Father: Rom. 8:26
  4. “Impersonal” language used of the Spirit paralleled by language used of other persons
    1. The Holy Spirit as fire: Matt. 3:11Luke 3:16; cf. Ex. 3:2-4Deut. 4:249:3Heb. 12:29
    2. The Holy Spirit poured out: Acts 2:1733; cf. Isa. 53:12Phil. 2:172 Tim. 4:6
    3. Being filled with the Holy Spirit: Eph. 5:18, etc.; cf. Eph. 3:171914:10 VIII – The Father, Son, And Holy Spirit Are Distinct Persons
  1. Matt. 28:19
    1. “the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit”: use of definite article before each personal noun indicates distinct persons unless explicitly stated otherwise; compare Rev. 1:172:826
    2. The views that “Father” and “Son” are distinct persons but not the Holy Spirit, or that the Holy Spirit is not a person at all, or that all three are different offices or roles of one person, are impossible in view of the grammar (together with the fact that in Scripture a “spirit” is a person unless context shows otherwise).
    3. Does singular “name” prove that the three are one person? No; cf. Gen. 5:211:1448:6; and esp. 48:16
    4. “Name” need not be personal name, may be title: Isa. 9:6Matt. 1:23. If a single personal name is sought, the name shared by all three persons is “Yahweh” or “Jehovah.”
  2. Acts 2:38 and Matt. 28:19
    1. Neither passage specifies that certain words are to be spoken during baptism; nor does the Bible ever record someone saying, “I baptize you in the name of….”
    2. Those said to be baptized in the name of Jesus (whether or not the formula “in the name of Jesus” was used) were people already familiar with the God of the OT:

      a. Jews: Acts 2:53822:16

      1. Samaritans: Acts 8:51216
      2. God fearing Gentiles: Acts 10:1-22248
      3. Disciples of John the Baptist: Acts 19:1-5
      4. The first Christians in Corinth were Jews and God fearing Gentiles: Acts 18:1-81 Cor. 1:13
    3. Trinitarian formula for baptism (if that is what Matt. 28:19 is) was given in context of commissioning apostles to take the gospel to “all the nations,” including people who did not know of the biblical God
  3. God the Father and the Son Jesus Christ are two persons

    1. The salutations: Rom. 1:71 Cor. 1:32 Cor. 1:2Gal. 1:3Eph. 1:26:23Phil. 1:21 Thess. 1:1;

    2 Thess. 1:121 Tim. 1:122 Tim. 1:2Tit. 1:4Phm. 3James 1:12 Pet. 1:22 John 3

    2. Two witnesses: John 5:31-328:16-18; cf. Num. 35:30Deut. 17:619:15

    1. The Father sent the Son: John 3:16-17Gal. 4:41 John 4:10; etc.; cf. John 1:617:1820:21
    2. The Father and the Son love each other: John 3:355:2014:3115:917-23-26; cf. Matt. 3:17 par.; 17:5 par.; 2 Pet. 1:17
    3. The Father speaks to the Son, and the Son speaks to the Father: John 11:41-4212:2817:1-26;
    4. The Father knows the Son, and the Son knows the Father: Matt. 11:27Luke 10:22John 7:29;

      8:55; 10:15

    5. Jesus our Advocate with the Father: 1 John 2:1
  4. Jesus is not God the Father
    1. Isa. 9:6: “Father of eternity” means eternal; compare other names formed with word “father”: Abialbon, “father of strength” = strong (2 Sam. 23:31); Abiasaph, “father of gathering” = gatherer (Ex. 6:24); Abigail, a woman’s name(!), “father of exultation” = exulting (1 Chron. 2:16)

      2. John 10:30

      1. Jesus did not say, “I am the Father,” nor did He say, “the Son and the Father are one person.”
      2. The first person plural esmen (“we are”) implies two persons
      3. The neuter word for “one” (hen) is used, implying essential unity but not personal unity (compare John 17:21-23).
        1. John 5:43: Jesus’ coming in His Father’s name means not that He was the Father because He had the Father’s name, but that, while others come in their own name (or their own authority), Jesus does not; He comes in His Father’s name (on His Father’s authority)
        2. John 8:1916:3: Ignorance of Jesus is indeed ignorance of the Father, but that does not prove that Jesus is the one He calls “My Father”

          5. John 14:6-11

          1. Jesus and the Father are one being, not one person
          2. Jesus said, “I am in the Father,” not “I am the Father”
          3. The statement, “the Father is in Me,” does not mean Jesus is the Father; compare John 14:2017:21-23
        1. John 14:18: An older adult brother can care for his younger siblings, thus preventing them from being “orphans,” without being their father
        2. Colossians 2:9: Does not mean that Jesus is the Father, or that Jesus is an incarnation of the Father; rather, since ‘Godhead’ (theotes) means Deity, the state of being God, the nature of God, Jesus is

          fully God, but not the only person who is God. “The Godhead” here does not = the Father (note that Jesus is in the Father, John 10:3814:101117:21), but the nature of the Father.

        3. The Father and the Son are both involved in various activities: raising Jesus (Gal. 1:1John 2:19- 22), raising the dead (John 5:21); 6:39-40, 44, 54, 1 Cor. 6:14), answering prayer (John 14:13-1415:1616:23), sending the Holy Spirit (John 14:1615:2616:7), drawing people to Jesus (John 6:4412:32), etc. These common works do prove that the two persons are both God, but not that Jesus is the Father
  5. The Son existed before His Incarnation, even before creation
    1. Prov. 30:4: This is not predictive prophecy; “prophecy” in 30:1 translates massa, which is rendered elsewhere as “burden.”
    2. The Son created all things: See VI.E.1
    3. Jesus was “with” (pros or para) God the Father before creation: John 1:117:5; pros in John 1:1 does not mean “pertaining to,” although is does in Hebrews 2:175:1 (which use pros with ta).
    4. Jesus, the Son of God, existed before John the Baptist (who was born before Jesus): John 1:15, cf. 1:14-1829-34
    5. Jesus, the Son, came down from heaven, sent from the Father, and went back to heaven, back to the Father: John 3:13316:333841465156-58628:234213:316:27-28; cf. Acts 1:10-11; cf. the sending of the Holy Spirit, John 16:5-71 Pet. 1:12
    6. Jesus, speaking as the Son (John 8:54-56), asserts His eternal preexistence before Abraham: John 8:58
    7. The Son explicitly said to exist “before all things”: Col. 1:17, cf. 1:12-20
    8. These statements cannot be dismissed as true only in God’s foreknowledge
      1. We are all in God’s min before creation; yet such passages as John 1:1and John 17:5 clearly mean to say something unusual about Christ.
      2. To say that all things were created through Christ means that He must have existed at creation.
      3. No one else in Scripture is ever said to have been with God before creation.
    9. Texts which speak of the Son being begotten “today” do not mean He became the Son on a certain day, since they refer to His exaltation at the resurrection (Acts 13:33Heb. 1:3-55:5; cf. Psa. 2:7; cf. also Rom. 1:4)
  6. Jesus is not the Holy Spirit
    1. The Holy Spirit is “another Comforter”: John 14:16; compare 1 John 2:1
    2. Jesus sent the Holy Spirit: John 15:2616:7
    3. The Holy Spirit exhibits humility in relation to, and seeks to glorify, Jesus (John 16:13-14)
    4. The Son and the Holy Spirit are distinguished as two persons in Matt. 28:19
    5. The Holy Spirit descende

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