Knowing the Mysterious Triune God
Sunday Seminary—4
Know What You Believe. Believe What You Know.
God exists. You can know him through creation, preservation, and governance of the world, but most fully through his Word.
Yet this knowable God is also mysterious. This is part of what makes him God! We can only know him as he reveals himself. What he reveals is that he alone is God; that he is singular; and most mysteriously, that he exists as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
We continue our “Sunday Seminary” series with the Belgic Confession, articles 8–11, and our theme: knowing the mysterious Triune God.
A Definition
Let’s begin deductively with a definition, then explore why. Belgic Confession, article 8 states:
We believe in one God, who is one single essence, in whom there are three persons, really, truly, and eternally distinct according to their incommunicable properties—namely, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
There is one “what”—or essence—of God, existing as three “whos”—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. These distinctions are real, true, and eternal, each with incommunicable properties:
The Father is the cause, origin, and source of all things.
The Son is the Word, the Wisdom, and the image of the Father.
The Holy Spirit is the eternal power and might, proceeding from the Father and the Son.
This “threeness” does not mean three gods. The three persons are distinct yet one in essence, equal from eternity, without first or last. Gregory Nazianzen described it well:
No sooner do I conceive of the one than I am illumined by the splendor of the three; no sooner do I distinguish them than I am carried back to the one…When I contemplate the three together, I see but one torch, and cannot divide or measure out the undivided light.
“Holy, Holy, Holy!” by Reginald Heber (1783–1826)
A Defense
How do we defend this biblically? The Old Testament hints at it subtly, the New Testament reveals it clearly. In Genesis, God says, “Let us make man in our image” (1:26) and, after the Fall, “Behold, man has become like one of us” (3:22). The plurality within the Godhead is implied, though not yet fully explained.
In the New Testament, the mystery unfolds: the angel Gabriel tells Mary, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you…therefore that holy one shall be called the Son of God” (Luke 1:35). At Jesus’ baptism, the Father speaks, the Son is visible, and the Spirit descends like a dove (Matt. 3:17). Jesus commands baptism “in the name [singular] of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit” (Matt. 28:19). Paul’s benediction confirms it: “The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you” (2 Cor. 13:14).
Revelation 1:4–8 shows the same: grace and peace come from the Father (“him who is and who was and who is to come”), the Spirit (“the seven spirits before his throne”), and Jesus Christ (“the faithful witness, firstborn of the dead, ruler of kings”). Even in divine titles and actions, each Person participates in the giving of grace and peace.
Application
Adore this mystery that is beyond your human comprehension.
Apprehend it by faith now through the witness of the Word.
Anticipate fuller knowledge of it in eternity, when the mystery will be revealed in perfection.
Putting It Together
Our learning objectives for knowing the mysterious Triune God are the three as before mentioned:
Know what you believe: God is one “what” or essence; God is three “whos” or persons.
Know why you believe: Scripture progressively reveals this truth from Old to New Testament.
Know how to defend and share what you believe: Turn to the prophets and apostles then utilize the historic creeds of the church.
You can know and love the mysterious Triune God.