23a.1 "When he had been baptized, Jesus came up immediately from the water; and behold, the heavens were opened to Him, and He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting upon Him. And suddenly a voice came from heaven, saying, "This is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased." Matthew 3:16
This verse tells us that all three persons of the Trinity were present at Jesus' baptism in ways that people could see, or hear. When Jesus, (God the Son), came up out of the water, God the Father spoke from heaven saying, "This is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased." and God the Spirit came down like a dove. This proves that God is three persons, yet they are only one God.
23a.2 There are two words in Hebrew which could be translated as the English word "one".
achad means "one made up of parts"
yashid means "one" (without being made up of parts)
23a.3 Deuteronomy 6:4-5 says,
"Hear O Israel: The Lord our God, (Elohim), is one (achad) Lord: And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might."
Deuteronomy 6:4-5
Ancient Hebrews believed that these verses were the summary of the law, (the Word of God). They wrote them on the posts of their houses and on their gates, and also wrote them in little leather pouches tied to their wrists and bound them in a pouch tied around their foreheads. Every Hebrew memorized these verses. Every Hebrew knew that the Lord their God was one (achad) Lord. The Lord their God was one Lord, (made up of parts).
23a.4 One of the Hebrew words for God was "Elohim" which means "God", but the word itself is plural.
23a.5 This one God in three persons created the world at the beginning. As the Bible says,
"In the beginning God, (Elohim), created the heaven and the earth. And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters. And God said, Let there be light: and there was light." Genesis 1:1-3
note: In this verse we see the trinity, here's why...
The Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters, and God the Father, spoke the Word, (which was Christ). And that is how the world was made. The apostle John tells us that...
"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by him; and without him was not anything made that was made." John 1:1-3
and that
"The Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us." John 1:14
Jesus is the Word. He was the Word that made all things. He became a man and lived among us. And He is the one who taught us about God.
23a.6 Scholars look for places in the Bible where God is mentioned as Father, Son and Holy Spirit, all in the same passage. There are some passages like that in the Old Testament. Here is one of them...
Behold! My Servant whom I uphold, My Elect One in whom My soul delights! I have put My Spirit upon Him; He will bring forth justice to the Gentiles. He will not cry out, nor raise His voice, nor cause His voice to be heard in the street. A bruised reed he will not break, and smoking flax He will not quench. (Isaiah 42:1-2) [Matthew 12:18-20]
23a.7 The apostles received their doctrine from the Lord Jesus Christ himself. Jesus taught them about the Trinity. On the night of the Last Supper, as they were gathered in the upper room, Jesus said,
"If a man loves me, he will keep my words; and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him. He that does not love me does not keep my sayings, and the word which you hear is not mine, but the Father's which sent me. These things have I spoken unto you , being yet present with you. But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said to you."
John 14:23-26
Here we see the three persons of the Trinity as distinct from each other yet acting as one, because they are one. All three of them love us, and are actively involved together in our redemption and salvation.
23a.8 The Bible says that we are..
"Elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through sanctification of the Spirit, unto obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ." I Peter 1:2
23a.9 God is one, but He exists in three persons, who act together in unity. God the Father chose us from before the foundation of the world to be His. He sent his Son, Jesus, into the world to buy us back to God, with His blood, by dying for us. The Holy Spirit is the one who leads us to faith in Christ, then sanctifies us as we grow in Christ. So there are three persons in the Trinity, yet all three of them are one. They are God.
23a.10 When Jesus ascended into heaven he gave the Disciples one last commandment. He said,
"Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world." Matthew 28:19-20
23a.11 But after the apostles died there were false teachers who came into the Church and tried to lead the people away. They taught that Jesus was not God, and they spoke against the Trinity. For this reason the Church had a big meeting called a "council" and wrote the statement of faith we know today as "The Apostle's Creed."
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