Information Related to "Questions and Answers - Jan/Feb 2005"
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Question: Thank you for sending your Fundamental Beliefs booklet. I was intrigued by this statement on page 4: "The Holy Spirit of God is not identified as a third person in a trinity, but is consistently described as the power of God." What am I to infer from this statement?
A.C., Cornwall, England
Answer: Because so many have been taught erroneous concepts of the nature of God, it can be difficult to accept that the Bible does not teach the Trinity doctrine. Consider this admission in The Oxford Companion to the Bible, edited by Bruce Metzger and Michael Coogan, in its opening words under the entry "Trinity":
"Because the Trinity is such an important part of later Christian doctrine, it is striking that the term does not appear in the New Testament. Likewise, the developed concept of three coequal partners in the Godhead found in later creedal formulations cannot be clearly detected within the confines of the [New Testament] canon" (1993, pp. 782-783, emphasis added throughout).
The Holy Spirit is spoken of in many ways in the Bible that clearly demonstrate that it is not a divine person. For example, it is referred to as a gift (Acts 2:38; 1 Timothy 4:14). We are told that the Holy Spirit can be quenched (1 Thessalonians 5:19), and that it can be poured out (Acts 2:17). The Holy Spirit must be stirred up within us (2 Timothy 1:6), and it also renews us (Titus 3:5). These are certainly not the attributes of a person.
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Trinity: