THE TRINITY AND CREATION1
Dr. Paul Manuel—2006
The standard trinitarian formulation describes God as three persons in one essence, co-equal and co-eternal.2 When the Bible mentions them together, they are distinct individuals yet having the same status (i.e., deity).
Matt 28:19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,
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.This is most clearly stated with the person of Jesus, who identifies himself with the Father.
John 10:30 I and the Father are one.The predicate nominative is literally “one thing,” not the same person—they are distinct personalities—but the same substance (“god stuff”). As John writes,
John 1:1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.The Father and the Son are separate individuals, but they consist of the same material, they possess the same qualities, and they pursue the same agenda.3 Despite their similar make-up, Father and Son do not have the same role. Jesus became subject to the Father in order to fulfill his redemptive mission.4
Phil 2:6 [Jesus], being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, 7 but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. 8 And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death—even death on a cross!Likewise, the Holy Spirit’s activity is also subject to the Father’s direction.5
2 Cor 5:5 Now it is God who has made us for this very purpose and has given us the Spirit as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come.References to deity in the Old Testament are to the Father mainly, to the Spirit occasionally, and to the Son rarely (only in messianic prophecy).6 At creation, the primary actor is God the Father, the LORD.7
Exod 20:11a For in six days the LORD made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them….That this is the Father and not the Son is clearest in New Testament passages mentioning both of them but attributing creation only to the former.
Acts 4:24b “Sovereign Lord,” they said, “you made the heaven and the earth and the sea, and everything in them…. 27 Indeed Herod and Pontius Pilate met together with the Gentiles and the people of Israel in this city to conspire against your holy servant Jesus, whom you anointed.
Acts 17:24 The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth…. 31 For he has set a day when he will judge the world with justice by the man he has appointed. He has given proof of this to all men by raising him from the dead.
Heb 2:10 In bringing many sons to glory, it was fitting that God, for whom and through whom everything exists, should make the author of their salvation perfect through suffering.
Rev 4:10a the twenty-four elders fall down before him who sits on the throne, and worship him who lives for ever and ever…. 11 You are worthy, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they were created and have their being…. 5:6a Then I saw a Lamb, looking as if it had been slain…. 7 He came and took the scroll from the right hand of him who sat on the throne.There are a few passages that speak about the Son’s involvement in creation.8
John 1:2 He was with God in the beginning. 3 Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made…. 10 …though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him.
Col 1:16 For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him.
Heb 1:2 but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom he made the universe.Because the vast majority of texts mention only the Father, though, Jesus may have been acting in submission to the Father, as he also would later.9
John 14:31c I do exactly what my Father has commanded me.In any case, most biblical passages about creation identify the most responsible party as God the Father.10
For the Bibliography and Endnotes, see the pdf here.
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Jim Skaggs