Truth or Trinity: Are the Father and Son “Co-Equal?”
Many people in Christianity claim that the Trinity is one of the most important and fundamental principles of Christian doctrine. While there are many trinitarian beliefs with subtle differences, most claim that God exists as three separate entities who are equal in authority and coeternal (all three existed eternally), but also somehow unified as one divine being. Church authorities often use analogies like an egg to clarify this particular topic. The yoke, shell, and egg white are the three components that make up one egg.
Although we have a multitude of descriptions of the trinitarian doctrine given to us by the leaders in churches, the word Trinity does not appear in the Bible and the origin of this word began many years after Christ and the apostles. The trinity began with an early Christian church writer named Tertullian, who live between 160-225 CE.
Tertullian believed in a triad God, a theory of the nature of God influenced by Tertullian’s philosophical background. Tertullian believed that objects and things were material. Whereas God is spirit which is a finer sort of material. Tertullian believed God was alone at the beginning before creation. Then, without subtracting any portion of His own spirit, God brings forth the Son from himself just before He creates all things. Then the Son brings forth the Spirit using a portion of the divine essence that was shared with him. The Son and the Spirit are the agents of the Father in creation and governance.
In Tertullian’s worldview, the Son is not God the Father nor is he equal with God. In his theory, God is not the same person but, rather, made of the same material or “tripersonal portions of matter”. Tertullian argued that there was only one God above all, God the Father. He also argues that the Son, the Spirit, and the Father are all separate beings and are not equally divine. God the Father is the ultimate source of all things. Around 300 CE debates began to break out as to whether or not Jesus’ existence was eternal, and therefore, not created by God the Father (Tuggy, 2020).
Some who are Trinitarians will say “Unless you believe the Father, the Son, and Holy Spirit are one, you cannot be saved”. If this argument is true, then understanding the nature of God can have severe consequences. However, this brings up another question: what about those who lived thousands of years before Jesus became a man? Are they not saved? Instead of relying on philosophical arguments, let’s allow the Bible to define the characteristics and divine nature of the Son, Father, and Holy Spirit.
Are the Son and the Father Equal?
John 5:18-23
18 Therefore the Jews sought all the more to kill Him, because He not only broke the Sabbath but also said that God was His Father, making Himself equal with God.
(Jesus tells us elsewhere that it is good to do good on the Sabbath. He was not breaking the laws God set forth for the Sabbath. Jesus was going against the Pharisaical laws; laws that are not found in the commands of God. Jesus’ statement may have indicated to the Pharisees that he thought himself to be equal to God. However, Jesus has never stated he was on equal footing with God the Father. In fact, the opposite is true, as we will see further on in Philippians 2).
19 Then Jesus answered and said to them, "Most assuredly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of Himself, but what He sees the Father do; for whatever He does, the Son also does in like manner.
20 For the Father loves the Son, and shows Him all things that He Himself does; and He will show Him greater works than these, that you may marvel.
21 For as the Father raises the dead and gives life to them, even so, the Son gives life to whom He will.
22 For the Father judges no one, but has committed all judgment to the Son,
23 that all should honor the Son just as they honor the Father. He who does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent Him.
24 "Most assuredly, I say to you, he who hears My word and believes in Him who sent Me has everlasting life, and shall not come into judgment, but has passed from death into life.
Jesus responded to the accusations of the Pharisees by explaining that the relationship between Him and the Father was not equality, but rather one of perfect harmony and unity. Jesus said that He could do nothing of Himself. He is explaining that the Father is the one who gives the authority to judge and give life.
This passage is often interpreted as evidence of the Trinity, with Jesus claiming to be equal with the Father in the divine authority and nature. Jesus addresses this misunderstanding by acknowledging that He is subservient to the Father's will and that His actions are in perfect alignment with the Father's. Overall, the passage emphasizes the unity and harmony between the Father and the Son, while also emphasizing the distinct roles that each of them plays in the divine plan.
Philippians 2:5-11
5 Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus,
6 who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God,
7 but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men.
8 And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross.
9 Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name,
10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth,
11 and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
This does not say that Jesus is equal in authority to God. On the contrary, confessing Jesus Christ is Lord is to the glory of God the Father.
Another translation for verse 6: “Who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped.” Meaning he did not seek to be equal with God the Father but, instead, humbled himself to the point of death. Afterward, the confession of Jesus as Lord is to the glory of God the Father. Jesus was obedient to God the Father to the point of death. The Father is the one who exalted Jesus and gave him authority and a name above every other name.
Jesus is given a name above every name under the authority of the Father. Exodus 4:16 is a perfect example of how authority is given to someone by God, representing His authority.
“And he shall speak for you to the people, and he shall be as your mouth, while you shall be to him as God (Elohim)”—Exodus 4:16. Moses was not literally God the Father; however, to Pharoah Moses’s words were the words God Himself had him speak on behalf of God’s authority. This is one example of the principle of agency — acting on behalf of the Father’s will.
Matthew 28:16-20
16 Then the eleven disciples went away into Galilee, to the mountain which Jesus had appointed for them.
17 When they saw Him, they worshiped Him; but some doubted.
18 And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, "All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth.
19 Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,
20 teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age." Amen.
This is the same basic principle of agency that we saw in Exodus 4:16. Authority is given to Jesus from the Father. Everything Jesus does is in synch with the Father’s will to glorify the Father. As we saw in John 5:19: “The Son can do nothing of himself”, but only the will of the Father (John 5:30) — This is true because Jesus chooses to act on the Father’s behalf.
Reference
Tuggy, D. (2020). Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, History of Trinitarian Doctrines. Trinity > History of Trinitarian Doctrines (Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy