to turn to the book of Matthew. I'm actually going to read three passages, all of which are proof texts that are cited in our confession for the doctrine of the Trinity. And the first one I want to read is from Matthew 28. This is one that you're familiar with, perhaps. It's from the so-called Great Commission, among the last words recorded, spoken by Jesus to disciples. Matthew 28, verse 19. Go ye, therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost, or the Holy Spirit. So there it is, explicitly stated, the Father, the Son, the Holy Spirit. That's one of our proof texts for the doctrine of the Trinity. The second proof text that I would call to your attention for the time being is from the book of 2 Corinthians. 2 Corinthians chapter 3. Oops, that must not be the right one. Let's try 1314. That's right. I had it written wrong. That's right. I should know this. It's our benediction. We often use second Corinthians 1314. We were using this more recently. We've been using the ending of Jude, but the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the communion of the Holy Ghost be with you all, amen. And there, although it's not in the order, Father, Son, Holy Spirit, the three persons of the Godhead are mentioned, the Lord Jesus Christ, the Son, the love of God, the Father, the communion of the Holy Ghost, the Spirit. And then finally, from 1 John chapter five, verse seven, First John chapter five, verse seven. And I'll say something about this a little bit later on, but this is a well-known passage because it's one of the most disputed verses in the entire Bible. It's called sometimes the Coma Yohaneum, or the Johannine Coma. or we might call it just the Johannine Statement. And in verse 7, I'm going to read in addition to verse 7 also verse 8. For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost. And these three are one, and there are three that bear witness in earth, the spirit and the water and the blood, and these three agree in one. So obviously in verse seven, where it says the father, the word, and the Holy Spirit would be another place where we have explicit reference to father, son, and Holy Spirit. I say this is one of those disputed passages. If you have a modern translation of the Bible, NIV, ESV, That verse is omitted in those versions. But it's there in King James Version, New King James Version, Geneva Bible, translations based on what we call the traditional text. But it was the framers of our confession, 1689, they accept this as the word of God and they see it as a proof text for the doctrine of the Trinity. The doctrine of the Trinity isn't completely hanging on that footnote. on that proof text because there are many other passages, there's a whole constellation of passages of which Matthew 28, 19 and 2 Corinthians 13, 14 would be two ornaments in that constellation of arguments. But 1 John 5-7 will be one of those as well. So we turn now to look at our continuance, our continuing journey through the Confession. And we are continuing to look at Chapter 2, which has the title of God and of the Holy Trinity. And we're at paragraph three, paragraph three. So I'm going to read this paragraph aloud. And this is where the doctrine of the Trinity is articulated. It says, in this divine and infinite being, there are three subsistences. the Father, the Word, or Son, and Holy Spirit of one substance, power, and eternity, each having the whole divine essence, yet the essence undivided. The Father is of none, neither begotten nor proceeding. The Son is eternally begotten of the Father. The Holy Spirit proceeding from the Father and the Son. all infinite, without beginning, therefore, but one God, who is not to be divided in nature and being, but distinguished by several peculiar relative properties and personal relations, which doctrine of the Trinity is the foundation of all our communion with God and comfortable dependence on Him. So this is, again, the capstone, really, of the second chapter, the climactic paragraph, when it talks about God being one God. As Christians, we are monotheists. We believe in one God. But we also believe the Bible teaches that this one God is in three persons, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. So I want to review briefly the paragraph, and I want to point to some of the proof texts we haven't read that are cited. And then I want to just make four observations about the doctrine of the Trinity. So if we just walk through this paragraph a little bit, there is articulated here, the doctrine of the Trinity, that there is a God, that this God is a divine and infinite being. And there are three subsistences is the word that it uses. There are three subsistences in this one divine being. And the three subsistences are the father. And with the second person, it's referred to, the second person referred to as the word or the son. And it's taking word directly from 1 John 5, 7. and the Holy Spirit. Now, so there's one God and three subsistences, and it says that the three persons or subsistences of God are equal. It says that they are equal in substance, power, and eternity. Our Baptist catechism teaches that the three persons of the Godhead are equal in essence, power, and glory. Each have the whole divine essence, and yet the divine essence is undivided. There's no division. They're not three gods. It's one essence, undivided, yet three persons. And we can add to the proof text that we've already read several others that are cited. And we'll look at those. Exodus chapter 3, verse 14. This is from when God revealed himself to Moses at the burning bush. And God spoke out of that bush that was burning but wasn't consumed. And it says, And God said unto Moses, I am that I am. And he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the Children of Israel, I am have sent me unto you. And then it cites from the Gospel of John. And there are many passages that could be cited from John, because John has much language about the oneness of the Father with the Son and the internal harmony of the Godhead. But in John 14 and verse 11, one of the proof texts, it says, Jesus says, believe that I am in the Father and the Father in me, or else believe me for the very work's sake. But it's that first part of that, believe me that I am in the Father and the Father in me. And then the final one for this section is 1 Corinthians chapter 8 and verse 6, 1 Corinthians 8, 6. wherein we have Paul. Now think about this, Paul is a monotheistic Jew before he becomes a Christian. He still believes in the same God, the Bible, the Old Testament, and yet he also believes that Jesus is Lord. And so he says in verse 6, But to us there is but one God, the Father, of whom are all things, and we in Him, and one Lord, Jesus Christ, by whom are all things, and we by Him. Notice the paralleling of that. He says the same thing of Jesus as he says of God. We know there's one God, the Father, of whom are all things, and we in Him. And there's one Lord, Jesus Christ, by whom are all things, and we by Him. So the same things that can be said of God the Father can be said of the Lord Jesus Christ, God the Son. So going back then to the confessions, we continue to flow it a little bit. The framers then lay out, the framers of our confession then lay out the distinctives of each person of the Godhead. And it says this, it says, the father is of none, neither begotten nor preceding. The son is eternally begotten of the father. the Holy Spirit proceeding from the Father and the Son. And it gives us some more proof texts when it talks about the Son. We're given two proof texts from the Gospel of John when it says that the Son is eternally begotten of the Father. We have John 1.14, and the Word was made flesh and dwelt among us and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father. full of grace and truth, or verse 18, no man hath seen God at any time. The only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, He hath declared Him. And so what the authors are saying is, when God the Father is described in the Bible, He is described as of none, that is, there's no Creator who created the Creator. God has always been. No one made God or made Him up. You know, the ancient Greeks believed in gods that could be created by other gods, but no, God is of none. He's neither begotten nor proceeding, but when Jesus is described, when the second person of the Godhead, first of all, he's described as being incarnate in Jesus of Nazareth, a man, and he's described furthermore as, even before the incarnation, he is the only begotten of the Father. And then thirdly, we have the descriptions of the spirit. And the key word for the spirit is proceeding. So the key word for the father is, he just exists, he is. The key word for the son is begotten of the father. The key word for the spirit is procession, proceeding from the father and the son. And the proof text for this is John chapter 14 and verse 15 and verse 26, which says, Jesus says, but when the Comforter is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the Father, he shall testify of me. That's the proof text. It says the Holy Spirit proceeds from the Father and the Son. Now that's a very important verse. And some of you may remember, I pointed this out. This is a way in which we differ from Eastern Orthodoxy. The Eastern Orthodox churches split from the Western churches over the question of the procession of the Holy Spirit. and they hold that the spirit proceeds just from the father and not from the father and the son. I'm not sure what they do with this verse, verse 26 of John 15, because it seems explicitly to say that the spirit proceeds from the father and the son. And then another proof text that's given here for this verse is Galatians chapter four and verse six. which says, and because ye are sons, God hath sent forth the spirit of his son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father. Simply saying that God has sent forth the spirit. And of course, by God, based on scripture, interpreting scripture, John 15, 26, we would say that means God, the Father and God, the Son. Now, when you hear this language, the Father is, the Son is eternally begotten, the Spirit proceeds. You might begin to think, well, is this sort of in a chronological order? First there was God, then he created the Son, then they both mutually created the Spirit. Is it a procession like, is it a sequence like that? And the biblical teaching is, no, it's not like that. This has always been who God is. From everlasting to everlasting, thou art God. God has always been Father, Son, Holy Spirit. The Father has always been ruling, commanding, majestic in His essence. The Son has always been begotten of the Father and giving all glory to the Father. And the Spirit has always been proceeding from the harmonious communion of the Father and the Son. And so in the confession, it continues and says, of these three persons of the Godhead, all infinite, without beginning, therefore but one God, who is not to be divided in nature and being, but distinguished by several peculiar relative properties and personal relations. And so that's it, one God without division, yet in distinct persons. And so, and those distinct persons have distinct works that they do. We can think about salvation. How is salvation achieved? Well, God the Father decrees salvation. God the Son takes on flesh and goes to the cross and lays down his life for sinners and accomplishes redemption. And then God, the Holy Spirit, applies the redemption purchased by Christ through the miracle of regeneration and saves dead sinners and brings them to spiritual life. Salvation requires a triune God. And so that is our view. The last statement in the confession is this. Kind of a summary statement. Which doctrine of the Trinity is the foundation of all our communion with God and comfortable dependence on Him? So we've walked through this paragraph. And I want to, again, as I said, share with you just four further thoughts as we reflect on the doctrine of the Trinity. First thought. What would you do if someone came up to you and said, or you're having a conversation and they say, you believe in the Trinity? Well, that's not in the Bible. That term is not in the Bible. I can't find the word Trinity in the Bible. How would you respond to that? Well, we would say, yes, if you take a concordance and you look up the word Trinity, you will not find the word explicitly, the word Trinity in the Bible. and a lot of cults use that as an excuse for rejecting the Trinity. Almost always if you see somebody start saying, well I can't find that word in the Bible, and I want to be holy biblical, usually they're involved in some sort of cult, heterodox belief, and really what they're trying to do is deny not the word Trinity, but the concept that is underneath it. No, the word isn't there, But we have many terms that articulate right doctrine that are terms that are not explicitly found in the Bible. But what's important is not whether the term is explicitly found, but whether the term accurately represents biblical thought and ideas. So let's take the doctrine of the incarnation. That word incarnation is nowhere found in the Bible. But all Christians agree that it's a term, it's an extra biblical term, that accurately describes John 1.14. The word became flesh and dwelt among us. The Trinity is just, that word Trinity is just like the word incarnation. It simply is a label that we put on a biblical idea. And the biblical idea is there is one God, Hear O Israel, the Lord your God, the Lord is one. And also the biblical truth that the Bible says, God the Father is God, the Lord Jesus Christ is God. 1st Timothy 3.16, God was manifested in the flesh and the Holy Spirit is God. It's simply a term. that states what the Bible teaches, an umbrella term that describes what the Bible teaches about God. So it's a conclusion based on biblical and rational deduction. Second thought to share with you about the doctrine of the Trinity. The doctrine of the Trinity is not tri-theism. What is tritheism? That term means, tritheism means the belief in three gods. And some people grossly misunderstand the doctrine of the Trinity. Even people who sit in pews of evangelical churches don't really understand the doctrine of the Trinity, and you will hear inappropriate explanations and descriptions. It's not that we believe in three gods. It's not that we believe there's a father god, a son god, and a spirit god. Also, people outside of Christianity often grossly misrepresent Christianity, and Islam is an example of this. We've said this before. The writer of the Koran, whether it was Muhammad or someone else, did not understand Christianity. And there's a surah in the Koran where the author says, say not three. Actually, when you read the Koran, it seems like the author of the Koran thought that Christians worshipped God, Jesus, and Mary. Probably because, unfortunately, in the Arabian Peninsula at that time, there were Christians there, but many of them had gotten into Mariology. And they had gone into the heresy of attracting and giving too much attention and adoration and veneration to Mary. And we see what the effect is of a bad witness for Christ. So these polytheistic Arabs like Muhammad see these Christians who are giving lots of attention to Mary, and they say, ah, these Christians are polytheists like the other Arab tribes are, except they just have three gods, God the Father, Jesus and Mary. But the author of the Quran didn't understand Christianity. And sometimes, I've said this before, you'll hear Muslim apologists, they'll say, you Christians can't do math. You know, one plus one plus one equals three. You have three gods. You worship God the Father and Jesus and the Holy Spirit. And you may know the Christian apologist says, no, you're mistaken. It's not one plus one plus one equals three, but one times one times one equals one. We believe in one God in three persons, the Father, the Son, and the Spirit. Third observation, the biblical doctrine of the Trinity is also not modalism. And this is another, this was another heresy that plagued early Christianity, was rejected as being unbiblical. It's called modalism. It comes from the word mode. And there was a fellow who taught this, his name was Sibelius. And it's, you'll sometimes hear it described as Sibelianism. And modalism is the idea that there's one God, but he, and you'll have to hear the word manifest, he manifests himself in different ways. He manifests himself as the father, he manifests himself as the son, he manifests himself as the Holy Spirit. This is modalism because it's saying there's one God, but He's only the Father at a particular time. He's only the Son at a particular time, and He's only the Spirit. There's a modern denomination called oneness Pentecostalism. They believe this. And what they believe is in the Old Testament, God was the Father. During the time Jesus was here on earth, God was the Son. He ceased to be the Father, and He wasn't the Spirit. He was the Son. And now, that Jesus is ascended, that God is the spirit. They're Pentecostals, right? They're charismatics. And so God is now experienced not as the father, not as the son, but as the spirit. And again, one that's Pentecostals, T.D. Jakes. who's a popular television preacher, which sadly many evangelicals listen to him, and you'll even find his books on some Christian bookstores. He is a one-miss Pentecostal who denies the Trinity. So he denies biblical teaching and he should not be promoted, supported, his book should not be bought, read by people who are Christians. We have to be careful, by the way, with analogies that we use for the Trinity. Have you ever heard anybody say, well, we believe the Trinity is just like water, right? You can take water and you can put it in the freezer and water can be in a solid state and then it can also be in a liquid state and it can also be steam, right? And so, have you ever heard anybody try to explain the Trinity? Well, that's a modalistic analogy. That analogy does not match up because water cannot be at one time solid, liquid, and in a gaseous state. It can't at one time, but that's what we say is true about the biblical account of God. God is one God, and he is always Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, undivided, one God, undivided. Fourth observation, the doctrine of the Trinity is a foundational test of Christian orthodoxy. And this is summed up again in that final sentence, which doctrine of the Trinity is the foundation of all our communion with God and comfortable dependence on him. This is a very simple test for those of us who are Christians. If you ever move away and you're looking for a church, or if you go to college, or you get in a Bible study group, any parachurch ministry that you think is doing some good, and you're thinking about getting involved, you think about supporting them in some way, one of the questions you should always ask is, do you affirm the Trinity? do you affirm the Trinity? It's a basic question. Anybody who's a preacher of the gospel, do you affirm the Trinity? If they waver on that, if they wobble on that, that's not a church you should be involved in. That's not a parachurch ministry you should be involved in. That's not a teacher you should be listening to. If they don't confidently immediately affirm their belief in the doctrine of the Trinity. So it's a doctrine that has developed to provide us an immediate litmus test. An immediate litmus test. Now it's not the final one. Because somebody might say, they might be somebody from a mainline church or something like that, and they might say, yes, we hold to the Apostle's Creed and we believe in Trinity. But it's not the ultimate and the only litmus test, but it's a good initial one. You can ask that right up front. And you can also, there's a book written by a fellow named Don Whitney a couple years ago, and I think it's called Spiritual Disciplines Within the Christian Life, or maybe Spiritual Disciplines Within the Church, and it gives you a nice list of about 30 questions you ought to ask when you go to a church. And that's one of the questions on there is, do you affirm the Trinity? Some churches even give themselves the name. Trinity Church, Trinity Baptist Church. You gotta be careful with that because there was a, I guess it's still on the air, I have no idea, the Trinity Broadcasting Network, which had apostate teachers on it and false doctrine, and so sometimes something could be falsely labeled, just like you could put the label sugar on a canister of pepper and it doesn't make the pepper sugar, does it? But at any rate, Churches often put that name on it in order to advertise we uphold Orthodox Christianity. And again, it's a helpful foundational test for Christian Orthodoxy. So we believe in one God, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen? Let me invite you to stand together. Let's prepare our hearts for coming to the Lord's table, and let me invite you to join with me in prayer.