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When theologians speak of the persons within the Godhead, they refer to the individual beings (or deities) who share the traits and nature of God. However, the question is: are there multiple persons within the Godhead, and does the Bible support this?

The short answer is yes, but there’s a more nuanced answer here. 

While I believe in the Trinity, it’s difficult to ‘prove’ the Trinity without first defining the word ‘person’ and showing three distinct persons who operate in unison, but are not the same beings. 

We have to prove only two things:

• These three persons have the eleven qualities described above under the nature of God
• There are three persons who are distinct from each other and are easily identified in Scripture

What Makes a Person?

So, what is a person?

Etymologically, the word ‘person’ comes from the Latin word ‘persona’, which generally referred to an actor’s mask. In other words, this word was used to describe a character or role in a play. The word person started to refer to a human in the early 13th century. 

Merriam-Webster’s main definition of person refers to a human being, but we know that God is not a human being. So, what else could person mean?

The dictionary includes one for the Trinitarian doctrine as one of ‘three modes’, but it is incorrect to use the term ‘mode’ to describe the persons within the Godhead. 

Another meaning is a legal term: one recognized by law as the subject of rights and duties. 

The other word used to describe a person is that of an individual, which means a particular being or thing as distinguished from a class, species, or collection, or a single organism as distinguished from a group. 

Other words that can be used for person are: 

• Entity: Something that has a separate and distinct existence and objective or conceptual reality
• Being: The quality or state of having existence, existing, or the qualities that constitute an existent thing

Expressions of a Person

Any being with the ability to express themselves within the concept of emotions, duties, desires, choices, and will constitutes as a person.

A person is the subject of rights and duties. A person is distinguished in their class. And a person has a separate and distinct existence, forming an independent concept of reality and awareness.  

Humans as ‘Persons’

Humanity refers to the nature of a being who falls within a specific class. The persons in this class share the nature of humanity, but they experience their realities and awareness independently of one another.

Human nature is confined to a physical body, and persons who are human adhere to it. However, personalities are unique to each individual and shaped by human nature. 

A person has unique traits that they develop based on the structural traits of their nature. For example, for humans, our nature is confined to that of our physical bodies. We need to eat, sleep, and communicate. This is a part of our nature. Our personalities, while uniquely our own, are also shaped by our inherent human nature. 

God as ‘Persons’

Is it true to say there are three Gods? The short answer is no. The first three attributes of God imply that there can be only one God. The essence of God allows for only one nature: species-unique. 

• Eternal and Timeless: If someone is timeless and eternal, then it means they’re present at all times
• Omnipresent: Being present at all times means existing everywhere, in every area. If another ‘thing’ were to exist, then it would cancel the fact that omnipresence is a defining trait or nature of this individual.
• Ethereal and Non-material: For an individual to be omnipresent and eternal, they cannot be made of any material substance. Thus, they would be non-created.

However, within the nature of God, there are three separate and distinct persons, and the Bible highlights that each being in the Godhead has distinct roles and expresses their awareness independently of each other. However, as God is eternal, omnipresent, and ethereal, God (and neither are these persons) is limited to the construct of a physical body. 

Unlike human beings, who are limited to their own bodies, God is not limited to a body; thus, the three persons within the Godhead operate as one, with no distinction in physical bodies (as in humans), but rather distinctions in their roles and duties. 

The Makeup of Personhood

For anything to be a ‘person’, it has to have these things:

• Emotion
• Duty
• Desire
• Choice
• Will

Emotion

An emotion is a conscious awareness of the senses and feelings, and its impact on one’s mind. The emotion draws attention to one’s ability to sense feelings and respond to those feelings. A person’s emotions give way to cognitive sentience. 

Emotions can be influenced by external stimuli such as sight, sound, touch, taste, or smell. However, it can also be influenced by relationships, mental stimuli, actions, and core beliefs. 

Desire

A desire is a feeling that gravitates toward personal pleasure. One would often pursue this feeling of pleasure based on their emotions. 

Duty

A duty is work done out of necessity and obligation. A person is one who can conduct themselves with respect to their duty regardless of their emotions or desire. 

Choice

A choice is the conscious decision to act or operate based on the circumstances around one. In other words, choice allows a person to form core beliefs by evaluating their options and carefully considering them in relation to their emotions, desires, and duties. 

Will

The will combines the first four cohorts of a person to form their expressed personality. A will is then the outward or stated expression of a person’s emotion, desire, duty, and choice, in a way that informs others of who they are. A person’s will becomes their guiding principle, driving their motives, beliefs, and goals. 

Who is God? – The Persons of God

By the inerrant definition of the nature of God, we understand that there is only one God. That is, there is only one substance to which personas belong. Since God is immaterial, the idea of three persons in one God isn’t as difficult an idea to swallow. 

However, to prove that three persons share the attribute of God, we need to do a few things. First, we need to establish that there are, in fact, three persons in Scripture. We need to prove that these three individuals are distinct by outlining their personhood and unique characteristics. 

Lastly, we need to then test their attributes—the claims they make about themselves—and stack them up against the eleven traits of God. 

Until Next Time…

The Trinitarian Doctrine teaches us that the three persons who make up the Godhead are the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. These three are one in essence and nature. 

So, why do we consider these three to be persons within the Godhead? By applying the nature and attributes of God to these three (seeing how the Scripture defines them both as God and as persons), we can begin to see how the doctrine of the Trinity shapes the foundation of what we believe about God. 

As you continue in this series, I hope that clarity and the strengthening of your faith will be at the forefront of your spiritual growth. 

Signed, 

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Want to learn more about the Trinity? Follow my mini-study series, All About the Trinity (The Trinity Series), right here on The Ravyn Speaks. Sign up to get all your questions answered as you dive deeper into God. 

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