The Gospel of John: Come and See the Holy Trinity

Sunday we’re going to take a step back from the flow of the text of John to consider the broader teaching concerning the Trinity. So far, we’ve been introduced to the Son of God, “the only Son from the Father,” the Father, and now the Spirit who is sent by Father and Son. Each are attributed with full deity and yet presented as distinct from each other. A Jewish reader would question the teaching of Jesus because they’ve been taught and even memorized Deuteronomy 6:4, which says, “Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one.” This text screams monotheism (one God) in a land of polytheism (multiple gods). A Gentile audience, living in a polytheistic culture, might conclude that these three are separate deities (tritheism).

What adds to our questions of the Trinity is Jesus’ statement in John 14:28, “You heard me say to you, ‘I am going away, and I will come to you.’ If you loved me, you would have rejoiced, because I am going to the Father, for the Father is greater than I.” How is Jesus equal with the Father in deity but says that the Father is “greater” than him?

Yet, John writes, “these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name” (20:31). The teaching of Jesus’ deity is critical to our faith, as is our understanding that he is united with the Father yet distinct from the Father. So join us for worship as we consider this important teaching of the Trinity.