How Many Gods Are In Heaven? A Biblical Look at the Trinity

The King James Version (KJV) is mostly used in these lessons. Click here to access the KJV online.

What set the children of God apart from surrounding pagan nations was their belief in only one God. The heathen countries believed in many gods.

“The Jews held that there was only one God, and the Christian faith comes out of that thinking. However, as the Jewish believers went out to the Gentiles with the gospel message they had to deal with the monotheism [one God] of the Jewish-Christian belief verses [sic] the polytheism [many Gods] of the Gentiles. The problem arose when trying to explain who Christ and the Holy Spirit are. The Trinity doctrine was the result of trying to solve this problem.” Gary Strong, A Close Look at The Trinity, p. 84)

“The language of the Bible should be explained according to its obvious meaning.” The Great Controversy, page 598.

To support the false 'Trinity' doctrine, there are false uninspired words added to 1 JOHN 5 :7-8 (King James Version).

False Scripture Added

A small passage in the Authorized King James Version of the Bible is generally used by Trinity adherents to support the Trinity doctrine. This passage is found in I John 5:7-8, and is bracketed in the following quotation: “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.” The bracketed words were added by editors to the Latin Vulgate translation probably in the early fourth century. They do not appear in any of the older Greek manuscripts nor in other modern English translations. They were added to the Latin Vulgate during the heat of the controversy between Rome and Dr. Arius (Irasmus) and God’s people.

 Bible commentaries explain that these words were never written in the apostle John’s manuscript or any existing early copies of it. The apostle John in his three epistles and the Revelation speaks of “the Father, and . . . Son” (I John 1:3), but never of “the Father and the Word,” except in this uninspired part of I John 5:7-8.Click here to watch a short video on the added text in 1 John 5:7-8.

 There was a real reason why the archdeceiver Satan wanted that spurious verse added in the Latin Vulgate from which it crept into the Authorized Version. The Trinity doctrine completely does away with the gospel of Jesus [Yahushua] Christ. His gospel is the message he brought mankind from God the Father, the good news of the coming kingdom of God! That is the one thing above all Satan wants to defeat.

God

1. How many gods does the Bible teach exist?

"Thou shalt have no other gods before me." Exodus 20:3.

"Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD." Deuteronomy 6:4.

"hath not one God created us?" Malachi 2:10.

"And this is life eternal that they might know thee, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent." John 17:3.

"there is none other God but one." 1 Corinthians 8:4.

"But to us there is but one God." 1 Corinthians 8:6.

"One God and Father of all." Ephesians 4:6.

"For there is one God." 1 Timothy 2:5.

"Thou believest that there is one God; thou doest well: the devils also believe, and tremble." James 2:19.

2. What is the common title given in the Bible to the One God?

"Have we not all one father?" Malachi 2:10.

"But to us there is but one God, the Father." 1 Corinthians 8:6.

"Grace be to you and peace from God the Father." Galatians 1:3; 2 Corinthians 1:2; Romans 1:7.

"According to the will of God and our Father." Galatians 1:4.

"One God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all." Ephesians 4:6.

"Grace be unto you, and peace, from God our Father."1 Corinthians 1:3; Ephesians 1: 2; Philippians 1:2; Colossians 1:2; 1 Thessalonians 1:1; 2 Thessalonians 1:2.

3. Is the one God, our Father, the father of Jesus Christ as well?

"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ." Ephesians 1:3.

"I ascend unto my Father, and your Father." John 20:17.

"One God and Father of all." Ephesians 4:6.

Conclusion: The Bible teaches that there is but one God, who is the Father of all.

Christ

4. Who is Christ?

"And we believe and are sure that thou art that Christ, the Son of the living God." John 6:69.

5. Is ‘the Son of living God’ a mere title given to Christ or is He in reality the very son of the Father?

"For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given." Isaiah 9:6.

"Who hath ascended up into heaven, or descended? who hath gathered the wind in his fists? who hath bound the waters in a garment? who hath established all the ends of the earth? what is his name, and what is his son's name, if thou canst tell?" Proverbs 30:4.

6. If Christ is a ‘real’ son of God, has the Bible confirmed a beginning to His existence?

"But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting." Micah 5:2.

“And the Son of God declares concerning Himself: 'The Lord possessed Me in the beginning of His way, before His works of old. I was set up from everlasting. . .When He appointed the foundations of the earth: then I was by Him, as one brought up with Him: and I was daily His delight, rejoicing always before Him.' Proverbs 8:22-30." Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 34

7. Does the New Testament confirm the Old Testament regarding the true and literal sonship of Christ?

"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." John 1:14.

"No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him." John 1:18.

"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life." John 3:16.

"He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God." John 3:18.

"In this was manifested the love of God toward us, because that God sent his only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through him." 1 John 4:9.

Conclusion: The One God at one point from everlasting begat Christ, His only begotten son. And if what God gave was not His real and only begotten, then Abraham’s test would not have been a meaningful type.

The Only-Begotten Son

8. What did the one God, the Father of all, pass unto His only begotten?

"For as the Father hath life in himself; so hath he given to the Son to have life in himself." John 5:26.

"The brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person." Hebrews 1:3.

9. What does it mean that God passed His glory to His only begotten Son?

"And he said, I beseech thee, show me thy glory. And he said, I will make all my goodness pass." Exodus 33:18, 19.

"It pleased the Father that in him should all fullness dwell." Colossians 1:19.

10. Did the one God pass on His name to His only begotten Son?

"For unto which of the angels said he God at any time, Thou art my Son, this day have I begotten thee? And again, I will be to him a Father, and he shall be to me a Son? But unto the Son he saith, Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever." Hebrews 1:5, 8.

11. What else was passed by the Father unto His only begotten?

"But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his." Romans 8:9.

Conclusion: God passed unto His only begotten Son, unconditional ‘life in Himself’. As the baby becomes independent of the mother once he is born, Christ became self-existent once He was begotten of the Father. Self-existence was inherent in His birth. In addition to self-existence, the Son received from His Father His very character [goodness], and thus His express image. There was nothing that the Father had which was not passed unto the His only begotten Son. Even the very Spirit of God, the Holy Spirit, is shared by His Son. Christ naturally inherited the name of His Father God. Christ was not, however, co-existent with His Father, being the Son.

Relationship Between Father And Son

12. What did Christ say about His relationship to His Father?

"If ye loved me, ye would rejoice, because I said, I go unto the Father: for my Father is greater than I." John 14:28.

"The Son can do nothing of himself, but what he seeth the Father do." John 5:19.

"I can of mine own self do nothing…because I seek not mine own will, but the will of the Father which hath sent me." John 5:30.

13. How did Christ regard His Father?

"And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God." John 17:3.

"Touch me not; for I am not yet ascended to my Father: but go to my brethren, and say unto them, I ascend unto my Father, and your Father; and to my God, and your God." John 20:17.

" I and my Father are one." John 10:30.

‘Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God." Philippians 2:6.

14. In what manner was Christ one with the Father?

“Christ, the Word, the only begotten of God, was one with the eternal Father--one in nature, in character, in purpose--the only being that could enter into all the counsels and purposes of God.” Patriarchs and Prophets, page 34.

Conclusion: Christ was one with the Father in nature, character, and purpose. But did not regard Himself as an equal to His Father. God invested in Christ every authority and made Him equal.

Submission of Son to Father

15. How does the Bible demonstrate the submission of Son to His Father, the one God?

"And ye are Christ's; and Christ is God's." 1 Corinthians 3:23.

"But I would have you know, that the head of every man is Christ; and the head of the woman [is] the man; and the head of Christ is God." 1 Corinthians 11:2.

"That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him." Ephesians 1:17.

"One Lord, one faith, one baptism, One God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all." Ephesians 4:5, 6.

"For he hath put all things under his feet. But when he saith all things are put under [him, it is] manifest that he is excepted, which did put all things under him. And when all things shall be subdued unto him, then shall the Son also himself be subject unto him that put all things under him, that God may be all in all." 1 Corinthians 15:27, 28.

Conclusion: The one God, the Father, has made His son His equal in nature, character, and purpose; His full and only co-partner. This reality does not negate, however, the submission of the Son to His Father, who is the one God, who rules over all including the Son.

16. Does the Biblical fact of Christ’s submission to His Father affect our worship of the Son?

"That all men should honour the Son, even as they honour the Father. He that honoureth not the Son honoureth not the Father which hath sent him." John 5:23.

Conclusion: Our worship of the Son is not affected one iota by His submission to His Father. We willingly and happily worship Christ for in Him dwells the full deity of His Father, the one God. We also worship the Son for He is our Saviour, Redeemer, and Advocate before His and our Father. Lastly, we worship Him because He is the only begotten Son of the one God.

Holy Spirit

17. Who is the Holy Spirit?

"But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his." Romans 8:9.

"And because ye are sons, God hath sent forth the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father." Galatians 4:6.

"And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever; Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you. I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you." John 14:16-18.

Conclusion: The Holy Spirit is none other than the very Spirit of Christ which proceeded from the Father, the one God, "of whom [are] all things." 1 Corinthians 8:6.

Taking It Further

There are several conflicting beliefs about the Godhead. This stems from the fact that these beliefs were born from various traditions and customs. This study clings to what the plain and beautiful truths of the Bible reveal.

What is the Trinity?

1. One god made up of three persons.
2. Three gods made up of one person.
3. One god acting as Father, other times as Son, and other times as Holy Ghost.
4. Three separate gods all of who are called one God in the Bible because they are in agreement in everything.

All of these beliefs are sometimes referred to as the Trinity, or the Triune God. These ideas have been around for hundreds of years, yet they are not true!

1. Does the Bible teach that God consists of three beings or is a Trinity?

No, the Bible teaches contrary to this idea. The Bible speaks of God and of His Son Jesus, and of God’s Spirit, which is God's invisible holy presence.

Please refer to the introduction of this study which explains the false uninspired words added to 1 JOHN 5: 7-8 (King James Version) to support the false 'Trinity' doctrine.

2. Who is God?

“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.” 1 Corinthians 8:6.

“The head of Christ is God” 1 Corinthians 11:3.

“And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.” John 17:3. “One God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all.” Ephesians 4:6.

Answer: Yes. God is the Father. It is He who is the greatest Being in the universe. (See Mark 12:29-34.)

NOTE: This is an extremely important question because Jesus Christ, the Son of God, told us that those who worship God should worship Him in Spirit and in truth (John 4:24). If we do not worship God in truth can we be saved? The Scripture says that those who believe a lie will be damned. (2 Thessalonians 2:10-12.)

O that everyone would realize the great love, the self-sacrifice, the benevolence, and the kindness of our heavenly Father, in giving his Son to die for us that we might, if we believe and do his commandments, have a sweet peace, the Father's joy, the Father's love, and unite with him, heart, soul, mind, and strength, to maintain righteousness and to draw in even lines with Christ. It is not the sacrifice of Christ only; it is the Father's sacrifice also. The Father, in union and loving sympathy, with his Son, subjected himself to suffer with his Son. He spared not his only begotten Son but freely delivered him up for us all. This gift of Christ is the crowning truth of God's love, and this Fatherhood, through all time and through eternity. Here is the love of God in his Fatherhood. Let us drink in this love, that we may know by experience what a real, tender, joyful, experience there is in a realization of the Fatherhood of God.

3. Who is Jesus Christ?

“Whosoever shall confess that Jesus is the Son of God, God dwelleth in him, and he in God.” 1 John 4:15.

“And we believe and are sure that thou art that Christ, the Son of the living God.” John 6: 69.

“For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given.” Isaiah 9:6.

“Who hath ascended up into heaven, or descended? who hath gathered the wind in his fists? who hath bound the waters in a garment? who hath established all the ends of the earth? what [is] his name, and what is his son's name, if thou canst tell?” Proverbs 30:4.

Answer: Jesus Christ is the Son of God.

NOTE:

NOTE: The Sovereign of the universe was not alone in His work of beneficence. He had an associate--a co-worker who could appreciate His purposes, and could share His joy in giving happiness to created beings. 'In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God.' John 1:1, 2. Christ, the Word, the only begotten of Son of the heavenly Father.