Please help me to respond to some of my non-trinitarian friends

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Genez

Junior Member
Oct 12, 2017
3,380
528
113
#41
Speaking of non-trinitarianism.. Never saw it this way before.

 
Jul 15, 2024
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#42
How can you or anyone see God as God actually is?

No one could stand back far enough from Him to see Him!

How could you?
He is everywhere present!
That means?

While trying to look at Him He would be everywhere behind you!
Everywhere present beneath your feet!!
And, everywhere present above you!

You can not see God, as God is, without Him having a second nature in union.

No one can not stand back far enough from omnipresence to see it!
For no matter how far you back up He will always be all around you!

:eek::unsure:;)
According to my friend:
That can only happen if our reality is in the mind of the Father. The Father is the invisible God and the Son is the image of the invisible God in our reality. No human has ever seen God nor can ever.
 

Genez

Junior Member
Oct 12, 2017
3,380
528
113
#43
According to my friend:
That can only happen if our reality is in the mind of the Father. The Father is the invisible God and the Son is the image of the invisible God in our reality. No human has ever seen God nor can ever.
You can not stand back from God who is omnipresent to see God.
 
Jul 15, 2024
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#46
The New Testament reveals something very different to that conclusion..

(John 20:26-29) "¶ And after eight days again his disciples were within, and Thomas with them: then came Jesus, the doors being shut, and stood in the midst, and said, Peace be unto you. {27} Then saith he to Thomas, Reach hither thy finger, and behold my hands; and reach hither thy hand, and thrust it into my side: and be not faithless, but believing. {28} And Thomas answered and said unto him, My Lord and my God. {29} Jesus saith unto him, Thomas, because thou hast seen me, thou hast believed: blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed."


The NT is full of controversies, from factions to speaking in tongues, to impropriety at communion, over whether Gentiles could be accepted into Christianity, whether gentiles should be circumcized, over whether justification came through the works of the law or by faith, etc. The Trinity was not one of them.

So that shows that trinity was a confirmed belief umongst those who had recieved the baptism of the Holy Spirit..



(Genesis 1:26) "¶ And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth."
My non-trinitarian friend says:
The Son is the visible image of the invisible God the Father. The reason is because Christ is filled with the Father's Holy Spirit. Where the Holy Spirit is, the Father is. That means that Christ is the temple of the Father and is One with the Father because of the portal (Holy Spirit) that connects them. The Father commands and the Son obeys because they share a love for each other, the Son recognizes that his Father is also his God, and together they create our reality. When we receive the Holy Spirit, we become temples of the Father and Son, become One with the Father and Son, and are in their image because we are filled with the same love that they share and desire to make this love for God and man the motivation and purpose for living. How else are we in their likeness?
 
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#47
I'll letting these verses here, maybe it would help for something.

Genesis 1:26
26 And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness...

It's clear that GOD was talking in plural when he said let us make the men to our image, etc. But that doesn't mean that there were another or more Gods. What's the human being essences??? (Body, soul and spirit). Just as the same GOD essences.

John 1:1-5
1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
2 The same was in the beginning with God.
3 All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made.
4 In him was life; and the life was the light of men.
5 And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not.


Colossians 2:9-10
9 For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form, 10 and in Christ you have been brought to fullness. He is the head over every power and authority.

The Jews were incapable and many still are unable to see clearly the truth about the Messiah that was said in Isaiah 53 or in Psalm 22 and many other verses that talk about what role Jesus was going to play in the divine plan of God. They continue waiting for their Messiah who comes to destroy the Roman Empire that has not existed for a long time.
 
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#48
According to my non-trinitarian friend, our reality is in the mind of the Father. The Father creates many realities. In our reality, His Son is the creator, Lord, God, and Savior, but the Father is Lord and God of all realities, including his Son's.
 
Jul 15, 2024
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#49
I'll letting these verses here, maybe it would help for something.

Genesis 1:26
26 And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness...

It's clear that GOD was talking in plural when he said let us make the men to our image, etc. But that doesn't mean that there were another or more Gods. What's the human being essences??? (Body, soul and spirit). Just as the same GOD essences.

John 1:1-5
1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
2 The same was in the beginning with God.
3 All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made.
4 In him was life; and the life was the light of men.
5 And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not.


Colossians 2:9-10
9 For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form, 10 and in Christ you have been brought to fullness. He is the head over every power and authority.

The Jews were incapable and many still are unable to see clearly the truth about the Messiah that was said in Isaiah 53 or in Psalm 22 and many other verses that talk about what role Jesus was going to play in the divine plan of God. They continue waiting for their Messiah who comes to destroy the Roman Empire that has not existed for a long time.
Read post #39. Also, all power and authority is given to him by the Father.
 
Jul 23, 2024
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#50
Well, then your non-Trinitarian friend is twisting things to fit his belief. Neither the Bible nor the Torah says anything about different realities or portals or wormholes in case he comes up with that. Everything that is described in the Torah is evidently referring to this palpable and visible world and a spiritual one that is not visible but that interact with each other. Jesus is the Angel of Jehovah, the visible version of his Glory. The Holy Spirit in the manifestation of his presence and his power that acts in us to help us be better every day. There is no other explanation, body, soul and spirit. Anything else is an invention of man. Don't try to convince your friend, anyone who doesn't want to believe isn't going to do so no matter what you tell them. He is convinced of its truth and only God can open his mind.
Sorry about my English, in case you find some orthographic or something, is not my native language.
 

Saul-to-Paul

Junior Member
Jun 5, 2017
403
71
28
#51
Greetings brothers and sisters. I have some Christian friends that are not trinitarians. What is the Trinity?
one God in three persons (one being or essence with 3 personalities)
co-eternal (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit have always existed)
co-essential (they share the same essence)
co-equal (the Father is God, the Son is God, and the Holy Spirit is God)
eternal generation (the begotten Son has always existed)
dual natures of Christ in one person (divine and human)
in their union each nature preserves its distinct attributes (Jesus is all human and all God)
two wills in Christ- divine and human- never conflict
One of my non-trinitarian friends says that Jesus was a Jew who believed the same about God as other Jews. First century Jews did not believe in the Trinity. Their Scriptures proclaimed radical monotheism. The reason why the Jews do not believe in the Trinity, then or now, is because of the Jewish Scriptures that proclaim monotheism. Deut 4: 35, 39 To you it was shown so that you would acknowledge that the Lord is God; there is no other besides him. So acknowledge today and take to heart that the Lord is God in heaven above and on the earth beneath; there is no other. In Mark 12: 28-34 And one of the scribes came, and having heard them reasoning together, and perceiving that he had answered them well, asked him, Which is the first commandment of all? And Jesus answered him, The first of all commandments is: Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God is one Lord; And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment. And the second is this: Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. There is no other commandment greater than these. And the scribe said unto him, Well, Master, thou hast said the truth; for there is one God, and there is no other but he. And to love him with all the heart, and with all the understanding, and with all the soul, and with all the strength, and to love his neighbor as himself, is more than all whole burnt offerings and sacrifices. And when Jesus saw that he answered discreetly, he said unto him, Thou art not far from the kingdom of God. Jesus confessed the Shema, the core creed of Judaism, without altering it at all. How would the Jewish scribe have heard this? As a Trinitarian creed? If the Trinity was true, Jesus would have corrected or altered the Shema. Instead, he praises the scribe.
Please help me to respond to him.
There's not a single verse that describes God Almighty as a person.
 

Adstar

Senior Member
Jul 24, 2016
7,595
3,619
113
#52
My non-trinitarian friend says:
The Son is the visible image of the invisible God the Father. The reason is because Christ is filled with the Father's Holy Spirit. Where the Holy Spirit is, the Father is. That means that Christ is the temple of the Father and is One with the Father because of the portal (Holy Spirit) that connects them. The Father commands and the Son obeys because they share a love for each other, the Son recognizes that his Father is also his God, and together they create our reality. When we receive the Holy Spirit, we become temples of the Father and Son, become One with the Father and Son, and are in their image because we are filled with the same love that they share and desire to make this love for God and man the motivation and purpose for living. How else are we in their likeness?
You non-trinitarian friend is simply wrong.. If one has the Holy Spirit one will acknowledge THE LORD Jesus.. Jesus is not a lord He is THE LORD..

(1 Corinthians 12:3) "Wherefore I give you to understand, that no man speaking by the Spirit of God calleth Jesus accursed: and that no man can say that Jesus is the Lord, but by the Holy Ghost."

Really i could post so many scriptures pointing to the fact that Jesus is God.. It is amazing to me that anyone who has read the Bible in full can not know that Jesus is the LORD..

(Isaiah 9:6) "For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace."

Who was Isaiah Prophesying about? Who was the Child that was to be born, Thats Jesus right? Who is the Son , thats Jesus right.. Now why is He to be called The Mighty God? if He is not God and how can he be called The everlasting Father if he is not One with the Father?
 

HealthAndHappiness

Well-known member
Jul 7, 2022
10,579
4,513
113
Almost Heaven West Virginia
#53
Greetings brothers and sisters. I have some Christian friends that are not trinitarians. What is the Trinity?
one God in three persons (one being or essence with 3 personalities)
co-eternal (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit have always existed)
co-essential (they share the same essence)
co-equal (the Father is God, the Son is God, and the Holy Spirit is God)
eternal generation (the begotten Son has always existed)
dual natures of Christ in one person (divine and human)
in their union each nature preserves its distinct attributes (Jesus is all human and all God)
two wills in Christ- divine and human- never conflict
One of my non-trinitarian friends says that Jesus was a Jew who believed the same about God as other Jews. First century Jews did not believe in the Trinity. Their Scriptures proclaimed radical monotheism. The reason why the Jews do not believe in the Trinity, then or now, is because of the Jewish Scriptures that proclaim monotheism. Deut 4: 35, 39 To you it was shown so that you would acknowledge that the Lord is God; there is no other besides him. So acknowledge today and take to heart that the Lord is God in heaven above and on the earth beneath; there is no other. In Mark 12: 28-34 And one of the scribes came, and having heard them reasoning together, and perceiving that he had answered them well, asked him, Which is the first commandment of all? And Jesus answered him, The first of all commandments is: Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God is one Lord; And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment. And the second is this: Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. There is no other commandment greater than these. And the scribe said unto him, Well, Master, thou hast said the truth; for there is one God, and there is no other but he. And to love him with all the heart, and with all the understanding, and with all the soul, and with all the strength, and to love his neighbor as himself, is more than all whole burnt offerings and sacrifices. And when Jesus saw that he answered discreetly, he said unto him, Thou art not far from the kingdom of God. Jesus confessed the Shema, the core creed of Judaism, without altering it at all. How would the Jewish scribe have heard this? As a Trinitarian creed? If the Trinity was true, Jesus would have corrected or altered the Shema. Instead, he praises the scribe.
Please help me to respond to him.

You can become effective at helping unbelievers to understand God once you become aquatinted with His Word enough to teach about Him.
There's a LOT of verses on the fact that the Father is God, Jesus is God and the Holy Spirit is God. The Father is not Jesus, just as the Holy Spirit is not the Father. I have a diagram that I can look up if someone hasn't yet.

I'd read the gospel of John all the way through right now. It'll take a week .
While you do that, plead with God to reveal details about Himself to you. Then He will.

Lastly, memorize 1 John 5:7 King James Bible . Yes, it makes a difference. Get back with me when you do this.

5:7For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one.

This will help.
📖🙂👍
 

awelight

Well-known member
Aug 10, 2020
1,629
490
83
69
#56
Greetings brothers and sisters. I have some Christian friends that are not trinitarians. What is the Trinity?
one God in three persons (one being or essence with 3 personalities)
co-eternal (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit have always existed)
co-essential (they share the same essence)
co-equal (the Father is God, the Son is God, and the Holy Spirit is God)
eternal generation (the begotten Son has always existed)
dual natures of Christ in one person (divine and human)
in their union each nature preserves its distinct attributes (Jesus is all human and all God)
two wills in Christ- divine and human- never conflict
One of my non-trinitarian friends says that Jesus was a Jew who believed the same about God as other Jews. First century Jews did not believe in the Trinity. Their Scriptures proclaimed radical monotheism. The reason why the Jews do not believe in the Trinity, then or now, is because of the Jewish Scriptures that proclaim monotheism. Deut 4: 35, 39 To you it was shown so that you would acknowledge that the Lord is God; there is no other besides him. So acknowledge today and take to heart that the Lord is God in heaven above and on the earth beneath; there is no other. In Mark 12: 28-34 And one of the scribes came, and having heard them reasoning together, and perceiving that he had answered them well, asked him, Which is the first commandment of all? And Jesus answered him, The first of all commandments is: Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God is one Lord; And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment. And the second is this: Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. There is no other commandment greater than these. And the scribe said unto him, Well, Master, thou hast said the truth; for there is one God, and there is no other but he. And to love him with all the heart, and with all the understanding, and with all the soul, and with all the strength, and to love his neighbor as himself, is more than all whole burnt offerings and sacrifices. And when Jesus saw that he answered discreetly, he said unto him, Thou art not far from the kingdom of God. Jesus confessed the Shema, the core creed of Judaism, without altering it at all. How would the Jewish scribe have heard this? As a Trinitarian creed? If the Trinity was true, Jesus would have corrected or altered the Shema. Instead, he praises the scribe.
Please help me to respond to him.
Many are posting good, useful information from the Bible on God's Triune reality.

I just want to point out, the hard fact that many are thinking but won't say. You need to tell your so-called Christian friends - To take their sign down. No one can be a believing person, of Jesus Christ, in the Truth, by the Grace of God... and not know the true nature of God, of whom that person was called. Denying the Trinity is to deny the one true God. Your friends are chasing after another god.

The Holy Spirit, which dwells in all believers, would never lead one to come to such an erroneous conclusion. His primary ministry, in the believers life, is to teach us whom Christ truly is and that can't be done if a person had the wrong idea of whom God is. If God is not Triune then Christ is not the Second Person of the God-head, so the one denying the trinity, knows not God or the Jesus Christ of God's Holy Word.

Treat them as unbelievers and pray for them, that the one true God might one day deliver them out of darkness.
 

posthuman

Senior Member
Jul 31, 2013
37,934
13,612
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#57
.


They symbolically - saw him.

You need to learn to think with the context!
Which part is symbolic? This is all historical narrative. Verse 11, "but He did lay His hand upon them" has what reason to exist if it only symbolic?
 
Jul 15, 2024
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#58
I Timothy 2:5

5For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus
My non-trinitarian friend says that it is illogical for something that is in between two different points to also be one of those endpoints. His inbetweeness would no longer exist. The trinity says that Jesus is fully God and fully man. If Jesus was fully God Almighty, there would be no reason for him to pray to himself, or experience fear, or obey commands, or have a different will from the Father, or not know everything. It is illogical to think that a father fathers himself and calls himself his son.
 

Cameron143

Well-known member
Mar 1, 2022
20,061
6,873
113
62
#59
My non-trinitarian friend says that it is illogical for something that is in between two different points to also be one of those endpoints. His inbetweeness would no longer exist. The trinity says that Jesus is fully God and fully man. If Jesus was fully God Almighty, there would be no reason for him to pray to himself, or experience fear, or obey commands, or have a different will from the Father, or not know everything. It is illogical to think that a father fathers himself and calls himself his son.
Your friend is right. It is illogical. But so is believing that an infinite being is able to be understood by a finite mind. We believe the worlds were formed by faith. No one besides God and some angels were there. But the word of God teaches this truth, and we accept it by faith. So too, the word of God reveals God as one and also as three persons. We also accept this by faith.
Your friend lacks faith.
 
Jul 15, 2024
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#60
Your friend is right. It is illogical. But so is believing that an infinite being is able to be understood by a finite mind. We believe the worlds were formed by faith. No one besides God and some angels were there. But the word of God teaches this truth, and we accept it by faith. So too, the word of God reveals God as one and also as three persons. We also accept this by faith.
Your friend lacks faith.
From my non-trinitarian friend:
Matt 11: 27 All things are delivered unto me by my Father, and no man knoweth the Son, but the Father; neither knoweth any man the Father, except the Son, and he to whomsoever the Son will reveal Him.
God is not a God of confusion. You have a choice. You can believe a clear and logical understanding of what is going on as revealed by the Son so that everything fits perfectly or you can believe some illogical understanding of a man-made concept which was established in the Council of Nicea in 325AD and forced on Christians to teach and believe by the Roman emperor Constantine (who himself was a sun-worshiper).
Matt 7: 13-14 Enter in at the narrow gates; for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be who go in that way; Because narrow is the gate, and hard is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.
I have faith in what Jesus reveals to me from the Bible and not from man-made concepts which don't make sense.