The Trinity. 
Just the word itself creates controversy … dating back to the Council of Nicaea (AD 325). Just the word itself creates a stumblingblock in the work of Jewish evangelism … is Christianity really guilty of polytheism or is just a big misunderstanding?
I believe it is important to state categorically that God is God, Jesus is God, and the Holy Spirit is God. It is one God existing as three unique and distinct persons (is manifestations an acceptable word?). For all three members of the Godhead have different functions, different roles, different obligations. However, this does create difficulty for many Jewish people whose first memorized piece of Scripture was the Shema of Deut. 6:4 — “Hear O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is One.” Is there a way to not only reconcile but to show that 3 really does equal 1? Perhaps we can using the passages of the Tenakh (aka Old Testament) (aka Hebrew Scriptures).
Genesis 1:1-2 —
Gen 1:1-2 — In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. 2 The earth was without form, and void; and darkness was on the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters.
Here we have the word Elohim translated as God. Elohim is the plural form of the word El (God). And in these two verses we see God the Creator and God the Spirit at work in creation.
Genesis 1:26-27 — Then God said,”Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.
Here we see God discussing the creation in the plural form (the argument from assumption that God must have been talking to the angelic court falls apart in verse 27) but that creating Adam in the singular pronoun. God is in a way talking to Himself but He is also talking to the other members of the Godhead as will be pointed out later.
Exodus 3:14 — And God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM.” And He said, “Thus you shall say to the children of Israel,’I AM has sent me to you.'”
This is the personal, intimate name of God that was given to Moses. This is the name for God that is our provider, our banner, our shield. And Jesus himself proclaimed this as his name in John 8:58 when he proclaimed “Before Abraham was, I am.” Here we see an example of God the Father’s name being uttered and 1500 years later God the Son proclaiming it as His name as well. (BTW — I could also show this if more time was available through the “I Am” statements of John).
Deuteronomy 6:4 — Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one!
The Shema is the most important prayer for a Jewish man or woman (except obviously for the prayer of salvation). And here is where many people try to stop the argument with one (echad). However, it should be noted that echad should and can be translated as a plural unity (i.e., I am one but I exist in the roles of sister, aunt, and daughter). In other words when Jesus stated in John 10:30 that “I am and my Father are One” He was proclaiming not only His Messiahship but also His deity as God the Son.
Psalm 51:10-13 —
Ps 51:10-13 Create in me a clean heart, O God, And renew a steadfast spirit within me. Do not cast me away from Your presence, And do not take Your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of Your salvation, And uphold me by Your generous Spirit. Then I will teach transgressors Your ways,
And sinners shall be converted to You.
The prayer of David after his sins against Uriah and Bathsheba. In this passage, David cannot use the Yahweh (I am) word for God as his relationship has been fractured but must use the proper name Elohim. However, David does beg for the Holy Spirit to come to him. These words should not be read as adjectives for God but for a unique person(al) request of God. David appears to understand that there is God (Yahweh) and God the Holy Spirit in his prayer of forgiveness. See also Psalm 104:30 — You send forth Your Spirit, they are created; And You renew the face of the earth.
Isaiah 61:1-3 — “The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon Me,
Because the LORD has anointed Me
To preach good tidings to the poor;
He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted,
To proclaim liberty to the captives,
And the opening of the prison to those who are bound;
2 To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD,
And the day of vengeance of our God;
To comfort all who mourn,
3 To console those who mourn in Zion,
To give them beauty for ashes,
The oil of joy for mourning,
The garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness;
That they may be called trees of righteousness,
The planting of the LORD, that He may be glorified.”
There are a couple of exceptionally important items to note in this passage. First, Jesus read these words when he returned to Nazareth (Luke 4:16-21). He stated that those promises had now been fulfilled! He was taking His place as the revealed God (see also John 14:9) and Messiah.
The Trinity is not an easy concept. I even once heard a seminary president state that we will never understand it and he is correct to a point. However, we must recognize the concept of God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit for it proclaimed our salvation, sacrificed for our salvation, and indwells us today to ensure our salvation. What an awesome God we serve!
TZEDAKAH MINISTRIES’ STATEMENT OF FAITH
We believe in one God existing in three persons – Father, Son, and Holy Spirit (also known as the Trinity). Each member of the Godhead is Himself both distinct and equal to all other members of Trinity. Each person – Father, Son, and Holy Spirit – is perfect in that He not only possesses the characteristics of deity but He himself is the reality of deity. (Genesis 1:26-27; 11:4; Exodus 3:14; Deuteronomy 6:4; Psalm 110:1; Matthew 28:19; Mark 1:9-11; John 1:1-3; 14:6-13; 15:26; 1 Corinthians 8:6; 2 Corinthians 13:14; Hebrews 1:1-4)
We believe God the Father is author of creation. He spoke the worlds and the heavens into existence by the simple act of His will and declaration. He is timeless and eternal as He is the creator of time (past, present, and future). God the Father is sovereign and can be understood as omnipotent, omniscient, and omnipresent. He also is intimately involved in the lives of His creation and is approachable as Father but must be recognized as the God of the Universe. (Genesis 1-2; Exodus 3:14; 6:2-3; 15:11; Leviticus 19:2; Deuteronomy 32:26-29; Job 38:1-40:2; Psalm 19:1-4; 90:1-5; 104; Isaiah 6:1-3; 37:6; 40:28-31; 42:5-9; Jeremiah 10:11-12; 27:5; Matthew 16:16; Luke 22:70; John 1:1-12; 1 Corinthians 1:30; 8:6; Galatians 4:4-5; Ephesians 4:6; 1 Timothy 1:17; Hebrews 1:1-3; 11:3; 9:12-15; 1 Peter 1:21-25)
We believe Jesus the Son was eternally pre-existent with the Father. He is not a creation of the Father God but is himself God. We also believe that Jesus through the Incarnate act of the Virginal Conception became a man so that He could become the ultimate Passover Lamb and Yom Kippur sacrifice. Jesus is the answer to man’s desperate need for salvation and the only possible means for a personal relationship with God the Father. (Genesis 1:26-27; 11:4; Psalm 110; Isaiah 7:14; 9:6; 52:11-53:12; Daniel 7:13-14; Matthew 26:63-65; John 1:1-12; 8:58; 10:30-31; Philippians 2:5-11; Colossians 1:15-20; 2:9; Hebrews 1:1-4; 2:14-18; 4:15)
We also believe Jesus lived a sinless, perfect life who rejected the temptations of sin and became the atonement for the sins of the world through the shedding of His blood on the cross and His victorious resurrection from the grave. All who believe that Messiah Jesus died for their sins, repent of their sins, and confess that Jesus is the Lord will be saved. (Isaiah 52:11-53:12; Matthew 28:1-10; Luke 24:6, 7, 24-26; 24:46; John 11:25-27; 20:1-31; Acts 2:22-24; Romans 1:3-4; 3:23-26; 5:8; 1 Corinthians 15; 2 Corinthians 5:21; Ephesians 2:1-10; Philippians 2:5-11; Hebrews 2:14-18; 4:15; 7:1-3; 7:25-26; 1 Peter 1:21-25; 1 John 2:2; 4:14-15; Revelation 1:5)
We further believe that Jesus after His ascension to Heaven is presently serving in His role as intercessor for those who receive the gift of salvation. And while Jesus came in His first coming as the Passover Lamb and Yom Kippur sacrifice, we affirm that His second coming will be one of power and glory to reward those who received the gift of salvation and to judge those who rejected His atoning and gracious sacrifice. (Psalm 2:7-9; Mark 16:19; Luke 1:32-33; Acts 1:9-11; 2:30-36; Romans 8:34; 2 Corinthians 5:10-21; Ephesians 1:20; 1 Thessalonians 4:14-18; 1 Timothy 2:5-6; Titus 2:13-14; Hebrews 6:19-20; 7:25-26; 9:24-28; 12:2; 1 Peter 3:22; 1 John 3:2; Revelation 5:9-14; 19:11-16)
We believe the Holy Spirit has been and is eternally present with the Father and Son. He was active with God the Father in the creation of the world, serves in the role of convicting people of their sins, indwells those souls who receive the salvation of Jesus the Son, and equips believers in their daily lives to exemplify a life of holiness through evangelism and service. (Genesis 1:2; 1:26-27; Psalm 51:10-13; 104:30; 139:7-12; Isaiah 61:1-3; Joel 2:28-32; Matthew 3:16; 28:19; Luke 4:18-19; 24:49; John 3:3-5; 14:15-21; 15:26; 16:7-15; Acts 1:8; 2:1-4, 38; 5:32; Romans 8:9-11, 26-27; 12:6-8; 1 Corinthians 2:10-11; 6:11; 6:19; 12:1-31; 12:13; Ephesians 1:13-14; 4:30; 5:18-21; 2 Timothy 1:14; Titus 3:5; 1 John 5:6-7)
Mystery Solved with Messiah Jesus 
Something we recently learned about Elohim is that it is uniquely plural, but uses a singular verb tense. The example given to us was mayim (water). This is also plural, but singular. Water is cold not water are cold. Water, like Elohim, is made up of many molecules (plurality), but is considered singular water. It can take any form – solid, liquid, or gas, just like Elohim can take the form of the Son (physical), the Spirit/Breath (gas?) , the fire, the angel, the voice, whatever.
A friend from Israel said that she tried to explain the ‘tri-unity’ of God to Jews by saying that she is one person. She has breath like YHVH, a spiritual life, a physical body and a voice. She is also a mother, a sister, a wife, and a daughter, friend all at the same time, but that doesn’t change the fact that she is still one person. Depending on how you look at God, He is the Creator, the Father, your brother, your Bridegroom, your salvation, the Commander of the Army, the King. All of these are not manifestations, but roles that the infinite God, who is out of our finite reality can be because He is Spirit. Yeshua is the visible image of the invisible God which is just a visual of Spirit versus a ‘person’. The danger of ‘dividing’ God is that different denominations worship different parts of the whole. Some worship God (high churches, Methodist, Lutheran), some worship Jesus (evangelicals), and some the spirit (pentecostals). Somehow all of these need to be brought together so that Yahweh, is worshipped in echad in Spirit and in Truth.
Funny, we have been dealing with the Trinity at our fellowship. not just poking finger as Phillips, Craig and Dean, but teaching it.
I say The Trinity begins with this passage in the Tenakh – Isaiah 9:6 ESV “For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.”
You have G-d and the The persons all wrapped it to on portion of Torah!! The Shema as memorized should not be a stumbling block ,but a building block as G_d is still one and just like G-d the Universe is one. Universe. “Uni” is one, yet the universe is made up of space, time and matter. Take away any of the three components and it is no longer a universe.
It would seem poor in faith to declare God all powerful then say, but not that powerful. G-d you are able to do anything but not that seems to limit Him and box Him in a bit!
i read this a while back, maybe it will help if we look at G-d’s creation:
“G-d is the sun, Jesus is the light (truth), and the Holy Spirit heat. The sun is an actual object and light and heat deriving from the sun are a result of the sun. The sun takes precedence but could not be affective without light and heat or at least could not be effective concerning humans. The light and heat are the sun’s gifts to earth. On the other hand, the planet earth (humans) is not necessary in order for the sun to exist but the other way around. The sun, light, and heat are one in the same and act in accordance”
blog posted. tweeted and retweeted
Shalom ya’ll: to your point…there is absolute unity in diversity. So in the trinity we have God the Father and yes, He has a Son and also there is the Holy Spirit or the Comforter – 3 in 1. May the eyes of our Jewish brethren be opened soon to the truth. Maranatha
The above “solves” nothing. The trinity dogma has to be imagined, assumptions have to be created based on the imaginations of men, and then those assumptions have to added to, and read into, each and every scripture that is presented to allegedly support the added-on assumptions. The trinity dogma, in effect, would deny the redemption through Jesus, and rather than Jesus’ condemning sin the flesh, it would have it that sin is justified in the flesh, since it would mean that for Adam to have obeyed his Creator, he would have needed to have been his own Creator. The Bible no where depicts the Son of the Most High as the Most High of whom he is the Son. Is the Most High (Highest in many translations) in Luke 1:32 unipersonal or tripersonal? Is “God” in Hebrews 1:1,2 speaking of one person, or three persons? Is Jesus the son of one person, or three persons? There is only one Supreme Being, and that one Supreme Being is the Supreme Being of Jesus. The only true Supreme Being (John 17:3) does not have another Supreme Being who is the Supreme Being over the Supreme Being.
God, by means of his holy spirit, reveals through the scriptures that Jesus was sent by Yahweh, speaks for Yahweh, represents Yahweh, and was raised and glorified by the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Jesus never claimed to be, nor do the scriptures present Jesus as, the unipersonal God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, whom Jesus represents and speaks for. — Deuteronomy 18:15-19; Matthew 22:32; 23:39; Mark 11:9,10; 12:26; Luke 13:35; 20:37; John 3:2,17,32-35; 4:34; 5:19,30,36,43; 6:57; 7:16,28; 8:26,28,38; 10:25; 12:49,50; 14:10; 15:15; 17:8,26; 20:17; Acts 2:22,34-36; 3:13,22; 5:30; Romans 15:6; 2 Corinthians 1:3; 8:6; 11:31; Colossians 1:3,15; 2:9-12; Hebrews 1:1-3; Revelation 1:1.
God, by means of his holy spirit, reveals through the scriptures that Jesus is son of the only unipersonal Most High, Yahweh. Jesus is never spoken of as the “Most High”; he is not the only Most High Yahweh of whom he is the son. — Genesis 14:22; Psalm 7:17; 83:18; 92:1; Luke 1:32; John 13:16.
Blessed be the [unipersonal] God and Father of our Lord Jesus Chriat. — Ephesians 1:3; 1 Peter 1:3.
Sorry Amy but you asked and you already knew that, if I took the effort to respond, this would be my response.
Recognizing that our ability to understand and, certainly, to clearly express our limited understanding of God has been a frustration to all mankind, I believe that the word “distinct”, as it appears in the second paragraph, may be somewhat of an overstatement of the case. My belief is that there is one God who manifests himself to us in the three basic relationships which he created within us namely, as a Father, as a mother (the Spirit) and as a peer (the Son). Like the husband represents the role of our sibling Christ (Ephesians 5:23), like the father represents the role of the Father (by name), so the mother also represents the role of the Holy Spirit. The role of God as Father and sibling are familiar to most of us but the mother role has attracted less attention so the following explains a bit more about that role.
Genesis 1:2 provides the first mention of the Spirit of God in the Bible, “. . . and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters.” The Hebrew word for hovering in that verse is found in the Bible in only one other place, Deuteronomy 32:11, “. . . like an eagle that stirs up its nest and hovers over its young, . . .”. It is that frenzied hovering of a mother hen over her chicks that is described. While in Greek, the word for spirit (pneuma) is neuter, in Hebrew (ruach) it is female as it is in Aramaic (rucha) which Jesus probably spoke. The verb used to describe the actions of the spirit in the Old Testament Hebrew is generally feminine as well, e.g. II Chronicles 15:1 and I Samuel 19:20, 23. As the woman was created as a suitable helper for her husband (including helping to raise his children), Genesis 2:20b-22, her role as a mother is also the role of a parent that will duplicate, to some extent, the role of the father, the other parent. Keeping that in mind, look at some of the ways the scriptures present the Holy Spirit to us in the role of a mother; some unique to being a mother, others more related to being a parent.
1. The Spirit goes to God for us in ways beyond our spiritually immature understanding. Romans 8:26 see also I Samuel 1:10, 11
2. We are “born of the Spirit” into God’s family. John 3:5 John 6:63 see also Galatians 4:4
3. The Spirit helps our weaknesses. Romans 8:26 Ephesians 3:16 When a baby cannot can’t eat by himself, walk, talk, etc., who helps him or does it for him? When he gets older but can’t dress himself or read, who helps him or does it for him?
4. The Spirit lives with us. John 14:17 I Corinthians 3:16
5. The Spirit is our law. Hebrews 9:8 John 16:3 Romans 8:2-4 see also Proverbs 1:8 Proverbs 6:20
6. The Spirit never leaves us. John 14:16
7. It is serious to dishonor the Spirit. Mark 3:29 see also Leviticus 20:9 Proverbs 15:20 Proverbs 23:22
8. The Spirit teaches of God. John 14:26 I Corinthians 2:13 see also II Timothy 1:5
9. The Spirit comforts and counsels. John 16:7
10. The Spirit attends to our difficulties. Luke 12:11, 12
11. The Spirit disciplines. John 16:8 see also Proverbs 29:15
12. The Spirit provides identification for whose family you are in. Romans 8:14
13. The Spirit produces good fruit in conflict with influences outside the family. Galatians 5:16-23
14. The Spirit’s weapon in the conflict with influences outside the family is the Word of God. Ephesians 6:17
15. The Spirit enables us to love. Colossians 1:8
16. The Spirit gives joy. I Thessalonians 1:6
Therefore, one God manifests himself to us in three ways; the ways that represent the three basic relationships that we have with everyone else: Father, Mother and Sibling or Peer (He became one of us. Philippians 2:7). He is everything to us.
It is still difficult to comprehend how He can forsake Himself (Matthew 27:46, Mark 15:34, talking to Himself (including Luke 23:34) is a bit easier, especially for those of us who do it frequently), handing Himself over to Himself (Luke 23:46), pray to Himself and speak of two different “wills” (Matthew 26:39, Luke 22:42, John 5:30), not being alone because He is with Himself (John 8:16), doing nothing of Himself but only that which He taught Himself (John 8:28), not honoring Himself but honoring Himself (John 8:54), receiving commandments from Himself (John 10:18, 15:10), going to see Himself (John 14:12, 16:10, 20:17), being greater than Himself (John 14:28), knowing but not knowing (Matthew 13:32), etc. However, God is capable of more than I can imagine and has stated the unity in identity of what we call his “persons” on a consistent basis throughout the scriptures. I believe that John 10:30 and its many, many companion scriptures does not just say that the Father, Son (and Spirit) are unified in agreement and purpose but in identity as well. They are the same but choose to manifest Himself to us in all the ways that meet the needs that He created within us.
The analogy of water to G_d may be helpful. Water has three recognized manifestations which are solid, liquid and gas. The molecular structure is H2O in whichever form it takes and retains its basic molecular integrity in whichever form that it is seen in. Because G_d is not bound by our time dimension He can be present and manifested in all three forms simultaneously. He may be present in one form while able to appear in one or more of His other forms at will (or as needed). To say water is in the form of ice should not negate the fact that water and water vapor are present and coregent with ice. One does not lesson or negate the existence of the others. The description of one is just as it implies the description of one part which is made up of three distinct manifestations.
I’ll make this short, simple and to the point :). I do believe that God is three persons in one, but that each of those three person are also separate in nature. The best verses I can give for this are these. 1 John 5:7-8 Please read!
1 John 5:7-8
American Standard Version (ASV)
7 And it is the Spirit that beareth witness, because the Spirit is the truth.
8 For there are three who bear witness, the Spirit, and the water, and the blood: and the three agree in one.
1 John 5:7-8
GOD’S WORD Translation (GW)
7There are three witnesses:[a] 8the Spirit, the water, and the blood. These three witnesses agree.
Footnotes:
1 John 5:7 Four very late manuscripts add verses 7b-8a: “in heaven: the Father, the Word, and the Holy Spirit. These three witnesses agree. And there are three witnesses on earth:”
God is one, just one, only one – oneness. Not 3in1 – threeness – paganes !