In Matthew 3 we read about the Trinity. There the Father speaks of the Son and says, "This is My beloved Son in whom I am well-pleased." We also see "the Spirit of God descending like a dove and lighting upon Him." Thus the three divine Persons in the Godhead are represented and that is the subject of Article 8 of our Belgic Confession of Faith.

This is not an easy doctrine to explain, yet it is a very important one. One of our fathers called it "the essence and crown upon the divine revelation, and at the same time the greatest mystery." It is the essence and crown of divine revelation that there is one essence and that there are three Persons. Is it very important that we believe in this doctrine? It is necessary to believe in the Son; it is necessary to believe and flee by faith unto Him since He is the only One who can redeem and save us. But is it also indispensable to believe that there is a Trinity?

God's Word tells us that if we believe in God, we must believe in a triune God. There is one God, for in Deuteronomy 6:4 it says, "Hear, O Israel: the Lord our God is one Lord." Yet this God consists in three Persons. He is not divided into three Persons. There is no subordination, so that the one is the highest and the other a little lower and the other is completely subordinated; but there is a difference in order. We speak of the First Person, of the Second Person, and of the Third Person.

In the Athanasian Creed we read, "Whosoever will be saved, before all things it is necessary that he hold the catholic faith; which faith except every one do keep whole and undefiled, without doubt he shall perish everlastingly. And the catholic faith is this: That we worship one God in Trinity, and Trinity in Unity; neither confounding the Persons, nor dividing the substance." The Persons may not be confounded. That which belongs to the First Person may not be ascribed to the Second Person. The Father was not born in Bethlehem, neither have the Father and the Son been poured out on Pentecost. If we were to do so, we would then confuse the three Persons in their personal properties. They also may not be separated from each other as if they are three Gods. Then we are acting against Scripture.

There are no specific examples in nature which can make it clear that God is one and yet three. Some have tried to do this by pointing to a tree which has a root, a trunk, and branches; but this is not applicable. In the Godhead there are not three parts; also there are not three different forms of appearance, such as with water which can be liquid, ice, or steam. A certain heretic, Sabellius, believed that there was one God but with three different faces. That is also not what God's Word teaches.

Athanasius said of the Godhead, "For there is one Person of the Father, another of the Son, and another of the Holy Spirit." The Second Person came in the fullness of time. The Third Person was poured out on Pentecost. "But the Godhead of the Father, of the Son and of the Holy Spirit is all one, the glory equal, the majesty coeternal. Such as the Father is, such is the Son, and such is the Holy Spirit. The Father uncreate, the Son uncreate, and the Holy Spirit uncreate. The Father incomprehensible, the Son incomprehensible, and the Holy Spirit incomprehensible. The Father eternal, the Son eternal, and the Holy Spirit eternal. And yet they are not three eternals, but one eternal. As also there are not three uncreated nor three incomprehensible, but one uncreated and one incomprehensible. So likewise the Father is almighty, the Son almighty, and the Holy Spirit almighty. And yet they are not three almighties, but one almighty." Then the Athanasian Creed also says, "He there­fore that will be saved must thus think of the Trinity."

All are equal, all are incomprehensible, all are almighty, all are eternal. So they are One. Sabellius wished to emphasize that so much that he forgot that these Persons are distinct from each other. They are distinguished in their names, in their order, and in their manner of works.

1. Their names: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are distinct.
2. Their order is distinct: First Person, Second Person, and Third Person.
3. Their manner of working is distinct: the Father working through the Son, the Son working by the Holy Spirit from the Father, and the Holy Spirit proceeding from the Father and the Son.

The three Persons are also distinguished in:

1. their personal properties, and
2. their personal works.

The three Persons have much in common. That is called their essential properties. They are all almighty; they are all incomprehensible; they are all equal.

However, they have personal properties in which they are distinct from one another. The personal properties of the Father are that He is the cause, the origin, the beginning of all things. If we go back to the beginning of all that is alive, then we must say the cause and origin is in the First Person. He began to work through the Son by the Spirit. He created through the Son. He generated His Son; He has begotten the Son. These are His personal properties. We can read of that in John 5:26, "For as the Father hath life in Himself; so hath He given to the Son to have life in Himself." The Son does not give it to the Fa­ther, but the Father gives it to the Son. The Father is the cause, origin and beginning of all things. All things are out of Him.

The Son is the Word, the logos, the wisdom, the image of the Father. As the Father has generated, so the Son is begotten with an everlasting begetting by the Father. In John 1:18 we read, "No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, He hath declared Him." All things are through Him.

The Holy Spirit is distinct with His eternal power and might and by the fact that He proceeds from the Father and from the Son. The Father is not made by anyone. He is neither created nor begotten. The Son is not created, but is begotten. The Holy Spirit is not created nor begotten, but proceeds from the Father and from the Son. These are the personal properties which distinguish the three Persons from each other.

These are not, however, "persons" in our sense of the word. If we have three persons, they are three and not one. They all have a heart, all three have a mind, and are three different persons. When we speak about one of the Persons of the Trinity, we mean:

1. there is in the divine Being but one indivisible essence (ousia),
2. but in this one divine Being there are three Persons or subsistences (hypostasis).

They are coessential, yet distinct from each other in their personal properties and works. Who is able to understand this mystery? May we rather learn to adore and to worship a tri­une God, also for His works.

The personal works of each Person of the Trinity are also distinct. Each Person has His own primary works. The Father has created all things, but the Son and the Holy Spirit are not ex­cluded from it. In John 1 we read that "by the Word of God all things were made." And we read in Genesis that "the Spirit of God moved upon the waters." We must realize that each of the three Persons are not excluded from the primary work of the other, yet there is a different order. There are works which are especially ascribed to the Father, to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit.

When we speak about good pleasure and the thoughts of peace, this first of all applies to the Father. The special work of the Father is:

1. The planning of the way of salvation.
2. The electing of sinners. We speak of the electing love of the Father. 1 Peter 1:2 tells of "the elect according to the foreknowledge of the Father."
3. Another work of the Father is the creation; for He is the Creator. "But to us there is but one God, the Father, of whom are all things" (1 Cor. 8:6).
4. He is also the provider of all things. Providence is a special work of the Father. When Jesus encouraged His disciples, He told them not to be too concerned about the day of tomorrow, "Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they?" (Matt. 6:26).
5. The Father is also the One in the Trinity who represents the Trinity. In the Counsel of Peace, or the covenant of redemption, the Father represents the whole Trinity as the holy righteous Being and is the One who maintains justice. He is the Judge and therefore when the Lord begins in the heart of a sinner, that person learns to know not a Father, but an angry and a holy Judge. In 1 John 2:1 we read, "We have an Advocate with the Father." These are the personal works of the Father.

The personal works of the Son are these:

1. In the Counsel of Peace the Son gave Himself to be a Surety and Head of the covenant. The Father did not give Himself, but the Son gave Himself in the covenant. Psalm 40 says, "Lo, I come, in the volume of the book it is written of Me."
2. The Son is the One who purchased salvation. This is all the work of the Son. He merited salvation through His birth, suffering, and death. Hebrews 9:12 tells of the High Priest who by His own blood entered once into the holy place.
3. The Son also pleads for His Church, a work which is not attributable to the Father or the Holy Spirit. Although the Holy Spirit sheds light upon it, the Son is the One who pleads for His people. As the Father is the Judge, the Son is the Advocate and Intercessor. In Romans 8:34 we read, "Who also maketh intercessions for us."
4. The Son is also the One through whom the Father cre­ated all things and He will be the Judge of all creatures at the end of this dispensation. The Father has given the judgment unto the Son. "For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ" (2 Cor. 5:10). Although the Father maintains justice, the execution of it is laid upon the Son. At the end of time, then the Lamb will be the Judge.

The personal works of the Holy Spirit are:

1. The application of Christ's benefits: regeneration, justi­fication, sanctification and glorification. We should always realize the need for the work of a triune God in our life. We not only need the work of Christ, as a suffering and dying Mediator, but also the applying work of the Holy Spirit. In our proclamation of God's Word and message, the work of the Spirit should always be mentioned too. In Titus 3:5 we read, "Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost." The Holy Spirit applies the benefits to the hearts of the believers.
2. The Holy Spirit also dwells in the hearts of the believers. He makes them the temple of the Holy Ghost. "Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?" (1 Cor. 3:16). Has it ever become a wonder for you that the Holy Spirit is willing to come and dwell in the heart; for by nature our heart is a synagogue of Satan?
3. The Holy Spirit is also said to give life, not only spiritual life, but also in natural aspects. "Thou sendest forth Thy Spirit, they are created: and Thou renewest the face of the earth" (Ps. 104:30). This is said to be a personal work of the Holy Spirit; but it is also the Holy Spirit who quickens the dead sinner and glorifies the power of the resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ in the heart of a dead sinner.
4. The calling and qualifying of man for the service of God is also a work of the Holy Spirit. All God's people are office-bearers and they will receive a calling and qualification for that which the Lord wants them to do. "As they ministered to the Lord, and fasted, the Holy Ghost said, Separate me Barnabas and Saul for the work whereunto I have called them" (Acts 13:2). If the Lord calls to a special office, such as the ministry, then He will also give an impression of that in the heart of those who have to separate such a person. The Holy Spirit not only calls man to a special service, but also qualifies him for it with special gifts. He also causes these talents to develop within them and gives them the ability to use them. This is a continuing work until the end of their life.
5. The Holy Spirit's work is gathering, teaching, and guiding the Church by means of the Word of God. The Lord Jesus said, "He will guide you into all truth."
6. The writing of the Scriptures was also inspired by the Holy Spirit. 2 Peter 1:21 says, "For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost."
7. The preparation of the human nature of Christ in the body of Mary was also a work of the Holy Spirit as we see in Luke 1:35, "The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee."

Salvation is thought by the Father in heaven. Salvation is bought by the Son on earth. Salvation is wrought in the heart of man by the Holy Spirit. That is the work of the Trinity in respect to salvation. This work cannot be limited to salvation, for it is also apparent in creation and providence; however, it is necessary for us to know the work of salvation in our own life.

When salvation is wrought in our heart, then the Holy Spirit is the One who begins to work even though we cannot separate this from the Father who sends the Spirit, and the Son who demands that the Spirit will go forth. First a sinner learns to know that He has sinned against God and is without God in the world. He does not know of the triune God. He sees that God is holy, just and good. There is an incomprehensible longing for this God.

When the Lord works in a person, the Person he will first begin to know is the Son, although the Spirit is the first to work in his heart. It pleases God to show him that he is Adam – and then all hope is cut off. The Second Adam will be revealed to a sinner in that moment when he bows under God, subscribes to his death sentence, and agrees with God that he should be cast away. When there is no hope, then the Lord opens the door of hope through the Second Person in the Trinity, the Lord Jesus Christ.

Later the sinner will learn to know the Father, if it pleases the Lord to teach him what He taught the disciples and Mary Magdalene, "I ascend to My Father, and your Father!" Then the sinner receives a coming home with the Father. Outside of this, they feel like a homeless people. There will be a longing of a truly converted soul to have a place with the Father, as did the prodigal son.

The last Person which will be revealed to them is the Holy Spirit. Then it becomes Pentecost. Then there is the sealing witness of the Spirit, and the Spirit becomes the representative of Christ, dwelling in the heart. Then they may have a seal which says that what they have received is right and true, and that they have not deceived themselves. This is God's guarantee and seal, witnessing with the Spirit that they are the children of God. Then we see what Bethlehem really means. Then we see it in its fullness: God manifest in the flesh. Then we see what Good Friday, Easter, and Ascension day really mean. Pentecost sheds full light upon the facts of salvation. Then salvation is secured not only in the work of Christ, but in a triune God.

It would be a wonder if we could learn to know what a poor, retarded boy once saw. He said, "I see One, and the One is Three, and the Three is One, and all these Three are all for me."

Also in regard to this doctrine, how true is that which the Lord Jesus Himself testified in Matthew 11:25, "I thank Thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because Thou hast hid these things from the wise and prudent, and hast revealed them unto babes." Blessed are we if we may be such a babe – taught by Him, in these mysteries of His kingdom.