 The Trinity: Fact or Fiction? The word "Trinity" is NOWHERE used in the Bible.The Trinity doctrine claims that the being we call "God" is composed of three "persons" or "modes of being." This concept suggests that God is Father, Son AND Holy Spirit, all three in one being, yet distinct and separate. They call it a mystery that "can't be explained." They're right, it CAN'T if you use the bible as your source for truth. (See the related topic: The Doctrine of Antichrist, and Psalms 110 - Two Lords?! The concept of the "trinity" has a long historical record within past pagan religious systems. It wasn't a huge leap to incorporate this belief (like the pagan Christmas festival around December 25th) into the Christian belief system and use ancient historical records of this trinity belief. Rather than go into any depth on the many prior pagan trinity themes, which you can research online, we will focus on New Testament evidence on the subject. In order to understand the relevance of the trinity doctrine, we need to look at what exactly a "three in one" God would mean to humanity. If you claim to be a Christian, this means that you understand and believe in the fact that God provided a way for humanity to escape the death penalty and to live forever. This penalty came upon all of us because of our wrong thinking and acting, called sin. God has such a high standard for character and mind that He established the death penalty for anyone who didn't reach this goal over their lifetimes. Sin couldn't be negotiated with or condoned. The life of a human being consists of flesh and blood called a "soul". What we are is a physical body with a mind that is like God's mind. He can comprehend who He is and ask questions about life. He can know others, have relationships, etc. If we accept the Trinity concept, it attacks the very heart of all that God is doing through mankind in creating sons and daughters. More on that later. Understand this. The penalty for sin is DEATH. Romans 6:23 "For the wages of sin [is] death, but the gift of God [is] eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord." Ezekiel 18:4 "Behold, all souls are Mine; The soul of the father as well as the soul of the son is Mine; The soul "who" sins shall die. Ezekiel 18:20 "The soul who sins shall die. The son shall not bear the guilt of the father, nor the father bear the guilt of the son. The righteousness of the righteous shall be upon himself, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon himself." That means cessation of consciousness. The end of all we are. Our thoughts, our minds, our emotions, hopes, dreams, etc., all ended. That is because God decreed that no human would be able to gain eternal life in a perverted state of thinking, like Satan and the demons. This is out of His love for everyone. Since ALL men and women have sinned, (Romans 3:23 "For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God") we ALL come under that death penalty, regardless of how "good" we may be now. God provided a way for the penalty to be paid FOR us, so we don't have to face eternal death. This penalty was paid by a human being, the death of the ONLY other being who could do this, Jesus Christ who came as flesh and blood. Exactly like us. Think about this for a minute. If the Trinity were true, then God simply has a game He is playing where He makes up some arbitrary rules, and makes us adhere to them, like some kind of meaningless ritual. "IF" Jesus Christ, the one who died to pay the penalty for us, was only a PART of the "Godhead," then that means that Christ, the very Son of God, DIDN'T REALLY DIE, which is the penalty for sin. Many believe it was just his "body" that died and that "He" continued on living while His body was in the grave those three days and three nights. If that is true, and we "have" souls, then this means when we (our body) "dies," we are paying for our own sins, and then do not NEED Christ's sacrifice.
If God is Father, Son, AND Holy Spirit as one, then what actually took place on the cross when Christ was thrust through with a spear, and His blood was drained from his body? Are we to believe that just a BODY died, and Christ was really still in heaven as part of the Godhead while the body He "was in" died on the cross? In what way does this pay the death penalty? The death of a human body that has no mind or consciousness that is made up BY that body, AND by the spirit in man, is NO DEATH AT ALL. It is a con game. Consider, if Christ's actual being and consciousness really did not die, and just his body died as payment for our sins, as his real being (His alleged "soul") lived on apart from this dead body, then His sacrifice is in vain because every human who has ever died, (according to the immortal soul doctrine, whose body is dead, and they are now in heaven or hell), ALL PAID FOR THEIR OWN SINS THROUGH THE DEATH OF THEIR BODIES! There can be no difference in the death of a shell that is somehow distinctly different than the true life "IN" that shell. Do you see the sinister nature of this trinity doctrine, not to mention the immortal soul doctrine? It negates the very sacrifice of Christ, making it moot and void. Nice Satanic plan. The serpent told us, "You shall NOT surely die" (Gen 3:4 "And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die:") and traditional religion accepts this ongoing lie completely.
In Jesus Christ's day, the Jewish religion was very specific about their belief in God. It was a non-negotiable point that God was "one" being... Deu 6:4 "Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD." When Christ came to earth, one of His missions was to make it known that "God" was NOT a single being, but a name for a future family. Christ claimed to be "one" with God... John 10:30 "I and my Father are one." He claimed to "BE" God, the "I AM" ... John 8:58 "Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Before Abraham was, I am." Christ was claiming to have existed prior to Abraham, and was in fact, the "I Am" mentioned in Exodus 3... Exodus 3:14 "And God said to Moses, I AM THAT I AM: and he said, Thus shalt you say to the children of Israel, I AM has sent me to you." Do you see what Christ was revealing to His generation? He was showing them that the very God they thought they knew, understood and worshipped from the Old Testament times was NOT the Father He was revealing for the first time. (For much more on this topic, read about Who is Christ? and Who is Yahweh? Let's continue with the trinity question. If Jesus Christ went to preach to spirits (1 Peter 3:19 "By which also he went and preached unto the spirits in prison;") after He died and during those three days "in the grave" as many believe, then the sign that He was the Christ is NOT true and we have no savior... Matt 12:39 "But he answered and said to them, An evil and adulterous generation seeks after a sign; and there shall no sign be given to it, but the sign of the prophet Jonas:40 For as Jonas was three days and three nights in the whale's belly; so shall the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth." Christ Himself said He would be in the tomb for three days and three nights, PERIOD. Was He lying to us? Where was He those three days and nights? Why did He need resurrecting if He was already alive and elsewhere those three days and nights? Did God simply resurrect a bag of flesh for Christ to "re-inhabit" in the resurrection? (For that matter "WHY" did a resurrection even need to occur?) This concept actually attacks the validity of Christ's death and it's power over our lives. Unless we understand who and what Christ was (See Christ), then we will completely miss the reality of all this. The being who was on this earth, as the Christ, was the same being who was the eternal "word" as described in John 1. However, as the word, He had all the powers of God, since He was literally God Himself, who was WITH the Father in the past and gave up that position to actually become flesh and blood completely.
He was changed or made into a flesh and blood human being. He was fully God, in that He was the same being that existed eternally, however, HE WAS NOW COMPLETELY FLESH AND BLOOD, WITH NO DIVINE POWER OR ETERNAL LIFE INHERENT WITHIN HIM. His whole being consisted of flesh and blood as we are. He was exactly like you and me. 5 senses, felt pain, had emotions, had carnal nature, yet He KNEW who He was. He remembered things from His past eternity. . .(Luke 10:18 "And He said to them, "I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven".) This being literally gave up everything to come to earth to pay the penalty for every human being who has ever lived, simply because His life was worth more than EVERY human who has or ever will live, BECAUSE HE WAS LITERALLY "GOD IN THE FLESH," or better yet, "God AS flesh." Can you see the important difference? If the whole scenario that took place so many years ago was just a show, is it any wonder why people don't take the whole Christian religious concept seriously? God CANNOT DIE as a spirit being. If Christ were a part of the Trinity, then HE, as a spirit being, REALLY DIDN'T DIE. Doesn't it seem a little ridiculous to believe that God went through this charade? How do you comprehend the SERIOUSNESS of sin and the death penalty when all that died on the stake 2000 years ago was a human body? Remember, the penalty for sin is DEATH, NOT to simply suffer some physical pain and torment. Some might conclude that was all that Christ experienced, but that is not DEATH. Why should Christ go through the act of feeling pain and suffering all that He did only to instantly be alive and doing other things during those three days? THAT WAS NOT THE PENALTY FOR SIN. Scripture states that "God so loved the world that He gave HIS ONLY BEGOTTEN SON." If Christ was a part of a Trinity, then how is the above scripture valid? Why would Christ be the "only" son when the Holy Spirit is allegedly ALSO a part of the Trinity? God stated this fact about "His only begotten son" because IT WAS THE TRUTH. This eternal being GAVE the ONLY OTHER ETERNAL GOD BEING that existed. (Don't freak out over the alleged "more than one God" issue that will be cleared up later) THAT is why He is called the "ONLY." This is the vital dimension to this equation that most people are missing. If Christ was just "in" a human body, then God could have created another "only begotten son" which of course, moots the whole concept of "only." Since God could create millions of other human bodies for Christ's "soul" to "dwell" in, the term "only" becomes worthless. Naturally, Satan wants to minimize and make as foolish as he can, any aspect of the truth. Don't you think he has done a good job? How can thinking, reasoning human beings conclude that God and His plan is REAL if they see this simplistic, empty show as the "meat and potatoes" of Christian religious truth? Can a being who is both the eternal, ever living God AND a human being capable of dying, be one and the same thing? NO! The being we know as the Christ, literally ceased to exist as a conscious being when He died on that stake almost 2000 years ago. He was "asleep," lifeless in the tomb for three days and three nights. During those three days and nights, He had NO consciousness. For the first time in His existence, the being who had known eternity was completely dead and lifeless. His state for those three days was an example of what the state of OUR existence would be FOREVER, without the death penalty being paid FOR us. Because Christ was sinless, His life COULD pay for all mankind, and because He DID NOT deserve eternal death, God the Father resurrected Christ, as an example of how He will resurrect every human being who achieves the right state of mind and character, just as Christ's example demonstrated. Remember, we are being shaped into the image of Christ, BY CHRIST, as part of our destiny. Who would be better able to relate to us, then He who was one of us? Even though Christ was God in the flesh, he was tempted in all the basic forms that humankind has been tempted. Heb 4:15 "For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin." In order for this to actually be possibly, Christ had to be subject to carnal nature, the SAME basic carnal nature that any one of us has. Christ certainly had memories of eternity and perfection, and also had the Holy Spirit from birth which God supplied Him. It wasn't His own power. Yet, He was tempted to sin... but God cannot be tempted with sin... James 1:13 "Let no man say when he is tempted, I am tempted of God: for God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempts he any man:" Since God cannot be tempted with evil, Christ could NOT have had the full spiritual nature of God in His human form while he lived on this earth. In other words, He could NOT have been a part of the Godhead "trinity" as many believe. If He was, then scripture is false and Christ was NOT tempted like us. One point to keep in mind regarding Christ... Just as we are born with a Spirit in Man, so, too, did Christ have this spirit essence. It is THIS spirit in humanity that is being shaped and molded, either into the image of Christ, or damaged by sin. The "spirit in man" which Christ had was of some of the image and molding of who He used to be prior to his human birth. THIS, along with the Holy Spirit, the power from God the Father, enabled Him to resist and overcome sin, actually learn more, (Heb 5:8 "Though he were a Son, yet learned he obedience by the things which he suffered") and to remain the perfect sacrifice for us. 
Zech 4:6 "Then he answered and spoke to me, saying, This is the word of the LORD to Zerubbabel, saying, Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, says the LORD of hosts." Ex 31:3 "And I have filled him with the Spirit of God, in wisdom, in understanding, in knowledge, and in all manner of workmanship, 4 to design artistic works, to work in gold, in silver, in bronze, 5 in cutting jewels for setting, in carving wood, and to work in all manner of workmanship." John 4:24 "God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth."Rom 8:9 "But you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. Now if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, (who is God), he is not His." 8:11 But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit "which" (not who) dwells in you."NKJV 1 Cor 3:16 "Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?" NKJV Notice here that the spirit of God and the Spirit of Christ are equated, and thus, Christ is equated with the Father. Also, if the Holy Spirit was a third person of the Godhead, why would it be stated "spirit of God" and also "spirit of Christ"? Let's continue... 1 Peter 1:10 "Of this salvation the prophets have inquired and searched carefully, who prophesied of the grace that would come to you, 11 searching what, or what manner of time, the Spirit of Christ who was in them was indicating when He testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ and the glories that would follow."
1 Cor 2:9 "But as it is written: "Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, Nor have entered into the heart of man The things which God has prepared for those who love Him." :10 But God has revealed them to us through His Spirit. For the Spirit searches all things, yes, the deep things of God. 11 For what man knows the things of a man except the spirit of the man which is in him? Even so no one knows the things of God except the Spirit of God. 12 Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit 'who (should be correctly interpreted "which") is from God, that we might know the things that have been freely given to us by God. 13 These things we also speak, not in words which man's wisdom teaches but which the Holy Spirit teaches, comparing spiritual things with spiritual. 14 But the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned. 15 But he who is spiritual judges all things, yet he himself is rightly judged by no one. 16 For 'who has known the mind of the LORD that he may instruct Him?' But we have the mind of Christ. These previous scriptures speak about the spirit teaching, revealing, knowing, etc. It should be clear by now that the Holy Spirit is the very mind, the very essence, the very nature of what God and Christ are composed of... it reflects their minds... it is what they ARE. In the above scriptures, we see God telling us about this "Spirit." It isn't that it is an essence separate from the Father or Christ, it is what they are composed of. They are composed of spirit just as we will be composed of spirit when we receive new spirit bodies... 1 Cor 15:42 "So also is the resurrection of the dead. The body is sown in corruption, it is raised in incorruption. 43 It is sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory. It is sown in weakness, it is raised in power. 44 It is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body. There is a natural body, and there is a spiritual body. 45 And so it is written, "The first man Adam became a living being." The last Adam became a life-giving spirit." 1 Cor 15:50 "...flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; nor does corruption inherit incorruption. 51 Behold, I tell you a mystery: We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed — 52 in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed." Notice this spirit body we receive is what we shall "be." It is the power of God... what He is composed of, that we receive just as a son or daughter receives a body of flesh from their parents, like their parents. We will be composed of this same spirit. 1 Cor 15:49 "And as we have borne the image of the man of dust, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly." Luke 1:35 "And the angel answered and said to her, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Highest will overshadow you; therefore, also, that Holy One who is to be born will be called the Son of God. NKJV "Power of the Highest" clearly indicates that the Holy Spirit IS the power of the highest AND of Christ, who is also composed of the SAME Holy Spirit. (Rom 8:9) More on this miracle later. Now let's look at Christ's words regarding He and the Father... and a conspicuously absent alleged "third" party - Holy Spirit - in this relationship...John 17:21 "that they all may be one, as You, Father, [are] in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me. :22 "And the glory which You gave Me I have given them, that they may be one just as We are one: The above scriptures reveal that WE, as humans, can be "ONE" with EACH OTHER, and with the Father and Christ, even as the Father and Christ are "ONE." Does this mean that people who believe in God and are part of this process are actually one being? How can we be "ONE" with each other, and "ONE" with Christ and the Father? Notice also that Christ makes NO mention of the Holy Spirit as a distinct entity being one with He and the Father, OR us. 1 Corinthians 3:8 "Now he who plants and he who waters are one, (Paul + Apollos) and each one will receive his own reward according to his own labor." How can two humans be "ONE?" The marriage ceremony describes two people becoming "ONE" flesh. (Genesis 2:24) Does marriage suddenly transform two people into one physical body? NO! The concept of "ONE" is being "ONE" in unity, purpose, cooperation, love, character, commitment, etc. Mal 2:15 "Has not [the LORD] made them one? In flesh and spirit they are his. And why one? Because he was seeking godly offspring." Again, two being "one," and yet separate and distinct humans with separate minds, thoughts and wills. Consider these scriptures as well: Matt 20:21 "And he said to her, What wilt you? She says to him, Grant that these my two sons may sit, the one on your right hand, and the other on the left, in your kingdom." Mark 16:19 "So then after the Lord had spoken to them, he was received up into heaven, and sat on the right hand of God." Christ sits at the right hand of the Father, and yet Christ confirmed that someone might sit at HIS right and left hand on their thrones... Rev 3:21 "To him who overcomes, I will give the right to sit with me on my throne, just as I overcame and sat down with my Father on his throne. 22 He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches." NIV It is obvious these are two distinct beings with their own thrones... and what of the Holy Spirit's throne if they are all one single being? Acts 2:33 "Therefore being by the right hand of God exalted, and having received of the Father the promise of the Holy Ghost, he hath shed forth this, (Holy Spirit... God's power) which you now see and hear." Acts 7:55 "But he, being full of the Holy Ghost, looked up stedfastly into heaven, and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing on the right hand of God." Where is the Holy Spirit in this vision? Heb 12:2 "Looking to Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God." Heb 8: "Now of the things which we have spoken this is the sum: We have such an high priest, who is set on the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens;" Notice first that Christ is clearly shown to be at the Father's right hand, on a throne. Second, notice that John's mother requested of Christ that her two son's could sit at "His" right and left hand. Notice there is no throne for the alleged separate being, the Holy Spirit. Christ speaks of there being these two positions as well. 1 Cor 11:3 "But I want you to know that the head of every man is Christ, the head of woman is man, and the head of Christ is God." Christ is over mankind, the Father is over Christ... so how can they be two in one, if the Father is over Christ and greater than Christ? John 14:28 ..."I go to the Father: for my Father is greater than I." 1 John 4:13 "By this we know that we abide in Him, and He in us, because He has given us of His Spirit." 1 Cor 15:28 "Now when all things are made subject to Him, then the Son Himself will also be subject to Him who put all things under Him, that God may be all in all." Again, very specifically calling attention to the fact of the two-person Godhead, with one having ultimate authority over the other. Remember, this "Father and Son" relationship was NOT in the beginning. This was something they designed and established for a far greater purpose... Heb 1:5 "For to which of the angels did He ever say: "You are My Son, Today I have begotten You"? And again: "I will be to Him a Father, And He shall be to Me a Son"? 6 But when He again brings the firstborn into the world, He says: "Let all the angels of God worship Him." Taken from... 2 Sam 7:12 "I will set up your seed after you, who will come from your body, and I will establish his kingdom. 13 He shall build a house for My name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. 14 I will be his Father, and he shall be My son. Notice the context of these scriptures. It speaks of angels (which existed with God), and that God never spoke about them as He did about Christ, who was also with Him. Also, notice that the "Father and Son" relationship... "will be to Him a Father..." and "He shall be to me a son" is here, future tense, NOT already existing. Christ was an independent being prior to His coming as flesh and blood like one of us. He had His own will, but had a mission to follow, and needed God's power and strength as a human... John 5:30 "I can of Myself do nothing. As I hear, I judge; and My judgment is righteous, because I do not seek My own will but the will of the Father who sent Me." John 8:28 "Then Jesus said to them, "When you lift up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am He, and that I do nothing of Myself; but as My Father taught Me, I speak these things." Two wills, and Christ cannot do anything of Himself... so how can they be the same single being? Christ had His OWN will. Rev 3:21 "To him who overcomes I will grant to sit with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne." Again, Christ is sitting separated from his Father but certainly next to Him. This is clearly two distinct beings, and yet, we see NO Holy Spirit or throne mentioned, if in fact it is a separate being like trinity believers assume. Why such a glaring example of something missing from this portion of the presumed Godhead?" John 17:3 "And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent." (If Christ was a trinity part of the Godhead, why would He call the Father, "the only true God," and also leave out the Holy Spirit trinity part? This should call into question the trinity concept alone. 1 John 1:3 "We proclaim to you what we have seen and heard, so that you also may have fellowship with us. And our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ." If we are talking about a "three in one" God, wouldn't we also have fellowship with the Holy Spirit? Why leave the Holy Spirit out here and in so many other places where it certainly would have been acknowledged to be a separate entity within God if that were true. At the very end of the millennium and salvation, Christ hands all things back to the Father: 1 Cor 15:24 "Then comes the end, when He delivers the kingdom to God the Father, when He puts an end to all rule and all authority and power. 25 For He must reign till He has put all enemies under His feet. 26 The last enemy that will be destroyed is death. 27 For "He has put all things under His feet." But when He says "all things are put under Him," it is evident that He who put all things under Him is excepted. 28 Now when all things are made subject to Him, then the Son Himself will also be subject to Him who put all things under Him, that God may be all in all." Notice the Father is over Christ, and that there is no mention of the "Holy Spirit" being anywhere in this relationship. There is Christ, the Son, and the Father, who will eventually be the head of all, even Christ. Two beings, two separate minds and lives, who each consist of (Holy) Spirit, just as those resurrected into God's family will be composed of this same Holy Spirit, or finally, having become fully, The God Kind!
If people want to persist in the concept of a trinity, then they must deal with the clear warning from the Apostle John on what spirit would deny that there is a distinction between the Father and Son... The Doctrine of Antichrist that the Son did NOT come in the flesh... 1 John 2:22 "...He is antichrist, that denies the Father and the Son. 23 Whoever denies the Son does not have the Father either; he who acknowledges the Son has the Father also." 2 John :10 "He who abides in the doctrine of Christ has both the Father and the Son." Why would John put this in and leave out the Holy Spirit if the Holy Spirit were a separate thinking entity? The spirit of antichrist will be one who denies the true God, his true separate and distinct Son, who is one with His Father, and who the resurrected Church of God, the bride of Christ, will be "one" with as well...
John says they are "antichrist." Read all of John and you will see clearly he is speaking about the separation of Christ and the Father... separate beings, and yet NO "Holy Spirit" ever brought up. John 8:16 "But if I do judge, my decisions are right, because I am not alone. I stand with the Father, who sent me. 17 In your own Law it is written that the testimony of two men is valid. 18 I am one who testifies for myself; my other witness is the Father, who sent me." Once again, no mention of a potential "third" witness, the Holy Spirit, if it were truly a separate entity. Keep in mind that scriptures state... "Matt 18:16 "that 'by the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be established.'" 2 Cor 13:1 "By the mouth of two or three witnesses every word shall be established." Heb 10:28 "...the testimony of two or three witnesses." Two OR three witnesses, so this was a prime opportunity for Christ to validate the three in one trinity concept, but He did not. These scriptures clearly indicate that God is NOT a trinity, composed of only three members. The term "God" is a family name, now two, and soon to expand into a far larger family beginning with the first resurrection of the present age saints who will comprise the "Bride of Christ" and be the beginning of the next step in the salvation process... that of bringing the vast majority of all humans who have ever lived into the God family.
Col 2:2 "...that their hearts may be encouraged, being knit together in love, and attaining to all riches of the full assurance of understanding, to the knowledge of the mystery of God, both of the Father and of Christ, 3 in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge." Col 3:1 "If then you were raised with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ is, sitting at the right hand of God."NO Holy Spirit mentioned as a separate entity part of God and Christ. Still not convinced? How about these describing two "Lords", not just "One" God: Ps 110:1 "The LORD said to my Lord, 'Sit at My right hand, Till I make Your enemies Your footstool.' 2 The LORD shall send the rod of Your strength out of Zion. Rule in the midst of Your enemies!" NKJV Notice two beings, both called "Lord", but one in all caps and one just the "L" cap... this is describing the LORD, or Father, and the "Lord", or Christ/Word of God. A few last points to make on this subject, but by all means not even close to exhausting the subject, let's consider these:
See also HOW MANY BEINGS are in the Godhead, and the related question, Is Jesus God?
Below are separate references regarding the trinity concept not being in the original belief system of the apostles and early church:The Encyclopedia of Religion: "Theologians today are in agreement that the Hebrew Bible does not contain a doctrine of the Trinity." "Theologians agree that the New Testament also does not contain an explicit doctrine of the Trinity." The New Catholic Encyclopedia: "The doctrine of the Holy Trinity is not taught in the O[ld] T[estament]." "The formulation 'one God in three Persons' was not solidly established, certainly not fully assimilated into Christian life and its profession of faith, prior to the end of the 4th century...." Among the Apostolic Fathers, there had been nothing even remotely approaching such a mentality or perspective." (This trinity doctrine was added later as part of the False Christian Religious System rising up in the third century. The book "The Triune God", by Jesuit Edmund Fortman: "The Old Testament... tells us nothing explicitly or by necessary implication of a Triune God who is Father, Son and Holy Spirit.... There is no evidence that any sacred writer even suspected the existence of a [Trinity] within the Godhead. . . . Even to see in [the "Old Testament"] suggestions or foreshadowings or 'veiled signs' of the trinity of persons, is to go beyond the words and intent of the sacred writers." - Emphasis added. "The New Testament writers .. . give us no formal or formulated doctrine of the Trinity, no explicit teaching that in one God there are three co-equal divine persons.... Nowhere do we find any trinitarian doctrine of three distinct subjects of divine life and activity in the same Godhead." The New Encyclopaedia Britannica: "Neither the word Trinity nor the explicit doctrine appears in the New Testament." Bernhard Lohse says in "A Short History of Christian Doctrine:" "As far as the New Testament is concerned, one does not find in it an actual doctrine of the Trinity." The New International Dictionary of New Testament Theology: "The N[ew] T[estament] does not contain the developed doctrine of the Trinity. 'The Bible lacks the express declaration that the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit are of equal essence' [said Protestant theologian Karl Barth]." Yale University professor E. Washburn Hopkins in Origin and Evolution of Religion: "To Jesus and Paul the doctrine of the trinity was apparently unknown;. .. they say nothing about it." Historian Arthur Weigall notes in The Paganism in Our Christianity: "Jesus Christ never mentioned such a phenomenon, and nowhere in the New Testament does the word 'Trinity' appear. The idea was only adopted by the Church three hundred years after the death of our Lord." "The early Christians, however, did not at first think of applying the Trinity idea to their own faith. They paid their devotions to God the Father and to Jesus Christ, the Son of God, and they recognised the ... Holy Spirit; but there was no thought of these three being an actual Trinity, co-equal and united in One." The New International Dictionary of New Testament Theology: "Primitive Christianity did not have an explicit doctrine of the Trinity such as was subsequently elaborated in the creeds." Encyclopaedia of Religion and Ethics: "At first the Christian faith was not Trinitarian ... It was not so in the apostolic and sub-apostolic ages, as reflected in the N[ew] T[estament] and other early Christian writings." Some last thoughts: Many want to point to the usage of "he" when some places address the Holy Spirit. This is a grammatical issue, not a doctrinal one. For example, in John 14:16, it states... "And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he (Holy Spirit) may abide with you for ever;" and yet, in Romans 8:16, it states... "The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God:" It gets into the Greek language and the use of gender often where the actual word is gender neutral, and you can study that if you need to dive deeper into that subject. Keep putting the pieces together and you will come to see the bigger picture much more clearly. You need to also study the article on Spirit to understand more about this concept. See also:
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