Holy Trinity: Equality

Probably because of the famous line in our Declaration of Independence, Americans hear the word ‘equality’, and we immediately think of our rights:

“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights…”

Like siblings who vie for attention and every article needed for existence, our humanity constantly seeks fairness and equality. Be it cookies or salaries, we are motivated by a deep desire to have the same as ‘them’. But, it turns out, we often confuse ‘equality’ with the idea of ‘equity’. 

The writers of the American Declaration of Independence hit upon the idea of ‘equality’ when they acknowledged we are all created equal by our Creator. The Bible upholds this idea that each of us is “intrinsically equal in value, dignity, and worth because we are made in God’s image” (see Genesis 1:26–27).¹ But when we slide into wanting all things to be fair or desire to address inequalities among people, we’re actually moving into the ‘equity’ camp. 

Paul helps us see with clarity that God desires ‘equity’, opposing all forms of favoritism and partiality (see Ephesians 6:9; James 2:1, 9; 1 Timothy 5:21). However, God’s standard of ‘equality’ is not sameness but inherent worth and value. It’s not uniformity but unity.

And so it becomes imperative to understand the difference between ‘equality’ and ‘equity’ when it comes to our three-in-one God because the third foundational truth of the Trinity tells us that the three Persons of the Godhead are equally God. This is not saying that there are inequalities among them that need righting; that would imply ‘equity’. Rather, ‘equality’ among them tells us that God the Father, God the Son, and God the Spirit are each inherently and fully God. 

Trinitarian Equality

There’s a reason the most-used symbol for the Trinity is an equilateral triangle. Each side is equal in length. Each angle of the triangle has the same degree (60°). The visual effect of such mathematical equality transfers onto our three-in-one God, helping us see that all three Persons are equal.

The Holy Three equally comprise our singular, perfectly unified God.³ Another way of saying this is that the being of each Person is equal to the whole being of God, which means one Person does not reign or rule or roost over the other two, not ever.² And while we consider the Father as the first Person of the Trinity, this has nothing to do with His age or rank. Instead, it refers to the fact that God’s essence as ‘Father’ was revealed first to humanity as well as in Scripture.² In the same way, Jesus was revealed second and Holy Spirit third! 

As we consider the third foundational truth of the Trinity, it helps to think of this Triune equal-ness as “coequal, coeternal, and corelational.”² The Holy Three are:

• coequal in character and personality, power and glory.² 
• coeternal in the sense that none was created by the others.²
• corelational in the way they subsist together, three-in-one.⁴ 

Just as God does not desire that every single human be the same – same hair and height, same gifts and passions – the Holy Three are not the same. Their diversity sets each Person apart from the others but without diminishing their equality.³ Forever and ever (amen), the three Persons of the Godhead share the full nature and essence of divinity.

Trinitarian Roles

When we consider that the Father, Son, and Spirit are (co)equally God, it’s good to keep in the forefront of our minds their (co)eternality. Not only are They ‘uncreated’, but in their forever state of existence, they have assumed distinct roles⁵ – roles that flow right out of their (co)relationships. For instance, thinking of the Father as the Begetter helps us see Him as the One who initiates plans. With the Son as the Begotten, He naturally becomes the One who executes those plans. And because of the Spirit’s Procession, He moves through the world and God’s children to apply the Father’s plans. 

It’s important not to consider these roles as assigned or even debated among the Holy Three but as ‘assumed’ voluntarily with perfect love and cooperation.² In fact, it’s most helpful to grab hold of the truth that the three Persons of the Trinity share one ‘will’. To say that another way, the three Persons do not have three separate wills.⁵ And this is something we humans cannot fathom. Even in our closest relationships, there always remains individual wills, ideas, opinions, and desires. But not within the Godhead. Their will is as one as They are. This means they are always moving in the same direction and working toward the same ends.

With that established, as we think of each Person having certain roles within the Trinity, we can now consider them as fully aligned and functioning as the unified, singular God that They are. Earth-walking Jesus helps us see this in the natural realm each time He aligns with the Father’s will and relies on the Spirit’s power. Even as He carried out the plan for salvation, Jesus remained one in mind and mission with His Trinitarian coequals. 

It’s important to note that some theologians shy away from listing out specific roles for the Persons of the Trinity because God is not made up of ‘parts’ – where A and B and C function separately from each other.⁵ The Trinity is One. They function as One. Their wills are unified as One. But there is a way to think about Trinitarian roles that helps us see how each Person works to accomplish the overall mission – and that is to acknowledge the Holy Three are not interchangeable in their work.⁵ 

All we have to do is look at the Gospels to see this most clearly. When the Son stepped out of heaven, that was done only by the Son – all while the Father remained seated on the throne in heaven as the One with the guiding plan and the Spirit sourced all the power Jesus needed to minister. Functioning as One, they accomplished their singular holy work in their own distinct ways.⁶

It occurs to me that this fully-aligned work, supported by three different Persons functioning as One, might have inspired Paul to use the imagery of our human bodies in his letters to the Church. 

Each human has a singular will within us – in such a way that our arms and legs, hearts and eyes work to fulfill all the functions, such as walking or cooking a meal, that the mind wills. I mean, in a healthy body, legs don’t choose to go their own way; they fully align with the will and do their part.

Of course this is where the ‘body’ analogy falls short, as they all do, for the Trinity – because the Godhead is not made up of ‘parts’. Yet it aids my understanding (a bit) as to how the Trinity is three Persons fully functioning from one will.

Believers’ Roles

However, Paul’s body metaphor works well for us as the Body of Christ. We are each ‘parts’ designed to work together as a whole. Each of us is uniquely and spiritually gifted for all that the Church needs to function as one. And Paul’s way of explaining this spiritual reality effectively points us to the fact that our way of working together is “grounded in the three-fold-ness of God:”⁷ 

“There are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit. And there are varieties of ministries, but the same Lord. And there are varieties of effects, but the same God works in all things in all persons.”

1 Corinthians 12:4-6 ESV, emphasis on the Three Persons is mine 

Peter also goes to great lengths to demonstrate that our identity as Christ followers, as God’s children, flows right out of the Trinity’s Personhood. In other words, the Christian experience is Trinitarian:⁷

“God the Father knew you and chose you long ago, and His Spirit has made you holy. As a result, you have obeyed Him and have been cleansed by the blood of Jesus Christ.”

1 Peter 1:2 NLT, emphasis on the Three Persons is mine

Paul goes on to exhort – the NLT uses the language of begging – the Church (of all ages) to lead lives worthy of our callings (Ephesians 4:1). He coaches us to be humble and gentle, patient and loving, and constantly united in the Spirit and with each other by way of peace (vv.2-3). And the way we are able to do this is by the example and empowerment of the Trinity:

“For there is one body and one Spirit, just as you have been called to one glorious hope for the future. There is one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is over all, in all, and living through all.”  

Ephesians 4:4-6 NLT, emphasis on the Three Persons is mine

This ‘one body’ is a collective noun (v.4). It’s referring to the group, the people who make up each church. We are ‘one’ because our collecitve-noun, Trinitarian God is One. Culturally-influenced, however, we automatically read and hear ‘you’ in Scripture as a singular noun, as individual or personal. Yet the vast majority of ‘yous’ in these New Testament books are plural.⁸ 

Which is why these early church leaders do their very best to help us see ourselves as one body. They understand better than most of us today, who cling to our individual ‘rights’, that our unity is our strength. When we all function as one, each ‘part’ working with and through their gifting for the good of the whole, we have a vitality and goodness that is rivaled only by the Trinity.⁷ 

My friends, discovering our roles as believers in the three-in-one God begins by seeing ourselves as images of the Holy Three. We “live and move and have our being” within and from the three Persons who created us in their image (Acts 17:28; Genesis 1:27). And that means following Jesus is not an individual contest. It’s a full-body life. It’s allowing ourselves, individually and corporately, to be immersed within the three-fold-ness of our Trinitarian God so that we live constantly rooted in the soil that is love – the same love that flows within and emanates from the Trinity (Ephesians 3:17).⁷ 

When we live from that love, we function in unity rather than striving toward uniformity. Such unity makes us one just as the Father, Son, and Spirit are one (John 17). Such Trinity Unity has always been the purpose and plan for humanity in relationship to each other and to God Himself. It’s a unity born of equality for equality because, individually and corporately, we are inherently valued and loved by the Holy Three who created us – holy and worthy because of their whole and holy work on our behalf.

Today we’ll pray along with the lyrics of Watermark Music’s modern hymn, “Three in One,” because it does a beautiful job of painting a picture of the equality of each Person of the Trinity while also demonstrating the roles of Each.⁹ Three stanzas for Three Persons. And one, unifying chorus. Let us pray:

O the perfect love of God
Stronger than my rebel heart
Reaching through the veil of sin
To invite the broken in
All my guilt and every stain
Overshadowed by His grace
Now I stand redeemed and free
In my Father’s love for me

O the perfect sacrifice
In my place laid down His life
Pouring from My Savior’s wounds
Precious blood my heart renews
Here by grace, only through faith
Jesus’ righteousness I claim
Now I stand with victory
In my Savior’s death for me

O the perfect gift of God
Now the seal upon this heart
Glorifying Christ the Lamb
Keep my feet in step with Him
All the pow’r, now indwells
The wind of God, my present help
Now I stand pure and complete
By the Spirit’s work in me

Holy, you are Holy
Father, Spirit, Christ the Son
Worthy of all glory
Never-ending fount of love
Everlasting three in One

In Jesus’ name we pray, amen!

Resources: I love sharing with you the books, podcasts, articles, and anything else that has inspired, encouraged, or taught me. These are humble offerings with no expectations.

• 1 – This GotQuestions article does a nice job of explaining the difference between ‘equality’ and ‘equity’. This Biblehub page also unpacks the idea of biblical equality.
• 2 – Tara Leigh Cobble’s book, The Joy of the Trinity: One God, Three Persons^
• 3 – This GotQuestions article on the Persons of the Trinity offers more explanation.
• 4 – Last week we discussed the idea of the Persons of the Trinity subsisting rather than co-existing. We will talk more about the co-relational essence of the Trinity next week!
• 5 – This Gospel Coalition article on Distinguishing Among the Three Persons of the Trinity
• 6 – If you’d be interested to see a compiled list of Trinitarian roles, here’s a link to Tara Leigh Cobble’s PDF on the Roles of the Trinity.
• 7 – Darrell Johnson’s book, Experiencing the Trinity^
• 8 – Some scholars teach us to read ‘you’ as ‘all y’all’ so that we see ourselves collectively.
• 9 – Here’s a link to the song we used as our prayer today, Watermark Music’s “Three in One.” It’s also on our Holy Trinity playlist on Spotify.
• Each Wednesday I upload a “Teacup” teaching video that carries on the topic here. You can find all the videos on my Facebook Author Page, Instagram, and YouTube.
• Many of you have found me on Substack. Thank you so much! And, if you’d like to listen to (rather than read) these weekly posts, you can do so on Substack. It’s easy to see and use the audio bar across the top of each post. While you’re on Substack, check out the ministry I’m blessed to be part of, the Devoted Collective.
• My monthly newsletter, The Abiding Life, goes to email inboxes the first week of each month to those who have subscribed on my website. I also post them on Substack. My most recent edition can be found there, and you can subscribe for future newsletters on Substack, here.

Rhythms: As my newsletter’s title infers, we seek to develop an abiding life in this space — a place where we can get informed but also be transformed as we learn to abide in God’s presence throughout our days. I like to think that developing rhythms is one way to aid us in our desire to become more Christlike.

• For this series, our rhythm of focus will be seeking to know God better in the reading of His Word and with the help of His Spirit. It’s good and right to ask Him for His help each time we desire to read with His eyes, to understand with His mind — so we begin there. Then we invite Holy Spirit to lead and reveal as we open Scripture and read. Each week I’ll put a verse or passage before us to read, to contemplate, to wrestle with. But I invite you to do your own investigating of the Word, for it is in such pursuit that you’ll meet the Living God smack dab in the middle of His Word. I’d love to hear what you see and learn and wonder about!
  • This week, our passage is 1 Corinthians 12:4-6. If we read these verses in the context of spiritual gifts and through the lens of the Trinity, we would be hard pressed to continue thinking of the gifts we’ve been given as anything but for the good of others. Especially our churches.
    
    “There are different kinds of spiritual gifts, but the same Spirit is the source of them all. There are different kinds of service, but we serve the same Lord. God works in different ways, but it is the same God who does the work in all of us.” –1 Corinthians 12:4-6 NLT

• We’re all called to share the truth about who Jesus is. One way you can do that is by sharing this site and telling others your own stories of faith experiences. May we use our whole selves to tell others about our holy God!!

Featured Photo by Jeremiah Del Mar on Unsplash — a picture of the Holy Trinity Cathedral of Tbilisi
“All the Bits and Pieces” Photo by Sahand Babali on Unsplash.
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