A recent study of American adults by the Cultural Research Centre at Arizona Christian University revealed a startling truth: that only 11% Americans overall and just 16% of self-identified Christians imagine within the Trinity.
This is deeply concerning since the Trinity isn’t some optional or secondary belief in Christianity; it’s foundational. To reject the Trinity is, in essence, to reject the core of the Christian faith itself.
So, why achieve this many reject it? More often than not, it isn’t right down to revolt, but fairly a misunderstanding.
And that’s exactly what this text hopes to clear up. While I’m not a theologian, I need to supply an easy yet meaningful explanation of the Trinity and why it’s so vital in Christianity.
What Is the Trinity?
The word “Trinity” doesn’t actually appear within the Bible. It was first introduced by Tertullian, an early Christian apologist within the 2nd century, and was later formalised on the Council of Nicaea in 325 AD.
In the best terms, the Trinity describes God as one Being who exists as three distinct but equal Persons – God the Father, God the Son (Jesus Christ), and God the Holy Spirit.
This isn’t three gods. It’s one triune God.
Where will we see the Trinity within the Bible?
The Trinity has existed from the very starting. In fact, we catch a glimpse of the Trinity right in the primary three verses of Genesis 1. God the Father speaks the Word, which is God the Son (John 1:1), that actively brings creation into existence; and God the Spirit can be present hovering – nurturing and preparing life on the formless and empty Earth.
Even though the term itself isn’t utilized in Scripture; the concept is woven all throughout the Bible. For example, it is obvious in Matthew 3:16-17, Matthew 28:18-20 and a pair of Corinthians 13:14.
Why is the Trinity so vital?
Through the Trinity, we gain a clearer understanding of who God is, how He works, and the way we, as Christians, can relate to Him in our day by day lives. More specifically, it deepens our grasp of His love and the salvation He offers.
1. It reveals God’s loving relational nature
Because God is love (1 John 4:8), He has existed eternally as a relationship – Father, Son, and Spirit – sure by perfect love. Love didn’t begin with creation. It has all the time existed inside God Himself. And because true love naturally overflows, God created us out of affection, for love, and to live in relationship with Him.
2. It explains salvation
Yet, through Satan’s deception, sin entered the world, and humanity fell away from God’s perfect design, selecting separation over communion with Him (Genesis 3).
Because God is love, He couldn’t stand by and watch humanity perish eternally. Yet, God the Father, in His holiness and transcendence (1 Peter 1:15-16), cannot dwell in perfect relationship with sinful humanity as we’re.
So, out of mercy and love, He sent God the Son – the Word who took on flesh – to disclose His heart, restore what was broken, and rescue us from everlasting separation (John 3:16).
Through Jesus, we’re offered the gift of salvation and drawn back into union with God (Romans 5:10).
3. It clarifies who Jesus really is
This is why Jesus is on the very centre of the Christian faith. He isn’t merely a prophet or respected teacher, He is God the Son – fully God and fully human (Colossians 2:9), sent by God the Father.
This divine identity is why He alone may very well be the right, sinless sacrifice for our sins (1 Peter 1:18-19). It’s why He has the authority to forgive sin, perform miracles, rise from the dead and to command nature itself (Mark 2:10; Luke 8:24-25 and John 10:17-18) – because He is the very Word of God through whom all things were made (John 1:1-3).
In Jesus, God stepped down from Heaven, not simply to teach or encourage, but to rescue us with His own life (Philippians 2:6-8).
4. It makes the Christian life possible
For this same reason, the Holy Spirit plays a significant role within the Christian faith.
God the Spirit, also referred to as the Spirit of truth and life (John 14:17 and Romans 8:2), isn’t distant or abstract – He is God’s presence inside us (1 Corinthians 3:16). Just as our physical bodies are lifeless without oxygen, our spiritual bodies are spiritually dead without the Holy Spirit.
He reveals to us the depth of God the Father’s unconditional love, as demonstrated through God the Son (Romans 5:5). He lives inside every believer – empowering, convicting, guiding, comforting, interceding, and advocating on our behalf (John 14:26; Romans 8:26 and Acts 1:18).
Through Him, we’re born again and identified as children of God (John 3:5-6 and Romans 8:14-16), just as earthly children are known by their parents through shared blood and resemblance. He connects us to the Father and the Son, making our relationship with God personal and real.
Each Person of the Trinity works in harmony to redeem and restore us.
The mystery of the Trinity and why it matters to you
Admittedly, the Trinity is a tough concept to know. It is one of the vital profound and difficult doctrines within the Christian faith. It stretches beyond human understanding, and we may never fully grasp why God selected to exist and reveal Himself on this triune way. Yet, this mystery is a component of what makes God divine and infinite.
What matters most is that this: we’d like the Trinity to actually know who God is, to receive His gift of salvation, and to live in a loving, everlasting relationship with Him.
The Trinity isn’t just theology – it’s intimacy. It’s God’s gift to us: an invite to be a part of a divine love that existed before time began, and that stretches into eternity.
The Trinity is the center of Christianity.
