Understanding God as One Person and One Spirit: A Biblical Perspective
The concept of God’s nature has been a topic of much debate throughout Christian history. Some teachings suggest that God is three persons in one (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit), while others view God as one Spirit manifested in three forms.
However, when we examine the Scriptures closely, we see a consistent portrayal of God as One Spirit and One Person, having a distinct Son, Jesus Christ, who is in union with His Spirit, the Holy Spirit, who is not a separate person from God, but the very Spirit of God Himself.
This blog will explore this understanding, based on biblical references, that God is not three persons but one, revealed through His Son, Christ Jesus, and His Spirit, the Holy Spirit.
1. God is One Spirit and One Person
The Bible teaches that God is one, both in Spirit and in person. The idea that God is three persons is not found in the Scriptures, but rather, the consistent biblical teaching is that God is one.
Deuteronomy 6:4: "Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one."
This foundational verse in Scripture, known as the Shema, proclaims the oneness of God. There is no suggestion of God being three persons but rather a clear statement that God is one.
John 4:24: "God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth."
Jesus teaches that God is spirit, meaning He is not a physical being nor a collection of persons. He is one Spirit and person, without division.
Isaiah 43:10-11: "Before me no god was formed, nor shall there be any after me. I, I am the LORD, and besides me there is no savior."
God declares that He alone is God, with no other gods before or after Him. This underscores the singularity of God’s person.
2. God Has a Son: Christ Jesus, a Distinct Person
While God is one Spirit and one person, the Scriptures also reveal that God has a Son, Christ Jesus, who is a distinct person. Jesus is not the Father Himself, nor is He a separate "god," but the Son of God, distinct in personhood, yet united in purpose with God.
John 3:16: "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life."
Jesus is clearly identified as God’s only Son, showing a distinction between the Father and the Son, yet not dividing them into separate gods or persons in a trinitarian sense, but two distinct divine persons united as one.
John 5:19: "So Jesus said to them, 'Truly, truly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of his own accord, but only what he sees the Father doing. For whatever the Father does, that the Son does likewise.'"
Jesus acknowledges His dependence on the Father, showing that He is a distinct person with His own will, yet in perfect harmony with the Father’s will.
Colossians 1:15-16: "He [Christ] is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him."
Christ is described as the image of the invisible God, showing that while He is distinct from the Father, He perfectly represents Him. God created all things through Christ, not as a separate god but as the Son of God Almighty.
Heb.1.1 - God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets,
2 - Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds;
3 - Who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high;
Heb.1.8 - But unto the Son he saith, Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever: a sceptre of righteousness is the sceptre of thy kingdom.
9 - Thou hast loved righteousness, and hated iniquity; therefore God, even thy God, hath anointed thee with the oil of gladness above thy fellows.
10 - And, Thou, Lord, in the beginning hast laid the foundation of the earth; and the heavens are the works of thine hands:
11 - They shall perish; but thou remainest; and they all shall wax old as doth a garment;
12 - And as a vesture shalt thou fold them up, and they shall be changed: but thou art the same, and thy years shall not fail.
13 - But to which of the angels said he at any time, Sit on my right hand, until I make thine enemies thy footstool?
This scripture clearly states that Christ Jesus is the Son of God, the full expression of God, given the authority to rule over all and yet he remain subject to God. He said God is both his Father and God. The Father gave his Son the authority to rule over all things that God himself created through him.
John.20.17 - Jesus saith unto her, Touch me not; for I am not yet ascended to my Father: but go to my brethren, and say unto them, I ascend unto my Father, and your Father; and to my God, and your God.
Again we see that Christ Jesus said that God Almighty is not only his Father, but also his God. So God is the Almighty who has given the Son the scepter of righteousness to rule over all things that God his Father, who is also his God, created through him and for him to rule over in God's stead.
Christ Jesus is the living word of God by whom God created all things. Now the word of God cannot be greater than God. Your word cannot be greater than you. Your word can only represent you because your word is one with you. When you speak you form or create words. So you are God to your word. Your word cannot be your God. You are a Father and God to your word because your word came out from you.
John.10.29 - My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father's hand.
30 - I and my Father are one.
The word of God is one with God. I and my Father are one. Christ Jesus is the expression of who and what God is like. Christ Jesus did not say that he is God Almighty himself but that he is one in union with God as Son of God.
3. The Holy Spirit: God’s Own Spirit
The Holy Spirit is not a distinct person separate from God, as some trinitarian teachings suggest. Rather, the Holy Spirit is God’s own Spirit—His presence and power at work in the world and in believers. The Holy Spirit is the very essence of God Himself, not a third person in a divine trinity.
Romans 8:9: "You, however, are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if in fact the Spirit of God dwells in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him."
The Spirit of God and the Spirit of Christ are used interchangeably here, showing that the Holy Spirit is not a separate person from God but the presence of God and Christ in union in the believer.
2 Corinthians 3:17: "Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom."
This verse makes it clear that the Lord is the Spirit. The Holy Spirit is not a separate third person but God Himself manifesting His presence and power.
Ephesians 4:4-6: "There is one body and one Spirit—just as you were called to the one hope that belongs to your call—one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all."
The Scripture speaks of one Spirit and one God and Father, showing the oneness of God. The Holy Spirit is not a separate person from God but one and the same Spirit who is God Himself, indwelling believers.
4. God Manifested Through His Son, Christ Jesus
The Bible reveals that God is made known through His Son, Jesus Christ. While God is one Spirit and one person, He chose to manifest His fullness in Christ, who came to reveal the Father to the world.
John 1:1, 14: "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God... And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us."
The Word (Jesus) was with God and was God—this mean Jesus is a separate person from God, and that He is the full expression of God, taking on human flesh.
John 14:9: "Whoever has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’?"
Jesus is the visible manifestation of the Father. Though He is distinct as the Son, He fully represents the Father, as they are one in essence and purpose.
Colossians 2:9: "For in him the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily."
All of God's fullness dwells in Christ bodily. This verse indicates that Christ is the manifestation of God in human form.
5. God’s Spirit Dwelling in Us
God’s Spirit, also known as the Holy Spirit, indwells believers, continuing the work of Christ. This is not a third person but the very presence of God in the hearts of those who believe in Christ.
Romans 8:11: "If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you."
The same Spirit of God who raised Jesus lives in believers. This is not a separate person but the presence of God Himself in us.
John 14:16-17: "And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever, even the Spirit of truth... You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you."
The Holy Spirit is described as the Spirit of truth who dwells in believers. This is the presence of God’s Spirit, not a distinct person from God.
6. God is one with his Son in us
Christ Jesus came to reveal the Father in him and through him. The Holy Spirit of the Father came to reveal his Son in us. Now we have been empowered by the Son in us to reveal the Father.
John.17.21 - That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me.
22 - And the glory which thou gavest me I have given them; that they may be one, even as we are one:
23 - I in them, and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one; and that the world may know that thou hast sent me, and hast loved them, as thou hast loved me.
The same love that exist between the Father and the Son has been bestowed upon us that we also might be able to reveal the Father to the world through the Son in us. As the Father have sent me so send I you. John.20.21 - Then said Jesus to them again, Peace be unto you: as my Father hath sent me, even so send I you.
Conclusion: One God, One Spirit, and One Person
The Bible reveals that God is One Spirit and One Person, not three persons in one or one Spirit manifested in three forms, or Christ Jesus revealed as God himself, but rather Christ revealing the Father as God Almighty who is greater than all. God is all in one, one in all and all in all. He has a Son, Christ Jesus, who is a distinct person but fully united with the Father in purpose and will. Jesus Christ is the image of the invisible God, and through Him, God who made all things is revealed. The Holy Spirit is not a third person but God’s own Spirit, dwelling in believers to reveal Christ Jesus his Son in us, continuing the work of Christ in and through us, to reveal God the Father through us.
This understanding of God as one person, with a distinct Son united with His own Spirit, is rooted in Scripture and emphasizes the unity of God’s nature. God is all in one and One in all, fully revealed through His Son and His Spirit. That we might be united with God through his Son and Holy Spirit, to be empowered to reveal the Father in Christ in us, working in us that we might effortlessly walk in his word and fulfill God's promises in our lives.
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