Vern S. Poythress

Mystery of the Trinity, The Vern S. Poythress

Classical Christian theism describes God as absolute, infinite, immense, eternal, immutable, omniscient, and simple. These terms for God's attributes are useful because they summarize what God reveals to us about himself in the Bible. More fundamentally, however, God reveals himself through language that reflects his triune nature. We can thus enhance our understanding of God's attributes by applying to them the doctrine of the Trinity. The Trinity also supplies a foundation for grasping God's relation to action in the world and our knowledge of him. Any framework of reason other than the Trinity as revealed in God's Word leads to a corrupted and diminished understanding of God. By his Word, in Christ, through the power of the Holy Spirit, he gives us knowledge that is trustworthy and true.