Most mainstream Christians approach the Godhead through the interpretive lens of the classical creeds, especially the Nicene formulation that emerged from the Council of Nicaea (325 AD) and later refinements that became standard in the Latin West.
These creeds were not new scripture. They were summaries, meant to draw boundaries and settle disputes using philosophical vocabulary that the biblical text itself does not spell out in technical form.
That matters, because the debate is not simply about whether the Bible calls God “one.” Everyone agrees it does. The real question is what “one” means in context. Does “one” require a single being in the later metaphysical sense, or can “one” describe unity of life, glory, will, and indwelling without collapsing distinct persons into one person or one merged entity?
That distinction matters. The debate is not whether scripture calls God “one.” Everyone agrees that it does. The question is what kind of oneness the scriptures are describing. Is “one” a metaphysical claim about divine substance, or is it a covenantal and relational claim about unity of life, glory, will, and indwelling?
Latter-day Saints claim their understanding of the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost comes from revelation, including eyewitness encounters reported by modern prophets and apostles.
Trinitarian Christians ground their view in the historic creedal tradition, believing it faithfully articulates apostolic teaching. Both positions ultimately appeal to authority, but scripture remains the shared ground. The most responsible approach is to let scripture define its own terms before later frameworks are imposed on it.
“The Book of Mormon teaches the doctrine of the Trinity better than the Bible.”
That question came into focus for me years ago while serving as a missionary. A woman we were teaching, who was not a Latter-day Saint, told us that she believed the Book of Mormon actually taught the doctrine of the Trinity more clearly than the Bible. She read several passages aloud that referred to the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost as “one God,” and then asked why we rejected the Trinity if our own book seemed to teach it.
I had never been asked that question before. After thinking for a moment, I pointed out that before the Book of Mormon was even published, Joseph Smith had already testified that he had seen both the Father and the Son as distinct beings. That raised a deeper question. Was Joseph contradicting his own book, or were we assuming that “one” must mean something it does not necessarily mean?
It occurred to me that the prophets who wrote the Bible and the Book of Mormon likely had a richer and more functional understanding of unity than our modern categories allow. If Joseph Smith were inventing a theology, it would have been easy to insert a single unambiguous line explaining the Godhead in modern philosophical terms. Instead, the Book of Mormon repeatedly uses the same oneness language found in the New Testament, without ever defining it using later metaphysical vocabulary. That suggests the tension may lie not in the scripture, but in our assumptions.
Book of Mormon “Trinity” scriptures
Mosiah 15
1 And now Abinadi said unto them: I would that ye should understand that God himself shall come down among the children of men, and shall redeem his people.
2 And because he dwelleth in flesh he shall be called the Son of God, and having subjected the flesh to the will of the Father, being the Father and the Son—
3 The Father, because he was conceived by the power of God; and the Son, because of the flesh; thus becoming the Father and Son—
4 And they are one God, yea, the very Eternal Father of heaven and of earth.
5 And thus the flesh becoming subject to the Spirit, or the Son to the Father, being one God, suffereth temptation, and yieldeth not to the temptation, but suffereth himself to be mocked, and scourged, and cast out, and disowned by his people.
2 Nephi 31
21 And now, behold, my beloved brethren, this is the way; and there is none other way nor name given under heaven whereby man can be saved in the kingdom of God. And now, behold, this is the doctrine of Christ, and the only and true doctrine of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost, which is one God, without end. Amen.
Alma 11
26 And Zeezrom said unto him: Thou sayest there is a true and living God?
27 And Amulek said: Yea, there is a true and living God.
28 Now Zeezrom said: Is there more than one God?
29 And he answered, No.
44 Now, this restoration shall come to all, both old and young, both bond and free, both male and female, both the wicked and the righteous; and even there shall not so much as a hair of their heads be lost; but every thing shall be restored to its perfect frame, as it is now, or in the body, and shall be brought and be arraigned before the bar of Christ the Son, and God the Father, and the Holy Spirit, which is one Eternal God, to be judged according to their works, whether they be good or whether they be evil.
3 Nephi 11
27 And after this manner shall ye baptize in my name; for behold, verily I say unto you, that the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Ghost are one; and I am in the Father, and the Father in me, and the Father and I are one.
36 And thus will the Father bear record of me, and the Holy Ghost will bear record unto him of the Father and me; for the Father, and I, and the Holy Ghost are one.
3 Nephi 20
35 The Father hath made bare his holy arm in the eyes of all the nations; and all the ends of the earth shall see the salvation of the Father; and the Father and I are one.
3 Nephi 28
10 And for this cause ye shall have fulness of joy; and ye shall sit down in the kingdom of my Father; yea, your joy shall be full, even as the Father hath given me fulness of joy; and ye shall be even as I am, and I am even as the Father; and the Father and I are one;
Mormon 7
7 And he hath brought to pass the redemption of the world, whereby he that is found guiltless before him at the judgment day hath it given unto him to dwell in the presence of God in his kingdom, to sing ceaseless praises with the choirs above, unto the Father, and unto the Son, and unto the Holy Ghost, which are one God, in a state of happiness which hath no end.
Testimony of the Three Witnesses in the front of the Book of Mormon
…And we know that if we are faithful in Christ, we shall rid our garments of the blood of all men, and be found spotless before the judgment-seat of Christ, and shall dwell with him eternally in the heavens. And the honor be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost, which is one God. Amen.
So the nature of the Godhead appears to be pretty conclusive from the Book of Mormon’s contents, or is it? We have ancient texts of the New Testament, not the originals, but most that are close enough to the right time frame to where we can assume they are close to the original text.
We can translate those and examine the Greek for understanding, but we do not have the original text of the Book of Mormon, so it is impossible to explore the meanings of the text from that angle. Another problem may be that there are understandings that lie outside of the words themselves that may have been lost.
So we are left to explore what was said about the Godhead elsewhere to attempt to understand the ideas of the ancient disciples. How did they use the word “one” in other contexts?
We can examine eyewitness accounts of the Father and the Son in the rare instances where they are mentioned together. We can look at how the apostles referred to them and to finally examine the words of Christ himself and what he says about his relationship to the Father. It is also essential to read these verses with an understanding of when they were speaking, either before or after Christ’s resurrection.
There is information here that can be studied for years, and the current compilation is by no means exhaustive.
New Testament scriptures that are commonly used to support the doctrine of the Trinity
John 1 (This verse doesn’t appear that clear on the surface, but it was one of the verses translated in the JST)
1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
John 10(An understanding of this verse can be gleaned from reading all of John 17)
30 I and my Father are one.
1 John 5 (It is understood that this verse was not in the original Biblical text, but was most likely added later by Biblical Translators.)
7 For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one.
First, note 1 John 5:7. As given in the text of the King James Bible, this verse reads, “For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one.” On the surface, this verse seems to clearly teach the Trinity. However, there is one problem with that: this verse was never in any of the inspired Greek manuscripts. That it originated as a monkish insertion into the Latin text is almost universally admitted by Bible scholars! The Interpreter’s One Volume Commentary on the Bible, published by Abingdon Press, explains that during the fourth century controversies about the doctrine of the Trinity the text was expanded—first in Spain around 380ad, and then taken up in the Vulgate, the official Roman Catholic version written in Latin (p. 939). Bullinger’s Companion Bible explains in its footnote on the text of 1 John 5:7, “The words are not found in any Gr. MS. [Greek manuscripts] before the sixteenth century. They were first seen in the margin of some Latin copies. Thence they have crept into the text.” The New Bible Commentary: Revised simply states in its comment on that text that “the words are clearly a gloss and are rightly excluded by RSV even from its margins” (p. 1269). Clearly the early Trinitarian teachers of the Catholic Church were at such a loss to find any Biblical substantiation for their teaching that they resorted to simply adding words to the text!
Is God Really a Trinity? By John H. Ogwyn
John 14 (Interpreting verse 9 literally becomes problematic when you get to verse 20)
9 Jesus saith unto him, Have I been so long time with you, and yet hast thou not known me, Philip? he that hath seen me hath seen the Father; and how sayest thou then, Shew us the Father?
10 Believest thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in me? the words that I speak unto you I speak not of myself: but the Father that dwelleth in me, he doeth the works.
11 Believe me that I am in the Father, and the Father in me: or else believe me for the very works’ sake.
20 At that day ye shall know that I am in my Father, and ye in me, and I in you.
In my opinion, the verses above are not clear enough to give us insight into the nature of the Godhead. Many of the scriptures that will be listed below demonstrate the idea that the Father and the Son are distinct beings. However, it is easy to see how both Trinitarians and non-Trinitarians can see their side plainly in the text and this is by no means a new problem.
When Constantine was in power and assembled the Council of Nicaea to reach a consensus on the doctrines of the church the views on the Godhead were very divided. Up for debate was the doctrine that Christ was even the literal son of God or not! All 1800 Bishops of the church were invited but only about 220 – 318 actually showed up.
For about two months, the two sides argued and debated, with each appealing to Scripture to justify their respective positions. According to many accounts, debate became so heated that at one point, Arius was slapped in the face by Nicholas of Myra, who would later be canonized and became better known as “Santa Claus”. via Wikipedia
The St. Nicholas story is kind of a legend but I find it very humorous.
I find it interesting that Protestants and Evangelicals still hold to an interpretation of the Godhead that was initiated at a Catholic council and then further modified later. However, if the Catholics nailed the interpretation right, then there’s no problem for Protestants and I think that’s the stance currently taken.
The fact that there was this much confusion and that it took 200 years after this to decide where the Holy Ghost fit in seems to indicate that knowledge of the Godhead by these early Christians was not understood as firmly it seemed to be understood by the Apostles as they wrote of it in scripture. If these men of the past were divided, using texts similar to what we have today, then it stands to reason that it would still be a topic of debate.
The fact that an issue that should be one of the easiest to define – the nature of the Godhead – is so confusing, is just one more reason why the Latter-day Saints stress that a restoration was needed. It is interesting that of all the doctrines of the Gospel, the nature of the Godhead was the first to be revealed to Joseph Smith, for his very first experience with God involved him speaking with both the Father and the Son face to face much like the experience of Stephen in the New Testament:
“And said, Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of man standing on the right hand of God.”
Acts 7:56
How the word ‘One’ is used in the New Testament
The scriptures speak quite a bit about becoming “one”. In terms of husband and wife becoming “one flesh”, the members of the Church being “one body” and Christ and his followers being “one”, those things are generally understood as being merely symbolic. When it comes to The Father and the Son, on the other hand, even though the same language and the same words are being used, it is interpreted as being literal. How can you tell when one is literal and one is symbolic?
Here are some examples of the word “one” being used in the New Testament:
Mark 10
7 For this cause shall a man leave his father and mother, and cleave to his wife;
8 And they twain shall be one flesh: so then they are no more twain, but one flesh.
John 17
11 And now I am no more in the world, but these are in the world, and I come to thee. Holy Father, keep through thine own name those whom thou hast given me, that they may be one, as we are.
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.
Acts 4
32 And the multitude of them that believed were of one heart and of one soul: neither said any of them that ought of the things which he possessed was his own; but they had all things common.
Acts 17
26 And hath made of one blood all nations of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth, and hath determined the times before appointed, and the bounds of their habitation;
Romans 12
5 So we, being many, are one body in Christ, and every one members one of another.
1 Corinthians 8
6 But to us there is but one God, the Father, of whom are all things, and we in him; and one Lord Jesus Christ, by whom are all things, and we by him.
1 Corinthians 12
13 For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit.
Galatians 3
28 There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus.
Philippians 1
7 Only let your conversation be as it becometh the gospel of Christ: that whether I come and see you, or else be absent, I may hear of your affairs, that ye stand fast in one spirit, with one mind striving together for the faith of the gospel;
Philippians 2
2 Fulfil ye my joy, that ye be like minded, having the same love, being of one accord, of one mind.
1 Timothy 2
5 For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus;
Hebrews 2
11 For both he that sanctifieth and they who are sanctified are all of one: for which cause he is not ashamed to call them brethren,
1 Peter 3
8 Finally, be ye all of one mind, having compassion one of another, love as brethren, be pitiful, be courteous:
Eyewitness accounts of the Father and Son
Matthew 3
16 And Jesus, when he was baptized, went up straightway out of the water: and, lo, the heavens were opened unto him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon him:
17 And lo a voice from heaven, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.
Matthew 5
5 While he yet spake, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them: and behold a voice out of the cloud, which said, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased; hear ye him.
John 12
28 Father, glorify thy name. Then came there a voice from heaven, saying, I have both glorified it, and will glorify it again.
29 The people therefore, that stood by, and heard it, said that it thundered: others said, An angel spake to him.
Acts 7
55 But he, being full of the Holy Ghost, looked up steadfastly into heaven, and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing on the right hand of God,
56 And said, Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of man standing on the right hand of God.
Father and Son mentioned distinctly
Mark 1
1 The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God;
John 1
1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
2 The same was in the beginning with God.
Romans 1
7 To all that be in Rome, beloved of God, called to be saints: Grace to you and peace from God our Father, and the Lord Jesus Christ.
8 First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for you all, that your faith is spoken of throughout the whole world.
1 Corinthians 1
3 Grace be unto you, and peace, from God our Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ.
4 I thank my God always on your behalf, for the grace of God which is given you by Jesus Christ;
9 God is faithful, by whom ye were called unto the fellowship of his Son Jesus Christ our Lord.
2 Corinthians 1
2 Grace be to you and peace from God our Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ.
3 Blessed be God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies, and the God of all comfort;
Galatians 1
1 Paul, an apostle, (not of men, neither by man, but by Jesus Christ, and God the Father, who raised him from the dead;)
3 Grace be to you and peace from God the Father, and from our Lord Jesus Christ,
4 Who gave himself for our sins, that he might deliver us from this present evil world, according to the will of God and our Father:
Ephesians 1
1 Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, to the saints which are at Ephesus, and to the faithful in Christ Jesus:
2 Grace be to you, and peace, from God our Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ.
3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ:
Philippians 1
2 Grace be unto you, and peace, from God our Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ.
Colossians 1
1 Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, and Timotheus our brother,
2 To the saints and faithful brethren in Christ which are at Colosse: Grace be unto you, and peace, from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
3 We give thanks to God and the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, praying always for you,
Thessalonians 1
1 Paul, and Silvanus, and Timotheus, unto the church of the Thessalonians which is in God the Father and in the Lord Jesus Christ: Grace be unto you, and peace, from God our Father, and the Lord Jesus Christ.
3 Remembering without ceasing your work of faith, and labour of love, and patience of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ, in the sight of God and our Father;
9 For they themselves shew of us what manner of entering in we had unto you, and how ye turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God;
10 And to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, even Jesus, which delivered us from the wrath to come.
Thessalonians 2
1 Paul, and Silvanus, and Timotheus, unto the church of the Thessalonians in God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ:
2 Grace unto you, and peace, from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
12 That the name of our Lord Jesus Christ may be glorified in you, and ye in him, according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ.
Timothy 1
2 Unto Timothy, my own son in the faith: Grace, mercy, and peace, from God our Father and Jesus Christ our Lord.
Timothy 2
2 To Timothy, my dearly beloved son: Grace, mercy, and peace, from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord.
Titus 1
4 To Titus, mine own son after the common faith: Grace, mercy, and peace, from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ our Saviour.
Philemon 1
3 Grace to you, and peace, from God, our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
Hebrews 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;
5 For unto which of the angels said he at any time, Thou art my Son, this day have I begotten thee? And again, I will be to him a Father, and he shall be to me a Son?
13 But to which of the angels said he at any time, Sit on my right hand, until I make thine enemies thy footstool?
James 1
1 James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, to the twelve tribes which are scattered abroad, greeting.
1 Peter 1
2 Elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through sanctification of the Spirit, unto obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ: Grace unto you, and peace, be multiplied.
3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,
2 Peter 1
1 Simon Peter, a servant and an apostle of Jesus Christ, to them that have obtained like precious faith with us through the righteousness of God and our Saviour Jesus Christ:
2 Grace and peace be multiplied unto you through the knowledge of God, and of Jesus our Lord,
1 John 1
3 That which we have seen and heard declare we unto you, that ye also may have fellowship with us: and truly our fellowship is with the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ.
7 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin.
1 John 2
1 My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous:
2 John 1
3 Grace be with you, mercy, and peace, from God the Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of the Father, in truth and love.
9 Whosoever transgresseth, and abideth not in the doctrine of Christ, hath not God. He that abideth in the doctrine of Christ, he hath both the Father and the Son.
Jude 1
1 Jude, the servant of Jesus Christ, and brother of James, to them that are sanctified by God the Father, and preserved in Jesus Christ, and called:
4 For there are certain men crept in unawares, who were before of old ordained to this condemnation, ungodly men, turning the grace of our God into lasciviousness, and denying the only Lord God, and our Lord Jesus Christ.
Revelation 3
21 To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with me in my throne, even as I also overcame, and am set down with my Father in his throne.
Jesus Christ’s comments about his Father
Matthew 24
36 But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only.
Matthew 6
9 After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name.
Matthew 11
27 All things are delivered unto me of my Father: and no man knoweth the Son, but the Father; neither knoweth any man the Father, save the Son, and he to whomsoever the Son will reveal him.
Matthew 16
17 And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Bar-jona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven.
Matthew 20
23 And he saith unto them, Ye shall drink indeed of my cup, and be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with: but to sit on my right hand, and on my left, is not mine to give, but it shall be given to them for whom it is prepared of my Father.
Matthew 21
37 But last of all he sent unto them his son, saying, They will reverence my son.
38 But when the husbandmen saw the son, they said among themselves, This is the heir; come, let us kill him, and let us seize on his inheritance.
Matthew 23
9 And call no man your father upon the earth: for one is your Father, which is in heaven.
8 But be not ye called Rabbi: for one is your Master, even Christ; and all ye are brethren.
9 And call no man your father upon the earth: for one is your Father, which is in heaven.
10 Neither be ye called masters: for one is your Master, even Christ.
John 5
17 But Jesus answered them, My Father worketh hitherto, and I work.
18 Therefore the Jews sought the more to kill him, because he not only had broken the sabbath, but said also that God was his Father, making himself equal with God.
19 Then answered Jesus and said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, The Son can do nothing of himself, but what he seeth the Father do: for what things soever he doeth, these also doeth the Son likewise.
20 For the Father loveth the Son, and sheweth him all things that himself doeth: and he will shew him greater works than these, that ye may marvel.
21 For as the Father raiseth up the dead, and quickeneth them; even so the Son quickeneth whom he will.
22 For the Father judgeth no man, but hath committed all judgment unto the Son:
23 That all men should honour the Son, even as they honour the Father. He that honoureth not the Son honoureth not the Father which hath sent him.
26 For as the Father hath life in himself; so hath he given to the Son to have life in himself;
36 But I have greater witness than that of John: for the works which the Father hath given me to finish, the same works that I do, bear witness of me, that the Father hath sent me.
37 And the Father himself, which hath sent me, hath borne witness of me. Ye have neither heard his voice at any time, nor seen his shape.
John 8
19 Then said they unto him, Where is thy Father? Jesus answered, Ye neither know me, nor my Father: if ye had known me, ye should have known my Father also.
28 Then said Jesus unto them, When ye have lifted up the Son of man, then shall ye know that I am he, and that I do nothing of myself; but as my Father hath taught me, I speak these things.
38 I speak that which I have seen with my Father: and ye do that which ye have seen with your father.
49 Jesus answered, I have not a devil; but I honour my Father, and ye do dishonour me.
54 Jesus answered, If I honour myself, my honour is nothing: it is my Father that honoureth me; of whom ye say, that he is your God:
John 10
17 Therefore doth my Father love me, because I lay down my life, that I might take it again.
18 No man taketh it from me, but I lay it down of myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This commandment have I received of my Father.
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.
32 Jesus answered them, Many good works have I shewed you from my Father; for which of those works do ye stone me?
37 If I do not the works of my Father, believe me not.
John 14
7 If ye had known me, ye should have known my Father also: and from henceforth ye know him, and have seen him.
8 Philip saith unto him, Lord, shew us the Father, and it sufficeth us.
9 Jesus saith unto him, Have I been so long time with you, and yet hast thou not known me, Philip? he that hath seen me hath seen the Father; and how sayest thou then, Shew us the Father?
10 Believest thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in me? the words that I speak unto you I speak not of myself: but the Father that dwelleth in me, he doeth the works.
11 Believe me that I am in the Father, and the Father in me: or else believe me for the very works’ sake.
12 Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father.
20 At that day ye shall know that I am in my Father, and ye in me, and I in you.
21 He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him.
23 Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him.
28 Ye have heard how I said unto you, I go away, and come again unto you. If ye loved me, ye would rejoice, because I said, I ago unto the Father: for my Father is greater than I.
John 15
1 I am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman.
8 Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; so shall ye be my disciples.
15 Henceforth I call you not servants; for the servant knoweth not what his lord doeth: but I have called you friends; for all things that I have heard of my Father I have made known unto you.
23 He that hateth me hateth my Father also.
24 If I had not done among them the works which none other man did, they had not had sin: but now have they both seen and hated both me and my Father.
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.
Revelation 2
27 And he shall rule them with a rod of iron; as the vessels of a potter shall they be broken to shivers: even as I received of my Father.
Revelation 3
21 To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with me in my throne even as I also overcame, and am set down with my Father in his throne.
Clues in Jesus’ intercessory prayer
Now that we have explored many different verses of scripture and have observed that the Father and Son are far more consistently portrayed as two distinct individuals, I would like to return to Jesus’ intercessory prayer in John 17 to examine some key points there.
In his prayer to the Father, Jesus does not merely use oneness language, he defines it. He prays:
“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 they may be one, even as we are one.”
The comparison is explicit. Jesus is praying that his believers are to be one in the same way that he and the Father are one. A more modern translation such as the NASB renders the verse this way:
“…that they may all be one; just as You, Father, are in Me and I in You, that they also may be in Us…”
The phrase “as thou” is not ornamental. It establishes the pattern. The way believers are to be one is just as, or in the same way, that the Father and the Son are one. Jesus does not leave that comparison abstract, he further explains it:
“I in them, and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one.”
With that single sentence, Jesus supplies the definition himself. This gives us three simultaneous truths stated plainly in the text:
- Jesus is in his disciples.
- The Father is in Jesus.
- The disciples do not collapse into Jesus as a single being.
Therefore, this talk of being one does not imply ontological merger. Unity does not erase personal distinction which is a definition is not inferred by the reader, it is stated by Jesus.
This creates an unavoidable tension with later Trinitarian formulations. Classical Trinitarian theology insists that the Father and the Son are one by essence in a way that created “creatures” cannot share. Yet John 17 says that believers are to be one as the Father and the Son are one, using the same indwelling language in both cases.
If we take this seriously, then one of two things must be true:
- Either human unity must involve ontological merger,
- or divine unity does not require ontological merger.
The first option is false by observation because believers remain distinct persons. The logic therefore points to the second and Jesus presses the point further:
“The glory which thou gavest me I have given them; that they may be one, even as we are one.”
Unity is not reduced here to agreement, cooperation, or sentiment, it is grounded in shared glory. Yet believers who receive that glory:
- remain distinct persons
- do not merge into a single being
- do not lose personal identity
Once again, Jesus defines unity as shared divine life without loss of personhood which is something that directly challenges later theological definitions that require:
- a unique, unshareable divine essence
- a kind of oneness that cannot be extended even in form
That is precisely why the Trinitarian creeds exist. They function as interpretive controls, summarizing scripture through philosophical categories that are not explicitly stated in the text, in order to resolve tensions that the text itself leaves unresolved.
Jesus’ Pre and Post Resurrection Teachings
It is important to recognize that the New Testament presents Jesus Christ both before and after his resurrection, and that his relationship to the Father is described consistently in both periods.
Before the resurrection, Jesus is on earth while the Father speaks from heaven on multiple occasions: at Jesus’s baptism, at the Mount of Transfiguration, and when the Father glorifies his name. Each time, the Father and the Son are clearly distinguished, and there are witnesses present. During this same period, Jesus repeatedly prays to the Father, most notably in John 17.
After the resurrection, one might expect the language to change if Father and Son were now understood as a single being or substance. Yet the very first time Jesus appears after rising from the dead, he says:
“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.”
Even after his resurrection, Jesus speaks of the Father as someone distinct from himself, and he refers to the Father as his God. A common response is to say that once Jesus ascended, this distinction no longer applied.
The problem with that explanation is that the New Testament does not support it. Stephen later sees Jesus standing on the right hand of God. The apostles consistently write of “God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord.” They speak of fellowship “with the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ.”
If the earliest Christians believed that Father and Son were a single being, it is difficult to explain why they never speak that way. Why do they not say “Jesus Christ our Father and God”? Why do they repeatedly name the Father and the Son side by side as distinct agents in relationship?
It is possible to suggest that the apostles held a Trinitarian understanding that we simply fail to see. However, history shows that this question was not settled or obvious to later Christians. The debates surrounding the nature of God were intense, long-lasting, and resolved by councils rather than by new revelation or a clear scriptural declaration.
When the scriptures themselves are examined, the pattern is consistent. The New Testament speaks of the Father and the Son as distinct persons united in holiness, purpose, and glory. It uses the same “one” language to describe the unity believers are called to enter, a unity that does not erase personal distinction.
For Latter-day Saints, the testimony of Joseph Smith and later apostles resolves the question through claimed revelation. For others, the Council of Nicaea and later creeds define the doctrine of the Godhead. These are different sources of authority, not different readings of the same settled text.
What can be agreed upon is this: the scriptures testify of God the Father in heaven, of his Only Begotten Son Jesus Christ who lived, atoned, was resurrected, and ascended in glory, and of a divine unity that believers are invited to enter without losing their identity. On that much, the biblical witness is clear.
And now, after the many testimonies which have been given of him, this is the testimony, last of all, which we give of him: That he lives! For we saw him, even on the right hand of God; and we heard the voice bearing record that he is the Only Begotten of the Father…
Joseph Smith, Doctrine and Covenants 76:22-23
