Matthew 3: Christians Are Trinitarians

I’ve loved the handwritten Bible process so far! Up to Matthew 14, but reflecting on one chapter per day and share today from Matthew 3. Here, for the first time in the New Testament, we spot a picture of what has historically been called the Trinity. Since it is one of the foundational distinctives of Christianity, I thought it would be worth sharing.

The specific scenario is the baptism of Jesus. He is baptized by his relative John after a bit of discussion and comes out of the water (NOTE: John was not a Baptist though given this name. However, the context highlights Jesus going “into” the water, much different from the sprinkling or pouring of many Christian traditions.). Jesus has the Holy Spirit descend upon him “like a dove” (not literally a dove, contrary to many Jesus videos and books) and God the Father speaks from the sky, saying he is well pleased with his son.

So, yes, Matthew digs the Trinity and did so from the time of his writing, sometime during the first 40 years after the resurrection, contrary to contemporary arguments to the contrary. Simply put, a person who accepts Jesus as Messiah, according to Matthew’s account, must also accept God the Father and the Holy Spirit as God as well. In modern terminology, that means Christians (in the traditional sense of the word) must be Trinitarians, or believers in the Trinity.

So there is one God, three persons. It’s not easy to define (as church history has proven), but it is foundational to anyone who calls Jesus their Lord.

Anything less is, well, unChristian (Thanks to Dave and Gabe for the word!).

[On a side note, a friend told me of a couple in Orlando writing out the Bible as well. They started in Genesis and are using the Message translation. If you know of anyone else doing this, please post a comment below or email me (see the about section for my email). Thanks!]

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Dillon Burroughs has written, co-written, or edited over 60 books, including the upcoming devotional work Thirst No More (October 2011). He served as an associate editor for The Apologetics Study Bible for Students and is a graduate of Dallas Theological Seminary. Find out more at DillonBurroughs.org.