The Mystery of the Trinity: Is God Truly Unknowable? – Part 1

For centuries, mainstream Christianity has taught that the Trinity is a divine mystery—something beyond human comprehension. Many theologians insist that we can’t fully understand the nature of God. But is this idea actually supported by Scripture?

Jesus Himself said, “He who has seen Me has seen the Father” (John 14:9) and “I have come to reveal the Father” (Matt. 11:27). If Christ’s purpose included making God known, should we accept the idea that His nature is unknowable?

The Oneness of God: Unity in Purpose, Not Singularity

Many assume that “oneness” means strict singularity. However, the Bible presents a different kind of oneness—one of perfect unity in character and purpose. Jesus prayed that believers “may be one just as We are one” (John 17:22). Clearly, Jesus wasn’t suggesting that all believers become one literal being. Instead, He expressed a unity of mind, will, and love—the same kind of unity He shares with the Father. This gives us insight into the nature of God: not singular in personhood, but unified in purpose.

Similarly, Paul writes of the Church as “one body” (1 Cor. 12:12), made up of many members working together in harmony. If this is how Scripture describes oneness among believers, then why wouldn’t the oneness of God reflect a similar unity rather than absolute singularity?

Jesus: Subject to the Father, Yet Fully Divine

The Bible repeatedly affirms that Jesus is divine (John 1:1, Heb. 1:8, Col. 2:9), yet it also states that He is subject to the Father. “The head of Christ is God” (1 Cor. 11:3), and “The Son can do nothing of Himself, but what He sees the Father do” (John 5:19).

This subjection does not imply inferiority, but reflects the structure of a divine family and government. Jesus and the Father are both God, yet the Son willingly submits to the Father’s will.

As the Word, He was given authority over everything except God Himself (1 Cor. 15:27), functioning as the divine Son in relation to the Father. This role became fully manifest at His first coming when He humbled Himself, taking on human form to fulfill the Father’s plan as the physical Son of God (Phil. 2:6-8). This familial relationship became especially evident during His earthly ministry.

Genesis and the Plural Nature of God

From the very beginning, the Bible indicates plurality within God. Genesis 1:26 states, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness.” The Hebrew word for God, Elohim, is plural, suggesting more than one divine being. This connection is reinforced by John 1:1–3, which identifies Jesus (the Word) as the One through whom all things were made—linking Him directly to the Creator in Genesis.

“It may come as a surprise to many that the One who interacted with Israel in the Old Testament was, in fact, the pre-incarnate Christ. Paul states that the Israelites “drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them, and that Rock was Christ” (1 Cor. 10:4).

Jesus Himself said, “Before Abraham was, I AM” (John 8:58), directly claiming the divine title used by God in Exodus 3:14. This means that, throughout history, humanity’s direct interactions with God were actually with the Word—who was operating under the authority of the Father.

Jesus Came to Reveal the Father

If Israel primarily knew the Word (Jesus) in the Old Testament, then one of Christ’s central purposes makes perfect sense: to reveal the Father whom they had not truly known.

At the time of Christ, Judaism rightly worshipped the one true God, but their direct experiences—such as those with Abraham, Moses, and the prophets—were actually with the pre-incarnate Son, the Word. Though He perfectly represented the Father in character and authority, the Father Himself had not been personally revealed. This distinction was largely unknown.

As John writes, “No one has seen God at any time. The only begotten Son… He has declared Him” (John 1:18). Jesus came to introduce mankind not only to a clearer understanding of God’s nature, but specifically to the Father as the head of the divine family. He taught His followers to pray directly to the Father and modeled that relationship throughout His ministry (Matthew 6:9; John 16:23–27).

Recognizing that distinction is key to understanding why Jesus’ teachings were so revolutionary—He wasn’t just offering a new covenant, but a deeper revelation of the God they had long worshipped.

Deception in the Nature of God

Misunderstanding God’s nature has contributed to significant confusion within Christianity. The idea that God is an incomprehensible mystery distances believers from truly knowing Him. But Scripture consistently reveals a God who wants to be understood—a Father and Son working in perfect unity, inviting us to share in that relationship (John 17:3, 1 John 1:3).

By returning to the clear teachings of Scripture, we can move beyond centuries of theological speculation and come to truly understand who God is. Jesus came not to make God more mysterious, but to reveal Him.

The question is: Will we believe what He taught?

Why This Matters
Jesus came to reveal the Father—not just in words, but in relationship. He didn’t introduce a new God but clarified the identity of the One whom Israel had long worshipped: the Father they had not yet truly known.

This matters because knowing God as He actually is—not as we imagine Him to be—is the foundation of our faith. When we distort His identity, even unintentionally, we risk building our relationship with Him on a false image.

In Part 2, we’ll explore how one such distortion—the doctrine of the Trinity—has become a central belief in mainstream Christianity, despite its philosophical origins and lack of scriptural foundation. More importantly, we’ll ask a sobering question: Could the Trinity itself function as a theological idol that distances believers from the God Jesus came to reveal?