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Why Modalism is Unbiblical

Modalism Defined

Modalism, historically known as Sabellianism, teaches that God is one Person manifesting Himself in three "modes" - Father, Son, and Spirit.

This is in contrast to the doctrine of the Trinity, which declares that there are three distinct, coequal, coeternal Persons that make up one God. As is commonly represented in the "Trinity Shield" diagram, those Persons are not each other, yet all three are one Being.

This article, just as the accompanying article on Unitarianism, will follow a reference list format. The following is a list of references that demonstrate the distinction between the Persons in the Trinity.

Reference List & Explanations

  • Jesus is seated at the right hand of God the Father
    • Mark 16:19, Luke 22:68-69, Acts 7:56, Romans 8:34, Colossians 3:1, Hebrews 10:12, 12:2: 1 Peter 3:22
    • Jesus also shares a throne with the Father, yet distinguishes between Himself and the Father - Revelation 3:21
  • Jesus prays to the Father
    • Matthew 14:23, 26:36, 26:44, Mark 1:35, 6:46, 14:32, 14:35, Luke 3:21, 5:16, 6:12, 9:18, 11:1, Hebrews 5:7
    • Even now, in His gloried state, He prays to the Father - Hebrews 7:25, Romans 8:34
  • Jesus had glory with the Father before the world was created
    • John 17:5
  • On the cross, Jesus was forsaken by the Father
    • Matthew 27:46, Mark 15:34
  • The Son's will is not the same as the Father's will
    • John 5:30
    • Matthew 26:39, Mark 14:36, Luke 22:42
  • Jesus submits Himself to the Father's will, and there is a hierarchy within the Trinity
    • 1 Corinthians 11:3
    • John 8:29
    • John 14:28
    • John 15:10
    • Matthew 26:39, Mark 14:36, Luke 22:42
    • Philippians 2:8
    • This extends into eternity - 1 Corinthians 15:24-28
  • Jesus said that sitting at His right and left hand was not His to give, but the Father's
    • Matthew 20:23, Mark 10:40
  • Jesus delivers up the throne to God the Father
    • 1 Corinthians 15:23-25
  • Jesus did not bear witness of Himself, but the Father did
    • John 5:31-32, 36-37
  • Jesus did not come of His own accord, but the Father sent Him
    • John 8:42
  • Jesus came not in His own name, but in the Father's name
    • John 5:43
  • Jesus did not speak of Himself, but spoke what the Father commanded
    • John 12:49-50
  • Jesus's doctrine was not His, but the Father's who sent Him, and did not seek His own glory, but the glory of the Father who sent Him
    • John 7:16-18
  • The Father will not judge, but has committed all judgment to the Son
    • John 5:22
  • No one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son, and those to whom the Son reveals the Father
    • Matthew 11:27, Luke 10:22
  • The Father loves the Son
    • Matthew 3:17, 17:5, Mark 1:11, 9:7, 12:6, Luke 3:22, 9:35, 20:13, John 3:35, 5:20, 15:29, 17:23-24
  • Jesus Christ is our advocate and mediator with the Father
    • 1 John 2:1
    • 1 Timothy 2:5
    • Hebrews 7:25, Romans 8:34
  • The Holy Spirit intercedes with us to the Father
    • Romans 8:26-27
  • The Holy Spirit is "another Comforter", distinct from the Son
    • John 14:16, 14:25-26, 15:26, 16:7, 16:12-14
  • The Holy Spirit does not "speak of himself", but what He hears from the Father (and potentially the Son as well)
    • John 16:13
  • Speaking a word against the Son is forgivable, but speaking a word against the Holy Ghost is not
    • Matthew 12:31-32, Mark 3:28-29, Luke 12:10
  • The Holy Spirit is Personal
    • The personal pronoun "He" is used for the Spirit - John 14:16-17, 14:26, 15:26, 16:7-8, 16:13-14
    • The Spirit has intellect - 1 Corinthians 2:10-11
    • The Spirit intercedes for us - Romans 8:26-27
    • The Spirit has a will - 1 Corinthians 12:11
    • The Spirit has feeling - Ephesians 4:30
    • The Spirit can perform miracles - Acts 8:39
    • The Spirit can speak to people - Acts 8:29, 10:19-20
    • The Spirit can be lied to - Acts 5:3
    • The Spirit can be resisted - Acts 7:51
    • The Spirit can be insulted - Hebrews 10:29

Conclusion

The Bible is redundantly clear in teaching that there is one God (1 Timothy 2:5, Deuteronomy 4:35, Deuteronomy 6:4: 1 Kings 8:60: John 10:30, Psalm 86:10, Isaiah 37:20, 43:10, 44:6, 8, 45:5-6, 14, 18, 22, 46:9, 47:8, 10, Joel 2:27, Nehemiah 9:6, etc.), and from studying Scripture, as we did in this article, we learn that God is made up of three distinct Persons. And, God did not "choose" to be a Trinity. God simply is a Trinity. All other notions of God are false, and impossible, since only one God exists.