Do You Believe In Three Gods?

[Holly3278]

Your view of the Trinity makes me wonder if you don't believe in three gods as opposed to one. Help.

[Rosewood]

This is the way I think it explains best. Man is also used to describe women. That doesn't make them the same. Mortal is used to describe everything on earth at this time, but we're not all the same. God is the kind of being they all are. Yes there are 3. BUT We have only one Father and we have only one Savior. They are unique and they will always be above us. We follow their will and their teachings because they are identical to each other.

Someday in the far far future, we hope to grow up to be like them. Thats also what they want for us. We are their hiers, we will inherit the Kingdom. Even though we may grow up to be the kind of beings they are, doesn't mean we will ever be equal to them. How can we be equal to them? He's our Father and our Redeemer! Thats why He told us to call him Father. We're His children - literally. That's why He loves us.

I know that's a strange idea to you, but have you ever tried get someone to relate to the trinity that wasn't raised with that idea?

Let me ask you something. There's a Hidu god that multiplys into several gods. Is that one god or more than one? Is it determined by what the incarnations are doing at the time? As in God the Father spliting into different people when he had a different job to do?

And about the trinity, did Father cease to exist when Christ was born? Obviously not. So there were 2 at that time. Has one of them ceased to exist now? I don't mean to sound rude. I really would like to know.

[Traveler]

Your view of the Trinity makes me wonder if you don't believe in three gods as opposed to one. Help.

There are 3 G-ds in the G-dhead. G-d the Father, G-d the Son (or the Son of G-d) and G-d the Holy Ghost. Each G-d is separate and distinct and a separate individual. According to LDS doctrine, G-d The Father has an immortal body of flesh and bones. After the resurrection of Jesus the Christ, he also has an immortal body of flesh and bones. The glorified bodies of flesh and bones of the Father and the Son are their own and are separate and distinct from each other. The Holy Ghost does not yet have a body of flesh and bones but is a spirit.

The oneness of G-d (or the G-dhead) as spoken of in scripture mean united in the same manner that marriage means oneness or one flesh. The ancient Hebrew word for oneness is "ehad" and all scriptures that refer to oneness of G-d uses "ehad". The ancient Hebrew word for one individual or one soul is "Yhead". "Yhead" is never used to describe G-d in ancient scriptures.

Hope this helps.

The Traveler

[CrimsonKairos]

The question shouldn't be about how many gods we believe in, but how many we worship.

We worship God the Father in the name of His Son Jesus Christ by the power of the Holy Ghost.

p.s. yep, we believe in three Gods.

[Tsuzuki]

Your view of the Trinity makes me wonder if you don't believe in three gods as opposed to one. Help.

We believe in one God in three personages, same as the Catholics. The only difference being that we believe that the Father also has a physical body, whereas the Catholics don't believe that.

[Serg]

<div class='quotemain'>

Your view of the Trinity makes me wonder if you don't believe in three gods as opposed to one. Help.

We believe in one God in three personages, same as the Catholics. The only difference being that we believe that the Father also has a physical body, whereas the Catholics don't believe that.

I made also another two for you to grasp it. The first shows neatly how One God can be interpreted as Three individual ones, thus, One Triangle made out of Three and one of nature. The second one shows how the perfect unity is funamentally like an orbit.

[Dr T]

<div class='quotemain'>

Your view of the Trinity makes me wonder if you don't believe in three gods as opposed to one. Help.

We believe in one God in three personages, same as the Catholics. The only difference being that we believe that the Father also has a physical body, whereas the Catholics don't believe that.

Hello Tsuzuki,

Just to clarify, would you say that it is exactly the same as the Catholic belief-the only exception being of the Father's physical body? Through my interactions here I have learned that it is not the same. Please clarify your understandings of the real differences for PaladinGirl02 between your beliefs.

Dr. T

[Tsuzuki]

I made also another two for you to grasp it. The first shows neatly how One God can be interpreted as Three individual ones, thus, One Triangle made out of Three and one of nature. The second one shows how the perfect unity is funamentally like an orbit.

I like the first one, but the second includes the idea that the unity can be abandoned, which is not strict LDS doctrine.

[Tsuzuki]

Hello Tsuzuki,

Just to clarify, would you say that it is exactly the same as the Catholic belief-the only exception being of the Father's physical body? Through my interactions here I have learned that it is not the same. Please clarify your understandings of the real differences for PaladinGirl02 between your beliefs.

Dr. T

The bit about the Father having a physical body is the biggest difference there is. I've found that the people who argue otherwise are usually throwing in obscure doctrines of little importance and unclear meaning. Some also bring in heresies such as modalism or Adam-God. I've found that if you stick to the basics the only major difference between our views of God is the one I mentioned above. (Keep in mind, though, that is only our views of God. Our views of Man, and Man's relation to God are more different.)

[Serg]

<div class='quotemain'>

Hello Tsuzuki,

Just to clarify, would you say that it is exactly the same as the Catholic belief-the only exception being of the Father's physical body? Through my interactions here I have learned that it is not the same. Please clarify your understandings of the real differences for PaladinGirl02 between your beliefs.

Dr. T

The bit about the Father having a physical body is the biggest difference there is. I've found that the people who argue otherwise are usually throwing in obscure doctrines of little importance and unclear meaning. Some also bring in heresies such as modalism or Adam-God. I've found that if you stick to the basics the only major difference between our views of God is the one I mentioned above. (Keep in mind, though, that is only our views of God. Our views of Man, and Man's relation to God are more different.)

Well, when I mean to "abandon" the unity I mean it completely. Jehovah DID abandon His glory and infinite wisdom and power to become a mortal flawed man, though he retook His Glory He had to abandon it for a while, in fact, it is not even logical that you could incarnate and yet remain a God.

[Tsuzuki]

Well, when I mean to "abandon" the unity I mean it completely. Jehovah DID abandon His glory and infinite wisdom and power to become a mortal flawed man, though he retook His Glory He had to abandon it for a while, in fact, it is not even logical that you could incarnate and yet remain a God.

Did He abandon it, or did His divinity simply become hidden and unmanifest while here on Earth? The latter is closer to LDS theology and scripture.

[Ray]

Your view of the Trinity makes me wonder if you don't believe in three gods as opposed to one. Help.

We (LDS) believe there is only one true God in existence and the one God exists as many persons.

I like to use the analogy of Man to explain it. How many beings known as Man do you believe in?

If another being was Man... just exactly like Man... would you say that that was a different being?

If a being is like Man... and just exactly like Man... then that being is also Man... not another being.

But, of course, as you know, I'm not talking about persons.

There are many, many persons who are Man.

And btw, when most people say "God" they are usually referring to our Father...

... although our Lord and the Holy Ghost are also God.

<div class='quotemain'>

Well, when I mean to "abandon" the unity I mean it completely. Jehovah DID abandon His glory and infinite wisdom and power to become a mortal flawed man, though he retook His Glory He had to abandon it for a while, in fact, it is not even logical that you could incarnate and yet remain a God.

Did He abandon it, or did His divinity simply become hidden and unmanifest while here on Earth? The latter is closer to LDS theology and scripture.

Personally, I believe our Lord remained God when He came here to fulfil His Father's will.

And I know many other LDS who, personally, believe this.

Our Lord was, is, and will always be God.

[prisonchaplain]

...it is not even logical that you could incarnate and yet remain a God.

But the word incarnate means "enfleshment?" God in the flesh, no?

[Outshined]

Personally, I believe our Lord remained God when He came here to fulfil His Father's will.

And I know many other LDS who, personally, believe this.

Our Lord was, is, and will always be God.

I agree. B)

[Rosewood]

Prisonchaplin & Serg -

Am I understanding you correctly to say you believe that because Christ put on flesh that he was no longer God?

Is that why you believe there was only one God when Christ was on earth and Father was in heaven?

Does that mean you believe Christ was mortal? If He was mortal how did He give-up the Ghost? If a mortal was capable of atonement, then why couldn't any one do it?

Do you believe in a literal ressurection? That He took up His physical body?

If I understand you right, that's a difference I never even thought about!

[rosie321]

we all know main lds examples why we it is believed 3 seperate -jesus baptism, in the garden...ask God :) or any good missionary for more or if you don't kow at all.

Some questions for consideration................

if they wre not three completely seperate then who was watching the earth when christ died?

if no unclean thing can enter into the presence of God...and christ took upon him all the sins of the world?

wouldn't God be breaking his promise about leaving and forsaking? would he even be God in the fullest sense? If the only God we know was locked out by his own conditions who would save him?

Understanding LDS concepts for these question the answers are are easily undersood and aweing.

.

[rosie321]

we all know main lds examples why we it is believed 3 seperate -jesus baptism, in the garden...ask God :) or any good missionary for more or if you don't kow at all.

.

.

Looking back i noticed how this might come off wrong when lined up with the first origional questioner. It really looks kind of insensitive now to me. I just saw a different train of thought or different perspectives from some of the latter posts and was running with that and was responding more to ideas raised there. . I didn't mean that to come off in any bad way, especially to our origional questioner (although I must confess the smile thought was directed at one dear online bro:))

[Traveler]

There is a problem in talking about Jesus Christ taking upon the flesh. First is that many define man as a creature of flesh. Therefore they do not understand that man has a divine nature and is a child of G-d but that man is separated from G-d as a fallen creature. Jesus was not a fallen creature but maintained all that is divine - even in the flesh Jesus is divine - proving that the flesh can be divine and have divine nature. Jesus was not all man because Jesus was not fallen dispite what some teach (which is not taught in the scriptures). Jesus had only one nature (even in the flesh) and that was a divine nature. But he could feel pain, suffer and die - but even with such in his nature he was still divine.

I would also point out that the scriptures indicate that there is distinction and difference in G-d the Father, G-d the Son and G-d the Holy Ghost. It is the will of the Father that man know, distinguish, worship and recognize that there is one that is G-d the Father, another that is G-d the Son and a third that is G-d the Holy Ghost that are united in one covenant. And that it is also the will of G-d the Father that all man become invested and one with them in the same covenant.

The Traveler

[Dr T]

Hi Traveler,

you said,

Jesus was not all man because Jesus was not fallen...

Was Adam not a man before the fall? I think you have said that you don't believe thta Adam was one person but people. In any case, was Adam not man before the fall?

Thanks,

Dr. T

[Clamatowas]

Hi Traveler,

you said,

Jesus was not all man because Jesus was not fallen...

Was Adam not a man before the fall? I think you have said that you don't believe that Adam was one person but people. In any case, was Adam not man before the fall?

Thanks,

Dr. T

If you do not mind I would like to step in and throw in my knowledge of this topic.

Adam Or Eve before partaking of the Fruit of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil where immortal. They would remain in that state forever never having death. So it must needs be that there bodys had a change in them different then our own. But it was not like to the same change that we will experience after the resurrection. ( Like the body that Jesus Christ now posses after he was resurrected ) But there bodys where different.

If you want some good Scriptures relating to this question please read: 3 Nephi Chapter 28 That will give you about the best explanation that can be given.

Also you said something about us believing that Adam was more then one person? Before Adam was known as Adam he was known in heaven as Michael. ButMichael was not one of the Godhood. We do not worship Adam nor is he any more then one person.

If you have any more questions please feel free to ask.

Elder Jackson

Family and Church History

[prisonchaplain]

Prisonchaplin & Serg -

Am I understanding you correctly to say you believe that because Christ put on flesh that he was no longer God?

Jesus has always been and will always be God. However, Philippians 2 tells us that he gave up his power as God, and made himself a little lower than the angels. So, he never lost his eternal identities, but while he walked the earth, he was truly man.

Is that why you believe there was only one God when Christ was on earth and Father was in heaven?

We believe there is only one God because that's what the schema says: Hear O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. Deuteronomy 6:4

Does that mean you believe Christ was mortal? If He was mortal how did He give-up the Ghost? If a mortal was capable of atonement, then why couldn't any one do it?

I'd say no. Jesus was not mortal. Then again, neither are we. It is appointed for us, once to die, then the judgement. Everyone faces eternity (immoratality). However, as you likely know, we believe it's simply heaven or hell.

As for the atonement, it had to be Jesus, because God chose to use his one and only Son to accomplish it.

Do you believe in a literal ressurection? That He took up His physical body?

Yes.

If I understand you right, that's a difference I never even thought about!

I'm not sure I follow. What is the difference you are seeing?

[Ray]

As for the atonement, it had to be Jesus, because God chose to use his one and only Son to accomplish it.

Just for clarification... his one and only begotten Son... since all men are/can be sons of God too.

And if we are sons, we will also be heirs... not bondservants who'll get paid for our services. :)

[Dr T]

Ray, It looks like we have to take you in on assault charges.

[Ray]

Ooooh. A flashy thing.

I feel I'm being drawn to the light.

Do you also have a siren that makes that swooshy sound?

Of course, I'll need to see your credentials.

[Dr T]

Keep going, Ray. I'm adding another charge for evading arrest