Transcript: Here is the definition of the Trinity. If you write anything down tonight, write this down: God is one in being and three in person. One in being and three in person. Now, that is not a contradiction. See, if I said he’s one in being and three in being, that’s a contradiction. Then I’m arguing with myself. If I say he’s one in person and three in person, that’s a contradiction. God is one in being and three in person. So the next obvious question is, Nabeel, what’s the difference between a being and a person? Glad you asked, thank you.

A being is that quality that makes you what you are or makes a thing what it is. So, being is “what-ness,” and a person is that which makes you who you are. So, for example, I am a human being. That’s what I am, in case you were confused—I’m a human being. Who I am is not a human being; who I am is Nabeel Qureshi. What I am is a human being; who I am is Nabeel Qureshi. What I am is heart, lungs, muscles, eyes, tendons, bones, etc. That’s what I am, but that’s not who I am.

Who I am is a kind, loving, caring, compassionate person, as my wife would tell you immediately. Who I am is very different from what I am. Humans happen to be one being and one person—that’s what humans are, one being, one person. God is different. God is one being; Yahweh is what we call God, but He’s three persons: Father, Son, and Spirit. Those three persons are equal because they’re all God. They’ve all existed from the beginning, like John chapter 1 says, because they’re all God.

So then the question comes up: how can Jesus say something like “the Father is greater than I” if they’re all God? And the answer is actually quite simple. Let’s say I point to the President of the United States. Let’s say I said Obama. I can very accurately say Obama is greater than I am because when he goes somewhere, he rolls with the posse. He’s the most powerful man in the world. There are news conferences when he sneezes. I mean, he’s greater than I am. But is he any more human than I am? No, he’s not. He’s greater than me in terms of role, but he’s not greater than me in terms of essence.

In the same way, the Father is greater than the Son in terms of role. The Father is superior; the Son is subjected to the Father in terms of role. And we see that in 1 Corinthians 15—it says that Jesus is going to subject Himself to the authority of the Father so the Father can be all in all. It’s because the Father is superior in terms of role. But is He any more God than Jesus is? No, because they’re both God. There’s only one God, and they’re equal in essence: Father, Son, and Spirit.

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