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God & the TrinityDeep dive

How can I explain the Trinity to a Oneness Pentecostal?

God & the Trinity

The short answer

In Matthew 28:19 Jesus explicitly commands baptism in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit — the source of the Trinitarian formula, not a pope's idea. Acts 2:38 isn't giving a liturgical formula but distinguishing Christ's baptism from John's. Early Church practice was thoroughly Trinitarian.

Jesus' command

In Matthew 28:19 Jesus explicitly tells the apostles to baptize in the name of the Trinity. That is where the Church got the formula; it wasn't a pope's invention.

Acts 2:38

Acts 2:38 is not a liturgical formula. Luke is distinguishing Christ's baptism from John the Baptist's.

The early Church

The practice of the early Church was thoroughly Trinitarian.