QUESTION: The concept of God as a "trinity" is confusing. Is there one God or three?
ANSWER: According to the Bible, there is but one God. Jesus, quoting from Deuteronomy 6:4-5, declared "the first of all the commandments is 'Hear, O Israel: the Lord our God, the Lord is one.'" (Mark 12:29) The worship of multiple gods is forbidden throughout Scripture (Exodus 20:3, etc.).
But the Bible also clearly asserts that three persons make up this one deity. As far back as Genesis 1:26, the Bible makes this point. "And God said, 'Let US make man in OUR image, after OUR likeness.'" Notice the plural pronouns that apply to God.
John 1:1 affirms that Jesus was God. The account of Jesus' baptism (Matthew 3:13-17) mentions all three persons. Jesus was in the Jordan River. The Holy Spirit descended in the form of a dove. And a voice from heaven spoke saying, "This is My beloved son," thus indicating that God the Father was speaking.
In John 15:26, we read the promise Jesus made to His disciples shortly before His death. He promised to send a Helper, or Comforter, (the Holy Spirit--John 16:13) to His disciples from the Father. Again, all three persons are mentioned. Jesus could not very well have been promising to send Himself from Himself, especially since He had previously emphasized that He would be going away (John 14:12,19,28; 16:5,7,16).
In Matthew 28:19, Jesus commanded Christians to baptize in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. And 1 John 5:7 says, "For there are three who bear witness in heaven: the Father, the Word, and the Holy Spirit; and these three are One." But as your question suggests, this can be confusing. How can three persons be one? Perhaps it is best understood by comparing God, or Deity, with humanity. Everyone who reads this article is part of one humanity, but we all are different persons.
Jesus also said that He and the Father were one (John 10:30) and that His Father was "greater" than He (John 14:28). By these statements, Jesus not only showed that He and the Father are one in nature, purpose, and action, but also that, while on earth, He was subordinate in authority.
The concept of "oneness" doesn't always refer to the number of persons involved; sometimes, it refers to unity. The church is described as "one body" (Ephesians 4:4), but many members, or persons, compose that one church (1 Corinthians 12:12-27). Jesus prayed for unity among believers. He said, "I do not pray for these alone, but also for those who will believe in Me through their word; that they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent me." (John 17:20-21)
This concept of multiple persons becoming "one," in terms of unity, is also illustrated in the Biblical view of marriage. Two separate persons, a man and a woman, become "one flesh" (Genesis 2:24; Matthew 19:4-6). In marriage, the man and woman don't cease being two individual persons; they become one family, united in purpose.
Insisting that "one God" means one person results in much confusion. It makes Jesus His own Father. It means that Jesus, while on earth, prayed to Himself in heaven (Matthew 26:39,42,53). So, there is but one God, or Deity. There is only one all-powerful force. What idolaters called gods were merely deaf, mute creations of men themselves, powerless to do anything. The one Deity, however, is composed of three persons totally united in thinking and action. This unity also defines oneness. I hope this helps clear up the confusion.