The following is the comparison between the Fundamental Principles and Fundamental Beliefs on their teachings on God, His Son and the Holy Spirit.
The Fundamental Principles 1872
“I – That there is one God, a personal, spiritual being, the creator of all things, omnipotent, omniscient, and eternal, infinite in wisdom, holiness, justice, goodness, truth, and mercy; unchangeable, and everywhere present by his representative, the Holy Spirit. Ps. 139:7.
II – That there is one Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of the Eternal Father, the one by whom God created all things, and by whom they do consist; …”
The Fundamental Beliefs 1980
II - There is one God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, a unity of three coeternal Persons. God is immortal, all-powerful, all-knowing, above all, and ever present. He is infinite and beyond human comprehension, yet known through His self-revelation. God, who is love, is forever worthy of worship, adoration, and service by the whole creation. (Gen. 1:26; Deut. 6:4; Isa. 6:8; Matt. 28:19; John 3:16 2 Cor. 1:21, 22; 13:14; Eph. 4:4-6; 1 Peter 1:2.)
III - God the eternal Father is the Creator, Source, Sustainer, and Sovereign of all creation. He is just and holy, merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness. The qualities and powers exhibited in the Son and the Holy Spirit are also those of the Father. (Gen. 1:1; Deut. 4:35; Ps. 110:1, 4; John 3:16; 14:9; 1 Cor. 15:28; 1 Tim. 1:17; 1 John 4:8; Rev. 4:11.)
IV - God the eternal Son became incarnate in Jesus Christ. Through Him all things were created, the character of God is revealed, the salvation of humanity is accomplished, and the world is judged…
V - God the eternal Spirit was active with the Father and the Son in Creation, incarnation, and redemption.
He is as much a person as are the Father and the Son. He inspired the writers of Scripture. He filled Christ’s life with power. He draws and convicts human beings; and those who respond He renews and transforms into the image of God.
Sent by the Father and the Son to be always with His children, He extends spiritual gifts to the church, empowers it to bear witness to Christ, and in harmony with the Scriptures leads it into all truth.
(Gen. 1:1, 2; 2 Sam. 23:2; Ps. 51:11; Isa. 61:1; Luke 1:35; 4:18; John 14:16-18, 26; 15:26; 16:7-13; Acts 1:8; 5:3; 10:38; Rom. 5:5; 1 Cor. 12:7-11; 2 Cor. 3:18; 2 Peter 1:21.)
VI - God has revealed in Scripture the authentic and historical account of His creative activity. He created the universe, and in a recent six-day creation the Lord made “the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them” and rested on the seventh day. Thus He established the Sabbath as a perpetual memorial of the work He performed and completed during six literal days that together with the Sabbath constituted the same unit of time that we call a week today. The first man and woman were made in the image of God as the crowning work of Creation, given dominion over the world, and charged with responsibility to care for it. When the world was finished it was “very good,” declaring the glory of God. (Gen. 1-2; 5; 11; Exod. 20:8-11; Ps. 19:1–6; 33:6, 9; 104; Isa. 45:12, 18; Acts 17:24; Col. 1:16; Heb. 1:2; 11:3; Rev. 10:6; 14:7.)
XIV - … Through the revelation of Jesus Christ in the Scriptures we share the same faith and hope, and reach out in one witness to all. This unity has its source in the oneness of the triune God, who has adopted us as His children…
Comparison in regards to the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit
| Fundamental Principles | Fundamental Beliefs | |
|---|---|---|
| One God | The Father | A unity of three persons - God the Father, God the Son, God the Holy Spirit |
| The personality* of God | A personal Spiritual Being | As of God as a unity of three persons, it is not not explained. As of the Father, it is the same as of God the Holy Spirit, and of God the Son. (see the personality of the Holy Spirit below) |
| The presence of God | God (The Father) is everywhere present by His representative the Holy Spirit | God (a unity of three persons) is everywhere present by Himself - He is “ever present” |
| The personality* of Chirst | Implied by the phrase: “the Son of the Eternal Father” | God the Son - incarnated as Jesus Christ |
| The personality* of the Holy Spirit | Implied by the phrase: “the representative” - it cannot be ‘impersonal‘ | “He is as much a person as are the Father and the Son” - equal in personality as the Father and the Son: “The qualities and powers exhibited in the Son and the Holy Spirit are also those of the Father” |
| God as a being? | One - the Father | unknown, could be three or only one, but not two, since all Three are co-equal in the personality* |
| The Creator | Father | All Three as One |
| Everything Create through Christ | Yes | Yes |
| The First Angels Message points to: | The Father | The Triune God |
| The source of Christ’s full divinity | ”the Son of the Eternal Father” | Triune God - …, God the Son, … |
* the personality - “the quality or state of being a person” Merriam Webster, in other words by what characteristics we can determine someone to be a person?
