Father, Son, Holy Spirit. Three distinct persons. One God. This could be one of the most difficult things to understand in Christianity. He’s not One God with a multiple personality disorder. He’s not three moods of One God. The three persons of God is however a perfect representation of loving community for the Church. The three persons of God are referenced throughout The Bible, not only in the New Testament but from the very beginning of Genesis.The best description I’ve found to understand the Trinity is in Mark Driscoll‘s book, Doctrine: What Christians Should Believe:

1) One Being, Three Persons. God is one being and has one essence… The whole God is in each person, [Father, Son, and Holy Spirit], and each person is the whole God. Threeness of person is not just a matter of action or revelation but of eternal being.

2) Consubstantiality. One identical divine substance is shared completely by the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Any essential characteristic that belongs to one of the three is shared by the others. Each of the three divine persons is eternal, each almighty, none greater or less than another, each God, and yet together being but one God.

3) Perichoresis. This… refers to the loving interrelation, partnership, or mutual dependence of the three persons… Since all three persons are fully God and the whole God is in each of the three, it follows that the three mutually indwell or contain on another as Jesus said: “Just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you.” [John 17:21 ESV]

4) The Order of the Persons. There is a clear order of the relations between the three fully divine persons: from the Father through the Son by the Holy Spirit.

Mark Driscoll and Gerry BreshearsDoctrine: What Christians Should Believe ©2010

I’m not sure if I can explain The Trinity any better or more clearly than that. Admittedly, I don’t think I will ever fully understand how God is three persons and one God until I am surrounded in the fullness of His glory on the other side of eternity.