Sabellianism: Modalism Revived in Oneness Pentecostalism

Sabellianism: Modalism Revived in Oneness Pentecostalism

False teachings rarely die; they recycle themselves in new clothes. What the early church called Sabellianism or Modalism is now repackaged in modern Pentecostal Oneness movements. Both reject the biblical Trinity, claiming that Father, Son, and Spirit are not distinct Persons but only different manifestations of the one God. This distortion robs the gospel of its depth and misrepresents the God who saves.

Biblical Foundation

Jesus’ baptism makes the Trinity undeniable: “After He was baptized, Jesus came up immediately from the water; and behold, the heavens were opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and settling on Him, and behold, a voice from the heavens said, ‘This is My beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased’” (Matthew 3:16–17 NASB). Here the Son stands in the water, the Spirit descends, and the Father speaks. The text leaves no room for a single Person merely switching roles.

Likewise, Jesus’ prayer in John 17 presupposes a real relationship: “Now, Father, glorify Me together with Yourself, with the glory which I had with You before the world existed” (John 17:5 NASB). If Jesus is merely the Father in another mode, His words become a theatrical illusion rather than genuine communion.

Historical/Contextual Notes

• Sabellius (3rd century): A teacher in Rome who argued that God is one Person appearing in three successive forms. The church labeled this heresy Modalism.

• Early refutations: Tertullian, Hippolytus, and later Athanasius insisted that while God is one in essence (ousia), He eternally exists in three Persons (hypostaseis).

• Council witness: By the time of Nicaea (AD 325), Sabellianism was firmly rejected. The creed confesses Jesus as “God from God, Light from Light, true God from true God” — equal to but distinct from the Father.

Misconceptions

• Claim: The Trinity is a contradiction.

  • Correction: One essence, three persons is not a contradiction; it’s a mystery of revelation. God is not three Gods in one God but one God in three distinct persons.

• Claim: Baptism in Jesus’ name alone is sufficient.

  • Correction: Acts 8:16 explicitly states: “For He had not yet fallen upon any of them; they had simply been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus” (NASB). The Greek word μόνον (monon, “only”) clarifies they had been baptized, but only baptized — the Spirit had not yet been given. Baptism alone, even in Jesus’ name, did not equal Spirit reception.

Theological Reflection

Sabellianism undermines the very gospel. If Father and Son are the same Person, then:

• The Father sent Himself into the world.

• Jesus prayed to Himself.

• At the cross, the Father poured wrath on Himself.

This distorts the beauty of salvation. Scripture reveals a Father who sends, a Son who obeys, and a Spirit who empowers — a harmony of divine love. As Paul writes, “There are varieties of ministries, and the same Lord. There are varieties of effects, but the same God who works all things in all persons” (1 Corinthians 12:5–6 NASB).

The Resurgence: Oneness Pentecostalism

Modern Oneness Pentecostalism (emerging in the early 20th century) is simply Sabellianism reborn. It denies the eternal Trinity, insisting that “Father, Son, and Spirit” are titles of Jesus, not distinct Persons. This is why they demand baptism “in Jesus’ name only” and often reject Trinitarian churches as false. But their theology repeats the same error condemned nearly 1,800 years ago.

What the church rejected then, we must reject now. The God of Scripture is not a solitary actor changing costumes; He is Father, Son, and Spirit from eternity.

Christ-Centered Conclusion

The Trinity is not a philosophical puzzle but the heartbeat of the gospel. The Father loved the world, the Son gave Himself for us, and the Spirit applies redemption to our hearts. This is no modal illusion but the living reality of God. To deny the Trinity is to deny the gospel. Sabellianism was a lie in the 3rd century, and its Oneness Pentecostal revival is a lie today. The true hope of salvation rests in the eternal Son who reveals the Father and sends the Spirit — one God, three Persons, forever worthy of our worship.