There is no earthly example that fully explains the mystery of the Trinity. Yet, throughout church history various attempts have been offered.

1. A triangle.

This is a fairly good example of the Trinity because it has three sides, and yet it is one triangle which is indivisible.

2. Fire.

A fire must have three things to exist. They are not the same, but if any ingredient is absent the fire ceases to be. These are fuel, heat, and oxygen.

3. The nature of light, consisting of three kinds of rays:

Chemical rays—rays that are invisible, and can be neither felt nor seen.

Light rays—rays that are seen, but cannot be felt.

Heat rays—rays that are felt, but never seen.

Some have said this is a good illustration of the Trinity, because chemical rays are invisible and could illustrate a type of the Father (can be neither felt nor seen). Light rays can be seen but cannot be felt, thus illustrating a type of the Son. Heat rays illustrate a type of the Holy Spirit because they are felt but never seen. This is a possible illustration of the Trinity.

4. Time—Consisting of the past, present, and future.

5. The dimensional example:

For all practical purposes our world is a three-dimensional world (excluding the fourth dimension of time), where all objects possess height, length, and width. Thus, let us imagine a book that measures 9 inches long, 6 inches wide, and 1 inch in height.

We may correctly conclude:
There is but one single book involved.
There are, however, three separate but unified dimensions involved.
These dimensions are not the same, but cannot be separated from the other two without destroying the book itself.

1. A three-leaf clover.

Each leaf enjoys the same stem, but this is a poor illustration of the Trinity because these leaves can be separated one from the other, and you cannot separate the Trinity.

Most commonly, water is liquid. When boiled it turns into vapor, and when frozen, it becomes solid. This, too, is a poor illustration of the Trinity.

Man possesses body, soul, and spirit, but they can be separated. At death the body is buried: the soul (the spirit) goes to be with the Lord. You cannot separate the Trinity. Therefore, this, too, is a poor illustration.

These three parts can be separated, thus making a bad illustration.

A tree has roots, a trunk, and branches. But as in the above examples, these three entities can be separated.