This week's Bible Study - July 26, 2009
Key Questions About the Triune God
 Quote of the Week:
“It is true, I deny the incomprehensible Trinity, and the fable regarding the fall of man, which is absurd in our day. It is true, I deny the sacrilegious story of a God born of a virgin to redeem the race.”
-- Leo Nikolaevich Tolstoy
NOTE: I usually try and pick a quote that adds to the lesson. I guess I chose this one to remind us
that not all people believe what we believe. Mr Tolstoy can deny what he wants to deny, but the truth of
God remains the same.
The Trinity is a difficult concept for many to grasp. Each of us has one person attached to our being. We tend to put our own limitations on everything else. However, God is not a man and he does not have the same limitations as we experience. There are some examples that may come to mind of three different representations of the same thing. For example, there is time that has past, present and future. And, from school you may remember matter that can be expressed as solid, liquid and gas. It is important to realize that there are not three Gods. Christianity is a monotheistic religion, in that we believe in one God.
In the past few lessons, we've learned a few things about the different persons of the Trinity - the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. The Trinity is a uniquely Christian concept and can be difficult for many to comprehend. Some people object to the teaching of the Trinity, because the word isn't explicitly used in Scripture. True, the word is not spelled out, but the truth is that an unbiased look at Scripture yields many allusions to the Trinity.
In this passage, we read about the baptism of Jesus. This was the mark of the start of his ministry. He was baptized by John the Baptist, who was declared the forerunner of the Christ. John had been preaching a baptism of repentance. There was really no need for Jesus to be baptized to show repentance from sins. He was sinless throughout his life. However, Jesus was baptized to legitimize the ministry of John, and to show that he was the One of whom John had spoken.
As soon as Jesus was baptized, he went up out of the water and the heavens were opened. Those who were witnessing the baptism had to notice something different. Jesus looked up and saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and lighting on him. This is and of itself is somewhat remarkable. There are places that you can go and birds will land on shoulders and hands. They are trained and photo opportunities. I have a bird called Brinks, named for an obnoxious noise that he makes when he wants attention. He's probably a good security alarm. While Brinks won't come to everyone, he'll step up on my finger, which still befuddles me. I've noticed that this doesn't happen in the wild - or even in the backyard. Jesus was baptized and the dove (the Holy Spirit) lit on him. It was out of the ordinary.
Then, a voice from heaven said "This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased." This was a ringing endorsement from the Father. Can you imagine those who were present and who saw the dove land on Jesus, followed by the voice from the sky? It would be a lasting impression, and in this moment, the three Persons of the Trinity were evident. God was in the heavens, speaking down to earth. The Spirit of God was evidenced in a dove, and Jesus was being baptized.
Paul, in his letter to the Corinthians wrote of the way in which he came to the church. He was not trying to 'wow' them with his words. He only was to speak of Jesus Christ. His speech and preaching were a demonstration of the Spirit and of power. He spoke wisdom, but not the wisdom of the earthly age. The wisdom which he spoke was the wisdom which God ordained before men. The things which he spoke of were things that God had revealed through His Spirit.
This spirit was not a spirit of the world, but the Spirit who was from God. The Holy Spirit's role is to give believers wisdom and the words to speak. As Paul preached the gospel of Jesus Christ, he could only do so because of the presence of the Holy Spirit. These were not human truths and words taught by human wisdom, but were spiritual truths expressed in spiritual words taught by the Spirit.
The Holy Spirit is not just set aside for stalwarts of the faith and great leaders, such as Paul. Every believer has received the Spirit who is from God and every believer has access to this same spiritual wisdom of which Paul spoke. This does not mean that we can all understand everything, nor can we know things equally among believers. But, the Holy Spirit allows each of us to understand the basics of the Christian message, which is unattainable and undesirable by human wisdom.
In his book to the church at Ephesus, Paul begins by speaking of the spiritual blessings that we have in Christ. In verse 3, he gives praise to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, in whom we have been blessed with spiritual blessings in the heavenly realms in Christ. We were chosen in Christ before the creation of the world. We were purposed to be holy and blameless in the sight of God. We know that none of us have lived up to this - being holy and blameless, but we have been adopted as sons through Jesus Christ. All of these blessings have come through the Son, Jesus Christ.
We also have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God's grace that he lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding. These things are in the Son, but they are in accordance with the riches of God, the Father's grace. Additionally, he has made known to us the mystery of his will. This is the role of the Spirit; to make known the mystery of the will of God. That mystery is purposed in Christ, in whom all things in heaven and on earth will be brought together under one head, Christ.
Paul goes on to remind us that we were chosen in Christ, having been predestined according the plan of God, so that we would be to the praise of his glory. We also were included in Christ when we heard the word of truth, the gospel of our salvation. This is the role of the Holy Spirit, to let us know of the truthfulness of the gospel. Additionally, we are marked with the promised Holy Spirit, who seals us until we are redeemed as God's possession.
Certainly the truths of this passage could be multiple lessons in their own right, but in this lesson, we see the Trinity. We clearly see the role of God, the Father, and Jesus Christ, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Their functions work together for the same purpose.
Closing
It is clear that the Bible speaks of the persons of the Trinity. However, it still may be difficult for any of us to explain if we were approached by a skeptic. Professor James White gives a brief definition of the Trinity. He says that we must first have a good idea of what the Trinity is- that there is one eternal being of God - indivisible and infinite. This being is shared by three co-equal, co-eternal persons, the Father, the Son and the Spirit. In White's view, he speaks of the being of God being the "what" and the persons of God being the "who". In Scripture, the three persons of the Trinity are never identified with one another - they are always differentiated as persons.
When an improper view of the Trinity is taken, it can lead to aberrant theology. When the Father, Son and Spirit are seen merely as modes or aspects of one God, it results in "Oneness" teaching of the United Pentecostal and the United Apostolic Churches. This states that God is a single person throughout biblical history who has revealed Himself in three modes or forms. It says that the Father, Son and Spirit never exist at the same time.
When one denies the Full Equality of the Trinity, they are left with Three Persons and One God. This is called subordinationism, that means that Jesus is different in nature than the Father. This leads to teaching that the Son is not eternal and divine. This can be seen in Jehovah's Witnesses, the Way International and others. You may hear that the Holy Spirit is an impersonal, active "force" like electricity, and that Jesus is 'a' god, which is stated in the Jehovah's Witness Bible, the New World Translation. In their translation, John 1:1 states "In (the) beginning the Word was, and the Word was with God, and the Word was a god." This passage is clearly meant to state that the Word was Jesus and that Jesus was God. Their mistranslation changes the role of Jesus.
When one accepts the three Persons of the Trinity, they are subscribing to "Tritheism" or Polytheism - many gods. In the early church, the Christians were accused of being tritheists by others who could not understand the doctrine of the Trinity. Modern day polytheists are led by the Mormon Church, which is perhaps the most polytheistic religion that has existed. They actually state that there are many God's, but they serve and worship one of them. There is much more that could be said about exactly what the Mormons believe, but it is certainly not the Christian Trinity.
You may not understand how God employs the different persons of the Trinity, but that doesn't mean that it isn't true. Hopefully, as stated above, you can see the danger of misunderstanding the Trinity. God has plans for you and those plans are through His Son, Jesus Christ, and you are empowered by the Holy Spirit.
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