Encouraged by my wife to explain another difficulty people have with Christianity is understanding how one God can be three elements; the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. As a person who understands the Trinity that is God, I find that explaining it to people in terms that they can understand is difficult. The reason for this difficulty is that there is no clear passage that tells us that all three are God, rather it is revealed to those who study scripture and believe understand what it is saying. For example, in Matthew 3:16:
"As soon as Jesus was baptized, he went out of the water. At that moment heaven was opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and lighting on him. And a voice from heaven said, "This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased." NIV
Clearly we see three different elements of God individually; God in heaven, Jesus on Earth, and the Holy Spirit leaving heaven and coming to Earth.
Being of this planet and having a limited understanding of the Father, we find it difficult to grasp this 3 in 1 God because it is not commonplace in our world to see such a creature. Therein lies the problem with our thinking; God is not a creature, he is something that we can not even comprehend or fathom. For what do we know that can create a whole universe in its enormity and complexity.
In looking at the Son, an example I came up with, being from the generation that I am, was a person playing a video game. When we have control of a character on the screen as they conform to our will (with certain limitations) and have all the knowledge and experience that we have working through them, i.e. when to go left, right, jump, throw, shoot, etc. Yes.... that is done in a false world, but then again so are we, since heaven is the TRUE reality. This represents the God and Jesus relationship in a way that we can understand.
Last we have the Holy Spirit who, as we know from Acts, descended on the Apostles at Pentecost. As the third person in the Trinity, he was referred to by Jesus as the Holy Counselor who would come and guide the Apostles after Jesus left to prepare a place for them in heaven. He is a spirit and therefore invisible, yet he was always with the Apostles, including Paul. He was the administrator of God's Holy Power when the Apostles spoke in tongues, healed the sick, and preached the Word of God. Often overlooked in importance by many lay Christians, the Holy Spirit is of equal power and as the Father and Son, fulfilling the Holy Trinity that is God.
Understanding how these three are God is a difficult concept to grasp if you are not immersed in scripture. Therefore, to gain a better understanding and to even have the Holy Spirit counsel you in your spiritual journey, start reading the Bible and pray for wisdom. God wants very much to reveal himself to all mankind, yet we are constantly distracted by things of this world. I encourage you to find 30 minutes a day to spend reading your Bible and if possible, read it with a partner and encourage one another.
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4 comments:
Brian, I agree that the Holy Trinity can be a tough concept to understand. It's tough to explain that which is an "understanding" instead of that which is tangible.
You did a great job explaining the Holy Trinity in laymans terms. This information will help all of us to explain this concept in the future.
Thanks Eric. I am glad you found it helpful and I thank God that he gave me the right words to use. On my own, I couldn't have done it; it was only through his help. =)
Greetings B. Boniface
On the subject of the Trinity,
I recommend this video:
The Human Jesus
Take a couple of hours to watch it; and prayerfully it will aid you to reconsider "The Trinity"
Yours In Messiah
Adam Pastor
With all due respect Adam Pastor, I have weighed the evidence you provided vs. what I know from my own studies and I pray with an open heart that you change your mind with regard with the Trinity. Clearly, you feel strongly about your views, which I respect, yet I understand your agenda. If you are willing to have an open mind, I will lay out my case for you in favor of the Trinity, and you can do so yourself with your own view, rather than inserting a very biased link to make your argument. If you are up to the challenge, merely type the words accept and we can have a discussion and let our readers determine the outcome with their own conclusions.
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