You can cut into an apple in front of your group. That is ok when it comes to rocks and triangles. Two biblical teachings confirm the doctrine of the Trinity: How is that possible? In this blog post, we will discuss how schools and parents can help girls to, Read More Navigating Girl Drama: 20 Ways Schools and Parents Can Help Calm the StormContinue, Ill never forget the moment I watched in amazement as my newly-turned 4 year old sounded out her first few CVC words. I work hard to produce evidence-based information about school for both teachers and parents, and to produce and share resources that can help at home and in the classroom. These questions arealwaysasked by someone who is exploring faith in Jesus. We can be adopted by the Father and united with Jesus through the work of the Holy Spirit (John 1:1223; Rom. The fact that the Holy Spirit is a Person, not an impersonal force (like gravity), is also shown by the fact that He speaks (Hebrews 3:7), reasons (Acts 15:28), thinks and understands (1 Corinthians 2:10-11), wills (1 Corinthians 12:11), feels (Ephesians 4:30), and gives personal fellowship (2 Corinthians 13:14). After all, theyre good questions. Specifically, distinguishing between Gods one essence and his three Persons. 9:18; Matt. 1:12). They are personal forms of existence other than a difference in being. It is one of the two ordinances of the Christian Church. Its not unusual for teenagers to give Jesus a bunch of loving characteristics and then put words like justice and vengeance on God the Fathers poster. Founder & Teacher, desiringGod.org. God is one in a certain way (essence) and three in a different way (person). 4:6; James 2:19; Jude 25. But first, lets cover the basics. Deut. Its okay to admit you dont know everything. How is God three? Jesus himself spoke of the one-ness of the Godhead when he quoted the Shema of Deuteronomy 6:4. Stated differently, God is one in essence and three in person. Read Books About The Trinity. Other statements may at first seem contradictory but are really not. If you're looking for the best Christian jobs and careers, check out Cru's ministry job openings for full- and part-time missionaries and professionals. 6:11; Gal. He is one in essence. The next time you (or I) are asked to explain the Trinity, you could start with a 1-sentence definition and then unpack that definition. 40:18; Rom. Are you still not a Christian? Just as ONE egg has THREE different parts - the shell, the white, the yoke - ONE God has THREE different . 2. Remember, the nature or essence of an entity is the property or attributes that make it what it is. More simply stated, the essence of any entity is what it is. But I hope you have learned that the Trinity is not contradictory. The concept of the Trinity is often referred to during worship, which helps Christians to understand it. Christianity is a monotheistic religion. 2:11), speaks (Mark 13:11), testifies (Acts 20:23), reveals (1 Cor. Trinity may be a new term for you and can be confusing even for Christians to explain to others. 5:10), Requested prayer in his name (John 14:1314) and to be honored as God (John 5:23), Begetting the human nature of Christ at the incarnation (Luke 1:35), Inspiring Scripture (2 Tim. Sometimes the Personhood of the Father and Son is appreciated, but the Personhood of the Holy Spirit is neglected. But they are eternally subordinate in their roles to him (1 Cor. Genesis 1:1 reads: "In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth." If we look more closely at the word we translate "God," Elohim, we see it is plural. Allegedly, Saint Patrick used a shamrock as a metaphor to explain the Trinity: three leaves, one shamrock. 3:1617). In his bookMere Christianity, C. S. Lewis points out an important distinction. Because of Gods nature, several mysteries exist within our faith. 12:28; Rom. Use the links below to jump to a specific section: The doctrine of the Trinity means that there is one God who eternally exists as three distinct Persons the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. It is crucial for properly understanding what God is like, how He relates to us, and how we should relate to Him. But secondly, Christians need to clarify that God is incomprehensible. OksoWhat about this idea of one being who exists in three persons?. 3 in 1: A Picture of God This one is for anyone interested in using the apple object lesson. 92:8) and third person (he, his, him) singular pronouns (1 Kings 18:39). Think about it: Finite Christians serve an eternal and infinite God. 13:14), the term Trinity does not appear. 3. There is a clue that the Son is distinct from the Father, yet there is fellowship between them. When Jesus answered the question, What is the greatest commandment? he prefaced the answer by quoting the. Divide your group into three teams and give each group a sheet of butcher paper or poster. This is one of the books of the Torah. Looking for a great childrens Bible? For example they: 5. The Trinity is first of all important because God is important. It's easy to turn doctrinal discussions into strictly intellectual affairs, but as Dr. Fred Sanders teaches in The Triune God course, we need to do so "in a way that enlists the reader's strict and holy attention for what is essentially a spiritual exercise." "After being baptized, Jesus came up immediately from the water; and behold, the heavens were opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending as a dove and lighting on Him.". Lets change that! I might end with sharing a few analogies from nature. 1:318; 1 Pet. 8:3539; Eph. Thats why they wrote words like we find inJob 11:7-8, "Can you fathom the depths of God or discover the limits of the Almighty? Find resources for personal or group Bible study. 2:5), The Father is not the Spirit (John 14:26; John 15:26), The Son is not the Spirit (Matt. To confess that the Father, Son, and Spirit are equal in power of course means that one does not rule over the other in any way. What is the essence of a triangle? But as a follower of Christ, your identity can and should be grounded in one thing: who He says you are. 20:23; Deut. Trinity, in Christian doctrine, the unity of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit as three persons in one Godhead. However, let me highlight some of the most significant passages that confirm monotheism: Are you interested in learning more about the Godhead? Or what are the objective characteristics that all triangles share? 8:26), comprehends (1 Cor. He exists as a Trinity. The doctrine of the Trinity is considered to be one of the central Christian affirmations about God. While I believe that this is a helpful definition, it should be recognized that Grudem himself is offering this as more of an explanation than definition of Person. The Trinity has a very significant application to prayer. He sanctifies us (1 Pet. draws the believer into a new . And he should be referred to by personal pronouns and never as it. The Holy Spirits is a person because he: Scripture also proves that the Father, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit are God. What we have seen so far provides a good basic understanding of the Trinity. The Father and the Son are God almighty, omnipotent God. Unfortunately, there are many illustrations which are not simply imperfect, but in error. Gods essence is His being. The Father is God. We believe God is one in essence. Genesis 1:1says this: "In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.. In other words, what are the objective attributes or properties that make up all rocks? ). To understand more fully what God is like is a way of honoring God. God is the Father, the Son (Jesus), and the Holy Spirit. For instance he: Jesus has all the features that ensure he, too, is a person. Then I'll share an activity using the Celtic Trinity Knot to explain the Trinity to children along with the love that exists between each of its Persons and us. Ask the teenager this question: Where does this fall short? And that he is manifest as three Persons.. He is three in a different way than He is one. This post is full of Bible facts for kids that will spark the imagination, encourage lots of good questions, and even inspire some Bible reading. One illustration to beware of is the one which says, I am one person, but I am a student, son, and brother. The Hebrew word for God isElohim. Learn how you can know God personally. A beautiful mystery. OrThe person were explaining it to will think that the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are only parts of God (egg and sun). But is there any easy way to apprehend these exciting discoveries? Lets start with the geometric figure of the triangle itself. The wordtrinitymeans tri-unity or three-in-oneness.. 2:17). What we do mean by Person is something that regards himself as I and others as You. So the Father, for example, is a different Person from the Son because He regards the Son as a You, even though He regards Himself as I. Thus, in regards to the Trinity, we can say that Person means a distinct subject which regards Himself as an I and the other two as a You. These distinct subjects are not a division within the being of God, but a form of personal existence other than a difference in being.[3]. Question: How do you explain the Trinity? We cannot entirelycomprehendan infinite God and these mysteries (Rom. The doctrine of the Trinity, simply stated, is as follows: The Bible teaches that there is one eternal God who is the Creator and Sustainer of the universe. Understanding who the Holy Spirit is, the place He holds within the Holy Trinity and the role He plays in individual lives is vital to anyone exploring what it means to become a Christian and anyone trying to follow Jesus. Sproul cites as an example Dickens famous line, It was the best of times, it was the worst of times. Obviously this is a contradiction if Dickens means that it was the best of times in the same way that it was the worst of times. . For instance, the Father is the first person of the Trinity. His function is superior to that of the Son and the Holy Spirit. Therefore, the Holy Spirit must be distinct from the Father and the Son. Learn about Cru's global leadership team. Reaching students and faculty in middle and high school. The Trinity confuses even adults, so when youre tasked (or inspired) to teach the Trinity to a child, teenager, or new believer, it can be overwhelming. (So I won't send you any.) The general pattern of prayer in the Bible is to pray to the Father through the Son and in the Holy Spirit (Ephesians 2:18). 7:28; Ps. Satan existed with the angels at the beginning of creation as one of the cherubim. 5:2122; John 13:34), End-time judgment (Matt. Neither should we think of the Persons as being defined by attributes added on to the being of God. He is an extension of the sun and brings the sun directly to the world. God is spirit (John 4:24). The answer is they are gray and hard. But analogies cannot entirely explain the mystery of God. We need you. 3:3; Heb. Contrary to this, the passages we have seen imply that God always was and always will be three Persons. That definition is a mouthful. The Trinity does not divide God into three parts. He regenerates us with new spiritual life (John 3:58). He differs from the Father, but was and . This is very important: God is one and three at the same time, but not in the same way. Rather than let that frustrate you, let it encourage you. This verse accurately states the doctrine of the Trinity that God is One God in three Persons. A Christian would still be expected to understand it. The technical term in case youre interested for this wrong way of thinking about God is calledmodalism. For example: One of the most common mistakes people make is to think of the Holy Spirit as some force ala Star Wars. But the Holy Spirit is most assuredly a person. God the Holy Spirit. Gods attributes are not parts of his singular divine essence. 4:47), In Hebrews (Heb. The fact that the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are distinct Persons means, in other words, that the Father is not the Son, the Son is not the Holy Spirit, and the Holy Spirit is not the Father. Genesis tells us that God created the heavens and the earth by his word. From the 1950s to the 2000s, people wanted to see if they could make computers exhibit intelligence indistinguishable from humans. And God created humankind to share that love (John 17:2126; Acts 17:25). We also see this evidenced in how the Son and Father sent the Spirit into the world (John 14:26; John 15:26; John 16:7). In addition to these texts, the others we mentioned above make clear that the Personhood of the Holy Spirit is distinct from the Personhood of the Son and the Father. ). If youd like to get away from simple object lessons and move your child toward a deeper understanding of Gods nature, check out The Attributes of God for Kids. The Trinity is important to Christians because it reminds us that God is all-powerful, walked this Earth as a perfect human who can relate to our pain, and also lives on today in our hearts. The New Testament lists all three Persons of the Trinity simultaneously, 6. The divine essence is thus not something that exists above or separate from the three Persons, but the divine essence is the being of the three Persons. Why? I think it is because they lack at least two pieces of information: The main confusion is that many people dont get this distinction. Example 1: What is the nature or essence of a rock? 104:30), sanctifies (Rom. God created man in His image. 1:2), Jesus as God (Titus 2:13), and the Holy Spirit as God (Acts 5:3-4). Believe it or not, the fact that God is too immense for our finite minds should be comforting, not discouraging! Deity of Jesus: 10 Essentials You Need to Know! Instead, they are all identical in attributes. Trinity comes from two word parts: tri, meaning three, and unity, meaning as one. The concept of the Trinity is that we have God in three forms a union of three. And then you will read eight critical truths about the nature of the Trinity. Thats the one we think of as the Father. We then turn to the most important strategies that have been developed by Christians to resolve this problem. The Son and Holy Spirit are equal in deity to the Father. The concept of the Trinity. 5:2), Miracles (Ex. And interesting they are listed under a single name. This refers to Gods single essence. Thats where the confusion comes from. I am also fully Keith Ferrin. Is God the same as Jesus? 2:11), and performs miracles (Matt. 28:20; Col. 3:11), Omnibenevolent (John 13:34; Rom. He was "begotten, not made," and he was of the same substance or essence ( homoousios) as the Father. Theologians have pointed out that if it were not true, the Bible would be unreliable, Christ would not be divine, and His death on the cross would not atone for our sins, being merely the death of a martyr. Begin and end with your object lesson, and be comfortable with the imperfect teaching. He is also referred to in third-person singular pronouns (John 14:26), He engages in actions only a person can do: He searches (1 Cor. Thus, Jesus prayed to God the Father without praying to Himself. There are two other major monotheistic world religions namely Judaism and Islam. It is the revelation of who our Almighty Creator actually isnot just a god, but an infinite Being existing in eternity as three co-equal, infinite Persons, consubstantial yet distinct. We just covered Gods one divine essence. How we seek to journey together with everyone towards a relationship with Jesus. This can only be if they share one essence. Leading from values so others will walk passionately with God to grow and bear fruit. A simpler way to talk about the Trinity is through "God grammar.". After understanding the difference between essence and personhood, most objections evaporate! Since our personal relationship is with Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit lies within us, what role does God play as Father? But Keith Ferrin is noteveryhuman being.. Because ethnicity is part of the good of creation, we seek to honor and celebrate the ethnic identity of those with whom we serve as well as those we seek to reach. Often it is objected that If Jesus is God, then he must have prayed to himself while he was on earth. But the answer to this objection lies in simply applying what we have already seen. And the voice of the Father declared, This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased (Matt. And likewise with the Holy Spirit. Your Identity in Christ: How God Sees You. 13: Trinity | Putting the Fun In, Faith and Finances: 5 Steps to Get Started. The ancient church fathers at first simply acknowledged the Trinity without feeling the need to explain a theology of that understanding. Ironically, not much is known about his death; even the year when he passed away is up for debate. At Jesus baptism, when Christ came up out of the water, the Spirit descended in the appearance of a dove. In John 1:1 it is affirmed that Jesus is God and, at the same time, that He was with God- thereby indicating that Jesus is a distinct Person from God the Father (cf. Only older children will grasp the in one concept of H20. 1:20-21), In salutations and benedictions (2 Cor. God the Father. And this teaching gives us a glimpse into the incomprehensible greatness of God. This law states that A cannot be both A (what it is) and non-A (what it is not) at the same time and in the same relationship. 1:8). Further, we clearly should not think of God as consisting of anything other than divinity. These definitions express three crucial truths: (1) The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are distinct Persons, (2) each Person is fully God, (3) there is only one God. Actually, March 17 commemorates St. Patrick's death, actually. the one who is not a Christian. Even wonderful parents have kids who struggle with self esteem, despite excellent parenting and a supportive home environment. Are these just three different ways of looking at God, or simply ways of referring to three different roles that God plays? Anytime you see a geometric figure with these features, it is a triangle. We baptize into the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. In eternity past, before the beginning, God was alone. To this day, this scripture inspires the language we use to baptize people across Christian denominations. Yet most Christians have difficulty explaining the Trinity clearly and Biblically. The doctrine or concept of the Trinity is central to most Christian denominations and faith groups, although not all. 2:34; Heb. He sent Jesus to save us and then completed our salvation through the indwelling Holy Spirit (Eph. As Hebrews 9:14 declares. As a result, Jesus death covered or atoned for our sins (2 Cor. Ive been thinking about it a lot, doing some research to see how people smarter than I have explained the Trinity, and come to a better understanding of the Trinity andhow to explain the Trinity in simpler terms. Matthew 12:28. But Scripture provides ample evidence of the existence of the Trinity. The Trinity is God the Father, God the Son (Jesus) and God the Holy Spirit. Orthodox Christian theology has always affirmed that the one true God is triune in nature. This leads us to investigate more closely a very helpful definition of the Trinity which I mentioned earlier: God is one in essence, but three in Person. God is infinitely greater than we are; therefore, we should not expect to be able to fully understand Him. At this stage, your head may be swimming with all this new information about God! 317 subscribers in the BiblicalUnitarian community. 1:17; Dan. 11:3336). Each person of God (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit) really IS God. And all three members of the Trinity were involved. 4; 14; Jon. The verb for created isbara. ETS members all confess the Father, the Son, and the Spirit to be "one in essence, equal in power and glory.". Learn why He did it and what it means for you.

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