During the Battle of New Orleans in 1815, Andrew Jackson and his militia fighters took on the British in a bloody battle—and won despite being outnumbered 2 to 1. The British lost about 2,000 soldiers, but only 330 Americans perished. Yet this costly battle turned out to be unnecessary. A peace treaty had been signed between Britain and the United States a month earlier, but the good news was too slow to reach the battlefield. Likewise, millions are lost every day because the message of Christ’s victory is too slow in reaching them!
With the coronavirus pandemic and an apparent increase in natural disasters, sales of underground shelters have boomed. People everywhere are desperate to find a place of safety. They are building elaborate bunkers in which they stockpile food, water, gas, guns, and ammo —hoping to survive everything from social anarchy to complete global collapse.
Salvation by works is not the kind of saving acceptable to God.
It is only through Jesus Christ and His righteousness that we can and will be saved.
For example: We may want a specific brand of shoes (eg NIKE) but there is none available, so we go for a different brand. They serve the same purpose anyway because they are shoes. Shoes are shoes.
The story from the Garden of Eden, Adam and Eve did not see their nakedness because they were clothed with God’s light. But when they sinned, they saw their nudity and made themselves clothes from leaves to cover their bareness.
Instead of running to God and asking forgiveness, they ran away from God. And tried to hide their state by their own effort.
Philippians 3:9 (KJV) And be found in him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith:
There is a standard for salvation of God. And His standard is righteousness. Not through self-righteousness nor from other means except from Christ Jesus.
Revelation 3:15 – 20 (KJV) 15 I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: I would thou wert cold or hot.
16 So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth.
17 Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked:
18 I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich; and white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed, and that the shame of thy nakedness do not appear; and anoint thine eyes with eyesalve, that thou mayest see.
19 As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent.
20 Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me.
Science tells us that light is constituted of three primary rays, or
groups of wavelengths. Clearly distinct from each other, none of them
without the others could be light. Each ray has its own separate
function. The first originates, the second illuminates, and the third
consummates. The first ray, often called invisible light, is neither
seen nor felt. The second is both seen and felt. The third is not seen
but is felt as heat.
Like light, our “One God” is revealed in the three distinct persons
of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. “For there are three that bear
witness in heaven: the Father, the Word, and the Holy Spirit; and these
three are one” (1 John 5:7 NKJV).
The Highest Subject
Few doctrinal subjects have generated more passionate debate among
Christians than the theme of the trinity. Churches have split and wars
have even been fought over the issues that surround the nature of the
Godhead.
Perplexity over God’s nature is not new. Since creation, man
has diligently sought to understand and explain Him. In the book of Job,
Zophar uttered the cry of each human heart when he declared, “Canst
thou by searching find out God? canst thou find out the Almighty unto
perfection? It is as high as heaven; what canst thou do? deeper than
hell; what canst thou know?” (Job 11:7, 8).
John Wesley adds, “Bring me a worm that can comprehend a man,
and then I will show you a man that can comprehend the triune God!”
The study of God is without rival—the highest subject any
mortal can ever even attempt to approach or contemplate. Because God
defines Himself as everlasting and the ultimate power, presence, and
knowledge, this field of study is deeper, wider, and broader than any
other.
“For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts” (Isaiah 55:9).
Finite human minds will never be able to fully understand everything
about the eternal God, anymore than we can jump to the stars with our
feeble legs. Therefore, we need to approach this mystery shrouding His
person with a large measure of barefoot reverence and deep humility.
Like Moses, when he came into God’s presence, we must take off our
shoes, “for the place whereon thou standest is holy ground” (Exodus 3:5).
By laying aside our preconceived ideas, opinions and sectarian
training, we can go directly to God’s Word and learn what He has chosen
to reveal about Himself. But remember, only God can fully understand
God, so even after the most diligent research, we may still have some
unanswered questions that will prove to be a fruitful field of study
even throughout the eons of eternity.
One Big Problem
“But wait,” someone says. “If the Bible teaches that there is only
one God, then how can God be composed of three persons?” Scripture
unequivocally declares that there is only one God. For more than 3,000
years, Jews have repeated Deuteronomy 6:4.
“Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God is one Lord.” This sacred passage is
called the shema (named after the Hebrew for its first word) and has
been held in high esteem and memorized by devout Jews for centuries.
Isaiah records the testimony of God concerning Himself. “Thus
saith the Lord the King of Israel, and his redeemer the Lord of hosts; I
am the first, and I am the last; and beside me there is no God. … Is
there a God beside me? yea, there is no God; I know not any” (Isaiah 44:6, 8). Jesus also taught about “the only true God” (John 17:3) and Paul wrote, “There is one God” (1 Timothy 2:5).
While most believers agree with this core truth, a heated
debate over its deeper implication has raged throughout church history.
Does this mean that there is one person who has three different titles?
Or are there three separate persons who mysteriously morph into one
being? Is Jesus merely a good man, a creation to redeem us, and only the
Father is God? Still others hold that the Father and Son are indeed God
but the Holy Spirit is only the impersonal force that does their
bidding. Each of these conflicting ideas has attracted its loyal
followers. Let’s examine the basis for these views and compare them with
the Bible.
Only Jesus?
In the 3rd century, Sabellius, a Libyan priest living in Rome,
taught that God is a single person with different titles—known as
modalism. Thus, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit represent
different hats or titles that God wears, depending on how He wishes to
communicate with man at the time. It’s akin to water, which can take on
the form of a solid, liquid, or gas.
However, they are not three roles played by one person. The
church recognized Sabellius’ ideas as contrary to Bible teaching, and he
was quickly excommunicated. Yet he still has adherents today in what is
commonly known as the “Oneness” or “Jesus Only” doctrine. The Jesus
Only teaching claims that Jesus Christ is not only the Son, but also the
Father and the Holy Spirit. Isaiah 9:6,
in which the Messiah (or the promised Son) is called “The everlasting
Father,” is used to provide biblical support for this belief.
The Oneness doctrine, however, overlooks the fact that the Son
came to earth to reveal the true character of God the Father to a world
groping in spiritual blindness. Jesus prayed to His Father in
Gethsemane, “And now, O Father, glorify thou me with thine own self with
the glory which I had with thee before the world was. I have manifested
thy name unto the men which thou gavest me out of the world” (John 17:5, 6). Jesus is the only one who could reveal the Father, because He is the express image of the Father (Luke 10:22; Hebrews 1:3).
Thus when the disciples asked Christ what the Father was like, He could say, “He that hath seen me hath seen the Father” (John 14:9).
Jesus so mirrored the character of the Father that He perfectly
reflected Him, hence the title “The Everlasting Father.” Another reason
Jesus is called the Everlasting Father is because this world and
everything in it was created through Christ. So in a very real sense,
Jesus is our father (Hebrews 1:2; John 1:3).
Isaiah 9:6
is the only place in the Bible where Jesus is called the Father. Keep
in mind that Jesus also calls Himself the Son of man, our brother, our
shepherd, our friend, and our priest. To build a doctrine on one
Scripture is as foolish as building a house on top of a single fence
post. The Bible physically separates the Father and the Son repeatedly.
While Christ was on earth, He referred to His Father in heaven. “My
Father which is in heaven” (Matthew 10:32).
He always directed His prayers heavenward to the Father and stated that
the Father had His own individual will; “Father, if thou be willing,
remove this cup from me: nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done” (Luke 22:42). “Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit” (Luke 23:46). Then after He died and rose again, He ascended to “the right hand of God” (Romans 8:34). This indicates the Father has a separate presence.
In fact, Jesus said that He wasn’t the Father more than 80
times. While always remaining one in purpose and origin, Jesus and the
Father are clearly separate and distinct persons. And on more than one
occasion, the Father spoke to Jesus from heaven. “And suddenly a voice
came from heaven, saying, ‘This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well
pleased’” (Matthew 3:17 NKJV). Either Jesus and the Father are two separate individual persons, or Jesus was an expert ventriloquist.
Is Jesus Fully God?
Another
group questions whether Jesus actually possesses all the
characteristics of the Eternal God. They stem from Arius, a 4th century
Alexandrian priest, who had a different take on God. He taught that
prior to making anything else, God created a son who was neither equal
to, nor coeternal with, the Father. According to this idea, called
Arianism, Jesus Christ is a supernatural creature, but He is neither
fully human nor fully divine. Still others embrace a more immature
version of this doctrine, holding that back in the dawn of time, God the
Father had some form of cosmic intimate relations with the Holy Spirit
and Jesus was the product. They reason, “How else can you call Him the
Son?”
However, these concepts are totally contrary to the teaching of the
New Testament in which Jesus is revealed as the Eternal Creator and not a
created being (John 1:1–4).
As we compare Scripture definitions for God with the Bible record of
Jesus, we see the characteristics of Jehovah are also ascribed to Jesus.
Note these powerful examples:
Jesus defines Himself as eternal. “I am Alpha and Omega,
the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was,
and which is to come, the Almighty” (Revelation 1:8).
He created all things (John 1:3). “In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth” (Genesis 1:1).
“For by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on
earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or
principalities or powers. All things were created through Him and for
Him” (Colossians 1:16 NKJV).
The Father even calls Jesus God. “But unto the Son he
saith, Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever: a scepter of
righteousness is the scepter of thy kingdom” (Hebrews 1:8).
Jesus is able to forgive sin (Luke 5:20, 21); The Bible says only God can forgive sin (Isaiah 43:25).
Jesus accepted worship that according to the Ten Commandments is reserved only for the Almighty (Matthew 14:33).
“And as they went to tell his disciples, behold, Jesus met them,
saying, ‘All hail.’ And they came and held him by the feet, and
worshipped him” (Matthew 28:9). Upon seeing the risen Savior, the converted skeptic, Thomas, confessed, “My Lord and my God!” (John 20:26–29).
Even the angels worship Jesus. “And again, when he bringeth
in the first begotten into the world, he saith, And let all the angels
of God worship him” (Hebrews 1:6).
The Scriptures also teach that only God knows the thoughts of a man’s heart (1 Kings 8:39). Yet Jesus consistently knew what people were thinking, “for he knew what was in man” (John 2:25).
“Nathanael said to Him, ‘How do You know me?’ Jesus answered and said
to him, ‘Before Philip called you, when you were under the fig tree, I
saw you’” (John 1:48 NKJV).
Through the Spirit, Jesus is omnipresent. “Lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age” (Matthew 28:20 NKJV). “For I am with you, and no one will attack you to hurt you; for I have many people in this city” (Acts 18:10 NKJV).
He has power to give life, and even resurrected Himself.
“No man taketh it from me, but I lay it down of myself. I have power to
lay it down, and I have power to take it again” (John 10:18). “I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live” (John 11:25).
Therefore, by considering the primary definitions of God, and seeing
that Jesus fits every one of those definitions, obviously, Jesus must
be eternal God.
His Enemies Knew
Even Jesus’ enemies understood and recognized His claim of equality
with the Father God. When He boldly proclaimed, “I and my Father are
one,” Jewish leaders were outraged and sought to execute Him. They
understood unequivocally that Jesus was claiming to be God Himself. “The
Jews answered him, saying, For a good work we stone thee not; but for
blasphemy; and because that thou, being a man, makest thyself God” (John 10:30, 33).
The Jews even attempted to stone Christ when He assumed the
self-existent title of Jehovah used at the burning bush. Jesus said to
them, “‘Most assuredly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I AM.’ Then
they took up stones to throw at Him; but Jesus hid Himself and went out
of the temple, going through the midst of them, and so passed by” (John 8:58 NKJV).
The Jews understood that Jesus claimed equality with God, when
He said “‘My Father worketh hitherto, and I work.’ Therefore the Jews
sought the more to kill him, … but said also that God was his Father,
making Himself equal with God” (John 5:17, 18).
There are only three conclusions one can derive from reading
these passages. First, Jesus was insane when He made these outrageous
claims. Second, He was a liar. These are unacceptable options. The third
possibility is that He uttered a sublime truth. For a Christian who
accepts the substitutionary death of Christ on the cross, the third
option is the only tenable one. Otherwise, a liar or delusional man
could not be righteous enough to be our Savior.
Medieval Error?
Probably the most widely held Christian view of God is known as the
“trinity.” This popular belief teaches that the Godhead consists of
three distinct persons who have existed together from eternity past and
are named the Father, the Son (Jesus Christ), and the Holy Spirit. Each
one possesses original, underived, and unborrowed life. They are all
equally God and are one in nature, character, and purpose. They are not
three “gods,” but one God in a combination of the three distinct
persons.
Some have implicated trinitarianism as heresy because they
claim the wayward medieval church was the culprit to firstintroduce it.
In fact, to distance themselves from the Catholic version of the
trinity, many Protestant leaders from the 19th century preferred the
more biblical term “Godhead” when referring to the triune God.
However, just because an apostate church believes in the
trinity, or any other doctrine for that matter, does not automatically
make it unbiblical. The converse is also true. A position is not
accurate just because some of the early church leaders advocated it.
Even the Apostles misunderstood the nature of Jesus’ first coming.
Doctrinal validity must be based on biblical authority and not upon whom
advocates it or rejects it.
The Old Testament was written long before the existence of the
Christian church, apostate or true, and it teaches there are three
persons in the Godhead. In Isaiah, the Redeemer, which is Jesus Christ
in the New Testament (Galatians 4:4, 5), declares the “Lord God and His Spirit” are responsible for sending Him on His mission of redemption (Isaiah 48:16, 17 NKJV).
Some think that because the word “trinity” (derived from the
Latin word trinitas, meaning “threeness”) is not found in the Bible, the
concept of a triune God cannot be right. However, even though the word
“millennium,” meaning one thousand years, does not appear in Revelation
20, we use it to describe earth’s 1,000-year rest after Jesus’ return. A
teaching is not any less true simply because an extra-biblical word is
used to define what is clearly a biblical teaching. This goes for the
trinity, second coming, investigative judgment, and a host of other
concise terms for doctrines.
One God, Three Persons
The names of God reveal attributes of His nature. God has a
long-established habit of using various names to describe a person’s
character. Jacob earned his name that means “swindler” when he practiced
deception to steal his father’s blessing away from his brother Esau (Genesis 27:35, 36).
At his conversion, Jacob wrestled with the angel and insisted on the
blessing of God. Then his name was changed to “Israel,” which means “a
prince with God” (Genesis 32:26–28).
Likewise, the names for God found in Genesis and elsewhere tell
us volumes about our Creator. “And God said, Let us make man in our
image, after our likeness” (Genesis 1:26).
The Hebrew word here for God is Elohim. It is a plural noun that is
used more than 2,700 times in the Old Testament. This means that
inspired authors preferred to use Elohim about 10 times more than the
singular form “El” when they described God. Even in the Old Testament
book of Daniel, we see a picture of the Father and the Son as two
separate persons. “I was watching in the night visions, And behold, One
like the Son of Man, Coming with the clouds of heaven! He came to the
Ancient of Days, And they brought Him near before Him” (Daniel 7:13). The Son of man, Jesus, is seen coming before the Ancient of Days—who is, obviously, God the Father.
The New Testament writings are sprinkled with this concept of
one God with three united, fully divine persons. The apostle Paul wrote
that there were three divine persons: “There is one body, and one
Spirit, even as ye are called in one hope of your calling; One Lord, one
faith, one baptism, One God and Father of all, who is above all, and
through all, and in you all” (Ephesians 4:4–6).
Paul frequently referred to the three separate persons of the
Godhead. “The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and
the communion of the Holy Ghost, be with you all” (2 Corinthians 13:14).
“How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal
Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from
dead works to serve the living God?” (Hebrews 9:14).
Revelation opens by introducing the three persons of the
Godhead. “From the seven Spirits who are before His throne, and from
Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the
ruler over the kings of the earth. To Him who loved us and washed us
from our sins in His own blood, and has made us kings and priests to His
God and Father, to Him be glory and dominion forever and ever” (Revelation 1:4–6 NKJV).
In addition, we clearly see three distinct persons at the
baptism of Jesus. “And Jesus, when he was baptized, went up straightway
out of the water: and, lo, the heavens were opened unto him, and he saw
the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon him: And lo a
voice from heaven, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well
pleased” (Matthew 3:16,17).
If Jesus is the only person in the Godhead, where did the voice
come from that declared, “This is my beloved Son”? Did He trisect
Himself into a voice from heaven, the dove wafting down through the sky,
and His body on the bank of the river? No. This was not simply a clever
act of holy smoke and mirrors, but rather a regal reunion revealing the
truth of the trinity. And on top of this, it is through the shared
authority of these three persons that we are commissioned to baptize.
“Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of
the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost” (Matthew 28:19).
Unity or Quantity?
Most of the confusion regarding the number of beings composing the
Godhead springs from a simple misunderstanding of the word “one.” Simply
put, “one” in the Bible does not always mean numerical quantity.
Depending on the Scripture, “one” can often mean unity.
We see this principle established very early in Scripture.
“Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his
wife, and they shall become one flesh” (Genesis 2:24,
emphasis added). “One flesh” here does not mean that a married couple
melt into one human after their wedding, but rather they are to be
united into one family. Jesus prayed that the apostles would be one,
saying, “And the glory which You gave Me I have given them, that they
may be one just as We are one: I in them, and You in Me; that they may
be made perfect in one” (John 17:22, 23).
We need to keep in mind that when Moses said, “The Lord is
one,” Israel was surrounded with polytheistic nations that worshiped
many gods that were constantly involved in petty bickering and rivalry (Deuteronomy 6:4),
whereas the God who created is composed of three separate beings who
are perfectly united in their mission of saving and sustaining their
creatures. As the Spirit is executing the will of both the Father and
Son, it is His will also.
“For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one” (1 John 5:7).
Granted, it is a brain exercise to grasp that one God (“He”) is also,
and equally, “They.” Like one rope with three united strands, the three
persons of the Father, Son, and Spirit make up the one God.
God Manifested in Nature
Though there is nothing in this world that adequately illustrates
God, Paul declares the “invisible things of him from the creation of the
world” can help us understand “his eternal power and Godhead” (Romans 1:20).
The truth that God is a “tri-unity” of two invisible persons (Father
and Spirit) and one visible person (Jesus) is evident even in creation.
The universe is composed of three structures: space, matter,
and time. Of these three, only matter is visible. Space requires length,
height, and width to constitute space. Each dimension is separate and
distinct in itself, yet the three form space—if you remove height, you
no longer have space. Time is also a tri-unity of past, present, and
future. Two are invisible (past and future), and one visible (present).
Each is separate and distinct, as well as essential for time to exist.
Man is also a “tri-unity,” having physical, mental, and spiritual
components. Again, two are invisible (mental and spiritual) and one
visible (physical). Cells compose the fundamental structural unit of all
living organisms. All organic life is made up from cells that consist
of three primary parts: the outer wall, the cytoplasm, and the nucleus
(like the shell, white, and yoke of an egg). If any one is removed, the
cell dies.
In each of these examples, the removal of any one component
results in the demise of the whole. In like manner, the Godhead contains
three distinct persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Each is God (Ephesians 4:6; Titus 2:13; Acts 5:3, 4), yet there is one God. The removal of one person destroys the unity of the whole.
Even the gospel story illustrates the interdependency of
threes. The sanctuary had three places: the Courtyard, the Holy Place,
and the Most Holy Place. There are three stages of salvation:
justification, sanctification, and glorification. In Isaiah 6:3,
the angels around God’s throne cry “Holy, Holy, Holy” three times—once
for the Father, once for the Son, and once for the Holy Spirit.
The Source of Misunderstanding
Almost all of the Scriptures used by those who reject the trinity
to portray Jesus as a “lesser god” spring from a basic failure to
understand the incarnation. Jesus, God the Son, laid aside or veiled the
full dimension of His divinity when He came to earth. How else could He
live as God among men?
“God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh” (Romans 8:3).
“For ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that, though
he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, that ye through his
poverty might be rich” (2 Corinthians 8:9).
“Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: Who,
being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God:
But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a
servant, and was made in the likeness of men: And being found in fashion
as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the
death of the cross” (Philippians 2:5-8).
We also clearly see that before and after His incarnation,
Jesus beams again with undimmed divine glory. “And now, O Father,
glorify thou me with thine own self with the glory which I had with thee
before the world was” (John 17:5). “But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death, crowned with glory and honour” (Hebrews 2:9).
If God the Son had not veiled His glory when He came to earth,
man could not have endured His brilliant presence, much less learned
from His example.
Who Outranks Whom?
Let us now venture a little deeper onto sacred ground. As we
consider the mysteries of the Godhead, we notice that there seems to be
an order of authority concerning the three persons in the trinity. Keep
in mind that while all three are the same in properties and attributes,
and equal in power and glory, it appears that the Father is recognized
as the ultimate authority. “And ye are Christ’s; and Christ is God’s” (1 Corinthians 3:23). “But I would have you know, that … the head of Christ is God” (1 Corinthians 11:3). The Son constantly receives His glory, power, throne, and prerogatives as Judge from the Father (John 3:35; John 5:22).
Indeed, it was God the Father that “gave” the Son. In fact, while it
might not be wrong, we are never told to pray to Jesus or the Spirit –
but instead to the Father in the name of the Son. Yet just because the
Father seems to have supreme authority, it does not in any way diminish
from the divinity of Jesus and the Spirit. That would be like saying
that a corporal is less of a soldier than a sergeant.
Among the three members of the Godhead, we do not see a
clamoring for preeminence, vying for recognition, or reveling in power.
Instead, the exact opposite is true. In fact, the Father, Son, and
Spirit always seem to be trying to outgive and glorify each other. The
Father wants to glorify the Son. The Son lives to glorify the Father,
and the Spirit lives to glorify the Father and Son (John 17:1, 5; John 16:14; John 13:31, 32).
A Friend or Force?
It would be a mistake to leave this sublime subject without
addressing an additional distortion to the teaching of the trinity.
Another class of sincere Christians believes that while the Father and
Son are truly distinct persons, they only see the Holy Spirit as a
cosmic force or essence—an impersonal power conduit or vehicle to do the
bidding of the Father and Son.
We can appreciate why the Holy Spirit seems to be the hardest
member of the Godhead to visualize and define. Sometimes He is called
the Holy Ghost, which leaves people with a “spooky” image. The
Scriptures compareHim to everything from wind and fire, to a dove,
water, and even a defense attorney!
But as we consider the various features of the Holy Spirit, we
can quickly see He has all the credentials of a separate and distinct,
intelligent, individual being.
The Holy Spirit leads and guides. “However, when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth” (John 16:13 NKJV).
It’s true that a map or GPS can lead you, but no one calls a map “he.”
It would have been very easy for Jesus to simply say, “When it comes,”
but Jesus called the Holy Spirit “He” more than 15 times. Why would God
go to so much trouble to personify His own inherent power to the extent
that it possessed emotions, thoughts, and speech independent of Himself?
The Holy Spirit also comforts. “And I will pray the Father, and
he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for
ever” (John 14:16).
I have never seen a lonely child run to a vacuum cleaner for an
embrace—only intelligent beings can offer comfort. Jesus promised before
His ascension that He was sending another helper; paraclete is the
Greek word that signifies a multi-sided personal ministry as counselor,
consoler advocate, helper, comforter, ally, and supporter (John 14:16, 17, 26; 15:26-27; 16:7-15). These are all traits that usually belong to a person or friend. If the Holy Spirit is merely God’s active force, then John 16:7, 8
is nonsense: “It is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not
go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I depart, I will send
Him to you. And when He has comes, He will convict the world.” It is
obvious from this text that the Holy Spirit would be more personally
present after Jesus ascended. If the Holy Spirit is mere energy, there
is simply no explanation or logic to why He would not come unless Jesus
left.
The Holy Spirit can even be grieved (Ephesians 4:30).
Cars have many unique characteristics and idiosyncrasies. At times,
they might even seem to have a “personality.” But motor vehicles cannot
be grieved. Nor can they speak, as the Holy Spirit does. “Then the
Spirit said to Philip, ‘Go near and overtake this chariot’” (Acts 8:29).
Computer programs exist that can reproduce speech, but they cannot
create inspired thought. The Holy Scriptures were inspired by the Holy
Spirit (2 Peter 1:21).
We also read in Revelation 1:4, 5,
a prayer for grace and peace from the Father, the Spirit, and Jesus
Christ. We must ask, would John have put the Spirit between the Father
and the Son if he had not regarded the Spirit as a divine intelligence
in the same sense as they are?
If the Holy Spirit is simply some divine force, then why is it
even more offensive to blaspheme against the Holy Spirit, and even more
fatal, than speaking against the Son? “Therefore I say to you, every sin
and blasphemy will be forgiven men, but the blasphemy against the
Spirit will not be forgiven men. Anyone who speaks a word against the
Son of Man, it will be forgiven him; but whoever speaks against the Holy
Spirit, it will not be forgiven him, either in this age or in the age
to come” (Matthew 12:31, 32
NKJV). By definition, blasphemy is “a contemptuous or profane act,
utterance, or writing against God.” By this simple deduction, the Holy
Spirit must be God! This is also why Peter said that to lie to the Holy
Spirit is to lie to God (Acts 5:3, 4).
The Holy Spirit can be a witness (Hebrews 10:15).
In any court of the world, only living beings can be called witnesses.
Finally, the Holy Spirit is said to have His own mind (Romans 8:27).
We can clearly see the Holy Spirit is not simply a force, but
the third divine person of the Godhead. Though a spirit, He has all the
characteristics of a person and individual. The Spirit is plainly
portrayed as a being who speaks, teaches, guides, makes choices,
witnesses, comforts, and can be grieved. “The grace of the Lord Jesus
Christ, and the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Spirit be
with you all” (2 Corinthians 13:14 NKJV).
Love at Calvary
The truth of the triune God can also be found in the gospel itself.
In essence, when we consider John, we read that God the Father so loved
the world that He sent God the Son that we might be born of God the
Spirit (John 3:8, 13, 16, 17).
But it is especially on Golgotha’s hill that the doctrine of
the trinity explodes with meaning and becomes more than denominational
jousting. Before earth’s creation, the triune God discussed the
potential of man’s rebellion and fall. Through the lens of divine
foreknowledge, He saw the terror that sin’s rape of the world would
cause. And there, before man was formed, it was decided that Jesus would
leave the throne of heaven and become humanity’s substitute. Jesus was
“the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world” (Revelation 13:8; 1 Peter 1:19, 20).
If Jesus was merely a created super-being, then His death for
man’s redemption is no better than an angel dying for us. If Christ is
not deity itself, then any angel or sinless created being could have
served the purpose. This would have virtually sustained Satan’s charge
that God is selfish by demonstrating that He is only willing to
sacrifice His creation and not Himself.
A Tearing at the Trinity
Another point to consider is that sin causes separation from the Creator (Isaiah 59:2). The iniquities of the human race were placed upon the Son of God (Isaiah 53:6).
When Jesus hung on the cross, suffering for our sins, every fiber of
His being was torn as the eternal relationship with His Father and
Spirit was ripped apart. In agony He cried out, “My God [for the
Father], my God [for the Spirit], why hast thou forsaken me?” (Matthew 27:46).
If there had been only one person in the Godhead, there would not have
been this excruciating pain of separation to wring the life out of the
heart of Jesus.
The real risk in the redemption plan, besides the loss of man,
was the breakup of the Godhead. Had Jesus sinned, He would have been
working at cross-purposes with the Spirit and His Father. Omnipotent
good would have been pitted against omnipotent evil. What would have
happened to the rest of creation? Whom would the unfallen universe see
as right? One sin could have sent the Godhead and the universe spinning
into cosmic chaos; the proportions of this disaster are staggering. Yet
the Godhead was still willing to take this fragmenting risk for the
salvation of man. This reveals the depth of God’s amazing love.
Conclusion
Augustine, that great man of God, was once walking on the shore of
an ocean while greatly perplexed about the doctrine of the trinity. As
he meditated, he observed a little boy with a seashell running back and
forth from the waters edge, filling his shell, and then pouring it into a
crab hole in the sand. “What are you doing, my little man?” asked
Augustine.
“Oh,” replied the boy, “I am trying to put all the ocean out there in this hole.” Augustine had learned his lesson.
As he passed on, Augustine said, “That is what I am trying to
do; I see it now. Standing on the shores of time, I am trying to get
into this little finite mind things which are infinite.” Likewise, let
us be content to let God know some things that we cannot yet know.
It would be pompous and preposterous to pretend that we
understand everything about God. “O the depth of the riches both of the
wisdom and knowledge of God! how unsearchable are his judgments, and his
ways past finding out!” (Romans 11:33). If we could completely unpack Him like cracking some genetic code, He would cease to be God.
Nevertheless, there is much about God that is revealed for our
blessing. “The secret things belong unto the Lord our God: but those
things which are revealed belong unto us and to our children for ever” (Deuteronomy 29:29).
What is revealed is that this teaching of the trinity must be important
to God. The ministry of Jesus both begins and ends with an emphasis on
the three persons in the Godhead. The Father, Son, and Spirit are
present at Jesus’ baptism and when He ascends to heaven. Jesuscommanded
His followers to baptize in the name of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
The testimony of Scripture indicates that the Godhead can
neither be separated into three Gods nor merged into one person. This
three-in-one not only created us, but they love us and devised an
amazing plan to save a lost world from sin to restore us to His presence
in paradise.
“The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you all. Amen” (2 Corinthians 13:14).
Millions believe that the Jewish temple will soon be rebuilt in Israel and then the antichrist will be revealed there. This is a tragic, twisted misunderstanding of prophecy that is leading billions, like you, to misunderstand God’s will for their lives.
You may be confused by the devil’s conflicting doctrines and don’t take God’s law seriously until the Holy Spirit will lead you to this presentation on the heavenly sanctuary. As you understood the real purpose of God’s temple above, your life will profoundly change! You will finally able to experience Jesus’ lifesaving grace and to find true freedom in obedience to Christ.
Likewise you younger people, submit yourselves to your elders. Yes, all of you be submissive to one another, and be clothed with humility, for “God resists the proud, But gives grace to the humble.”
Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time, casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you.
Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour.
Resist him, steadfast in the faith, knowing that the same sufferings are experienced by your brotherhood in the world.
But may the God of all grace, who called us to His eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after you have suffered a while, perfect, establish, strengthen, and settle you.
To Him be the glory and the dominion forever and ever. Amen.
https://youtu.be/CsWdc7-aIkM
No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other.
Ye cannot serve God and mammon.
Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment?
Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they?
Which of you by taking thought can add one cubit unto his stature? And why take ye thought for raiment? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin:
And yet I say unto you, That even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.
Wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, which to day is, and to morrow is cast into the oven, shall he not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith?
Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed?
For after all these things do the Gentiles seek: for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things.
But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.
Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.
Many think the apostle Paul was successful. Because of his work, the gospel spread rapidly throughout the Roman Empire. Within 100 years of his death, strong churches existed everywhere he had been. But few in Paul’s day, including Paul, would call him a success. Paul evidently was not much to look at or listen to. By his own admission, at best he was a so-so speaker. His work often got him in trouble, which led to beatings, imprisonment, and getting thrown out of town.
Then-prevailing standards of success or failure didn’t much matter to Paul; he didn’t use them to measure his personal worth or his work. Interestingly, Paul still says that he had to learn to be content with his circumstances. He didn’t start out with that attitude. It’s not human nature to be happy despite our circumstances; we want to be happy because of our circumstances
But as a result of Christ’s transforming presence in our lives, we can learn to shift the source of contentment (and discontentment) from circumstances to God. We are His beloved sons and daughters—loved for our place in Christ, not because we succeed or fail. That is our truest source of joy.
In his book, Winning Smart After Losing Big, entrepreneur Rob Stearns echoes this perspective regarding his own failures. Stearns writes that there’s a big difference between experiencing a failure and being a failure: “You are the same person after your loss as you were before your loss.” It is strength of character that enables us to get up and keep moving when we’ve failed.
But where do we find strength to move forward? Paul freely acknowledged that such strength is not native to his soul. It came to him from Christ. “I can do all this through him who gives me strength” (Philippians 4:13, NIV). Hardships and failures taught the apostle to ask for strength. He learned to “fail forward” into the everlasting arms of God.
Prayer
God, as I face failure, I pray that I would find my value in who you say I am. Help me draw strength and joy from your everlasting arms. Thank you for your unchanging love. Amen.
Day 2
Learning from Your Mistakes
In Matthew 5:4, Jesus states, “Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.” As we reflect on our failures, we can receive this promise.
Failure can be the result of others’ actions, circumstances beyond our control, our own actions, or a combination of all three. While failure is no fun, it can benefit us in the long run. When mourning our mistakes compels us to make ourselves right with God and others, God comforts us and our relationships improve.
For those who struggle with perfectionism, grieving humbles us and puts us in touch with our humanity. Anxiety-driven striving alienates us from our emotions. Allowing ourselves to feel unadulterated sadness dispels this anxiety and the stress that comes with it.
Feeling sadness is uncomfortable. Without the emotional blessing of sadness, however, we would probably never muster the guts to admit our mistakes. But when we do admit mistakes, we may be surprised how often people are ready to forgive us. If we make a mistake with a colleague, student, customer, employee, or other person, we can admit it, ask their pardon, and commit to learning from our mistakes.
Of course, we must also deal with our failures in prayer. We can ask for forgiveness first, and then for the wisdom, courage, and perseverance to meet future challenges. Failure teaches us that we must depend on God’s living power. Faith in Christ enables us to do through God’s power what we could not otherwise.
Prayer
Dear God, thank you for this opportunity to grow. I pray for the wisdom, courage, and perseverance to properly mourn and learn from my mistakes. Amen.
Bible Verse
Matthew 5:4
Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted.
Isaiah 40:31
But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.
Day 3
Success and Failure as Part of Life
It’s easy to blame ourselves or those around us for failures. However, we should not fool ourselves into thinking that failure is always a result of our shortcomings. Nor should we believe that success is exclusively due to our merits. Success or failure may be due to chance.
For example, Microsoft had a crack at success largely because of IBM’s offhand decision to use the MS-DOS operating system for a backwater project called the personal computer. Bill Gates later reflected, “Our timing in setting up the first software company aimed at personal computers was essential to our success. The timing wasn’t entirely luck, but without great luck it couldn’t have happened.” Asked why he had started a software company just at the time IBM was trying its luck with a personal computer, he replied, “I was born at the right place and time.”[1]
This is not to say that hard work and ingenuity aren’t important. They prepare us to make the most of the chances we get in life, and they may create opportunities that otherwise wouldn’t exist. Yet one who succeeds at work may be no more deserving than another who fails.
If our response to success is solely self-congratulation, we are practicing idolatry. If our response is thankfulness, then we are worshipping God. If our reaction to failure is despair, then we are feeling the hollowness of a broken idol. But if our reaction is perseverance, then we are experiencing the gracious power of God.
Prayer
Faithful Father, some circumstances are not in my control, though I often wish they were. Thank you for the opportunities and skills that have allowed me to succeed (in big ways and in small ways) in the past. After the sting of failure, help me to pick myself up and move forward with what I’ve learned. Amen.
Bible Verse
Ecclesiastes 9:11-12
11 I returned, and saw under the sun, that the race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong, neither yet bread to the wise, nor yet riches to men of understanding, nor yet favour to men of skill; but time and chance happeneth to them all.
12 For man also knoweth not his time: as the fishes that are taken in an evil net, and as the birds that are caught in the snare; so are the sons of men snared in an evil time, when it falleth suddenly upon them.
Day 4
God Accomplishes His Purposes
Sometimes work is thwarted by our weakness. We fall short of the mark. If we recognize that our work is hobbled by disobedience, resentment, laxity, fear, selfishness, and other ailments, we can find comfort in the stories in the Bible.
Consider the list of names in Hebrews 11: Abraham, Samson, David, and more. When we read their stories we can clearly see their failures which were often significant. For example, if we read about Barak’s timidity as a general (Judges 4:8-9, NIV) through human eyes, we likely would see no faith at all. Yet God sees these heroes’ faith through his eyes and credits their success to his grace, not their own accomplishment.
The story of Jonah is another example. Jonah ran away from God by boarding a ship going in the opposite direction God told him to go. Yet even Jonah’s small, halting moments of obedience to God end up blessing those around him. On the ship he acknowledges, “I worship the Lord, the God of heaven” (Jonah 1:9, NIV) and sacrifices himself for the sake of his shipmates.
As a result the others on the ship are saved from a storm, and they become followers of the Lord. “The men greatly feared the Lord, and they offered a sacrifice to the Lord and made vows to him” (Jonah 1:16, NIV). God accomplishes the fullness of his mission through Jonah’s halting, flawed, intermittent service. By God’s power, even our poor service may accomplish everything that God intends.
We can take heart in these examples when we’ve stumbled. We may have spoken harshly to a coworker, been impatient with a student, ignored our responsibility to our family, or done our work poorly. But we have faith that God is able to bring about his intent for the world even in the midst of our weakness and failure.
Prayer
Father, thank you that I am no different from any other person who has served you. We have all sinned and fallen short at times. Yet, you still use our efforts to accomplish your purposes. You are a great God. Amen.
Day 5
Don’t Dwell
In Luke 22, we glimpse a conversation between Peter and Jesus. It begins with bad news, namely, that Satan intends to “sift all of you as wheat” (Luke 22:31, NIV). Peter boldly claims that he is ready to go to prison with Jesus, even to die with him. Jesus responds with a chilling prediction: “Peter, before the rooster crows today, you will deny three times that you know me” (Luke 22:34, NIV). Luke does not report Peter’s response, but surely Peter is distressed, whether he believes Jesus or not.
However, we find encouragement in this passage. Right after Jesus says that he has prayed for Peter, he adds, “And when you have turned back, strengthen your brothers” (Luke 22:32, NIV).
Jesus is certain Peter is going to fail. But it doesn’t keep him from assigning to Peter the task of strengthening his fellow disciples. Jesus sees beyond Peter’s obvious faults and upcoming failures. He sees that which is good in Peter, his strength, faith, and compassion. He knows that Peter will be the one to build up his fellow disciples, in spite of the fact that Peter himself will fail along the way.
What an encouragement this is for us! We know our weaknesses. We know how many times we fail to live up to God’s standards. We are broken, sinful people. Yet Jesus sees beyond our faults and failures. Jesus calls us into his service, not because he has an unrealistic picture of us, but because he sees us fully. He sees that we are bound to make mistakes. At the same time he sees us as gifted for service in his ministry.
It’s important to learn from our mistakes, but we can’t let them become obstacles. We have to move forward, trust God for both forgiveness and guidance, and prepare for what’s next.
Prayer
Heavenly Father, help me learn from my mistakes. And when I’ve received your forgiveness and guidance, strengthen me to move forward, knowing that you see me and call me into a life of purpose. Amen.
