Showing posts with label Trinity. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Trinity. Show all posts
Sunday, May 15, 2011
More Trinity Posts Coming—I Promise :-)
Just a quick note to let the readers know that I have not forgotten about the Trinity posts that I promised I'd be working on. Unfortunately, Spring/Summer is very crazy at work and I pull quite a few hours. However, the first post titles Sriptural Proofs for the Trinity will soon arrive. Thanks for your patience.
Saturday, April 30, 2011
The Trinity
There have always been, and always will be those who cannot accept the Word of God for what it reveals. When faced with Scripture that clearly reveals truth, a turning away will occur; a dividing line will be drawn and people and families will be split over truth. The very words of Jesus echo now in this day and generation:
"I came to cast fire on the earth, and would that it were already kindled! I have a baptism to be baptized with, and how great is my distress until it is accomplished! Do you think that I have come to give peace on earth? No, I tell you, but rather division. For from now on in one house there will be five divided, three against two and two against three. They will be divided, father against son and son against father, mother against daughter and daughter against mother, mother-in-law against her daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law against mother-in-law." (Lk 12:49-53)
The words of Jesus caused division in His day and they are still causing division even today. Take for example, Charles Taze Russell, founder of the Jehovah's Witnesses. When faced with the doctrine of eternal punishment he rejected it and offered instead, his own commentary on passages such as Revelation 20:15 and Matthew 25:31-46. He then left his "apostate" church and proclaimed himself pastor Russell. Thus was born the Watchtower Society.
Joseph Smith would also reject the pure Word of God for his own fantasies and delusions. He would claim visions from an angel named Moroni and boldly state that he had the only true gospel and all those who wanted to know must follow his teachings. The Mormons came as a result of this young man's rejection of the Word.
Example after example could be given, but I think you understand my point. When humans are faced with Divine revelation (and I'm not speaking of the "new" kind of revelation, but rather the Word of God) we always find ourselves at the crossroads of eternal choices. Many reject certain doctrines because they are either difficult to understand or because they provoke certain raw emotions. But nonetheless, the doctrines are still true whether one wishes to believe them or not.
The doctrine of the Trinity is no different. Understanding, or rather accepting, this is not always easy. But again, we do not accept truth because of its ease in comprehending but rather we accept truth because it is truth!. With this in mind, over the next several posts that I write (remember, there are other contributors to this blog) I would like to engage in a discussion on the Trinity and the working of the Trinity in a believer's life.
We shall start our journey by defining exactly what is meant by 'Trinity.' Historically, the Trinity is one God in three distinct Persons; co-existing, co-eternal, and co-equal; being indivisible in nature and unified in thought and work; hence, Trinity (tri-unity). This first post will deal mainly with this definition.
SIDE NOTE: You are free to leave comments but I simply ask that when you do to please follow the blog rules as listed. You may feel the need to ask a question that has not yet been dealt with. If this is the case I will inform you whether or not I will deal with that specific topic. If so, I will refrain from answering; if not, I will try to answer in a timely manner.
The tri-unity of God is something that is proclaimed in Scripture, affirmed by the apostles, and contended for by those in the apostolic age (more to come on these topics in later posts). It is also something that has been debated for quite some time. Many groups, especially Oneness Pentecostals, have railed against the doctrine. They claim that God cannot be three and one at the same time. Therefore, God must have simply "revealed" Himself in three separate 'modes' or beings. In trying to present a logical conclusion to the dilemma, they have in essence, divided the indivisible.
But is it possible for God to be three and one at the same time without violating Scripture (Deut 6:4, Mk 12:29)? How can the tri-unity of God be explained while maintaining that God is one and not three? To the finite mind this seems like an oxymoron; an impossibility. Yet rejecting truth on the grounds of an seemingly "impossible" situation is both premature and hasty. In fact, we accept things on a daily basis that are really impossible for the human mind to comprehend. Something as simple as two parts Hydrogen and one part Oxygen confounds us as to how something that is so simply constructing can be so life-giving in nature. Better still, is the human DNA. It is the building block of all human life. Scientists have been studying it for decades and not yet even begun to chip the surface of the complexity of this tiny microscopic encoder. Though these things are far beyond our understanding we readily accept them as truth.
This must be the same approach we take as we begin to explore the complex nature of the Godhead. Of course, any human illustration will break down, but the most important thing to dwell upon is what the nature of Scripture teaches about the character and complexities of God. Through the next several posts we will examine and put to test Scripture and early church writings dealing with the nature of the Triune nature of God. In conclusion to this Trinity series (I am not yet sure how many posts there will be) I will present some common objections and answers to the doctrine. I feel that that to start, however, we must start with the pure sufficient Word of God as the plumb line and then let all other evidence be weighed against it. With that, I bid you all good evening and a wonderful Lord's Day to you tomorrow.
Affirming the Solas,
Steven (AKA Ekklessia Boy)
"I came to cast fire on the earth, and would that it were already kindled! I have a baptism to be baptized with, and how great is my distress until it is accomplished! Do you think that I have come to give peace on earth? No, I tell you, but rather division. For from now on in one house there will be five divided, three against two and two against three. They will be divided, father against son and son against father, mother against daughter and daughter against mother, mother-in-law against her daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law against mother-in-law." (Lk 12:49-53)
The words of Jesus caused division in His day and they are still causing division even today. Take for example, Charles Taze Russell, founder of the Jehovah's Witnesses. When faced with the doctrine of eternal punishment he rejected it and offered instead, his own commentary on passages such as Revelation 20:15 and Matthew 25:31-46. He then left his "apostate" church and proclaimed himself pastor Russell. Thus was born the Watchtower Society.
Joseph Smith would also reject the pure Word of God for his own fantasies and delusions. He would claim visions from an angel named Moroni and boldly state that he had the only true gospel and all those who wanted to know must follow his teachings. The Mormons came as a result of this young man's rejection of the Word.
Example after example could be given, but I think you understand my point. When humans are faced with Divine revelation (and I'm not speaking of the "new" kind of revelation, but rather the Word of God) we always find ourselves at the crossroads of eternal choices. Many reject certain doctrines because they are either difficult to understand or because they provoke certain raw emotions. But nonetheless, the doctrines are still true whether one wishes to believe them or not.
The doctrine of the Trinity is no different. Understanding, or rather accepting, this is not always easy. But again, we do not accept truth because of its ease in comprehending but rather we accept truth because it is truth!. With this in mind, over the next several posts that I write (remember, there are other contributors to this blog) I would like to engage in a discussion on the Trinity and the working of the Trinity in a believer's life.
We shall start our journey by defining exactly what is meant by 'Trinity.' Historically, the Trinity is one God in three distinct Persons; co-existing, co-eternal, and co-equal; being indivisible in nature and unified in thought and work; hence, Trinity (tri-unity). This first post will deal mainly with this definition.
SIDE NOTE: You are free to leave comments but I simply ask that when you do to please follow the blog rules as listed. You may feel the need to ask a question that has not yet been dealt with. If this is the case I will inform you whether or not I will deal with that specific topic. If so, I will refrain from answering; if not, I will try to answer in a timely manner.
The tri-unity of God is something that is proclaimed in Scripture, affirmed by the apostles, and contended for by those in the apostolic age (more to come on these topics in later posts). It is also something that has been debated for quite some time. Many groups, especially Oneness Pentecostals, have railed against the doctrine. They claim that God cannot be three and one at the same time. Therefore, God must have simply "revealed" Himself in three separate 'modes' or beings. In trying to present a logical conclusion to the dilemma, they have in essence, divided the indivisible.
But is it possible for God to be three and one at the same time without violating Scripture (Deut 6:4, Mk 12:29)? How can the tri-unity of God be explained while maintaining that God is one and not three? To the finite mind this seems like an oxymoron; an impossibility. Yet rejecting truth on the grounds of an seemingly "impossible" situation is both premature and hasty. In fact, we accept things on a daily basis that are really impossible for the human mind to comprehend. Something as simple as two parts Hydrogen and one part Oxygen confounds us as to how something that is so simply constructing can be so life-giving in nature. Better still, is the human DNA. It is the building block of all human life. Scientists have been studying it for decades and not yet even begun to chip the surface of the complexity of this tiny microscopic encoder. Though these things are far beyond our understanding we readily accept them as truth.
This must be the same approach we take as we begin to explore the complex nature of the Godhead. Of course, any human illustration will break down, but the most important thing to dwell upon is what the nature of Scripture teaches about the character and complexities of God. Through the next several posts we will examine and put to test Scripture and early church writings dealing with the nature of the Triune nature of God. In conclusion to this Trinity series (I am not yet sure how many posts there will be) I will present some common objections and answers to the doctrine. I feel that that to start, however, we must start with the pure sufficient Word of God as the plumb line and then let all other evidence be weighed against it. With that, I bid you all good evening and a wonderful Lord's Day to you tomorrow.
Affirming the Solas,
Steven (AKA Ekklessia Boy)
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