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Whenever I debated Trinity with others like on forums or blogs, I was either banned from forums for being non-Trinitarian, and and after 2-3 replies on blogs, when bloggers couldnt overcome they immediately began passing judgment saying I need to repent and accept Christ, or Im in a heretical cult, (Im not JW) and delete most of my replies and then say goodbye. I really like your description. It is a complex topic, isnt it, but one that needs to be shared. These are all qualities of personhood. Sure do appreciate you stopping by to leave an encouraging word today! But what is doctrine? 2:35 Seniors demand money back from Toronto church in failed housing project. The synoptics were already available when John saw the need to write one more gospel. After all, Scripture teaches that God has other sons (Job 2:1; Heb. He loves you and wants to have a personal relationship with you. But the first glimpses of plurality within God are recorded in the Old Testament, not the New. The Lord our God is one (Deut. He is three in Person. This analogy ignores the personal distinctions within God and mitigates them to mere roles. But it also raises many difficult questions. Chapter 2 begins with the statement warning us not to drift away by ignoring the things stated about Jesus, and instead trusting to angels. In short, its the kind of salvation that only the trinitarian God can offer. Or did your God create you and save you because he was lonely and needed you? May the blessing given in Numbers 6:24-26 fall on all who read this The LORD bless thee, and keep thee: The LORD make his face shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee: The LORD lift up his countenance upon thee, and give thee peace.. The only kind of god we could fully understand would be a god we made in our own image. Judging by the honest answers likely given to the questions above, many modern Christians have lost the sense of why it's so important, even if they've retained it in their doctrinal statements. Trinity Church of New York was an important site during the American Revolution and the founding era of the United States of America. Im so grateful for your prayers. What does the Bible teach about the Trinity? | GotQuestions.org Leading from values so others will walk passionately with God to grow and bear fruit. This is something far removed from our human experience, where every different human "person" is a different being as well. Blessings and smiles, Thank you, Alison! Having been around this list* for a few years now, it is always interesting to observe some of the discussions that go on. Its good to hear from you. Im so grateful for you and for your friendship! All through the history of the early church, doctrines developed that presented views of Jesus that were contrary to that presented by the apostles and by Jesus Himself. While the three members of the Trinity are distinct, this does not mean that any is inferior to the other. In these two statements, the nature of the heresy of the Monarchians, Docetists, Gnostics and others was clearly revealed. There are many illustrations which have been offered to help us understand the Trinity. Therefore each of the Persons into whose name we are to be baptized must be deity. And the church's mission is exactly the same as Christ's mission: to proclaim God's name. They are equal in power, love, mercy, justice, holiness, knowledge, and all other qualities. As each person of the Godhead glorifies the other, we are invited to glorify and testify to God also, throughout the world he made. The Trinity matters because this is who God is. That leads to a worldview prioritizing power, as opposed to our Christian worldview that considers love the most important commandment and enduring virtue (Matt. We can be saved without a clear concept of the trinity. Equipping families with practical approaches to parenting and marriage. As Paul clearly stated in Colossians: (Col 2:4 NIV) I tell you this so that no one may deceive you by fine-sounding arguments. At the time . 3:16; Judg. They include the following: 1. 19:7), and the temple of the Spirit (1 Cor. A mono-personal god could not be eternally loving and gracious. Judging by the churchs historic creeds, Christians used to think the Trinity is really important. 6:4). God is not one person who plays three different roles, as this illustration suggests. This is an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees. Many assume Muslims, Jews, and Christians worship the. Why is the doctrine of the Trinity important? Our fellowship with God should be enhanced by consciously knowing that we are relating to a tri-personal God! And God seeks people to worship Him in spirit and truth (John 4:24). The three persons divinely and eternally loved one another. Why is the doctrine of the Trinity important? - Apologetics Index We address doctrines and practices of Christian churches and organizations, as well as those of cults of Christianity. It grieves me to the depths of my soul to see Jesus nature denied in such fine sounding arguments. Please give appropriate and specific directions to the original content. Those with a true heart to put their faith in God now had a clear statement of the nature and personality of the God of their faith. 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. Wayne Grudem explains: But if each person is fully God and has all of Gods being, then we also should not think that the personal distinctions are any kind of additional attributes added on to the being of God . Trinity Church George Washington's Mount Vernon In the baptism of Jesus, we see the Father speaking from heaven and the Spirit descending from heaven in the form of a dove as Jesus comes out of the water (Mark 1:10-11). This blog occasionally uses affiliate links and may contain affiliate links. Because again there were people who were arguing against the deity of Christ. You and I arent the result of some man-shaped hole in the Fathers heart; rather, you and I represent the overflow of the Fathers eternal love for his Sonas though the Father had said, Son, this love of ours is just too good to keep to ourselves. Understanding the Trinity: How Can God Be Three Persons in One? I love that each one has a distinct and special purpose in my life and Im so grateful. Apologetics Index curates research resources on religious movements, cults, sects, world religions and related issues. Enter your email address to subscribe. I would never become an Atheist, but right now, and for a while, I have to distance myself from Christians. The Trinity expresses the belief that God is one being made up of three distinct persons who exist in co-equal essence and co-eternal communion as the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit . Melanie, I love that you and Dawn have been digging in deep and reminding us to ground our faith in truth. ), 4 Integral Aspects Moving Your Family to a New City Successfully. We are having to put our brains on full power for these posts! Used by permission. In my studies Ive concluded that there is no trinity. 7:9) are one in him. Thank you, Diana! Thankfully, that is not the case. Martin Luther, who initiated the Protestant Reformation, admitted that "the name 'Trinity' is nowhere to be found in the Holy Scriptures, but has been conceived and invented by man.". Many people assume that God the Father, Jesus Christ the Son, and . 2:18). Salvation is trinitarian. The world is a confusing place right now. Must you become a better person so that God will accept you? The Trinity isnt some complicated distraction from the simple gospelits actually part of the gospel. And because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, Abba! What a great reminder this morning! The same Son who was begotten by the Father before all worlds was sent by the Father into this world, to live and die for us and our salvation. They usually come down two or a few individuals endlessly driving their point of view to each other, without any possibility of the discussion changing each other. Therefore, the Holy Spirit must be distinct from the Father and the Son. And then, the Father and Son send their Spirit to dwell in us so we can experience this new life as sons (John 3:5, 7:3739, 15:26, 16:1215). We do not worship three gods. In order for something to be contradictory, it must violate the law of noncontradiction. Of real importance is that the concept represented by the word "Trinity" does exist in Scripture. Youve blessed me today with your encouragement! Its being conformed to the image of the Son by the Spirit (Rom. Trinitarianism is polytheism. Hi, Ive been studying this topic for a while, and this article is well-written, and summarizes the Trinitarian belief of most Christians. We are literally the presence of Christ on earth. Did you ever notice that even in John 3:16 youre already wading into trinitarian waters? Much later, probably after Paul had written all of his epistles, John felt it necessary to present the deity of Jesus indisputably. Understand this, I do not believe it is necessary to confess the Trinitarian nature of God in order to believe the gospel in faith. It is a mystery that is for sure. Rather, each person of the Trinity has all of the attributes of God, and no one Person has any attributes that are not possessed by the others. Just like the last 2,000 (almost) years. The Bible speaks of the Father as God (Phil. What we need to recover is an understanding and a felt sense of why it matters so much. Is the Athanasian Creed really right to say, Whoever wishes to be saved must think thus of the Trinity. Would it require a drastic overhaul in the way you think or witness or pray? Jesus taught to pray to the Father, not himself. Wow, Melanie, thank you so much for sharing this wisdom & insight. Blessings, Thanks for sharing your thoughts and your heart with us readers! Essence means the same thing as being. Thus, since God is only one essence, He is only one being, not three. To know God savingly is to know him as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Does the Trinity mean that God is divided into three parts? The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are all fully God. Why is Trinity church important? Judging by the church's historic creeds, Christians used to think the Trinity is really important. Television, the internet, and social media, etc. (6) The Son is the not the Holy Spirit. If He were a created being, His death would have had no more power to salvation that the death of any other created being. 8:9; Gal. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blogs author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. We use cookies to personalise content and ads, to provide social media features and to analyse our traffic. We too are sentaccording to the foreknowledge of the Father, for obedience to the Son, in the sanctification of the Spirit (1 Pet. He prayed to the Father. The answer is this: Everything by which Jesus offered perfect worship to the Father in His Spirit. This should make it clear why it is so important to understand that all three Persons are the same essence. Affiliate disclosure: As an Amazon Associate, we may earn commissions from qualifying purchases on Amazon.com. This explains how God can be both one and three. The problem with this is that it reflects a heresy called modalism. 7:9) are one in him. The understanding of Church history is important why? | carm.org You are a blessing! the Spirit (Eph. Of course we are speaking by analogy here, for we cannot understand this in a physical way about God. I hope youll join us again! Its more than forgiveness. But how does it show us why there is only one God instead of three? What is Trinity Sunday? | Feast of the Holy Trinity - Beliefnet I could have hidden from them. 8:29). Thank you Melanie! A judge who forgives your sins? That makes Jesus a fraud, and the cross a hoax and to no effect! Why the Trinity Is So Important in the First Place Why is the doctrine of the Trinity important? To help us do that, here are two reasons why the Trinity matters. As one writer has said, The Trinity and the gospel have the same shape. Are you beginning to see why? Unfortunately, there are many illustrations which are not simply imperfect, but in error. What Problems Can Be Caused If You Have Difficulty Swallowing? The Trinity Distinguishes Our God Many assume Muslims, Jews, and Christians worship the same God. How can God be both one and three? The Father cant be the Son if he gave the Son. If we dont take this as our starting point, everything we say about the practical relevance of the Trinity could lead to one colossal misunderstanding: thinking of God the Trinity as a means to some other end, as if God were the Trinity in order to make himself useful. Internship opportunities with Cru's ministries. This is a term that is used to attempt to describe the triune Godthree coexistent, co-eternal Persons who are God. The doctrine is divisive and has a disturbing history. It also suggests that when Scripture speaks simply of God, its often referring specifically to the Father. And in John 16:13-15 we see that although there is a close unity between them all, the Holy Spirit is also distinct from the Father and the Son. I love your posts Melanie! Or like all the others are you going to cop-out? Similarly, Elohim and Adonai, used for God in the Old Testament, are plural terms, perhaps foreshadowing a reality not yet fully revealed. However, on this site, we strongly affirm that the Bible teaches that Jesus is God (John 1). In general, they do not so much present the complete teaching that he probably took to those churches. On the other hand, we must say that the Persons are real, that they are not just different ways of looking at the one being of GodThe only way it seems possible to do this is to say that the distinction between the persons is not a difference of "being" but a difference of "relationships." 2:10). There is one God.1. To know God savingly is to know him as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. (2) The Father is God. This might seem to be a wasted exercise in futility for each, but then we must realize that this discussion, or more properly debate, is being observed by hundreds, if not thousands, of others, who may be heavily influenced by the thoughts expressed. (1) There is only one God. Not bad. The only kind of god we could fully understand would be a god we made in our own image. If Jesus is God, why do the Gospels record instances where He prayed to God? We will never fully comprehend our triune God. Let me ask youwhat kind of salvation does your gospel give you? At the risk of sounding too physical, essence can be understood as the stuff that you consist of.. This is such a great post and series! . As we draw near to God, we can assure ourselves that he reveals himself to those who seek him (Jer. Your email address will not be published. We all have a story. As we see the Father sending the Son and the Son sending the Spirit, so we see our own Great Commission as a continuation of the Trinitys mission in the world (John 17:18; Matt. If you found out tomorrow that your beloved youth pastor had become a staunch modalisthe now insists the Father, Son, and Spirit are actually one person in three manifestations instead of three distinct personswould your church excommunicate him? But he avoids contradiction with this statement because he means that in one sense it was the best of times, but in another sense it was the worst of times. Much has already been written and said about why the doctrine of the Trinity is so central. It also helps explain passages in which all three members of the Trinity appear. Likewise, after the Son returned to the Father (John 16:10), the Father and the Son sent the Holy Spirit into the world (John 14:26; Acts 2:33). Learn why He did it and what it means for you. This set orthodox Christianity apart from heretical movements like Docetism, which challenged the church as . Grace is the promise that you stand forgiven before God if you know Jesus. Trinity Church After the Civil War, America was ready to rebuild, put down roots, and establish a more solid and permanent built environment. But what does it mean that God is gracious? Is Sound of Freedom the Next Uncle Toms Cabin? I appreciate you so much:-), Thank you, Shannon, for stopping by to leave a good word today. Thus, they relate to each other personally the Father regards Himself as I, while He regards the Son and Holy Spirit as You. Likewise the Son regards Himself as I, but the Father and the Holy Spirit as You.. The Father is God from the beginning (John 1:1 . But the essential importance of understanding God as triuneone God eternally existing in the three persons of Father, Son, and Spiritbears repeating. There would only be a contradiction if we said that God is three in the same way that He is one. 11 Things to Know about the Doctrine of the Trinity - Zondervan Academic Thank you for diving into the depths of our faith! Thank you, Marva! My description of the Trinity (as it was explained to me by my dad) is that as a man is a father, a son and a brother also like a man; a woman is a mother, a daughter, and a sister. They are not developed to change or add to the Bible, but to make the teaching of the Bible clear to all. Though it certainly is a mystery we can never fully understand, it does allow us to connect with God on so many amazing levels, some of which, of course, well never grasp in entirety, but I think thats a good thing! 13:14). The Gospel Coalition supports the church by providing resources that are trusted and timely, winsome and wise, and centered on the gospel of Jesus Christ. I love thinking about these things. This is how God saves usby sending his Son and Spirit. Whenever these contradictions come up, people brush it off by saying Its a mystery we cant fathom. Showing God in action in and through His people. This is good news, because it tells us God didnt create us because he needed somebody to love. I love reading your systematic theology posts, Melanie. But opting out of some of these cookies may have an effect on your browsing experience. 2:22). Jesus prayed alone in the Garden why in the world would he go pray to himself? 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. This is difficult to explain. What does essence mean? Trinity Church (Manhattan) - Wikipedia For me, the trinity is perhaps the single most important doctrine for Christians to understand. to Christianity. 28:19). Another serious error people have made is to think that the Father became the Son, who then became the Holy Spirit. Lori, Thank you, Lori! Melanie. Among churches that reject the doctrine of the . And shouldnt attend this church 1:3), lying in his bosom (John 1:18) and basking in his love (John 17:24). The Gospel Coalition supports the church by providing resources that are trusted and timely, winsome and wise, and centered on the gospel of Jesus Christ. And we likewise are called to lay our lives down for others (John 15:13), glorifying God as we do. Will you post my previous reply? Have some fun taking various quizzes and assessments to learn about yourself and others. also 1:18). When the global church comes together then powerful things can happen. Jesus is God, but He is not the Father or the Holy Spirit. I have always believed in the Trinity also as far back as I can remember. 7:914), a Son to be revered (Ps. Pastor, Where Do Your Missions Dollars Go? There are a number of reasons for this. Christianity is a monotheistic religion, which means that believing in the oneness of God is very important. The Doctrine of the Trinity: No Christianity Without It 8:15). I could bear that. But as a follower of Christ, your identity can and should be grounded in one thing: who He says you are. The Father sends the Spirit of the Son into our hearts (Rom. Read about individuals who have been transformed by faith. I gave up and even today Im barely hanging on. Learn the basics of what Christians believe. Great site love trinity is not a Salvation issue And likewise with the Holy Spirit. Or how it might not be possible to describe the Holy Trinity within our finite understanding of reality? Ibid, p. 255. You are a blessing in my life~ For example, it says of Christ that in Him all the fullness of Deity dwells in bodily form (Colossians 2:9). In each of these letters he felt it was necessary to present a clear statement of the deity of Christ. John de Ruiter College of Integrated Philosophy, The Church of Almighty God (Eastern Lightning). Here are five (more) reasons why it matters greatly that we believe this doctrine.