We grasp in vain for “easy” Trinity explanations. Most of the time our explanations fall short and our pictures… well, they are inaccurate representations of the glory of the Trinity!
True or False?
1.) The Trinity is like having different names for one person:
This is False
Some say: It is like a dad. He is a dad, a husband, and sometimes he is an employee at work. Different names for the one guy. Dad / Husband / Employee. Simple…. Right? Wrong….
This misses the glory of the Trinity. The Trinity is NOT 1 God with 3 roles. The Trinity is 1 God 3 persons and each of the 3 persons is fully God.
- One God
- 3 Persons
- All Fully God
Lets try another True or False:
2.) The 3 leaf clover:
The Trinity is like a 3 leaf clover. 3 parts and yet it is 1 clover.
This is False.
Yes, the 3 leaves each make up the one clover, but each leaf is only part of the clover. The Trinity contains a greater glory! The Trinity is: each part of the God-head does not make up a separate part (leaf). Rather, each aspect – Father / Son / Holy Spirit is fully God! Each is fully God! Uhhhh WOW!
3.) The Trinity is like H20: Steam / Water / Ice True or false?
This is false.
This is false because H20 is not fully water, fully steam, or fully ice at the same time. Rather, each has its own properties and its own characteristics. Once again, the glory of the Trinity supersedes our attempts to contain it with our human analogies.
So, what analogy can we pull from? Well, actually the Bible does not give us an analogy. Maybe that is because any analogy diminishes the glory of the Trinity?!?.
Certainly, we see the Bible teach about God the Father (and we get what a father is) and Jesus is God’s Son (and we get that too). But, we fail to make the full connection. We might say: I am a father to my children and at the same time I am a son to my parents. But, even still, I am never a father to my parents or a son to my children.
There are other variations that shoot off of the above examples, but you get the idea.
1 God / 3 persons / Fully God = mystery!
No human analogy is going to match it. We strive in vain for a human illustration to match the glory of the Trinity. But, if there were an illustration that could rightly contain it….. the Trinity would take on a lesser glory!
Once again: 1 God – 3 persons – all are fully God.
Do you struggle with the mysteries found in God? While we want to wrestle with who God is, I would encourage you to glory in the mysteries of God. Those mysteries further reveal we are NOT God! There is a Creator and we are the created. He is without limits and we are limited.
How big is your Trinity? Is it big enough to wow you? Or have you reduced to your created minds ability to contain it?
Praise Him!
* Credit is given to Wayne Grudem and Bruce Ware on much of the above. While, the above is not a quote from either of them, none the less, they and others have formed much of my thoughts and examples given.
Thanks for this series Tim, we do need to mine the riches of this Truth! Oh, btw, is Bruce Ware’s book called “God’s Greater Glory”? Or did you read a different one by him?
It is called Big Truths For Young Hearts. I am reading it to Tim and Tanner. (it is basically a edited down systematic theology) So, it was actually written for young people. But, I get a lot out of it!! I want to read God’s Greater Glory!
Thanks, again! We can but WOW at the majesty of the Trinity.
Agreed!