Tag: 3 in 1

Trinity (3): 4 Ways To Think About “Deep End” Theology

Swimming pool

When we talk Trinity we are entering into…. the deep end of the theological pool!  Remember as a small child playing in the shallow end?  The deep end was…. scary.  It was for the big people.  The experienced swimmers!  Not me…. I was a shallow end kid!  Guys like me were sure to drown in the deep end.

And so, I never ventured out… until the lure of all the fun that was being had in the deep end drew me!  It begins by edging your way around the pool while hanging on to the side.  And slowly but surely you found yourself…. in the deep end!  And, while the deep end should be respected by a little kid – it should also be enjoyed!  And enjoy it I did!  Almost daily!

Some think:  Why venture out into the Trinity.  They say: “you can’t fully understand it, so why bother?”   Oh friend, we need to bother.  Yes, it is the deep end and yes the deep end should be respected, but the deep end is GREAT!  It is here that we learn who God is and what He has done for us.  The deep end creates worshipers and it stirs passion and love for God. It is in the deep end that we begin to behold the glory of our God.

So, are you ready?  The following posts are all: deep end theology.  I don’t pretend to have it all figured out!  Nobody has God all figured out!  Are you kidding me?  He is, after all…… GOD!

Ok, here we go – let go of the wall…..

God is both 1 and 3!

Got it!?!

If so, your brain is far better than mine!  Trinity = 1 God 3 persons.  And that is the deep end theology we will be getting into in the posts to come.  But before we venture too far out into the deep end, let’s head back to the shallow end and ask:  “How are we to think about the deep end?”

4 Ways to Think About Deep End Theology

1.) Humility

Pride demands to have it all figured out.  Our pride actually thinks that the created should be able to fully grasp – in entirety – the Creator.  Think about this for a minute.  How silly is that?  Don’t get me wrong.  I am not suggesting that we should throw up our hands and say – If I can’t figure Him out… why bother.  Please…. Bother!  Remember the deep end is fun!  Humility is not opposed to study and diligence or deep thought.  BUT, what do we do when our study brings us to the Infinite, Almighty, Eternal, God?  HUMILITY!

2.)  Joy

Consider…. if you are a Christian, you serve a God who is without limits.  He is beyond us.  The fancy word for this is transcendence.  God transcends us.  Here are some good synonyms for the word transcendence: incomparability, matchlessness, peerlessness,magnificence, excellence, supremacy.

Yep – that is God – the 3 in 1

He is beyond us, He is infinite and that fills my heart with joy.  Because, if He were not transcendent……  then He would not be much of a God!

3.)  Worship

What does it mean that the infinite, transcendent God came and dwelled among us?  (John 1)  That’s right the infinite God took on – human flesh – skin and bones and…. limits to dwell among us!  WHY WOULD HE DO THAT?  He did that so that he might live a perfect life and die on the cross for our sins and rise from the grave ascending to the Father so that He might send us His Spirit and the Father might adopt us as His children.  Deep End Theology stirs my heart to worship Him!

4.)  Hunger

I WANT TO KNOW HIM!  It becomes a Psalms 27 moment for me, how about you?

 

One thing have I asked of the LORD,
that will I seek after:
that I may dwell in the house of the LORD
all the days of my life,
to gaze upon the beauty of the LORD
and to inquire in his temple.

(Psalm 27:4 ESV)

 

Trinity (2): One God In A Many god World

coexist

 

Bill Maher

Recently, talk show host and comedian Bill Myer had a moment of brilliance when he tweeted:

Isis- “one of thousands of Islamic militant groups” (NYTimes) “beheads another. Lets keep pretending all religions are alike”

Not only are they not all alike!  But, the implication of the above is ALSO, that not all are serving the same God.

Yawn, so what, who cares, says the society that trumpets all roads lead to heaven.  Culture cries:  “it doesn’t matter which God or which book (Bible, Koran, Book of Mormon, etc) one turns to…  they are all the same…all seeking their version of God….aren’t they?”

Well, I would love to take another post to lay out the HUGE differences between the Bible and these other books – another time….  But, in this post I will keep my focus narrow.

Is there any difference between praying to Allah, or the god of the Jehovah Witness, or ______ and the God of the Bible?

The answer is YES!  And we need to look no further than the Trinity.  The Trinity shouts loudly – “Yes, there is a difference that is bigger than epic proportions!”

Culture:  We live in a many god culture.  We have gods of money, fame, materialism, relationship, substance, and then there is Buddah, Allah, and on and on it goes.

What is idolatry?  Idolatry is devotion.  It is anything that rules and controls you – including anything that controls your emotions, decision making, and your loyalty.  What controls us, what we build our life around, or what we faithfully serve…. that is an idol and that is our god or God.  And….  wow, have you noticed…..culture has many gods!

But, that is nothing new.  This has been true ever since Genesis 3. Remember, it is in this “many gods” culture – the Bible’s opening words are… In the beginning God…

Eve’s temptation in the garden wasn’t hunger or better fruit from a better tree.  It was a temptation of:

  • Being like God
    • See Genesis 3
  • She essentially sought to dethrone the true God and become like God herself!  Imagine the created seeking to become the Creator.  No longer worshiping God, she became an idol to herself…. thus, she was seeking to worship herself.

Christianity:  What does the above have to do with the Trinity?  A lot!  Christians are monotheistic.  Meaning: We believe in ONE God.  But, so does the Muslim… right?  Well yes and no.  They believe in one god but that god is NOT the God of the Bible.  The God of the Bible is:  1 God in 3 persons.

The Father is God

The Son is God

The Spirit is God

Islam, or any other religion, does not believe in the God of the Bible.  The 3 in 1.

As Christians we need to wrestle with WHO God is. Christian, it can not be both!  One cannot say: “she is a moral, good person… she believes in HER VERSION of god, she is going to heaven…”  Either the God of the Bible IS God or He Is NOT God.  But, it can’t be both.  You can’t have the God of the Bible and the god of the Muslim and the god of the Mormon and say:  “we are all good to go – you pick your god and I will pick mine….it doesn’t really matter.”

The reality of the 3 in 1 tells us something.  It tells us IT MATTERS!  To live for, worship, and serve a god who is NOT the 3 in 1 is to NOT worship God.  Because this IS who God is!

The Point?:   My point is to stress to 2 things:

1.)  The doctrine of the Trinity is no small matter!  It is greatly important.  It has incredible implications for the Christian.  So, let’s not entertain some “wishy – washy” – or hold to a vague understanding of the Trinity.

2.)  The Trinity IS WHO GOD IS!  We should labor to know and understand God as best and as accurately as we can.  This labor will have great and lasting implications on our lives!

 

A Parting thought:

For the believer ask:  How has the Father / the Son / the Holy Spirit each brought about your salvation?