demo

Indescribable:
The Trinity
by Michael Cummings
Trinity. You won’t hear a great deal of
conversation about that word in the school cafeteria, but it is
a very important component of Christianity. Webster defines
Trinity as “the unity of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit as three
persons in one Godhead according to Christian dogma.” 1 The
term “Godhead” refers to the nature of God, while a “dogma” is
a belief held to be true by a certain group of people.
© istockphoto / matthew hertel
If you’re confused about the Trinity, then you are in good
company. The early Christian fathers struggled with this
concept for hundreds of years before they drew the conclusion
that Yahweh was the three-in-one God.
The Trinity is one of the great mysteries of our faith. It
is hard to wrap our three-and-a-half-pound brain around
this concept. One of the reasons it is difficult is that no
solid examples of this can be found in the natural world.
However, this has not stopped us from trying to understand
God’s nature.
I have heard examples all of my life, such as the one
that compares the Trinity to water. Water can have three
forms—liquid, gas, and solid, yet all of these forms come
from the same substance. This is a really good effort, but it
falls short. God the Father had a relationship with the Son
and the Spirit, and this is where things get tricky with the
water example. First of all, water cannot have a relationship
with anything because it is an inanimate object. Second,
the human form is a bit more complicated than even water,
not to mention how infinitely more complicated the nature
of God as Father and Spirit is. Third, all three forms of
water cannot co-exist for a sustained amount of time. If
you don’t believe me, try putting ice into boiling water to
see how long they co-exist. It is best not to try to explain
the indescribable God we serve using this or any other
analogy.
The God we serve chose to reveal Himself to humanity
throughout history as three distinct Persons, and yet He is
One. We do not worship three gods. God tells us so when
He gave Moses these words to speak: “Listen, Israel: The
Lord our God, the Lord is One” (Deut. 6:4).
How can this be? The answer is simple: we don’t know
how it can be true, but we know that it is true because the
Word of God is true.
The Scripture provides
much evidence which
confirms that, throughout
time, the three Persons of
the Trinity have co-existed
(Gen. 1:26, Gen. 3:22, Gen.
11:7, Isa. 6:8, Matt. 3:16-17,
Luke 4:14, John 1:1-2, and
1 Cor. 2:10-11). These are
just a few of the Scriptures
in which the different
Persons of the Trinity are
interacting and co-existing.
Some people might debate
this topic, but even though
the Bible is God’s Word
and is true, not everyone
holds to this view.
The Trinity is one of the great
mysteries of our faith. It’s hard
to wrap our three-and-a-half
pound brain around it.
So what evidence do we have that it is true? The evidence
is in you! Jesus said, “If you love Me, you will keep
My commandments. And I will ask the Father, and He
will give you another Counselor to be with you forever. He
is the Spirit of truth. The world is unable to receive Him
because it doesn’t see Him or know Him. But you do know
Him, because He remains with you and will be in you”
(John 14:15-17).
In our world, people are constantly searching for heroes
with supernatural abilities like Wolverine and Harry Potter.
However, we have the Hero the world really needs. He
is the One and only true Hero. He is the Triune God who
lives in each and every one of us who call ourselves Christians.
If you want to prove to the world that God exists and
that His Word is true, then simply let the God who resides
within you out into the world. Show His love, mercy, and
grace to a world that is desperate for a real hero.
If you do this, you will give the world a small glimpse of
the indescribable God we serve. ec
1. “Trinity,” Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary, 11th ed.
(Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster, Inc., 2003).
© istockphoto / tim mccaig
40 | jul 2009 ec magazine ec magazine jul 2009 | 41