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The members of the Godhead are called the Trinity because they are one inunity, a tri-unity. As three uniquely distinct Persons, they flow in perfectly harmonious agreement. Though most Christians believe in the Trinity, they find the concept perplexing. The mystery comes from Deu 6:4 Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God is one Lord:
It is confusing because it is our tendency to think numerically when we hear the word one. Biblically the term one is often used to describe unity between separate individuals. A husband and wife are called one, yet the two are distinctively different individuals in sex and function (Eph 5:31).
Another passage relates that those who are joined to Jesus in the faith are one spirit with Him (1Co 6:17). Then in 2Co 7:1, it says that we are to cleanse ourselves of all filthiness of spirit. If the aforementioned oneness in spirit indicated a numerical value, it would imply the unthinkable. None but the profane would imagine that the sinless Son of God could possibly have the slightest taint of filthiness in His Spirit. Therefore, logic dictates that the phrase “one spirit with Him” refers to unity rather than number.
There are many incidents in the Bible where members of the Godhead are portrayed as functioning simultaneously in the same location. In Daniel, the divine Son of Man was seen receiving an everlasting kingdom from God the Father, the Ancient of Days (Dan 7:13-14). When the prophet John baptized Christ, he heard the Father speaking from heaven and he saw the Holy Spirit coming upon Jesus like a dove (Mat 3:16-17). If God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit were actually a singular divine person, it would indicate that Jesus was performing simultaneously as a ventriloquist and an illusionist.
It must also be noted that the Psalmist was not implying that God mutters to Himself on the occasion when he penned Psalm 110:1 The Lord said to my Lord, "Sit at My right hand, Till I make Your enemies Your footstool."
In the beginning when God created Adam, He discussed the prospects with His pre-incarnate eternal Son and the person of the Holy Spirit. He said, “Let us make man in our image” (Gen 1:26). The scene must have been breathtaking. In compliance with the joint council of the Godhead’s design specifications for man‘s body, soul, and spirit, God the ever-existent Son spat into the dust of the Garden of Eden and made clay. From that clay, by the powers of the Holy Sprit, He sculptured the most magnificent being of creation (Psa. 94:9). The Lord then breathed the Holy Spirit into Adam’s nostrils and he leaped from the ground as a living soul.
Interestingly, during His earthly ministry, Jesus performed partial reenactments of that scene. The first was when He spat into the dust and from the clay molded new eyes for a blind man (Jph 9:6). The other was when He breathed/blew the Holy Spirit into the mouths of the disciples after His resurrection (Joh 20:22). We become functional as new creations in Christ just as Adam became functional as the first man of creation. Jesus breathes the Holy Spirit into us.
The Fourth Century’s Nicene Creed depicts a proper perspective for the adorations of and communications with all of the members of the Trinity. …And we believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord and Giver of Life, who proceedeth from the Father and the Son who with the Father and the Son together is worshipped and glorified,
Baptism
Baptismal formulas give cause for needless tensions between two factions within Christianity. One camp says authentic baptisms require reciting the names of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. The other insists that it must be in the name of Jesus. Both are biblical.
The mandate in Matthew’s Gospel specifies baptism in the names of the Trinity (Mat 28:19). However, the Book of Acts makes no mention of the Trinity formula when the newly converted were immersed. The Apostles personally heard Jesus’ commandment, yet they baptized converts either in the name of Jesus Christ or in the name of the Lord Jesus. Unless they were gravely mistaken, the Trinitarian and the Jesus’ name formulas are equally authentic.
Personally, I cover all bases. I state the following when baptizing: “ I baptize you in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost. You are now buried in Christ’s burial and you will arise to live a new life under the authority of the Lord Jesus Christ. In Jesus’ name” – splash.
Prayer
Another controversial matter related to the Trinity pertains to the topic of communicating with God. Many argue that t he only member of the Godhead who should be directly addressed is the Father. This philosophy is built upon Jesus’ instructions about praying what is commonly called the Lord’s Prayer and when offering prayers for provision (Mat 6:6-15, Joh 16:23).
Certainly, it is orthodox to address our prayers to the Father as we pray in the authority of Jesus’ name. However, the Bible indicates that the members of the First Century Church were not limited to that formula. They understood that through salvation they were invited to fellowship with the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit (1Co 1:9, 2Co 13:14, 1Jo 1:3). The Greek word for fellowship implies the intimate sharing of life. Fellowship that excludes communication between all concerned is incomplete.
Jesus promised the disciples that He would not leave them as orphans, because the Holy Spirit would be sent to abide with them. When Jesus was on earth, He was the constant companion of His disciples. He talked with them and answered their questions. It is His intention that we each have the same caliber of companionship with His delegated Representative. Such necessitates ongoing two-way communication with the Holy Spirit. Those who are experiencing anything less needlessly exist as spiritual orphans. A definition of the Holy Spirit’s title, the Comforter/Helper is, one who comes alongside and speaks cheerfully. Cheerful comfort is available to all and it’s rude neglect not to offer personal thanks to the One who encourages us.
Jesus said that we are to pray to the Lord of the Harvest beseeching Him to send forth laborers (Mat 9:38). The Lord of the Harvest is the Holy Spirit. He was functioning in that role in Acts 13:2 when He said, “Now separate to Me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.”
The Apostles Paul and Barnabas had verbal interchanges with the resurrected Lord (Act 9:5,10, 18:9-10). When the deacon Stephen was being stoned to death, he prayed directly to Jesus (Act 7:59-60). If it is heretical to pray directly to Jesus, Stephen picked an inappropriate moment to depart into heresy.
The good news is that from creation to this present-day, all three members of the Trinity are unfailingly delighted to be co-participants in blessing mankind. God does not change and Jesus is the same yesterday, today and forever. God anointed Jesus with the Holy Spirit and He went about blessing people with good because Father God was with Him (Act 10:38). The Father accompanied Jesus and sent Him forth with the Holy Ghost. In a similar manner, believers are the abode of the Father and the Son and are accompanied by the cheerful Divine Paraclete, as we go forth as blessed blessing.
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