3 - The Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit are distinct persons. Moreover, the yoke and the whites are no longer as they used to be. Therefore the eternal brightness shines forth before Him, and co-exists with Him, in that, existing without a beginning, and always begotten, He always shines before Him; and He is that Wisdom which says, I was that wherein He delighted, and I was daily His delight before His face at all times.. Some people falsely claim the Trinity is a form of . The apple seed alone is not an apple. Now were going to look at how some people often misunderstand the Trinity. The Trinity is foundational and at the heart of our Christian faith. But they are one God. I have the good one. When it comes to the Trinity, we tend to forget that an analogy is an "aptness of proportion" or a "resemblance of relations," not an identity of relations. It is still H20, but just different forms. When we look at the egg as an example of the Trinity, we must view it in its entirety. Required fields are marked *. Now that we know the doctrine of the trinity and its corresponding major heresies, now we are ready to look at some bad analogies for the trinity. The Unseen Father and Father that is seen existed at the same time. When discussing God, especially in regards to his nature, being and persons, a simple statement to articulate the Trinity is: God is 1, *. The idea of God as three-in-one is indeed a mysterious concept, one that is difficult to understand. Basic mathematics tells us that 1x1x1 = 1.. The word Trinity comes from the Latin word trinitas which means tri-unity. This analogy sounds pretty good, but it is fatally flawed in that is describes the Son and Spirit as creations of the Father. The Trinity is pretty weird: the Father (or Mother), Jesus the Son, and the Holy Spirit are in some sense distinct from one another, but are all unified in another sense. The Holy Spirit is the shell, Jesus is the egg white, and the Father is the egg yolk. The egg (or apple) fails in that the shell, white, and yolk are parts of the egg, not the egg in themselves, just as the skin, flesh, and seeds of the apple are parts of it, not the apple itself. Some people think that H2O cannot exist in all three states simultaneously but that is not true. So comparing God to water isnt really as helpful as it seems on the surface. I and My Father are One (John 10:30). Infinite thy vast domain, everlasting is thy reign.. The following verses attest to the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit (Matthew 28:19). Which ones have you heard? Dont you know Jesus? The Trinity is established by 3 Biblical truths, . You are an egg! The 3 Most Common "Trinity Analogies" (and their limitations) The three most common go-to analogies for explaining the Trinity are water, an egg, and the sun. Christians believe, then, that only one God exists but this God exists as a unity of three persons: a Trinity. There's a simple reason they don't work: The Trinity, as such, isn't like anything in creation. Water can be frozen and is called ice. The Holy Spirit is Christs spirit in us guiding us into all truth. Although he is one man who is simultaneously a husband, a father, and a student, he would consider it Modalism to suggest that this is a good Trinitarian analogy. We can admit it is a mystery and accept that our incomplete knowledge cannot fully comprehend it. This is why Jesus said, He who has seen Me, has seen the Father (John 14:9). The Son is like the light rays that visibly reveal the sun, as Jesus is the visible image of the invisible God (Colossians 1:15). But in the Godhead, each Person is fully and completely God unto Himself (even as they are all one God). We can say that the first is egg the shell, the second is egg the albumen and the third is egg the yoke. Light comes from God. The egg shell is the image of the yolk and the white. The Father Matthew 27:45-46 (usually there is no argument that the Father is not God, since every place Jesus speaks to God, he is addressing the Father. She would explode!" (Which I just found out is in error). Today we celebrate the Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity. Similarly, people have used the example of the apple in the same way- skin, flesh, and seeds. We might call one side A, another side B, and the other C. So, there is a distinction between each of the sides, yet, all three are the same. The Son was begotten by the Father IN ETERNITY, and the Holy Spirit proceeds from the Father and the Son. Water has three states: solid, liquid, and gas. The trinity is a like a Three-Leaf Clover. God is one. The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are each called Jehovah (or Spirit of Jehovah), given divine attributes, and, (usually there is no argument that the Father is not God, since every place Jesus speaks to God, he is addressing the Father.). Here many of the creeds help us in clearly articulating the trinity. God is kind of like a man who is a father, a son and an uncle God is kind of like a three-leaf clover, or a triangle; one object, but three different, identifiable leaves, or sides* The teaching of the trinity is clearly taught in Scripture and must be preserved as such. However, Christians through the ages believe in the Trinity because the truths it represents are taught in the Bible. Jesus is in the form of the Holy Spirit. Surely this is a better understanding of the water analogy! This analogy actually falls prey to the same error of modalism. . In the same way, water is all the same molecular structure, expressing itself in three different modes. He was with God in the beginning. Not just for explaining it to others, but to bolster our own faith and see how each One works in our lives. It is not important merely for the sake of tradition, or because the word itself is taught in the Bible (the word is not). It's impossible to be an Orthodox Christian without professing belief in the Triune nature of God. 3. But Hes God too, right? This little child cannot look at one without experiencing a profound sense of wonderment and awe. But God is the eternal Light, which has neither had a beginning, nor shall ever fail. However, many of our faithful, and even priests, attempted to simplify the Mystery of the Trinity and made it easier to understand by using MODELS AND ANALOGIES, giving birth to modern-day heresies/fallacies about the Trinity. The wonders and ways of God may not be apparent or fully known at present, but we can still marvel at His supremacy and worship Him in wonder- Father, Son, and Holy Spirit! Holy Trinity, the downtown Greek Orthodox church that was partially destroyed by fire 11 years ago, was a special place for 57-year-old Georgiou. His motto was that "There was a time when the son did not exist". Unfortunately, Arianism is still around and can found within the Jehovah's Witnesses teachings. Jesus loves us so much that he did not obliterate people who died, with power that set stars in the universe. Similarly, in our aquatic analogy, water can appear in three different modes, depending on the environment, but the three are not co-existing. Celebrating Easter Is About so Much More Than One Hour on Sunday. But its all water. THE TRUTH IS: From the very beginning, the Blessed Trinity Father, Son, and Spirit was there. Thus, the Father Himself is not God, nor is the Son, nor is the Holy Spirit, but combining the three, there is one God. The Trinity is a tri-unity, a unity of Three, - God the Father, Jesus, the Son of God and the Holy Spirit. This view, also known as "modalism", was rejected by the early church. In this analogy, God is compared to a man. Heat it up, and it turns to vapor. Lost will be ashes under the feet of the righteous. It is a miraculous invention, the egg. This is a quick way to describe the doctrine of the Trinity namely, God is 1 being (the, is Gods nature, essence, being) and 3 whos (the, being Father, Son, and Holy Spirit). The yolk represents Gods Person, His Being, and His Holiness which generates Light that no man can approach (I Timothy 6:16). The watermelon has a skin, pulp and seeds; the egg is shell, yolk and egg white. CafeLogos.orgThe Egg and i -A Simple Explanation of The Trinity Its downright hard to understand. Although he is one he has different roles to different people. The Holy Trinity: Egg Analogy The Holy Trinity is GOD in three divine persons GOD the FATHER GOD the HOLY SPIRIT GOD the SON But together they makeup and are still ONE GOD Like how an egg is made up of three things but is still ONE EGG. But while this idea is central to the Christian faith, it is also incredibly mysterious to us. Youre right, theyre all good but not perfect because only God IS perfect. 2. I write to see memory and language wrestle with reality. All Scripture is taken from the NIV version unless otherwise specified, Author Ignace Franz, translated by Clarence A. Walworth. I dont believe that God wishes us to be confused about the Three that are so apparent throughout the Old and New Testaments. He got married there in 1965, and his four . The Spirit white is connected to Jesus Person I will come to you (John 14:18) and the Fathers Person, We will come to him and make our abode with him (John 14:23). These three Persons are all equally God and all equally Persons. The egg analogy fails because it denies that each person of the Trinity is of the same eternal essence. When they used the word person, they didnt mean it in the same way that we do today. If you looked at a single cloverleaf, you wouldnt call it a shamrock. The scientific analogy that will be provided in a few moments is truly inadequate to describe the Holy Trinity. Misunderstanding 1: The transforming trinity Paul leaves the Corinthians with this blessing in 2 Corinthians 13:14- May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.. Analogies often fall short. Hello busy women! Again, this analogy doesnt work because God doesnt morph, change, or become different aspects of Himself. The Bible teaches that the Father is God, that Jesus is God, and that the Holy Spirit is God. And for a mere mortal to have dared invent it and be able t. Well, the egg analogy, when applied to God, suggests that only one being exists but this being exists in three different parts. H2O is a combination of two particles (atoms) of hydrogen and one particle of oxygen and this compound can exist as water (liquid), ice (solid) and vapour (gas). Water Analogy God is like water, or H2O, which can exist in 3 forms. That is heaven in a person. The more I reflect on Easter, the more Ive realized how much its become a consumeristic holidayeven Did Jesus really rise from the dead? Furthermore, this trinity is related to a shamrock, an apple, or an egg. At times God is Father, or Son, or Holy Spirit. God is much bigger than what we can understand yet He is close enough to us so that we can know some things about Him, though not completely and not everything. I go to prepare a place for you. Your email address will not be published. Scripture however, doesnt depict God this way. When discussing God, especially in regards to his nature, being and persons, a simple statement to articulate the Trinity is: God is 1 what and 3 whos*. These attributes are: omnipotence (all-powerful), omniscience (all-knowing), and omnipresence (exists in all places). And when the time comes when death is allowed to crack your shell in its final hour and your believing soul is released; the Spirit of God that holds you will carry you in His arms to your heavenly home because In My Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. They say that three separate beings exist, 2. Each one is fully God. When we speak of someone as being a "person", we often mean an individual who is separate from other people, or we simply mean a human being. Each one is fully 100% God. We worship one God who exists in three persons. So, I shot down a lot of images that seems to be pretty helpful. Memory, Understanding, and Will. A person distinguishes himself from others by saying me, mine, you, yours, etc. A being is the whole nature or essence of something. 6And there are varieties of effects, but the same God who works all things in all persons., , The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit, be with you all., There is one body and one Spirit, just as also you were called in one hope of your calling; 5one Lord, one faith, one baptism, 6one God and Father of all who is over all and through all and in all. For example, triangles are not the kinds of things that are personal. I think the illustration that represents the Trinity most accurately is the egg example. A chicken egg consists of a shell, a yolk, and an egg white, yet it is altogether one egg. In humans, our spirits are designed to operate with and be united to the soul which is the person of anyone and so it is with our Egg. He explains why the doctrine of the Trinity is essential to the gospel even if it seems abstract or confusing, highlights why all analogies and metaphors are of limited value when thinking about the Godhead, and responds to the . Some who deny the Trinity claim 1+1+1=3, and therefore claim we worship three Gods. When we separate them we can fall into the error of tritheism, which is the worship of three individual deities as one. The shortfall of this illustration, and others like it, is that God cannot be divided into "parts." La da dee dee dum dum (I couldnt remember the in-between parts). Each side is co-equal with the others, yet, each side is necessary. Armstrong. God does not morph from one person to another, nor does God exist as three separate beings. Modalism teaches that the trinity is not three distinct persons, but just different modes that God reveals himself to human beings. For example, an equilateral triangle (a triangle with three equal sides) has three sides. These two analogies are the "water" analogy and the "egg" analogy. Therefore, in this context, God is the what and the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are the who. Ontological means the nature or essence of something. In the first place, if we truly claim to love God, then surely we should endeavour to know Him. Thus the Father is in Jesus " I and My Father are One" (John 10:30), "The Father is in Me" (John 14:10) God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself (II Corinthians 5:19). That fire keeps devils away from the saved. And whos the Holy Spirit? He cares for his creation and his people. - well, sort of.

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