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Thursday, October 27, 2011

The Unending Movement of the Trinity

John 14:1 “Do not let your heart be troubled; believe in God, believe also in Me.

Over the past couple of days we have been mediatating on the significance and beauty of the doctrine of the Trinity.  One of the truths that we discover about God in this precious doctrine is that He is constantly moving in and through Himself. In order to better grasp how God is One in His being and yet three in His identity, we must look at the language that Jesus uses to describe what life is like within the "interractive being of God".  Jesus is going to unfold for us what He means in the above verse: believe in God, you believe also in Me."

What life is like within the God
Jesus says these words in John 14:10-11 “Do you not believe that I am in the Father, and the Father is in Me? The words that I say to you I do not speak on My own initiative, but the Father abiding in Me does His works. 11“Believe Me that I am in the Father and the Father is in Me; otherwise believe because of the works themselves." 

As you will notice in the above underlined words, Jesus is speaking of how the Father inwells in Him, and He indwells in the Father.  With the very being of God - which is one being - we see The Father, Son and Holy Spirit mutually moving in, out and through one another.  Older Bible teachers described this constant movement and unity of the Triune God as the "Dance of the Trinity".  God is not a static, lifeless cloud or stark, impersonal idea - He is the source of unending life - since He, within Himself, is constantly acting and interracting within Himself. 

 The Three-fold Distinct Identities within the One God
When you see two people dancing with one another, the movement is as one, even though there are two people.  In the case of God, there is One ongoing dance involving three distinct persons.  Bible teacher R.C Sproul has noted the difference between "distinction" and "separation".  If one were to "separate" their soul from their body - death would be the result; however, if one makes a "distinction" between soul and body - the person will still be alive.  Within God, as he interacts in and of Himself, the distinctions of "Father, Son and Holy Spirit" are made. God is not three "separate" identities, rather He is three "distinct identities", moving in union around one, common, unending life.

Why God's movement and Life is the believer's source of hope
When Jesus spoke these words to the disciples, it was on the eve of His crucifxion.  The Disciples were full of questions - questions about the present situation and questions about the future.  Jesus response was to point them to Himself, since He Himself is in union with and in movement with and is the God of the Bible.  Whenever you see Jesus Christ, you are able to see the beauty and hope of God the Father reaching out by the Holy Spirit to comfort His people.  Whenever you as a Christian are comforted by the Holy Spirit through the scriptures, you are experiencing the love of God the Father and the Son.  Whenever you think on God the Father, you are drawn into the love of the Son by the sweet embrace of the Holy Spirit. 

In a world that is full of darkness and despair, Jesus' words to us, in pointing us to the unending dance of the Trinity, leads us to the only source of hope - The Triune God Himself. 

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