"TRINITY"
TRYING TO UNDERSTAND THAT GOD IS THREE IN ONE

(Why we believe that God is Father,Son & Holy Spirit)

This is tremendously interesting, especially for us modern people.
Those of us who go to church are often used to hearing the minister say "In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit".

Similarly, we say in the creed "I believe in God the Father, in God's son Jesus Christ, and in the Holy Spirit".

(By the way ,the old fashioned word for Spirit was "Ghost", but most people no longer use "Holy Ghost" - for obvious reasons!)

First of all, we need to try and understand what it is that Christians believe about the "Trinity".
When Columbus discovered that the world was round,(orange-shaped) it meant that the world has always been like that.

Similarly, when Christians discovered that God is Three in One it meant that He had always been like that.

When we believe in the Holy Trinity we mean the three-in-one aspect of God's nature.

This is a great mystery and can't be understood by mere human reasoning. And yet it is important, because it shows us what God is like.

The Father, the part of God that is supreme and beyond our understanding.

The Son, Jesus Christ, the part of God which is close at hand, who came to earth and became a human being, so that we could best relate to him in human form. He was the "Son of God", showing what kind of people we could become.

The Holy Spirit, the part of God that lives in our hearts and souls and who is our guide and God's voice within us.

Now, friends, here is the part of "Three in One" which is fascinating for us moderns...

BECAUSE GOD IS A TRINITY,WE CAN FIND MANY OTHER "TRINITIES" IN THE WORLD HE HAS CREATED.

Even the very fabric of our world is a trinity of solids,liquids and gases. (The air itself is a gas.)

The two best-known examples are, WATER, which is ice, liquid or steam, and we humans who are body, mind and spirit. Hence words like "some-body", or phrases like, "He's a very friendly body"; or, I have made up my mind": "She's a bit of a brain". We may talk of a team spirit, or "She's always got a happy spirit about her" ie Mind, Body and Spirit.

Here are some other 'trinities':
Colour:- Any colour, even white, the purest of all, is a combination of red, green and blue.

Time:- Past, present and future are dimensions which only exist in the present universe.

Forces:- Matter is controlled by electromagnetism, gravitation and nuclear reaction.

There are many other demonstrations of the principle of 'trinity', but perhaps the most profound is the "Atom".

The word 'atom' comes from the Greek word for "indivisible" representing the purest essence of a single element, and yet it is made up of three. The proton, neutron at its centre, and of course the negatively-charged electron which acts as a balance with other elements.

Here is a selection of Bible texts, which show us how God has revealed himself as Father, Son and Spirit:

1 Corinthians Ch. 6 v.19
"Do you know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have received from God."

John Ch 14 v26.
"The Counsellor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said." These are the words of Jesus Christ.

Colossians Ch 2 v9-10.
"For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form, and you have been given fullness in Christ, who is the head over every power and authority."

I hope this posting has helped you understand why, on the Sunday after Pentecost, we celebrate TRINITY SUNDAY.

It is amazing that God cared for us imperfect humans so much as to become a perfect human person, Jesus Christ, who died and rose again and is now back in heaven preparing a place for all those who trust in Him. He even sends us his Holy Spirit so that he can be with us for ever, in all circumstances.

What a wonderful God we have!

God bless your body, mind and spirit.

Philip.