Day 54 – Three in One
And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God,
Begotten of the Father and only begotten
That is, from the essence of the Father,
God from God, Light from Light,
True God from True God,
Begotten, not made,
of one essence with the Father.
Through whom all things were made,
both the things in heaven and the things upon the earth,
Who for us men and for our salvation,
Descended and became flesh and became man,
Suffered and arose on the third day,
and ascended into the heavens,
and is coming to judge the living and dead.
We believe also in the Holy Spirit.3
I happened across a metaphor for the Trinity, in Tertullian, of all people... It’s an image of the Trinity as a plant, with the Father as the deep root, the Son as the shoot that breaks forth into the world, the Spirit as that which spreads beauty and fragrance. –KATHLEEN NORRIS
God is Three in One. So say the vast majority of Christians throughout history. They proclaim God as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. And they are not alone. Theologians of other religions, using different phrases, have often whispered of a triune God.1 Opponents abound, of course, who dismiss any talk of “God in three Persons” as nothing other than token polytheism. They accuse Christians of worshiping three separate deities, not one. If one listens to their criticism long enough, the Trinity—a rather opaque concept to begin with—can become even more obscure.
A review of history will remind us that the concept of the Trinity has always been clouded in controversy and mystery. The word itself does not appear at all in the Old or New Testament, although it is strongly implied in certain passages of scripture.2 The early church fathers, after debating loud and long about it, issued in AD 325 from the Council of Nicaea this famous, yet esoteric, explanation:
We believe in God, Almighty Father,
Maker of all things seen and unseen,And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God,
Begotten of the Father and only begotten
That is, from the essence of the Father,
God from God, Light from Light,
True God from True God,
Begotten, not made,
of one essence with the Father.
Through whom all things were made,
both the things in heaven and the things upon the earth,
Who for us men and for our salvation,
Descended and became flesh and became man,
Suffered and arose on the third day,
and ascended into the heavens,
and is coming to judge the living and dead.
We believe also in the Holy Spirit.3
Since then, theologians of every era have tried to shed light on the subject. Almost all have relied on analogy and metaphor, recognizing that the Trinity is inherently an inexplicable concept. They have realized that if God Himself forever transcends us, then the nature of the Trinity—His very essence—will always elude full human understanding.
What I am about to relate to you is my own take on the subject, my own way of looking at God as Three in One. It, too, is an analogy and thus inevitably falls somewhat short of its goal. But it serves for me a vital purpose: it helps me see how God could at the same time be both “One” and “Three in One.” If it helps you, please feel free to use it. If it doesn’t work, find one of the other analogies out there that appeals to you.
Let’s look again at that kindergarten teacher from Day 51. A week before the beginning of school, her existence and nature are completely unknown to those kids. She is removed from them, beyond their world. Even at the end of the school year, much about her remains to them a mystery. The full extent of her knowledge, the total range of her activities, and the summation of her personality will forever elude them. In this respect, it can be said that a part of her will always transcend them.
Incomplete as it may be, the boys and girls do obtain a great deal of knowledge about her during the course of the year. First, they become aware of her existence when she calls and tells their parents they are in her class. A few days later they meet her in the classroom for orientation, then for daily lessons. Then, week after week, the teacher reveals herself to them and relates to them. She may even choose for a while to become a child herself, playing and interacting with them on the floor. In this revealing and relating, it can be said that a part of her descends to them.
When summer comes and the school year ends, the children no longer see their teacher. Still, the impact she has made remains with them. As they apply the concepts she taught them in school, her memory lives inside them. As they behave in the manner she showed them, her teaching influences their lives. If she did spend those minutes with them on the floor in childlike play, her words would be all the more alive to them. In this and sundry others ways, it can be said that a part of her indwells them.
In summary, then, the teacher is to these boys and girls transcendent, descendant, and indwelling. She is beyond their understanding, yet reveals and relates to them, and in part remains inside them. She is to them all three, yet one person. And if she visited the house of each of the children the summer after, she would be to them all three at once. Standing in their kitchen, parts of her nature would still remain beyond them. At the same time, by visiting in person she once again would be revealing and relating to them. And, as she converses with the children that day, what she said and did during the school year would remain inside them. In one and the same moment, the teacher standing in that kitchen would be to those kids a transcendent, descendant, and indwelling force in their lives. Yet they would know full well that, though perceived in these three ways, she is one force, one being, one person.
In summary, then, the teacher is to these boys and girls transcendent, descendant, and indwelling. She is beyond their understanding, yet reveals and relates to them, and in part remains inside them. She is to them all three, yet one person. And if she visited the house of each of the children the summer after, she would be to them all three at once. Standing in their kitchen, parts of her nature would still remain beyond them. At the same time, by visiting in person she once again would be revealing and relating to them. And, as she converses with the children that day, what she said and did during the school year would remain inside them. In one and the same moment, the teacher standing in that kitchen would be to those kids a transcendent, descendant, and indwelling force in their lives. Yet they would know full well that, though perceived in these three ways, she is one force, one being, one person.
That’s the way I like to look at God. In many respects, He is removed from us and beyond our reach. He is to us, and to some extent will always be, transcendent. But God has also revealed Himself to us and related to us. He thus is very much a descendant Being. At first, His revelation was somewhat from a distance—through nature, history, and the prophets. Then, in the fullness of time, we Christians believe that God “stooped” to our level, pouring His nature into the flesh and blood of one man. Through Jesus, humans came to understand the nature of God as never before, and his effect on lives continued long after his earthly existence. His followers seemed transformed by him on the inside. Though he was physically absent from them, it was as if God in Jesus remained with them—still speaking, empowering, and guiding. In this way, God was (and is) indwelling them (and us).
God is thus at all times transcendent, descendant, and indwelling. He is truly Three in One. When analyzed, Tertullian’s analogy says the same thing. God the Father is the root hidden from us. God the Son is the flower that “breaks forth into our world.” God the Spirit is the unseen fragrance that remains. Three parts of a plant, yet very much one organism. Three Persons of the Trinity, yet very much one God. In the first chapter of Genesis, He is the transcendent Power relating to us in creation, placing within our hearts His Moral Law. In Job, He is the God beyond all understanding who reveals Himself in the whirlwind and transforms Job’s life within. In the prophecy of Isaiah, He is the awesome Holiness who shows Himself to his prophet and empowers him for service. In the New Testament, we see the same picture, clearer than before. Here God in many aspects remains transcendent. But when He through Jesus descends to earth, men and women begin to see more clearly a loving Father (in the Aramaic “Abba,” literally “Daddy”) who cares for human beings more than they can fathom. Then, on the cross, Jesus painfully demonstrates this divine love, leaving such an impact on his followers that, in addition to his physical resurrection, he becomes alive inside them. The Spirit of Christ indwells them, guides them, emboldens them, turns them into “little Christs” (i.e. Christians). And so it remains for us today.
God is Three in One. He is transcendent, descendant, and indwelling—all three at once. He stands in the “kitchen” of our lives beyond us, among us, and within us. Though in many ways removed from us, He is at this moment relating to us, seeking to revive our hearts. It is my sincere prayer—offered in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit—that we all may experience the triune nature of God.
1See Karen Armstrong, The History of God (New York: Ballantine Books, 1993), 130.
2Matthew 28:18, First Corinthians 12:4-6, Second Corinthians 13:14, Ephesians 4:4-7, First Peter 1:2, Jude 20-21
3Robert A. Baker, A Summary of Christian History (Nashville: Broadman, 1959), 62.
Daily Quotation
Kathleen Norris, Amazing Grace: A Vocabulary of Faith, 291.
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