I've been thinking about the Trinity -- God in the three Persons of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit -- and how my belief in this 3 in 1 God informs my faith and life. In the Bible, God is always referred to as ONE God. And I BELIEVE that He is the ONE, TRUE God. Yet, He also shows himself to be three different, unique persons, each with certain characteristics and qualities. How do I begin to grasp this concept, to wrap my head around something -- Someone -- that I clearly do not fully understand?
It may be a simplistic view, but the first idea that came to mind for me was one about marriage. Several times in the Bible, it is mentioned that when it comes to marriage, a man shall leave his father and his mother and be joined with his wife and the TWO will become ONE. (Genesis 2:23-24, Matthew 19:5, Mark 10:8, Ephesians 5:31). My husband and I are coming up on 15 years of marriage (crazy, I know!) and though we are two VERY DISTINCT persons, we are unified as ONE in our marriage, in our family, and usually...hopefully...in our visions and dreams for our life together.
If you are a believer, a follower of Jesus, I also HAVE to add that God is very much a part of our marriage, to the point that I consider him a third part --THE third person -- in our marriage. THREE IN ONE. Without God, there is nothing to base our marriage on. It is in HIS name that our vows were spoken to one another. It is only through HIS strength, HIS love, HIS guidance that we can ever hope to have a beautiful, healthy, life-long relationship with one another. God is of the UTMOST importance.
Ephesians is a book in the Bible that I have continually come back to and learned more from over the years. There it says, "...for we are members of his body. For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh. This is a profound mystery --but I am talking about Christ and the church. (Eph. 5:30-32)." So much could be said about this scripture, and there is much that I do not fully understand. But what I see here is a reflection of Jesus and his Bride, the church, being seen in the marriage relationship. And God is in that relationship, woven through in a myriad of ways. THREE IN ONE.
In my studies and research for this post, I came across an article by Matt Perman on DesiringGod.org about the doctrine of the Trinity. One thought that jumped out at me was that God is One AND Three, but not in the same way. God is one in ESSENCE, but three in PERSON. Obviously, I am not a theologian, and am definitely still chewing on all of this. But I think that the same can be true in a marriage, one that is based on the one, true God!
*This post is inspired by the IF Gathering and their latest Bible study, I Believe, a study of the Nicene Creed. Women of ALL ages, you are invited to join us, to learn more about God, to wrestle with your questions about faith, and to be a part of a vibrant community of women! To learn more, go to http://www.ifequip.com/. Or, download the NEW App, available for iPhone and Android. Visit http://ifgatheringapp.com/ for more information!
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