Christian: Are Christians forgetting that Jesus IS God Himself? (Earth, Isaiah)

[Christy]

I teach a Bible-study class to 6th-8th graders in preparation for their affirmation of their baptism in a ceremony we call Confirmation. I have done this for many years.

I have absolutely NOTHING against the Trinity doctrine because my Lord Jesus is the one who talked about baptizing in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. But here is the problem: I believe that because of our teachings many new Christians incorrectly see three thrones in Heaven - the big throne on which sits the Father, the medium size throne on which sits Jesus, and the smallest throne on which sits the Holy Spirit. And yet, we tell them that we worship ONE GOD, which we do.

The Trinity has been a confusing concept for all of Christendom. I believe that Jesus used this imagery to help us begin to understand how God could be in many different places and in many different times - all at the same time. God is not bound by specific place and time as we are. Until recently, we had no concept of the possibility of other dimensions outside of our familiar three dimensional world. This is beginning to change as our cutting edge scientists theorize "string theory" and "quantum mechanics."

But back to our Christian faith. We teach that God sent His Son Jesus into the world to redeem the world through His innocent death on the cross. But we also teach that Jesus IS God and we profess this truth in our creeds. However, we rarely put these two concepts together to get the full and beautiful picture of what God did for us. It was GOD HIMSELF who was born in that manger to live among men. It was GOD HIMSELF who died on that cross. (And Yes - you people of Islam who laugh at this truth - God CAN be in Heaven ruling AND be on that cross DYING at the same time. God can die and live at the same time. Why? Because He is God.)

God did not send another being to die on the cross for us. He came Himself and died for us. That is the powerful and wonderful truth. Why do our teachings not adequately reflect this??????

[Scuba Pete]

One of my favorite scriptures:

Isaiah 55:7 Let the wicked forsake his way and the evil man his thoughts. Let him turn to the LORD, and he will have mercy on him, and to our God, for he will freely pardon. 8 "For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways," declares the LORD. 9 "As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts. 10 As the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and do not return to it without watering the earth and making it bud and flourish, so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater, 11 so is my word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.

No we can't fully understand God, but we can still try!!!

I agree with your concept of the trinity.

[DirtyHarry]

Originally Posted by Christy

Why do our teachings not adequately reflect this??????

Probably because, as finite human beings, we cannot even begin to adequately understand the concept of eternity, omniprescense, trinity, etc. But I agree, we can still try!

[fromthe heart]

Originally Posted by Christy

I teach a Bible-study class to 6th-8th graders in preparation for their affirmation of their baptism in a ceremony we call Confirmation. I have done this for many years.

I have absolutely NOTHING against the Trinity doctrine because my Lord Jesus is the one who talked about baptizing in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. But here is the problem: I believe that because of our teachings many new Christians incorrectly see three thrones in Heaven - the big throne on which sits the Father, the medium size throne on which sits Jesus, and the smallest throne on which sits the Holy Spirit. And yet, we tell them that we worship ONE GOD, which we do.

The Trinity has been a confusing concept for all of Christendom. I believe that Jesus used this imagery to help us begin to understand how God could be in many different places and in many different times - all at the same time. God is not bound by specific place and time as we are. Until recently, we had no concept of the possibility of other dimensions outside of our familiar three dimensional world. This is beginning to change as our cutting edge scientists theorize "string theory" and "quantum mechanics."

But back to our Christian faith. We teach that God sent His Son Jesus into the world to redeem the world through His innocent death on the cross. But we also teach that Jesus IS God and we profess this truth in our creeds. However, we rarely put these two concepts together to get the full and beautiful picture of what God did for us. It was GOD HIMSELF who was born in that manger to live among men. It was GOD HIMSELF who died on that cross. (And Yes - you people of Islam who laugh at this truth - God CAN be in Heaven ruling AND be on that cross DYING at the same time. God can die and live at the same time. Why? Because He is God.)

God did not send another being to die on the cross for us. He came Himself and died for us. That is the powerful and wonderful truth. Why do our teachings not adequately reflect this??????

Wasn't it Jesus who called God His Father seperating the two...we didn't just make it up....is it so wrong to see the trinity as a triangle of power?

[DirtyHarry]

I don't think its wrong, but we can't just say a triangle of power and leave it at that. I mean, that's the whole point, it is a triangle of power, but it's also just one unit of power. Its confusing and my brain is swelling up....

[Scuba Pete]

You know,

Christians should learn a simple little phrase... it's just a few words long:

Gee, I just don't know!

It does wonders for your soul, and allows God to work within you. When it comes to certain passages that I just can't figure out, I find that I ascribe to the "Panalennia Deos Theory". It's all gonna pan out just the way God wants it to. I can stop worrying now for God is in control.

[Hope]

Lol, NetDoc. I like that...

Here's something I've heard described about the Trinity---as a triune being, God demonstrates to us probably the most important aspect of existence: relationship. The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are in a perfect, loving relationship. They are separate, and yet one. We, the Body of Christ, are also separate, and yet one. Because of relationship. It's not a perfect analogy, of course, for God-in three-persons will always be beyond our human understanding, but it's a way to grasp it a tiny bit.

[Christy]

Thanks to all who are responding to this "question" of mine about the Trinity.

Net Doc: I agree with you that all is ultimately in the hands of God and that we should not worry about concepts we simply do not understand.
But - as I mentioned in my original post, my concern is about our teaching. Saying that God sent a substitute to die in our place and that substitute is His Son is an extremely powerful and loving statement. But - not as powerful as the ultimate truth that
God Himself came down and died on that cross and felt every stinging offense against His holy body.

I listened to a very intriguing radio program several nights ago. It was Coast to Coast Am with a guest named Anne Foerst who is a theologian and also an expert in the field of robots. (A very interesting combination, would you agree?) Anyway, she said that God has given us many metaphors concerning Himself. One metaphor is Jesus. Jesus is God in human form and because of Jesus we feel much more comfortable communicating with God because we feel like we are communicating with another human. Another metaphor, she said, is the Trinity. This metaphor helps us to begin to understand the complexity -

and yes, as you said, my friend HOPE-

the Relationship that is our God

This is all so interesting to me!

[Scuba Pete]

You know...

It's not so much a "TRIANGLE OF POWER, POWER, POWER", as it is a triangle of Love. Hope is spot on, as far as I understand the scriptures.

[Melody]

Originally Posted by fromthe heart

Wasn't it Jesus who called God His Father seperating the two...we didn't just make it up....is it so wrong to see the trinity as a triangle of power?

I don't know if it's wrong, but when I think of God, Jesus and the Holy Spirit, they are one in my mind so there's no triangle.

Melody