I Love Trinity...And You Should Too

I love the Trinity and you should too.  Rather than an abstract theological doctrine, the Trinity is at the heart of the Christian faith.  It is a reality expressed by believers since the ancient church.

The Trinity puts together three Scriptural realities: that God is one (Deuteronomy 6:4); that there are three Persons that are called God, namely the Father, the Son, and the Spirit (John 1:1-4, 2 Corinthians 3:17-18); and that each of these Persons coexist and equally possess the one Divine nature (Matthew 28:19-20).  God is three and one though not in the same way.  Christians confess that there is a Tri-Unity in God, one Divine Essence fully shared by three Persons.  

But, why does the Trinity matter?  What impact does the Trinity have on "the faith once for all delivered to the saints" (Jude 3)?  Why should you care about the Trinity?  Consider its impact on love, salvation, and worship.

The Scripture tells us that God is love (1 John 4:19).  God is love in His very essence because the Father, the Son, and the Spirit have eternally displayed and received love within Himself.   If God were not Trinity, then God would have to create in order to love.  He would need an object to love before He could display or recieve love.  Yet God isn’t dependent on anything or anyone.  The Trinity impacts our understanding of God's love.

But the Scripture also tells us that out of God's eternal love came the salvation of sinners.  Each person of Trinity was involved in the eternal salvation of mankind from sin. The Father initiated the plan of salvation before creation, the Son came to earth and died to purchase salvation, and the Spirit applies the plan of the Father and the work of the Son to us when we repent and believe.  Have we given that much reflection to the Trinitarian shape of salvation?  Without one of the Person's involvement, our assurance would be lost!

Finally, the Trinity impacts our understanding of worship.  The ancient Creed confesses, "we worship one God in Trinity, and Trinity in Unity."  This means the Father, the Son, and the Spirit should be the subject of our worship.  When was the last time we turned our attention to praise each Person of the Trinity?  Like Paul in Ephesians 1, do we give God praise for His glorious grace? 

Though mysterious, the Trinity is an essential of the Christian faith.  It isn't something that can be captured by art and creativity, but something that must be believed based on the revelation of God Himself through His Word.  God is One, yet God is Three (Romans 3:30, 2 Corinthians 13:14).

The Doxology exhorts us to, "Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost."  Jesus commanded His Church to baptize in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Spirit (Matthew 28:19).  The Trinity is not a doctrine for the theologians to consider, it is a reality at the core of the Christian experience.  I love the Trinity and you should too.