as the name says.. explain the trinity.
it seems to me as a mixture of polytheism... tritheism if you will... and modalism...
it seems to me as a mixture of polytheism... tritheism if you will... and modalism...
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explain to me the trinity
- Thread starter BloodFire
- Start date
the first google I found:
"Trinity" is a term that is not found in the Bible but a word used to describe what is apparent about God in the Scriptures. The Bible clearly speaks of God the Father, God the Son (Jesus Christ), and God the Holy Spirit...and also clearly presents that there is only one God. Thus the term: "Tri" meaning three, and "Unity" meaning one, Tri+Unity = Trinity. It is a way of acknowledging what the Bible reveals to us about God, that God is yet three "Persons" who have the same essence of deity.
"Trinity" is a term that is not found in the Bible but a word used to describe what is apparent about God in the Scriptures. The Bible clearly speaks of God the Father, God the Son (Jesus Christ), and God the Holy Spirit...and also clearly presents that there is only one God. Thus the term: "Tri" meaning three, and "Unity" meaning one, Tri+Unity = Trinity. It is a way of acknowledging what the Bible reveals to us about God, that God is yet three "Persons" who have the same essence of deity.
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Bloodfire--
Its the One What and the Three Who's.
Christianity is fiercely monotheistic. Isaiah 43:10-Before me no god was formed, nor will there be one after me.
The Father, Son and Holy Spirit are fully and completely God.
I Corinthians 8:6 - There is is but one God the Father.
The Father speaking to the Son says "Your throne, O God, will last forever and forever - Hebrews 1:8.
When Ananias lied to the Holy Spirit - Act 5:3-4; they not lied to men but to God.
The Father, Son and Holy Spirit are eternally distinct:
The Father and Son love one another and speak to each other - John 17:1-26, and together send the Holy Spirit - John 15:26.
Jesus proclaims that He and the Father are two distinct witnesses and two distinct judges: John 8:14-18
They are all equal in power, nature and essense.
Its the One What and the Three Who's.
Christianity is fiercely monotheistic. Isaiah 43:10-Before me no god was formed, nor will there be one after me.
The Father, Son and Holy Spirit are fully and completely God.
I Corinthians 8:6 - There is is but one God the Father.
The Father speaking to the Son says "Your throne, O God, will last forever and forever - Hebrews 1:8.
When Ananias lied to the Holy Spirit - Act 5:3-4; they not lied to men but to God.
The Father, Son and Holy Spirit are eternally distinct:
The Father and Son love one another and speak to each other - John 17:1-26, and together send the Holy Spirit - John 15:26.
Jesus proclaims that He and the Father are two distinct witnesses and two distinct judges: John 8:14-18
They are all equal in power, nature and essense.
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- May 29, 2005
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Although it can be described on one level that way, it really isn't accurate.
It's like saying a platypus is nothing more than a mix of a duck and a beaver. It may have a similarity with each, but it is its own, separate, unique thing; and describing it as the "mix" just doesn't do it justice.
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Secundulus
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The Trinity is a Mystery. That is, we do not really understand how it could be. We accept it because the scriptures say it is true and because we understand that the fullness of God is beyond our human understanding.
The theological way of describing the Trinity, as others have said, is three persons with one nature.
IN HOC SIGNO VINCES
The theological way of describing the Trinity, as others have said, is three persons with one nature.
IN HOC SIGNO VINCES
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Dondi
Veteran
I think we get so caught up with the numbers thing because three doesn't add up to one, right? As a matter of analogy, I will show you how it doesn't have to add up.
We all know that 1 + 1 = 2, right.
But did you know that 1 + 1 = 1 also? How?
When a husband and wife come together and the woman conceives, there is one egg and one sperm that join together and makes one embyro. This embryo has the genetic characteristics of both mother and father, yet uniquely a human being when formed.
So 1 + 1 = 1.
We all know that 1 + 1 = 2, right.
But did you know that 1 + 1 = 1 also? How?
When a husband and wife come together and the woman conceives, there is one egg and one sperm that join together and makes one embyro. This embryo has the genetic characteristics of both mother and father, yet uniquely a human being when formed.
So 1 + 1 = 1.
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If Not For Grace
Legend-but then so's Keith Richards
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I realize this is oversimplified but I like to think of like:
Water..
Water = h20 This is the "substance" Fluid, flowing, liquid. No Life exists without it for very long. All are drawn to it.
Ice = Water in another form. Used for healing, preservation and can be held and touched.
Steam Water in yet another form. Has great power, usually harnessed for energy.
Now even in different forms the base of the substance H20 does not change it merely changes forms depending on what is to be accomplished. And when the purpose of steam or ice is accomplished they both return to the original state of water...
Think about it...
Water..
Water = h20 This is the "substance" Fluid, flowing, liquid. No Life exists without it for very long. All are drawn to it.
Ice = Water in another form. Used for healing, preservation and can be held and touched.
Steam Water in yet another form. Has great power, usually harnessed for energy.
Now even in different forms the base of the substance H20 does not change it merely changes forms depending on what is to be accomplished. And when the purpose of steam or ice is accomplished they both return to the original state of water...
Think about it...
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or Light.
Light is electromagnetic radiation with a wavelength that is visible to the eye (visible light) or, in a technical or scientific context, the word is sometimes used to mean electromagnetic radiation of all wavelengths.[1] The elementary particle that defines light is the photon. The three basic dimensions of light (i.e., all electromagnetic radiation) are:
Light is electromagnetic radiation with a wavelength that is visible to the eye (visible light) or, in a technical or scientific context, the word is sometimes used to mean electromagnetic radiation of all wavelengths.[1] The elementary particle that defines light is the photon. The three basic dimensions of light (i.e., all electromagnetic radiation) are:
- Intensity, or alternatively amplitude, which is related to the perception of brightness of the light,
- Frequency, or alternatively wavelength, perceived by humans as the color of the light, and
- Polarization (angle of vibration), which is only weakly perceptible by humans under ordinary circumstances.
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dentonz: isnt that modalism?
dondi: isnt that tritheism?
if not for grace: isnt that modalism?
calidog: isnt that modalism?
sry if it seems like im being rude.. im not trying to... bt i fail to see how trinitarianism is different frm a mix of modalism and tritheism...!
it seems like the answers are nonsensical. it says that God is 1 in the ot doesnt it? yet john 1 says that th word was God. yet Jesus prayed to the father and said He had been given the authority frm His father in john 10 .... grr this is so confusin! how can God be th maker of such confusion?
dondi: isnt that tritheism?
if not for grace: isnt that modalism?
calidog: isnt that modalism?
sry if it seems like im being rude.. im not trying to... bt i fail to see how trinitarianism is different frm a mix of modalism and tritheism...!
it seems like the answers are nonsensical. it says that God is 1 in the ot doesnt it? yet john 1 says that th word was God. yet Jesus prayed to the father and said He had been given the authority frm His father in john 10 .... grr this is so confusin! how can God be th maker of such confusion?
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modalism claims that God changes person.
tritheism claims that God is three separate Gods.
trinitarianism claims that one God exists in three persons.
We try in vane to build a model of trinitarianism and always fall short.
The concept comes from the descriptions of God in the bible.
It simply states that there is one God, that the Father, the Son, and the Spirit are persons, and that they individually are One God.
We are body, soul, and spirit, yet we are one. (even that falls short for comparison).
tritheism claims that God is three separate Gods.
trinitarianism claims that one God exists in three persons.
We try in vane to build a model of trinitarianism and always fall short.
The concept comes from the descriptions of God in the bible.
It simply states that there is one God, that the Father, the Son, and the Spirit are persons, and that they individually are One God.
We are body, soul, and spirit, yet we are one. (even that falls short for comparison).
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Secundulus
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Trying to understand the Trinity is difficult, because it is totally outside the realm of human experience. Whatever words we use will always fail to describe the truth in its fullness.
Then why do we believe it?
Because in the scriptures Jesus claimed to be God and at the same time said he was the son of God. In our inadequate human understanding we have then described this as three persons with one nature. What does this mean?
First of all, it cannot be compared to anything else in our physical experience. Anytime we try to describe this in some human terms we invariable wander into one or another heresy. My best understanding is this:
God is three distinct persons (beings - Father, Son , and Holy Ghost) who share one nature (i.e one soul). Again, nothing else in our physical universe is like this so it is very difficult to draw an analogy.
However, we believe this because this is how he is described in the Gospels.
Then why do we believe it?
Because in the scriptures Jesus claimed to be God and at the same time said he was the son of God. In our inadequate human understanding we have then described this as three persons with one nature. What does this mean?
First of all, it cannot be compared to anything else in our physical experience. Anytime we try to describe this in some human terms we invariable wander into one or another heresy. My best understanding is this:
God is three distinct persons (beings - Father, Son , and Holy Ghost) who share one nature (i.e one soul). Again, nothing else in our physical universe is like this so it is very difficult to draw an analogy.
However, we believe this because this is how he is described in the Gospels.
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SuperNova
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Jesus prayed to the Father simply to give us an example to model after. The trinity is a big mystery because our minds are so limited. God is infinite. He has revealed himself to us in only three persons. It's hard to understand because we ask ourselves how can one person be three people? We attribute a human limitation to God. But the way to think of it isn't one person is three people, think of it as an infinite God revealed himself in three persons. God has no limits so 3 persons is possible for an infinite, limitless God. And his perfect plan to bring mankind closer to him was for one of those persons to be born in the flesh and to walk this earth, to teach us all we could grasp about God, and then take the penalty for our sins.
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i dno where you guys get that the Holy Ghost is God...
thanks guys bt im still confused. more and more confusing LOL ...yeah it does seem like modalism and tritheism blended into 1. why wd God cause such difficulty?
thanks guys bt im still confused. more and more confusing LOL ...yeah it does seem like modalism and tritheism blended into 1. why wd God cause such difficulty?
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dentonz
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No, we are the makers of this confusion. Never once are we asked to grasp the mysteries of God with our human minds, that's impossible. However, if we seek his wisdom, by faith trusting that his word is true, he will make himself known to us.
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Catherineanne
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Put it another way. If you were offered a God that you could get your head around, what kind of God would that be?
God is the potter, and we are the clay vessels. Can the clay understand the potter? It can strive and strive to do so, but can it get anywhere near?
St John of the Cross said that God is a great darkness, meaning a mystery we cannot begin to fathom. That is what we contend with in describing the Trinity; God in three persons.
If you read the Book of Genesis, you will find God creating the world with his words. That is God the Father. You will find the Spirit of God hovering over the waters; that is God the Holy Spirit. You will find God walking with Adam in the garden, in the shade of the evening. That is God in human form; God the Son. As Christ says, before Abraham was, I AM.
One God, world without end.
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Dondi
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They say that light can be a particle or a wave, depending on how you observe it.
Thinking in quantum terms, God the Father resides outside the realm of space and time, being Creator apart from His creation. And the Holy Spirit is God's intervention into space/time continuum, an intermediary link between eternity and the universe. And from that Holy Spirit, emerges the physical manifestation of God in the physical world in the form of Jesus, created in the womb of a lowly Israelite girl named Mary.
Here you have one God in three forms simultaneously. This is how I can comprehend this, and I'm sure that even this view has it's theological problems, but it does show the possibility of such. All I know is the promise in I John 3:2:
"Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is."
As an aside, in thinking about the operation of the Holy Spirit, the spirit in Jesus was the Spirit of God directly linked to God the father. In His ministry, Jesus relied on the Holy Spirit for the power and strength needed in the course of his ministry and teachings and drew on the Spirit's power through prayer. Though Jesus was God in the flesh (John 1:14), He didn't let the physical (or carnal) side rule over Him, but was led by the Spirit. He did this by example, so that by the same token, we can be likewise led by the Spirit in our daily lives.
Thinking in quantum terms, God the Father resides outside the realm of space and time, being Creator apart from His creation. And the Holy Spirit is God's intervention into space/time continuum, an intermediary link between eternity and the universe. And from that Holy Spirit, emerges the physical manifestation of God in the physical world in the form of Jesus, created in the womb of a lowly Israelite girl named Mary.
Here you have one God in three forms simultaneously. This is how I can comprehend this, and I'm sure that even this view has it's theological problems, but it does show the possibility of such. All I know is the promise in I John 3:2:
"Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is."
As an aside, in thinking about the operation of the Holy Spirit, the spirit in Jesus was the Spirit of God directly linked to God the father. In His ministry, Jesus relied on the Holy Spirit for the power and strength needed in the course of his ministry and teachings and drew on the Spirit's power through prayer. Though Jesus was God in the flesh (John 1:14), He didn't let the physical (or carnal) side rule over Him, but was led by the Spirit. He did this by example, so that by the same token, we can be likewise led by the Spirit in our daily lives.
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