The Trinity (2)

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Why is it Important to have an accurate understanding of God?

If we are worshipping a made up god, then we are breaking the first commandment. Exod. 20:3
Exodus 20:3 NIV
“You shall have no other gods before me.
This is what every other religion is:
Making up our own version of God in our minds.
Legitimately Deceived: Led astray by στοικεια - Could be real, powerful encounters with spirits.
Mormonism
NAM
Spirit guides
World Religions
Some have never heard
Jesus makes it very clear that we need to believe what is true about him. John 8:24
John 8:24 (NIV)
I told you that you would die in your sins; if you do not believe that I am he...”
We worship a specific God.
Story: Young man at SDSU last semester - “Probably everyone is worshipping the same God, they just don’t know it.”
Some believes this out of ignorance.
Show them Jesus’ claims.
“I didn’t know that.”
Some purposely trying to undermine Jesus claims.
Show them Jesus claims.
They get angry. Reject what Jesus said.
Guy tipping over at Mesa.
Religious leaders eventually killed Jesus, not because of his moral teachings, but because of who he claimed to be.
The onely true God.
The Most High God.
The Creator God.
The Triune God.

Video

What does the Bible teach about the Trinity?

1. God is three distinct persons. Matt. 3:16-17

Matthew 3:16–17 NIV
As soon as Jesus was baptized, he went up out of the water. At that moment heaven was opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting on him. And a voice from heaven said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.”
Jesus was being baptized.
The Spirit came upon him.
The Father spoke.
Heresy that denies this = Modalism
The belief that God is one person who appears in three different forms/modes.
Modern example: Oneness Pentacostalism

2. Each person is fully God.

The Father is God. No one seems to argue with that. (Gen. 1:1)
The Son (Jesus) is God. Col. 2:9
Colossians 2:9 NIV
For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form,
The Holy Spirit is God. Acts 5:3-4
Acts 5:3–4 NIV
Then Peter said, “Ananias, how is it that Satan has so filled your heart that you have lied to the Holy Spirit and have kept for yourself some of the money you received for the land? Didn’t it belong to you before it was sold? And after it was sold, wasn’t the money at your disposal? What made you think of doing such a thing? You have not lied just to human beings but to God.”
Heresy that denies this = Arianism
The belief that Jesus was created by the Father and similar to God, but not fully God.
Jehovah’s Witnesses are a modern day example of this heresy.

3. There is one God. Deut. 6:4

Deuteronomy 6:4 NIV
Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one.
Isaiah 45:5 (NIV)
I am the Lord, and there is no other; apart from me there is no God...
“God is one” (Rom. 3:30).
Heresy that denies this = Polytheism
The belief in multiple gods.
Examples:
Mormonism - Polytheism with a twist.
Hinduism
Pluralism

4. God has existed from all eternity as the Trinity. John 17:5

John 17:5 NIV
And now, Father, glorify me in your presence with the glory I had with you before the world began.
God could not have had a beginning.
We can look at creation and ask, “Where did that thing come from?”
Eventually we come to terms with the logical fact that there had to be something that was first, that was always there.
Athiests and Christians alike both come to terms with that.
There had to be something out there for all eternity past.
That “thing” was God, the Triune God.

How does this Impact us?

God - Created the World
Sent his Son (1 John 4:14)
Gives his Spirit to live in us and empower us.
Gift:
Peace - Forgiveness of sin
Purpose in life
Hope in life
Eternal life - Shalom peace - Restoration:
China’s Spiritual Need and Claims Summary of the Seven Provinces

“I have long sought for the truth—as did my father before me—but I have not found it. I have travelled far, but I have not found it. I have found no rest in Confucianism, Buddhism, Taoism; but I do find rest in what I have heard to-night. Henceforth I believe in JESUS.” This man was one of the leading officers of a sect of reformed Buddhists in Ningpo.

Asked “How long have you had the good news in England.”
Hudson - “Hundreds of years”
China’s Spiritual Need and Claims Summary of the Seven Provinces

“What!” said he, “is it possible that for hundreds of years you have had the knowledge of these glad tidings in your possession, and yet have only now come to preach them to us? My father sought after the truth for more than twenty years, and died without finding it. Why did you not come sooner?”

The man went on telling others about Jesus for the rest of his life.

Applications:

Love this God with all your heart.
Renounce other god’s, spirits or alternative religions.
As you learn about who God is in the Bible, reform your ideas about God.
Be confident in the Greatness of God (Ps. 46:10)
Discussion Questions
Why is it important to try and have an accurate view of God?
Christian Beliefs: Twenty Basics Every Christian Should Know Questions for Review and Application > Chapter 3: What Is the Trinity?

Can you name three or four key passages of Scripture that tell us about the Trinity? What exactly do these passages tell us about the Trinity?

Christian Beliefs: Twenty Basics Every Christian Should Know Questions for Review and Application > Chapter 3: What Is the Trinity?

Why do all analogies fail in their ability to fully explain the Trinity? Does this mean we should try to come up with an analogy that works? Why or why not?

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