We are always in his mind
The doctrine of the Trinity has been a central element of the Christian tradition for more than 1600 years. For many Christians, it is a natural part of their faith, even if they rarely think deeply about it. Regardless of individual understanding, one thing remains clear: the triune God is unwaveringly committed to including us in the amazing fellowship of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
Divine Community
The doctrine of the Trinity states that there is one true God who is united in perfect love as Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Jesus said: "I and the Father are one" (John 10,30). There is no Father without the Son and the Spirit, no Son without the Father and the Spirit, and no Holy Spirit without the Father and the Son. Whoever entrusts himself to Jesus is accepted into Christ and thus into the community of the triune God. The love that God showed in the incarnation of Jesus Christ is eternal and unshakable. God declares that you belong to him and are of great importance to him. The Christian life always revolves around an intimate relationship with the triune God.
Mutual indwelling
The early Church referred to this communion of Father, Son and Holy Spirit as perichoresis, which means mutual indwelling or oneness in each other. It reflects the dynamic, loving relationship between the three divine persons. In the Gospels, this unity is made clear by the words of Jesus: "Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father in me; if not, believe for the sake of works" (John 1).4,11).
Early Christian theologians use the term perichoresis to explain the profound and intimate communion between the three persons of the Trinity, engaged in an eternal "dance of love." In the Gospels, we see Jesus in a dynamic, loving relationship with the Father and the Holy Spirit. God is present in his entirety in each of the three persons, while at the same time being distinct from one another as persons. Their true relationship and genuine exchange binds them together forever. The Athanasian Creed sums it up: The unity of God is a Trinity and the Trinity of God is a unity. This truth describes the Trinity.
The woven blanket
The theology of the Trinity seems complicated. But our connection to the Trinity of God can be compared to a fabric. In weaving, lengthwise and crosswise threads (weft and warp threads) are woven together to create a fabric. In this analogy, God is one thread and man is the other, both are woven together. Paul explained this image to the pagans in Athens: "For in him (God) we live and move and have our being; as some of your poets have said, 'We are his offspring'" (Acts 1).7,28). In the finished woven fabric, the individual threads can no longer be recognized. Jesus prayed for his disciples shortly before his death: "And I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one, as we are one" (John 17,22).
The God in whom we live and have our being is the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, each existing in the other in intimate communion and love: "I am the way and the truth and the life; no one comes to the Father except through me. If you have known me, you will know my Father also. And from now on you know him and have seen him" (John 14,6-7). We learn about the revelation of God through his Son Jesus: «Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father in me? The words that I speak to you I do not speak on my own authority. But the Father who dwells in me does his works. Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father in me; if not, believe for the sake of the works» (John 14,10-11).
The Son of God becomes human so that we humans can willingly join in this positive community of love: "I do not pray for these alone, but also for those who will believe in me through their word, that they may all be one. As you, Father, are in me and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me" (John 17,20-21).
Salvation flows from God's absolute love and faithfulness to humanity, not from a desperate attempt to repair the damage of sin. God's gracious plan for humanity existed before sin even entered the picture: "For he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him in love" (Ephesians 1:14). 1,4). We often forget this, but God never does.
In his embrace
Through the Holy Spirit in Jesus Christ, according to the will of the Father, we sinful people are lovingly held in the divine embrace of the triune God. This is exactly what the Father has intended for us humans from the beginning: "He predestined us to be adopted as his children through Jesus Christ, according to the good pleasure of his will, to the praise of his glorious grace, with which he has freely bestowed upon us in the Beloved" (Ephesians 1:14). 1,5-6).
God created us for this reason—so that we might be his beloved children in Christ. This was God's will for us before creation. Through the atoning incarnation of the Son, people have already been forgiven, reconciled, and saved in him. Divine amnesty has been proclaimed for all humanity in Christ. The sin that entered into human nature and experience through Adam cannot compare with the overwhelming flood of God's grace through Jesus Christ. "Therefore, as through the sin of one (Adam) all men were condemned, so also through the righteousness of one (Jesus) all men are made righteous and lead to life" (Romans 1:14). 5,18).
Universal salvation?
Will everyone automatically – perhaps even against their will – enter into the joy of knowing and loving God? This is a contradiction in terms, because it is impossible to love someone against their will: “And I, if I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself” (John 1).2,32). God wants everyone to come to faith, but he does not force anyone: «Who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth» (1. Timothy 2,4).
God loves every person, but he does not force anyone to love him: "For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life" (John 3,16). Love is voluntary and given freely, if not, it is not love.
Always in his mind
The doctrine of the Trinity goes far beyond a mere creed or formal words on a statement of faith. Through his life, death, resurrection and ascension, our Savior Jesus has brought us into this divine fellowship and made us part of it: "The life appeared, and we have seen it, and testify to it, and proclaim to you the eternal life which was with the Father and has appeared to us—what we have seen and heard we proclaim to you, so that you also may have fellowship with us; and our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ" (1. John 1,2-3).
Before the foundation of the world, the Triune God chose to include humanity in the indescribable life, fellowship and joy that Father, Son and Holy Spirit share together as the one true God: "He predestined us to be adopted as children through Jesus Christ, according to the good pleasure of his will, to the praise of his glorious grace, with which he freely bestowed upon us in the Beloved. In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace, which he lavished on us in all wisdom and prudence" (Ephesians 1:24). 1,5-8).
In Jesus Christ, the Son of God in the flesh, we are included in the community and joy of the common life of the Trinity: "But God, who is rich in mercy, because of his great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in sins, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved—and raised us up together and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus" (Ephesians 1:14). 2,4-6).
The gap has been bridged. The price has been paid. The way is open for humanity to come home—like the prodigal son in the parable. Salvation is the result of the Father's everlasting love and power, demonstrated through Jesus Christ and imparted to us by the Holy Spirit. It is not our faith that saves us. It is God alone—Father, Son, and Spirit—who saves us. God gives us faith as a gift to open our eyes to the truth of who He is—and who we are, as His beloved children: "He who did not spare His own Son but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things?" (Romans 1:14) 8,32).
When we trust Jesus as our all in all, it is not an empty trust. In Him our sins are forgiven, our hearts are renewed, and we are included in the life He shares with the Father and the Holy Spirit. God's eternal and almighty word of love and inclusion for you will never fail: "For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor principalities nor powers, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers in any creature, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord" (Romans 1:14). 8,38-39).
Dear reader, through Jesus Christ you belong to God's Trinity, nothing in heaven or on earth can separate you from the love of God! Do you believe that?
by Joseph Tkach
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