show me your glory. When we view the egg in its entirety we have the Biblical Trinity, One that is Three. But based on what you know that Jesus is born so that He can save people from their wrongdoings, will you trust Him to forgive you. There is one GOD in three persons (Father, Son, Holy Spirit), 2. If we separate them we still may have God the Egg yolk, God the Holy Spirit Egg white and God the Son, the Egg shell/image, three individual parts of an Egg, but they cannot be a Trinity, or tri-unity unless they are unified and are seen as one Egg, so to speak. I remember asking my Life Group last year, How have you heard the Trinity explained? I braced myself for the inevitable reply. Not just for explaining it to others, but to bolster our own faith and see how each One works in our lives. Water can be ice and steam, yet they are the same element. It is a miraculous invention, the egg. The Biblical Principle Of Baptism By Fire, The Deep Things of God: How the Trinity Changes Everything, 3 Reasons Why Jesus Humanity Really Matters Her & Hymn, 3 Reasons Why Jesus' Humanity Really Matters, How Jesus Teaches Us To Be Human Her & Hymn. It does not represent 3 persons existing simultaneously. Our words should dissipate and be replaced instead with an awestruck adoration and wonder, as we realise the only appropriate response is to fall to our knees and humbly worship the one truly perfect, unified divine essence, comprising three diverse, co-equal and co-eternal divine persons. The idea that the Trinity can be compared to a shamrock is largely attributed to St. Patrick. But God is the eternal Light, which has neither had a beginning, nor shall ever fail. But having lots 6 Bible Study Tools To Help You Dive Deeper. Martyn Iles Removed as Managing Director of Australian Christian Lobby by Board, Seven Types of Rest to Restore Your Body, Mind and Spirit, 8 witnesses testified against Hillsong founder Brian Houston in court case, wife Bobbie reveals, Why you feel guilty for not going to church, Samaritan's Purse sends 52-bed field hospital to Turkey. But you cannot be broken when your faith is in Jesus, for the Spirit of the Son that lives in us and gives us the voice through which we cry Abba, Father, (Galatians 4:6,) this Spirit of the Father that dwells within you is there to strengthen, protect and guard your person. And when the time comes when death is allowed to crack your shell in its final hour and your believing soul is released; the Spirit of God that holds you will carry you in His arms to your heavenly home because In My Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. As a doctrine (belief), the trinity is Father, Son, and Holy Spirit as three separate and distinct persons united in one being- God. Celebrating Easter Is About so Much More Than One Hour on Sunday. He got married there in 1965, and his four . Because God is utterly unique, all comparisons will fail at some point. Who is God? Before I even began writing this post, I had an unusual song stuck in my head Holy God, we praise thy name. The Trinity is like an egg. While it captures the idea that God is one, it doesnt do such a good job of showing how God is three and one at the same time. Here are 8 Bible Characters Who Should Be More Famous. But we can (and should) have a solid foundation to explain this core belief of our faith. I never thought about it in that way some of these examples Ive never heard of. Each separate being is co-equal, co-powerful and co-eternal. Answer (1 of 25): Cynics assert that the idea of the Holy Trinity is a logical impossibility. When the Bible talks about God, it may be referring to Jesus Christ in a specific instance, the Holy Spirit in another and God the Father in a third occasion. Trinity is like a Shamrock (or an Apple or an Egg). If you only had an apple core, you wouldnt pack it in your lunch. From time to time, Doctors of the Church used analogies, but with care. The wonders and ways of God may not be apparent or fully known at present, but we can still marvel at His supremacy and worship Him in wonder- Father, Son, and Holy Spirit! Augustine of Hippo/On The Trinity - Wikiversity This is a bad analogy because it fails at the truth that all three persons comprise the fullness of God. Lord of all, we bow before thee. It is the Central Mystery of our Christian faith. Yet, these persons are not separate from one another. Again, this analogy doesnt work because God doesnt morph, change, or become different aspects of Himself. (Describing God as LOVE is my favorite way of understanding the Trinity. A chicken egg consists of a shell, a yolk, and an egg white, yet it is altogether one egg. Despite its potential obscurity, Trinity Sunday is a great occasion for me to revisit an old article on the Trinity. Adorn your liturgical vestments with classic images from the Monastery Icons collection. His ways are higher than ours, but isnt that a comfort?! ), The Son Phil. copyright 2009 by H.D. A certain YouTube page created a famous video titled "St. Patrick's Bad Analogies" (which can be found here), in which the historic St. Patrick meets charming villagers who deride him based on the analogies which he uses in the process of explaining the Holy Trinity. He is one God in three persons, all at the same time. These two analogies are the "water" analogy and the "egg" analogy. Son and Holy Ghost are each fully God. This analogy actually falls prey to the same error of modalism. Through the brokenness of the Shell, His Son, the Spirit white pours out into our beings through our faith in what was done and believers are joined with the yolk, for it is by One Spirit we have access to God the Father (Ephesians 2:18). She would explode!" Light comes from God. Time Analogy God is like time. Is the Trinity like H2O, an egg, or a triangle? - Fervr Its a very common explanation within the church to try to explain how God, who clearly exhorts His followers to preserve His supreme oneness (Deuteronomy chapter 6 verse 4), could also be identified with Jesus (Titus chapter 2 verse 13), and the Holy Spirit (Acts chapter 5 verses 3-4). H2O can exist in three forms: liquid, gas and solid. Hello busy women! One of the more traditional analogies is to the states of water. A good example would be an electrical cord. As John 1:18 says, Jesus is "the only begotten God, in the bosom of [God] the Father.". But we cannot do that (assuming we can) with God. My intention is merely to address some common erroneous analogies, including water. This analogy is an invalid comparison to the Trinity and is a heresy called PARTIALISM. John introduces us to the Trinity in John 1:1- In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and Word was God. Jesus, the Word, was present in Genesis 1. And let us once more come to illustrations. As a result the water molecule must change forms. The trinity is Like a man who is a father, husband, and son. I bet I havent sung or heard this song in years! document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. THE TRUTH IS: From the very beginning, the Blessed Trinity Father, Son, and Spirit was there. How can we explain what it means to have three persons in one being? The Holy Spirit and Son do not send the Father. Water Analogy God is like water, or H2O, which can exist in 3 forms. And whos the Holy Spirit? Although he is one man who is simultaneously a husband, a father, and a student, he would consider it Modalism to suggest that this is a good Trinitarian analogy. For example, we know that God didnt create humanity because He bored or lonely. is not). The egg analogy is very simple but it is OK to show something as simple as an egg can be one and yet three. The Cathedral of the Holy Trinity, constructed between 1800 and 1804, is the first Anglican cathedral to have been built outside the British Isles. Both are one. Though I find the video to be hilarious and often . Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. (John 1:13). You are an egg! Holy Trinity: Some Analogies to Help Us Comprehend Another analogy that Tim remembers, being Irish Catholic, is the analogy of the shamrock with its three parts. Each one is fully 100% God. 6And there are varieties of effects, but the same God who works all things in all persons., , The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit, be with you all., There is one body and one Spirit, just as also you were called in one hope of your calling; 5one Lord, one faith, one baptism, 6one God and Father of all who is over all and through all and in all. There are two basic ways that people misunderstand the Trinity: 1. This book is now available in a published format for easy sharing and classroom use. Its impossible to be an Orthodox Christian without professing belief in the Triune nature of God. The doctrine of the Trinity tells us that there's ONE GOD who is THREE distinct PERSONS existing as a community of self-giving and loving relationships with each other. May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all (2 Corinthians 13:14). What Is the Trinity | Holy Trinity in the Bible | Explore God Jesus Person is joined to the Father by the Fathers Holy Spirit, because Gods Spirit is also Jesus Spirit - "But you are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if the Spirit of God dwells in you. Starting with the three biblical affirmations, ask your kids to show you how these examples support or deny what the bible teaches about the Trinity. When discussing God, especially in regards to his nature, being and persons, a simple statement to articulate the Trinity is: God is 1, *. Well, the egg analogy, when applied to God, suggests that only one being exists but this being exists in three different parts. The angel answered (Mary), The Holy Spirit will come on you, and the power of the Most High (referring to the Father, italics mine) will overshadow you. In Biblical Trinitarianism we can never have one without the other because they are one Spirit; each is the totality of the other which means we cannot have the Holy Spirit without the Father and the Son, We will come (into the believer through the Holy Spirit, John 14:23), and we cannot have the Son without The Father whose Holy Spirit is the Spirit of the Father (Matthew 10:20). We worship one God who exists in three persons. But we cannot do that (assuming we can) with God. Therefore, there is one God, who is eternally present in three persons. But while this idea is central to the Christian faith, it is also incredibly mysterious to us. I and My Father are One (John 10:30). The shell, while important, is no longer needed. Analogies for the Trinity exist to explain the unexplainable. God is like an egg in that He is 3-in-1 God the Father, the Son (Jesus Christ) and the Holy Spirit. These three persons - Father, Son and Holy Spirit - exist together in complete unity, with no separation, as one divine being. But Jesus makes it clear in John 10:30- I and the Father are One. The Greek word for one means one thing, not one person. They are united in their essence (spirit, nature) but not identical persons. This analogy is still not perfect because each of the aspect cannot stand as egg like each of the persons in the trinity can stand as God. However, in some instances, the use of carefully chosen analogies may be of help for some of our brethren in learning the teachings of the Church. When we separate them and view them as individual deities, that is the error of tritheism, which is the worship of three individual gods as one. Born in England in 1961, Benjamin Waterhouse Benjamin Waterhouse has been the organist of the Cathedral of the Holy Trinity since 2000. In an attempt to explain the Trinity, there are some bad examples people use, and some better ones. Jesus is the visual form of God. If the sun exists, there is also day; if nothing of this be manifest, it is impossible that the sun should be there. He was with God in the beginning. Water Analogy - God is like water, or H2O, which can exist in 3 forms. THE TRUTH IS: The Father, Son, and Spirit are three different persons who are all equally one God. If we separate them we still may have God the Egg yolk, God the Holy Spirit Egg white and God the Son, the Egg shell/image, three individual parts of an Egg, but they cannot be a Trinity, or tri-unity unless they are unified and are seen as one Egg, so to speak. For the Trinity, instead of using the formula 1+1+1, we use 1x1x1. For the foolishness of God is wiser than human wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than human strength (1 Corinthians 1:25). Modalism teaches that the trinity is not three distinct persons, but just different modes that God reveals himself to human beings. Have you wondered what is God like? We also know that God didnt create humanity out of loneliness or boredom. The Father sends the Son, and both the Father and Son send the Holy Spirit. Under Arianism Jesus is less than fully God. We have the creeds for just that reason. I dont know how our majestic God feels about being compared to watermelons and eggs, but He is also a loving Father, and like any father, I believe God would seek to provide simple explanations so His little children can understand. An egg has a shell, white, and yolk, but these three are part of an egg or Luzon, Visayas, Mindanao but the same Philippines. The mystery is in the "how" this is accomplished; something we will finally understand in heaven. The egg example, while not perfect or complete by any means, will still give us a basic understanding of the primary principle of Biblical Trinitarianism. Common, yes. This means there is a sense in which all 3 persons may act or speak as one. How so? Did I leave out any analogies? The Trinity is a tri-unity, a unity of Three, - God the Father, Jesus, the Son of God and the Holy Spirit. Tritheism denies the unity of the God-head by saying there is just three different gods. Moreover, the yoke and the whites are no longer as they used to be. To return to my Life Group anecdote, after our discussion I asked why does it even matter?. There have been many attempts to explain the Trinity the relationship between God the Father, Jesus and the Holy Spirit. Just as water changes forms so too is the trinity. - well, sort of. Unfortunately, no analogy is perfect. What happens when an egg hatches? Often these analogies explicitly teach heresy. There's a simple reason they don't work: The Trinity, as such, isn't like anything in creation. I think the analogy of the Sun works well. This is a bad analogy because it fails at the truth that all three persons comprise the fullness of God. PART OF A WHOLE. Further, his dialectic is guided by the particular consideration of what true love is: a trinity of lover, beloved and the love that binds . They are unified in one divine being. As a result, this analogy can easily lead to tritheism in which there are three different gods which might share some like substance. In some ways, it resembles the tritheism view (Misunderstanding 2). And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto Myself; that where I am, there you may be also (John14:2, 3). One is a musical chord with three notes. Part 2. When they used the word person, they didnt mean it in the same way that we do today. Perhaps youve heard the analogy that the Trinity is like H2O (the molecular symbol for water). In Biblical Trinitarianism we can never have one without the other because they are one Spirit; each is the totality of the other which means we cannot have the Holy Spirit without the Father and the Son, We will come (into the believer through the Holy Spirit, John 14:23), and we cannot have the Son without The Father whose Holy Spirit is the Spirit of the Father (Matthew 10:20). Here are some of them: The problem with this is that it leads to the view that God is a Trinity simply because He relates differently to us at different times. Dont grieve the Holy Spirit out of you. 1. What portion of the analogy holds true with Church Teaching? 3:15; John 17:1-4, The Holy Spirit Acts 5:3-4; John 14:16-17, 26; John 16:7-13. For example, I would say, "God is like an egg." My interview: https://www.readlotswritelot.com/wp/podcast/episode-21-john-k-adams/, More from Catholicism for the Modern World, https://www.readlotswritelot.com/wp/podcast/episode-21-john-k-adams/. What Is A Good Analogy For The Trinity? - Therefore, God Exists God is not made up of 3 'parts' like the 3 parts of the egg. How can we ever explain our Most High, exalted, powerful, uncontainable, and most glorious God? The word God in this sense is defined as a single being, having all divine attributes. Now God can be in you by His Spirit! Jesus Person is the image of Gods Person (Hebrews 1:3), and the Invisible Spirit of the Father that is in Him - God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself (II Corinthians 5:19). Few if any have every tried to teach the heresy of Tritheism, but it needs to be mentioned anyway. The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit also exist eternally and concurrently. All three persons exist at the same moment in history. In scripture we see explicit trinitarian references, especially at Jesus' baptism where the Father speaks, the Spirit descends, and the Son is in the water. God created us for community, since God is communal and we were created in His image. I know in the past Ive used analogies that werent the best (more on those later.) Light comes from God. The egg (or apple) fails in that the shell, white, and yolk are parts of the egg, not the egg in themselves, just as the skin, flesh, and seeds of the apple are parts of it, not the apple itself. The Holy Spirit is like the heat that the sun produces, unseen yet powerful and effective in making the sun felt. The sun comprises the sun itself, its light and its heat. It does not imply Jesus was created if you emphasize that the Sun existed from eternity past. We wont find the word Trinity in the Bible, but the concept is shown in many verses. 7But to each one of us grace was given according to the measure of Christs gift., , according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, by the sanctifying work of the Spirit, that you may obey Jesus Christ and be sprinkled with His blood: May grace and peace be yours in fullest measure., , But you, beloved, building yourselves up on your most holy faith; praying in the Holy Spirit; 21keep yourselves in the love of God, waiting anxiously for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to eternal life.. The white of an egg is the connection between the yolk and the shell. 1A) Dave is a son of Graham and Lois Armstrong. . I'm always interested in ways to encourage you, so feel free to contact me and let me know what areas interest you! This is the one I used long ago when trying to explain the Trinity to a group of 1st-5th graders. Water can be ice and steam, yet they are the same element. If you need to use an analogy, then use a good one. Pingback: 3 Reasons Why Jesus Humanity Really Matters Her & Hymn, Pingback: 3 Reasons Why Jesus' Humanity Really Matters, Pingback: How Jesus Teaches Us To Be Human Her & Hymn. It is not existing as 3 different parts (persons) at the same time. But they are one God. This analogy denies the unity of the God-head. The Holy Spirit prays for us. Furthermore, this trinity is related to a shamrock, an apple, or an egg. We can think of it this way: the Father is God, the Son is God, and the Holy Spirit is God. We all want to experience the good life. Explaining the Holy Trinity. We came up with several practical implications of this doctrine. He has not yet revealed some mysteries (what did Jesus do in His childhood, when will He return, what does the word Selah mean in the Old Testament- and so many more.). When we see them as three individual spirits, (God is one Spirit John 4:24), then that is the blasphemy of polytheism which is the worship of more than one God. Paul leaves the Corinthians with this blessing in 2 Corinthians 13:14- May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.. There is what is called the 'triple point' the combination of pressure and temperature at which H2O can exist simultaneously in all three states: solid, liquid and gas. The mystery is in the how this is accomplished; something we will finally understand in heaven. So, in God, there are three distinct persons. Thus the Father is in Jesus " I and My Father are One" (John 10:30), "The Father is in Me" (John 14:10) God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself (II Corinthians 5:19). Let's use an egg to explain the Holy Trinity! The military would like to have that power. Today we celebrate the Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity. The Trinity is distinct in their roles and individuality, but united in their attributes of love, mercy, holiness, knowledge, etc. we worship one God in trinity and the trinity in unity,neither blending their personsnor dividing their essence. However, it breaks down on the level of equality: No one keeps or eats the shell of an egg. The trinity is a like a Three-Leaf Clover. But understanding the Trinity is important. See the depths of Catholicism for yourself! Our limited intellects are unable to comprehend its reality, yet, our Scriptures and scholarly Tradition makes it known to us.