This excellent and informative video is a segment from one of the Transformations series, dedicated to racial reconciliation found here:

http://www.globalnetproductions.com/

The Native American Resource Network Page is here:

http://www.narnministries.org/economic.html

If you are in Oklahoma or the surrounding region and are interested in developing a fellowship or ministry dedicated to reconciliation and/or preaching Christ among American Indians, contact me. Like the video says… this work is of utmost importance.

I note that Lao Tzu describes God as “Tao” (translated as the “Way”). I further note that Lao Tzu says that Tao could be called “the Mother of all things”. And finally, Lao Tzu gives Tao the name “The Great”. This is a profound chapter from the Tao Te Ching.

I am eager to provide this analysis, because it helps to solidify my understanding on these issues. To explain these things as you (Matt) have asked is a real blessing to me. I deeply appreciate the questions that you asked last fall. I keep these things in my mind and try to work through my understanding as I go about my day’s activities, and that is one reason it takes me some time to respond. I feel these things in my soul.
The Trinity issue is extremely important for disciples of Jesus to understand. I am afraid that too many believers in Jesus’ divinity, don’t understand what exactly, they believe. It is daunting to sit down with a Muslim, who is vehemently monotheistic, and explain how One God equates to a Father, Holy Spirit, and Son. The confusion for the Muslim is usually magnified by the power of three, in the disciple of Christ.

The nature of the three individuals of God, also explains another issue for which most Christians are uncomfortable in discussing.

The fact that God can forgive ANY sin is Amazing. It is Amazing Grace, to be precise.

Christ can transform men and women in miraculous ways.

Yet, Jesus tells us in Mark 3:28-29, “I assure you that any sin can be forgiven, including blasphemy; but anyone who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will never be forgiven. It is an eternal sin.”

Let me say it…, Nuance & Paradox of God. I am advocating a Theology of Nuance.
God can forgive any sin and blasphemy except blasphemy of the Holy Spirit.
There are NO “hard and fast rules” with God.
Innocence is not determined by strictly following God’s Law and guilt is not determined by “technically” breaking God’s Law (Mt 5:27-30 & Mt 12:1-14). We are disciples of a God who demands a very loose Theology of Nuance.

I want to explain how my understanding of the individual character functions for the Trinity, will shed light on the Father’s inability to forgive blasphemy of the Holy Spirit. Look below at the description for how the Father, Son and Holy Spirit function. I had this in the post of March 19, 2007.

1. The Father is executive. He is the planner. He sets the vision. His will be done. He administrates the purpose. He is the Captain of the ship. He is the General of the Army.
2. The Son is the labor. He is the active. He fulfills the vision. He completes the will of the executive. He is the XO for the Captain of Ship. He is the Cavalry and Infantry and Armor of the Army.
3. The Holy Spirit is the material supply chain. He produces & provides the power. He is the materiel supply line. He delivers the fuel to the Armor. He delivers ammunition to the Infantry. He provides counsel and support to the wounded. He is the Navy Corpsman & Army Combat Field Medic.

Now let me make a point from carnal brutality and violence of war. In war, Navy Corpsman & Army Combat Field Medics, will always have insignia on their helmets and arms, indicating their role and position in the battle. They are never supposed to be targeted by combat personnel, nor are they ever supposed to be exploited for combat purposes. It is an “unforgivable” sin to target non-combatant medical personnel. It is also an “unpardonable” sin to use them, hospitals, and ambulances for combat functions. This is in our human psyche. We feel it in our bones. It makes emotional sense, even while we cannot explain it rationally.
This is from God.
This is the design of our Creator.

The Holy Spirit is utterly defenseless in our spiritual battle with the demons and our adversary, Satan.
Just as when the Navy Corpsman steps onto the battle field where mortars are going off just a few meters away, he does not take up a rifle, because he has a nobler calling. So long as he is in an ambulance with a bright Red Cross, he is without protection. So long as he has a bright Red Cross on his helmet and arm band, he is acting as the symbolic equivalent God’s Holy Spirit.
When you take aim on the Army Combat Field Medic, you are shooting at the symbolic representation of He, who is the “Breath of Life” in the nostrils’ of “Adam”, i.e. Humankind. Genesis 2:7

• “And the Lord God formed a man’s body from the dust of the ground and breathed into it the breath of life. And the man became a living person.”

What do you have…, if you take aim at the very “breath of life”? Your heart is beyond repair.

God bless,
DSM

Humans do not suffer mysteries easily. This point has been unstated, but integral to most of my essays for the last month.

We are unable to let go of mysteries. If we see a car that has a “vanity” licence plate, we go insane trying to figure out what the thing means. So long as the car is in front of us, we will ponder the mystery of the unique order of the symbols, until the car turns or we figure it out, e.g. “LISINSPL8″ for licence plate.

The problem with denying God, is that the evidence for Him is everywhere we turn. So, God’s automobile is always before us, with the licence plate that says “GODSPACE”.

Therefore, if we tell ourselves that God is not driving the car, we are left with a big problem.

If He is not in the drivers seat who is?

We will fill the drivers seat with a “new faith.” Because the fact that we observe a “creation”, necessarily requires the existence of a “Creator” or a creator.

This “New belief/faith” has tangible tenets, which are set in the form of an implied creed, no less than any other religion that we might observe in our world.

Let’s briefly consider a portion of the canon of this religion, which is called Secular Humanism.

To become an adherent in the Religious Order of Secular Humanism one must adhere to the following TENETS of the Faith:(Please tell me if you think these are straw-man arguments. It is not my intent to spar with an imagined foe of truth. This list is my own creation, and is based on my personal struggles with faith.)

• 1. Disavow the God of Creation.
• 2. Disavow Jesus the Son of the God of Creation
• 3. Disavow all matters, which might imply, infer, or otherwise direct the Human consciousness to the possibility of a spiritual dimension. (In other words the only real Universe is the physical Universe.)
• 4. Accept the Physical Sciences as the only way to true Human Enlightenment. (Except when the Physical Sciences discover physical evidence, which might imply, infer, or otherwise direct the Human consciousness to the possibility of a spiritual dimension. In these cases refer to Tenet 3, 2, and 1 in that order and then have a bourbon & soda as due penance.)
• 5. Utterly Ignore the Theological Implications of the Second Law of Thermodynamics. In other words the Religious Order of Secular Humanism must acknowledge the truth of the Second Law of Thermodynamics for the sole purpose of TENET 4, while at the same time denying that the statement “Any system which is free of external influences becomes more disordered with time. This disorder can be expressed in terms of the quantity called entropy.” has any bearing on the fact of the existence of a Creator.

The Second Law of Thermodynamics actually DEMANDS the existence of a Creator.

Look at the hyper linked language above in tenet #5.
· Our Universe should, to any rational mind, qualify as “Any system.”
· God Almighty, the Creator should, also to any rational mind, qualify as an “external influence.”

How might any system (a.k.a. our Universe) become more ordered without an external influence (a.k.a a Creator)? And still be in harmony with the Second Law of thermodynamics? Any ideas…?

I am waiting for an answer!

I have not received one.

Is there any rational Secular Humanist who will dare answer this?

I will wait and see.

Yet, the sciences tell us that there was a “big bang” that brought all visible order, e.g. galaxies, stars, planets, molecules, atoms, neutrons, protons, electrons, neutrinos, quarks, and now branes. All of this physical matter makes up everything that is observed in creation, including you and me.

Am I the only one who has noticed that our Universe/system is very very very ordered?

It is simply blind faith that leads anyone to disavow God, for this god of random luck. Try making a “big bang” and see how much order you get. As a kid I loved making small and big bangs with firecrackers. My purpose was not to achieve order, but rather I was in it for the chaos principle. I hoped to turn an ordered cardboard box into an vast pile of chaotic confetti.

Is it necessary to take this illustration any further? Need I tell you that I never once produced a ROLEX Chronograph timepiece with my “Black Cats” and “M-80s”? Or did you already guess that?

Never once, did I produce a Siamese cat from my “Black Cat” firecrackers. Did you guess that too? My…, you are presumptuous! Or maybe you are just following logic and evidence.

Folks, please remember that our solar system’s Sun has coalesced in an order that is so envied by the energy producers of our world that it would be revolutionary (Divine) if we could reproduce it.

Look at this quote about the order required for “Nuclear Fusion” of our Sun from the scientist Russ George in March 1999.

• “The number of people working in this field around the world has in fact declined from about 1,000 to around 100, because the reaction is very elusive. Cold nuclear fusion is not an invention, but a phenomenon of nature, which is very energetic. Nature, however, does not seem to use it on a very large scale, and the reaction is not normally seen as very robust or easily reproducible.”

Please, if you would permit me to paraphrase this quote,

• ‘Fewer and fewer scientists are venturing into this field, because we are finally beginning to realize the amount of “external influence” that is required to produce a sustainable and ordered “cold nuclear fusion” reaction. We are concluding that only a Creator can do this in an easily reproducible way and on the quantitative scale that is observed in all galaxies.’

My point, Matt, is that the universe is a very big mass of order, that is moving toward chaos and disorder, just as the Second Law of Thermodynamics, unambiguously, states. If it were not so, then our science would be useless to us. We depend on the Laws of Physics to sustain our continuing expansion of knowledge. If I can show a single example of disorder spontaneously moving to a state of order, then the Laws of Physics will collapse. Yet, that is what the religion of Secular Humanism states as a matter of faith.

It is really no different than if I can show a single example of dropping a brick and it floating into space. If this were to occur, the physical Law of Gravity would be dashed to oblivion. We are fools to claim that we can suspend various laws of physics for a single instant, just so that we can take comfort in killing God. We kill science if we do this, and still God will remain.

To disbelieve a Creator demands that I believe an absolute contradiction in the Laws of Physics.

Science, on this score, proves that the Religious Order of Secular Humanists, also known, as atheists could just as credibly claim that “Up is down and East is West.”

I do believe science is valid. Science confirms my faith in the Creator many times every day.

• Scientists however, let me down many times every week.
• They sometimes lie, just as I have done.
• They, are blinded by personal biases, just as I am inclined to be.
• They act and respond, with incongruity, to the science for which they prove and attest.
• They are human, just as am I. God bless them, they are as helpless as you or I, when we are acting outside of the Creator’s Laws.

I have no problems with Science per se, after all, the Laws of Science were established by the Creator.

So, you can see how my thoughts flow. I was faced with these irreconcilable TENETS in Secular Humanism, and yet, still I was obliged to “Believe” in something far less credible.

I couldn’t get away from this fact. Belief is compulsory for all human philosophy, even “Non-belief.”

Would I feel more complete by embracing a religion that is devoid of sincerity?

Mind you, I am not saying that this is a reason to trust in the Creator (that will come latter in my answer), but it is certainly a good reason to distrust the Secular Humanist’s veracity and good faith. (Pun intended.)

TO BE CONTINUED…

God Bless,

DSM

This essay is the 1st part of an extended answer to a request from Matt, a fellow blogger. “I have a topic request. If you have the time and the inspiration, would you please write about ”Why I Believe.” I know you’ve probably covered this idea in fragments on most of your blogs, but I would like to hear a complete position on why you believe that God exists, the bible is His Word and that Christ is His Son ect… Thanks.”

Well, Matt you are correct that many of my essays either allude to the answer or assume that the answer is self-evident.First, I should fill in some of the “etc” and also give you some clarification and background for my opinions.

Some of my faith opinions are still in flux. In other words there is some circumstantial data that is in harmony with my “fringe” opinions, but my conclusions are, to some degree, a willing “leap of faith”. This is true for just a few of my beliefs.Nevertheless, all opinions are a mixture of bias and knowledge (this includes OU is better than Texas). Just kidding (Matt is a Longhorn), but the point about bias is real. And this is no less true for faith issues, than it is for collegiate football.
Also, there is so much to my belief, that I will not be able to include everything; otherwise it would be a very long and boring autobiography.

These are the questions that I will address.

• A. Why do I believe in a Creator of the universe?
• B. Why do I believe that Jesus is the Messiah and the actively creative power of this Creator?
• C. Why do I believe that this Creator is the inspiration behind the scriptures?
• D. And, why do I believe that the Church is the body and Bride of Jesus the Creator?

I have focused the question by the modifications above. I think that our answers become more apparent, when our questions become less ambiguous.

ANSWER FOR ITEM “A”

The issue of “Does God Exist?” was a problematic one, in my early adult life, i.e. Age 18 to Age 21. There were some ancillary issues (which are of a personal nature that I won’t include here) that affected my ability to accept “belief.” I have used the term “belief” and not “belief in God”, with intent, which you will see as this answer develops in a later post.

Things that I began to observe in the world, appeared to be out-of-step with what I had been taught by my parents, bible teachers, preachers, etc. And it finally culminated in my 1st freshmen year at Oklahoma Christian College, in the fall and spring of 1983-84. I was in a class that challenged me on my “Belief in God.”
“Genesis”, which was taught by a respected Bible professor and PHD at OC, ironically, challenged my belief in God. Very quickly into the course, the 2nd week, as I recall, we got to Genesis 3. This is the fall of Adam and Eve.

I raised my hand and asked the professor the question, “Did God create the devil?” I thought it was a valid question. Incidentally, I still think it is valid, but I now have the answer that is sufficient to me. (I will give my answer to this at a later date. I believe that this answer is a part of Matt’s “etc.” from his question quoted above.)

We had studied the “creation” episode in the preceding week. But, in Genesis 3:1, we were looking “eye-to-eye” with a talking serpent. The professor gave only a very cursory answer, that I will paraphrase from recollection; ‘Yes, God created all things…, but I don’t have time to go off on “a wild goose-chase.”’

It was my opinion, at that moment, that he had perceived my question as an insolent attempt to divert the focus of his lecture.

And, now that I am 23 years removed from my passions of that morning, I must admit that I was, indeed, a very cheeky college student. And, that I may have, in-fact, been acting mischievous by asking the question to him, in the fashion that I did.
What self-respecting college student wouldn’t take an opportunity to ask an “honest and legitimate” question, which has as an added benefit of pinning the shoulders of an “Ivory Tower” professor to the floor?

I could even feign an indignant offense and by doing so, take the desired excuse for abandoning my faith.

After all there was a “fun” social function coming up in a couple of weeks with a sister club. Hey, if Dr. Blah,Blah can’t answer a simple question about the origin of the devil, then the answer is obvious, right? God, doesn’t exist? And “Come on guys, let’ parrrrrrty!”

It was a very useful Ad Hominem and it opened up my social calendar quite well.

I subsequently dropped out of college that semester, so that I could fully devote myself to hedonism, which had become my new religion.

However, I had not truly abandoned all my knowledge of the bible, which was something that always caused an irritation to my moral conscience, even as I went about my apostate ways.

I won’t go into the dark period of half-life. But, suffice it to say that I awakened one day.

I think it happened when I found my bible in the trunk of my car. There was a lot of symbolism in this storage of what had been a High School graduation gift from the congregation where I’d grown up. The symbolism did not go unnoticed by me. It was a cold shower and demanded that I take a decision on where I was headed. I should either throw away this moldy old book and get on with my life, such as it was, or I should take some serious time restoring the book to a readable condition.

I decided to go the restoration route. The bible had slipped into the lowest part of the trunk, in the fender well. There it got wet from water that seeped up from the drain plug that was in that low area. Each and every page had fused to its neighboring pages. So, the effort to get the pages open was quite time consuming.

But, the pragmatic answer of just disposing of the book and getting a new one, begged the question; Why get a new one? If I don’t care enough about this one that was a gift. I managed to open the bible and I keep it on a prominent bookcase in my living room. It is still misshapen and most of the pages are discolored by mold and water stains. But, it still has the power of life for a seeking heart. And it reminds me of where I have been.

Following my apostasy, a phase that lasted two years, I went back to college and enrolled in a course that had the opposite affect. This course too, was a profound irony.

“Cellular Biology” truly acted as an anchor to my belief in God.
It is one of those ‘paradoxes/paradice’ that this blog highlights.

• I found reason to leave my faith by studying Genesis.
• I found reason to confirm my faith by studying Science, life sciences in-fact; the home of Charles Darwin’s “The Origin of Species”.

God loves teaching us through and by means that are topsy-turvy, upside down and backwards.

This fact is among my personal favorites, for an individual rationale to belief in all of the above questions.

The way that God does things is “foolish” to carnal thinking. But, yet it is logical and orderly in an inexplicable way.

Who hasn’t heard the cliché, “God works in mysterious ways.”? This phrase is a testimony to the fact that there is this “ethereal order” to life that refuses to comport to standard conventions (a.k.a. common sense). Don’t tell me that God expects his people to use “common sense.” God not only doesn’t expect this but he has commanded us to not use “common sense.”

• Luke 6: 27 “But if you are willing to listen, I say, love your enemies. Do good to those who hate you. 28 Pray for the happiness of those who curse you. Pray for those who hurt you. 29 If someone slaps you on one cheek, turn the other cheek. If someone demands your coat, offer your shirt also. 30 Give what you have to anyone who asks you for it; and when things are taken away from you, don’t try to get them back. 31 Do for others as you would like them to do for you.

Which of these is “common sense?”
I will give more detail on this point as we get down through my story.

TO BE CONTINUED…

God bless,

DSM

This, again, is the continuation of the posts of October 10 & 11, which is an exploration of the scriptures from the beginning that reveals the Trinity of God.

We first explored the instances where God speaks of himself (“we”) in the plural and where he speaks to himself (“us”) in the plural. (Genesis 1:26; 3:2; 11:7)

We also reviewed Abraham and Sarah sharing a meal with Yahweh, the three men, the three Angels. All of whom are called Yahweh collectively, cumulatively, and individually in Genesis 18:1 through 19:1.

Then yesterday we considered Moses speaking with Yahweh face to face as a friend speaks to his friend (Exodus 33:11ff). While also being told by Yahweh the Friend that Moses may not see Yahweh’s Glory face to face and live, yet, Yahweh’s Presence would go with him and the people of Israel, each of these descriptions revealing one of the persons of Yahweh our God. The ‘Friend’ is Jesus the Son. The ‘Presence’ is the Holy Spirit. The ‘Glory’ is the Father.

Today we look at Elijah in the desert from 1Kings 19:9-14.

8And he arose, and did eat and drink, and went in the strength of that food forty days and forty nights unto Horeb the mount of God.

9And he came thither unto a cave, and lodged there; and, behold, the word of Jehovah came to him, and he said unto him, What doest thou here, Elijah? 10And he said, I have been very jealous for Jehovah, the God of hosts; for the children of Israel have forsaken thy covenant, thrown down thine altars, and slain thy prophets with the sword: and I, even I only, am left; and they seek my life, to take it away. 11And he said, Go forth, and stand upon the mount before Jehovah. And, behold, Jehovah passed by, and a great and strong wind rent the mountains, and brake in pieces the rocks before Jehovah; but Jehovah was not in the wind: and after the wind an earthquake; but Jehovah was not in the earthquake: 12and after the earthquake a fire; but Jehovah was not in the fire: and after the fire a still small voice. 13And it was so, when Elijah heard it, that he wrapped his face in his mantle, and went out, and stood in the entrance of the cave. And, behold, there came a voice unto him, and said, What doest thou here, Elijah? 14And he said, I have been very jealous for Jehovah, the God of hosts; for the children of Israel have forsaken thy covenant, thrown down thine altars, and slain thy prophets with the sword; and I, even I only, am left; and they seek my life, to take it away.

You should notice that verse nine tells us “the word of Yahweh (Jehovah) came to him.” Have you ever read John 1:1 “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.”? If you have read this passage you will remember that John reveals to us the Jesus the Son is the “Word” of Yahweh. So, when we read that “the word of Yahweh came to” Elijah and spoke to him, we know who of the Godhead that came to Elijah.

You should notice also that the Word of Yahweh asks Elijah “What are you doing here?” to which Elijah gives the Word a sob story about how the whole nation of Israel had given up their faith and that he, Elijah, was the only one left who remained faithful the Yahweh. After the Word listens to Elijah’s explanation, He tells Elijah to go out and stand and prepare for a personal encounter with Yahweh.

When this encounter occurs, you can see some important things about the Father in this episode, Yahweh asks Elijah the very same question that the Word of Yahweh asked in verse nine.

Why did Yahweh ask the question a second time? Why didn’t Elijah say Lord I just told why I am here?

Well obviously, we would not likely make such an impertinent retort as that to our creator and Lord, but the point remains, Yahweh the Glory had arrived just as the Word of Yahweh and stated. Therefore, Yahweh the Glory is not the same person as the Word of Yahweh.

Thanks, again for your patience. I hope that you are beginning to understand that the answer to our atheist, agnostic and Muslim friends are not so difficult. God is one nature; he is perfectly unified in purpose. But, he is three.

The purpose of the Son is to convey glory to the Father. The purpose of the Father is to confer glory to Son. The purpose of the Holy Spirit is to demonstrate glory of the Son. The purpose of mankind is to acknowledge glory of the Son.

The difficulty lay in our willingness to see and our willingness to reveal.

DSM

This is a continuation of the Post, which began October 10, 2006.

Now, to the study of God’s eternal nature, as he has revealed to us through the scriptures, we concluded with Genesis 18-19 yesterday.

^{(Summary) Abram sees “the Lord” in the 3 men at the Oaks of mamre. This enigma of 3 men being referred to as “the Lord” makes sense if you understand that these are angels who represent the Father, Son and Holy Spirit.}

Next, we go to Exodus 33:9ff. In this passage we find a very curious thing, it is either a direct contradiction of the immediate verses within the passage or we might understand that Moses is revealing the Trinity to us.

This is a long passage, but it is amazing, so stay with me, I will be using the old 1901ad version ASV, because it attempted to stay true to the personal name of God, although they mixed up the Yahweh with Jehovah the effort is important to follow what is happening between Yahweh and Moses.

^11And Jehovah spake unto Moses face to face, as a man speaketh unto his friend. And he turned again into the camp: but his minister Joshua, the son of Nun, a young man, departed not out of the Tent.

^12And Moses said unto Jehovah, See, thou sayest unto me, Bring up this people: and thou hast not let me know whom thou wilt send with me. Yet thou hast said, I know thee by name, and thou hast also found favor in my sight. ^13Now therefore, I pray thee, if I have found favor in thy sight, show me now thy ways, that I may know thee, to the end that I may find favor in thy sight: and consider that this nation is thy people. ^14And he said, My presence shall go with thee, and I will give thee rest. ^15And he said unto him, If thy presence go not with me, carry us not up hence. ^16For wherein now shall it be known that I have found favor in thy sight, I and thy people? is it not in that thou goest with us, so that we are separated, I and thy people, from all the people that are upon the face of the earth? ^17And Jehovah said unto Moses, I will do this thing also that thou hast spoken; for thou hast found favor in my sight, and I know thee by name. ^18And he said, Show me, I pray thee, thy glory. ^19And he said, I will make all my goodness pass before thee, and will proclaim the name of Jehovah before thee; and I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will show mercy on whom I will show mercy. ^20And he said, Thou canst not see my face; for man shall not see me and live. ^21and Jehovah said, Behold, there is a place by me, and thou shalt stand upon the rock: ^22and it shall come to pass, while my glory passeth by, that I will put thee in a cleft of the rock, and will cover thee with my hand until I have passed by: ^23and I will take away my hand, and thou shalt see my back; but my face shall not be seen.

It appears that the contradiction occurs between verse eleven and verses 20 and 23. Did you see it? Verse 11 states that Moses spoke to Yahweh “face to face, as a man speaketh unto his friend.” But, verses 20 and 23 states “Thou canst not see my face; for man shall not see me and live” and “and I will take away my hand, and thou shalt see my back; but my face shall not be seen.”

Obviously, something very curious is going on. Is there a logical way to understand this and not understand a contradiction?

My answer is simple; When Yahweh descends upon the tabernacle and speaks to Moses face to face as a friend speaks to his friend, then we should understand that this is Yahweh the Son. Jesus the Son of God is called “the friend of sinners” in the gospels.

Next, Moses prays to Yahweh to go with him and the people of Israel, to which Yahweh, the friend of Moses, responds “My Presence” will go with you just as you’ve requested. We should understand this to be Yahweh the Holy Spirit. Moses emphasizes the point by saying if “Your Presence” doesn’t go with us, then do not tell us to leave.

Finally, Moses makes one last request of his “Friend”; in verse 18 Moses asks to be allowed to see Yahweh’s Glory.

Here is where Yahweh the Friend of Moses tells him that this request is more than can be granted, at least not without some special care that must be taken by both Moses and Yahweh the Friend. He reveals to Moses that no man may see Yahweh the Glory and live. This should be understood as God the Father.

This passage, when we take time to pray and study, can open the scriptures to us very clearly, concerning God’s nature and his persona.

We will continue this study latter. There are many other passages from the Old and New Covenant writings that speak to the Trinity of Yahweh our God.

However, in conclusion of today’s post, I want you to be able to place in proper perspective the reason it is so difficult for us to understand the concept of One God being made up of three persons or entities.

We might understand that USA is one nation, but is made up of many states. Or we might understand a Corporation is made up of many officers and employees. This all makes perfect sense to us in a concept of Union, Unity, and United. This is no different than our God Yahweh.

Our misunderstanding, I am persuaded, devolves from the various interpretations of the original text of the Scriptures. The ASV 1901 translation reads very differently than the KJV or NIV or NLT, on a pivotal passage from Deuteronomy 6:4-5. I am going to lay the KJV along side the ASV to see the difference. You should understand that the ASV gives the personal name for our God, just as the Hebrew text does, instead of changing God’s personal name to LORD.

ASV Deuteronomy 6:4-5

^4Hear, O Israel: Jehovah our God is one Jehovah: ^5and thou shalt love Jehovah thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might.

KJV Deuteronomy 6:4-5

⁴ Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD: ⁵ And thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might.

Did you notice the change? Does it make a difference? When I read the ASV it clarifies all the difficulties of One and Three for our God. “Yahweh (Jehovah) our God is one Yahweh: and you should love Yahweh your God with all of your heart, soul and strength.”

Until next time, God bless,

DSM

The Trinity of God is revealed throughout the scriptures from the beginning.

• Genesis 1:26 Then God said, “Let us make people* in our image, to be like ourselves. They will be masters over all life—the fish in the sea, the birds in the sky, and all the livestock, wild animals,* and small animals.” Holy Bible : New Living Translation. 1997 . Tyndale House: Wheaton, Ill

The passage from Genesis 1:26 uses the plural “us” for God. In the text, God is more than a single entity.

• Genesis 3:22 Then the Lord God said, “The people have become as we are, knowing everything, both good and evil. What if they eat the fruit of the tree of life? Then they will live forever!” Holy Bible : New Living Translation. 1997 . Tyndale House: Wheaton, Ill

The passage from Genesis 3:22 also uses the plural “we” for God. The text shows that God is a minimum of two entities.

• Genesis 11:7 Come, let’s go down and give them different languages. Then they won’t be able to understand each other.” Holy Bible : New Living Translation. 1997 . Tyndale House: Wheaton, Ill.

The passage from Genesis 11:7 also uses the plural “let’s” for God. The NLT text uses the contraction “let’s” to stand for “let us” in the words that God uses. “He” again is a minimum of two entities.

• Genesis 18:1, 2, 3, 5 through 19:1 The Lord appeared again to Abraham while he was camped near the oak grove belonging to Mamre. One day about noon, as Abraham was sitting at the entrance to his tent, 2 he suddenly noticed three men standing nearby. He got up and ran to meet them, welcoming them by bowing low to the ground. 3 “My lord,” he said, “if it pleases you, stop here for a while… 5 Let me prepare some food to refresh you. Please stay awhile before continuing on your journey.” “All right,” they said. “Do as you have said.”… 8 When the food was ready, he took some cheese curds and milk and the roasted meat, and he served it to the men. As they ate, Abraham waited on them there beneath the trees.
  9 “Where is Sarah, your wife?” they asked him.
  “In the tent,” Abraham replied.
  10 Then one of them said, “About this time next year I will return, and your wife Sarah will have a son.”…13 Then the Lord said to Abraham, “Why did Sarah laugh? Why did she say, ‘Can an old woman like me have a baby?’ 14 Is anything too hard for the Lord? About a year from now, just as I told you, I will return, and Sarah will have a son.” 15 Sarah was afraid, so she denied that she had laughed. But he said, “That is not true. You did laugh.” …
  16 Then the men got up from their meal and started on toward Sodom. Abraham went with them part of the way.
  17 “Should I hide my plan from Abraham?” the Lord asked. 18 “For Abraham will become a great and mighty nation, and all the nations of the earth will be blessed through him. 19 I have singled him out so that he will direct his sons and their families to keep the way of the Lord and do what is right and just. Then I will do for him all that I have promised.” 20 So the Lord told Abraham, “I have heard that the people of Sodom and Gomorrah are extremely evil, and that everything they do is wicked. 21 I am going down to see whether or not these reports are true. Then I will know.”
  22 The two other men went on toward Sodom, but the Lord remained with Abraham for a while…
  33 The Lord went on his way when he had finished his conversation with Abraham, and Abraham returned to his tent… 19:1 That evening the two angels came to the entrance of the city of Sodom, and Lot was sitting there as they arrived. When he saw them, he stood up to meet them. Then he welcomed them and bowed low to the ground. Holy Bible : New Living Translation. 1997 . Tyndale House: Wheaton, Ill.

This extended passage continues through chapter 19. But, you should notice that the context demands that we understand that “The Lord” from 18:1 is used to refer to all of the “men” or just one of the “men”. In other words “They” references “The Lord”, “Them” also references “The Lord”, “We“, again, references “The Lord”. The same is true for “I” and “me.”

I hope that you are still following me on this, because it is very important to understand the context of what the scriptures record. Perhaps you are concerned that the text interchangeably uses the term “men,” “The Lord,” and in Genesis 19:1 “Angels”. This is not that difficult to understand if “The Lord” employs “Angels” who take on the appearance of “Men”.

This very fact occurs over and over in the Old Covenant books as well as the New Covenant books. Consequently, we see in the above section of scripture an Angel who appears to be acting as the agent for the Father, an Angel who appears to be acting as the agent for the Son, and an Angel who appears to be acting as the agent for the Holy Spirit.

Before we conclude this section of Genesis, notice above, that in verse 21 the individual who is called “The Lord” remains behind to talk to Abraham while the other “two men” go down to Sodom. The one who remains behind, tells Abraham, “I am going down to see whether or not these reports are true. Then I will know.” But, when he, “the Lord”, finishes talking and leaves, in verse 30, he does not join the two other men/Angels in 19:1.

So, let us consider the options here.

1. He lied to Abraham and did not go down to Sodom to check things out for himself.
2. He did go down to Sodom, but he did it independant of the other two “lords” and the scripture failed to record that visit. However, he would’ve had to beat the other two Angels down to the valley, because the two who retrieve Lot and his family appear to be the only reconnaissance for Sodom.
3. He did go down to Sodom, but he did it by “Proxy” via the other two “Angels” who are also called “the Lord” in chapter 18:1.
   

We will continue the review of How God can be one and yet be multiple entities in tomorrows post.

Read the text and think about it.

DSM