Between last Sunday, when we celebrate Pentecost and next Sunday when we celebrate the Trinity or Triune understanding of God, I’m not sure which is more important to our understanding of our Christian faith. If I had to pick, though, it would be the Trinity. Without God’s creation and plan for the life of that creation, Pentecost, the filling of Christ’s disciples with the Holy Spirit, would never have been possible! Our understanding of God as holy and multifaceted comes from several scriptures. Let’s begin with Genesis 1:26-27, “God said, ‘Let us make man in our (plural) image’, according to our (plural) likeness; … So, God created man in his (singular) image … God’s message, through Isaiah, describes himself as creator, and also says, “the Lord God and His Spirit have sent Me.” (Isaiah 48:12-16) This continues our glimpses of God’s broader sense of self. Here we begin to glimpse both the unique single being, God, sometimes being referred to by his diverse images. In our very limited way, we could maybe understand this happening to you or me by our plural names. By my friends, I’m called Carolyn, by my grandchildren, I’m called Grandma, and by my mom I was sometimes called “honey“. Yet, I wasn’t confused by these different names, and you wouldn’t be either. I am the same person, yet I am perceived in different ways by the relationships and roles I have with others. This becomes even clearer in the New Testament. In Ephesians 1:15-17, Paul concludes his writing to the Ephesians by describing the relationship he prays for between them and the three facets of God: “ 15-16 That is why I always remember you in my prayers and thank God for you. I have done this ever since I heard about your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all of God’s people. 17 I always pray to the great and glorious Father, the God of our Lord Jesus Christ. I pray that he will give you the Spirit, who will let you know truths about God and help you understand them, so that you will know him better.” In John 1:1-5 and 14, he opens his gospel describing that Jesus (the Word) was an integral part of creation, in the beginning, and as he came to earth to live with us to let us experience God’s grace in the flesh, “ 1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was with God in the beginning. 3 Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. 4 In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. 5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. … 14 The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.” And in Matthew 28:18-20 Jesus gave us our assigned task to go and tell, “ 18 Then Jesus came to them and said, ‘All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name (singular) of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.’ ” In Luke 23:46, he describes Jesus’ last message from the cross, reuniting his Spirit with God, “Jesus called out with a loud voice, ‘Father, into your hands I commit my spirit.’ When he had said this, he breathed his last.” There are many more Biblical references that support our assurance that God is present as God the Father, God the Son and the Holy Spirit, all three, yet one. Be more sensitive and watch for them as you continue your study in God’s word! 1Some notes and comments shared from “God is Triune” by Brodie Hodge

In the grace, Spirit and love of Christ, Carolyn Moe