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page 22 OUR TRIUNE GOD
THREE IN ONE

THE TRIUNITY OF MAN

The Bible, without question, teaches that man has a body, a soul, and a spirit. A little simple math makes it clear that man was created a three-part being -- thus he is triune -- a trinity. This means that the three parts are distinct, yet make up the one. The Bible teaches how these parts work, with or against each other. The Bible also teaches what happens to these parts at the moment of death.

THE CONFLICT OF MAN

The human life is a daily conflict of deciding what to do and when to do it, and whether it is right or wrong to do it at all. Paul says in Romans7:14, “...the law is spiritual, but I am of flesh, in bondage to sin.” The spiritual pressure on mankind is to obey God’s Law, but our body (flesh) is prone to disobedience (sin). In Gal. 5:17 the Bible states that the “flesh sets its desire against the spirit, and the spirit against the flesh: for these are in opposition to one another... .” Gal. 5:16 states that if you choose, as an act of your will, to obey God’s laws and “walk by the Spirit, you will not carry out the desires of the flesh.” In Cor. 9:27, Paul says, “I buffet my body and make it my slave...” as an act of his will. This act of the will comes from the soul part of man. The soul is that part of man that decides between what is spiritual and what is fleshly, what is right and what is wrong, and whether to give in or be strong. The Bible also teaches that a person can be weak-willed or weak in conscience (Co 8: 7-12).

THE DEATH OF MAN

The Bible teaches that at the moment of death the soul and spirit leave the body. Some people erroneously view the soul and spirit as nothing more than a life force -- like the charge in a battery -- and think that this life force just disappears at death. The Sadducees, a Jewish religious group at the time of Christ, also believed this (Acts 23:8). Jesus had to put their erroneous beliefs to rest by stating that God was not the God of the dead, but of the living, referring to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob
(Mark 12:26-27). Jesus also taught that the soul and spirit, when separated from the body, at death, would either be at rest (but conscious) or in torment in Hades. Luke 16:22-23 states that both the rich man and Lazarus died, and their bodies were buried. Lazarus was consciously with Abraham, being comforted, while the rich man was in Hades in conscious torment; yet they were able to see and talk to each other. We see in Luke 16:27-28 that the rich man, who didn’t believe the soul and spirit would suffer in Hades, now wants someone to warn his five brothers of this place.

Man cannot separate his body, soul, and spirit at will, other than at death. Paul states in II Cor. 5:8 that when Christians are “absent from the body” (at the moment of death), our soul and spirit will be “home with the Lord” (in heaven).

THE TRIUNE GOD

Understanding the trinity of man should make it simpler to understand the trinity of God, since man is made in God’s “image” and “likeness” (Gen. 1:26) , it shouldn’t be difficult to understand that we outwardly look like God and are inwardly constructed like God. We saw earlier that the Bible teaches that man has three parts -- body, soul, and spirit.
God also has three parts -- body, soul, and spirit.

THE BODY PART OF GOD

In the Old Testament, God appeared bodily to people, such as Adam and Eve, Enoch, Noah, Abraham, Sarah, Hagar, Isaac, Jacob, and many others. They saw His body part, but not all of Him in all His glory. God told Moses, who requested to see God’s glory, that “no man can see My face and live!” (Exodus 33:20). Yet in Duet. 34:10 it says that the Lord knew Moses “face to face.” The New Testament addresses this situation in John 1:18, “No one has seen God at any time; the only begotten God who is in the bosom of the Father, has explained Him.” What is being stated here is that when people “saw” God in the Old Testament, they were seeing the body part of God who would become Jesus Christ. This is made clear in John 1: 1-3 and vs. 14 -- The Word is God, and with God, and became flesh. Phil. 2:6-7 refers to Jesus previously existing as the “ form of God” and “equal with God.” It then states that He “emptied Himself” and took on the “form of a bond servant,” “made in the likeness of men.” Col. 1:15 refers to Jesus as the “image of the invisible God.” God’s Word in Heb. 1:3 refers to Jesus as the exact representation of His (God, the Father) nature. Since Jesus is the body part of God that became “flesh” -- a man -- , and the spirit part of God is obviously the Holy Spirit, what is the soul part of God? Pretty simple, isn’t it? Of course, the soul part is the Father; and unlike sinful man, God’s three parts work in total union and agreement.

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The following verses from God's Word should help you see man's triune nature, and that God, being man's prototype and model, is also triune:

WHAT THE BIBLE SAYS ABOUT OUR SPIRIT

MAT 5:3 "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
MAT 26:41 "Keep watching and praying, that you may not enter into temptation; the spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak."
LUK 1:46-47 And Mary said: "My soul exalts the Lord, And my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior.
LUK 8:55 And her spirit returned, and she rose immediately; and He gave orders for {something} to be given her to eat.
LUK 24:37,39 But they were startled and frightened and thought that they were seeing a spirit. "See My hands and My feet, that it is I Myself; touch Me and see, for a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see that I have."
ROM 8:16 The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God,
1CO 2:11 For who among men knows the thoughts of a man except the spirit of the man, which is in him? Even so the thoughts of God no one knows except the Spirit of God.

COMPARISON OF SOUL AND SPIRIT

1SA 1:15 But Hannah answered and said, "No, my lord, I am a woman oppressed in spirit; I have drunk neither wine nor strong drink, but I have poured out my soul before the Lord.
JOB 7:11 "Therefore, I will not restrain my mouth; I will speak in the anguish of my spirit, I will complain in the bitterness of my soul.
ISA 26:9 At night my soul longs for Thee, Indeed, my spirit within me seeks Thee diligently; For when the earth experiences Thy judgments The inhabitants of the world learn righteousness.
ISA 42:1 "Behold, My Servant, whom I uphold; My chosen one in whom My soul delights. I have put My Spirit upon Him; He will bring forth justice to the nations.
MAT 12:18 "Behold, My Servant whom I have chosen; My Beloved in whom My soul is well-pleased; I will put My Spirit upon Him, And He shall proclaim justice to the Gentiles.
1TH 5:23 Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you entirely; and may your spirit and soul and body be preserved complete, without blame at the coming of our Lord Jesus Chist.
HEB 4:12 For the word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart.

GOD’S SPIRIT

GEN 1:2 And the earth was formless and void, and darkness was over the surface of the deep; and the Spirit of God was moving over the surface of the waters.
GEN 6:3 Then the Lord said, "My Spirit shall not strive with man forever, because he also is flesh; nevertheless his days shall be one hundred and twenty years."
PSA 139:7 Where can I go from Thy Spirit? Or where can I flee from Thy presence?
MAT 12:31-32 "Therefore I say to you, any sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven men, but blasphemy against the Spirit shall not be forgiven. "And whoever shall speak a word against the Son of Man, it shall be forgiven him; but whoever shall speak against the Holy Spirit, it shall not be forgiven him, either in this age, or in the age to come.
JOH 16:7 "But I tell you the truth, it is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper shall not come to you; but if I go, I will send Him to you.
JOH 16:8-15 "And He, when He comes, will convict the world concerning sin, and righteousness, and judgment; concerning sin, because they do not believe in Me; and concerning righteousness, because I go to the Father, and you no longer behold Me; and concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world has been judged. "I have many more things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now.
JOH 16:13 "But when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all the truth; for He will not speak on His own initiative, but whatever He hears, He will speak; and He will disclose to you what is to come. "He shall glorify Me; for He shall take of Mine, and shall disclose it to you. "All things that the Father has are Mine; therefore I said, that He takes of Mine, and will disclose it to you.
ACT 5:3,9 But Peter said, "Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit, and to keep back some of the price of the land? Then Peter said to her, "Why is it that you have agreed together to put the Spirit of the Lord to the test? Behold, the feet of those who have buried your husband are at the door, and they shall carry you out as well."
ACT 7:51 "You men who are stiff-necked and uncircumcised in heart and ears are always resisting the Holy Spirit; you are doing just as your fathers did.
ROM 8:16 The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God,
1CO 2:9-13 but just as it is written, "Things which eye has not seen and ear has not heard, And which have not entered the heart of man, All that God has prepared for those who love Him." For to us God revealed them through the Spirit; for the Spirit searches all things, even the depths of God. For who among men knows the thoughts of a man except the spirit of the man, which is in him? Even so the thoughts of God no one knows except the Spirit of God. Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might know the things freely given to us by God, which things we also speak, not in words taught by human wisdom, but in those taught by the Spirit, combining spiritual thoughts with spiritual words.
1CO 12:13 For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body, whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free, and we were all made to drink of one Spirit.
EPH 1:13 In Him, you also, after listening to the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation-- having also believed, you were sealed in Him with the Holy Spirit of promise,
EPH 4:30 And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.
1TH 5:19 Do not quench the Spirit;
2TH 2:7 For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work; only He who now restrains (Holy Spirit) will do so until he is taken out of the way.
HEB 9:14 how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without blemish to God, cleanse your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?
2PE 1:20-21 But know this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture is a matter of one's own interpretation, for no prophecy was ever made by an act of human will, but men moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from God.
1JO 5:7 And it is the Spirit who bears witness, because the Spirit is the truth.
1JO 5:8 For there are three that bear witness, the Spirit and the water and the blood; and the three are in agreement.

JESUS WORSHIPED

MAT 2:11 And they came into the house and saw the Child with Mary His mother; and they fell down and worshiped Him; and opening their treasures they presented to Him gifts of gold and frankincense and myrrh.
MAT 14:33 And those who were in the boat worshiped Him, saying, "You are certainly God's Son!"
MAT 28:9 And behold, Jesus met them and greeted them. And they came up and took hold of His feet and worshiped Him.
MAT 28:17-18 And when they saw Him, they worshiped Him; but some were doubtful. And Jesus came up and spoke to them, saying, "All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth.
JOH 9:38 And he said, "Lord, I believe."And he worshiped Him.

JESUS’ CLAIMS ABOUT HIMSELF

MAT 5:11 "Blessed are you when men cast insults at you, and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely, on account of Me.
MAT 8:25 And they came to Him, and awoke Him, saying, "Save us, Lord; we are perishing!"
MAT 8:26 And He said to them, "Why are you timid, you men of little faith?"Then He arose, and rebuked the winds and the sea; and it became perfectly calm.
MAT 11:27 "All things have been handed over to Me by My Father; and no one knows the Son, except the Father; nor does anyone know the Father, except the Son, and anyone to whom the Son wills to reveal
Him.
MAT 16:24-26 Then Jesus said to His disciples, "If anyone wishes to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me. "For whoever wishes to save his life shall lose it; but whoever loses his life for My sake shall find it. "For what will a man be profited, if he gains the whole world, and forfeits his soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?
MAT 19:28 And Jesus said to them, "Truly I say to you, that you who have followed Me, in the regeneration when the Son of Man will sit on His glorious throne, you also shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the
twelve tribes of Israel.
MAT 21:5 "Say to the daughter of Zion, 'Behold your King is coming to you, Gentle, and mounted on a donkey, .....
MAT 23:8-10 "But do not be called Rabbi; for One (the Holy Spirit) is your Teacher, and you are all brothers. "And do not call anyone on earth your father; for One is your Father, He who is in heaven. "And do
not be called leaders; for One is your Leader, that is, Christ.
LUK 2:11 for today in the city of David there has been born for you a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.
LUK 8:28 And seeing Jesus, he cried out and fell before Him, and said in a loud voice, "What do I have to do with You, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I beg You, do not torment me."
LUK 10:17 And the seventy returned with joy, saying, "Lord, even the demons are subject to us in Your name."
LUK 11:20 "But if I cast out demons by the finger of God, then the kingdom of God has come upon you.
LUK 20:41-44 And He said to them, "How is it that they say the Christ is David's son? "For David himself says in the book of Psalms, 'The Lord said to my Lord," Sit at My right hand, Until I make Thine enemies a footstool for Thy feet. "' "David therefore calls Him 'Lord,' and how is He his son?"
LUK 22:19, 20 And when He had taken some bread and given thanks, He broke it, and gave it to them, saying, "This is My body which is given for you; do this in remembrance of Me." And in the same way He took the cup after they had eaten, saying, "This cup which is poured out for you is the new covenant in My blood.
LUK 22:70, 71 And they all said, "Are You the Son of God, then?"And He said to them, "Yes, I am."And they said, "What further need do we have of testimony? For we have heard it ourselves from His own mouth."
JOH 3:16 "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.
JOH 5:17-19 But He answered them, "My Father is working until now, and I Myself am working."For this cause therefore the Jews were seeking all the more to kill Him, because He not only was breaking the Sabbath, but also was calling God His own Father, making Himself equal with God. Jesus therefore answered and was saying to them, "Truly, truly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of Himself, unless it is something He sees the Father doing; for whatever the Father does, these things the Son also does in like manner.
JOH 5:20-27 "For the Father loves the Son, and shows Him all things that He Himself is doing; and greater works than these will He show Him, that you may marvel. "For just as the Father raises the dead and gives them life, even so the Son also gives life to whom He wishes. "For not even the Father judges anyone, but He has given all judgment to the Son, in order that all may honor the Son, even as they honor the Father. He who does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent Him. "Truly, truly, I say to you, he who hears My word, and believes Him who sent Me, has eternal life, and does not come into judgment, but has passed out of death into life. "Truly, truly, I say to you, an hour is coming and now is, when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God; and those who hear shall live. "For just as the Father has life in Himself, even so He gave to the Son also to have life in Himself; and He gave Him authority to execute judgment, because He is the Son of Man.
JOH 6:35 Jesus said to them, "I am the bread of life; he who comes to Me shall not hunger, and he who believes in Me shall never thirst.
JOH 6:45 "It is written in the prophets, 'And they shall all be taught of God.' Everyone who has heard and learned from the Father, comes to Me.
JOH 8:12 Again therefore Jesus spoke to them, saying, "I am the light of the world; he who follows Me shall not walk in the darkness, but shall have the light of life."
JOH 8:52 The Jews said to Him, "Now we know that You have a demon. Abraham died, and the prophets also; and You say, 'If anyone keeps My word, he shall never taste of death.'
JOH 10:7 Jesus therefore said to them again, "Truly, truly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep.
JOH 10:11 "I am the good shepherd; the good shepherd lays down His life for the sheep.
JOH 10:27 "My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me; and I give eternal life to them, and they shall never perish; and no one shall snatch them out of My hand.
JOH 11:25, 26 Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in Me shall live even if he dies, and everyone who lives and believes in Me shall never die. Do you believe this? "
JOH 12:26 "If anyone serves Me, let him follow Me; and where I am, there shall My servant also be; if anyone serves Me, the Father will honor him.
JOH 12:44-46 And Jesus cried out and said, "He who believes in Me does not believe in Me, but in Him who sent Me. "And he who beholds Me beholds the One who sent Me. "I have come as light into the world, that everyone who believes in Me may not remain in darkness.
JOH 14:6-9 Jesus said to him, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father, but through Me. "If you had known Me, you would have known My Father also; from now on you know Him, and have seen Him." Philip said to Him, "Lord, show us the Father, and it is enough for us." Jesus said to him, "Have I been so long with you, and yet you have not come to know Me, Philip? He who has seen Me has seen the Father; how do you say, 'Show us the Father'?
JOH 14:13, 14 "And whatever you ask in My name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. "If you ask Me anything in My name, I will do it.
JOH 15:4, 5 "Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, so neither can you, unless you abide in Me. "I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in Me, and I in him, he bears much fruit; for apart from Me you can do nothing.
JOH 16:14, 15 "He shall glorify Me; for He shall take of Mine, and shall disclose it to you."All things that the Father has are Mine; therefore I said, that He takes of Mine, and will disclose it to you.
JOH 17:1, 2 These things Jesus spoke; and lifting up His eyes to heaven, He said, "Father, the hour has come; glorify Thy Son, that the Son may glorify Thee, even as Thou gavest Him authority over all mankind, that to all whom Thou hast given Him, He may give eternal life.
JOH 17:20 "I do not ask in behalf of these alone, but for those also who believe in Me through their word;
JOH 18:37 Pilate therefore said to Him, "So You are a king?"Jesus answered, "You say correctly that I am a king. For this I have been born, and for this I have come into the world, to bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth hears My voice."
JOH 20:31 but these have been written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing you may have life in His name.
ACT 1:8 but you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth. "
ACT 9:10-17 Now there was a certain disciple at Damascus, named Ananias; and the Lord said to him in a vision, "Ananias."And he said, "Behold, here am I, Lord." And the Lord said to him, "Arise and go to the street called Straight, and inquire at the house of Judas for a man from Tarsus named Saul, for behold, he is praying, and he has seen in a vision a man named Ananias come in and lay his hands on him, so that he might regain his sight. " But Ananias answered, "Lord, I have heard from many about this man, how much harm he did to Thy saints at Jerusalem; and here he has authority from the chief priests to bind all who call upon Thy name. "But the Lord said to him, "Go, for he is a chosen instrument of Mine, to bear My name before the Gentiles and kings and the sons of Israel; for I will show him how much he must suffer for My name's sake. " And Ananias departed and entered the house, and after laying his hands on him said, "Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus, who appeared to you on the road by which you were coming, has sent me so that you may regain your sight, and be filled with the Holy Spirit."
REV 1:17,18 And when I saw Him, I fell at His feet as a dead man. And He laid His right hand upon me, saying, "Do not be afraid; I am the first and the last, and the living One; and I was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys of death and of Hades.
REV 22:12, 13 "Behold, I am coming quickly, and My rewardis with Me, to render to every man according to what he has done. "Iam the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end."

JESUS THE CREATOR

JOH 1:1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
JOH 1:2 He was in the beginning with God.
JOH 1:3 All things came into being by Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being.
JOH 1:14 And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth.
JOH 1:18 No man has seen God at any time; the only begotten God, who is in the bosom of the Father, He has explained Him.
PHI 2:5-8 Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus, who, although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men.And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.
COL 1:13-17 For He delivered us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. And He is the image of the invisible God, the first-born of all creation. For by Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities-- all things have been created by Him and for Him. And He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together.
HEB 1:1-3 God, after He spoke long ago to the fathers in the prophets in many portions and in many ways, in these last days has spoken to us in His Son, whom He appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the world. And He is the radiance of His glory and the exact representation of His nature, and upholds all things by the word of His power. When He had made purification of sins, He sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high;

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