"Jeff, my church believes in the Trinity. Further it defines the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit as one and co-equal in ever respect (my words). I can accept the Trinity concept but the co-equal part and that Jesus is the same as the "Most High God" of the OT, I have a problem with. I see Jesus as my High Priest, my savior and redeamer and a God but not the "Most High God, the Father. I think Jesus tells us time and again He is not the Father. Feel lost reading the Bible if I cannot differentate among the three. Please help me if you can." ~Graydon
"Great question! The Trinity is probably the most difficult concept in... well I was going to say Cristianity, but probably all of life!
To an extent, I agree with you. Jesus tells us to pray to and worship the Father, not the Son, but that doesn't exactly make Him less than the Father. Likewise, the Holy Spirit draws no attention to Himself, but points it all to Jesus and through Him to the Father, but still He is no less than the other two. They are one person after all, so it's like saying Graydon is not not co-equal with Graydon. The best way I've discovered to differentiate between them is to think of their roles the way a man can play different roles in his life too. At the same time you may be a brother, son, father, co-worker, etc. We can even be in several of these roles at the same time (if the right people are in the room). Obviously, the analogy runs a little short, since we can't be in three places (or infinite places) at once, but it's a start. So, here are some of the roles I see each of them playing, and I'm sure there are more:
God the Father: Maker, Creator, Master, Father, God over us
God the Son: Savior, Interceder, Role-Model, Brother, God with us
God the Holy Spirit: Sustainer, Interpreter, Motivator, God in us
CS Lewis (who wrote the Narnia books and Mere Christianity, which is my favorite book after the Bible) explained that when we pray, we become part of this amazing dance with God, wherein:
1. The Holy Spirit prays through us (prompting us to pray sometimes with "groanings without words")
2. The Son prays for us (as our interceding High Priest in whose name we pray)
3. The Father hears and responds to our prayers.
No part is more important than the other and, in fact no part has ever existed without the other. There's strong Biblical support that Jesus and the Holy Spirit existed during creation and even before time began.
I hope this helps. The Trinity really is something we aren't to fully understand until we are in our heavenly bodies, but it's enough to say that all demand our utmost respect, but each is to be treated according to His role. I'm off on a conference right now, but if you'd like, I can take some more time to find verses and such to go along with this. I welcome your feedback, whether you agree or not, and any more questions or input you have." ~Jeff
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