Why is it that we seem to forget the foundational things in our faith? Why do we get caught up in a certain facet of one aspect of God and then, unbalance ourselves into error? How is it that the enemy of our faith in Jesus Christ can distract us with a seemingly good thing until we forget the bigger, better thing?

I think we have lost our understanding of how the Trinity actually matters in today’s world, and especially inside the church. When we recapture a balanced understanding and belief in all of the persons of the Godhead, we can finally begin to see the kind of transformative power that only He can bring.

The Father

What about The Father have we left behind? For some, it could be that they know the just, holy, righteous Father, but don’t know the heart of the One who from the beginning has been reconciling all things to Himself, redeeming and reclaiming this broken world out of complete Fatherly love. For others, we have a misperception of the Father as all-loving without understanding how love also includes justice, standards, consequence, discipline, and yes – judgment. For a large portion of the world, they perceive that god is holy and demands our righteousness, but have no idea of the creative redemption story that The Father has been writing and offering to all of His creation.

We need to reclaim an understanding of The Father that is complete. No longer do we define Him. He defines Himself, and we need to know Him. To know Him is to love Him. To know Him is to be overwhelmed by His presence. He is adopting us – YES US! – You and I and all of those around you are a part of His redemptive plan. He wants you to be adopted into HIS family. Then, and only then, can you be grown up into the Son and Daughter that He wants. Don’t stop! – RUN! To His adoption of you.

The Son

While most of the history of the world for the past two thousand years has been driven by the person of Jesus Christ and his impact on the world, do we really understand The Son? Our misperceptions about his work on earth, and His current status as King of all creation can cause us to miss what God has for us. Some of us are still babies, only understanding Jesus’ sacrifice for us on the cross, but not knowing how to walk in surrender to his Lordship. We have a view of Jesus that seems to keep us from eternal judgment, but our lives reflect that we don’t yet understand the absolute joy of giving up our life so that His life can be ours.

Others of us, only see Jesus as the teacher that he was on earth, and seem to be content with living out our lives focused on knowing and understanding the wisdom and insight he brought. Unfortunately, just knowing Jesus’ teaching here on earth and not embracing his call to take up our cross and die with him can lead us to be frustrated about a powerless Christianity. Instead, we, with our limited view of Jesus, The Son, try to live out our lives following teachings and leaning on our own understandings without the regenerative power of new life in Him.

Although we can read about the earthly Jesus in the gospels and can learn a lot from those writings about who Jesus WAS – We need to also now understand who Jesus IS. Jesus, the Son, is now also the Lord. Jesus, the teacher, is now also The King. Jesus, the savior, is now building HIS Church. Jesus, the Lord, is reclaiming the entirety of creation to be presented to The Father. Jesus, with all authority over all things, in heaven and on earth, is asking us to follow Him. Run, don’t walk, to His throne. Ask Him to show you who he is now. He will show you, and in seeing Him, you will be called to give up those things that you have valued above Him, turn from those things being valuable to you, and receive Him as Lord and Saviour and King. Nothing is more valuable than life in Christ. Nothing is more complete for your intended identity than giving up your own life and receiving the new life of Jesus in you.

The Spirit

Just like our misperceptions of The Father and The Son can cause us to miss out on God’s best for us and for the world, we have for too long, misunderstood the work of The Spirit and His role in the Godhead and in our lives. We can easily focus on the excesses of others who have attributed things to The Spirit, and in doing so, miss what He is really doing. Or, we can become enamored with the power of The Spirit, and miss the true work of Him to bring forth fruit in our lives. We can think somehow that we have authority over The Spirit with the greatness of our own faith. Or, we can in turn misperceive that The Spirit is somehow specifically limited in the scope of what He is allowed to do among us.

It is imperative that The Church return to a healthy understanding of the work of The Holy Spirit to both draw those far from God to faith and to empower those in Christ to walk in holiness and love. We must throw aside the errors of the past, and look forward to being led, empowered, and taught by The Holy Spirit. He will lead us into all truth, as Christ promised. Not new replacement theologies and revelations that undo the truth of Scripture, but a creative understanding of the Truth applied to our lives each day. There is a distinct difference between using the spirit and allowing The Spirit to have His way in and through us. Once we begin to understand how The Spirit fits within the Trinity, and are unafraid to follow the leading and work of The Spirit in our following of Jesus, The Son, and being adopted into the family of The Father, we will begin to experience the power and fruit that God intends for us.

What to do next:

Pray, Study, Learn Together

Find a group of people who want to commit to understanding and believing in the Trinity

As a group, begin to gather with one another and encourage one another in understanding and believing in The Father, The Son, and The Spirit.

Know that He who starts a work in you will bring it to completion, and that He is there to lead you into truth, and that HE is Lord over all the earth, including anything that might be a danger to you or be a distraction to you.

Let’s go together into the future God has for us. It is before us now. Lay aside all that lies behind you, all that may hold you back, and step into His glorious intent for you, adopted by Him, saved by Him, led by Him, and empowered by Him!