- David and Marilynn Chadwick
- Jan 2
- 3 min read
This week we are sharing some of your favorite Moments of Hope from 2024. Thank you for taking a moment of your day to grow in your discipleship journey with us. To explore additional resources from Moments of Hope Church, please click here to visit our website.
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by Marilynn Chadwick
The “Doctrine of the Trinity” is a powerful tool to refute many heresies. Now you know why the Apostles Creed, with its strong affirmation of the Trinity, was written in the second century to combat the rise of false teaching in the early church.
The scope of God’s created order is a mystery too great to fathom. But in a paradoxical way, the Trinity helps us know God more intimately. In the Trinity we see the unity of the triune God—One God in Three Persons. We begin to comprehend God in relationship with the Trinity, with the world, and with us. The Trinity also helps us understand the realities behind the names of God—"God the “Father,” “God the Son,” and “God the Holy Spirit.” The influential 13th century theologian Thomas Aquinas tells us the name “God” refers to the whole of the Trinity.
Teaching the doctrine of the Trinity helps us embrace what theologians refer to as a “Trinitarian culture.” The early Church developed a vibrant Trinitarian culture which influenced their reading of Scripture, their prayer life, and their worship. Simply put, the Trinity helps us understand the interplay of the Trinity. When we pray, we are praying to the Trinity. When we worship, we are worshiping the Trinity. When we witness, we are emboldened and animated by the Trinity.
The Good News of the Gospel is carried forth into the world in word and deed as we learn what it means to walk in the Spirit. A Trinitarian-culture-in-action invites us to pray, study God’s Word, worship, and serve God in the world. Our works should naturally flourish when this doctrine is rightly taught, contemplated, and practiced. Might we see a resurgence in the miracles of Pentecost—healings, miracles, and redeemed souls—like those which occurred in the early church and are manifested in the Global South and Far Eastern churches even today?
Our cultivation of “Trinitarian wisdom” helps us better understand One God in Three Persons. A robust Trinitarian faith enlivens our understanding of God as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit through the creative and multiplying work of each—in the world, in the universe, and in our small souls. We see God is not simply a mysterious mixture of three Beings. Rather, each has a personality—separate, yet One. Prayer becomes prayer to the Trinity. We worship the Trinity. We are saved by, through, and in the Trinity. Life in the Spirit is life in the Trinity.
Thoughts of a triune God slow us down. The doctrine of the Trinity prods us to humbly contemplate these matters, “too wonderful for us” (Ps 131:1; 139:6). The Trinity is a mystery, a “simple yet difficult” doctrine and one which points to realities beyond our ability to understand. We are invited to enter into the experiential knowledge of the Trinity. Aquinas called the Trinity a “gift of God” which prepares us to contemplate him in the joy of heaven. Much fruit has been born out of Trinitarian wisdom in the historical church. Might we pray for this wisdom, along with a vibrant Trinitarian culture, to become more present in ours?