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The Bible Says
The Trinity is man’s term for the Triune God. Triune means “Three in One.” The Triune God consists of God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. “Elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father through sanctification of the Spirit, unto obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ . . .” (I Peter 1:2). All three Persons of One Godhead are mentioned in this one verse. In Genesis 1:1 we read, “In the beginning God.” This word “God” is actually plural. Further down in the chapter you will find God saying, “Let us make man in our image” (Genesis 1:26). Throughout the Old Testament God the Father is mentioned repeatedly. The first place where the Holy Spirit is mentioned is in Genesis 1:2 (2nd verse of the Bible) where we read, “The Spirit moved upon the face of the waters.” If we turn to the New Testament, we find that God the Son was also with the Father on the day of creation. Before going to the Cross, Jesus prayed: “And now, O Father, glorify thou me with thine own self with the glory which I had with thee before the world was” (John 17:5). “For by him (Christ) were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers, all things were created by him, and for him, and by him all things consist” (Colossians 1:16,17). That word “consist” means held together. Did you know that in addition to His work of Redemption, Jesus Christ is at this very moment, in control of all the heavenly bodies---sun, moon, stars, and satellites---and He keeps everything in proper orbit. The only thing that keeps our earth from being destroyed by falling meteors is His controlling hand!
“In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by Him; and without Him was not anything made that was made. In Him was life and that life was the light of men” (John 1:1-4). In order to become man’s Redeemer, God must first become a man (Luke 5:24). “For since by man came death, by man came also the resurrection of the dead” (I Cor. 15:21).
Christ the Son of God became “the Son of man,” when He entered Mary’s womb and was born nine months later and placed in Bethlehem’s manger. Mary was a pure young virgin. She was not God but was chosen of God to become mother of “The Son of Man. She was not mother of His deity, but only of His humanity. “God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory” (I Timothy 3:15).
What God is saying here is that man is responsible for his own sin and he will receive God’s judgment upon that sin. The penalty for sin is death. Therefore only a sinless man, willing to die for the race, could provide redemption for man’s sin. Neither angels, or even God Himself was eligible to be man’s Redeemer. Referring to this atonement that He was about to make, Jesus said: “Therefore doth my Father love me, because I lay down my life, that I might take it again. No man taketh it from me, but I lay it down of myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This commandment have I received of my Father” (John 10:17, 18). Jesus’ love for us caused Him to take our sin upon Himself. He suffered the punishment we should have suffered. He took our place. “For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him” (II Cor. 5:21).
“He is despised and rejected of men: a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from Him; he was despised and we esteemed Him not. Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem Him stricken, smitten of God, and afficted. “But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon Him, and by His stripes we are healed” (Isaiah 53:3-5).
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