Gospel e-Letter

The word ‘Trinity’ is derived from two Latin words, tres , three, and unitas , one). It is used in Christian theology to express essential biblical truths about God, namely: (1) the unity of God; (2) the Father is God, the Son is God and the Holy Spirit is God; (3) the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit are distinct Persons. One God Our belief in one God is fundamental; Christianity is a monotheistic religion. The Old and New Testaments both assert the unity of God: ‘Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one!’ (Deut 6:4); ‘I am the First and I am the Last; besides Me there is no God’ (Isa 44:6); ‘There is one God, and there is no other but He’ (Mark 12:32).

We cannot understand God fully because he is infinite and we are mere specks of dust. ‘Great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised, and His greatness is unsearchable’ (Ps 145:3). No man will ever plumb his wisdom. ‘Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; it is high, I cannot attain it’ (Ps 139:6). A ‘god’ who is thoroughly understood is nothing but an idol of human imagination. The true and living God is exalted above the heavens, well beyond the reach of our mind. All the same, we must assert that God can be known. Though we can never delve completely into the depths of the Infinite, still we may truly know our Creator. Our knowledge of God must always be limited, yet it can be genuine and sufficient to satisfy the thirst of the human soul. Indeed we are invited to ‘Seek the LORD while He may be found, call upon Him while He is near’ (Isa 55:6).

While God revealed the plan of salvation to Israel and the early church, the Holy Spirit moved holy men to write the message he wanted to give to future generations. Today we do not have apostles and prophets living among us, and Christ has ascended back to heaven. Yet we still have their teaching recorded in the God-breathed Scriptures. Therefore, the Holy Bible is the only infallible rule of faith for the Christian church. This principle, known by the Latin phrase Sola Scriptura (‘Scripture Alone’), is a landmark of fundamental importance because it determines the faith and character of the church of God.

By ourselves, we can never come to a true knowledge of God. Throughout history and in different cultures, people have fashioned a host of gods and diverse religions. Left to our own resources we are helpless and hopelessly lost; we cannot find the true and living God. ‘The world through wisdom did not know God’ (1 Cor 1:21). We can only know God because he was pleased to show himself to us. God manifested himself in a general way by the works of his hand, that is, the created universe. Thus nobody has a valid excuse; nobody may rightly claim that he didn’t know about God (Rom 1:19). Furthermore, it pleased God to reveal himself to us in a special and personal way. God has spoken and he still speaks to us today through his Word, the Holy Bible. We will look at the three steps involved in the communication process: revelation, inspiration and illumination.