RANDOM EXTRA!
Okay so this is from a Bible study i was doing in March of 2007, randomness, but thoughtful randomness.
1. In your own words, describe the Eternal Godhead or Holy Trinity?
Academically speaking, my definition of the Holy Trinity is: God, The “Father”-the entity above, in, and around all things past, present and eternal through which and for which all things exist; Jesus, The “Son”-the human presence of God; and finally, a Holy Spirit -the presence of God on Earth without a body.
Emotionally and spiritually speaking, however, it is MUCH harder to define God. (It’s like trying to define a person. How do you sum someone up in a sentence? Especially someone who’s been around as long as God has, which is literally forever? How do you define that?)
God is my friend, my very best friend. God is my mentor. God is my teacher. I learn new things every single day. If anything has me stumped or confused, I ask God. Who better to explain the way something works than the one who made it? Right? God is my creator. God is my Daddy. God is my comforter. God is my National Leader, the nation of Christianity or Christendom. God is my god, the object of my praise and worship. God is my cheerleader, my accountability partner and the absolute-without-a-doubt love of my life.
Jesus is my savior. Jesus is the way I get to spend my entire after life with God. Jesus is my example.
The Holy Spirit, I suppose, is my spiritual telephone. My instant messenger with God.
2. Why the Godhead or Holy Trinity?
I don’t understand this question. It is not a complete sentence.
3. Why was Jesus under such distress in the Garden of Gethsemane and how does this affect our beliefs in the Holy Trinity? (Mathew 26:36-46, Mark 14:32-42, Luke 22:39-46)
This was an extremely emotionally time for Jesus. He’d just had the last fellowship with his friends, his followers, the ones who were to take over the ministry when he was gone and yet he knew none of them would remain loyal even through the night. He knew what God had in store for him, something so brutal and painful that he had second thoughts about going through with it. He was about to take on the burden of an entire species. In one instant.
Imagine the feeling you get in the pit of your stomach before you have to do something big. If you have stage fright and have ever been in a high school play, you know what I’m talking about. I got the feeling in church right before I walked down the center aisle in front of hundreds of people to tell them I wanted to be baptized and I still get the feeling when I know I’m going to have to pray in front of everyone. No matter how prepared you think you are, your body betrays you. Your knees and voice shake. You think you’re going to hyperventilate and you really, really, really don’t want to have to do whatever it is that you’re about to have to do. But you do want it to be done. And you know IT HAS TO BE DONE. You just want it already done. So you don’t have to do it NOW. Do you know that feeling? That’s what I imaging Jesus feeling at that moment but at a cosmic level. “Oh God, PLEASE don’t make me have to do this right now. But if you say I have to then I will.” The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak. God, the spirit, knew it had to be done. He knew that Jesus would be fine and everything was going to work out in the end. He knew why it had to be this way. He knew the sacrifice being made and he felt the pain. God, the human, was scared. And nervous. And he didn’t want to. But he did it anyway.
Now imagine you have a son. You’ve watched this child grow up. But his destiny is to die at the hands of your other children. They are going to ridicule him. They are going to hurt him. And then they are going to kill him. And you know he’s scared because he asks you, pleads to not have to do this. But he tells you he will do it because he loves those other children as much as you do. And he’s doing this for them. So that they will be able to live. What does that do to you as a parent? It rips your heart right out. “My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death.” I’m so sad it feels like my soul is dead.
How does this affect me? This is my proof that God knows what it’s like to be human. He knows what I go though, He knows what the people around me are going through. He knows what it feels like to suffer through the emotions and pain that we so commonly assume we alone can know what it feels like to be going through. Through that sympathy I found a friend. Through his courage and love I found a savior.
4. Why did Jesus say "My God, My God why hast thou forsaken me?" before dying on the cross? What was the connection between God the Son (Jesus) and God the Father? (Mathew 27;46, Mark 15;34)
for·sake [fər sáyk, fawr sáyk](past for·sook [fər sk, fawr sk], past participle for·sak·en [fər sáykən, fawr sáykən], present participle for·sak·ing, 3rd person present singular for·sakes)
vt
1. abandon: to withdraw companionship, protection, or support from somebody
2. give up: to give up, renounce, or sacrifice something that gives pleasure
I don’t know. I had to look up the word forsake in the dictionary because I assumed it meant abandon but the second definition is probably what was meant. Sacrifice. Maybe. I don’t know. But I’m relatively certain God did not abandon Jesus. God may have withdrawn into his own sorrow and Jesus felt the lack of his presence. Maybe. Or Jesus may have been referring to the sacrifice. “Why did you [sacrifice] me?”
I do find it interesting that Jesus was allowed to pass on immediately after wards. My opinion is that Jesus felt God’s sorrow and cried out for him and God answered by taking him home.
5. Was God the Father Separated from Jesus from death to resurrection ( for three days )? Does this lead us to believe that God is limited by evil? Why or Why not?
I assume Jesus was taken to Heaven when he died. Where else would he have gone? I think it was a recuperation period for Jesus, to recover (emotionally or spiritually?) from the ordeal. Where would be a better place for that than Heaven? (11/5/11 ETA Apparently a lot of people say that Jesus was fighting Satan at this time? I'm not sure about this. It's something I'm questioning at the moment.)
B.T.W. My God is not limited by anything.
6. Was Jesus truly forsaken or was this a response to what he had for seen that would happen within the next three days? Is there another reason for this statement?
See my answer to #4.
7. Is there evidence of the Holy Trinity in the old testament? If so, Where?
I don’t know. I don’t think God was “divided” until Jesus. Think about peoples’ reactions to God’s presence on Earth. People couldn’t look at him or were faced with burning bushes or angels, etc. I think in the old testament, God in his physical form or another was on Earth and after Jesus’ ascension the Holy Spirit took over the role of God’s form on Earth.
8. Is there an order in the Trinity, as far as subordination or one being greater than the other?
No. Do you consider your brain to be greater than your heart? Without one the other cannot be.
9. Why is God Addressed by so many names in the Bible? Which names do you find stand out or influence your vision of God ?
It’s simply a language thing. The Hebrew names for God are like the Mexicans’ names for peppers. When there is a term you need a word for then you come up with a word. God has so many names because he is so varied, so great(as in big), and so many people speak of him. There have been a few names of God that have made me stop to consider how the meaning is applicable in my life.
the Bible study is The Foundations of Christian Doctrine: a practical guide to Christian belief by Kevin J Conner
Also, I've had other thoughts about the answer to numbers 4, 5, and 6. Such as maybe since Jesus "adopted" all our sins in that moment God's presence truly left him. Because God cannot be in the presence of sin (which is why sinners are not allowed in Heaven) God could not be in the same unit, the same body, as Jesus in that moment? Idk.
1. In your own words, describe the Eternal Godhead or Holy Trinity?
Academically speaking, my definition of the Holy Trinity is: God, The “Father”-the entity above, in, and around all things past, present and eternal through which and for which all things exist; Jesus, The “Son”-the human presence of God; and finally, a Holy Spirit -the presence of God on Earth without a body.
Emotionally and spiritually speaking, however, it is MUCH harder to define God. (It’s like trying to define a person. How do you sum someone up in a sentence? Especially someone who’s been around as long as God has, which is literally forever? How do you define that?)
God is my friend, my very best friend. God is my mentor. God is my teacher. I learn new things every single day. If anything has me stumped or confused, I ask God. Who better to explain the way something works than the one who made it? Right? God is my creator. God is my Daddy. God is my comforter. God is my National Leader, the nation of Christianity or Christendom. God is my god, the object of my praise and worship. God is my cheerleader, my accountability partner and the absolute-without-a-doubt love of my life.
Jesus is my savior. Jesus is the way I get to spend my entire after life with God. Jesus is my example.
The Holy Spirit, I suppose, is my spiritual telephone. My instant messenger with God.
2. Why the Godhead or Holy Trinity?
I don’t understand this question. It is not a complete sentence.
3. Why was Jesus under such distress in the Garden of Gethsemane and how does this affect our beliefs in the Holy Trinity? (Mathew 26:36-46, Mark 14:32-42, Luke 22:39-46)
This was an extremely emotionally time for Jesus. He’d just had the last fellowship with his friends, his followers, the ones who were to take over the ministry when he was gone and yet he knew none of them would remain loyal even through the night. He knew what God had in store for him, something so brutal and painful that he had second thoughts about going through with it. He was about to take on the burden of an entire species. In one instant.
Imagine the feeling you get in the pit of your stomach before you have to do something big. If you have stage fright and have ever been in a high school play, you know what I’m talking about. I got the feeling in church right before I walked down the center aisle in front of hundreds of people to tell them I wanted to be baptized and I still get the feeling when I know I’m going to have to pray in front of everyone. No matter how prepared you think you are, your body betrays you. Your knees and voice shake. You think you’re going to hyperventilate and you really, really, really don’t want to have to do whatever it is that you’re about to have to do. But you do want it to be done. And you know IT HAS TO BE DONE. You just want it already done. So you don’t have to do it NOW. Do you know that feeling? That’s what I imaging Jesus feeling at that moment but at a cosmic level. “Oh God, PLEASE don’t make me have to do this right now. But if you say I have to then I will.” The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak. God, the spirit, knew it had to be done. He knew that Jesus would be fine and everything was going to work out in the end. He knew why it had to be this way. He knew the sacrifice being made and he felt the pain. God, the human, was scared. And nervous. And he didn’t want to. But he did it anyway.
Now imagine you have a son. You’ve watched this child grow up. But his destiny is to die at the hands of your other children. They are going to ridicule him. They are going to hurt him. And then they are going to kill him. And you know he’s scared because he asks you, pleads to not have to do this. But he tells you he will do it because he loves those other children as much as you do. And he’s doing this for them. So that they will be able to live. What does that do to you as a parent? It rips your heart right out. “My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death.” I’m so sad it feels like my soul is dead.
How does this affect me? This is my proof that God knows what it’s like to be human. He knows what I go though, He knows what the people around me are going through. He knows what it feels like to suffer through the emotions and pain that we so commonly assume we alone can know what it feels like to be going through. Through that sympathy I found a friend. Through his courage and love I found a savior.
4. Why did Jesus say "My God, My God why hast thou forsaken me?" before dying on the cross? What was the connection between God the Son (Jesus) and God the Father? (Mathew 27;46, Mark 15;34)
for·sake [fər sáyk, fawr sáyk](past for·sook [fər sk, fawr sk], past participle for·sak·en [fər sáykən, fawr sáykən], present participle for·sak·ing, 3rd person present singular for·sakes)
vt
1. abandon: to withdraw companionship, protection, or support from somebody
2. give up: to give up, renounce, or sacrifice something that gives pleasure
I don’t know. I had to look up the word forsake in the dictionary because I assumed it meant abandon but the second definition is probably what was meant. Sacrifice. Maybe. I don’t know. But I’m relatively certain God did not abandon Jesus. God may have withdrawn into his own sorrow and Jesus felt the lack of his presence. Maybe. Or Jesus may have been referring to the sacrifice. “Why did you [sacrifice] me?”
I do find it interesting that Jesus was allowed to pass on immediately after wards. My opinion is that Jesus felt God’s sorrow and cried out for him and God answered by taking him home.
5. Was God the Father Separated from Jesus from death to resurrection ( for three days )? Does this lead us to believe that God is limited by evil? Why or Why not?
I assume Jesus was taken to Heaven when he died. Where else would he have gone? I think it was a recuperation period for Jesus, to recover (emotionally or spiritually?) from the ordeal. Where would be a better place for that than Heaven? (11/5/11 ETA Apparently a lot of people say that Jesus was fighting Satan at this time? I'm not sure about this. It's something I'm questioning at the moment.)
B.T.W. My God is not limited by anything.
6. Was Jesus truly forsaken or was this a response to what he had for seen that would happen within the next three days? Is there another reason for this statement?
See my answer to #4.
7. Is there evidence of the Holy Trinity in the old testament? If so, Where?
I don’t know. I don’t think God was “divided” until Jesus. Think about peoples’ reactions to God’s presence on Earth. People couldn’t look at him or were faced with burning bushes or angels, etc. I think in the old testament, God in his physical form or another was on Earth and after Jesus’ ascension the Holy Spirit took over the role of God’s form on Earth.
8. Is there an order in the Trinity, as far as subordination or one being greater than the other?
No. Do you consider your brain to be greater than your heart? Without one the other cannot be.
9. Why is God Addressed by so many names in the Bible? Which names do you find stand out or influence your vision of God ?
It’s simply a language thing. The Hebrew names for God are like the Mexicans’ names for peppers. When there is a term you need a word for then you come up with a word. God has so many names because he is so varied, so great(as in big), and so many people speak of him. There have been a few names of God that have made me stop to consider how the meaning is applicable in my life.
the Bible study is The Foundations of Christian Doctrine: a practical guide to Christian belief by Kevin J Conner
Also, I've had other thoughts about the answer to numbers 4, 5, and 6. Such as maybe since Jesus "adopted" all our sins in that moment God's presence truly left him. Because God cannot be in the presence of sin (which is why sinners are not allowed in Heaven) God could not be in the same unit, the same body, as Jesus in that moment? Idk.