1. “I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Comforter, that He may be with you forever, even the Spirit of reality...He abides with you and shall be in you” (John 14:16-17).
God was incarnated in the Son. Although God was manifested among men, He could not enter into man. Although He could live among men, He could not abide in man. Therefore, when the Son was on the earth, He manifested God among men, and after He returned to the heavens, the Spirit was given so that God could enter into man and be with man. God was incarnated in the Son to be manifested among men, seen by men, and received by men. Following the death and resurrection of Christ, He came as the Spirit to enter into man, mingle with man, and be obtained by man. He went through this process in order to have a close, personal relationship with man and to be man’s life, salvation, and everything.
2. “We know that He abides in us, by the Spirit whom He gave to us” (1 John 3:24; see also 4:13; 1 Cor. 3:16; 6:19; Rom. 8:9-10).
The Spirit’s abiding in us is God’s abiding in us. Just as Christ is the embodiment of God, the Spirit is the realization of God. God was embodied in Christ and came among men. God is realized as the Spirit and enters into man. The Spirit has been given to us, and as His temple, God now dwells in us. This is God’s coming to dwell in us.
The Spirit is the transfiguration of God because He is the transfiguration of Christ. Christ was the embodiment of God. After Christ died, rose, and ascended, He descended as the Spirit. Therefore, the Spirit is the transfiguration of Christ, the transfiguration of God. This is the reason that the Spirit is called the Spirit of God and the Spirit of Christ. The Spirit is the Spirit of God and the Spirit of Christ. Thus, the Spirit’s dwelling in man is God’s dwelling in man and Christ’s dwelling in man. This is the true situation of all those who are saved and who belong to Christ. If a person does not have the Spirit of Christ, he is not of Christ.
3. “Christ who lives in me” (Gal. 2:20; see also 4:19; 2 Cor. 13:5; Col. 1:27; John 14:19-20; 17:21, 23, 26).
Christ is in everyone who believes in Him. Christ not only is in us, but He also wants to live in us and to grow and be formed in us so that we may be conformed to His glorious image (Rom. 8:29). Today He is in us as our hope of glory. In the future He will be our glory. As He lives in us and is joined with us, God is in us, and we are in God. Thus, the Triune God and we and we and the Triune God are one.
We must see and remember the four steps that God took in order for us to know of Him, to know Him and receive Him, to obtain Him, and to be one with Him. These four steps are (1) the creation of all things, (2) the revelation in the Bible, (3) incarnation, and (4) transfiguration as the Spirit. The creation of all things shows man that there is a God. The revelation in the Bible explains God to man. The incarnation manifested God to man, and His transfiguration as the Spirit allows God to enter into man and be obtained by man. Thus, He is revealed by the creation, explained by the Bible, manifested by incarnation, and made available as the Spirit. If we want to know Him, we must know these four major steps. This is basic knowledge concerning God. We must know the creation, the Bible, Christ, and the Holy Spirit in order to know God. We must have a clear understanding concerning creation, the Bible, Christ, and the Holy Spirit in order to have a thorough knowledge of God.
According to the Bible, God is triune. The word triune is more appropriate than the term three-in-one. Although we cannot find the word triune in the Bible, the fact that God is triune is revealed in the Bible (Matt. 28:19). Many people wonder how God can be three and also one. This matter is difficult to understand because our mind is limited. It is not possible to completely understand the matter of God being triune, just as we cannot completely understand how we are a tripartite being with a spirit, soul, and body. There are many things in the universe that our limited mentality cannot understand. We can apprehend their existence, but we cannot understand or explain them. If we lack understanding of such matters, it should not be a surprise that we cannot understand such a mysterious person as God. In regard to the matter of God being triune, the Bible clearly speaks of this, even though it does not provide details concerning how this is possible.
1. “There is one God”; “There is no God but one” (1 Tim. 2:5; 1 Cor. 8:4, see also v. 6; Rom. 3:30).
These portions of the Bible clearly and definitely state that there is only one God.
2. “In the beginning God [plural] created [singular] the heavens and the earth” (Gen. 1:1).
The Bible clearly says that there is only one God, but in this verse in the Hebrew language the word God is plural. This tells us that although there is one God, there is a particular characteristic—a plural aspect—in His person. This may cause some to think that there are separate persons who are God; however, the singular verb create in the Hebrew language counters such an understanding. The subject God is plural, but the verb create is singular. This proves that God is both plural and singular. According to the record of the Bible, the plural references to God point to the number three, and the singular references, to the number one. From the very first verse of the Bible, the revelation of God implies that He is triune.
3. “God [plural] said, Let Us make man in Our image [singular], according to Our likeness” (Gen. 1:26; see also 3:22; 11:6-7; Isa. 6:8).
At the end of the first chapter of Genesis, the Bible not only uses the plural word in Hebrew for God, but it clearly includes God’s reference to Himself as “Us.” This is one of many portions in the Bible that refers to God in the plural form. However, in Genesis 1:26 the word for image is in the singular form of the Hebrew language. Although the word God and God’s reference to Himself, Us, are both plural, the word image is singular. Us is plural, but the image of Us is singular. There is only one image. This proves that God is triune.
4. “As We are one” (John 17:22, see also v. 11).
Although the Lord’s word to the Father clearly contains the plural pronoun We, it also clearly indicates that the “We” are one. This again shows that God is triune.
5. “Into the name [singular] of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit” (Matt. 28:19).
Although the Lord speaks of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit in this verse, the word name in the original Greek is singular. Although the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are three, there is only one name. Thus, the Bible shows that the God who has been revealed is three and one; He is triune. The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are one God.
6. “Chosen according to the foreknowledge of God the Father”; “Of the Son, ‘Your throne, O God’”; “Why has Satan filled your heart to deceive the Holy Spirit...You have not lied to men but to God” (1 Pet. 1:2; Heb. 1:8; Acts 5:3-4; see also Eph. 1:17; John 1:1; 2 Cor. 3:17-18).
In these verses the Bible clearly reveals that the Father, Son, and Spirit are all God. Based on the record of other portions of the Bible, this does not mean that the Father, Son, and Spirit are three separate Gods but that the Father, Son, and Spirit are triune.
7. “The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit”; “There are distinctions of gifts, but the same Spirit; and there are distinctions of ministries, yet the same Lord; and there are distinction of operations, but the same God”; “Chosen according to the foreknowledge of God the Father in the sanctification of the Spirit unto the obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ”; “The God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you a spirit” (2 Cor. 13:14; 1 Cor. 12:4-6; 1 Pet. 1:2; Eph. 1:17).
These portions of the Bible, which speak of the apostle’s blessing for the believers, God’s inspiration of the believers, God’s choosing of the saints, and God’s revelation of Himself to the saints, all refer to God the Father, the Lord Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit. This shows that God is triune.
8. “Jehovah bless you and keep you; Jehovah make His face shine upon you and be gracious to you; Jehovah lift up His countenance upon you and give you peace” (Num. 6:24-26).
God commanded the Old Testament priests to speak the name Jehovah three times in succession when they blessed the children of Israel. They were not charged to say “Jehovah” two times or even four times; God charged them to speak the name three times. This is very meaningful because the God who blesses is triune. The first reference to Jehovah involves His blessing and keeping. These are actions of God the Father. The second reference to Jehovah involves His shining and being gracious. These are actions of God the Son. The third reference to Jehovah involves His lifting up His countenance and giving peace. These, undoubtedly, are actions of God the Spirit. Therefore, this blessing involves the Father, Son, and Spirit—the Triune God—blessing, giving grace, and giving peace to His chosen people.
9. “Holy, holy, holy, Jehovah of hosts” (Isa. 6:3, see also v. 8).
According to the Old Testament, the priests referred to Jehovah three times in succession when they blessed the people. In a similar fashion, the seraphim in the heavens say “holy” three times in succession when they praise God. When they praise God, they say, “Holy, holy, holy,” because the God whom they praise is triune. In verse 8 the God whom they praise refers to Himself in the plural with the word Us.
10. “Your name be sanctified; Your kingdom come; Your will be done” (Matt. 6:9-10).
In the Old Testament the priests were charged to say the name of Jehovah three times when they blessed the people, and in the New Testament the Lord charged the believers to refer to God three times with the word Your when they prayed. This is because the God to whom the Lord wanted the believers to pray is triune. The first Your is associated with the name of God, which is related mainly to the Father. The second Your is associated with the kingdom of God, which is related to Christ. And the third Your is associated with the will of God, which is related to the Spirit. The name of God the Father, the kingdom of God the Son, and the will of God the Spirit can be seen in other portions of the Bible as well (John 17:5-6, 11; 1 Cor. 15:24-25; Eph. 5:5; Col. 1:13; Acts 13:2; 1 Cor. 1:1; Eph. 1:1). Consequently, the prayer that the Lord charged the New Testament believers to pray also proves that God is triune.
11. “Holy, holy, holy” (Rev. 4:8).
Just as there are verses in the Old Testament that refer to the name Jehovah and to the word holy three times in succession, there are verses in the New Testament that refer to Your and to the word holy three times in succession. In the Old Testament the priests on earth blessed the people in the name of Jehovah three times, and the seraphim in the heavens praised God three times, referring to Him as holy each time. In the New Testament the believers on earth refer to God as “Your” three times in their prayer, and the four living creatures in the heavens praise God three times, referring to Him as “holy” each time. This is revealed because the God to whom we petition, pray, and praise is triune.
The Bible shows that God is the Father, Son, and Spirit—the Triune God. The Father is the source, the Son is the manifestation of God to man, and the Spirit is the realization of God, the entrance of God into man. God the Father dwells in the heavens in unapproachable light, God the Son is manifested among men, and God the Spirit enters into and is realized by man.
As the Father is in the Son and is one with the Son, the Son is also in the Spirit and is one with the Spirit. The Son is the manifestation of the Father, and the Spirit is the realization, the entrance, of the Son. The Father is manifested among men in the Son, and the Son enters into man as the Spirit. The Father is in the Son, and the Son is the Spirit. The Father, Son, and Spirit are three yet at the same time one.