In the previous message, we saw five aspects of the Spirit. In this message we want to go further to see eleven more aspects. Whenever we speak concerning the Spirit, this involves the study of the divine Trinity. In studying the divine Trinity, I would recommend chapters seven and eight of Elders’ Training—Book3,The Way to Carry Out the Vision. There are two main points in the study of the divine Trinity. One point refers to the one God, and the other point refers to the Three of the Godhead. The word triune means three-one. On the one hand, God is one yet three. On the other hand, God is three yet one. We may say that God is three in person but one in essence.
In the last message, we talked about the words element, substance, nature, and essence. Another word used in relation to the Trinity is hypostasis. This anglicized Greek word is actually composed of two Greek words—hupo meaning under or below and stasis meaning substantial support. This word refers to the three substances of the divine Trinity. The Father, the Son, and the Spirit are the three hypostases, or substances, of the divine Trinity.
A Latin word used to equal hypostasis in the theological study of the Trinity was the word persona. Persona is where we get the English word person. In the study of the divine Trinity, Bible teachers say that God is three persons in one essence. Regarding the Three of the Triune God, theologians have used the Greek word hypostasis, the Latin word persona, and the English word person. These words refer to God being three.
The Triune God is also one in essence. The Greek word ousia refers to the essence of the substance. A table made of wood has wood as its substance, and within this substance is the essence. The Latin word for essence is essentia. The Triune God is three hypostases in one ousia. In other words. God is three persons in one essence. The persons should not be confused, and the essence should not be divided. The Three are one in essence. This is why we can say that when the Son comes, the Father comes, and when the Son and the Father are here, the Spirit is also here. Since one is here, all of the Three are here because in essence, They are one.
We have to be careful, however, when we use the word person to describe the Three of the Godhead. W. Griffith Thomas, the founder of Dallas Theological Seminary, indicated that we may borrow a word like person to define the Trinity because our human language is inadequate, but if we press the term person too far, it will lead to tritheism. It is safer to say that God has three substances but only one essence. I hope that this discussion of these terms will help us in our understanding of the divine Trinity. Now we want to fellowship concerning more aspects of the Spirit.
According to 1 Corinthians 15:45 the Spirit is the life-giving Spirit, and Christ became this life-giving Spirit in His resurrection. The life-giving Spirit has the ability to give us life. The Spirit is moving, working, and living in us to impart life into us. The life-giving Spirit is now working and moving in the being of the believers. The Spirit is the life-imparting Spirit, working to give life to our whole being.