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THE TRINITY

A Mini-Allegory

The God who made heaven, earth, liberty and thus gave a channel for love, who accomplished redemption and hence peace for the heart, is not a simple singularity. Leave those gods to the imagination. He is a trinity.

Therefore, He did not have to create in order to have company. He has company within, with three persons in infinite intimacy, Father, Word who became through incarnation 'son' (as in Luke 1:35) and Holy Spirit.

The Son manifests the Father and the Holy Spirit exhibits the Son
and applies His word and work intimately to the hearts and minds
of His people (cf. John 16:7). On this, see the trilogy,  The Shadow of a Mighty Rock (http://webwitness.org.au/smr/bk2chap7-e.html or pp. 532-560, Vol. 2).

Now for some, a little parable, or mini-allegory may help. Here it is.

THE MINI-ALLEGORY

We were in a beautiful island. Near its Northern coast was a lovely mountain, fresh with the dew of heaven, a sudden ascent, leading to a plateau on the crest, where a still lake lay in its peaceful strength. Mist surrounded the top of this mount, and as ohne began to ascend it, there was no simple sight, but a sense of wonder and grandeur began to become apparent. What would it be like at the top ? Meanwhile there was mist.

This was clearly a mount of some distinction, from the sense of wonder and beauty and an intense sort of peace. But it was not necessary to find out by mere mountaineering, for out of the mist there came leaping downward and jutting, a delightful stream.  Its waters seemed touched with that innocent grace of purity which can so grip the heart in such scenes. Now it was simple to ascend and find out. So we followed this stream in its course to the very top. There to be found was the lake, which we could now see first-hand.

It was of what kind ? It was water, just as the stream was water, and both were the same water.

Returning we found that we had missed on one side in the mist of ascent, a hydro-electric works, wrapped in mystery since all the mount was so marked with scenic valleys. But now we found that this was a direct course for the water of the stream, which we had found deeper down in this valley.

The water came down and smacked against the paddles, the blades of the turbine, from which electricity was generated which went to many houses.

This however was of no use, unless a simple condition was fulfilled. When it came to any house, this electrical power which moved from the smitten waters of the stream through to electric availability for each house, had no value for any of them without this condition. Enormous work had been done for it to be available; but this accomplished nothing for them unless they chose to turn on the switch for the house, one which had many leads for many actions within the house.

That is the end of the mini-allegory.

THE MEANING

The lake represents the Father, glorious in His wonder and uppermost peace.
The stream of water, issuing from the water of the lake, and conveying its purity and expressing its nature to what lies below, represents the Son, God as man, showing to all not only the nature of the Father, but the way to Him, from whom He came.

The hydro-electric works shows the water, representing the Son expressing the Father truly, being hammered by the blows as the paddles strike it continually, and the electricity which the water thus sends from its coming and being smitten, represents in this the Holy Spirit.

The Holy Spirit  is able in this way to be sent because the Son not only came, but was smitten and so left the power to forgive available, as to empower and move in many ways to achieve great things for the people who receive it.

However, there is one condition. God gave man liberty as you see in the first three chapters of Genesis, and in your heart as you ponder your priorities, values, desires, ambitions, morals, place, origin, destiny and what is to be valued and worshipped, and what not and why!

It is a wonder how God is willing as Christ showed so very directly in Matthew 23:37, to call, to invite, to offer, even to exhort or lament, in seeking man. Yet He has no desire to force people to find and to know Him, to be pardoned through Christ Jesus and so to find not only an inner personal peace, but power to live and a place where prayer is heard.

To be sure, many leave the switches well alone, and just look about their unempowered and unpeaceful homes, filled with emptiness, their own particular thoughts and desires, where significance is pushed out the back door.

However, some do come to the switch, and turning it on, find the blessings the Lord confers.

Failure to do this means that the colossal action of God becoming man through the second person of the Trinity, God the word incarnate and crucified to bear the brunt and due penalty of sin for man, who could neve make up in his deficiencies, the load of the debt of sin, is ignored. The Lord and His work may even be scoffed at, as was Christ by many, but not all, just as He for a crowd, He was despised, or made a matter of indifference (like refusing to see a specialist for cure for some deep problem in your body). That is just as Isaiah the prophet in the Bible, predicted would happen (Isaiah 53:1-6, 49:7.)

This does nothing to alter the position of refusal; and since this is not a specialist but God Himself, left apart despite His book of instructions and invitation, with its enduring testimony and unending truth: then the failure to turn on - remember the 'switch' - to  come, to receive what He has offered, is fatal. It is like refusing a payment for a million dollar mortgage. If there is complaint as well, it is a most miserable confusion.

This book, the Bible, is such a gift, covering history as well as many individuals who know Him, in advance. On such provisions, see for example Cyrus in the Bible prophet, Isaiah Chs. 44-45, his startling actions toward Israel outlined even before his time in history altogether. Indeed marvel at his  forecasts both concerning the coming of Christ, and for this present world in which we live, as in those of Christ as in Matthew 24 and Luke 21 for example.

This Bible is our manual as the written word of God,

 just as this Jesus Christ is the incarnate word of God and Saviour.

As exponent of salvation and the eternal word of God, it is He who having both knowledge and authority, eternity (John 8:58) and tenderness of heart, is Lord.

The allegory shows some of these relationships in a way some may find illustrative.