We have often heard there is one God presented in three different persons. That can be hard to understand. We may wonder why God is described this way. Today we take a look at just one of many Scriptures that provides some insight.
Philip asks a question that I’m sure all of us would ask. In our limited human understanding, Philip asks Jesus to show them the Father. Now, doesn’t that sound unreasonable. After all, Jesus has just told them He was going to the Father.
Jesus’ answer is very revealing, even if it doesn’t completely clear up the picture for us. He first asks Philip a question, asking how Philip can say he doesn’t know the Father. Jesus’ reasoning is that He, Jesus, has been with them for a long time. He goes on to state that by seeing Him they have seen the Father. Now, we might say “like father, like son,” but not mean they are the same person. We are simply indicating they are very much alike.
Jesus is not simply saying they are very much alike. He is saying they are the same. That is difficult for us to wrap our minds around. As humans, we know a father and son cannot be the same person. Yet, Jesus is saying they are, in the case of God.
He goes on to say the Father is in Him and He is in the Father. We might grasp a bit of understanding in the first half of that statement. It fits neatly in our statement of “like father, like son.” But the second half of His statement causes us to question. We wonder how the son can be in the father.
There is only one explanation—they are the same. If we look at the prophecy of Isaiah regarding the coming of the Messiah, we see Him being called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, and Prince of Peace (Isaiah 9:6). When we pull together what Jesus said with the prophecy of Isaiah, we find that Jesus is the Father in human form, as the Son.
I know, it is still a bit confusing. But our faith must include believing there is one God who is presented to us in three persons—the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. We are to accept it without reservation, even as we continue to struggle to understand.
I pray we all believe there is one God. I pray we accept that He is presented in three persons. I pray each of us accept this in childlike faith, without reservation. Believe God. Trust Jesus’ statements. Accept one God in three persons. Know that He is God.
John 14:9-10 Jesus answered: “Don’t you know me, Philip, even after I have been among you such a long time? Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? Don’t you believe that I am in the Father, and that the Father is in me? The words I say to you I do not speak on my own authority. Rather, it is the Father, living in me, who is doing his work.”
Marty Pressey 