In this episode of Hope for Today, we delve into the profound concept of the Triunity of God, exploring how the Bible presents God in three distinct persons: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Join Bible teacher David Hawking as he examines the divine attributes and roles of each person of the Godhead. Through scriptural references, we uncover how the Holy Spirit plays a crucial role in the believer’s life, outlining the necessity of His presence for living a victorious Christian life.
The triunity of God is defined by the use of plural pronouns. It’s dependent upon the uniqueness and unity of each person of the Godhead. It’s declared in the Bible when each person is called God and described when divine attributes are given to each person. It’s demonstrated by the exercise of their power, and it’s also displayed by their presence in the believer. The triunity of God, friends, is designed to reveal the spiritual unity of believers. And it’s at this point we are real fuzzy.
SPEAKER 02 :
Well, welcome to the Tuesday broadcast of Hope for Today. Man trying to fully understand the concept of one God in three persons is kind of like an ant trying to understand the Internet. Our minds cannot wrap around it, and yet the Word of God reveals it. The Lord our God is one God, and the Scriptures speak clearly of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Not three gods and not a contradiction, but the holy self-revelation of the living God. Wow. Today, Bible teacher David Hawking returns with day two of his message called The Triunity of God. This time with a close look at the role of the Holy Spirit in the life of the believer. Stay with us. Just before we open up the Word, we want to remind you that the sermon notes and outlines, these are David’s original sermon notes and outlines as he taught these messages in our Attributes of God series. They are available for just $10. That’s a complete set of notes, all 16 messages in the series, and it’s just $10. We also have the Attributes of God radio series available on MP3 CD. All the messages in a pack, just $20. Now, both of these resources are a wonderful way to hold on to these studies and go back through them at your own pace in the years to come. Call 800-75-BIBLE in the U.S. to make the purchase or 888-75-BIBLE in Canada. And Bible by the numbers 24253. You can also make the purchase on our website at DavidHawking.org. That’s David, H-O-C-K-I-N-G.org. And here’s David.
SPEAKER 01 :
I think it’s interesting that the Bible not only calls our Savior God in Titus 2.13, but calls Him the Great God. Aren’t you glad Jesus is the Great God? The triunity of God is declared when each person is called God. You say, what about the Holy Spirit? I wonder how many of you really believe the Holy Spirit is God. You believe he acts like God, but do you believe he’s God? Do you believe he’s a real person? The triunity of God affects a lot of things, and we don’t even know it. Let’s talk about the Holy Spirit. When I grew up, I learned that I couldn’t live my Christian life without the help of the Holy Spirit of God. You know that? That was programmed into my brain. I learned that I couldn’t make it. I couldn’t handle life. I needed the help and presence of the Holy Spirit of God. I grew up believing that. I grew up believing that you had to be filled with the Holy Spirit as a constant thing in your life. It wasn’t a creative option for a few super saints. I learned that every Christian can’t function well unless he’s filled with the Holy Spirit of God. That’s what I grew up learning. In my day, the difference between being Pentecostal and not being Pentecostal was always dealing with tongues. Today, because Christians realize the differences, we have what we call charismatic Christians and non-charismatic. And it isn’t just talking about tongues or gifts of the Spirit. It deals with our attitude toward the Holy Spirit. There are many non-charismatics who have forsaken the basic teaching of the Bible that you cannot live the Christian life without the Holy Spirit. You know what we have done? We have substituted our own performance and don’t even realize it. We have said more witnessing, more prayer, more Bible reading. We got seminars teaching us how to live the Christian life. I just want you to know that we don’t need any seminars. We need the Holy Spirit. And we are losing our understanding of the Holy Spirit in our effort to help people to grow. All of you who are gung-ho discipleship, listen to me. I grew up believing in discipleship, but never once thought that by my own discipline and discipleship that somehow I would have victory in the Christian life. I never believed that. But I have lived to see my Christian brothers now teaching that. I just want you to know, no matter how much you study the Word, no matter how much you’re on your knees in prayer, all of what you should do, no matter how much you witness, no matter how good you are at discipline, You cannot live the Christian life without the Holy Spirit. It isn’t you doing it. It’s the Spirit of God living and working in you. That’s missing, folks. All across our Christian culture, we’ve lost sight of it. It’s one thing to shout hallelujah. It’s something you hear and you know is true. It’s another thing to realize how we got in this mess and what’s wrong. When you talk to triunity of God, you’re saying the Holy Spirit is God, like the Father is God, like the Son is God. And yet many Christians today are talking about the Spirit of God as though He’s an influence, a power, the force. My friends, He’s God. God Almighty. And he lives in me. And he lives in you if you’re a believer. Turn to Acts chapter 5 and let me prove the Bible teaches he’s God. There isn’t a lot to go on in this, but there’s one clear text, Acts 5, 3 and 4. Peter said, Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and keep back part of the price of the land for yourself while it remained? Was it not your own? And after it was sold, was it not in your own control? Why have you conceived this thing in your heart? You have not lied to men, but to who? What does it say? To God. Verse 3, lie to the Holy Spirit. Verse 4, you’ve not lied to men, but to God. The Holy Spirit, obviously, is called God in Acts 5, 3, and 4. Now, we’ve said so far that the triunity of God is defined by the use of plural pronouns. Let us make man. Secondly, that the triunity of God, and try and understand it, is dependent upon the uniqueness or the distinctiveness and unity of each person of the Godhead. They are distinct and different, and yet they are one. The triunity of God is declared when each person is called God. Now, number four. The triunity of God is also described in the Bible as, When divine attributes are given to each person. Let me give an example. God is love. But if I use love, I’m going to have a problem because we love. When we talk divine attributes, we mean something that’s true of God that’s not true of man. Here’s some examples. I’ll just give you three. Eternal love. Now, we have eternal life, but we had a beginning. God had no beginning or end. Eternal. Omniscient, that He knows all things. We don’t. God does. Omnipresent, that He’s everywhere at once. Let’s just take those three. And I’m asking you, in the Bible, do we learn that each person, Father, Son, and Spirit, have the divine attributes? That’s the question. Deuteronomy 33, 27 says, The eternal God is thy refuge. Underneath are the everlasting arms. Is that Father? Is that Son? or is that Holy Spirit? Psalm 90, 1 and 2 says, even from everlasting to everlasting, thou art God. Is it talking about the Father, or the Son, or the Holy Spirit? I read Jesus in John chapter 8. Will you turn there, please? I read Jesus making a remarkable statement about the eternal character of Himself. John 8, 56. Is He eternal, Jesus Christ our Lord? Is He the eternal Son of God? Your father Abraham, Jesus said, rejoiced to see my day. Wait a minute. Abraham lived 2,100 years before Christ. Jesus said he saw it and was glad. The Jews said to him, you’re not yet 50 years old. Have you seen Abraham? Jesus said to them, most assuredly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I am. Now, stop and think about it. If he said, before Abraham was, I was, that’s quite a statement. That means he existed 2,000 years ago. But he didn’t say that. He said, before Abraham was, I am. Meaning, at this present moment, I’m existing, but I’m also existing 2,000 years previous. By the way, the Bible teaches the Lord inhabits eternity. He’s not governed by the sequence of events as we are. He lives outside of time. He designed time. He can live 2,000 years ago and 2,000 years in the present at the same moment that we’re talking about it. And he fills it all. He inhabits, literally dwells in all eternity, says Isaiah 57, 15. My friends, we’re talking some heavy-duty stuff here that makes your brain hurt. What Jesus is saying is I’ve always existed. As a matter of fact, at this present moment, I’m also existing 2,000 years ago, which is inconceivable to our brains, but not to the mind of God at all. And Jesus is saying this about himself. You say, well, maybe that isn’t what he meant. Oh, yes, it’s what he meant. Look at verse 59. They weren’t mistaken at all about what he meant. They took up stones to throw at him again. People who heard Jesus knew exactly what he was claiming. They knew he was claiming to be God, which is blasphemy, and in the law you’re to be stoned to death. Look at chapter 17, verse 5. When Jesus is praying to his heavenly Father, you talk about being the eternal God, eternal Son of God. John 17, 5. Now, O Father, glorify me together with yourself with the glory which I had with you before the world was. He indicates He was with the Father before the world ever came into existence. He’s the eternal Son of God. You say, yeah, but what about the Holy Spirit? Turn to Hebrews chapter 9. At my door one day, a couple of those guys came by. We got into heavy-duty arguments about a lot of stuff, and one was about the Holy Spirit. They felt that our Christian doctrine is incorrect. They said, you treat him like a person. I said, because he is. No, no, no, no. He’s a force. I said, no, he’s not. He’s just God working. I said, no, no, he’s God all right. It is God working, but not like you’re talking. He’s God just like the Father’s God. That’s blasphemy. I said, no, it’s not. But by the way, they did try to stone Jesus for that remark. They said, there’s not one verse in the Bible that calls the Holy Spirit eternal. Shouldn’t have done that. I said, turn to the book of Hebrews. Then I had to help him find it. Hebrews 9, verse 14 says, “…how much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit, offer Himself without spot to God?” It’s called eternal Spirit in Hebrews 9, verse 14. You see, divine attributes are given to each person of the Godhead. The fact that God knows everything is in 1 John 3.20. God knows all things. It’s in Psalm 139. Before I even speak, before there’s a word in my tongue, God knows it. He’s intimately acquainted with all my ways. Such knowledge is too wonderful for me. It’s too high. I cannot attain it, said the psalmist. That’s one thing everybody agrees. God knows everything and we don’t. I want to ask you, does Jesus… Turn to John chapter 2. In John chapter 2, I read in verse 23, when he was in Jerusalem at the Passover during the feast, many believed in his name when they saw the signs which he did. But Jesus did not commit himself to them. The word commit is the same word belief that’s in verse 23. He didn’t believe in them. Why? They only believed because of the signs. They didn’t really commit themselves to Him. He didn’t believe in them. Why? Because He knew all men. Had no need that anyone should testify a man, for He knew what was in man. In Mark chapter 2, they bring a paralytic man to Jesus. Jesus says, your sins are forgiven. The scribes and Pharisees, the Bible said, reasoned in their hearts. They weren’t even talking out loud. Who can forgive sins but God only? And Jesus, perceiving their reasoning, asked them, why are you reasoning in your hearts? I mean, folks, he knew what they were thinking. The Bible says he knows what’s in man. Who? Jesus. What about the Holy Spirit? Turn to 1 Corinthians 2. And look at verse 10 and 11. Does the Holy Spirit know everything? It says in verse 10, God has revealed them to us, these wonderful things He’s prepared for us, through His Spirit. For the Spirit searches all things, yes, the deep things of God. For what man knows the things of a man except the spirit of the man which is in him? Even so, no one knows the things of God except the Spirit of God. Does the Holy Spirit know everything? Yes, He knows all the things of God. He knows all the deep things of God, the Bible says. Well, wait a minute. God’s everywhere. Is Jesus? I mean, after all. Matthew 28, 20. Lo, I am with you. What? Always. I’ll never leave you. I’ll never forsake you. And how about the Holy Spirit? Psalm 139, 7. Where shall I run away from thy spirit? Where do I go from thy spirit? If I ascend into heaven, thou art there. If I make my bed in hell, thou art there. There is nowhere you can run away from the Spirit. Why? Because he’s everywhere. What I’m trying to say, it’s clear in the Bible that divine attributes are said of each person of the Godhead, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Now number five, a fifth thing about the triunity of God. I like this. The triunity of God, people, is demonstrated in the Bible by the exercise of their power. Let me show you what I mean. Let’s take creation, that’s power. In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. But who was that? Father, Son, or Holy Spirit? And people say, well, it’s a father. But wait a minute. In John 1.3, it says of Jesus, all things were made by him, and without him was not anything made that was made. And how about Job 26.13? It says, by his Spirit, he has adorned or beautified the heavens. Job 33.4, by the Spirit of Almighty God, I have life. Who was creating us? Who was creating the universe? Father, Son, Holy Spirit were all involved. You want another example? How about the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead? In Ephesians 1, 19 to 21, it says that the Father raised Jesus from the dead. But in John chapter 10, verse 18, Jesus said, no man takes my life from me. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it up again. Hey, don’t leave the Holy Spirit out. In Romans 8, 11, it says, the Spirit raised Jesus’ body from the dead. Now, who raised Jesus from the dead? The Father did, Jesus did himself, and so did the Holy Spirit. That ought to cause you to think. The triunity of God, folks, is demonstrated by the exercise of their power. Let me give you another more wonderful, wonderful thing to our hearts. The triunity of God, friends, number six, is displayed in the Bible by their presence in the believer. In John chapter 14, verse 16, Jesus said, I will pray the Father. There’s Jesus and the Father distinct from each other. And he will give you another helper. The helper is the Holy Spirit, according to verse 26. that He may abide with you forever. Even the Spirit of truth in the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him, but you know Him. He dwells with you, the Greek has alongside of you, and will be in you. The indwelling of the Holy Spirit in the believer began on the day of Pentecost. It was obviously future at this point. Now look at verse 18. I will not leave you orphans. I will come to you. Wait a minute. He’s telling them he’s going to ascend into heaven. He’s got to go away. He’s going to send the Holy Spirit, and the Holy Spirit’s going to come to you. And now he says, I will come to you. Look at verse 20. At that day you will know that I am in my Father, and you in me, and I in you. Verse 23. Jesus answered and said to him, If anyone loves me, he will keep my word, and my Father will love him. Watch this. And we will come to him and make our home with him. The Father’s in me, the Spirit’s in me, the Son’s in me. I got them all. It’s a great team. Amen? The eternal God. I don’t have all there is to God. Neither do you. But according to the Bible, God places his own nature and himself inside of us. It includes the Father, includes Jesus, and includes the Holy Spirit. You say, do you understand it? No. But I believe it. Number seven. Turn to John 17. The triunity of God is defined by the use of plural pronouns. It’s dependent upon the uniqueness and unity of each person of the Godhead. It’s declared in the Bible when each person is called God. and described when divine attributes are given to each person. It’s demonstrated by the exercise of their power, and it’s also displayed by their presence in the believer. But finally, the triunity of God, friends, is designed to reveal the spiritual unity of believers. And it’s at this point we are real fuzzy. John 17, please. Verse 20. Jesus said, that they may be one just as we are one. I in them, and you in me, that they may be made perfect in one, and that the world may know that you have sent me and have loved me as you have loved me, and have loved them as you have loved me. It’s interesting to me as you examine this passage that we are to be one as the Father and Jesus are one. The triunity of God means God is one but manifests himself in three persons. And their unity is to be exactly the same as the unity among true believers. And this is why I think we’re all messed up. You see, a lot of us believe that true unity is based on whether folks agree with you or not. It’s interesting to me that we’re all very different. And you know one of the easiest ways to cause a split and ill feelings is to run into another Christian who disagrees with you about something. All true believers are one, not because they like the same things, not because they have the same cultural preferences or interests. That is not why we’re one. The Father and the Son and the Spirit are one because they’re all what? God. What makes the Father, the Son, and the Spirit one is they’re all God. Not three gods, there’s only one God. What makes all believers one is God. Same exact thing. He said, I pray that they be one as we are one. The reason we are one is because we all have God’s life in us. No matter what our likes and dislikes are, no matter what our language differences are, skin color differences, or anything else, we’re one when we’ve been born again of the Spirit of God.
SPEAKER 02 :
Well, that’s David Hawking declaring powerful biblical truth here on Hope for Today. David will be back to bring our lesson to a close for today and to lead us in a time of prayer. Very special time. So don’t go away. First, though, Matt’s here. And Matt, I want to tell you about a must read from David. And well, Matt, let’s talk about it. Knowing and thoroughly understanding who God is, according to the Bible, makes all the difference. Well, inside the God of the Bible, David Hawking, shows us how the big questions about the origin of all things, death, life after death, are answered satisfactorily only by God. When we root our understanding. Our perspective and outlook. Exactly. In the presence and existence of God. God really does exist. He is personal and knowable. And he is the God of the Bible. Well, this month we’re featuring The God of the Bible by David Hawking. It’s just $20. Yes. Deepen, expand, broaden your understanding of the God of the Bible. And watch your faith take off. Amen. And add to the lessons you’re hearing during our current radio series. To get your copy of David’s book, The God of the Bible, call 875-BIBLE in the U.S. or 888-75-BIBLE in Canada. You can also order on our website, davidhawking.org. Hey, while you’re on the website, be sure to take a look at the many resources available on the website. You’ll find Bible teaching materials, books, booklets, audio series, and other helpful tools designed to keep pointing you back to the scriptures and helping you grow in your knowledge of the Lord. And as you contact us, would you prayerfully consider standing with Hope for Today financially through a donation? You see, your support helps keep this broadcast on the air. It helps us continue declaring the truth of God’s Word without compromise and helps us make these resources available to people who need strong Bible teaching. And that’s all of us, isn’t it? And whether it’s a one-time gift or faithful monthly support, Your partnership with us in ministry makes a real difference. Make a donation on our website, davidhawking.org, or by phone at 1-800-75-BIBLE in the U.S., 888-75-BIBLE in Canada. Bible by the numbers is 24253. And many folks like to send a good old-fashioned letter. You can do that. Write to us in the U.S. at Hope for Today, Box 3927, Tustin, California, 92781. In Canada, write to Hope for Today, Box 15011, RPO, Seven Oaks, Abbotsford, BC, V2SHP1. And let’s get back to David.
SPEAKER 01 :
Everybody wants to have oneness by having the same name or come under this denominational humongous something or other. Hey, listen folks, you’re one because you’ve got God’s life in you. With every true believer in Jesus Christ, you are already one. And isn’t it fascinating that Jesus said the world would know and would believe when they see it. So the manifestation of it would be what? John 13, 34. By this will all men know that you are my disciples when you what? When you love one another. It did not say like each other. We hope you do. But you are to love one another. Even when you disagree. But I want pink on the walls and it’s white. So what? Well, I don’t know. Well, we’re going to another church. You know, they sing funny songs there. Really? Exactly what do we understand to be our spiritual unity? And you wonder why we need a message on the tri-unity of God? According to the Bible, it is designed, the very tri-unity of God, to reveal to us the true spiritual unity of all believers. And the Bible says, strive for the unity of the Spirit. Ephesians 4.3. And a lot of us won’t even lift a finger. And if somebody says something against us we don’t like, we’re out of there. Or we go down the street to another place. We can’t take it because we want everybody to be the same. Do you want everybody to look like you and act like you? If you do, you need counsel. You’re sick. God is a God of variety. He made everybody different. And he knows we disagree. I believe the highest mark of Christian maturity is agree to disagree and still love each other. We are one because we share God’s life. And that’s the tragedy of it. A lot of you think because you belong to a church, you’re in. Oh, no. You think because you know all the stuff and hang around us? No way. Christians who know Christians can hang around those who think they are but aren’t. And after a while, though we’re not God, we can’t quickly make decisions. After a while, we begin to feel, I don’t think John’s in. Christians even talk that way. Did you know that? You may not like that. If you’re here among us and you’re not a true believer… But if we know you well enough, so you better be careful. Better hide a little bit more. Because you see, we’re after you. We want every man, woman, and child to go to heaven with us that we possibly can take there. But we know that some of you are in and thinking you’re in, and you’re not. Because you don’t have God’s life. You’ve got to be born again. You’ve got to come to know the Lord personally. Let’s close with prayer. Father, thank you so much for your wonderful word. We pray that you’ll continue to impress us with our need of knowing the Lord. I pray for those in our audience who have never made a commitment to Jesus Christ, that you’d help them now, right now, in this moment, to turn to you before it’s too late. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.
SPEAKER 02 :
Amen. Amen, David. Friend, before we go, if you’d like to know more about what it means to have a real relationship with God through Jesus Christ, be sure to ask for David’s free booklet, What Is Christianity? and the free Bible study by mail. These resources were prepared to help you understand the gospel, to know what the Bible says, and to take a closer look at what it means to follow Christ. And they’re free, again, if you’re not yet a Christian or if you’re new to the Christian faith. Call us at 875-BIBLE in the U.S., or 888-75-BIBLE in Canada to get these resources. Well, next time, it’s our monthly question and answer program, and David will respond to questions from listeners in the years past, opening the scriptures to give clear biblical answers. Invite someone to listen with you and join us right here on Hope for Today.
