The Three in One

What does Easter mean to you? For some it's the coming of a bunny that brings baskets filled with colored eggs and presents. But for those who believe in God it's the celebration of Jesus dieing on the cross, defeating hell and its power to punish the sinful, and then rising to life again. Currently, he awaits the signal from the Father that the time is complete and he can return to earth.

The idea that the holy God in heaven has three separate identities yet is one God has tripped up many. Especially when it comes to receiving and accepting that Jesus, as part of that triune, died for everyone. It is a complicated idea, until you look into God's creation.

He knew that understanding the three in one concept would be difficult for mankind to grasp so he created some wonderful examples for us to hold in our hands. While many fruits have three sections that could be used to show how three parts can make up a whole, I prefer the example of the egg.

Each part of the egg is an entity into itself. But the three cannot exist apart from one another. An egg cannot survive to be of use without the shell holding the white and yolk inside. Once the shell is broken you can have access to all parts of the egg.

So how is this similar?

Until Jesus came there were limited times when the Spirit of God came upon someone and allowed them to do mighty things for God. Jesus promised that he would send the Comforter (or Advocate or Counselor, depending on your translation) once he returned to heaven. He even told his followers if he didn't go away that there would be no Comforter coming. (John 16) In addition to this, as per the law, only the high priest could enter into God's presence. And then only once a year.

When Jesus died a miracle happened. The thick heavy curtain that allowed the holy God of Israel to be present among his people without them dieing from being in his righteous presence was torn from the top down. (Matthew 27) God ripped that curtain to signal that all people could now have access to him and enter his holy presence.

The yolk is inaccessible unless you break the shell. Think about it. The shell must be broken in order for the white of an egg to spread out and expose the yolk. Curiously, as it spreads it continues to surround the yolk and still remain attached to the shell. The Holy Spirit works in the same way as he is always in the presence of the Father and Jesus.

Another thing, the white of an egg is also good for gluing things together in the cooking process. The Holy Spirit holds the body of Christ together as it works for the spreading of God's kingdom. It's through him that we communicate with the Father, he even groans for us when we cannot put the right words together as we pray. Check out Romans 8.

And even though the curtain was torn and we can have access to the Father, he is still holy. And only when we come to him in the name of Jesus will the moving of the Holy Spirit allow us to approach the throne of God as a prince approaches the king. And it's through Jesus that we can speak to him in familiar tones. This is the gift we've been given. We just have to accept it.