I was struggling with the fact that analogies for the Trinity were not good to use. Analogies for the Trinity are only teach error and are misleading from the Truth. The elements of the Trinity are monotheism or unity in the Godhead, deity of each person of the Godhead, and eternality. When we attempt to use analogies, we might do something like break the Trinity into parts. The Godhead is three persons existing as one, he is not parts. Using analogies may also cause some to believe there is subordination is in the Godhead, that one person may be subordinate to another. Though one may function as subordinate for a time, that does not make one inferior or lesser than the other persons. For example, Jesus was fully God and fully man, and he was submissive to the will of the Father in dying on the cross. That act does not make him less than the Father or superior to the Father; that is the act that brought a savior for sinners who deserve death.
So if we cannot use analogies to explain the seemingly unexplainable, what can we use?
As response to that, I went to Pinterest to see what else might be out there. Interestingly, there were a plethora of sites that specifically gave metaphors for the Trinity. In looking at the worksheets for Sunday School classes, I was saddened and amazed that we, within the body of believers, find it necessary to water down that which is holy. But what I came across in digging was something I was incredibly interested in. It is this chart from www.challies.com.
So if we cannot use analogies to explain the seemingly unexplainable, what can we use?
As response to that, I went to Pinterest to see what else might be out there. Interestingly, there were a plethora of sites that specifically gave metaphors for the Trinity. In looking at the worksheets for Sunday School classes, I was saddened and amazed that we, within the body of believers, find it necessary to water down that which is holy. But what I came across in digging was something I was incredibly interested in. It is this chart from www.challies.com.
There was information that I had learned throughout the semester laid out on a chart, details that were physical and tangible for a person who finds graphic organizers helpful (maybe that is just the elementary school teacher in me). This word "Trinity" is not used in the bible and did not come about until long after Christ had died on the cross and was resurrected. When I skimmed through the books I read this semester to find notes I had written to myself, the things I was struggling with were the "-isms" -- tritheism, modalism, and subordinationism. Finding this chart gave me a graphic that easily explained each one and how they are unique, yet are all errors in explaining the Trinity. In the bottom right portion of this chart, there is a section that gives some simple functions of the persons of the Godhead. I would go a step further and say that:
There is one God
The Father is God
The Son is God
The Spirit is God
The Father is not the Son or the Spirit
The Son is not the Father or the Spirit
The Spirit is not the Father or the Son
One God, Three Persons
If you are looking for something tangible and simple to assist with explaining the Trinity, this is a place to start, not analogies. Although analogies will inundate your search engine when you type in "Trinity," I challenge you to teach the truth and allow the mystery of the Godhead to be struggled with within the context of community. It is good to wrestle with the truth and come to a greater understanding than to water it down and make it something that it isn't.
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