Understanding the Trinity

Father, Son & Holy Ghost without Doctrine

The Comfortable God

Exodus 3:14: "And God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM: and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you." KJV

Much of religious thought on God yields up a God who is there, everywhere, always. This understanding of God is wonderfully palatable. It is the bedrock of comfortable Christianity. It is also the essential concept of the Buddhist and Hindu Godhead. Paul Tillich works this understanding out as God, "the infinite Ground of Being". Abraham Maslow uses this to develop a moral or spiritual life based on Being, that is "being" capitalized. There is nothing wrong with this understanding of God except that it is horribly limited. In fact, this limitation is so severe as to greatly endanger the believer's spiritual health and well-being.

The God of the "I AM" that Moses meets is not just there and everywhere. Moses has met the manifest presence of God come to speak directly to Moses in human language, at that place and at that moment. At that time and place, God has something that He would like Moses to do.

The God of Adam, Abraham, Moses, Noah and all the prophets, the God of Christ Jesus is not just there like Luke Skywalker's Force, He is actively and urgently engaged. Even when we can't see His activity on our behalf, we are assured that God the Father is constantly concerned with our well being, quick to overlook our transgressions, and eager to extend mercy.

Abide in Me

Draw close to the Lord.

Jesus was so close to the Father that he uses the familiar term "Abba" (Mark 14:36) to refer to Him. Essentially he is calling God the Father, "Daddy".

The Fire of God

"The true God is the God who answers by fire. and the true man of God is he who knows how to call down the fire because he has power with the God of heaven. Whether the fire is that of judgement or the Holy Spirit, the work of the man of God is to bring fire down to earth." (Murray, 1999, pg. 416.)

The Holy Terror of God

Immanuel

God is with us.

And He Breathed on Them

*All Bible quotes are from the King James Version unless otherwise indicated.
Andrew Murray. The Practice of God's Presence. New Kensington, PA: Whitaker House, © 1999. ISBN: 0-88368-590-6.