United Evangelical Church of Malabon

What Is Trinity?

The word “trinity” is not found in Scripture. It is a word used by Christians to express the doctrine of the unity of God as consisting of one God but three distinct Persons. This word is derived from the Greek word trias, or from the Latin trinitas, to express this doctrine.

This doctrine believes:

1. That God is one, and that there is but one God (Deut. 6:4; 1 Kings 8:60; Isa. 44:6; Mark 12:29, 32; John 10:30).
2. That the Father is a distinct divine Person, distinct from the Son and the Holy Spirit.
3. That Jesus Christ was truly God, and yet was a Person distinct from the Father and the Holy Spirit (John 20:30-31).
4. That the Holy Spirit is also a distinct divine Person. Notice the use of the words “us” and “our” during the creation of man (Gen. 1:26).
5. Although equal in divinity, the Father is in a position of authority or hierarchy over Jesus, the sent One (John 14:28, 13:16; 1 Cor. 11:3; Phil. 2:6-8).

How Can One God Be Three Persons?

The idea that there is only one God, who created all things, is repeatedly emphasized in such Scriptures as Isaiah 45:18: “For thus saith the Lord that created the heavens; God himself that formed the earth and made it; … I am the Lord; and there is none else.” A New Testament example is James 2:19: “Thou believest that there is one God; thou doest well; the devils also believe, and tremble.”

The three persons of the Godhead are, at the same time, noted in such Scriptures as Isaiah 48:16: “I have not spoken in secret from the beginning; From the time that it was, there am I; and now the Lord God, and his Spirit, hath sent me.” The speaker in this verse is obviously God, and yet He says He has been sent both by The Lord God (that is, the Father) and by His Spirit (that is, the Holy Spirit).

The New Testament doctrine of the Trinity is evident in such a verse as John 15:26, where the Lord Jesus said: “But when the Comforter is come whom I will send unto you from the Father, He shall testify of me.” Then there is the baptismal formula: “Baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost” (Matthew 28:19). Thus, One God) — yet three persons.

How is the wind like the Holy Spirit?

The word spirit in both Hebrew and Greek means “breath” or “wind.” Both a breath of air and a breeze are appropriate images for the Holy Spirit. Consider several properties of the wind.

Wind has no material shape or form. It is invisible; we cannot see the source or the destination of wind. It is a mysterious, unseen force. Nevertheless, its presence is known by its effects. Likewise, the unseen Holy Spirit can be experienced in a refreshing way. His presence is displayed in the work he does in human lives by transforming, sanctifying, encouraging, and teaching.

Wind is a powerful force. It cannot be stopped or controlled by people. Likewise, the Holy Spirit is not subject to human control. The moving of the Holy Spirit is God at work. Wind may be a soft whisper gently rustling the leaves on the trees, or it may be a hurricane uprooting trees. Likewise, the Holy Spirit may gently bring a person to Christ, such as a little child raised in a Christian home, or he may work in some dramatic way to bring conviction and conversion to the hardened sinner. In Acts 16, contrast Lydia, whose heart the Lord opened (verse 14), and the jailer, who needed an earthquake to jar him to his spiritual sense (verse 30). In both cases, the Holy Spirit did the regenerating work. No wonder John 3:8 says, “The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.”

If Jesus was the Son of God, why did He call Himself the Son of Man?

An examination of Scripture reveals that the phrase “Son of Man” carries broad significance. Firstly, even if the phrase “Son of Man” is a reference to Jesus‘ humanity, it is not a denial of His deity. By becoming a man, Jesus did not cease being God. In other words, incarnation did not mean the subtraction of deity, but the addition of humanity. Jesus clearly claimed to be God on many occasions (Matt. 16:16-17; John 8:58, John 10:30; Phil. 2:6-8).

Further, the term “Son of Man” is used in Scripture often in contexts of Christ’s deity. For example, the Bible says that only God can forgive sins (Isa. 43:25; Mark 2:7). But as the “Son of Man,” Jesus had the power to forgive sins (Mark 2:10). Likewise, Christ will return to earth as the “Son of Man” in clouds of glory to reign on earth (Matt. 26:63-64). In this passage, Jesus is citing Daniel 7:13 where the Messiah is described as the “Ancient of Days,” a phrase used to indicate His deity (cf. Daniel 7:9).

Finally, the phrase “Son of Man” also emphasizes who Jesus is in relation to His incarnation and His work of salvation. In the Old Testament (Leviticus 25:25-26, 48-49; Ruth 2:20), the next of kin (one related by blood) always functioned as the “kinsman-redeemer” of a family member who needed redemption from jail. This points to Jesus becoming related to us “by blood” (that is, He became a man) so He could function as our Kinsman-Redeemer and rescue us from sin.

Is Jesus Christ God?

Is Jesus Christ God? Many people have dealt with this “spiritual” dispute by intellectually accepting Jesus as a great man, great teacher, or great prophet. However, Jesus and His inspired followers didn’t mince words when they declared Him to be God (John 10:30-38, Matthew 16:13-17, Mark 14:61-64, John 14:6, Hebrews 1:8, Colossians 1:16, John 12:40-41 “quoting” Isaiah 6:1-10).

Therefore, any type of intellectual compromise calling Jesus a “good man” is logically inconsistent. Why? Because there are really only three legitimate alternatives for the identity of Jesus Christ. CS Lewis said that Jesus is either a liar, a lunatic or our Lord and God. Since Jesus claimed to be God, His claims are either true or false.

If false, He must have been a liar, deliberately misleading the multitudes. Or, He was a lunatic, sincerely believing Himself to be God, when in reality He was just a man. However, if Jesus was a “good man,” as most people now agree, how then could He be both good and crazy, or good and a liar?

There is only one logically consistent alternative - He must have been telling the truth. In addition to that, the remarkable historical, archaeological and manuscript evidence shows that Jesus was neither a liar nor a lunatic. Again, the only position left is that His claim is true. Jesus is Lord and God.

Did Jesus Really Sweat Drops of Blood?

Luke is also the only gospel writer to mention the bloody sweat, possibly because of his interest as a physician in this rare physiological phenomenon.

Although this medical condition is relatively rare, according to Dr. Frederick Zugibe (Chief Medical Examiner of Rockland County, New York) it is well-known, and there have been many cases of it. The clinical term is “hematohidrosis.” Around the sweat glands, there are multiple blood vessels in a net-like form. Under the pressure of great stress the vessels constrict. Then as the anxiety passes “the blood vessels dilate to the point of rupture. The blood goes into the sweat glands.” As the sweat glands are producing a lot of sweat, it pushes the blood to the surface - coming out as droplets of blood mixed with sweat.

What was the source of Jesus great stress and anguish? Clearly it was not because of the pain of crucifixion because He himself once said that we should not be afraid of him who could only kill the body; rather be afraid of him who could kill both the body and the soul. Being the Son of God, he was in intense spiritual agony because he would soon bear the terrible trauma of taking the guilt for all of our sins upon him—my sins and yours. He knew that under this weight of sin, the Father would forsake him and thus he would endure the spiritual separation with His loving Father.

What is “Virgin Birth”? Is it True?

Virgin birth is true if you believe what was written by the prophet Isaiah: Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel (Isaiah 7:14).

Further, the Bible did teach that Jesus’ Birth Fulfilled Isaiah’s writing? Matthew said that the birth of Jesus Christ was as follows: After His mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Spirit. Then Joseph her husband, being a just man, and not wanting to make her a public example, was minded to put her away secretly. But while he thought about these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take to you Mary your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. And she will bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name JESUS, for He will save His people from their sins.” So all this was done that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying: “Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel,” which is translated, “God with us.” Then Joseph, being aroused from sleep, did as the angel of the Lord commanded him and took to him his wife, and did not know her till she had brought forth her firstborn Son. And he called His name JESUS (Matthew 1:18-25).

Why Does God Allow Innocent People to Suffer?

First thing we need to understand is that God does not promise a life free of problems, even for the godly. That life will be hard and full of pain is assumed and can easily be accepted if you understand that this world is cursed and fallen due to sin. Sometimes people also suffer for doing good. However, God does promise to provide his people with the means and ability to endure trials and pain and to advantageously use the difficulties of life (cf. I Cor. 10:13, Ps. 34:7).

Another thing, the Bible clearly tells us that God has his children’s good in mind when he allow us, his children, to suffer. The Bible gives us lots of reasons. Some of these are to prune us, to humble us, to cause us to trust in Him alone, to wean us away from this world, to produce joy and other godly qualities, etc ( 2 Cor. 12:7,10; Romans 5:3; James 1:2; Acts 16:25; 1 Pet 4:19). In other words, the picture is bigger. In fact, we could say that it was because He loves us that He allowed us to go through suffering from time to time.

In closing, just remember that when misfortune comes, we tend to see only the calamity, though, it is really just a tiny speck on a page of paper (our life). The trouble you and I have is that we are so limited in our vision and understanding of things. But let us not forget that if we continue to trust in God, then we can also experience the very last verse in Job, “So Job died, being old and full of days.”

What Are Bible Manuscripts?

The original New Testament letters (Ephesians, Colossians, etc.) were initially circulated in the latter half of the first century. In their original form they were probably written on papyrus sheets. Since papyrus was fragile, copies of these letters were made by the early Christians. These copies of the New Testament in Greek are known as manuscripts.

There are two major types of manuscripts. Some of the oldest manuscripts are written in capital letters and are known as uncials. The handwriting of the larger group is smaller and in a running hand-style. This second type of manuscripts are known as cursives. Many of the cursives did not become known until about the ninth century.

There are about 4,500 manuscripts. All of these manuscripts are not complete New Testaments. Nonetheless, the New Testament is said to be the best attested book of antiquity. Three well known are the Vatican (Codex B), Sinaitic (Codex Aleph), and the Alexandrian. These date back to about A.D. 300-450.

Most of the mistakes in the history of the Bible have occurred since the advent of the printing press. The so called mistakes are relatively trivial. There are far more manuscripts of the New Testament than of any other book from the ancient world. The abundant manuscript proof for the New Testament is in harmony with, “But the word of the Lord endureth for ever” (I Pet. 1: 25).

What Can You Tell Me About The Bible?

The word “bible” is derived from the Greek biblos, meaning a book. Being a revelation from God (2 Tim. 3:16-17), it is pre-eminently The Book. About forty persons were used by God in writing the Bible. The first was Moses, the last John (Genesis; Revelation). The Bible contains three major periods: from Adam to Moses, from Moses to the death of Christ, and the period from Pentecost (Acts 2) to the end of the world. The Bible has stood all attempts to show it false and destroy it. It has been translated into major languages of the earth.

The sixty-six books have been assigned names by man to assist us in studying them. These names often help us to know the contents of each book. Genesis is from the Greek genesis which means beginning. The Bible was divided into chapters by Hugo in 1240. The Hebrew books were divided into verses in 1445 and the New Testament in 1551. Five books compose the books of law (Genesis - Deuteronomy), twelve history (Joshua - Esther), five poetry (Job - Son of Solomon), and seventeen books of prophesy (Isaiah - Malachi). The New Testament has four gospels (Matthew - John), one book of history (Acts), fourteen books of Paul (Romans - Hebrews), seven general epistles (James - Jude), and one book of prophesy (Revelation).

The Bible tells us of our origin (Gen. 1-2), purpose (Eccl. 12:13), and destiny (Matt. 25:46). It tells us how to live to go to heaven (Titus 2:11-14).

Is the Bible Still Applicable Today?

Because the Bible is the very inspired Word of God and because the Bible reflects the mind and the character of God, it is eternal, is once for all delivered to the saints (Jude 3, Eph. 4:4), is infallible and is “profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: that the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works” (2 Tim. 3:16, 17).

Furthermore, we believe that what the Bible says is right, is right today and what the Bible pronounces is wrong, is wrong today. For instance, the Bible teaches pure speech, putting spiritual things first, and living a holy life (Eph. 4:29, Matt. 6:33, 2 Cor. 7:1). Lying, stealing, and fornication are just as wrong today as they were in the First Century (Rev. 21:8, Eph. 4:28, I Cor. 6:18).

Another thing, the Bible says that man shall one day be judged base on Jesus’ words (John 12:48) and that man desperately needs guidance because man cannot guide himself (Jeremiah 10:23). On this note, I would say, “Yes, the Bible applies to our day!”