The Treasure of the Trinity – Part 5 of 5

Welcome marathoners in and for Christ. (1 Corinthians 9:24; Hebrews 12:1; 2 Timothy 4:7) Exhausted, depleted from running the Godly, good, and being-a-blessing-to-others race? Welcome. Sit. Relax. Let’s feast.

Feast of the Heart exists to help bring about Christ-centered “reformation, revival, and constructive revolution” (Francis Schaeffer, Death in the City) so that God will be glorified and people blessed.

Reformation… we seek to abide by and serve up the true truth, pure doctrine of the Bible

Revival… we seek to model biblical Christians living in word and deed

Constructive Revolution… we seek to spread the true gospel right where God has planted us with urgency, compassion, and radical self-abandonment

Ever Get Your Heart, Mind, Soul, and Strength Around the Colloquialism, “The Devil’s in the Details”?

We should… you should.

Bear with me… Via a personal anecdote: As a Myers-Briggs ESTJ, I lean towards being dedicated, strong-willed, direct and honest, loyal, patient and reliable, I enjoy creating order, and tend to step up as an organizer. AS SUCH, I have a bent towards getting into the DETAILS of anything I’m involved in to effect change for the better! Anything. [Oh, and don’t be hornswoggled: I have many corresponding weaknesses as well.]

There is nothing of significance which requires human interaction, while aiming at improving things in any way, that does not require getting into the details. Yes, that can be arduous and tedious for many folks. And that’s exactly why the devil is most interested in hanging out THERE… in the details that is. Especially when it comes to improving things that help us glorify God and bless His people. Especially since the devil hates God and all that matters to Him, the adversary, father of lies, accuser will spend any effort needed to encourage The Body of Christ towards laziness, sloppiness, generalities, half-truths, and abstractions.

So, while serving on a team of people who were sharing ideas in order to improve the principles and processes of all involved in the “best practice” forum, I objected that nothing tangible of significance was being accomplished. A member of the group said, “John, it appears as though you have a problem with ambiguity.” Yes. I absolutely do! Especially when something, anything can be dramatically improved but people simply don’t want to be bothered by all the details—the hard work, the grit, the polarizing yet constructive discussion, the humility, the give and take, and the points of resolution—to get something, anything big accomplished.

The devil LOVES the fact that, in our day, so many folks approach their religious life in a shamefully ambiguous, inconclusive fashion; and the devil HATES any person or denomination that is exacting, intentional, methodical about ALL things necessary for glorifying God, blessing His people, and transforming the world.

So let’s get back to some more awesome details about God, the Trinity, of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit!

God’s Threefold Sanctification within the Trinity, by Charles Spurgeon

“Sanctified by God the Father.” (Jude 1:1. 1)

“Sanctified in Christ Jesus.” (Corinthians 1:2)

“Through the sanctification of the Spirit.” (1 Peter 1:2)

“MARK, beloved, the union of the three divine persons in all their gracious acts! We believe that there is one God, and although we rejoice to recognize the Trinity, yet it is ever most distinctly a Trinity in Unity. Our watchword is still—“Hear O Israel, the LORD our God is one LORD.” How unwisely do those young believers talk, who make preferences in the persons of the Trinity—who think of Christ as if He were the embodiment of everything that is lovely and gracious, while the Father they regard as severely just, but destitute of kindness; and how foolish are those who magnify the decree of the Father, or the atonement of the Son, so as to depreciate the work of the Spirit. In deeds of divine grace none of the persons of the Trinity act apart from the rest. They are as united in their deeds as in their essence!

In their love towards the chosen they are one, and in the actions which flow from that great central source they are still undivided. Especially I would have you notice this in the case of sanctification. While we may, without the slightest mistake, speak of sanctification as the work of the Spirit, yet, we must take heed that we do not view it as if the Father and the Son had no part in it! It is correct to speak of sanctification as the work of the Father, of the Spirit, and of the Son. Still does Jehovah say, “Let Us make man in our own image, after our likeness,” and thus we are “His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God has before ordained that we should walk in them.”

My brothers and sisters, I beg you to notice and carefully consider, the value which God sets upon real holiness, since the three persons are represented as co-working to produce a Church without “spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing.” Those men, who despise holiness of heart, are in direct conflict with God. Holiness is the architectural plan upon which God builds up His living temple. We read in Scripture of the “beauties of holiness.” Nothing is beautiful before God but that which is holy. All the glory of Lucifer, that son of the morning, could not screen him from divine abhorrence when he had defiled himself by sin. “Holy, holy, holy”—the continual cry of cherubim—is the loftiest song that a creature can offer, and the noblest that the Divine Being can accept!

See then, He counts holiness to be His choice treasure. It is as the seal upon His heart, and as the signet upon His right hand. He could as soon cease to be, as cease to be holy, and sooner renounce the sovereignty of the world, than tolerate anything in His presence contrary to purity, righteousness, and holiness. I pray you, you who profess to be followers of Christ, set a high value upon purity of life and godliness of conversation. Value the blood of Christ as the foundation of your hope, but, never speak disparagingly of the work of the Spirit, which is your meetness for the inheritance of the saints in light; yes, rather, prize it; prize it so heartily, that you dread the very appearance of evil! Prize it so, that in your most ordinary actions, you may be, “a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a peculiar people, showing forth the praises of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light.”” (Charles Spurgeon, THREEFOLD SANCTIFICATION, NO. 434, A SERMON DELIVERED ON SUNDAY MORNING, FEBRUARY 9, 1862)

Knowing God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, more and more deeply each and every day intensifies the Trinity’s effect upon our personal holiness and Christlikeness… E,g,. our effectiveness as God redemptive light and salt force in a broken and fast-decaying world: Is there any reason why we wouldn’t want this more than anything else in life, and its rewards for eternity?

Please commit to ardently praying about, getting into the details, and intimately knowing the Trinity “Today…” (Psalm 95:7-8),
JohnDoz

Additional Resources

A Hole in Our Holiness, Kevin DeYoung

How Do I Delight Myself in the Trinity?, Tony Reinke

Why Augustine Centered His Life on the Trinity, Brandon Smith

The Cost of Discipleship, John MacArthur

What Is the Doctrine of the Trinity?, Matt Perman

Shared Life: The Trinity and Fellowship of God’s People, Donald MacLeod

Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, Tim Keller