In good relationships, two people will continue to grow in their knowledge of each other, but they do not hold back the most basic truths about themselves till further down the road. It is a shame that this has often happened in Christians’ attempt to introduce others to God.

One God in Three Persons

Who is the God that shows grace toward sinners? It is one God who exists in three distinct, yet inseparable persons. There is much to say about the nature of God, but I only wish here to introduce the Triune nature of God. “Tri” means three. “Une” means one. Triune refers to the three-and-one God.

The three uncreated divine persons – who are co-equal and co-eternal – are God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit co-exist in a way that is unique to the being—or the essence, or the nature—of God. No created thing is like the Creator of all things. God is eternal and unchangeable, but created things are time-bound and changeable. The one eternal God is Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. This is called the doctrine of the Trinity. God is a uniquely Triune being of pure and eternal Spirit, the source of all that is and the fountain of life itself.

Relationships and God

Consider one interesting implication of this. Relationships of love are part of God’s eternal nature. This is unique to the Christian God just like the idea of grace is unique to the Christian God. Relationships are so important to you because you are made in God’s image. When you look in a mirror, you see a reflection of yourself. It is not you, but it is your image. When you look at yourself, you see a reflection of God. It is not God, but it is his image, though marred by sin.

We need grace because sin has warped the image of God in us in devastating fashion. The good news is that God’s grace given in Jesus restores his image in us. Restoration begins by the power of the Holy Spirit when you receive this grace through faith in Jesus—based on his righteous life, sacrificial death, and powerful resurrection. Only God can do this. It is not a human work. How can it be? If we could properly reflect God, then we would not need his restoring grace in Jesus.

My point is about relationships. Loneliness, abandonment, betrayal, and hatred are so painful because you are made in the image of God, and relationships of love are part of his eternal nature. The Father loves the Son and the Spirit. The Son loves the Father and the Spirit. The Spirit loves the Father and the Son.

These relationships of love are perfect, holy, eternal, and unchanging. And these love-relationships of God’s being are imaged on a created level in me and you. Things in your life, therefore, that contradict the nature of God’s love make you feel horrible. Love makes you feel wonderful. You want love; you do not want hate. You want faithfulness, not betrayal. Why? Because God is love and you are made in God’s image. No other faith system has a rational explanation for the essential nature and critical role of love and relationships in human experience.

You and I are meant for relationships of love: First, with God; second, with others. God’s greatest commandment to us is that we must love him with all that we are all that we do. His second is to love others as ourselves (see Matthew 22:35-40). They are these his two greatest commandments? It is simple. God’s holy commandments reflect God’s holy nature. They simultaneously show us what God is like and what we ought to be like (if we are to properly reflect his holy nature). But we do not. We are unholy, not holy.

Logic and God

God’s Triune nature transcends logic, but it is not illogical. It is not illogical because a thing’s essence is different than a thing’s personhood. Think about an apple, you, and God. An apple has an essence but not personhood. It is a created thing, but it has not been created in the image of God. You have an essence and are one person. You are a created thing, and you are created in the image of God. God has an essence that exists as three persons. How can this be? God is not a created thing and he does not have a limited essence like created things—for example, apples and people.

God is uncreated. God’s essence is infinite. He is categorically different than us and infinitely superior to created things. He dwells in eternity in the exalted majesty of his holy essence and perfect love. He is God. We are not.

The Triune God, therefore, is not illogical because personhood and essence are different things. One essence and three essences would be illogical. One person and three persons would be illogical. But one infinite essence that exists in three persons is not illogical. God transcends our grasp of logic, but he does not violate logic.

Doesn’t it make sense, after all, that an uncreated, eternal, and infinite being would transcend the puny little minds of created, time-bound, and seriously limited beings?

Meeting God

We do not have to know or understand everything about a person to begin to get to know them. Likewise, we do not have to know or understand everything about God to begin to get to know him. And this is God: one essence in three persons. Since coming face to face with God causes us to think about things more deeply and carefully, many Christians hold back the Triune nature of God till further down the road. That is a shame. This is who God is. This is how God has revealed himself. This is the God who shows grace to sinners through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus. This is the God who forgives sin and gives the gift of eternal life.

If you and I were to meet over coffee, we would not know everything about each other. We would know little about each other. I would, however, know what you look like and what your voice sounds like. I would know some of your basic mannerisms and perhaps even your laugh. I would begin to form a general picture of your personality. You also would know the same things about me. Am I one of those people who is negative about everything, or am I generally positive and a joy to be around? Am I self-centered and do I frequently interrupt you, or am I genuinely interested in you and do I really listen to what you say?

We would, in other words, come face to face with the basics about each other. We would not know everything or understand everything about each other. So how much less would we know and understand when coming face to face with the nature of an infinite God? We would, and this is the encouragement, know some things about each other. Yes, we can also know some things about God. We can know there is one God—God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit, who have loved each other in perfect joy and holiness from all eternity.

What is the basic nature of the God who shows sinners grace through Jesus Christ? He is one eternal God who exists in three distinct persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. We come face to face with him in Jesus.

John 14:8–9: Philip said to him, “Lord, show us the Father, and it is enough for us.” [9] Jesus said to him, “Have I been with you so long, and you still do not know me, Philip? Whoever has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’?