One can approach the mystery of the Holy Trinity from many perspectives. One important perspective is how the doctrine of the Trinity relates to understanding the
Bible. God the Father, creator and ruler of the universe, transcends human
understanding, but He has chosen to reveal Himself to His creatures.
Although
our Creator has provided some hints about Himself in nature and in human
consciousness and conscience, the essential points of God’s self-disclosure are
in the Holy Scriptures. The Bible points out God’s power expressed in the
creation of the universe and of human beings. The Bible points to the rebellion
and fall of human beings and of some angels. The Bible also shows the Father’s
loving desire and plan to redeem fallen humanity.
Although Holy Scripture is
the Word of God in written form, God the
Son, Jesus Christ, is the incarnate and eternal Word (John 1) in a more basic and essential way. In Genesis 1, it
is the Word of God that is the means of creation. Through His living and spoken
Word, God called the people of the Old Testament and spoke to and through
patriarchs and prophets. In the New Testament, the obvious center of Gospels
and Epistles is the living Word, Jesus. In all the messages of the apostles,
the spoken and written words are meant to reveal Christ. We are to respect the
written letters and words, but our basic faith is Christ the Eternal Word who
is the living center of Scripture.
Finally, we can’t consider the Bible without the role of God the
Holy Spirit. The moving of God’s Spirit led patriarchs, prophets, wise men, scribes
and apostles of Israel and the Church to pass on the oral and written words
that contain the divine Word. The Holy Spirit also worked among believers to
distinguish the truly sacred writings from other religious documents. And the
Spirit has worked over the centuries to preserve and spread the canon of
Scripture. The Holy Spirit has helped us recognize the Bible as both Law and Gospel. The Spirit still works to help us to understand and apply the divine
meaning of Scripture to our faith and to our lives.
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