But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that, having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life.
Titus 3:4-7 NIV
The Trinity is a core belief of orthodox Christianity. This doctrine is taught in the Scripture, but not clearly articulated there, and is challenging to understand. It took many years and much discussion before a formal definition of the Trinity could be derived from Scripture’s teaching on the relationship between the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. We believe that there is only one God. And that He is revealed to us in three persons, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. The three are of one essence, one being, yet are individual persons. And the title of Trinity reflects that. Tri-unity, three persons, united together in one being.
The Work of the Trinity
This passage in Titus is one of a handful that demonstrates what each member of the Trinity does in our salvation. It is by no means an exhaustive statement. But it does help us in our understanding of the Trinity. And it must be noted that it is not possible to provide distinct roles for each person of the Trinity. Since they are one being, whatever one person does is, in a sense, done by all of them. That is reflected in this passage, where both the Father and the Son are identified as being our Savior.
God the Father sends. He sent the Son to be the Savior of the world (1 John 4:14). And He sent the Holy Spirit to give us new birth and to enable our new life in Christ (Rom. 8:1-17).
God the Son redeems and rules. He is our great High Priest (Heb. 4:14) and Atoning Sacrifice (Heb. 9:11-12). And He sits at the right hand of the Father (Heb. 8:1), ruling over His kingdom (John 18:36).
God the Spirit regenerates and enables. We are born of the Spirit (John 3:5-8). And we walk in new life together with the Spirit (Gal. 5:16-25).
There is much more to the triune God we worship and serve than is expressed here. But this passage helps us see how all the persons of the triune God work in our salvation. God is beyond our comprehension. But He is worthy of our praise and adoration.
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