The document discusses the importance of studying the doctrine of the Trinity. It provides several reasons why the Trinity is central to Christianity, notably that it is necessary for the atoning work of Christ. Removing the Trinity would cause the Christian faith to disintegrate. The document also explores scriptural support for the Trinity and how each person of the Godhead was involved in salvation through Jesus's life, death and resurrection.

1. Welcome to “Learning and Living the God-centered life” Carmel Baptist Church www.learningandlivingtheword.com March 22, 2009

4. A WORD ABOUT DOCTRINE

5. 1Tim. 1:3 ¶ As I urged you upon my departure for Macedonia, remain on at Ephesus so that you may instruct certain men not to teach strange doctrines , 1Tim. 4:1 ¶ But the Spirit explicitly says that in later times some will fall away from the faith, paying attention to deceitful spirits and doctrines of demons , (cross reference Matthew 24:10-11) 1Tim. 4:6 ¶ In pointing out these things to the brethren, you will be a good servant of Christ Jesus, constantly nourished on the words of the faith and of the sound doctrine which you have been following. 1Tim. 6:1 ¶ All who are under the yoke as slaves are to regard their own masters as worthy of all honor so that the name of God and our doctrine will not be spoken against.

6. 2Tim. 4:3 For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires, Titus 1:9 holding fast the faithful word which is in accordance with the teaching, so that he will be able both to exhort in sound doctrine and to refute those who contradict. Titus 2:1 ¶ But as for you, speak the things which are fitting for sound doctrine. Titus 2:7 in all things show yourself to be an example of good deeds, with purity in doctrine , dignified, Titus 2:10 not pilfering, but showing all good faith so that they will adorn the doctrine of God our Savior in every respect.

9. The Knowledge of the Holy – A. W. Tozer The Church has surrendered her once lofty concept of God and has substituted for it one so low, so ignoble, as to be utterly unworthy of thinking worshiping men. This she has done not deliberately, but little by little and without her knowledge; and her very unawareness only makes her situation all the more tragic. The low view of God entertained almost universally among Christians is the cause of a hundred lesser evils everywhere among us. A whole new philosophy of the Christian life has resulted from this one basic error in our religious thinking. With our loss of the sense of majesty has come the further loss of religious awe and consciousness of the divine Presence.

10. The Knowledge of the Holy – A. W. Tozer We have lost our spirit of worship and our ability to withdraw inwardly to meet God in adoring silence. Modern Christianity is simply not producing the kind of Christian who can appreciate or experience the life in the Spirit. The words, “Be still and know that I am God,” mean next to nothing to the self-confident, bustling worshipper in the middle period of the twentieth century.

11. The Knowledge of the Holy – A. W. Tozer What comes into our minds when we think about God is the most important thing about us. … We tend by a secret law of the soul to move toward our mental image of God. This is true not only of the individual Christian, but of the company of Christians that compose the Church. Always the most revealing thing about the Church is her idea of God, just as her most significant message is what she says about Him or leaves unsaid, for her silence is often more eloquent than her speech. She can never escape the self-disclosure of her witness concerning God.

12. Introduction to the Trinity There is much contemporary discussion on the Trinity in these days. Which means that we have both good news and bad news. Good news because there is a resurgence of interest in the Trinity over the last two decades. But bad news in that most of the discussion has been as an attack on the orthodox position. In these post modern days it seems that so often we are driven to a man-centered type of thinking in regard to the Trinity and relationship to us.

13. Foundational reasons for us to study the Trinity Reason #1 - The doctrine of the Trinity is both central and necessary for the Christian faith, if you remove the Trinity then the Christian faith disintegrates. Just consider for a minute the relation of the Trinity to the doctrine of salvation. Apart from the Trinity the efficacy of the atoning work of Christ is impossible. Do we think about the gospel in terms of the Trinity? If you want an atonement for sin then you must have the Trinity. Why?

14. GOD THE SON Well, because you have to have One that is paying the penalty for our sins who is both God and man, the hypo-static union or the two natures of Christ which is God and man. Man as the one who substitutes for us, so it has to be one of us taking our place in His death on the cross but if just one of us that will not accomplish the atonement. Example: A friend of mine, whose daughter once asked “why did God have to send His Son to pay for sins?” if it needed to be a perfect sacrifice and one of us then after Adam committed sin why didn’t God just make another man who would be perfect and not sin? And wouldn’t that have done it for us?

15. And the answer to that question is NO that would not do it. Why? Because if you pay for your own sin then how long will you have to pay for it? Answer-eternally! This is why hell never ends, because the payment never ends. So if another human being took your sin and paid it on your behalf, then how long would he have to pay? Answer -eternally! So when would you ever be delivered to the point that God could finally look on you and say JUSTIFIED, RIGHTEOUS IN MY SIGHT. So you would be in a holding zone so to speak and waiting forever for your sin to be paid for. Therefore it must be Jesus the God-man .

16. Have you ever wondered the difference between Christ paying for our sin and us paying for sin. We pay forever and Christ pays and it is done and He rises from the dead. The reason is because the payment that Christ makes is of infinite value. He pays the penalty in full by virtue of Him being the God-man that pays for our sin. So you must have God united with man in the sacrifice that is offered. So that is one member of the Trinity right? GOD THE SPIRIT We also need to have the man Jesus in a sinless position as He goes to the cross. Now the question that needs to be asked is how does the Lord Jesus live His life in a sinless manner? If you answer that question because He is God then you MAKE A SHAM of at least two things in the Bible.

17. Point #1 - that Jesus was tempted in every way as we are and yet He was without sin. Hebrews 4:15 - For we do not have a high priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but One who has been tempted in all things as we are, yet without sin. Because according to James 1:13 , God can not be tempted. Therefore the dealing with sin can’t be within the divine nature of Jesus, so it must be in relationship with the human nature of Jesus. So how does the human Jesus resist temptation every moment of every day of His life? And obeying the Father in every way Christ goes to the cross sinless, so how does this happen?

18. Well read the gospels, Luke for example when Jesus comes into Nazareth and they hand Him the scrolls ( Luke 4:16-18 ), so Jesus obeys the Father and lives His life as the sinless sacrifice in the power of the Spirit. THE LIFE THAT HE LIVES QUALIFIED HIM FOR THE DEATH THAT HE DIED, BUT THE DEATH THAT HE DIED QUALIFIES US TO LIVE NOW LIKE HE LIVED THEN. You must have God-man on the cross in order to make an atoning sacrifice that will pay for sin. This is God the Son And you must have God empowering the human Jesus to live His life obediently. This is God the Spirit

19. And then at the cross itself you must have wrath being poured out on the Son by His Father and being propitiated via the death of the Son that is offered. This is God the Father And we could back up even further because God the Father has to send the Son in order that we can be saved. The Son comes as God-man to live a perfect life and God the Spirit empowers Him in every way. So should you take away the doctrine of the Trinity then you take away the doctrine of atonement for sin.

20. Scriptural Support Romans 5:8 But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Ezekiel 18:20 (all the way back to garden of Eden) “ The person who sins will die…” James 2:10 For whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles in one point, he has become guilty of all. Hebrews 9:27 And inasmuch as it is appointed for men to die once and after this comes judgment,

21. Scriptural Support Luke 12:5 “ But I will warn you whom to fear: fear the One who, after He has killed, has authority to cast into hell; yes, I tell you, fear Him! Romans 3:23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, Ephesians 1:7 In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace Hebrews 4:15 For we do not have a high priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but One who has been tempted in all things as we are, yet without sin.

22. Scriptural Support 1 Peter 1:19 but with precious blood, as of a lamb unblemished and spotless, the blood of Christ. John 1:29 The next day he *saw Jesus coming to him and *said, “Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world! Ephesians 5:6 Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience.

23. Scriptural Support John 3:36 He who believes in the Son has eternal life; but he who does not obey the Son will not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him.” Hebrews 9:22 And according to the Law, one may almost say, all things are cleansed with blood, and without shedding of blood there is no forgiveness. Exodus 12:13 The blood shall be a sign for you on the houses where you live; and when I see the blood I will pass over you, and no plague will befall you to destroy you when I strike the land of Egypt.

24. Scriptural Support 1 Corinthians 5:7 Clean out the old leaven so that you may be a new lump, just as you are in fact unleavened. For Christ our Passover also has been sacrificed. 1 Peter 3:18 For Christ also died for sins once for all, the just for the unjust, so that He might bring us to God, having been put to death in the flesh, but made alive in the spirit; Colossians 2:14 having canceled out the certificate of debt consisting of decrees against us, which was hostile to us; and He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross.

25. Scriptural Support Romans 5:9 Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from the wrath of God through Him. 1 Peter 2:24 and He Himself bore our sins in His body on the cross, so that we might die to sin and live to righteousness; for by His wounds you were healed. John 19:30 Therefore when Jesus had received the sour wine, He said, “It is finished!” And He bowed His head and gave up His spirit.

26. Scriptural Support 1 Corinthians 15:3-4 For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, 1 Corinthians 15:57 but thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Acts 4:12 “ And there is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among men by which we must be saved.”

27. Point #1 - that Jesus was tempted in every way as we are and yet He was without sin. Point #2 - is the appeal to us to live just like Christ, and to follow in His steps. If Christ lived His life, obeyed the Father, resisted temptation as God then that would hardly be an example for us. But when you read in 1 Peter 2:21 “For you have been called for this purpose, since Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example for you to follow in His steps” Many times Christian people read this and it doesn’t penetrate their hearts because they kind of blow it off to that is not fair because He was God.

28. Philippines 2:5 ”have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus...“ We say ”yeah but...“ Folks we need to see the human existence of Jesus but most in the church simply don’t understand it, because we have put so much emphasis on the deity of Jesus. We have done a good job in defending the deity of Jesus but have not done as well theologically when thinking about the humanity of Jesus. What is more crucial to our faith than the Savior who dies for our sins? The Trinity is absolutely essential to the efficacy of our salvation.