Day 2: God Spoke Things into Existence with His Authority
Hope for Your Marriage
Today’s topic is very exciting to me. By the end of today, my prayer is that those of you struggling with the physical nature of the trinity—the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit—will be blessed with a deeper understanding of our God’s image.
We established God’s authority in day one. Now we will examine how God exerted His authority to organize the earth and all its contents. The existence of all things came to be by God’s Spirit doing the work of His Word.
“By the word of the Lord the heavens were made, and by the breath of his mouth all their host.” -Psalm 33:6
As we continue to talk about creation, remember the key points we outlined on day one:
1. God is the ultimate authority.
2. He gets to do whatever He pleases with His authority.
3. We must submit to that authority.
The Power of the Spirit
"In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the face of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters. And God said, "Let there be light," and there was light." -Genesis 1:1-3
Genesis 1:2 reveals to us that God’s Spirit was hovering over the “face of the deep,” the void of dark waters, in waiting to act, thus, introducing us to the Spirit portion of the trinity. As we continue reading in verse three, we immediately see God’s word begin to transform the deep as he begins to create.
“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through Him, and without Him was not anything made that was made.”
John 1:1-3
Throughout chapter one of Genesis you will notice a pattern starting in verse three. This pattern is a repetitive sequence of statements beginning with the word, “let.” This word begins the actual manifestation of the existence of things. The action of God’s word, the work being done, points to the Holy Spirit, and the words themselves point to Christ in John 1:1-3. Just like that, in three short verses, God gave us our first look into His image. Christ is the embodiment of God's total message and His message is spoken in words. Our one God exists in three persons. This brings new meaning to the saying, “words have power.”
The Power of Threes
Many things exist in three phases. Water can be a solid, liquid or a gas. Motion is forward, backward or stationary. Time is in terms of the past, present and the future. Families consist of fathers, mothers and children. (Do not get lost here if you do not have children.) I do not believe that God intended for the trinity to be something that causes us to stumble. Instead, I believe it is a divine paradox that in pure perfection goes with the very nature of things. This image of three should extend into our marriages. Within a marriage there should be present a man, a woman and the hand of God who knit them together.
“And though a man might prevail against one who is alone, two will withstand him—a threefold cord is not quickly broken.”
Ecclesiastes 4:12
You Were Designed for This
Use today’s lesson to remind yourself that you are a created being. You were designed to exist as one of three persons within your marriage. Thus, walk in a manner that is pleasing to God, “Bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God,” as stated in Colossians 1:10. Allow your unions to mirror the example of Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Be willing to accept that the work done by the Word on the cross is sufficient enough for you to be forgiven and to extend forgiveness within your marriage. Here’s to marriages that last!
Please note: The actual word “trinity” is never used in scripture. It is simply a term that makes it easier to describe the existence of Father, Son and Holy Spirit. If you grew up not accepting the word “trinity” try not to let the word hinder your growth. Use this time to wrap your mind around the beauty of God’s nature so that you can use His nature to transform your marriage.
These are deep theological thoughts. Do take the time to delve deeper into the scripture and reach out to other sources to discuss and confirm the assertions I have made here.
Questions
· Do you believe that the Holy Spirit did the work of God’s word? Why or why not?
· Do you believe that God’s Word declares the existence of Christ? Why or Why not? If not, can you explain John 1:1-3?
· Are you humble enough, as God’s created being, to give Him the power to allow His Holy Spirit to work out the problems in your marriage?
· Was Christ’s sacrifice on the cross enough payment for you to forgive the sins of your spouse?