10 Nov God as Father and Son

We serve one God, but that one God is comprised of 3 persons. Those three persons are the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, of which we have all heard.

The concept of God as a Father is not strange to us, and we accept that readily enough. The concept of Jesus as a Son is also not strange, but consider this, God is a Father who has a Son. And in the same way God is a Son who has a Father. The idea that God has a Father is not so easy to reconcile.

God is by nature a Father-Son God. Being self-determining, He has chosen the type of God He will be, and this is what He chose.

It doesn’t mean that either Father or Son are greater or inferior. They are eternally equal. Neither has lived a minute longer than the other, even though the Son is begotten of the Father. This in being demonstrated to us is not something heirarchical but relational. It is a relationship of equals, serving each other in particular ways. It is an example to us of who or what God is. At the heart of the matter, God is a relationship.

This relationship is not limited to just the Father and the Son, but includes the Holy Spirit. It is more than just a two way relationship, it is a community of persons. It is a place of belonging where each has the heart of the others and they walk and work together in perfection. It is the example of how the Church should be with each other.

If Jesus (or any of them) had been independent for a single moment, then God would not be who He is. In coming to earth, if Jesus had unilaterally decided this, then the existence of all things would have been threatened. And if on earth for even a second, independence, self pity or any other such “separate” action or intention had occurred, then it would be the end of who God is. If that relationship breaks down, everything is lost. All things are held together by God, and we have come to rely on that.

At the heart of the universe is a father-son relationship. Everything that has been made has been made through that father-son relationship, including your salvation in the cross and the shed blood of Christ. That shed blood only has power for you because a certain son had a certain relationship with a certain father, and they walk in it forever. If that relationship did no exist, you could not be saved.

This post is taken from chapter 2 of “The Spirit of Sonship” by John Alley. All images are used with the permission of NASA, taken from Wikipedia.com

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Image By NASA – Material credited to STScI

10 Nov 2014 | Message by David Alley