Category Archives: Trinitarian God

Life Begins Where Our Concept of God Takes Root – “Creative” Trinitarian Life, Pt. 3 – By Kiang P Lee

Greetings Again Friends Around the World,

In parts 1 and 2, I presented not only scriptural proof of God’s true nature as Triune in the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, but also we saw why man’s very salvation is eternally tied to a life lived in the heart of the Trinitarian existence of God. Hence, I have named this series as it relates to our relationship with God in His Trinitarian reality, and how it affects our view of the world and our participation in it. The command to not worship other gods apart from the true God, is directly connected to our conception of Him – that He is “Trinitarian” and not a “solitary,” one-person God. By being Triune in nature, He essentially is relational and lives as ONE in Love, for He is Love (1 John 4:8) His Triune reality in man creates a world of difference more than we can ever realize. This is the stuff of the miraculous.

In the final installment of this 3-part series, we’ll see how God relates with man in His Trinitarian reality and extend the same to all mankind through believers who have put their faith in His Son, Jesus Christ. My sincere hope is you will see God’s unmistakable appeal to man in the Gospel to participate and experience His Trinitarian reality through Jesus in the power of the Spirit. And then to live life that’s truly life with all humans, through a relationship that is realized in the Spirit that is true to His nature of Love in His Triunity. (John 4:24)

Life presents us with only two broad ways of life – man’s self-centered “solitary” way, or God’s loving, unified “Triune” way. In the book, “Bula man-river – The Miracle of Triune Living” I presented two metaphors to represent these two ways of life: the “Bulu man-river” with deathly waters of carnal man influenced by the devil, and the “Bula man-river” with the “living waters” of the Holy Spirit where life is lived in the heart of the Triune life of God. One is 1-dimensional, while the other is 3-dimensional. One is the way of independence, while the other is the way of interdependence. It is a life of living in the Spirit who unifies man to the Father through the Son, and not in his fleshly self. Paul was inspired to write this,

“If anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, they do not belong to Christ. You, however, are not in the realm of the flesh but are in the realm of the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God lives in you. But if Christ is in you, then even though your body is subject to death because of sin, the Spirit gives life because of righteousness…. For if you live according to the flesh, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live” (Rom.8:9-13). Here, we see how both Jesus and the Spirit interpenetrates the “living waters” flowing in the life of the Bula man-river (believer).

Purpose of Triune Life in Christ

The purpose of the “Triune life” is essentially to protect the believer from the inconsistencies and ravages of the “solitary life” – a life lived under the influence of the devil who is the instigator of all human pain and suffering in the world. God loves us so much He wants us to live a life filled with joy, not suffering. He is the Fountain of joy, a joy that will culminate in an eternity with Him. (Isa.12:2-3) When you are thinking Trinitarianly in Christ, you are aware that your walk is always in the midst of the Father, Jesus, and Herald* (Spirit). Your emotional reaction is always tampered by Their Loving relationship with each other, that you now inhere in Christ. So we’re not in the emotional juggernaut of the “solitary life” that comes with dire consequences. Every act you take in the presence of the Triune God, makes you consider their Loving Triune reality in your life, and every other human, those of the faith and they who are not in the faith. And always, it is an action taken in love, for love is the very nature of the God who is Triune.

Living the “Solitary” Life Still

If the “Triune Life” frees us from the curse and malevolence of the “solitary life,” then it’s logical to conclude that the “Triune Life” essentially embodies the ‘Creative Life’ of the Triune God, for the very Life of God is synonymous with all things good, breathtakingly wonderful, and magnificent in its splendor. (Gen.1:31; Ps.8; 40:5; Acts 10:38) The “solitary life” is synonymous with everything uncreative, corrupt and deathly in fallen man. Here is the irony that’s seen in most of Christianity: many who call themselves followers of Christ are living the “solitary life” still – they think as long as they acknowledge Christ, then they are in good-standing with God. To live the Christian life in “solitary” mode is to live apart from Christ, for He is Triune in His Godly nature.

Though a person may claim to believe in the Trinity, if he still lives the “solitary” life in himself, he still lives apart from Christ. This tells us that many “Christians” fail, or simply don’t know how to live the Triune Life in Christ by the power of the Holy Spirit. Taking the name of Jesus automatically comes with the Triune Life of God. (Matt.28:19) In reality, taking the name of Christ demands we give up the “solitary” life in the self, in exchange for the Triune Life in Christ. Its a change that I call “flush-out” in my book. The Christian Life is lived in Christ, who lives in the “Triune Life” of God. The sign of Christianity was made clear by Paul above – it requires the presence of the Holy Spirit. The presence of the Spirit is the start of the activity of the Trinitarian God in a believer made possible by Jesus. (John 16:7)

What Religion Does

Sadly, what religion has done is turn man back on himself in his “solitary life” by saying that his salvation is “his” responsibility. They say, Christ has done His part, now man has his part to do to earn it. This is the devil’s deception at its very core. Salvation is all grace and freely given to man. God has not abdicated your salvation by placing it into your own hands, nor the hands of another. Salvation is all God’s doing in Christ, by the power of the Holy Spirit. If Christ is a partial savior, then the Gospel is not true. Jesus is not a 50/50 savior. If salvation is a free gift which comes from the free grace of God, it is impossible for man to earn it, let alone 50%. For the Gospel tells us He is the complete Savior of mankind. Paul says, “We are complete in Him” (Col.2:10; Acts 4:11-12). I explained in the book that “our part” is simply to “hide in Christ” as the “living waters” cover the riverbed (man), and let the Spirit live His life fully (overflowing) in man. (In my book I explain this insidious lie of the devil, and talk about what is “obedience.”)

What The Spirit Does

The work of the Spirit is made evident by Jesus, “But when He, the Spirit of truth comes, He will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on His own, He will speak only what He hears,  and He will tell you what is to come. He will glorify Me for it is from Me that He will receive what He will make known to you. All that belongs to the Father is Mine. That is why I said the Spirit will receive from Me what He will make known to you. (John 16:13-15) It is clear the work of the Spirit is to reveal what belongs to the Father and the Son. This passage is entirely Trinitarian in its rendition and meaning. The Spirit’s role is to take man into the Triune Life to understand the will of God in his life.

Doing The Will of The Father

Jesus makes plain that it is possible to say one is Christian, but is none of His: “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven” (Matt.7:20-21). The verse following this says even those who perform miracles in His name He will shun: “Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!'” (V.22-23). Many have wondered about this passage, and inquired of its meaning as it relates to the believer. The answer can only be explained in what a person believes and the way he lives – if he lives the “Triune Life” in Christ (Bula man-river), or if he is still living the “solitary life” in himself (Bulu man-river).

Notice what Jesus said, “…only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.” The will of the Father is also the will of the Son, as we saw. So, from eternity, the will of God has always been “Triune.” The act of One is always the act of all Three – God is indivisibly ONE. This translates into a life where man lives a collaborative, interdependent, unified, and Trinitarian life in Christ. We can do “good works” based upon our human “solitary” mindset, and God calls it for what it truly is – “filthy rags.” (Isa.64:6) It is what the Spirit produces in man, flowing as “living waters” in the riverbed of man (Bula man-river), that results in “good” that’s of Godly substance.

This final 3-part series is by no means comprehensive, and you may be left with questions, which I hope you will find in my book. Or, alternately you may leave a question on this blog. Let us look into the “Creative Life” we are brought into by the presence of the Spirit in man, who constantly takes him into the presence of the Triune God so man can live the “Triune Life” of the Bula man-river. What follows are excerpts from the book, “Bula” man-river – The Miracle of Triune Living”:  

What is “Creative Life” – Fire of the Spirit

“The beauty of the Trinitarian life in all its awe and wonder is to experience and participate in the “creative works” of God as He flows in us into the valleys He has charted for each of us. (John 17:20-23) What He has done in the universe, pales into insignificance compared to what He is creating in man. God is really recreating Himself – children, like Jesus to inherit His nature and all things. The material creation around us is subject to deterioration and decay. But God’s cosmic plan is to use it as “clay,” so to speak, and create His very own children (Rom. 8:20-24; 29-30). Whereas the universe and life upon this earth was made to exist uniformly, man was not. That is to say, God has to convince man of His love, for man was made to bear His image, and where there is love there is of necessity freedom. Where there is freedom, there is choice. God cannot apply the uniformity He placed in creation to be similarly applied to man. He has only one means with which to convince man to accept his offer of becoming His children – His love.”

“The miraculous life we live is essentially the expression of His love for us. The principle upon which God’s “creative work” is done in mankind, is the “creative love” of the Spirit. He gives us the power to summon our thoughts to Christ’s service through the captivating love of the Spirit (2 Cor. 10:5). All thoughts of fear that lead to deprivation and want are overpowered by the overwhelming love of Jesus just as the “living waters” cover the riverbed (1 John 4:8). Paul speaks of thoughts that are true and honest, thoughts that are just and pure, thoughts that are gracious and endearing, thoughts of virtue and excellence – in short our thoughts are to be about the love of God (Phil. 4:8). In Triune living, man is the extension of the Triune nature, so we are an extension of God’s love.”

“A river is an attractant for people because it is a place where they can flourish and be sustained indefinitely. As a Bula man-river, you are an attractant for people. You are the living, walking, Gospel of Christ. People naturally come to the living gospel, we don’t take it to them – we don’t force it on them. You can only flow into the valleys you have been assigned (John 3:27).”

The Creative Life Find Its Source in the Creator

“Jesus is leading the way, and we are following His “flow.” Whatever Jesus does, we do. This defines the mechanics of Trinitarian living. Jesus “lives creatively” in the power of the Spirit through us as Bula man-rivers from which we derive our inspired abilities (Matt. 16:24; John 8:12, 12:26; 1 Pet. 2:21). We don’t take the “creative fruits” of love in the Spirit and bottle them up inside us – that is “reverse flow”; it’s stagnation and lifelessness. You cannot plow a field by turning it over in your mind, but by taking the important second step of putting your hands to the plow.”

Fruits – Love’s Tools for Creative Living

“If the Spirit’s “living water” is always flowing, then He is reliably accessible and ever dependable. He never leaves a void in us but fills every crevice and cranny in our lives. If indeed His love “never fails us,” then what is love’s real and practical manifestation that reflects this unfailing quality? It can only be the Spirit’s fruits, and Paul documents this in his letter to the Corinthians (1 Cor. 13; Also Gal. 5:22-23; Rom. 12:9-21). God’s love is the peaceful flow of the Spirit’s life in the Bula man-river: it is *the fruit of patience, *the fruit of kindness, *the fruit of contentedness, *the fruit of being modest and unboastful, *the fruit of humility, *the fruit of honor, *the fruit of unselfishness, *the fruit of calmness and dignity, *the fruit of forgiveness and compassion, *the fruit of delighting in good and shunning evil, *the fruit of tolerance, *the fruit of responsibility, *the fruit of enduring hope, *the fruit of steadfast perseverance, *the fruit of joy, *the fruit of peace, *the fruit of goodness, *the fruit of faith, *the fruit of gentleness, *the fruit of self-control, *the fruit of zeal and spiritual fervor, *the fruit of friendship, *the fruit of sharing and generosity, *the fruit of prayerfulness, *the fruit of hospitality, etc. All these and other traits of the Spirit spells one thing: they spell the actions and emotions of the Spirit in the life of man. By and through them we decipher and peek into the different tones of God’s love. They present to us the way of life of the Triune God.

“It’s not possible to speak of the Spirit’s work in the Bula man-river without the fruits that identify who He is – it’s one and the same, it’s unavoidable. Most times when people think of the fruits of the Spirit, they often view them academically through the legalistic lens of religious proponents who uses them to make “better people” of us. We live powerless lives when we do. We are not zombies, but free-will humans made in the image of God. So we say, “I have no choice in the matter, so I may as well go along with the program” – as it were self-improvement exercises. On the contrary, we fail to realize that from eternity these fruits undergirded the loving relationship of the three persons within the Triune God. Love’s energy is brought to life in the application of these fruits. In our constant presence before God, the Bula man-river share this energy and the creative relationships we have within the Triune existence of God. Now you are in their midst living the same life they live from eternity and tasting that life in the Spirit.”

Living The Power of The Triune Life

“Many believe in the Trinity but have not experienced the Trinitarian life, let alone know of its power in their lives. Paul was addressing this very issue of denying the power of the Triune life of God when he drew the attention of young evangelist Timothy, to a list of actions (fruits) that were disempowering people. He mentioned being unloving, unthankful, without self- control, brutal, unforgiving, self-lovers, despisers of good, disobedient, and so on. These and other such actions are fear-based behaviors. Paul said, “They have the form of godliness, but deny its power” (2 Tim. 3:1-5, KJV). All these behaviors stand up against the list of the Spirit’s fruits we saw earlier, which are love-based behaviors. These were professed Christians, who somehow deceptively cloak their selfish intentions and place a label of godliness on them. But they lacked authenticity for they denied the only power that defines them as one – the Spirit’s fruits, or love. The Bible is clear if one does not have the Spirit living in him, he is not an authentic Christian (Rom. 8:9, 14).”

“The Christian life is experienced through the Triune life of God – the “living waters” of the Bula man-river is the Spirit’s energy animated by these fruits. We can view these fruits in a purely academic frame of mind, but they are first and foremost the energy and spark of the Spirit in the life of the Bula man-river. We can exercise them as some self-righteous human behavior or we can give ourselves to the Spirit to let His energy inspire our actions in them. The practice of the fruit of the Spirit is not for some hollow “self-improvement” exercise for human personal gain. The fruit is the Spirit’s creative energy for developing loving relationships with our God and our fellowman. When relationships are motivated by fear they become twisted, for relationships are made for love based on the Triune existence of God Himself. The fruits of the Spirit articulates God’s love and undergirds all human relationships of the Bula man-river within the Triune existence of God. The miraculous life we are called to live springs from this loving relationship. This energy is not inert but is alive for the fruits touch on the positive emotional response of people in the relationships we engender in our respective valleys. As I said, the Spirit lies passive and inactive in every human giving man’s intellectual prowess. He becomes active as a gift of “fire” from heaven when man receives Jesus as his Savior.” (Pg.109-113)

You can read the book for a full explanation of this aspect of the Triune Life we are blessed to have in Christ. Remember this, the “solitary” life is a powerful influence in man which began with Adam, and its grip is made all the more insidious with the devil’s deception. Ambitious people have driven themselves to do great things as they are motivated by the “dominion spirit” given to man at creation (Gen. 1:26, 28; Ps. 8:6-8). However, by riding the “Bulu man-river” river of fear and deprivation (the “solitary” life), they have ignored and despised as trivial the fruits of the Spirit. Blinded by their conceit and arrogance, they have unwittingly ridden the torrential waters of ruin and despair. They regard such “creative fruits” of the Spirit as trivialities and beneath their notice. They associate these acts with weakness which, in their blindness, actually puts them at a precarious disadvantage. Without recognizing the creative energy of the Spirit’s fruits, they have inadvertently failed to utilize the very power that will bring them the abundance they seek, without all the pains and perils of the “solitary” self-centered life.

They think the only way is to compete and control and allow greed and avarice dominate their “solitary” existence. They fail to realize that the “dominion mandate” given to man precludes our domination over another person. As far as man’s relation with man, Paul said there is just only one thing we owe one another, “the debt of love” (Rom. 13:8; Gal. 6:2). There is only one Ruler over man – God, who personally directs him, not another man. (Heb. 8:10-11; Isa. 30:20-21). Becoming a truly great man or woman takes unselfish attention, first to small tasks, sacrificing selfish ambition and pride in place of those necessary things which evoke no applause and reward. In applying the fruits of the Spirit, he ascends to the level of prominence that only a Bula man-river can attain, for he lives in and by the biomeic** “creative power” of Jesus in the Spirit’s “living waters.”

Recall Jesus final words to His disciples: “Go and make tell the world about this wonderful Gospel, and baptize and bring them into the Triune Life of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit” (Matt.28:19, emphasis mine). May the Triune Love of God fill your riverbed as a “Bula man-river”*** to water the valleys of your calling and eventually bring you to your foreordained destiny.

Kiang                                                                                                                                                          (Your Servant in Christ) 

*Herald – This is the name I have personally come to affectionately call the Holy Spirit who is my closest Friend and Confidante, who always walks by my side, and flows in me like “living waters.”

**Biomeic – A Biome is a collection of different types of ecosystems that interact with one another and give birth to ONE act we call “life.” The life of Jesus, as epitomized in His personification as God’s spokesman, or the Word, with the Spirit’s inspiration, is the spiritual “biome” ecosystem in the Bula man-river. It is the ingredient of life which the Bula man-river gives to the people of his valley communities, so forming the spiritual “biome” of man (Acts 17:28).

*** The “Bulamanriver” is the metaphor describing the union of man with the Love of the Triune God flowing in humans, making possible the “Triune Life” – the source of the miraculous life in man. To read the many facets of life of the Bula man-river, go to my website www.bulamanriver.com where you can order a copy of my Book. Thank you for your support.

All scriptures are taken from the NIV Version 2011, unless stated otherwise

Note: Any information obtained from this website that is used for publication should be acknowledged by citing the website address, date of acquisition and information pertinent to original authorship. For general guidelines regarding web citations see The Guide for Citing Electronic Information

Life Begins Where Our Concept of God Takes Root – The God Who Is Trinitarian Pt.2 – By Kiang P Lee

Greetings Again Friends,

I hope you found Part 1 of this series about God’s Trinitarian nature both uplifting and encouraging. Whenever the name of God is mentioned, it always means “Triune.” The name of God never means “solitary.”

Rublev’s Famous Icon of Holy Trinity (Wiki Commons)

The Malachi Prophecy

There is a powerful and compelling prophecy in Malachi which speaks of an Elijah to come whose work will be to “turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the hearts of the children to the fathers.” Then God warns why Elijah’s work is so gripping for mankind,“Lest I come and strike the earth with a curse” (Mal.4:6). That surely is a dire warning we must all pay attention as to what  Elijah’s work truly means.

Whenever a relationship is mentioned, like father and son, or father and children, that is basically a Trinitarian statement. Jesus speaks of His relationship as the Son with God as His Father, saying, “I and My Father are ONE” (John 10:30). That’s a Trinitarian statement. Recall Jesus parting words to His disciples: “Go and tell the world about this wonderful Gospel, and unify (baptize) them into the name of the Triune God of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit” (Matt.28:19, emphasis mine).

Jesus’ final prayer with His disciples to the Father before He was crucified, was framed in God’s Trinitarian reality. He inhabits eternity in His Triune Being, and is the Source of the  Love which envelopes all of creation, and is expressed to man in His 3-dimensional reality. Man exists in his 1-dimensional reality.

“I do not pray for these (disciples) alone, but also those who will believe in Me through their word; that they all may be ONE, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be ONE in Us, that the world may believe that You have sent Me. And the glory which You gave Me I have given them, that they may be ONE just as We are ONE: I in them, and You in Me; that they may be made perfect in ONE” (John 17: 20-23, emphasis added). Jesus told His disciples, “On that day you will realize that I am in the Father, and you are in Me, and I am in you” (John 14:20). Every word is uttered in its Trinitarian context in who God is in His Triune nature of Love.

Obviously, His prayer was intended to enlighten both the disciples and His followers about His mission, and to bring to reality the will of the Father in Jesus’ purpose in the Gospel. That is, to do the work of the prophesied Immanuel – “God with us”: to join man to the Triune God. (Isa.7:14; Matt.1:23) Also notice, God’s manifested glory become man’s when he is unified to God’s Triune Life in Christ. Primarily, His glory is manifested in the miraculous life we are privileged to live in the power of the Spirit, who is given to be with us “forever.” (John 14:16) This is what brings power to the Christian life, but for most, the Christian life is without the miraculous life or glory that comes from the Triune life of God. Are Christians living “solitary” lives? Is this why they live powerless lives?

“Solitary” One-ness or “Triune” One-ness

It is entirely feasible for man to take this “unity prayer” of Jesus and apply it to his “solitary” human perspective of life. He can use this “unified stance” with a “solitary” foundation to broad-brush  everything he does with his family, his community, his nation, and still miss the point of Jesus’ meaning and purpose in His Trinitarian prayer. A father and son relationship can either be lived on a fleshly “solitary” mode, or a divine “Trinitarian” mode. Think of a statement like “unity in diversity” – if it is not lived in the Triune Being of God, it is still a philosophy birthed out of man’s “solitary” thoughts in his fallen, depraved state of being, which inevitably ends in failure and death. The “solitary” life which exists outside without God’s divine goodness is of itself a curse. Jesus, in the very depth of His Triune Being with His Father, could not have prayed any other way but in who He IS in His Trinitarian Oneness with His Father.

Though He took our humanity upon Himself, it was not a prayer He prayed through the human 1-dimensional “solitary” worldview, but the 3-dimensional Trinitarian unified worldview with and in His Father and the Spirit as ONE indivisible Triune God. That is the reality Jesus wanted the disciples and His followers to have with the Father, through and in Him. You see, once Jesus has taken man beyond and into the veil and man is made to sit with Him in His “Triune” Being-ness with the Father and the Spirit, everything we see and understand about the world around us changes from a “solitary” view to a Trinitarian divine view. That’s why Jesus had to come. That’s why the Father sent Him. That’s why Paul tells us, “You are complete in Him (Jesus)” (Col.2:10, emphasis added).

So the father and children relationships in Malachi are pictures framed primarily in the Triune relationship of God, before it extends to mankind when we accept this reality in Jesus by the power of the Spirit. The work of the coming Elijah, among others, primarily refers to the unifying of man to God through Christ so man can become a “unified being” (as opposed to a “solitary being”), from a 1-dimensional being, to a 3-dimensional being, in the very heart of the Trinitarian life of God. From this Trinitarian vantage point, man can now extend a hand of relationship to his fellowman, in his relationship with his children, his neighbors, his village, his city, in the Triune way of life in Christ.

File:Gezi2.jpg

Dove, Motif for The Holy Spirit (Wiki Commons)

In my book I speak of man becoming a “Bula man-river as a metaphor of this reality – man becoming and living the “unified miracle life” in the Triune Being of God.

I’ll continue from where I left off from the book, “Bula” man-river – The Miracle of Triune Living”:

Holy Spirit

“As long as man’s life is fueled by fear, God’s love cannot take a foothold, nor could a meaningful relationship based on love flourish. What people may regard as the expression of human good is done under the cloak of fear. Don’t get me wrong, every noble act has to come directly or indirectly from God, even the ones we do under the influence of fear. The tree of the knowledge of good and evil in Eden existed in God’s presence with our original parents. Therefore, all good and evil are in God’s control and serve His sovereign purpose (Gen. 2:17; Isa. 45:7). Man’s fear-based interaction with his fellowman has brought untold sorrow and continues to this day. Love and fear cannot coexist in the heart, just as light cannot coexist with darkness. God puts right this disparity between the depraved human heart and His love by giving man the third person of the Trinity, the Holy Spirit. He is Himself God, and love, like the Father and Son. He is given as a gift to abide in man’s life and supply man the love with which to respond fittingly to God’s love (John 16:7-15; Rom. 5:5). God offered the Holy Spirit to man from the beginning, symbolized by the tree of life in Eden, but man succumbed to fear’s deception, mistrusted God’s word, and betrayed His love. Man has since lived under the influence of fear, and it governs all his responses to life. Sadly, this fear-response carries over into his relationship with God. The Holy Spirit is given to change the status quo of fear.”

The Love DNA

“Before the Holy Spirit can be given to man, he must be unrobed from his cloak of fear. Fear comes in all sizes and shapes, in all tints and colors. Basically, fear is the harbinger of all the evil in man. The devil, who fuels this fear in man, does not rule man, but he can use fear to hold him captive. God alone rules man because man was made after His image. God gave man dominion over the earth but nowhere extends it over another human. The Genesis account is quite clear on this. Man’s only ruler is God (Gen. 1:26). Since man has God’s DNA in him, fear is essentially anathema and foreign to man. This is the underlying reason for so much suffering in the world. Man’s response to life is dictated by fear, not the love that’s in his DNA.”

“The fact that man fundamentally hates evil in all its manifestations is proof of God’s DNA in man and his aversion to fear. This hatred of evil is built into the human conscience. Man may carry out some heinous act, but such an act, having seared the conscience, will subsequently distort the personality and deteriorate man’s judgment and sanity (1 Tim. 4:2). Along these lines, God’s sovereignty undergirds all of life so that we will never lose the Creator’s reflection in man. Nevertheless, the devil holds man captive by and through fear and rebellion. Jesus comes to rescue man through the power of the divine love of God and to give man the Holy Spirit to meet God on His terms.”

From Fear to Love

“God’s promise to man is to give him a new heart to end his suffering from living a solitary life through a newborn “unified life” in His Son (Ezek. 11:19; Heb. 8:10, 10:22). He will remove the heart of fear and give him the heart of love. In becoming a mortal human, Jesus vicariously assumed man’s sinful life in His perfect being. In doing so, He destroyed fear and replaced it with God’s love. Finally, man can reciprocate with the same love with which God loves man. Only One from the Godhead is capable of loving another God alike. Man doesn’t have that love. All of man’s responses, including what he thinks is “love,” are filtered through his fears. Only One from within the triune Godhead can become the Mediator for all of humanity’s inadequate responses and transform them from fear to love in Himself (John 3:16; 2 Cor. 5:17; Eph. 2:15). That is why He is called man’s High Priest and Mediator in heaven, who forever intercedes for man.”

“Now man’s fear-based response is removed by the miracle I call the “flush-out”* (Miracle 1). Man takes on a new nature with love at its center, from which he responds to life. Jesus took upon Himself our humanity in His mortal body, glorified it through His death, resurrection, and ascension, and took our humanity into the very life of the triune God in heaven in our place. There is no other way to completely respond to the love of God but through and in Jesus. Only Jesus is capable of loving the Father perfectly, and man loves alike by living vicariously in Jesus. This is the Good News. That is why Paul tells us, “We are complete in Christ,” because He stands in for us and takes our place (Col. 2:10 emphasis added). God accepts this representation of His Son on our behalf as the true, finished, and final answer to all man’s sufferings and his place in the spiritual Eden which brings the miraculous life.” (Pg.27-28)

New Life in Christ

“Living this Triune life with and in God is as natural as He is love – it is not a forced obedience. God accepts His Son in our place, as our vicarious defense against the law which defines sin and demands our life. So when Christ died as our perfect human atonement, we died in Him (Rom. 7:4-6). When He was resurrected, we were lifted with Him. When He ascended to heaven, we relocated in Him (Eph. 2:4-6). The covenant promise God makes with man in His Son removes the heart-of-stone and replaces it with the heart-of-flesh. This is our new life in Jesus’ death, resurrection, and ascension (Heb. 8:6-11). The heart of fear dies and reincarnates into a heart of love (God). This is the miraculous life we have been called to live, for nothing but a miracle can make it happen.” (Pg.30)

We will have the final installment of this 3-Part series in the next update. May God help you see the light of the Gospel in Christ who has eternally unified us to the Triune God in Love.

Kiang                                                                                                                                                           (Your Servant in Christ) 

* “Flush-out” – In my book, “Bula man-river, The Miracle of Triune Living,” I explained the “flush-out” as follows: The miracle of the “flush-out” occurs when a person’s faith transmits the cleansing agency of Jesus’ blood. Faith is the conductor of miracles as electricity is in water. The atoning blood of Jesus flushes out the deathly waters of Bulu and replaces it with the Bula “living waters” of the Holy Spirit (John 7:37-39, 4:10). The “flush-out” inaugurates in man the life of God in place of death. Man is now the Bula man-river of God. At this moment in time, the life of Jesus and the Spirit, the blood and “living waters,” flow in the Bula man-river – you!”  (Pg.40)

All scriptures are taken from the NIV Version 2011, unless stated otherwise.

Note: Any information obtained from this website that is used for publication should be acknowledged by citing the website address, date of acquisition and information pertinent to original authorship. For general guidelines regarding web citations see The Guide for Citing Electronic Information

Life Begins Where Our Concept of God Takes Root – God Who Is Trinitarian, PT. 1 – By Kiang P Lee

Greeting Friends Around the World,

I pray that this post will bring the joy of freedom in your heart as it did mine when I wrote it.

God’s nature, and the motivations for all His actions in His creative works, has always been Trinitarian in every way, shape and form. Although man may not have understood God in His infallible Triune expression, and even if man conceptualize God in forms other than Trinitarian, He nevertheless cannot deviate from who He truly is in His spontaneous loving Triune Being. He inhabits eternity in His triunity without beginning of days nor end, as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

Rublev’s famous icon of Holy Trinity (Wiki Commons)

In my book, “Bula man-river – The Miracle of Triune Living,” I used the metaphor of the “Bula man-river”* to explain how the Triune God comes and fully unify Himself with man and transforms him to experience the very Triune life He inhabits from eternity, in Christ. Here are excerpts from my book –

“One of the most important and overlooked aspects of Jesus’ mission was that He came to reveal to us the true nature of God. Throughout His mission, Jesus made reference to God as His Father (John 17, 1:1-5, 14-8). John attests to this Father/Son relationship, saying, “No one has ever seen God, but the one and only Son, who is himself God and is the closest relationship with the Father, has made him known” (John 1:18). Jesus also mentions another personage in the unified Godhead  – the Holy Spirit (John 14:15-18, 25-26; 15:26-27; 16:7-15; Matt. 28:18-20). Jesus came to reveal the true nature of God by revealing the Father, the Son, and the Spirit, and to show that God is Triune in His nature and not solitary. God is ONE trinity. That is, He is the union of three persons in one Triune Godhead. He is not alone; He is not individualistic; He is not isolated or reclusive.”

“Something significant happened to Abraham when he expressed heartfelt faith in God’s word to him – he changed from a “solitary” father to a father of “many” nations. God changed Abraham’s name to reflect His own triune nature. The same will happen to us when we express the living faith of Abraham. Too many times man presents a picture of God sitting remotely alone on His throne, passing judgment and exercising control over our lives. Jesus corrected that image and showed God to be relational in His Trinitarian nature. This is vital to living the miraculous life. We can only mirror our relationship with a God who is by nature triune and bound in love. In other words, we will commune with a relational God, not a private God. God is not solitary as many think. By declaring the Father’s nature, Jesus made us understand His nature is love.”

“Love is relational, hence God is triune. Humans have this “solitary” perception of God because man, who lives this “solitary” life since his fall in Eden, have painted this “solitary” image on God. Throughout history man has always tried to put God in a box to suit. God tells us, “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord. As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts” (Isa. 55:8-9). How vital that we let the Spirit inspire and energize us in His Trinitarian nature to nullify our natural “solitary” attitude. We can do good things in a “solitary” mode and it will take us only thus far (Jer. 17:9). By connecting to the triune God through His Spirit, His love will lead us in life. He instructs us to choose His triune life, not our solitary life (Deut. 30:19).”

“Why did God reveal Himself as the God who is love by nature? He is not made of love; He is love. Love is God and God is love – there is no distinction between the two. God and love are one and the same substance. Now consider this revelation of God in relation to man’s concept of a solitary God. Is it possible for love (God) to exist in isolation, in solitude – unaccompanied, secluded, alone in self-absorbed existence? If God were one solitary person, with no one to love and share His divine Being, then His affirmation that “God is love” would be meaningless. Love cannot exist in solitary confinement. Only the opposite, fear, will thrive in such a condition. No, love exists and thrives exclusively in relationships. Love and relationship are inseparable. Therefore, love is not compatible with the image of a solitary God, but it’s completely viable with a God who is Trinitarian. “Perfect love (God who is triune) cast out fear” (1 John 4:18a).”

“There is no place for solitary existence (fear) in a life that is committed to relationships (love). The Bible speaks of a proper “fear” that can exist with the love of God. It does not make us afraid of God, but instills a deep reverence of everything He stands for. Then there is the fear that is the antithesis of love, “because fear hath torment, and he that fears is not made perfect in love” (1 John 4:18b). Torment is contrary to love and joy. The Gospels make clear to us that Jesus’ multifaceted earthly mission was to declare openly to the world that God is Father to all mankind. By declaring the Fatherhood of God, He discredits all arguments that God is solitary. A Father begets and nurtures children. Jesus declares Himself as the Son of God. So are we all. He did not declare the Fatherhood of God to please the people or His followers, or to be controversial. He declared it because this is what love does – love tells the truth, love cannot lie. By proclaiming God is His Father, He affirmed God is triune.”

“Jesus’ crucifixion to atone for mankind’s sin is the ultimate story of love from a God who knows no other way to live but in loving relationship (John 3:16-17). His sacrifice was the ultimate act of love for He was both God and man. This is the key to the miraculous life the Bula man-river* is destined to live. It begins with our belief in our concept of God, for life will be to us as Jesus said – “according to your faith, your life will be lived” (Matt. 9:29-30 emphasis added). What is our concept of God? Miracles are birthed in love, and love cannot survive in solitary existence, but in relationship. God’s loving relationship with man is what brought miracles to man by the hands of Jesus. Through His death, resurrection, and ascension, Jesus transports man into the triune existence of God. God has existed in His triune relationship from eternity. Because the triune God is of one substance (Greek, homoousios – “of one substance”) the act of one is the act of all three, making it singular and unified. Man has not experienced this kind of integrated life with the triune God since Adam. But God desires to bring man into the loving fellowship of the Father, Son, and Spirit. This is the way they lived from eternity. This is where the miracle life is birthed and takes its stand, and where the Bula man-river* makes his stand.”

File:Love What is It.JPG

“God is Love” (1 John 4:8) (Wiki Commons)

Love Is Key

“The relationship God seeks with man is the same closeness He lives with the three Persons of the Trinity in the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Now here is man’s predicament: man is incapable of responding with the same love God has for man because he just doesn’t have the equivalent love to relate with God. It was offered to him in Eden, but he rejected it for a life of fear instead. Man has never known this divine relationship of love the triune God has inhabited from eternity. Love is the key to making it work. Even so, how does a man respond in kind when he doesn’t have the goods to begin with? In simple terms, man has to take on a complete new life, a nature consistent with God’s love. Man, in his present fallen state, is incapable of loving God the way God loves him. His “solitary” depraved nature, which is influenced and motivated by fear, stands as an insurmountable wall. Obviously, God knows this, but it is man who must see what for God is obvious.”

“God provides the way in His Son, who Himself is God and possesses the same divine love. Thus, He is qualified to mediate and represent man in making the union possible. Jesus, by taking upon Him His human body, effectually joined mankind to the divine Godhead in substance and reality. Man can now lovingly relate with God on equal terms in and through Jesus. Jesus took His human body into a glorified state to the presence of God and became the perfect response for man before God. This is the only way, and this is the plan of God for man to enter a relationship with Him. In this regard, Paul speaks of “putting on Jesus” as if being cloaked in His Being thus enabling man to enter and live this triune existence of love with the Trinitarian God (Gal. 3:27).” “That’s the message the Bula man-river* brings to us.

Solitary Living

I said earlier that fear thrives in solitary climate, while love thrives in relationships. In man’s fallen state, fear dominates his heart. Man’s every response is inspired by the fear of his depraved and corrupt heart. This fearful life continues because of his solitary existence. How did man come to find himself living this fearful, solitary life? It began in Eden when man separated himself from God his Father, who alone possesses the love man longs for. God’s presence is the missing relationship in man’s life. The reason for his isolation is his separation from God. Man was made to exist with God in order to be whole, as Adam and Eve were before they ejected themselves out of Eden.”

“There is an important element of man’s connectedness with God that never leaves man. God created man to live in communion with each other to reflect His Trinitarian existence. Without meaningful participation with others as an interactive society, we would deteriorate and cease to effectively exist as human beings. Though fear may dominate man’s existence, God’s sovereign image of communion living undergirds and keeps him connected to his Maker. So this communion life, which bears the stamp of God’s triune image, can be motivated by fear or by love. Only when it is motivated by love will a harmonious relationship exist. When relationships are motivated by fear they become twisted, for relationships are made for love based on the triune existence of God Himself .”

I hope you find this post enlightening and liberating. But that’s not all. In Part 2, I’ll go into and discuss the awesome gift of the Holy Spirit the Father gives to indwell man as man’s everlasting gift.

May God bless you as He moves in your life in the only way He knows how, the Triune Living way, to manifest your destiny in Christ.

Kiang

* The “Bula man-river” is the metaphor describing the union of man with the Love of the Triune God flowing in humans, making possible the “Triune Life” – the source of the miraculous life in man. To read the many facets of life of the Bula man-river, go to my website www.bulamanriver.com where you can order a copy of my Book. Remember, when you purchase my book all the proceeds go towards Jesus Christ’s work of dispensing the Gospel. Thank you for your support.

Remember, when you purchase my book you have hand in Jesus’s Work, for all the proceeds go towards dispensing the Gospel worldwide. Thank you for your support.

All scriptures are taken from the NIV Version 2011, unless stated otherwise

Note: Any information obtained from this website that is used for publication should be acknowledged by citing the website address, date of acquisition and information pertinent to original authorship. For general guidelines regarding web citations see The Guide for Citing Electronic Information