Monthly Archives: July 2013

WHO IS THE “BULAMANRIVER?” – BY KIANG P LEE

Greetings friends around the world.

I hope you found my last post beneficial to your faith and you have found the grace for living in your communion with others. If any of my post has benefited you in any way, I appreciate your comments. You can drop me a note, or, ask any question you might have. In this post, I would like to clarify any ambiguity on the metaphor I have used throughout my posts, namely, Bula man-river.*

First of all, who is the Bula man-river?* You are! The foundation of the life of the Bula man-river* is encapsulated in the words of Jesus when He said, “Let anyone who is thirsty come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me as the scriptures has said, rivers of living waters will flow from within them. By this He meant the Spirit, whom those who believed in Him were later to receive. Up to that time, the Spirit had not been given, since Jesus had not yet been glorified” (John 7:37-39). This passage is the basis upon which the metaphor of the Bula man-river* stands. The same passage is the flag bearer for this blog site as you can see above. 

Secondly, the name also has its genesis in the miracle in which I came face-to-face with the Lord and His angels, when He saved me, my wife and two friends from certain death in the river called “Bulu.” You can read about this miracle in the introduction to my book.* If you believe in Jesus Christ as your personal Savior and ongoing Mediator, and believe in the work of the Holy Spirit in your life to move you to do the will of God our Father, then you are a Bula man-river.* Bula man-river* is an authentic Christian and is the union of man with the Triune God – the Source of the miraculous life.

Why A River

The river may be the closest thing in nature to God’s own image of Love and giving. The waters of the river flows unabated every single day, never knowing any other way to live but to give, give, and give. For this very reason, the message of my Book, “Bula man-river,* The Miracle of Triune Living,” is that every believer is the Bula man-river* – for man is made in the likeness of God. (Gen.1:26-27) It conveys the life of the Trinitarian God flowing in him. Jesus made this clear when He said, “If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink.” The Bible likens people to “waters” (Rev. 17:1, 15). You are this Bula man-river in Jesus, living in the power and inspiration of the Spirit. This abundance is not in you but flows through you like a river.

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Mountain Likens to God From Which Rivers of “Living Water” Flow to Men (Wiki Commons)

Man Is the Riverbed

Man is the riverbed. A riverbed is created and charted by God. The riverbed has a destiny preordained by God. A riverbed never changes its course but flows through and into its prescribed valleys and communities. God is the Creator of man and therefore the Creator of the riverbed, the man. The Holy Spirit is the “living waters” flowing in the riverbed. Consequently, the riverbed + “living waters” = the Bula man-river* in which the Triune God flows. The Spirit springs from God into our innermost being, and gives us life in His Love, hence, the name “Bula” or “life,” in the Fijian language. (John 7:38).

Thomas F. Torrance, a renowned Trinitarian theologian, says Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit mutually mediate and interpenetrate one another in all of God’s activity in man and creation (How to Read T.F. Torrance by Elmer M Colyer, p. 212). This mutual mediation is the activity of Jesus and the Spirit in the “living waters” which cover the riverbed (man). Its holistic output is what identifies the life of the Bula man-river*  (John 16:14-15, 8-11).

So a riverbed is not considered a river until its waters flow through it. The riverbed and the “living waters” mediate and interpenetrate one another to remake man into a Bula man-river.* However, keep in mind that different waters can flow in man. This is the picture of the Bula man-river;* he lives this three-dimensional life of the Triune God in him, as opposed to the one-dimensional solitary life in his fallen state of being.

Baptism Inaugurates Life of Bula man-river*

This new life of the Bula man-river is inaugurated through the ritual of “baptism.” Baptism signifies the death and burial of the old self, and the birth of man’s new identity in Christ’s own death, resurrection, and ascension. (Rom.6:4-7; Eph.2:6-7) He now lives in heaven in Christ. In the metaphor of the Bula man-river,* man is now the riverbed and the Spirit of “living waters” forever flows in him. He flows into the valleys which represent communities of people he or she comes in contact in life. God created us to become people who exist and live in communion to reflect His own Trinitarian nature. Without a life that’s lived in meaningful participation with one another, seeking our dreams, all interconnected in Christ, we will deteriorate and cease to live life meaningfully and enduringly. Our individual destiny is realized through the people in our prescribed valleys we flow through as Bula man-rivers.*

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The Peaceful Life-Giving Waters of a River is Metaphor for the Bulmanriver (Pic:Wiki Commons)

Bulu man-river

There is a spiritual river flowing in every person’s life. A river is a motif for life and how life is lived. A person can flow in one of the two rivers. One is the river that produces a life of fear, lack, and ultimately death. I call that “Bulu” or to ‘bury the dead’ in Fijian. The other river is one with “living waters” that produce Love and abundance. I call this “Bula,” another Fijian word, which means “life.” What the Lord gave me to see is that humans are really “Bula” or man-rivers* in God. Man is a repository of this spiritual river, hence the term “man-river” (John 7:38, 4:13-14).

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A Raging Destructive River is Depiction of the Bulu-manriver (Pic:Wiki Commons)

“Flush-Out”

So, the act of baptism is symbolic of a person’s conversion, and pictures the “flush-out” of the deathly waters of “Bulu,” and is replaced and substituted by the “living waters” of the Holy Spirit.

Your Middle Name

With the “flush-out” of the deathly waters of “Bulu,” the Bula man-river* is now the conduit and repository for the very Love and power of God from which miracles proceed. Man doesn’t naturally possess this Love, but it comes to us by the power of the Spirit (Rom. 5:5). Look at Bula man-river* as your middle name. It’s going to be the name through which He conveys upon us all His blessings. And His blessings are His miracles. The prophet said poignantly, “My people have committed two sins; they have forsaken me, the spring of living waters, and have dug their own cisterns, broken cisterns that cannot hold water” (Jer. 2:13, emphasis added). The cistern is the riverbed (man). We can’t chart the riverbed’s course, or “dig our own cisterns” – God does that for man. A river has a prescribed pathway with relational gifts, for the assigned purpose of watering the valleys and communities.

Your Life’s Gifts Magnetizes to You

In every human, life and gifts comes fused together and are inseparable. This is especially true for the Bula man-river* who has the gift of the Spirit flowing in him or her. Therefore, a person’s “life-gift” or dream is always magnetizing to him or her. That’s to say, the “life-gift” a person is endowed with by the Creator, is the magnet in a person’s life. We have heard the adage, “Life is a gift.” Indeed, for the gift that comes with life is what makes life a gift. A musician does not find his music, his music finds him. An author does not find his subject to write about, his subject finds him. An entrepreneur does not find his niche, his niche finds him. We are all free to accept the prompts of our calling or to reject them. We either flow with our gift or swim against it. Too many live lives like ‘square pegs in round holes,’ which brings on all kinds of psychological and physical side-effects. Every prompt from the heart of our “life-gift” is a jigsaw piece that fits into a picture of your destiny that’s constantly magnetizing to you. Whoever a person is and becomes is only as authentic as the gift that defines him or her. Talent, purpose, dream, call it what you will, is what gives man purpose; without it, life is meaningless. There’s only one genuine and legitimate life God gives us, and through which He communicates Himself to us – our “life-gift” or purpose in life. God gave Joseph his dream, and throughout his life it was the means by which God communicated His purpose for him. (Gen.37:5-7; 45:7-8) The Triune life of the Bula man-river* is the medium through which God manifest His destiny to us. Our purpose is founded upon Christ, “the author and finisher of our faith,” who is the “storehouse of all the treasures of knowledge and wisdom” (Heb. 12:2; Col. 2:3, emphasis added).

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A Potter in Bangalore India Possesses The Gift of Making Clay Vessels (Pic: Wiki Commons)

The River Never Knows How to Stop Giving

Think about this: the waters of the river flows in its never-ending giving pathway, and knows no other way to live… but to give. What the person gives has to do with the giftedness he has been endowed with from the Creator. The river courses through the valleys and communities making them rich and fertile. At no time does the river stop giving of itself for the good of others. That is the picture of the life of Jesus Christ. He is the One whose life courses through and gives life to the Bula man-river,* bringing abundance which flows in the river. This river imagery cannot be a picture of man. Man doesn’t know how to Love and give in this way (Rom. 8:31-32, 35, 38-39). If anything, man is the antithesis of this graceful flow of the river which frees him (Jer. 17:9; Rom. 3:10-18).

Only Jesus can amplify the work of the Trinitarian God in man through the Spirit who connects God to man, and from man back to God. We must take loving responsibility for the gifts we have been endowed with, and let its energy invigorate us to embrace the people in our valleys in the Spirit’s Love. This is the very essence of the life of the Bula man-river.* For the Bula man-river,* the valleys represent the community of people you come in contact with daily. There is your family valley. Then there is your church valley. There is your neighbor/community/village valley. Furthermore, you have a work or occupation valley. Then there is the national valley, and so forth. Each of these valleys requires different responses from you.

Collective Destiny: The Ocean

The purpose of our calling is to testify to this miraculous life of the Bula man-river* we have in Christ. The river flows to all humanity. The living waters that flow in our riverbed are common to us all. The waters originate from the same source – the Spirit (1 Cor. 12:13-14). These “living waters” (Spirit) hold all the Bula man-river’s* talents and abilities, just as a river holds all the good that gives generously to enrich the valleys and communities. As important as our individual destinies are, they are powerless in themselves. There has to be a unifying center that brings us all together into a cohesive unit. That center is Jesus Christ. The ultimate destination of rivers is the vast ocean where all rivers gather. So every single Bula man-river* flows and ends in this center, this ocean.

Jesus is the ‘Ocean!’

The Ocean is Jesus Christ! He is the magnetizing center which draws us together into a unifying whole. We’re not separate unrelated misfits doing our own thing. In our everyday life, as we search and live our destinies as Bula man-rivers,* we realize our talents and abilities are not an end in themselves. This is what God’s Trinitarianism means – everything is interconnected and unified, just as God is in His Triunity. We are all connected. How we all come together is God’s undertaking, not ours. It’s a mystery to us, but not with God. Like a jig-saw puzzle (mystery), we are all pieces of the puzzle which contributes ultimately to the unifying picture of His Triune Being in Christ we will become. (1 Pet.2:5-6; Eph. 2:19-22) Yes, just like a jig-saw puzzle, we have seen the end from the beginning, as the picture on the puzzle box tell us. We know our end is to be a dwelling place for the Triune God, and vice versa, we are to dwell and exist in His Triune Being through Christ. (Rom.8:29; Rev.21:3) The “flush-out” brings “living waters” with which we water people on our journey to the Ocean each day. Then the waters return to the mountain of God, and He ‘rains’ His Love upon us which flows in the Bula man-river* as “living waters” all over again in its endless cycle of Love and giving. (Prov. 11:25, NKJV).

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The Vast Ocean – Depiction of God Where All Rivers Flow and Find Rest (Wiki Commons)

Bula man-river* Is About Living the Miraculous Life

God never does things on His own. It’s impossible for God to live a “solitary” life like fallen man because He is essentially and intrinsically Triune. He is relational, and His nature of Love bears this out. This is the basis of the miraculous life I have reiterated throughout my Book,* beginning with my own miracle which is why I am alive today to tell about it. Love is the fire of our relationship with the Triune God; it is the work of the Spirit that brings us into His presence as Bula man-rivers.* When this happens, something inexplicable occurs that is usually deciphered in retrospect. It’s like some kind of meeting of minds happening. It may feel like someone has read your mind and gone ahead to prepare the way for the circumstance you encountered. When that happens, you should know you have just experienced God’s hand in your life. It’s the expression of His undeniable grace and goodness in the finished work of Christ in your life. In short, we call that spark—that union of the divine and the physical—a miracle. This spark, like the touch of the sick woman that caused energy to leave Jesus’ Being, is the same spark of miraculous life we all encounter when we reach out to touch Him.

Work of the Spirit 

You may have heard people ask you, ‘Do you know your Bible?’ But, the most foundational question of all is, ‘Do you know your God?’ The true knowledge of God, and how He is natured as a Triune Being we can relate to in Love. God’s undertaking of bringing us into His Triune Being is the picture on the puzzle box we see, and we are all the interconnected pieces of that picture. That’s the one and only purpose of God, and why He made us in His Triune likeness. (Gen.1:26-27) That’s why God’s Trinitarianism is the axis upon which everything else turns and finds existence. It may be informative to know that the Bible as we know it today, was not canonized until around the fourth century. That means, if the early Christians had no Bible for reference for four centuries, except for a handful of letters, then I ask what, or in reality, Who, was guiding believers then? Yes, it was the Holy Spirit! (John 15:26-27; Acts 1:4-5; 2:1-4) “But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you” (John 14:26). This clearly tells us the Spirit as the Revelator. The Bible is a guide and does not replace the work of the Holy Spirit whose mission is to establish in each of us a more profound and personal relationship with Christ. (John 16:12-15) That is to say, the Spirit is the Personal Teacher sent by God to teach each of us about our place in God’s plan.

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Gentle Dove, Symbol of the Holy Spirit and God’s Love (Pic: Wiki Commons)

We must not allow legalism to creep into our lives, and in so doing, nullify the work of the Spirit. The life-force of the Bula man-river* is the Spirit. We must not allow the Bible to be the end-all, but an inspirational guide to point us to the Triune God, and what that means to every man, woman, and child. The Spirit reveals who God is to us in His Son. The most basic and most decisive knowledge for man to understand is God is Trinitarian, which is the basis for which He spontaneously and organically connects Himself to man through His Son. If God was not Trinitarianly Love, man would not have come into existence, and the Bible with it. The Bible does not produce miracles, the Spirit does, including our spiritual birth into immortality in Christ. This is the essence and thrust of what the life of the Bula man-river* is the Spirit (“living waters”).

Read my Book

I sincerely hope you will read my Book to gain a broader insight into this endearing term and metaphor of the Bula man-river.* It will reshape you as a person to face life with Jesus and the Spirit interpenetrating and living in you. It’s a completely changed life with “living waters” (Spirit) flowing in you replacing the deathly waters which once influenced and colored your life – now gone forever. The Book presents three broad scenarios to help you understand and become a Bula man-river* – the what, why, and how of becoming and living as one.

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Go to bulamanriver.com if You Wish to Purchase My Book

Blessing

Until we meet again in my next post, may the blessing of the God who ceaselessly expresses Himself in His dependable Triune Love, be with you today and give you strength for authentic Triune living as a Bula man-river.*

Kiang                                                                                                                                                             (Your Servant in Christ) 

* 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. Remember, when you purchase my book all the proceeds go towards Jesus Christ’s work of dispensing the Gospel. 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

THE ONE-MAN PRINCIPLE OF IMPLIED CONSEQUENCE – BY KIANG P LEE

Greetings, Friends everywhere!

I hope you found my last post on the three mandates God gave man from the beginning useful and constructive. My hope is it has added to your faith and given you confidence to foster healthy interaction and communion with others. As we participate in the Lord’s Life in us, we are helping sow the seed for a better world where His Triune Love unites us together and is the guiding principle in all we do. I hope this post will do likewise and add to your wholeness and joy as a ‘Triune’ person.

Many find it hard to believe that the life and death of one man can be attributed to absolve all of mankind’s sins and wrongs and be given the gift of everlasting life, in place of eternal death. Because of this doubt and suspicion, many in the secular world, have found it hard to fathom how Jesus Christ’s life alone has that implied, substitutionary, outcome upon all mankind. (John 3:16-17) They think it’s the kind of thing that’s born out of religious zeal bordering on superstition and religious fanaticism, and does not measure up to scientific criteria and norms. It’s too far-fetched to be believed. At the same time, there are many things in science, creation, the universe, which, even the best of our educated minds have no answer. Science, for example, has not been able to fully explain how the human mind works. So, if no one can claim to have all the answers, we can at least agree that we all play this game of life on the same level playing field of unfamiliarity, inexperience, and to a greater degree, ignorance. So, keeping an open mind would be the most sensible of options to take. Keeping a closed mind only serves our ignorance and keeps us in the shadows, rather than seeking enlightenment in the evolution of our understanding of ourselves and others. So, let’s answer this question on a more down to earth manner, and make sense of this question.

“One-Man” Attributive Principle in History

This may be an important thought to consider, the one-man substitutionary role of Jesus aside, the Bible is clear about one thing, it is through the one-man act of Adam, that all of mankind is in a state of alienation from God. The effect of Adam’s one-man attributive decision to disobey God, is clearly witnessed in the condition of man’s fallen state of being in the world today – of depravity, decay, man’s inhumanity to man, and death. Many see the dilemma of evil in the world, and have no clue as to the origin of them. God summarily attributed man’s depraved condition to Adam’s disobedience. Paul stated to the Romans, “When Adam sinned, sin entered the world. Adam’s sin brought death, so death spread to everyone, for everyone sinned” (Rom.5:12, NLT). Man was banished from His presence (Eden) and closed the path to finding enlightenment and the grace for authentic living. Adam chose the way of darkness and ignorance, and the greatest depth of ignorance is to deny the existence of the Creator. So this one-man attribution for all of mankind’s future is not something new or novel. It has happened in history – from the very beginning of man’s existence on earth. This is not something ‘religious’ or fanatical, it is a cause and effect matter that has scientific relevance. When the second Adam (Jesus) came, He taught us the way of Love, service, and self-sacrifice. That is not ‘religious,’ it speaks of a way that produces the opposite effect of the first Adam’s way of rebellion, self-centeredness, confusion, and heartache. Sadly, we continue to live in the reality and consequence of Adam’s rebellious way of life today.

Every one of us has a great responsibility to protect the environment – and climate change is a global issue that is going to require a global solution. Everyone’s action has flow-on, attributive consequences, as the Bible teaches. (Pic:Wiki Commons)

If our state of fallen, depraved, and corrupt condition, is really the result of one-man’s choice to disobey and alienate himself from his Creator, why is it so hard to believe that another Man, the second Adam, whom God foretold and appointed would come to right Adam’s wrong – yes, this one-man implied principle at work – would bring man back to right standing with God and receive His grace for authentic living? (Gen.3:14-15; 1 Cor.15:45-49) Paul taught, “For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive” (1 Cor.15:22). Because Adam took mankind down the path of disobedience, with the deceitful prompting of the devil, God prearranged the coming of the second Adam to save man from the consequence of the first Adam’s sin, and defeating the enemy responsible for Adam’s fall, once for all. Jesus Christ, the second Adam, came and taught man a new way to live. The way of outgoing Love and self-sacrifice, to replace Adam’s way of inner-directed fear and self-destruction. He commanded His disciples, “A new commandment I give you, Love one another. As I have Loved you, Love one another” (John 13:34). Jesus was the personification of the prophesied Immanuel (God/man incarnation), the only perfect human, that could undo what Adam had doomed man into a life of servitude, fear and corruption. (Isa.7:14)

Principle of Attributive Consequence Continues Today

Here’s what we fail to realize, this principle of attribution and implied consequence, continues to undergird man’s relationship with other humans today. Though we may not realize the effect of this principle upon us, for good or bad, it is as real as long as God is Triune and exists in this attributive/imputive/connective spiritually ‘organic’ way fundamentally. We see this played out in history for good in the life of the patriarch Abraham. God stretched His hand to save Israel numerous times because He remembered His word of blessing to Abraham. (Exo.2:24) In our more recent history, we see this principle played out in our world wars with disastrous consequences. The life of Adolf Hitler stands out. Human history is littered with people of like violent disposition.

Man was not made to exist privately and in isolation in himself. He was made after God’s Triune likeness so he can live in Loving communion with his fellow humans, as God does in His Triunity. Yet, sadly, man continues to fail to take responsibility for all his actions which carries this imputive consequence. I’ll come back to our personal responsibility in this one-man attribution principle. But first, the obvious question that comes to mind is why does God permit this one-man attribution/implied principle to be such an overriding determinant in man’s relationship with one another? The short answer is because it reflects His Trinitarian Life as God who lives in Loving communion. He expects man, whom He created in His own Triune image, to live and behave that way, because He IS that way.

Imputive Consequence Is The Essence of The Triniatrian Life

Readers of my blog will know by now, that whenever I have tried to find an explanation for something, I have tried not to deviate from investigating the answer through the prism of the Trinitarian nature of God. It clears the mind off all the cobwebs of the “solitary” self we inherited from Adam. As long as God is Triune, there’s always a Trinitarian undercurrent which carries His authoritative, attributive, and implied, outcome in everything He does and we seek answers for. I said in one of my previous post that life begins where our concept of God takes root. Who is God? What makes Him do what He does? God declares Himself as ONE, yet, exists in Three Persons – the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. The act of any Three is the act of ONE God. Not Three Persons with separate outcomes. So, that’s imputive, interdependent, co-dependent living. So God, because He is Love, being Three, automatically act as ONE. Because He is Love, they are indivisible and eternally ONE. In other words, their actions are interconnected and therefore attributive to one another. When God created Adam, He wanted Adam to choose to live this Triune Life with Him. He created Eve to make the Trinitarian life comprehensible at the human level. Eve was not created separately but from Adam himself to depict this Triune inter-relativity by co-dependence. By alienating himself, Adam effectively cut himself off from God’s Triune way of Life. He is now effectively living the “solitary” way of life in himself without the Triune God.

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The Triune God – The Act of One is the Act of All Three, and the Act of Three is the Act of One. This is the Basis of Imputive Principle Man Lives Under. (Wiki Commons)

So this one-man attributive, inter-connective principle, if I may call it that, is founded upon the God who is Triune (three), yet ONE, attributive, and interconnected in all His Loving manifestation. That’s to say, Each of the Persons in the Triune Godhead always acts in ONE-ness, not three-ness. That’s another way of saying, everything God does is interconnected, interrelated, and unified with everything else, and nothing stands alone. The whole universe and the physical law that holds it together, including our earth, are all interconnected for it reflects the Creator who made it all – separate, individual, heavenly bodies, yet ONE, unified universe. So we see this principle of interconnection throughout creation. It begins with God who is three, and yet, interconnected and ONE. Though, through the naked eye, and our “solitary” mindset, we may observe the physical world as existing autonomously, everything is interconnected and finds a single expression. Like the Three Persons of the Trinity, they are ONE unified Being, natured in their single expression of Love. God is Love, so all He does bears his Triune/imputive Love expression.

Man may not realize this, but everything he does brings him in touch with this interactive physical laws of the universe, which like gravity, comes into play and compensates for if what he does is to work at all. See the modern-day exploits in air travel, space exploration, technology, advancement in science and engineering, sea and land travel, etc. All we do has to take into account God’s ‘law of relativity’ which Albert Einstein discovered, because that’s how the world exists – nothing is what it is until you relate it to something. The relational nature of God (Trinitarian) underlies our existence, despite living the “solitary” life which Adam has imputed upon us. Everything in creation has this attributive, implied, and relational resonance which is the signature of the Trinitarian God who sustains His creation in Love. Everything created resonates this Triune, interconnective principle, and man can choose to live by it, or deny it at his own demise.

Jesus Lived the “Trinitarian” Life, and Adam The “Solitary” Life

Listen to the words of Jesus as indicative of the interconnected creation in which we live, He said this about His words and actions, “These words you hear are not my own; they belong to the Father who sent me” (John 12:49-50; 8:28b, 29, 26b; 14:9-10, 24; 17:8; 6:63, 68). He said further, “By Myself I can do nothing” (John 5:30). This is an activity of the Triune Love which binds them together as ONE. Jesus’ actions are not for His private exploits but activities of Love with the Father and the Spirit. He said, “Not my will, but your (the Father) will be done” – even at the point of His death. (John 5:17, 19-20, Luke 22:42 emphasis added). Notice what Jesus said about the role of the Holy Spirit, the third Person of the Triune God, “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” (John 16:13-15).  Jesus was declaring His life of Loving union in His Triunity with God the Father and God the Spirit. He said, “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit” (Matt.28:19). Jesus authorized the disciples to bring people into the Loving interconnected Life of the Triune God, and thereby live the one-man attributive, implied, and Trinitarian life in Christ. (Gal.2:20, KJV)

Whatever way we choose to live, whether it’s Adams “solitary” self-centered way, or Jesus’ “Triune” Loving way, it does not preclude nor nullify the one-man attributive consequence of our actions. If it is Adam’s “solitary” way we live by, it will produce fear, depravity, decay and ultimately death. If it is Jesus’ “Triune” way we cling to, it will produce Love, excellence, joy and grace for authentic Trinitarian living.

The ‘One-Man’ Trinitarian/Attributive Principle Affects Us All Regardless

Paul affirms this one-man Triune/attributive principle upon all, saying, “For the unbelieving husband has been sanctified through his wife (believing), and the unbelieving wife has been sanctified through her believing husband. Otherwise your children would be unclean, but as it is, they are holy” (1Cor.7:14, emphasis added). This imputive principle starts in your family, where your Triune Life in Christ is implied to those around you, so they also are in good standing with God because of you. Though they may not be in direct union with God, you are that connection which brings grace to them. This is the same principle God applied to save mankind through and in His Son. (John 3:16-19) What happens if a man lives the “solitary” life apart from the Triune God, and his actions are self-willed and evil? Are those around him doomed? Yes, and no! Though a person’s actions bear evil implied consequences, it will not harm those implicated, if, as individuals, they choose to follow God’s Love, and change their ways and follow good in place of evil.

The Death of Jesus – an Substitutive Act (Eugene Delacroix, Wiki Commons)

The whole eighteenth chapter of Ezekiel makes this plain. (Ezek.18) Notice, the Israelite acknowledged this attributive principle, so much in a negative light, it has become a proverb, a buzzword. (V.1). But the Lord tells them, the opposite is also true. Even though this implied principle is true, if the person shall turn from his wicked ways, “he will not die for his father’s sins, he will surely live. But his father will die for his own sin” (V.14-18). Note also the warning given to the self-willed Israelites, notwithstanding the promises of blessings God gave Abraham, “But if they will confess their sins and the sins of their ancestors—their unfaithfulness and their hostility toward me, which made me hostile toward them so that I sent them into the land of their enemies—then when their uncircumcised hearts are humbled and they pay for their sin, I will remember my covenant with Jacob and my covenant with Isaac and my covenant with Abraham and I will remember the land” (Lev.40:40-42).

So, though they were implied recipients of Abraham’s faithfulness, there was an obvious implicit sense of duty to follow the patriarchal example, or their own self-willed attributive actions will nullify the covenant. God is perfectly ONE and indivisible in His Triune Love, we are not. God gave us minds so we can change, even if we have implied consequences which are evil which our fathers attributed and became part of us. God wants us to choose to be joined to His one-man Triune/attributive Loving way of life, and pass on and attribute His Love upon others through our inspired actions in the Spirit. (Rom.5:5)

Watch Over Each Other in Love

God makes this Triune implied consequence principle clearer in relation to our gifts and what we are expected to do with them. Speaking to Ezekiel God says, “If I speak and give them warning from Me… and you do not speak out to dissuade them from their ways… I will hold you accountable for their blood. But if you do warn the wicked person… and they do not do so, they will die for their sin, though you yourself will be saved” (Ezek.33:7-9). God is elaborating to man, who was made after His image, what is expected when living this Triune Life in Christ. We serve one another with our gifts and talents because God does the same in His Triunity. We are all “watchman,” watching out for each other’s welfare. In Loving Triune union in Christ, we are all made keepers of each other. (Gal.6:1-6; Phi.2:4; 1Cor.10:24) We must take loving responsibility for the gifts we have been endowed with, and let its energy invigorate us to embrace one another in the Spirit’s Love. This is the very essence of the life of the Bula man-river.*  (To read more about the Bula man-river,* go to my website www.bulamanriver.com where you can order a copy of my book)

God’s Sovereignty

In all this, we must not miss the point of God’s sovereignty in everything. It is God who determines what is right and wrong through His character of Love. Therefore, it is God alone who has the power to forgive sins. It is He alone who determines how transgressions are pardoned and forgiven. It is God alone who has the power to grant man the gift of immortality in His Triune existence. (John 3:16) The Bible tells us, “If we are faithless, He remains faithful, for He cannot deny Himself” (2 Tim.2:13) Compassion and mercy is part of who He is in His sovereign Love.

So yes, God attributes the acts of man upon each other, whether for good or evil, and this is what He has done to us in His Son, Jesus Christ, for our deliverance. By giving us His Son, He attributes His one-man attributive perfect life upon all mankind for our redemption, just as Adam’s sin brought us into the shackles of slavery of evil and sin.  In Christ Himself, with His implied deliverance, He brings us the Father’s gift of immortality through the Spirit. Hence, we read this implied statement, “For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you (all) to God” (1 Pet.3:18, emphasis added). In that, we see the inseparable, eternal Love of God in these immortal words, “For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him, shall not perish but have eternal life.” (John 3:16). Let’s be truly thankful for Jesus’ one-man implied righteousness upon all mankind, and go out and live life as He did, knowing that all our actions have their inherent attributive consequences.

Blessing:

May the blessing of the God who ceaselessly expresses Himself in His dependable Triune Love, be with you today and give you strength for authentic attributive Triune living as a Bula man-river.*

Kiang                                                                                                                                                          (Your Servant in Christ) 

* 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

HUMAN RELATIONSHIPS AS EXPERIENCED THROUGH THE TRIUNE LIFE OF THE “BULA MAN-RIVER” – BY KIANG P LEE

Greetings to you all, friends the world over!

I hope you found my 3-Part Post on the substitutionary role of Christ’s mediation helpful and useful to your faith, as much as it has brought you peace and joy that’s deservedly yours as a child of God. You are someone I call, Bula man-river,* a metaphor for the believer who is covered by Christ’s mediatory role as Savior and High Priest.

In this post, I would like to cover the topic of human relationships. Relationships are the most important of all human interactions.  It forms the basis of human existence and the foundation upon which all decent societies are built. They ultimately affect how we are judged as a nation, and how we conduct ourselves in international relations. (Pro.14:34) The origin of relationships is founded upon the nature of the Creator God who created all things to reflect Him in His Triune nature. God, who existed as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, lived in Loving relationship with each other from eternity. That is the basis of human relationships.

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Human Relationships based upon the Triune Life of God (Rublev’s Icon of Trinity, Wiki Commons)

Notice the plural/collective pronoun/adjective, God refers to Himself when He created mankind, “Let US make human beings in OUR image, make them reflect OUR nature, so they can be responsible for (have dominion) … creation” (Gen.1:26-27, MSG, emphasis added). “Elohim” is God in the plural. He did not say ‘let me,’ or ‘after my likeness.’ By declaring His plurality saying, ‘US,’ and ‘OUR,’ He signifies His Trinitarian nature, which is expounded in the scripture as the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, God. (Matt. 28:19; John 15:26; 2 Cor.13:14) God is Triune and therefore relational. He is not a “solitary” and reclusive Being. God is not some solo, self-contained Being who is trying to subjugate His people as a stern judge and ruler, as many picture Him. God’s underlying nature is Triune, from which their Love unites them in ONE existence – ONE, unified, and inseparable Being. God can only be Love and thereby relational because He is Triune. For Love unites, but isolation breeds fear and division. All of creation was the design of the God who is Trinitarian and reflects His Triune expression.

So, creation reflects His relational and interconnected existence. For there is no dislocation between God’s doing and who He is in His Triune Love. God Loves precisely because God is Love in His Triunity. There is no other possible way God could have made all things, whether visible or invisible, except to reflect Himself. Likewise, everything man does, he carries out to reflect his own humanity. For instance, man will not act to reflect the beast of the forest, for he has no inherent identity with beasts. We see this underlying dynamism at work in animated films, where animals are made to behave like humans; speak like humans. So, we can act and do things only by how we are intrinsically natured, from which we can never deviate. So, everything that must be said about relationships, if it is to have an authentic expression, has to start from the vantage point of man who is natured in God’s Triune image of Love. 

Love – The Foundation of Relationships

Man’s relationships will always be based upon Love, for God is Love. That is, His narrative of Love … not man’s definition. Whether man wish to acknowledge it or not, man’s existence is hardwired into God’s Love. When we deviate from that which we are natured to be, we find ourselves in problematic relationships. It seems everywhere we look there’s increasing fragmentation of relations. We question the sincerity of our love for people and wonder if it is worth our effort trying to love others, even on a human level. We have been blind-sided into these relationship knots from which we can’t free ourselves. However, many times we miss what Jesus tells us clearly: “A brand-new command I give you: Love one another.” If the decree to Love is a brand-new command, then what’s new about it? What’s different about it? Does it make any difference? He answers, “As I have Loved you, Love one another.” How did He Love us? He answers, “As the Father has Loved me, so have I Loved you. Now remain in my Love” (John 15:9). Jesus was speaking from His Trinitarian relationship in the Father and the Spirit. He was making known a new command of the Triune Love of God, which the disciples never saw except in the life of Jesus for three and half years.

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

Leading Through Loving/Serving

So, though Jesus was the “leader” to His followers, He did not lead by domination. He displayed leadership by the Love in which He has always existed within the Triune Life of God. He reprimanded His disciples when they haggled about who was dominant among them. Jesus said, “whoever wants to be first among you must be a slave to everyone” (Mark 10:35-45, esp. V.44) He was first and foremost the Chief Servant. He proved this, when, after performing a servant’s work of washing the disciples feet before His death, He asked them, “Do you understand what I have done to you?” He answered, “You address me as ‘Teacher’ and ‘Master,’ and rightly so. That is what I am. So if I, the Master and Teacher, washed your feet, you must now wash each other’s feet. I’ve laid down a pattern for you. What I’ve done, you do. I’m only pointing out the obvious. A servant is not ranked above his master; an employee doesn’t give orders to the employer. If you understand what I’m telling you, act like it—and live a blessed life” (John 13: 12-17, MSG).  He led them by inviting them to live in the Triune Love and Life of God as He did.

The Triune Love was Never Before Seen in Man’s History, Until Jesus Came

The Triune Love between the Father, Son, and Spirit was something that was never seen articulated in humanity until the Son came and took upon Him His creaturely human body. Jesus came and made possible our “union” with the Triune God to make His new Love command a reality in human life. Never before in the history of man was this Triune Love seen or tasted in human experience until Jesus came. Only Adam and Eve enjoyed it for a time until they alienated themselves from God, and followed man’s “solitary” way of fear. This Love was seen in Jesus’ life, where He went about doing nothing but good and healing all who came to Him (Acts 10:38). When Jesus took our humanity into Himself, this very Love from the Triune Being of God became ours by inheritance. Peter said, “He (Christ) has given us His very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature.” (2 Pet.1:4) All it requires is faith, and the Holy Spirit makes Love flow in our lives as spiritual “living waters.” This is where your life as a Bula man-river takes his stand.

In my Book, “Bula man-river* – The Miracle of Triune Living,” I explained 3 mandates God gave man from the outset of His creation, by which to develop his relationship with God, other humans, and with creation as a whole. The three mandates reflect the way they existed from eternity in their Triune nature. He desires of man to adopt and live like they do in their Triunity. Here are excerpts from my Book on the 3 mandates:

1. The Genesis ‘Helper Mandate’

“The first act of man in his relationship with another human is to use his God-given purpose to promote “creative living” with his fellowman. The purpose of gifts is to be creative as God is Creator. If gifts originate from the divine source, then man’s relationship with one another is mediated by the One who is inherently part of the gift – the Gift-Giver, Jesus – through the “living waters” of the Bula man-river.* The creative aspect of this relationship was given at the beginning when Adam was created and the original “other” human was taken from him. There God uttered the first of three Genesis Mandates for man through Adam and Eve: to be a fitting “helper” for each other. Though the primary context for this instruction is marriage, the meaning is twofold. Since Eve was the only “other” human besides Adam, by extension she also represented our “neighbor,” whoever he or she may be. For the “helper” can be applied in every context, not necessarily matrimonial. I call this the “helper mandate.” We saw Jesus re-echoed this first principles from Genesis to His disciples in the final hours before His crucifixion.

“Paul encouraged the Corinthians, saying we are “helpers of your joy” (2 Cor. 1:24, KJV). Further, he told the Romans, “Owe no man anything, except the debt of Love” (Rom. 13:8; Gal. 6:2, KJV). Jesus reiterated man’s “helper mandate” when He said we are to “Love our neighbors as we Love ourselves” (Mark 12:31, emphasis added). The famed 23rd Psalm depicts God as the “helper” of mankind. So we see in all this that the “creative living” outline cannot be denied: to be a “helper.” The primary purpose of our calling therefore is ultimately to “help” one another and bring all mankind to unity with the Triune God in Jesus.” (Pg.177)

2. The Genesis ‘Dominion Mandate’

“We cease to be “helpers” when we violate man’s “dominion mandate.” What is the “dominion mandate”? It is the second Genesis Mandate that has two parts given to mankind by the Creator: how he is to interact and conduct himself with creation, and with his fellow humans. The first part is the “helper mandate” in man’s relation with his fellowman, while the “dominion mandate” explains man’s relation in his dominion over all creation, which doesn’t include dominion over another person (Gen. 1:26-31; 2:19-20). We are to “help” not “dominate” our fellow humans. Only God is man’s ruler because He is man’s Savior. We are to be man’s “helper,” not “ruler.” A person’s relationship with another is either creative or uncreative, productive or unproductive, but is hardly ever neutral. We make the mistake of trying to merge the two when it can’t be done, and we can be one or the other depending on which river we ride. There is no Savior of mankind except Jesus (John 3:16). Every single human is given equal and shared dominion over the earth under the Creator (Ps. 24:1; Eccl. 5:9, NKJV). The passage from Genesis makes clear the dual mandate of man’s dominion over the entire creation, and the mandate of being “helpers” of his fellowman.” (Pg.178)

Mankind has unwittingly, or wittingly, rendered God’s “dominion mandate” ineffective by violating His first mandate of being “helpers” of other’s joy. We have turned the “dominion mandate” on its head by seeking to control (dominate) others. So we see people resist and fight dictators and tyrants that’s littered in the annals of revolutions and uprisings, across the face of man’s history. They have no freedom to express themselves in a shared dominion of this earth where people of all races and cultures are equal inheritors, by Divine gesture. (Micah 4:4; Gen.1:26-27) Instead, in the flow of the Triune Life we have in Christ, we’re to live in the Life-energy of God’s Love-expression, to help people in the shared dominion of this earth. We must not see this earth as the object of our fears, which results in greed and covetousness. This is what we have witnessed in man’s history on this earth as man express himself in his “solitary” way of life, apart from God, and His mandates. The next mandate completes God’s three-fold decrees.

3. The Genesis ‘Triune Mandate’

“Man will dominate the blessing of the richness of this earth in peace, fairness, integrity, and true abundance when he exercises his dominion as the Creator decreed. God’s decree, vis-à-vis living like his Maker, ushers in the third Genesis mandate in the words, “Let us make human beings in the image and likeness. Male and female He created them” (Gen. 1:26, 27). I like to call this the “likeness mandate.” Man’s only purpose of existence is to live in the Creator’s likeness. As the likeness of God is Trinitarian, I also call it the “Triune likeness mandate.” By adding his “helper” and “dominion” mandates, man’s purpose can be said to be a “helper” of his fellowman in his “dominion” over this earth, by living in the “Triune likeness” of his Maker. Triune living is about a life of interdependence with one another in Christ and the Spirit, helping one another in man’s dominion of this earth.”

“The exercise of authority over another human, whether by coercion, physical force, or even psychological means, is precluded in the Genesis “dominion mandate.” God holds dominion over every man, woman, and child, and He has not abdicated His sovereignty since the creation of mankind. Man may live under the sway of his archenemy and his deceptions, but God is the final arbiter over man’s fate. You see, our Creator placed in humans the aggressive spirit to reinforce and support His earthly “dominion mandate.” That is how mankind has progressed and advanced, which continues to our present day. However, the mandate limits man’s domineering spirit over the earth and all in it, which precludes another human.” (Pg.179)

I go on to say in my Book that trust or faith is the bedrock upon which all healthy relationships are built and made to last.

Trust

“Trust (faith) is the basis of all human and Godly relationships that began in Eden. The foundation of trust is grounded upon the three-fold Genesis Mandates the Creator gave mankind. Those relationships were hijacked by the devil, who introduced his own “domineering” spirit dictated by distrust, fear, self-interest, and greed (Gen. 3). Man bought it lock, stock, and barrel, and the rest is a history of heartaches, sufferings, violence, and death. As a result of fear and the absence of God’s Spirit in man, the devil has wreaked havoc in men’s relationships with one another. God has never abdicated His sovereignty over man, and from the beginning promised a Savior (Gen. 3:15). Not only must we discontinue our control of our fellowman; we are also not to place our trust in them, but in God alone. The mandate is clear: it is to “help” not “trust.” The reason for this is obvious. There is only One who can save in whom man can wholly trust without fear of being betrayed or deceived – Jesus. Where people overextend their dominion to include men and place their wholehearted trust in them, sooner rather than later they awaken to find their trust is seriously misplaced.” (Pg.180)

From the Joyous to the Toxic

As I pen this blog post, I realize the innumerable human relationship issues that exist in all peoples from all walks of life. It is human to be in relationship dynamics where we are seeking resolutions for mutual co-existence. When we speak of humanity and relationships, they are one and the same thing. Our families are the product of relationships. Our work, though we may tacitly assume as matters of happenstance, are outcomes of relationships we have engendered, and continues to be such. So is school, and every other human affiliation we have encountered in life. Relationships come in all shapes, size, and color. At times relationships may seem insurmountable, complicated, and inexplicable.  At other times, they may not be so complicated where both parties see eye-to-eye on matters which can be of mutual interest and benefit. So, relationships can range from the joyous to the toxic.

Man Is  Relational…Because God Is!

All of man’s relationship issues can be traced back to man’s ignorance and flagrant violation of the three mandates given when God created humans. It seems, from most accounts, the issue that’s predominant in the world today is the blatant exploitation of the “dominion mandate” which renders the “helper mandate” superfluous and redundant. And we see this spirit of “control” extensive not only in the many facets of the life of individuals, but across the spectrum of human interactions, in communities, the corporate world, politics, of governance, to international relations between nations. Be that as it may, we cannot see this relationship issue simply on a one-dimensional “dominion mandate” view alone, for the three mandates can work only in unison. It must be understood that the first two mandates cannot be articulated in its true authentic expression without the third all-important mandate, where a person is existing from within the Triune Life of God. It is the foundation upon which the first and second mandates derive its life, energy, and meaning. For in fact, the “Triune mandate” is uttered first, as the foundation decree, as shown in Genesis. (Gen.1:26-27; 2:18) Here, as in all of His creation, we see how man’s relationship (existence) with his fellow humans relies upon this three-dimensional principle, rather than on fallen man’s “solitary” one-dimensional life. It is fashioned after a God who is Triune and lives by this same three-dimensional principle. Man’s relationship dynamics has its underpinning in the Creator who Himself is relational in His Tripartite existence.

The Genesis Three-Pronged Principle Basis of Human Relationships

Once we figured out God is Love in His Triune existence, and He has included us in His Trinitarian Being in His Son, by the power of the Spirit, we will see the authentic underpinning of man’s interaction with other humans. The Holy Spirit will be the power working mysteriously and miraculously in man, even though we may not be conscious of how He orchestrates life in all its complexity. Or so it seems, but not for Him. We will see human life is to be fashioned and shaped after the Creator who is relational, and we observe what Jesus said, “I have laid down a pattern for you. What I have done, you do” – living the Trinitarian Life. That is the first and all-important base we cover in this matter of human relationships. It begins with the family unit from which human life begins. Then it extends outside to others as our human connection determines how we cultivate relationships – in our homes, our work places, schools, churches, social interactions, villages and towns, in sporting activities, and numerous other affiliations. The three-pronged principle I have covered in this post is the way God has determined from the outset of man’s existence on this earth, as the essence of how human relationship is cultivated and made to thrive in its authentic expression, undergirded in His Triune nature of Love. (You may read my Book for a broader expose’ of this subject. See above for ordering details)

You, as a Bula man-river,* must recognize as having your existence in the Triune Being of God in Christ and through the inspiration of the Spirit, is made to have relationship engagements based upon God’s Love. I end with encouragement to live as Jesus did in the Triune Love and relationship He has with God and His fellowmen.

Blessing:

May the blessing of the God who ceaselessly expresses Himself in His dependable Triune Love, be with you today and give you strength for authentic Triune living in all your relationships.

Until the next post,

Kiang                                                                                                                                                          (Your Servant in Christ) 

* 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