Beyond Human Understanding

Isaiah 53:5 — But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.

Honest theologians must, I think, admit that the best they can do is do the best they can to explain the things of God sufficiently so that we can have some understanding of the God with whom we are building relationships. (That was a long sentence — I hope it made sense!)
Consider this question of the Trinity. I like what the Moody Handbook of Theology says about it:

The Trinity of God is a doctrine that is fundamental to the Christian faith; belief or disbelief in the Trinity marks orthodoxy from unorthodoxy. Human reason, however, cannot fathom the Trinity, nor can logic explain it, and, although the word itself is not found in the Scriptures, the doctrine is plainly taught in the Scriptures.

This goes to the heart of our faith. Jesus said to Peter, “But what about you? Who you say I am?” It’s a question that has more to it than we might at first expect. Peter’s answer, of course, was “Thou art the Christ”. Jesus is God, the Son of God.
Jesus is God, the Son of God, part of the Trinity. That has some implications that, perhaps, we don’t always fully understand. Consider, for instance:

Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: but made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: and being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. (Philippians 2:5-8)

This passage is used as the basis for a scriptural doctrine — a debate, perhaps — about something called “Kenosis” from a Greek word for “emptying” which occurs in Philippians 2:7. The Greek says that Jesus “emptied” Himself — but what did He empty Himself of? Some theologians suggest He laid aside His Godhead. It seems the idea of the Trinity makes that impossible.
Then there’s that scandalous cross. Jesus “became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross”. But who was it who died on the cross? Jesus, of course. But Jesus is a person in the Trinity. The Trinity is “three in oneness”. The persons are not separable. Where the Son is, there too are the Father and the Spirit. That idea rocked me when I first got it. The Father and the Spirit were on the cross too. From before there was time, that was the plan.
Do you understand all of this? I don’t. I don’t have the concepts, the words, the sheer range of knowledge to wrap my head around the things of God. My only consolation is that the more I study, the more I’ve come to believe that the same is true of the smartest theologians. The best that they do is provide us with wonderful tools to get closer to God — all of God. I shouldn’t be surprised, of course, because God tells us about Himself:

For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts. (Isaiah 55:8-9)

Does this mean I’m going to stop reading and studying? Not for a moment. In fact it just makes me hungrier … and teaches me that I need all the teachers I can get!


Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.