The%20Triune%20God:%20Our%20Model%20for%20Life

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The Triune God Our Model for Life
To be posted at www.Christianpsych.org
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What is the the Nature of Ultimate Reality?
The physical universe?
Me?
God One Being in Three Persons
The Triune Mystery of God
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Why address the Trinity in a talk on Christian
counseling?
It distinguishes Xn counseling from other kinds
(modern and theistic)
Theology is necessary to Xn counseling, like
neuroscience
The Trinity has established its own way to heal
the soul in Christ
The triune God is worthy
It is good for our souls
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God is Three Persons
What is a person ?
Mature persons are rational communicators
self- aware able to evaluate, plan, imagine, and
make choices for which they are responsible,
virtuous to some degree, and engaged in loving
relations with others.
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God is Three Persons

• The Father, the Son, and the Spirit
• are each a perfect person, with
• infinite, optimal capacities
• perfectly rational communicators and evaluators,
  omniscient, completely self-aware, thoroughly
  responsible for their actions, and perfectly
  virtuous and loving.

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God is One Being
There is an absolute unity of Father, Son, Holy
Spirit They are equal in their divine nature,
understanding, values, mutual love, purposes,
and actions Each has his own personal glory or
beauty
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The Mutual Glory and Love of Father and Son
God is love (1Jn 48,16) And now, glorify me
together with yourself, Father, with the glory
which I ever had with you before the world
was (Jn 175) For you loved me before the
foundation of the world (Jn 1724) For the
Father loves the Son, and shows Him all things
that He Himself is doing (Jn 520)
Where is the Spirit?
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Perichoresis
Christ said, believe my works, that you may
know and understand that the Father is in me and
I am in the Father (Jo. 1038)
Perichoresis is the mutually indwelling of
the persons of the Trinity within each other
Perichoresis is one way the 3 Persons are 1 Being
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Relations Among the Trinity
The Persons are unified with respect to creation,
judgment, and redemption one plan
The Persons have different roles/missions
with respect to creation, judgment, and
redemption according to the plan
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The Missions of God
The Unified Mission the self-glorification of
the triune God
Their Individual Missions Initiator/SourceRed
eemerActualizer
Altogether they have a special kind of social
glory or beauty
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Human Life Drawn into the Trinity, by the Trinity
The Son the Trinitarian Bridge to Humanity
God became a human being
God became the human sacrificial mediator (1Ti
25) he became sin for us, suffering the
punishment due to sin, on our behalf (Ro 325
1Jn 22 2Co 521)
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The Spirit the Trinitarian Helper
Who Realizes the Divine Life in Humans
Human Life Drawn into the Trinity, by the Trinity
Humans are brought into Divine Glory The glory
which you have given me, I have given to them
that they may be one, just as we are one I in
them, and you in me, that they may be perfected
in unity, that the world may know that you sent
me, and loved them, even as you loved me (Jn
1722-23).
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Brought into the Divine Love If anyone loves
me, he will keep my word and my Father will
love him, and we will come to him, and make
our abode with him (Jn 1423) Believers are
now in the Beloved (Eph 16)
Human Life Drawn into the Trinity, by the Trinity
Brought into the Divine Perichoresisthat they
may all be one even as you Father are in me and
I in you that they also may be in us (Jn 1721)
How?
Abiding
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Our Goal To Become Signs of the Trinity
Vigorous Persons with Healthy Individuality
Vigorous Relationships in Healthy Communion
Interdependent Persons-in-Communion
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Obstacles Sin and Growing Up with Corrupted
Images of God
As creatures We have created limitations and
begin life with unmet needs
We are born in sin
We grow up with flawed image-bearers
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Developmental Trajectory of Becoming Signs of God
1. Childhood We start out
dependent 2.  Adolescence/Early Adulthood We
develop independence 3. Mature Adulthood We
learn how to become interdependent and
perichoretic with others
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Psychospiritual Blessings of the Teachings on the
Trinity
The Holy Love of the Triune God is the Driving
Force in Christian Soul Care
The New Self is Alive in Relation with the Triune
God
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Psychospiritual Blessings of the Teachings on the
Trinity
An Intersubjective Relationship With the Triune
God Heals the Soul
We have to take in the form of God
How?
Worship, meditative prayer, and the Lords Supper
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Psychospiritual Blessings of the Teachings on the
Trinity
Everyone Has a Mission/Calling that is Part of
the Missions of the Triune God
Relationship with Other Believers Can Heal the
Soul
Human-Human Perichoresis
Hierarchical Relations Are Trinitarian
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Strategies for Promoting Maturing Personhood
Promoting self-awareness and reflection
Taking responsibility for decisions, sins
Individuation, being distinct, creative
Promoting the love of God and others properly
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Strategies for Promoting Mature Relationality
Entering into others, w/out losing oneself How?
Listening, empathy, loving others
Being able to challenge others in love