PE9: How I Refer to God

Even though God is neither male nor female (because both sexes are fully present within “Him!”), I address the Persons of the Trinity using the metaphoric, traditional, and scriptural “Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.”  I’ve chosen also to refer to God (in His Trinitarian Godhead sense and, of course, in all my references to the Individual Persons of the Trinity) with the traditional “He,” “Him,” and “His” pronouns.  Sometimes, I refer to Them together as just that:  "Them."

In integrated harmony with historic orthodox theology, it is my long-held belief that Jesus is…

The Eternal, Second P-person of the Trinity;

The Eternal S-son (the Ever-proceeding Divine Expression of the Eternal, Living God [that is, God the Father]—Word, but more than just “Word”—Made Material [see Jn 1:14]);

And…

The Eternal Pre-existent Christ—H-he (that is, the Lamb) who was “slain long before the foundations of the Earth were laid” (see Re 13:8).

God the Son took on the nature of humanity (as a second nature) and became Jesus, the S-son (uppercase "S," hyphen, lower case "s-o-n") —“Word, but more than just ‘Word’ made material” (again, see Jn 1:14).  He became one P-person with two fully integrated N-natures—God-nature and human-nature (without confusion, without change, without division, and without separation, as some of the lesser-known creeds express well [see, for example, The Athanasian Creed]).  In taking on human-nature, the S-son, now a human male, chose forever and in all times, spaces, and places to retain H-his discrete human maleness.

This unique—one of a kind—combination of N-natures in Jesus is not a hybridized form of modalism, whereby sometimes “He’s” God the Son and sometimes “he’s” just Jesus the man (and nothing more than a perfect male human (like Adam was before the fall, only mature and complete]).  NO!!  In becoming Jesus of Nazareth, “the Son”—forever and for all times, and in all spaces and places—became “the S-son (that is, uppercase 'S,' hyphen. lowercase 's-o-n'),” the inextricable God-man, the Eternal One, H-he Who Exists Eternally as Jesus the male S-son (Divine Expression) of our Father, Jesus the Second P-person of the Trinity, and Jesus the Last (or Second) Adam.  In Jesus, God and humanity have become—uniquely, eternally, and inextricably—combined in hypostatic union (meaning, the complete expression of both natures, where neither nature suppresses, nor abrogates, nor overrides, nor overrules the other), never to be changed or split back out—even in the age to come (see He 13:8).  When Jesus was born a human, H-he was still God.  Yes, H-he, very mysteriously (and as the Scriptures indicate [see Ph 2:7]), laid aside temporarily (like a garment) H-his Trinitarian/Godhead status and aspects (meaning, H-his infinite and all-powerful Godhead attributes, attitudes, abilities, capabilities, and capacities), and chose to take on all the limitations of humanity.  When God the Son became a man, H-he didn’t “pretend” to be a man.  No.  In God becoming man in Jesus of Nazareth, God the Son chose to limit H-his abilities to that of a human man, thus becoming the S-son (again, uppercase "S," hyphen, lowercase "s-o-n").  In Beautiful Outlaw, John Eldredge writes of these things beautifully.  Using my own words, here are some of John’s thoughts:

While Jesus was a perfect human, H-he limited H-himself entirely to that of being a human.  Many have errantly pictured God becoming man in Jesus as tantamount to a college professor taking the form of a kindergartner and yet still retaining all his (or her) adult wisdom, experience, training, and developed life-skills.  “Of course Jesus aced the test!  H-he aced every life-test.  In fact, H-he got at least a 100% on every single test H-he ever took.”  What college math professor would be unable to solve the math problems of a kindergartner?  What English literature professor would be unable to articulate cogently the themes conveyed in See Spot Run?”  That, my friends, is not what God the Son did in becoming man.  No.  Had He (that is, God the Son) done that, how could we ever hope to follow H-his (that is, the God-man’s) example?  In becoming man, God the Son became the God-man and, in doing so, laid aside His God-wisdom, -experience, and -abilities.  While Jesus was God, H-he was totally human.  He had to learn how to go to the bathroom just like you and I did.

When Jesus rose from the dead, H-he was still human and God.  Some have implied (or outright said)—errantly, in my opinion—that Jesus, through H-his death and resurrection, shed his (lowercase "h") human-nature, retained His (uppercase "H") God-nature, and, thus, became “God-only” once again.  And that (as their arguments go on to articulate—again, errantly) in His appearing to humankind after the resurrection, He simply did what angels had done on occasion:  And that is, took on human physicality temporarily.  Beloved of God, I believe these notions to be false—utterly so!  Jesus is, and will always be, the God-man.  While, in H-his humanness, H-his resurrected male physical body has been glorified (just as we each will one day be given a reconstituted and glorified physical body, and one that retains our original, God-given physical and sexual identity), Jesus, post-resurrection and -ascension, now operates fully as the omnipotent, omniscient, omnipresent, and ubiquitous (that is, supra time and space) Master of the Universe.  Jesus is Our Emmanuel.  Yes, while H-he’s God with Us, H-he’s more than that:  H-he’s God One of Us!  In fact, mystically, Jesus is God for, in, with, through, and (mysteriously) as Us—God AS each one of us.  Mysteriously, that’s who H-he is; and, mysteriously, that's who H-he’ll be for all eternity.

Jesus is the God-man; H-he’s THE ONE AND ONLY “Ubiquitous Spirit-corporeal.”  While H-he’s a physical male human, H-he’s also the Eternal and Ubiquitous Spirit (meaning, H-he’s eternally Present everywhere [in every space and place] and in every age and time [past, present, and future]).  In the eternal here and now, Jesus…

Is Present and sheathed together, very tenderly and robustly, in H-his glorified physical (and still VERY HUMAN!!) body;

Dwells in my heart and yours;

Endures as the Light in ALL created life and materiality;

Suffers as “the Man of Sorrows” in ALL who suffer—in both those who know H-him AND in those who don’t;

And, as with the other two Persons of the Trinity…

Exists transcendently (that is, imminently, eminently, and eternally) outside of creation.

Jesus is totally and completely unique.  H-he’s the Author of Life, and H-he’s also the Christ (that is, the Messiah, Savior, Healer, Reconciler, and Repatriater) of that Life.  He’s the Creator of All Things and No-things, and He’s the Restorer--the Re-creator--of All Things and No-things.  As Julian of Norwich once said (presumably, concerning the final, restorative workings of Jesus), “ALL shall be well, ALL shall be well, ALL manner of things shall be well!”  These expressions are the definition of hope.

Things:  Generally, a “thing” is (like in apophatic theology, where we perceive God through negation: What He’s not [for, example, "God’s not a liar.]) that which is not a “no-thing.”  A “thing” is an inanimate object, place, situation, circumstance, condition, or scenario.  Generally, a thing is an “it.”  A thing has no sentience.

No-things:  Generally, a “no-thing” is that which is not a “thing.”  A “no-thing” has animated life, and it includes all life-giving expressions and generative creations.  You and I are no-things, my cat (Baby Kitty) is a no-thing, and a live oak is a no-thing.  The false it I write of throughout my writings is a thing.  It’s not a real person or even a true expression of a real person; hence why I call it “the false it” as opposed to “the false self.”  The computer I’m using to write these words is a thing.  Depending on their source (or Source!), and how you engage with them, these words could be things or no-things.  (In my heart, I hope and pray they’re the latter [read, “no-things!”].)

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The Nature of Mystery 

If what I've said bothers you or makes you feel a little uncomfortable, good—because it should.  Mystery is uncomfortable simply because it disruptively illuminates our woefully inadequate attempts to explain reasonably, let alone comprehensively, something we don’t quite understand.  If the “mystery” in question doesn’t make you at least a little squeamish and, in a very real sense, CREATE AN UNSCRATCHABLE ITCH within your heart and soul, it’s not truly a mystery.  Western rationalism and linear thought, including “the tenets of the scientific method,” hate mystery.  Accordingly, and unfortunately, much of those who comprise the western (and westernized) church hate mystery.  And it is that very hatred for mystery that I believe has led us so far from God and His Gospel Message.

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Clarifying Notes

When Jesus was born a human, H-he was, as I wrote above, still God.  Yes, H-he, very mysteriously (and as the Scriptures indicate [again, see Ph 2:7]), laid aside temporarily H-his Trinitarian/Godhead status and aspects (meaning, H-his infinite and all-powerful Godhead attributes, attitudes, abilities, capabilities, and capacities).  I emphasize these points for several reasons, among them is this:  Jesus' intimacy with God (that is, the other two Persons of the Trinity), H-himself, the people around H-him, and even nature as well as the existential power, wisdom, and anointed authority H-he walked in on Earth was bestowed upon H-him by the Holy Spirit.  It was NOT an expression of H-his infinite Godhead qualities.  NO!!  (H-he laid those aside—remember?)  Rather, it was an expression of H-his anointing (by the Holy Spirit) as a human-imager of God.  Jesus demonstrated to us what being a humble and anointed (by the Holy Spirit) God-imager is intended to look like, sound like, feel like, and (of course!) BE LIKE.  Jesus did not do anything that we (as anointed Jesus-imagers, -lovers, -imitators, and -followers) can’t do once we’re healed and trained-up.  Jesus, when H-he walked the Earth, was THE MODEL, PROTOTYPE, and PIONEER for how we (that is, every single one of us) are intended to live.  Each of us has access to the very same Source of Love, Intimacy, Power, Wisdom, and Anointed Authority Jesus walked-in while H-he lived on Earth.

Errantly, many in the Church teach (and have taught for centuries) that the intimacy Jesus walked in with the Father (where H-he and the Father spoke with each other each day and throughout each day), as well as the power, wisdom, and anointed authority Jesus walked in, was reserved for H-him, and H-him ALONE.  These are lies, my friends.

Regarding the intimacy Jesus had with the Father, some have even said the following (and, yes, I've heard these very things from the Sunday morning pulpit as well as from gospel radio broadcasts):  “Jesus, since H-he was God, did not need to pray.  H-his prayer-life was for demonstration purposes only.”  OH, MY!!  Beloved, this notion, as presented, is a lie.  Jesus communed with H-his Father because H-he needed to and because H-he longed to (just as H-he always had throughout all eternity).  The "demonstration" H-he provided was that intimacy with God is something we've all been created to experience.  H-he just needed to open a Way for us to enable such intimacy.  Through Jesus, the whole of humanity has been invited--and is still being invited--to commune with the Godhead in ways similar to way the Godhead eternally communes with and within Itself.  Jesus' prayer life demonstrated the kind of intimacy H-he'd always had with the other two Persons of the Trinity.  It demonstrated also the kind of intimacy with the Trinity we, too, can experience as a "normal" part of life.  To breathe is to be intimate with our inspiring--our breathing--God.  It's suppose to feel and operate that naturally and continuously.  That's the intention.

Jesus intends for all of us—WITH NO EXCEPTIONS!!—to walk ordinarily (as a normality) in and with the same extraordinary love and intimacy with the Father H-he walked in (see Jn 15).  Similarly, Jesus intends for all of us to operate, also ordinarily (and, again, as a normality), in and with the same extraordinary power, wisdom, and anointed authority of the Spirit H-he operated in (see Mt 28:18, Mk 16:17-18, Lk 9:1, Lk 10:19, and Jn 14:12).  Jesus intends for the anointing of God (both within you and upon you) to be a force-multiplier of your glory and polymathic genius as H-his Jesus-imager, -lover, -imitator, and -follower.

My friends, I urge you to think deeply upon all these things.  Pursue them as if your life depends on it--because it does!  In the depths of my being, I believe that if I don’t get Jesus right, nothing in my life will be right.  Conversely, once I get Jesus right, and place my life in H-his loving H-hands, the germ of H-his righteousness begins to infect every aspect of my life, being, and personhood.  I wonder if this is the greater, foundational meaning behind living a truly righteous life.  To be righteous is not principally about a moral reorientation.  Morality is just one--among many--derivative results of our being immersed in the rightwiseness of God.  The umbrella of "true, godly rightwiseness" is our full immersion in Trinitarian intimacy and life-mastery.  This, my friends, is our baptism into the death and resurrection of Jesus.

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Today's MRL Maxim:  Jesus is the same yesterday, today, and forever (see He 13:8).

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Today's MRL Call-to-action:  Write out your own version of "How I Refer to God."  Of course, feel free to borrow from what I've written, but make it yours.  The purpose of this is to get clear--in your own heart and mind--on who Jesus is and what He's invited us into.

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So... there you go, friends.  Go, and think upon these things.  Do the work, and BE revellious.

Until next time…

We (and that includes you and me!!)...

Are the few... the proud... THE REVELLIOUS.

Dave out…

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ABOUT DAVE

Beyond being an imager, lover, imitator, and follower of Jesus Christ, Dave Brown is nothing more than a contemplative artist of life in desperate need of His Master:  The Triune God.  His greatest desire is to experience loving and Divine intimacy with God Almighty (the Trinity).  After that, it’s to walk before Them—in and with great holiness, humility, and revelliousness of heart—all the days of his life.  To meet his needs, Dave works as an ecological engineer, inventor, writer, life- and business-coach, and personal trainer (in mixed martial arts, holistic life-discipline, and meditative prayer).  If you’re interested in engaging with Dave in conversation or through personal one-on-one training in living revelliously, you can connect with him through MyRevelLife.com and The Revellious Podcast.  If you’re interested in his engineering and inventiveness sides, please visit his other website here.