by Jonathan Edwards, 1703-1758
Editor’s Note
This unpublished essay was discovered after Jonathan Edwards’ death and was eventually published in 1903. The exact date of its composition remains unknown. It was stored in the Yale University archives for many years. The language used in the 1700s can be challenging for modern readers, so this version has been rewritten with the help of AI, shortening the original text by 2,000 words. Brace yourself, this is some deep material.
The full published text can be found here, along with other books by Jonathan Edwards found here (scroll down to his section).
An Unpublished Essay on the Trinity – Jonathan Edwards
It is common when speaking of God’s divine happiness to say that He is infinitely happy in Himself. God perfectly knows, loves, and delights in His own essence and perfection. Because of this, we must understand that God eternally has a perfect understanding of Himself—a flawless image and reflection of His being is always before Him. From this understanding arises a pure and perfect act within God: divine love, joy, and delight.
The way God knows Himself must be understood as something distinct from His mere existence. It is like how we, as humans, reflect on our own thoughts and experiences, though our reflection often reveals our limitations. Yet, if God delights in Himself, He must, in some sense, become His own object of knowledge. This requires what we might call a kind of “duality:” there is God, and there is the perfect knowledge of God. (Though we may hesitate to use terms like “idea” for something as purely spiritual as God.)
For comparison, consider a human being. If a person could have a perfect understanding of all that had passed through their mind over the last hour—every thought, emotion, and experience in perfect detail, order, and intensity—they would, in a sense, relive that hour completely. If someone could fully and simultaneously contemplate every thought and feeling in their mind as it was happening, they would almost seem to exist twice. Their reflective understanding of themselves would essentially be another version of themselves.
In the same way, God’s perfect knowledge of Himself is so complete that it is as though God, in His essence, is both the One who knows and the One who is known.
When I speak of having a reflective or contemplative understanding of what happens in our minds, I do not simply mean basic awareness or consciousness. There is a significant difference between merely being conscious of something in your mind and having a reflective, thoughtful view of yourself in a way that brings delight in your own beauty or excellence. If by consciousness we mean something more than the simple awareness of what exists in our minds, it must involve the ability to reflect on and consider what happens there.
God, however, understands Himself with perfect clarity, fullness, and strength. He sees His own essence completely and perfectly. Unlike human beings, where substance and action are distinct, God’s essence is both entirely substance and entirely act. The idea God has of Himself is not separate from Him; it is entirely and completely Himself. This representation of His divine nature is His own divine nature fully expressed.
Through God’s perfect understanding of Himself, another Person is necessarily generated. This Person is Infinite, Eternal, Almighty, and Holy—yet He is the very same God, sharing the exact same divine nature. This Person is the second person of the Trinity, the Only Begotten and dearly Beloved Son of God. He is the eternal, necessary, perfect, and personal idea that God has of Himself. This truth is strongly affirmed in the Word of God.
The Bible often describes the Son of God in terms that align with this understanding. For example, Christ is referred to as being “in the form of God” and as the perfect image and representation of God’s nature:
II Corinthians 4:4: “Christ, who is the image of God.”
Philippians 2:6: “Who, being in the form of God…”
Colossians 1:15: “Who is the image of the invisible God.”
Hebrews 1:3: “The brightness of His glory and the express image of His person.”
Christ is also called the “face of God” in Scripture. For instance, in Exodus 33:14, the word translated as “presence” in many versions of the Bible can also mean “face,” “appearance,” or “form.” What better fits this description than God’s perfect idea of Himself? This idea is the “face of God” that He beholds, just as a person sees their own face in a mirror. It is the eternal form by which God appears to Himself. The root of the original word means “to look upon” or “behold,” and nothing is more deserving of God’s gaze than His perfect image of Himself. This is why the Son of God is sometimes called the “angel of God’s presence” or the “angel of His face” (Isaiah 63:9).
The Son of God as God’s eternal and perfect idea is even more explicitly revealed in Scripture through the title “the wisdom of God.” If Christ is the same as God’s wisdom or knowledge, then He must also be the same as God’s perfect and eternal idea of Himself. Scripture confirms this connection:
I Corinthians 1:24: Christ is called “the wisdom of God.”
Luke 11:49 (compared with Matthew 23:34): Christ speaks as the wisdom of God. Additionally, much of the book of Proverbs speaks of Christ under the name “Wisdom,” especially in Proverbs 8, where Wisdom is personified in ways that align with the nature of Christ.
The Godhead is revealed through the love God has for His perfect idea of Himself. This love brings forth a distinct Person in the Trinity—the Son. From this mutual love and delight between the Father and the Son, a most pure and holy act arises. This act is an infinite expression of love and joy, where the Father and Son rejoice in one another. As Proverbs 8:30 says, “I was daily His delight, rejoicing always before Him.” This eternal and perfect act of divine love and joy is essential to God’s nature, where the fullness of the Deity is expressed in action.
Through this love and joy, the Divine essence is expressed in yet another distinct manner, resulting in the third Person of the Trinity: the Holy Spirit. The Spirit is the very act of the Godhead, flowing forth as love itself. Since the will is the source of all acts, the Holy Spirit is the infinite act of love proceeding from the will of God.
Scripture teaches us that the very nature of God is love. As 1 John 4:8 says, “Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love.” The following verses (1 John 4:12-13) indicate that the Holy Spirit is this divine love. Verse 12 explains that when we love one another, God dwells in us, and His love is perfected in us. Verse 13 clarifies that we know God dwells in us because He has given us His Spirit. The argument is clear: God’s Spirit is love, and where His Spirit dwells, God’s love is present.
The apostle John also shows that God’s dwelling in us and His love in us are one and the same. For example, in the previous chapter, he writes about love as evidence of our sincerity and acceptance with God. He concludes with these words in 1 John 3:24: “And by this, we know that He abides in us, by the Spirit He has given us.”
In many places, Scripture connects the love in Christians with the presence and activity of the Holy Spirit. For example:
Philippians 2:1-2: “If there is any encouragement in Christ, any comfort from love, any participation in the Spirit… make my joy complete by being of the same mind, having the same love.”
2 Corinthians 6:6: “By purity, by knowledge, by patience, by kindness, by the Holy Spirit, by sincere love.”
Romans 15:30: “I urge you, brothers and sisters, by our Lord Jesus Christ and by the love of the Spirit…”
Colossians 1:8: “He has made known to us your love in the Spirit.”
Romans 5:5: “God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.”
The Apostle Paul also connects walking in love with walking in the Spirit. For instance, in Galatians 5:13-16, Paul encourages Christians to use their freedom not for self-indulgence but to serve one another through love. He writes, “For the entire law is fulfilled in one command: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’” He then contrasts love with the works of the flesh, saying, “Walk in the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh.” Love, as Paul explains, is both the fulfillment of the law and the evidence of living by the Spirit.
Thus, Scripture reveals that the Holy Spirit is the divine love of God—the eternal act of love within the Godhead, shared with us and expressed through us.
The Holy Spirit’s third and final role is to bring comfort and joy to the souls of God’s people. This is why one of His titles is “the Comforter.” Scripture often speaks of “joy in the Holy Spirit,” as in 1 Thessalonians 1:6: “You became imitators of us and of the Lord, for you received the Word in much affliction with joy from the Holy Spirit.” Similarly, Romans 14:17 says, “The kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit.” Acts 9:31 also describes believers as “walking in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit.” These verses clearly show the Spirit’s role in bringing spiritual joy and delight to believers.
This perfectly aligns with the idea that the Holy Spirit is God’s own joy and delight. Acts 13:52 reinforces this: “And the disciples were filled with joy and with the Holy Spirit,” meaning they were filled with spiritual joy from the Spirit Himself.
The symbol of the Holy Spirit as a dove further confirms this connection. In Scripture, the dove often represents love or a lover. For example, in the Song of Solomon, doves are used as symbols of love:
“Behold, you are fair, my love; behold, you are fair; you have doves’ eyes” (Song of Solomon 1:15).
“His eyes are like doves” (Song of Solomon 5:12).
“My love, my dove” (Song of Solomon 5:2).
“O my dove” (Song of Solomon 2:14).
This symbolism shows that the dove is an emblem of love and innocence, which makes it a fitting representation of the Holy Spirit. This may also explain why the dove, apart from the sparrow in one specific instance (regarding leprosy), was the only bird allowed as a sacrificial offering. Love, represented by the dove, is the most pleasing sacrifice to God.
The dove as a symbol of the Holy Spirit also appeared at Jesus’ baptism. The Spirit descended on Christ in the form of a dove, representing the infinite love of the Father for the Son. This act declared Jesus as the “beloved” of the Father, which is what the name “David” means—”beloved.” At the same moment, the Father’s voice from heaven affirmed this truth, saying, “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased” (Matthew 3:17).
Psalm 36:7-9 also points to the connection between God’s love and the Holy Spirit:
“How precious is Your steadfast love, O God! The children of mankind take refuge in the shadow of Your wings. They feast on the abundance of Your house, and You give them drink from the river of Your delights. For with You is the fountain of life; in Your light do we see light.”
In this passage, “the shadow of Your wings” evokes the image of a dove, tying together God’s love, the Spirit, and the joy He brings. The Holy Spirit, as God’s love, satisfies the soul, brings life, and fills us with divine joy and light.
Without a doubt, the loving-kindness, the richness of God’s house, the river of His pleasures, the fountain of life, and the light of God mentioned in Psalm 36 are all describing the same thing. From this, we can see that the holy anointing oil kept in the house of God—which symbolized the Holy Spirit—represents God’s love. Similarly, the “River of Water of Life” described in Revelation 22:1, which flows from the throne of God and the Lamb, aligns with Ezekiel’s vision of life-giving water. This river, also called the “Fountain of Life” and the “River of God’s Pleasures” in Psalm 36, signifies God’s loving-kindness.
Jesus Himself explains that spiritual fountains and rivers of living water represent the Holy Spirit. In John 4:14, Jesus says, “Whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” Similarly, in John 7:38-39, Jesus speaks of rivers of living water flowing from within those who believe in Him, which the apostle John clarifies refers to the Holy Spirit.
The “River of God’s Pleasures” mentioned in Psalm 36 matches the “pure River of the Water of Life” described in Revelation 22:1. This connection becomes even clearer when comparing Revelation 21:23-24 with Revelation 22:1-5. Together, these passages show that the happiness described in Psalm 36 is the same eternal joy and life spoken of in Revelation.
The metaphors used in Scripture to describe the Holy Spirit—such as water, fire, breath, wind, oil, wine, a spring, or a river—fit perfectly with the Spirit’s nature. These images naturally align with affection, love, or joy. For example, love can be said to “flow out like water” or to “be breathed forth like wind.” But it would not sound natural to use these metaphors for an idea or a judgment. Similarly, love and joy can be described as “warm” or compared to fire, while it would not seem fitting to use such language for perception or reason.
The Bible often uses language like “poured out” or “shed abroad” to describe love or delight. Romans 5:5 says, “The love of God has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.” This kind of imagery is uniquely suited to describe affection, not intellect or reasoning.
Thus, the “River of the Water of Life” in Revelation 22:1, which flows from the throne of the Father and the Son, refers to the Holy Spirit. John confirms this in John 7:38-39, where he identifies the living water as the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit, being the infinite delight and joy of God, is rightly called the “River of God’s Pleasures” in Psalm 36:8. This same river is also connected to the “fatness of God’s house,” which those who trust in God are refreshed by. The “fatness of God’s house” likely signifies the same thing symbolized by oil, which also represents the Holy Spirit.
The idea that the Holy Spirit is God’s love and delight is further confirmed because the saints’ communion with God involves partaking of the Holy Spirit. This communion has two aspects: fellowship with God and fellowship with one another. As 1 John 1:3 states, “You may also have fellowship with us, and truly our fellowship is with the Father and with His Son, Jesus Christ.”
Communion means sharing in something good—whether it be excellence or happiness. When the saints are said to have fellowship with the Father and the Son, it means they partake in the goodness of God, which includes His glory and holiness. For example:
2 Peter 1:4: “You are made partakers of the Divine nature.”
Hebrews 12:10: “That we might be partakers of His holiness.”
John 17:22-23: “The glory You gave Me, I have given them, that they may be one as We are one—I in them and You in Me.”
This fellowship also includes sharing in God’s joy and happiness. Jesus said in John 17:13, “That they might have My joy fulfilled in themselves.”
Since the Holy Spirit is the love and joy of God, He is also God’s beauty and happiness. Therefore, our communion with God consists of sharing in the Holy Spirit. This is why 2 Corinthians 13:14 mentions the “communion of the Holy Spirit” alongside the “grace of the Lord Jesus Christ” and the “love of God.” These are not separate blessings but rather one gift: the Holy Spirit. When we partake of the Holy Spirit, we experience and enjoy the love and grace of the Father and the Son because the Holy Spirit is that love and grace.
This is why 1 John 1:3 mentions fellowship with the Father and the Son but not specifically with the Holy Spirit. Our fellowship with the Father and the Son happens through partaking in the Holy Spirit.
Similarly, our communion with Christ involves being filled with the same Spirit. The Holy Spirit unites us in excellence, joy, and happiness, and He is the “bond of perfectness” that makes believers one with the Father and the Son, just as the Father is in the Son.
This understanding also explains why the apostle Paul begins his epistles by wishing “grace and peace from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ” without explicitly mentioning the Holy Spirit. Paul does this 13 times in his greetings. The reason is that the Holy Spirit Himself is the grace and peace of God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Similarly, in 2 Corinthians 13:14, where Paul mentions all three Persons of the Trinity, he blesses the believers with grace and love from the Father and the Son, while the blessing of the Holy Spirit is simply His presence. The Holy Spirit is the gift of Himself.
In John 14:21-23, Jesus promises that He and the Father will love believers, but there is no mention of the Holy Spirit. Likewise, Scripture often refers to the love of the Father and the Son, but it never explicitly mentions the Holy Spirit’s love. This is because the Holy Spirit is that very love and grace shared between the Father and the Son, and it is through the Spirit that believers partake in this divine love.
This may explain why Scripture never mentions the Holy Spirit loving the Father or the Son, nor the Father or the Son loving the Holy Spirit, even though love is frequently attributed to the Father and the Son. The reason is that the Holy Spirit is the very love and delight of God.
This understanding aligns with the doctrine of the Trinity as taught in Scripture. The Father is God existing in the most absolute, unoriginated way, as the source of all. The Son is God as expressed through His perfect understanding or self-awareness—God’s idea of Himself, fully and distinctly subsisting. The Holy Spirit is God as the essence of divine love and delight, flowing out and breathed forth from the Father and the Son. Each of these—God’s essence, His understanding, and His love—truly and distinctly subsists, making them three Persons, yet one God.
It is a theological principle that everything in God is God. This does not mean abstract qualities like immutability, omnipresence, or authority are “God” in themselves. For instance, it doesn’t feel natural to say, “God’s unchanging nature is God” or “God’s omnipresence is God.” But when we speak of God’s real attributes—His understanding and His love—we can say they are God because these attributes are not just qualities; they are fully and distinctly subsistent as Persons within the Godhead.
One common objection to this understanding of the Trinity involves the personality of the Holy Spirit. A “person” is traditionally understood as having understanding and will. If we identify the Father with God’s essence, the Son with God’s understanding, and the Holy Spirit with God’s love, then how can love (the Holy Spirit) be a Person who has understanding? This question is worth considering, especially since theologians agree that the three Persons of the Godhead do not have separate understandings but share one divine understanding.
To address this, we must recognize that the entire divine essence truly and fully subsists in each of the three Persons. There is such an incomprehensible union among them that they are, in an extraordinary way, “in” one another. For instance, Jesus said, “I am in the Father, and the Father is in Me” (John 14:10). Similarly, the Father is in the Son, the Son is in the Father, and the Holy Spirit is in both.
Because of this perfect union, the Father has understanding because the Son (the divine understanding) is in Him. The Father loves because the Holy Spirit (the divine love) is in Him. Likewise, the Son loves because the Holy Spirit is in Him and proceeds from Him. The Holy Spirit understands because the Son, as the divine idea, is in Him. In this way, each Person of the Trinity is fully God and shares in the divine attributes of understanding, love, and will, yet each is distinct in how the divine essence is expressed.
Understanding can be associated with divine love because God’s love is both connected to and flows from His perfect understanding. God loves in full awareness—His understanding flows out in His love, and His love is not blind or arbitrary. Even in human beings, there is an awareness inherent in the will or the acts of the soul. While this may not mean that human will or love can be called “understanding” in the fullest sense, in God, love and understanding are perfectly united because of His infinitely perfect nature. In God, the entire divine essence flows into and is expressed in this act of love. The Son (God’s understanding) is present in the Holy Spirit (God’s love), though the Spirit does not proceed from the Son, as understanding is naturally considered prior to love in both creatures and the Creator.
Because of this, the Holy Spirit can truly be said to “know.” Scripture even says that the Spirit of God knows and searches all things, including the deep things of God (1 Corinthians 2:10).
All three Persons of the Trinity—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit—are Persons because each possesses understanding and will. The Father has understanding and will because the Son and Holy Spirit are in Him and proceed from Him. The Son has understanding and will because He is God’s understanding, and the Holy Spirit is in Him and proceeds from Him. The Holy Spirit has understanding and will because He is the divine love and because the Son (God’s understanding) is in Him.
It may seem unusual to say that one Person has understanding or love because another Person is in Him, but this is firmly grounded in Scripture. For example, the Bible reveals that the Son is the wisdom and reason of God, making God “wise” by His own wisdom being in Him (1 Corinthians 1:24). Thus, understanding and wisdom are in the Father because the Son is in Him and proceeds from Him. Similarly, the Holy Spirit has understanding because the Son is in Him, not as proceeding from the Spirit, but as flowing out in Him.
Even so, I do not claim to fully explain how these things work. There are countless objections, questions, and mysteries I cannot resolve. I am far from removing the mystery of the Trinity, which I believe to be the greatest and deepest of all divine mysteries. Despite anything I’ve said, the Trinity remains incomprehensible in many ways. My goal is not to explain away the mystery but to allow Scripture and reason to lead us to deeper reflection. While we can say more about the Trinity than has sometimes been said, much of it will always remain beyond our understanding.
What I have proposed about the Trinity seems to align closely with the Gospel message and the overall teaching of the New Testament. It also sheds light on many doctrines of the faith, though a full explanation would take much more space than this discussion allows. I will briefly highlight a few points:
This understanding helps clarify why the Father is often called the fountain of the Godhead. In Scripture, the Father is frequently referred to simply as “God” without distinction, which has sometimes caused confusion, leading some to think only the Father is truly God. This perspective also explains why, in the roles of the Trinity, the Father is seen as holding the highest authority. He is not only God by essence but also fulfills a role that upholds and represents the majesty and dignity of the Godhead.
It also illuminates the doctrine of the Holy Spirit proceeding from both the Father and the Son. It shows how the Son can be begotten by the Father, and the Holy Spirit can proceed from both, while all three Persons remain co-eternal and fully equal. This perspective reveals that each Person of the Trinity is entirely equal in essence, honor, and role within the unity of the Godhead.
Each Person shares equal honor as God, yet each has a unique role and glory within the Trinity. The Father’s honor is that He is the source of infinite wisdom and the origin of divine excellency and joy. The Son’s honor is that He is the very expression of God’s perfect wisdom and the source from which divine excellency and happiness flow. The Holy Spirit’s honor is equal because He is the beauty, holiness, and happiness that emanates from both the Father and the Son.
The Father and the Son are infinitely holy and the source of all holiness, while the Holy Spirit is holiness itself. Similarly, the Father and the Son are infinitely happy and the source of all joy, while the Holy Spirit is that infinite joy and happiness. The unique honor of the Father is being the fountain of all wisdom, excellency, and happiness. The Son’s unique honor is being wisdom itself and the source from which beauty and joy proceed. The Holy Spirit’s unique honor is being that beauty and happiness shared by all three Persons.
This also clarifies the equality of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit in the work of redemption. Each Person is equally involved and equally worthy of the Redeemed’s love, trust, and praise. The Father’s glory lies in His great love for the world, shown in giving His only Son. The Son’s glory is seen in His equal love, shown in giving up Himself for the world.
Equal glory is due to the Holy Spirit because He is the very love of the Father and the Son for the world. Just as the Father and the Son glorify themselves through the greatness of their love and grace, so too is the Holy Spirit, as that love and grace, glorified. The immense value of the Holy Spirit is displayed in His role as the delight and joy shared between the Father and the Son. The worth of that delight is as infinite as the worth of the Father and the Son themselves.
Our dependence on each Person of the Trinity in the work of redemption is equal. The Father is the One who appoints and provides the Redeemer, accepts the payment for sin, and grants the blessings purchased. The Son is the Redeemer who offers Himself as the payment. The Holy Spirit communicates these blessings to us by giving Himself to dwell within us—He is, in fact, the ultimate gift that Christ purchased for us.
The essence of what Christ achieved through His sacrifice is the gift of the Holy Spirit. As Paul writes in Galatians 3:13-14, “He was made a curse for us… that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.” The Holy Spirit is the fulfillment of our communion with God and the source of all spiritual blessings.
The blessings we receive from Christ—favor with God, grace, holiness, spiritual joy, and comfort—are all tied to the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. True holiness is expressed in our love for God, which comes from the Holy Spirit living within us. Spiritual joy and happiness come from sharing in God’s own joy, which is the Holy Spirit Himself.
In Scripture, the Holy Spirit is synonymous with all good things. Jesus says in Matthew 7:11, “How much more shall your Heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask Him.” The “living water” Jesus speaks of in John 4:10 and the “rivers of living water” in John 7:38-39 both refer to the Holy Spirit. The ultimate happiness of the redeemed in heaven is represented by the “river of water of life” flowing from the throne of God and the Lamb (Revelation 22:1). This river, called the “river of God’s pleasures,” is the Holy Spirit. Thus, the Gospel’s invitation to come and take the water of life (Revelation 22:17) is an invitation to partake of the Holy Spirit.
The Holy Spirit is the inheritance purchased for the saints, as we see in the Bible. The part of the Holy Spirit that we experience now is just a small preview of the full inheritance we will receive later. (Ephesians 1:14; 2 Corinthians 1:22; 5:5) The Holy Spirit is the subject of all the promises in the Gospel and is called the Spirit of Promise (Ephesians 1:13). The Holy Spirit is the one who makes all the promises of the Gospel real to us.
God is the one who purchases our good things, and He is also the one who gives them to us. As we read in Romans 11:36, “For of Him and through Him and to Him are all things.” All that is good comes from God the Father, through God the Son, and in the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is our portion and inheritance, and through the work of the Father and the Son, we receive this blessing.
If we think about the Holy Spirit’s role in redemption, we see that it is not lesser than the Father’s and Son’s roles. While the Father and Son paid an infinite price for our redemption, the Holy Spirit’s work of applying this redemption to us is equally important. The price paid and the gift we receive are equal in value. The worth of the gift determines the glory of the one who gives it, and the glory belongs equally to the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
The Trinity can also be seen in the natural world. One example is the human soul, which has the mind (the understanding), the idea (the thought), and the spirit (the will or affection). Another example is the sun. The Father is like the substance of the sun, the Son is like the light we see coming from it, and the Holy Spirit is like the warmth and energy that the sun radiates, bringing life and comfort to the world.
The rays of the sun, with their different colors, represent the Holy Spirit. Just like the sunlight shines in different colors, the Holy Spirit brings forth many different graces and virtues. The rainbow that appeared after the flood and the one seen in the visions of Ezekiel and John are also symbols of the Holy Spirit’s beauty and the grace of God. These colorful rays of light symbolize the various graces of the Spirit, as we read in Psalm 68:13, where the wings of a dove are described as shining with silver and gold, representing the graces of the Heavenly Dove.
The various beautiful colors seen in the precious stones on the high priest’s breastplate and in the foundations and gates of the new Jerusalem symbolize spiritual truths. These colorful stones also represent the graces and virtues of the Holy Spirit. God created the world to reflect spiritual realities, and this is not just an idea, but a truth revealed in Scripture. Creation itself, in its beauty, points to deeper spiritual mysteries that God has shown us.
I understand that many people may have questions or difficulties with what’s been said. They may wonder how some things can be true or how they fit together. I don’t claim to fully explain these mysteries, because the more we learn about God, the more we realize there are even more things that are mysterious and hard to understand. The mysteries grow, but that doesn’t mean we should stop trying to understand what God has revealed. The more we learn, the more we see that there is so much more to discover.
The more we learn about God, the more we realize there is to know. In the Old Testament, the Church didn’t know as much about the Trinity, but the New Testament reveals more about God’s nature. This doesn’t make everything easier to understand, but it gives us a greater view of God’s glory and mystery. The same can be said for all kinds of knowledge, both natural and divine. The more we learn about something, the more mysteries we uncover, but that learning also helps us understand it better.
For example, when you look at a plant or an animal from far away, it seems mysterious, but as you get closer and understand more, you begin to see more details. These details are new mysteries, but they help us understand the subject more clearly.
When it comes to the Holy Spirit, the Bible doesn’t say that God loves the Holy Spirit in the same way that He loves the Son. The Son is called the “Beloved” and “the One in whom God delights,” but there’s no similar language for the Holy Spirit. There’s no command in the Bible to love or delight in the Holy Spirit, even though such commands are often given about the Father and the Son. This doesn’t mean the Holy Spirit is any less important, but it shows a unique relationship between the three Persons of the Trinity.
God’s knowledge is the foundation of everything. The first thing we must understand is that God knows all things. His love flows from this knowledge, and the Son is the expression of this love. God created the world out of love for Himself, and in a way, He made the world for the Son, as the Son is the reflection of God’s love and wisdom. The creation exists to fulfill God’s purpose and to satisfy His love as expressed through Christ.
God’s love for the world is directed by His divine wisdom, which chooses who will receive His love. The world was created for Christ, to honor Him and to give Him a bride, the Church, which God chose to be the object of His love.