1 John 5:7, KJV, “For there are three that bear witness in heaven: the Father, the Word, and the Holy Spirit; and these three are one. And there are three that bear witness on earth: the Spirit, the water, and the blood; and these three agree as one.”
There is a noteworthy distinction between being as one, together, and merely agreeing; simply because people agree doesn’t mean they are united as one. Considering the divorce rate in America today, it would appear many men and women who have gotten married don’t really see themselves as having become one, still seeing themselves as two individuals who have a contractual agreement, yet somehow they’re together, agreeing, but basically independent of each other. Yea, i’d guess that doesn’t work too well.
When we are one, it is “us” and “we”, but when we only agree, it is just “you” and “me”.
The Lord said in Matthew 19:4-5 “… Have you not read that He who made them at the beginning ‘made them male and female,’” (That’s two), “and said, ‘For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother (that’s two again) and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh’?”
Two becoming one, and that’s more than agreeing, that is becoming unified as of the same mind and purpose. His face in her face, her face in his face, unified with singularity of vision, which is God’s idea of marriage.
One, two, and three … simple numbers which everyone uses, one way or another, everyday. To some people, numbers are a problem, and i suppose that is easily seen in U.S. math skills as compared to the rest of the world, the U.S. ranking 24th out of 29 countries. Maybe it’s not actually a problem with numbers but more about not understanding the importance of math skills, or not believing we have the skills. Just not smart enough, or something like that.
But, tonight’s topic isn’t about numbers as something to add or subtract like in a summation, but more in the sense of how it relates to the Lord and ourselves.
i’m Social Porter and this is Outposts, a semi-live broadcast from the late evening, cascading banks of the Ockluhwahhah River, where the trees gently lean down, and every evening is pleasant.
Go with me a little ways and let the words sink into your ears, and i’ll be right back.
Shemah! Deuteronomy 6:4 “Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one!”
The Lord our God is One, perfectly united, of one mind and purpose in the same space, He is all together and endures no division. James 1:17, “… with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning.”
All His parts are in unity. The word for “one” in that verse is the word “ehad”, meaning, “one”, “one and the same,” “as one person”. By Himself He is sufficient and plenty with no lack or distraction. By Himself in the universe, before and after time and for all eternity, beyond all horizons, God is One. The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit do more than just agree, we’re talking perfect unity here. As The Father sees, the Son sees, and the Holy Spirit sees as the Father with no after thoughts or variance or hidden agendas. His sight is singular, He speaks with one mouth, what one hears all hear as with one ear. There is no independence one from the other, He is all together, acting together in harmony and unity. Our Lord is One and there is only one.
God, who is One, is also one in the sense of priority – He is to be first —the highest priority—in our hearts and minds. In Deut 6:4 the Lord was speaking something to Israel about Himself which was vital for them to know. Israel had just come out of Egypt well steeped in the Egyptian gods for 400 years and the people of the land had deified many gods, small “g”; additionally, Israel was poised to enter a land whose inhabitants were steeped in worship of many supposed gods and goddesses, and it was vital they know that the Lord, and that God was One in unity, was the only One and there was not another.
Another scripture which is foundational in the One-ness of The Lord of the Starfields is Isaiah 44:8 “Is there any God besides me? No, there is no other Rock; I know not one.” This says the Lord is One, as in unity, and, again, there is not another. He is saying in Isaiah 44:8, my paraphrase here, “I AM the only God, and seeing as how I AM God, if there were any other God’s, I would know them, and I don’t know of any.”
In our land, today’s people seem to have many gods, small “g”, and we’re also especially encouraged to include ourselves as gods. Idolatry is truly thick amongst us. Some may call themselves gods, but that doesn’t make anyone God, it just makes us ignorant, arrogant, blind, and dead. On a side note: Personally, i’m very pleased i am NOT God … i wouldn’t know what to do if i was and i’d be saying “i don’t know” a lot. Also, i’m very very pleased the Lord is God, He has all the answer i need, even to questions i have not asked … yet. Jesus calls to us to believe in Him and join Him. Jesus, by way of the cross and resurrection, created a path for us to be included with Him. God, who is One, has now included us with Himself, and God plus us makes the number TWO!
Matthew 18:20 “For where two or more are gathered together in My name, I am there in the midst of them.”
Two is a number of balance, diversity, partnership, and marriage among other meanings.
When Frances Havergal, author of the hymn, “Take My Life and Let It Be,” was a teenager, her parents moved to Dusseldorf, Germany, where she was placed in a German school. She was the only Christian among 110 pupils. The others made fun of her, teased her, even persecuted her. Her response? “It was very bracing,” she wrote. “I felt I must try to walk worthy of my calling, for Christ’s sake. It was a sort of nailing my colors to the mast.”
In light of that, are your colors plain to the world around you? Are your colors run up the flagpole of your life, or are they fuzzy and unclear in order to get along and not “offend” anyone, just going along to get along? Standing your ground as a Christian means holding firm to your faith and God’s standards regardless opposition. It’s about courageously defending truth, trusting God’s strength, and long suffering with a Godly heart posture even in the face of conflict. Prayer is your habit and wisdom is your friend. You can do this and can be steadfast, reflecting the high shine of unwavering resolve while fostering peace and understanding.
In 1King18:21-40 Elijah went up against the 450 prophets of Baal. But it wasn’t JUST Elijah, it was one plus God which was the majority. It was truly a dark day, but Elijah passionately nailed his colors, so to speak, to the mast for all to see. The Lord includes us and shines bright in us, even when we are weak and fearful, He is alive in us and includes us in His plans. When the Lord is with you, remember that even the most feeble light is best seen in the thickest darkness. Don’t be afraid to nail your colors to the mast. Two is a wonderful number, God plus you makes two and you plus God is the majority. Afterall, Romans 8:31 really is the truth, “If God is for us, who can be against us?”
Listen and think, The number two holds profound value: it symbolizes duality, balance, and partnership. It is no mere number. It’s the foundation of binary systems which drivs technology. Two represents connection—think of pairs, or twins. It is also the smallest prime number. One author wrote about the number two as, “it embodies simplicity and strength, it shapes math, philosophy, and human relationships with harmony and contrast.” That’s a little over my head but i’m sure you get the drift.
Jesus died for my sins and rose from the dead that i would have life, and have it more abundantly. The Christ of God included me with Himself, God plus me makes two, and if i’m included with the Almighty, i’m part of the One. THAT is an amazing heritage. The One Himself is also Three, we call Him the Trinity. He is One and He is three, and the three are in perfect unity in mind and purpose. Three includes One and two.
John 2:19 “Jesus answered them, “Destroy this temple, and I will raise it again in three days.”
Three really is an interesting number!
Pythagoras calls three the perfect number, expressive of “beginning, middle, and end,” therefore he calls it a symbol of Deity. Man is threefold, or having three parts incorporated together (body, soul, and spirit as spoken of in 1 Thessalonians 5:23). The world is three-fold as in earth, sea, and air. The enemies of man are three-fold, the world, the flesh, and the devil. Our Christian graces are threefold, or having three parts incorporated together, Faith, Hope, and love in 1 Corinthians 13:13. Anything labeled as “cardinal” means something of foremost importance, or paramount. The cardinal colors for TV and computer screens are three in number, red, green, and blue and are electronically mixed together to make different colors. The number three holds some truly profound philosophical significance, some think it symbolizes balance, harmony, and completeness. There are triadic structures in nature, as in birth, life, death, to concepts like past, present, future, human ear parts, clover leaves and parts of an atom.
There are three witnesses in John 5:8 “the Spirit, the water, and the blood”, and of course, above all, is God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, who is One, and Three.
Milking stools always have only three legs, because the ground surface the stool would often be set on was uneven and a four legged stool would always be rocking, the fourth point always looking for it’s resting place. Three points are always balanced. Triangles are made of three points, anything less than three points is just a straight line between two points, and a fourth point added to the three points is always looking for it’s own plane.
Bridge supports, roof systems, floor truss systems, to name a few are built out of any series of triangles which are geometric shapes made of three points. I’d say when God invented the number and concept of the number three it was absolutely brilliant.
The number three includes the numbers one and two. Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, the triune God, three persons in one, and the three more than agree, they are One. Matthew 28:19 “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,”
The Father is God, and He is One with the Son and the Holy Spirit. Ephesians 1:17 “that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him,”
Jesus is God, and He is One with the Father and the Holy Spirit. Hebrews 1:8 “But about the Son he says, “Your throne, O God, will last for ever and ever, and righteousness will be the scepter of your kingdom.”
The Holy Spirit is God, and He is One with the Father and the Son. In Acts 5:4 Ananias was told He lied to the Holy Spirit, that he lied to God.
That’s three. God is One, God in us, that’s two, God who is all in all – three in one, the One is three.
One is God,
for He is the First and the Last,
Alone, He is all encompassing,
self-sufficient,
self-existent,
and self-revelational,
He alone, just by Himself, is enough and plenty.
The One can stand alone.
The Lord is God and He is One.
Now,
One plus God is the majority, that’s two.
thus One plus one is two because Jesus included us in His death and resurrection.
We qualify under the theme of the book of John, we are the “whom so ever”.
Considering Three…
three is superior
and each point accompanies the other two points.
Three is One, and Three includes One and two;
In the case of God, One is Three,
Three is superior to anything more than Three because God is superior and He is the first, the middle, and last, the beginning and the end.
Father, Son, and Holy Ghost
He as One
the One is Three
and the Three are One
three always includes One and two, which includes me and you.
Always.
i don’t know about you, but i can’t help but to marvel at the mysterious oneness of the Father, Son, and Spirit, who is One, especially as was manifested by the Lord Jesus in His brief life here as the son of man. Yet the Lord prayed before His crucifixion, “That they all may be one; even as You, Father, are in Me and I in You, that they also may be in Us; that the world may believe that You have sent Me”. Think about it.
Romans 8:32, “He who spared not His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all—how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things?” We who believe are organically one with Christ. We are identified with Christ, who lives in us. It is this identification which makes coming into the likeness of the Son possible, as the greater includes the lesser. Colossians 3:3 “… your life is now hidden with Christ in God.”
Jesus prayed John 17:20-21, “I do not ask for these only, but also for those who will believe in me through their word, that they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me.” This prayer clearly conveys God’s desire that man share and enter into the oneness of the Divine Trinity. Like God, it is personal and relational, always. Through the death and resurrection of Jesus, the Three In One God now dwells in His believers according to Ephesians. 4:6 to live in oneness with Him and with one another. If you’d like, check out John 14:20 also. Ultimately, God desires that all His people be built up into the one Body of Christ as the house of God to express the oneness of our Great King.
Friends, let us take action and do Colossians 3:2 which says, “Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things” and be at peace as you go your way. Amen.
i”m Social Porter with Living In His Name Ministries.