Picture-Perfect?

“How come you Christians worship three gods?” One of our daughters lives at a university in a Middle Eastern country during a four-month research grant. She says this is the most frequently asked question once people realize she’s a Christian. How does one answer this question?

Christian theologians have debated this question for 2,000 years. Think of all the theological debates, all the councils and schisms, and, sadly, all the wars that had the “correct” understanding of the nature of God at their center. More recently (and also in Adventist circles), debates have focused on the nature of the Trinity. Is the Holy Spirit really a person? And what about Jesus—exactly how human was He and with what nature? However, despite all the published papers, conferences, word studies, and scholarly volumes, God—the three-in-one—still remains a mystery.

Intrigued, we wanted to know how our 24-year-old daughter, who has no formal theological training, replies to this query. She says she offers a quick, silent prayer and then talks about passports. That’s something that everyone knows about. She asks the person if the passport is a picture of him or her. A passport picture is a 2D version of us. It’s us, but it’s not us. Then she tells her conversation partner that God—who is one—took a picture of Himself in Jesus. Jesus became human to show us exactly what God is like. Although her explanation is simple, she reports that it is almost always greeted with an “Aha” look—and an opening wedge where she can talk about the God revealed in Jesus.

The Bible shows us many selfies of God with His arm around someone smiling into the camera.

What the picture shows

Because of Jesus we know that God is kind. God is sympathetic. God reaches out and is willing to become involved. God is touched by our life experiences and pain and discouragement. God understands. This picture of God is a very different one from that many non-Christian religions (and perhaps many Christians) paint.

Sometimes God does not answer our questions in a clear and logical way. Take Job for instance. God did not give Job clear and logical answers to all his whys, but God often answers our whys not with logic but with a revelation of Himself that goes beyond logical answers. Job’s response to God’s revelation of divine power and love is awe—and silence. We become quiet when God offers us a glimpse of who He is. “Then Job answered the Lord: ‘I am unworthy—how can I reply to you? I put my hand over my mouth. I spoke once, but I have no answer—twice, but I will say no more’” (Job 40:4-5).[*]

We may not and surely cannot explain the Trinity on a rational level that will answer all our questions in clear, logical form on the three-in-one God, the nature of Christ, or the mystery of the Incarnation. We probably will never have a logical six-step argument that will convince others of God’s existence and His very nature. But we do know that God has let us see His photo album. And what a photo album it is! God smiling as He takes little children into His arms (Matt. 19:14). God crying as Mary and Martha stand weeping (John 11:35). There are so many action shots of God reaching out and touching the blind (Mark 8:22), the crippled (Luke 13:13), the outcasts (Matt. 8:3), and even dead people (Luke 7:14). The Bible shows us many selfies of God with His arm around someone smiling into the camera. Smiling at us the viewers. God is still saying “look at Me”—look at who I am and how much I love you.

In the middle of the lights, the glitter, and the excitement of the season, it may be good to quietly step back and take the time to page through God’s photo album. Look for the love notes written between the lines as we gaze in awe at the God who “became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth” (John 1:14).

[*] All Scripture quotations have been taken from the NIV.