Lighthouse Faith
In the Bible, the number three pops up with extraordinary regularity, as either a number of days, a number of people, or a number of events.
When Jews referred to their God, it was the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the three patriarchs of their lineage as God’s chosen people. When Abraham journeyed to sacrifice his son Isaac, he arrived at the place on the third day. When Jacob’s favored son Joseph was thrown in jail and interpreted the dreams of Pharaoh’s baker and cupbearer, each of their dreams involved three things: the cupbearer saw a vine with three branches, the baker dreamt of three baskets of bread. Joseph understood that each meant three days time would pass before their sentences would be carried out.
When Moses went to Pharaoh to demand he let the Israelites go, he asked,
Let us take a three-day journey into the wilderness to offer sacrifices to the Lord our God. — Exodus 3:18
Jonah was in the belly of the whale for three days.
In the New Testament, the significance continues with the three wise men’s three gifts to the newborn King.
Three is the number of times Satan tempted Jesus in the wilderness, it is the number of times Peter denied Jesus, and the number of times he proclaimed his love for Jesus after the resurrection.
There are many more references to the number three in the Bible; all, I believe, are a foreshadowing of the greatest event the whole story of the Bible is about:
Jesus was crucified, laid in a tomb, and on the third day He rose from the grave.
In mathematics it is the smallest odd prime number. In architecture it’s the number of elements needed to determine spatial dimensions: height, width, depth, and the least number of legs to hold up a chair or structure.
The trinitarian concept pervades our world. And so, it is not even a leap of faith; it could be considered a divine directive to create a world using only these three unified parts of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. It is the state of all things; relationships are woven into the fabric of creation, each thread as a purpose, binding us to the Creator, letting us take part in His grand design.
Ravi Zacharias put it, “How does one find unity in diversity when both are realities? The answer is that unity and diversity exist in the created order because unity and diversity exist in the community of the Trinity, the first cause.” [Read blog post, The "Cause" of the First Cause].
But each thread is anchored in love. Love that’s so amazing it created this world. Love that is so binding it sustains this world. And love that is so constant and unwavering that it will redeem this world.
Love so amazing and so divine that it took the punishment of its own wrath in order for us to be reconciled and transformed. It’s a gift that we cannot possibly return in kind.
God loves because God is love. He loves us not because we deserve it, but because that is God’s nature.
We live in a world that God created. Everything in it bares His mark. We can no more escape from God than a zebra can run from his stripes.
God’s love is what binds this world. It is the light of this world. And it is the only reality we need.
Ask yourself these questions:
In the words of Joshua, it is a daily opportunity to say,
Choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve.
And to state boldly the only plausible solution:
As for me and my household, we will serve the Lord. — Joshua 24:15
*** Excerpt from Lighthouse Faith by Lauren Green.
When Jews referred to their God, it was the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the three patriarchs of their lineage as God’s chosen people. When Abraham journeyed to sacrifice his son Isaac, he arrived at the place on the third day. When Jacob’s favored son Joseph was thrown in jail and interpreted the dreams of Pharaoh’s baker and cupbearer, each of their dreams involved three things: the cupbearer saw a vine with three branches, the baker dreamt of three baskets of bread. Joseph understood that each meant three days time would pass before their sentences would be carried out.
When Moses went to Pharaoh to demand he let the Israelites go, he asked,
Let us take a three-day journey into the wilderness to offer sacrifices to the Lord our God. — Exodus 3:18
Jonah was in the belly of the whale for three days.
In the New Testament, the significance continues with the three wise men’s three gifts to the newborn King.
Three is the number of times Satan tempted Jesus in the wilderness, it is the number of times Peter denied Jesus, and the number of times he proclaimed his love for Jesus after the resurrection.
There are many more references to the number three in the Bible; all, I believe, are a foreshadowing of the greatest event the whole story of the Bible is about:
Jesus was crucified, laid in a tomb, and on the third day He rose from the grave.
In mathematics it is the smallest odd prime number. In architecture it’s the number of elements needed to determine spatial dimensions: height, width, depth, and the least number of legs to hold up a chair or structure.
The trinitarian concept pervades our world. And so, it is not even a leap of faith; it could be considered a divine directive to create a world using only these three unified parts of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. It is the state of all things; relationships are woven into the fabric of creation, each thread as a purpose, binding us to the Creator, letting us take part in His grand design.
Ravi Zacharias put it, “How does one find unity in diversity when both are realities? The answer is that unity and diversity exist in the created order because unity and diversity exist in the community of the Trinity, the first cause.” [Read blog post, The "Cause" of the First Cause].
But each thread is anchored in love. Love that’s so amazing it created this world. Love that is so binding it sustains this world. And love that is so constant and unwavering that it will redeem this world.
Love so amazing and so divine that it took the punishment of its own wrath in order for us to be reconciled and transformed. It’s a gift that we cannot possibly return in kind.
God loves because God is love. He loves us not because we deserve it, but because that is God’s nature.
We live in a world that God created. Everything in it bares His mark. We can no more escape from God than a zebra can run from his stripes.
God’s love is what binds this world. It is the light of this world. And it is the only reality we need.
Ask yourself these questions:
- What have I made a convenant with in my life?
- What am I sacrificing for that covenant?
- In what ways am I worshipping what has been built?
In the words of Joshua, it is a daily opportunity to say,
Choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve.
And to state boldly the only plausible solution:
As for me and my household, we will serve the Lord. — Joshua 24:15
*** Excerpt from Lighthouse Faith by Lauren Green.
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Fox News Religion Correspondent Lauren Green uses her wealth of stories, vast network of contacts, and her own extensive study of theology to take the reader on a unique journey of spiritual discovery. With few female authors writing in the field of theology, Green provides an important perspective to all who wish to move closer to not only a deeper relationship with God but an understanding of what makes that possible. Green gathers insight from some amazing guides along the way, through personal conversations with some of the leading minds in the world on the topic of Christianity, including:
Is God simply an accessory that we carry with us? Something similar to what we might download from a music site to suit our personal tastes—a personal assistant in a way? Or is He His law, His structure, and His authoritative Word contained in the Holy Scripture, an objective reality to which you daily shape your life? If we believe or know we should believe that it’s the latter, how do we make this happen? How do we live joyfully under God’s will in a world so drenched in the will of human desire?
Lighthouse Faith explores the heart of the Christian doctrine and a pathway of perceiving God as an interactive hands-on presence; a caring and loving being. The first commandment is a life-giving force loaded with information about the world in which we live. This law stands atop the other nine commandments as a beacon of light, illuminating the created order, just as a lighthouse lamp shines in a darkened space, heralding a way to safety. |
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