Counsels on Christian Worldview

Counsel #1 — Personhood

Picture: Counsel #1 — Personhood CCW 11.1

What is a person and what makes you different from another person? Is it physicality and having separate bodies, or is it something more? Conjoined twins share a body, yet are regarded as two because they have two self-conscious, rational wills. So, when we speak of persons in relation to God, what do we mean? While we don’t know what a “divine person” is like exactly, we do know that there is a unity and oneness between the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit that defies our understanding. We also know they have three distinct self-conscious, rational wills. So, whether or not each one has a physical form, we can still regard them as persons.^[9] CCW 11.2

“Now when they had gone through Phrygia and the region of Galatia, they were forbidden by the Holy Spirit to preach the word in Asia.” Acts 16:6 NKJV CCW 11.3

“The work is laid out before every soul that has acknowledged his faith in Jesus Christ by baptism, and has become a receiver of the pledge from the three persons—the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.” Ellen White in Letters and Manuscripts, vol. 15, Manuscript 57, 1900, par. 11 CCW 11.4

Reflect: How does considering the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit as distinct persons impact your relationship and interaction with God? CCW 11.5