What are the functions of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit in salvation?

Author: BibleAsk Team


The apostle Paul wrote, “The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you all. Amen” (2 Corinthians 13:14). This verse provides the most complete and explicit summary of the functions of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit on behalf of humans. For this reason, it was known as the apostolic benediction. And it became a part of church liturgy. Let’s look briefly at their work:

The Father

The Father is the source of all things (1 Corinthians 8:6). He cares for His creation (Matthew 10:29-30), sustains (Psalm 145:16-17; Psalm 135:6-7) and preserves it (Psalm 36:6).

The Father’s love for sinners led Him to offer His only begotten Son to die in order to pay the penalty for their sins (John 3:8, 13, 16, 17; Romans 5:8). Believers are to pray directly to the Father acknowledging His infinite gift of love. “Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need” (Hebrews 4:16). The Father will hear the believers’ prayers and grants them the merits and the grace of Christ to stand righteous before Him (1 John 3:22).

The Son

The Son of God is the Creator of all (John 1:3; Colossians 1:16; John 1:10).

Jesus was “the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world” (Revelation 13:8; 1 Peter 1:19, 20). After His great sacrifice at the Cross, Christ now serves as our great High Priest in the heavenly Sanctuary. “We have a High Priest who sat down in the place of honor beside the throne of the majestic God in heaven. There he ministers in the heavenly Tabernacle, the true place of worship that was built by the Lord and not by human hands” (Hebrews 8:1,2; 4:14…etc.).

Christ is the intercessor and advocate with the Father (Hebrews 7:25; 9:24; 1 John 2:1). He is offering His merits and blood for the cleansing of sins to all the repentant believers. In addition, Christ performs a special work of cleansing to the heavenly sanctuary, which parallels the service performed by the high priest in the earthly sanctuary on the Day of Atonement (Leviticus 16). The believers’ prayers should be offered only through Jesus’ Name (John 14:6). For there is no other means of salvation (Acts 4:12; 1 Timothy 2:5).

The Holy Spirit

The blessings that God bestows on His children come through the ministry of the Holy Spirit. For He speaks (Acts 8:29), teaches (2 Peter 1:21), guides (John 16:13), witnesses (Hebrews 10:15), comforts (John 14:16), helps (John 16:7, 8), supports (John 14:16, 17, 26; 15:26-27), and can also be grieved (Ephesians 4:30). Every sin is forgiven except the sin of blasphemy against the Holy Spirit (Matthew 12:31, 32).

Conclusion

The Father, Son and the Holy Spirit are perfectly united in their mission of saving and sustaining their creatures. Love is the preeminent characteristic of the Godhead. The Father lives to glorify the Son. The Son lives to glorify the Father, and the Spirit lives to glorify the Father and Son (John 17:1, 5; John 16:14; John 13:31, 32).

The ministry of the Godhead in man’s behalf is summed up in Paul’s words: “How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?” (Hebrews 9:14). For more on the Godhead, check the following link: https://bibleask.org/god-one-trinity-make-sense/

Check out our Bible Answers page for more information on a variety of topics.

In His service,
BibleAsk Team

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