Book Review: Ministry in the Image of God: The Trinitarian Shape of Christian Service

Ministry in the Image of God:  The Trinitarian Shape of Christian Service
 By Stephen Seamands                                                           
 © 2005, Downers Grove, IL, Intervarsity Press.  ISBN 978-0-8308-3338-2           

 

CHAPTER TITLES & MINI-SUMMARIES 

1. Trinitarian Ministry:  Why it Matters:  As Ministers, we need to recognize the working of the Trinity in the task and motivation of ministry.

2. Relational Priesthood:  The Nature of Trinitarian Ministry:  The Trinity helps us view the relational aspect of ministry through the lens of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

3.  Joyful Intimacy:  The Heart of Trinitarian Ministry:  We must be open and honest with God in order to create intimacy with him.  Also if we can connect with others on more than just a superficial level, we can attain true intimacy as we minister to the local church.

4.  Glad Surrender:  The Heart of Trinitarian Ministry:  The surrendering of our lives to serve Christ is a human expression of the attitude of how each member of the Trinity relates to the other.

5. Complex Simplicity:  The Mystery of Trinitarian Ministry: The Trinity sounds simple, but the Trinity is man’s feeble effort to define the attributes of God.  This mystery helps provide a frame-work for service and ministry.

6.  Gracious Self Acceptance:  The Particularity of Trinitarian Ministry:  The uniqueness of each member of the Trinity allows ministry to be shaped and colored in special ways to accomplish God’s mission.

7.  Mutual Indwelling:  The Reciprocity of Trinitarian Ministry:  The fact that we are filled with the Holy Spirit allows us to allow every member of the Trinity to work in and through us.

8.  Passionate Ministry:  The Impulse of Trinitarian Ministry:  The work of the Trinity helps to control the heartbeat and origin of the ministry that we fulfill.

 

SUMMARY:

In Ministry in the Image of God, Seamands explores the impact of the Trinity on the function of ministry.  He begins looking at the need to recognize the working of the Trinity in the task and motivation of ministry.  He points out the fact that the Trinity helps us view the relational aspect of ministry through the lens of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.  We must be open and honest with God in order to create intimacy with him.  Intimacy is something that I think is misunderstood.  In our society, intimacy is equated with sex.  I believe that true intimacy occurs when we really get to know people, and we are known.  We each long to be understood and accepted.  If we can connect with others on more than just a superficial level, we can attain true intimacy.  I think we can really experience God when we are honest with Him.  He knows us and longs for us to know Him.  Seamands also points out that the surrendering of our lives to serve Christ is a human expression of the attitude of how each member of the Trinity relates to the other.  The Trinity sounds simple, but the Trinity is man’s feeble effort to define the attributes of God.  This mystery helps provide a framework for service and ministry.  The uniqueness of each member of the Trinity allows ministry to be shaped and colored in special ways to accomplish God’s mission.  The fact that we are filled with the Holy Spirit allows us to allow every member of the Trinity to work in and through us.  Finally, Seamands closes with the thought that the work of the Trinity helps to control the heartbeat and origin of the ministry that we fulfill.

KEY IDEAS: 

             The overarching idea is that the Trinity should be fleshed out in our ministry on a daily basis.  For example, the Father is expressed in our theology or the way we view God.  The Son is represented in our view of the Gospel and how it is shared and preached.  The Holy Spirit should be the fuel that powers our ministry in the present and into the future.  Seamands outlines seven main characteristic of the Trinitarian lifestyle as:

1.              Relational Personhood: The Nature of Trinitarian Ministry

2.              Joyful Intimacy: The Foundation of Trinitarian Ministry

3.              Glad Surrender: The Heart of Trinitarian Ministry

4.              Complex Simplicity: The Mystery of Trinitarian Ministry

5.              Gracious Self-Acceptance: The Particularity of Trinitarian Ministry

6.              Mutual Indwelling: The Reciprocity of Trinitarian Ministry

7.      Passionate Mission: The Impulse of Trinitarian Ministry

 

GREAT QUOTES: 

“The primary purpose of the Trinitarian grammar is not for comprehension or communication, but communion with God.” (p.12)

“The Trinity not only reveals that persons are essentially relational, it also discloses characteristics that define healthy interpersonal relationships.” (p. 35)

“No Trinity is conceivable without the lamb, without the sacrifice of love, without the crucified Son.” (p. 79)

As we apprehend God’s triune self-revelation, we also acknowledge and gladly confess that we do not full comprehend God.” (p. 103) 

The Trinitarian circle where the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit indwell and are indwelt by one another is open, not closed.  We have been invited into the circle to participate I the divine dance. (p. 145)

 

SUGGESTED READING:

Knowing the Name of God: Trinitarian Tapestry of Grace, Faith, and Community, Roderick Luepp

Beholding the Beauty of the Lord, Henri Nouwen

These Three Are One:  The Practice of Trinitarian Theology, David Cunningham

The Promise of the Trinity, Colin Gunton

 

REFLECTION AND REACTION: 

The Trinity is man’s feeble effort to define the attributes of God. The Bible points to the fact that the Trinity refers to the triune personalities of God.  If you look to the early Church Fathers, the Trinity was an issue that they spent a lot of time trying to wrap their minds around. It is still true today. We must develop a clear theology of the Trinity and be able to articulate it well, if we are going to communicate this major tenant of our faith with those who are seeking to join mankind’s conversation with the God who created them.  We hold to the substance of the Trinity, but have no clue how to articulate it.  God did not give us much information on how God can be three and one, but I think that the more we get to know Him and really follow Him it will become clearer.  For example, I knew my role as a son as I was growing up.  I dreamed one day of being a husband and a father.  I knew that I would reach that goal one day, and believed I could be all three (Son, father, and husband), but until I became intimately involved in each of those areas I really did not understand those roles.  It is the same with God.  The more we understand the role of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit; the better equipped we will be to do ministry.

            The Trinity has been evident from the beginning of time.  Creation is a perfect example of the Trinity working together to accomplish God’s overall purpose. In Genesis 1:2 we see that the earth was formless and darkness covered the deep waters, and the Spirit of God hovered over the waters.  The Holy Spirit played an active role in the creation account.  A little further in Genesis 1 we get a glimpse of a conversation between all members of the Trinity as they discussed creating man.  In Genesis 1:26, we see the God Head conferring with the other two members of the Trinity as they decide to make man “in our image”.  Jesus also played a vital role in creation.  In John 1:3, we see that God created everything “through Christ”.  Jesus was the agent of Creation.  That is why it is so profound that the very person who played the most active role in Creation came back to give His life to redeem the very thing He created.  The Trinity is one of the basic foundations of the Christian Faith, but also the most misunderstood.  When we look at it against the backdrop of the entirety of Scripture, we can see that each member of the Trinity has a unique role in the Great, Grand Story of God.

     The Holy Spirit is the unifying factor within the Trinity.  What I mean by that is it can be explained by the analogy of a person.  God is the head.  All things originate from the head and thus communicates those things to the body.  The body represents Christ.  Christ is the active part of the Trinity that executes the head’s will.  The Holy Spirit is like the blood that flows through the body unifying the Trinity into one unified being.  The Holy Spirit’s role is to help conform us to the image of Christ.  This process is know as Sanctification, but I like to refer to it as transformation.  It is a process that we go through in order to become more like Jesus. 

 Today we live in a world that is so complex.  The hustle and bustle of our society tends to drown out the inner voice inside us this is trying so hard to get out.  We all long to be free.  Not just free of our worries and cares, but to be totally free.  The way God intended us to be, but how do we get there?  How do we navigate our way through this maze called life?  The key is transformation.  A caterpillar cannot truly be free and become what God intended it to be until it goes through a transformation process and becomes a butterfly.  If that is possible for every part of nature, then why not for us.  The transformation process is not an easy one.  Very few people could explain what it means to be transformed.  In order to begin this journey, we must do an inventory of who we are.  Who are we created to be?  We must be liberated from this hectic, burdensome life, and live a life of freedom that Christ has in store for all of us.  In order to be truly free, we must allow Christ to be in total control of our lives by yielding to the Holy Spirit’s work in our life and let Him have total control of our lives.

 The Holy Spirit allows us to be the “incarnate” representative of Christ on earth.  We will have the same spirit and mind of Christ if we tap into the power and guidance that the Holy Spirit offers thus allowing us to form our Ministry in the Image of God.