God the Father is the supreme ruler of the universe because He created the universe! All wisdom and knowledge and understanding and all power and all authority and control are His. He is holy. That means He is set apart. He is not like anyone or anything else. There’s nothing He can be compared to.

He sits enthroned in heaven and everything is subject to Him; even Satan has to give a report. He is majestic and glorious. He is love. He is good. He is lovingly devoted to His children. He is merciful and compassionate. He delights to show mercy. He delights to bless His children. He disciplines His children. His favor lasts a lifetime. He is perfect and can never do wrong.

God the Father is the head of the three persons of the Trinity: the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Each is unique and fully God. They all are one God. The Son is Jesus Christ. The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of God, living in each true believer.

When Jesus was on earth, He lived a human life, empty of Himself and fully reliant on the Father for all things. He was one with the Father and prays that we would be one with both Him and the Father as well. We can have the same experience as Christ on earth, empty of self, full of God! That’s the goal we’re always working towards.

The word trinity is not in the Bible. It’s a concept that God helped His people understand. We see all three in Scripture, but we are also told God is one. We can never lose sight of the fact that God is one. But when Jesus was on earth, He talked to the Father. They aren’t the same person. Jesus sends His Spirit to us. They aren’t the same. That, by the way, is how we can be with Jesus here on earth, because He gives us His Spirit. We’ll be talking about Jesus and the Holy Spirit specifically in the coming lessons. Jesus says, “I’ll be with you always,” but He’s seated on a throne next to the Father. He’s with us by the Holy Spirit. The Spirit is the expression of God with us right now.

Here are some verses that highlight things I’ve said. Think about what point each verse makes. This first verse shows all three members of the Trinity together in the same scene.

Matthew 3:16-17 And when Jesus was baptized, immediately he went up from the water, and behold, the heavens were opened to him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and coming to rest on him; and behold, a voice from heaven said, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.”

1 Corinthians 11:3 … the head of Christ is God.

Galatians 5:22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness.

John 5:19 So Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of his own accord, but only what he sees the Father doing. For whatever the Father does, that the Son does likewise.

John 17:21 That they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me.

Deuteronomy 6:4 Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one.

Romans 5:5 And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.

Matthew 28:20 … behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.

Lesson Point: There is one God. He exists in three persons.

Challenge Question: Which person of God is the easiest for you to relate to?