Book Review: Experiencing the Trinity
review by Justin Opperman
“Experience” is often a dirty word in theological waters we tend to swim in. We fear that using it positively will place us in the nasty trap where the practical is given power over the true, where feelings rule over facts. However, if we would but examine our own Christian history even a little bit, we would see how those who came before us did not shy away from experience but wielded it rightly, drawing experiential water from the well of scriptural truths.
In Experiencing the Trinity, Joe Thorn seeks to bring the scriptural truths of the divine persons of the Trinity into our daily experience. Written first and foremost as the author preaching to himself, this little book examines what scripture teaches about these divine persons, and applies it directly to the reader’s heart and life using the second person voice and common language. Deep theological truths are brought explicitly to bear in an experiential fashion, drawing the reader into a fuller understanding of who God is, what He has done, what He is doing, and what He will continue to do for His people.
Experiencing the Trinity is a short book (you might even call it a “booklet”) composed of 50 such meditations. Naturally, it is divided into three sections, one for each of the divine persons - Father, Son, and Holy Spirit; there are 15 meditations devoted to God the Father, 20 meditations on God the Son, and 15 meditations on God the Holy Spirit. One of the strengths of this book is how it helps us not to divide the nature or being of the one God, but to properly distinguish the persons by means of their relative properties and personal relations (as I paraphrase the Second London Baptist Confession of 1689 ch 2.3).
Another strength of this book is its down-to-earth language. Properly distinguishing the divine persons (as noted above) can be a daunting task, especially to those not carefully studied in the plethora of historical heresies relating to the oneness and threeness of the Triune God of the scriptures. However, Joe does so safely and securely in a way that is easy for the reader to comprehend, providing a clear model of drawing that refreshing water experiential truth.
As the book is written in the second person, it is very easy to make application - the application is already right there on the page! Not sure how you might make positive experiential application of God’s jealousy? No problem - turn to pages 50 and 51 and Joe has done it for you!
Let me give you an excerpt to consider - meditation 48 which is on God the Holy Spirit, in that “He Grieves”, building off Ephesians 4:30-32 (included in the book but excluded here to save space):
“When was the last time you thought about how you grieve the Holy Spirit? He laments your bitterness and anger. Your anger and harsh words affect not only the people around you but the Holy Spirit as well. By your sin, you grieve the Holy Spirit who lives in you. Your sin defiles his habitation.
The Spirit deplores your sin but delights in your godliness. The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self control. Your soul is designed to be a garden of sorts, one that bears fruit for him who tends it.
Do not grieve the Spirit by your persistent sin, but honor the Spirit by cultivating godliness. Unrepentant sin works against his gardening; it is a sowing of weeds where he is at work to make things beautiful. The quickest way to stop grieving the Spirit is to be a person of repentance. Your ground-level garden work is to uproot the weeds of unrighteousness through confession and consecration. By turning from sin and drawing near to Jesus Christ you are watering the soul and seeding it with the Word of God.
Do not grieve the Spirit, but gladden his heart with the fruit he produces. It is a harvest that is enjoyed by him, yourself, and others around you.”
I commend this book to you, and think it would be best used to supplement daily scripture intake. You could read one of the short (1-2 page) meditations, and then consider it periodically throughout the day. It is inexpensive, and has a small form factor so it could be easily transported in a bag, purse, or backpack.
The majesty of our Triune God is an unending well of wonder, and I pray that this resource might help you to draw deeply from this living water.