The threefold art of experiencing God: The liberating power of trinitarian faith

by Christian A. Schwarz

Book Overview

Since mere words cannot adequately communicate the mystery of the divine Trinity, this book has been developed around the many diagrams-quiet the opposite of what one would normally expect in a book.... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1889638145
• ISBN13: 9781889638140
• Release Date: January 1999
• Publisher: ChurchSmart Resources
• Length: 31 Pages
• Weight: 0.25 lbs.
• Dimensions: 6.5" x 9.5"

Customer Reviews

Wow-Revolutionary Perspective For All Christians

This complex book that is very simply and powerfully presented in visual and literary form gives the pastor and consultant the foundation of the NCD change process to help Christians/Churches mature no matter what their background or paradigm. One of the things I love about this little book is that you can capture the concepts by simply looking at the visuals for a few seconds. BTW-this is a paperback book. His premise is that the way each person of the Holy Trinity is revealed to us is unique. These unique expressions of God have captured the attention of different wings of the church. By helping each wing of the Church (Mainline, Evangelical (non Charismatic) and Pentecostal/Charismatic) identify their focus on one or two persons in the Holy Trinity, Schwarz attempts to bring all believers to a focus on all three persons of the Godhead. The beauty of this approach is that it does seem to pinpoint clear and obvious weaknesses of each wing of the church...for example...he says that Churches focused on the Son of God, the Redeemer, sometimes may err by becoming dogmatic. The strength of their movement emphasized to an extreme (the Word/Salvation) can become dogmatism. His proposal is that these churches would benefit by adding some emphasis on the power of the Holy Spirit and the justice/mercy of God as Father. This, he proposes would also help those churches understand and connect with churches in the other wings of Christianity. He gives examples for every wing of Christianity and every combination of those wings. It is a fascinating approach. My thought (and not mine only), is that an overlaying perspective that emphasizes Christ on top of this healthy foundation, is what Paul may be getting at in his clear emphasis on 'In Christ' throughout his epistles. That is another topic for further development in a deeper book. This book is a foundational book. It is followed up with tests that can help a person identify which person in the Godhead they most focus on...and then to develop a plan to mature. This flows through into the gifts of the Holy Spirit (see 3 Colors of Ministry book) and into relationships (see 3 Colors of Love book). Pastors, I recommend you use this book to help your congregation mature in her view of God. I recommend para-church ministries and Christian school administration use this book to train your staff to minister more effectively to people from various wings of the church. I recommend that School administrators and theology professors use the concepts in this book to develop curriculum for Christian schools and Colleges everywhere. It would make a huge difference in developing unity among Christians everywhere. I recommend church consultants apply the information in this book when crossing outside of your background into other wings of the church, and in assisting your church to become more balanced. This is one of the best books for pastors I have ever read. I heartily recommend it.

Is your church red, green, or blue?

One telling difference among the various streams of Christianity is that they emphasize different persons of the trinity. Mainline churches tend to emphasize God as Creator. This is evidenced in an emphasis on caring for the environment, on peace and justice, and on God's love for all humanity. Evangelical churches tend to emphasize Jesus as teacher and savior, which takes the form of an emphasis on right doctrine and on evangelism. Charismatics and Pentecostals emphasize the Holy Spirit which is expressed as an emphasis on prayer, healing, and spiritual gifts. Schwarz uses the colors green (mainline), red (evangelical), and blue (charismatic) to represent these streams. Of course, every church is some combination of red, green, and blue, though most tend to emphasize one or two colors over the other(s). Schwarz's thesis in this short book is that each of these three streams of Christianity is emphasizing essential aspects of what it means to worship and serve God, but that each tradition also tends to be weak in the areas that are not its central focus. He believes each of the traditions needs the other, and that we all have a lot to learn from each other. What he recommends is that a church identify where it is on the "Trinitarian Compass" as he calls it, and that we intentionally nurture those areas where we are weaker, so that we come back to the center of fully embracing God as Creator, Jesus, and Spirit. This is what a healthy, balanced Christian spirituality looks like. In our consulting, we work with churches of all three streams---red, green, and blue. In some churches, when the Trinitarian Compass is presented, we can practically see the light bulbs come on over people's heads. It encourages church leaders to affirm the strengths of their tradition while also recognizing the value of learning from and embracing what is best from other Christian traditions, rather than defining themselves by what they are not. The Threefold Art of Experiencing God is a good introduction to the Trinitarian Compass. For a more in-depth look at how to use this tool in a congregational setting, you'll want to also get Color Your World with Natural Church Development.