The Three Spiritual Elements

UV 493/10,000 I John 5 v 6 The three Spiritual Elements 1Jn 5:6 This is he that came by water and blood, even Jesus Christ; not by water only, but by water and blood. And it is the Spirit that beareth witness, because the Spirit is truth. Three things testify to the truth of the gospel: water which refers to the Word of God, blood that refers to the blood of Christ the designated and anointed Messiah on the cross at Calvary and the Holy Spirit that witnesses to our spirit about the truth. These three spiritual elements signify the presence of the Trinity. All three need to agree or come together for a person to be redeemed. The Word points to Christ, Christ points to the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit points to the Father and the Son. The Word of God speaks the truth, the Blood of Christ redeems our minds and souls so that we can receive the truth into our hearts , the Holy Spirit convicts us of the truth. All three need to be present for new life or eternal life or spiritual life to sustain. Each has a distinct role like three forms of water: liquid, steam and ice have its own properties and functions. It is interesting to note that everything in the physical world has its spiritual corollary in the Word. Water is a sustainer of life on earth. It is the only liquid whose density is highest at 4 degrees Centigrade (unlike other liquids that are most dense at 0 degrees ) and therefore sinks below the surface. On account of this property, the water at the surface forms into ice while the lower level sustains fish and other forms of life. The equivalent of water in the human body is blood. It is our blood that contains and sustains life. It is for this reason that animal and bird sacrifices preceded the offering of the complete and perfect sacrifice, Christ on the cross. The Holy Spirit takes the truths of scripture and the gospel and lays it on our hearts and minds. He teaches us the truths line by line, verse by verse and precept by precept. He gives us the gift of discernment to be able to distinguish and discern between what is truth and what is not. It is this Spirit of truth that has led mankind through the ages. It is not a coincidence that only when scripture began to be made available to all people following the invention of the means of mass dissemination- the printing press- that the greatest scientific and technological progress of mankind began to take place beginning from around the 16th century AD. Even before that the gospel had the greatest civilizing influence on the warring tribes of Europe from the first century AD. Now as much of the secular western world is moving away from its spiritual moorings, gross darkness is again beginning to cover it, witnessed in mindless killings like that perpetrated by James Holmes,the PhD in neurology student in Denver, Colorado. Water, Blood and the Spirit need to be present in our lives to restore us to victory over the contemporary darkness. These three elements bring the presence, the mercy, the power and the grace of God in human lives, regardless of our cultural,religious, linguistic,financial, national or racial backgrounds. Prateep V Philip