What do you think?
Rate this book
3 in 1 - Revised Edition
Peel. Flesh. Core. Three parts . . . one apple. Father. Son. Holy Spirit. Three Persons . . . one God. 3 in 1: A Picture of God uses the analogy of an apple to explain to children the Triune God. Simple terms and illustrations help teach children how God the Father creates and protects them, how God the Son saves, and how God the Holy Spirit plants faith in their hearts and causes it to grow.
48 pages, Hardcover
First published September 28, 1973
67 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 26 of 26 reviews
February 3, 2017
I want to give this book 5 stars. It's the best way I've found to explain the trinity. But it loses a star for me for saying Jesus died to give us "beautiful, wonderful, happy new lives." I know a few martyrs and persecuted Christians who would take issue with that. Otherwise it's an excellent book.
December 16, 2013
A wonderful story for a Christian household. Christian based, using biblical values/verses, this a great book for introducing some basic biblical concepts. Both my preschoolers and 1st grader enjoyed this book!
August 29, 2020
This book attempts to teach kids about the Trinity by using apples and other objects as analogies with colorful pictures. The artwork certainly stuck with me ever since I was a kid. It is problematic however as it doesn't give an entirely accurate picture. Explaining it in this way risks having a partialistic understanding of God. (Anyone has seen the Lutheran Satire video entitled "Saint Patrick's Bad Analogies" can understand what I mean). The 3 persons are not 3 parts of a whole but 3 in 1 (as the Title of the book says) and as it is expressed in the Athenasian creed. It certainly would be impractical to teach kids the Athenasian creed early on as even most adults don't understand it fully. Am I being too harsh? Perhaopse, however we should try to avoid analogies that would give misleading information. I commend Ms, Marxhausen for the effort but would be caredul with how you explain the concept.
March 9, 2009
Not just for children
November 14, 2023
I used this book as part of my lesson for preschool Sunday School lesson yesterday. It's a good book to explain a difficult concept like the Trinity to even very young children. And the pictures are bright and colorful! Great book, I recommend it to parents and those who teach or work with children in churches.
June 16, 2017
Great way to explain Trinity. Read it at church for our Celebrate! end of the learning year event for all ages, which happened to fall on Trinity. Not only did the kids seem to enjoy it, but several adults came up to me afterwards and commented that this was a great book.
June 4, 2023
What a beautiful concept to explain the Holy Trinity of God! Using the three parts of an apple to help children and adults understand the 3 in 1 concept of God: the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit
https://youtu.be/xUnJ8OkezxY
https://youtu.be/xUnJ8OkezxY
December 5, 2017
Such an old picture book to be loved so much. We are buying it after reading via inter library loan. Theology for tots. Most Christian parents are going to love this.
February 4, 2020
Great book to illustrate the Holy Trinity by using the example of an apple - 3 parts, the peel, the flesh and the core but it's still just 1 apple. Easy to understand.
July 3, 2020
I love this book and so do my kids! It is a wonderful way to introduce your young children to the concept of the Trinity. It's one of those books we read over and over.
May 15, 2022
I suggest this book to everyone!!!!
June 15, 2022
Excellent book for helping children understand the concept of the Holy Trinity.
February 5, 2025
3 in 1 is God as Father, Son and Holy Spirit compared to an apple. Short book with maybe 1 or 2 lines per page. Read to my 5 yr. old granddaughter.
December 15, 2008
Tate asked me today, "Is Jesus God?" I was so impressed and said YES! But was kind of stumped on where to go from there. SO I pulled out this near book that I purchased a long time ago and it did it perfectly, maybe a bit long for his little attention span this morning after he asked me what he thought was a "simple question", but nevertheless, I enjoy having read-aloud books at my finger tips that really explain a concept so much better than I could have!
May 23, 2016
This year I found this creative book, 3 in 1: A Picture of God by Joanne Marxhausen (Author), Ed Koehler (Illustrator), Benjamin Marxhausen (Illustrator)
The author uses another method to guide children through the Holy Trinity with three parts: peel, flesh and core. Those parts represent Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
Watch the Book’s video : it explains the concept clearly for children to understand the Holy Trinity.
Great teaching tool. I highly recommend this book!
The author uses another method to guide children through the Holy Trinity with three parts: peel, flesh and core. Those parts represent Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
Watch the Book’s video : it explains the concept clearly for children to understand the Holy Trinity.
Great teaching tool. I highly recommend this book!
November 30, 2016
I found this book while perusing children's books at Lifeway.
I love the simplicity of it.
My boys really like the idea of comparing an apple to the Trinity and seem to have a better understanding of the Trinity.
The text is short and to the point. The pages are colorful and cheery.
This book is appropriate for children ages 3 to 8.
I love the simplicity of it.
My boys really like the idea of comparing an apple to the Trinity and seem to have a better understanding of the Trinity.
The text is short and to the point. The pages are colorful and cheery.
This book is appropriate for children ages 3 to 8.
March 6, 2010
This book explains the Holy Trinity for children. It is excellent at describing this complex idea compared to the parts of an apple (skin, flesh, and seed). Athough it is written for kids, adults may come to a better understanding by reading this too!
October 20, 2014
5 stars for text, 3 stars for illustrations. The illustrations are OK, but not outstanding. But the text, the explanation of the Trinity, is outstanding. The page layout and design are also very good. Perfect for pre-school and early elementary age.
April 13, 2017
Read this to my Gr. 7 students. Their positive reaction to it showed how much this book makes sense. Although the idea of the trinity is beyond our comprehension, this book allows students to make connections that they previously may not have made.
October 18, 2008
great way to explain the Holy Trinity!
March 12, 2009
Read this every now and then during Sunday School class with the little ones. In some classes we've made an event of it, with apple slices for snack and apple printing craft.
January 2, 2015
It is a hard concept for kids (and adults) to grasp but this book makes it simple to understand. I highly recommend this.
October 11, 2015
This is beautiful simple way to understand the Trinity! I love to give this book to a child celebrating First Communion...
August 10, 2016
Used with Apologia "Who is God?" curriculum, and I decided that I liked it enough to use it with all the children :-)
February 7, 2017
If you aren't so sure about the Trinity, God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit, this book is for you! Through a simple comparison using an apple, you will understand;)!
March 4, 2018
Excellent! Buy this book for your kids, and really, yourself.
Displaying 1 - 26 of 26 reviews