Yesterday, Penny and I got to spend time with our grandson,
Toland. It was so good that his parents,
Josh and Leena, invited us back. I got
to spend time with my son, doing things like cleaning gutters and changing
light bulbs. I enjoyed it greatly. Penny
did some things to help them inside and watch Toland while Leena got a bit of a
nap. I got to prepare a bottle and feed
Toland three ounces and I got three burps.
It was great fun. When he got
hungry, he would go from one fist to the other trying to get them in his
mouth. You had to be really fast to get
the bottle in his mouth in the right place at the precise second. With coaching from my son and Toland letting
me know what he liked and did not like, it was a great day.
The intimacy of the day reminded me of the Trinity. The relationship between God and Christ and
the Holy Spirit and us is meant to be one of closeness, oneness, and love. The word Trinity is not in the Bible anywhere
but it has become one of the major doctrines of the church.
When early church struggled to understand this God in known
three different ways, they turned to what they knew best, the idea God had to
put us in families. From the beginning
of the Bible people have turned to family images to describe the love of God.
When family is good, each gives honor to the other, goodness
and glory goes back and forth. And
teaching. And most of all love.
THE DOCTRINE OF THE TRINITY MEANS THAT GOD IS MORE THAN WE
THINK
God is that loving parent.
As the book of Genesis begins: God said, let us make humankind in our
image. That was God the Creator, Christ
the Redeemer, and the Holy Spirit. There
are five references in the New Testament that indicate that Christ was present
before creation, and was the Holy Spirit.
Christ is much more than a person who lived for 30 years, two thousand
years ago. He was a prophet and is much
more. Jesus became the Christ, the
Messiah, the Savior, because he showed us the heart of God. He was God made visible, touchable, real.
GOD IS INFINITELY MORE THAN I CAN UNDERSTAND
There are just some things that are beyond words. How could I describe the experience of being
a grandpa?…I cannot put into words. Jim
Koelliker is always ready to show you his photo mug…with photos of his kids and
grandkids. I have one of those mugs and
this afternoon I am going to put inside pictures of Toland and his
parents. I even showed my videos on my
phone to the people in the bank this week.
When I see people starting to go the other way when I come, then I will
know that I need to bring it down a notch.
Isadora Duncan, a Choreographer, once was asked to explain a
dance she presented. She said: If I
could say it, I wouldn’t have to dance it.” I feel that way about my
grandson. The Trinity is a doctrine of
the church that attempts to explain what God is like and how God acts toward
us. This is a very complicated dance, or
doctrine…Father, Son, and Spirit or Creator, Redeemer, and Holy Spirit. There is no way I can explain it. A dance would better. The way I dance I will probably step on your
toes and wander off.
A dance would be hands up for God, hands outstretched for
Jesus, and the motioning of the hands to come close for the Holy Spirit.
This is one of the least celebrated special days of the
church year, maybe because it is the hardest to understand. I could never in a sermon explain the
Trinity. There are times when I am not
sure I understand it. But there things
that we can know and take a lifetime to savor, and to learn about, and most
importantly to live.
TO KNOW GOD IS TO LOVE
The value of understanding the Trinity is to love and honor
and serve all of God. Theology leads us
to adore God. Before you and I were born
God began gathering a people for a divine purpose. And even before God created any living
creatures, before there existed any created thing, God had with the divine
being a generous, self-giving, loving relationship. This God who is love then created the world
out of the overflow of generosity.
GOD IS TOGETHER….GOD IS MORE…GOD IS MUTUAL LOVE
GOD WANTS US TO BE TOGETHER IN LOVE, DOING LOVE
The early church found the Holy Spirit in their lives and it
meant Jesus, in a way, was BACK leading to the same life Jesus lived, caring
for people. As they shared life
together, they experienced God’s presence in a brand new way. They became participants of God’s divine
life.
God’s love met them face-to-face in Jesus. Now the Holy Spirit was bringing God’s love
again. We become like what we worship,
their worship of the God who is love became full of love…a fearless love for
God and a selfless love of each other.
The Trinity is the name the church gives for the love that lives in God,
came to us in Jesus, known through the Holy Spirit.
Lois Johnson send me a video showing people with words
describing what they have to face. On
any given Sunday, included there are some of the same things we see on the
screen. If we only knew we might say…we
can know and the Holy Spirit will bring healing to us all. That is what the church is about.
The Holy Spirit grants us peace with God, knowing that God
is love. The HS teaches us that we do
not earn our salvation, God grants it.
Therefore our fears and anxiety are less. Our behavior then is less rigid and
restrictive.
For the university it means that while some are trapped in a
scientific rationality, others are trapped in a rejection of it and push a
faith-based dogma that is not willing to look at scientific knowledge. Facts are good, statistics are invaluable,
science is essential, research is important.
But there are so many spiritual truths that can never be proved. The rebellion that is so strong by people of
faith are just saying…leave room for mystery of God. The existence and activity of God are
breath-taking.
For me there is no split between secular and sacred. God made heaven and God made earth. All are parts of the other. God is just as much present in the classroom
or the business office as in church.
They are not separate in any way.
We have set up false barriers.
I am so grateful for our global community. The African church for example has much to
teach us about life. They bring a sense
of many things that cannot be explained scientifically and they are live
meaningful lives and get along just fine.
Thank God we are not in this church so rigid about behavior. This is a place of grace. The Holy Spirit is teaching us that love and
friends are the essential parts of our life together. Wild extravagant love is what makes the world
go round. One small Kansas Elementary
School responded to the tornado damage and set up a lemonade stand outside the
school….$750.
Jesus did not say the one who controls his life but one who
loses his or her life receives it back.
I am for discipline, consistent discipline. But the purpose of discipline is to give
someone the stability and moral compass inside so they can have freedom. Discipline is made for freedom…not the other
way around.
I think the real reason young people are away from the
church is that so often the Church does not live the faith, hope, and love that
are ours. It means that suffering is
something that does not destroy our praise.
What we really need?
Our
sovereign God
Salvation
in Jesus Christ
Help from
the Holy Spirit: guidance and truth
A few faith
friends
Music and
Art
Laughter
and Humor
Prayer
Lord, please forgive those moments when we feel prayer is a
drudgery or duty.
There are people who feel that prayer is a discipline that
is just plain drudgery or duty. May our
prayers become sharing life at the deepest level with people about which we
care deeply. May our prayers expand
life and not diminish it. Give us time
with you which increase our faith, hope, and love. Come Holy Spirit and energize us and then
help us to channel it to others. May
our prayers give you an entry point, letting You into the world through
us. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
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