Tag Archives: one God

Trinity Benediction

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“Trinity Benediction”

2 Corinthians 13:11-14 – June 4, 2023

            This is one of my favorite Sundays in the whole church year. Trinity Sunday! Today is a different kind of Sunday, one where we focus on a theological concept and place it in the center of our service today.

Yes, we can talk about the Trinity, and have Bible readings about the Trinity. But, the most important thing is to center our worship, praise and prayer around the indescribable reality of that most holy of holies, the God who created heaven and earth. No matter how many intellectual arguments or theological books we read, all else falls woefully short.

We have two short Bible readings today, one from the beginning of all things, from Genesis 1, and one from the end of one of Paul’s letters. We span from the beginning to a benediction. As we approach the reading from Genesis, it is the very opening of the Bible. The very beginning of the world. I will examine these verses more in depth next week, as I start our Summer Sermon Series, a Biblical view of God as Nurturer, God from a Feminine viewpoint.

 I wanted to highlight something important. When God created all things, God was there as Trinity just as much as God is here today as Trinity. But – you might ask, and I would not blame you if you did – what on earth is the Trinity? Great question! We see Trinity as One God in Three Persons, as from the marvelous hymn, “Holy, Holy, Holy.” Yet, even this soaring hymn cannot give us much information about the definition or composition of the Trinity.  

We know about our Lord Jesus, our Savior, the Good Shepherd who cares for His sheep. We have some idea about the Holy Spirit, the Holy Comforter, the one who energizes God’s people (as we heard last week at Pentecost). And, we fall down before God the Father, the Almighty, the Holy One who created heaven and earth. We can say with the host of heaven, “Holy, holy, holy! Merciful and mighty! God in three persons, blessed Trinity.” Just as I said a few minutes ago – as I do every week, after the Scripture Reading – “Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit. As it was in the beginning, is now and ever shall be. World without end, amen, amen.”  

            The Bible does not give a clear definition of the Trinity; it mentions it in general, several times in both the Hebrew Scriptures and the New Testament. A mystery: One God, three Persons. We can compare the Trinity to a green, growing clover with three leaves in one plant (as St. Patrick did, centuries ago). We can think of it as St. Athanasius described it, as the three stages of water, as liquid, solid (ice) and gas (steam). All water, and yet in different forms.

            Some people, younger people and small children, find it easier to grasp this challenging theological concept if we use the different names of a person. Talking about different names of a person can be more relatable. Although my children were small, they could certainly understand how my mother could be “Mom” to me, “Grandma” to them and “Sister” to my Aunt Bernice. Three different names, three different aspects, yet one person.

            Most of us, if not all of us, can relate to being called by different names. Daughter, Mom, Grandpa, Brother, Teacher, Nurse, Chaplain, Pastor. Sometimes these names are more functional, some less so. Yet, still, no matter which name is used, you are still you. It’s the same way with God. God can be called any one of dozens of names, describing different aspects and functions. [1] And, these are all various ways of understanding our huge God, just a little bit more!  

            As I have been going over several commentaries and articles about the Trinity and about our Bible reading from 2 Corinthians, this idea of God as Trinity being too immense for us limited humans to understand is one aspect that I am certainly aware of. Yes, we can get a bit closer to the idea of God in Three Persons, but never fully understand it. God is too huge.

As Rev. Janet Hunt said, “Over these last days, I have simply found myself with my eyes and heart open, hopeful to simply see the face of God, even the many faces of God, which is and are represented by the concept of the Trinity.” [2] Is it the marvelous gift of God’s very good creation we hear about in Genesis 1? Is it the holy connection which is ours through Father, Son and Holy Spirit, as described in 2 Corinthians 13?

            Perhaps, we are simply to be blessed by this theological truth, this mystery, and not worry about fully comprehending it? Just as the Father, Son and Holy Spirit are in conversation one with the other, blessed One in Three, just as the Trinity is caught up in the eternal I AM, the constant and eternal present tense. How can we understand it, much less explain it, to come anywhere close to God’s reality or satisfaction?

            The apostle Paul shared these words with his readers at the end of this letter. Perhaps he did not understand it either! Yet, he spoke of the Trinity in his benediction with warm, loving words. “12 Greet one another with a holy kiss. 13 All God’s people here send their greetings. 14 May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.”

            Perhaps this prayer by my friend Rev. Jo Anne Lesco Taylor can add another view to the different understandings I have put forth today, to close this meditation on the Trinity. I hope and I pray these words may bless us all.

Holy One in Three and Three in One, Let me dance with you.

I may not understand how you can be three distinct persons living in unity,
how you can sing in unison and harmony at the same time,
But I do not need to understand in order to trust your Presence.

I need not Know in order to Love as you love, as you open the circle to me
and invite me into your dance, into your grace,
into your wholeness and holiness, into your love.

Let it be so. Let me dance with you, God. Amen. [3]

@chaplaineliza

(Suggestion: visit me at my other blogs: matterofprayer: A Year of Everyday Prayers. #PursuePEACE – and  A Year of Being Kind . Thanks!

[1] http://worshipingwithchildren.blogspot.com/2014/05/year-trinity-sunday-first-sunday-after.html

[2] https://dancingwiththeword.com/the-face-of-god/

[3] https://pastorsings.com/2023/06/03/a-prayer-for-the-eve-of-trinity-sunday/?fbclid=IwAR2DW8vuOxwd8OzkZnSS1gD9-w9R4AxHMb66tpWUycbaf2_Ou3G9ZAL-1ZM

Letter of the Law?

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“Letter of the Law?”

Exodus 20:1-17 – March 7, 2021

            I enjoy driving very much. My husband is happy to let me be the primary driver in our house. I used to be a commercial driver some years ago, and I still hold a commercial driver’s license. So, I do know a good deal about the rules of the road.

            What would it be like if drivers did not obey these rules of the road? Just think of stop lights. We all know what happens when cars or trucks run a red light. Accidents happen, and sometimes, people get very badly hurt. All this happens because people just plain break the rules of the road.

            Our Scripture reading today comes from Exodus 20, and is a listing of God’s rules for living – the Ten Commandments. What would happen if people just plain broke God’s rules for living, any time they felt like it?

            One of my favorite Bible commentators is Carolyn Brown. She is now retired, but she was a longtime Children’s Ministry Director in the Presbyterian church. She wondered what would happen if we turned the Ten Commandments on their head, and made them the complete opposite of what God intended? Here are Ten Ways to Break God’s Rules.

1.    You are your own boss.  Do whatever you want to do whenever you feel like it. 

2.    Decide who and what is important to you.  Pay attention only to those people and things. Everyone else can drop dead.

3.    It does not matter when or how you say God’s name.  You can use it to swear or cuss or to get what you want (as in “God is on my side so you better do things my way, or else!”).

4.    It doesn’t matter if you never worship with God’s people on Sunday, or regularly.  If there are other things you’d rather do, go do them.

5.    Parents don’t get it.  Ignore them whenever you can.

6.    Kill whatever or whoever gets in your way.  The strongest live longest.

7.    Don’t worry about your family.  Think only about yourself and what you want.

8.    Finders keepers!  Toddler’s Rule of possession:  I see it, I want it, it’s mine! 
If you want it, figure out how to get it; cheat if you need to.

9.    Lie if you have to get out of trouble. Lie to get what you want.
Lie to make yourself look good – even if it makes someone else look bad.

10. The one who dies with most toys wins.  The world is full of awesome things.  Get your share, no matter what! [1]

            What was all that? Those Ways to Break God’s Rules sound totally selfish, absolutely self-centered, and completely against any kind of moral code or rulebook.

Why did God give God’s people the Ten Commandments, anyway?

“We suppose it is for our own good. Right? Well, you have to wonder. Is God one to bring the whole nation of Israel out into the wilderness for a time out? Is this conversation started with a wag of the divine finger and slow shake of the holy head, displaying disappointment and the prelude to punishment? Are these ten [commandments]given because the people of God have proved unworthy, have fallen short of who they were intended to be? Are they being grounded by these words” like a big bunch of misbehaving teenagers? [2]

            Let’s look at the beginning of the commandments. ”I am God.  I brought you out of slavery in Egypt.  I opened the sea for your escape.  I am the one and only God.  Don’t worship or pray to anything or anyone else.” The Lord tells the people of Israel exactly why God gave them these rules: to help them know how to live together as God’s free people. Not as slaves anymore! No, the Lord brought Israel out of slavery in Egypt: Exodus 20 tells us so!

            God is also warning the people of Israel about the different idols and gods of Egypt. People in Egypt worshiped many different gods. So, to ask the people of Israel who had just left Egypt to worship the Lord – and only the Lord – was a big stretch. A huge challenge! We might think we are only worshiping one God – but, are we? What are our modern-day idols? Do we worship money? Possessions? A job? What about how many “likes” we get on social media? What keeps us from making God the center of our lives? What distracts you and me? [3]

            These rules are not super-strict laws for people to follow reluctantly, or with their arms twisted behind their backs. Instead, as we read them, we can see descriptions of the kind of people God wants us to be. Not because God is a mean or nasty Heavenly Parent, but because we can strive to be that kind of people, the Lord’s relatives, in close relationship with our God.

            Remember, God will not say, “Jump through these hoops, or over these hurdles, and only then will I love you!” No! Instead, God says, “My love for you will shape you into these kinds of people, this kind of loving, beloved community.”    

            Let us strive to live together as a people of faith, as a community loved by God. Amen!

[1] http://worshipingwithchildren.blogspot.com/2015/02/year-b-third-sunday-in-lent-march-8-2015_7.html

Worshiping with Children, Lent 3B, Including children in the congregation’s worship, using the Revised Common Lectionary, Carolyn C. Brown, 2015

[2] https://www.umcdiscipleship.org/worship-planning/rend-your-hearts-claiming-the-promise/third-sunday-in-lent-year-b-lectionary-planning-notes/third-sunday-in-lent-year-b-preaching-notes

[3] https://www.churchofscotland.org.uk/__data/assets/pdf_file/0005/74507/7-March-3-Sunday-in-Lent.pdf

Third Sunday in Lent – 7 March 2021 The Faith Nurture Forum would like to thank Rev Jonathan Fleming, Minister of Cumbrae with Largs St John’s.

@chaplaineliza

(Suggestion: visit me at my other blogs: matterofprayer: A Year of Everyday Prayers. #PursuePEACE – and  A Year of Being Kind . Thanks!