Let us begin by worshipping the Trinity with singing the Gloria…
Glory to God in the highest,
and peace to God’s people on earth.
Lord God, heavenly King,
almighty God and Father,
we worship you, we give you thanks,
we praise you for your glory.
Lord Jesus Christ, only Son of the Father,
Lord God, Lamb of God,
you take away the sin of the world:
have mercy on us;
you are seated at the right hand of the Father:
receive our prayer.
For you alone are the Holy One,
you alone are the Lord,
you alone are the Most High
Jesus Christ,
with the Holy Spirit,
in the glory of God the Father. Amen.
It is Trinity Sunday today and we are here to honour the Holy Trinity – the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. The doctrine of the Trinity is distinctly unique to Christianity as it claims that God is one and yet three. This doctrine is intrinsically woven into our Anglican liturgy, like the Gloria and the Creed and much more!
You will not find the word ‘trinity’ in Scripture and yet it is taught there right from the beginning. In Genesis 1, when God created the heavens and the earth, we read that the ‘Spirit of God was hovering over the waters’, also that God says, ‘let us make mankind in our image.’ In John chapter 1 we read that “In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and the Word was God…The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us.” This word that was with God in the beginning is none other than Jesus. And Jesus repeatedly talked about his Father and in John 10 stating that he and the Father are one.
Today’s reading from John 16 speaks of the Trinity…Jesus says, ‘all that is the Father’s is mine’ and ‘the Spirit will take from what is mine and make it known to you.’
It may be a bit mind boggling to consider one God in 3 but belief in the Trinity is crucial to orthodox Christianity. While the concept can never be fully understood or rationalized it is clearly taught in scripture and the understanding of all scriptural doctrine is by faith which comes through the work of the Holy Spirit who will teach us all truth. It is appropriate then that Trinity Sunday is celebrated on the first Sunday after Pentecost when we remember the outpouring of the Holy Spirit.
I have previously shared that I am a person who doesn’t necessarily have a great enquiring mind, but I am blessed with great faith and have been happy to believe in things taught by the bible, without delving deeply into understanding some of the more difficult doctrines of the Christian faith. As I studied for my Master of Divinity, I loved Church history, bible subjects, worship, and preaching, but studying straight theology was a real challenge at times to me and the study of the Trinity was certainly one of those challenges!
I had the privilege of studying the Trinity under none other than the esteemed son of Tasmania’s previous Bishop…Scott Harrower. A very learned theologian. I had to write an essay exploring the philosophical and theological approaches to the Trinity over the past 20 years and decide which approach was the most coherent and orthodox. I remember being totally mind boggled as I read some religious philosophers, one tried to explain the trinity in terms of a mythical dog called Cerberus who had 3 heads and another who tried to explain the trinity in terms of ‘time travel’ and used an analogy of a dancing girl called Jane who may repeatedly travel back in time to the dance stage, resulting in a whole line of dancers, and so, he said, “God may in timeless eternity live his life in three ‘streams or strands’, with God the Father in one, Son in the other and Spirit in the third.’
None of it was very coherent to me, but somehow or other I did pass the essay!! And in terms of being orthodox some seemed to end up describing 3 or 4 Gods rather than one! If you are someone who is interested in philosophy and theology speak to me later and I’ll direct you to some fascinating reading that perhaps you may understand better than I!
Given that, I am not going to try and give you a theological understanding of the Trinity this morning. And perhaps it is good to put our academic thinking brain aside and let the Holy Spirit teach us what we need to know or experience. God is more interested in our relationship with him than our intellectual understanding!
Simply, I want you to know and remember the important thing is to ensure that whatever your explanation of the Trinity, it must show that there is but one God – Deuteronomy 6:4 says “Hear O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one.” Some explanations have left people thinking there are 3 or 4 Gods – but that is heresy!
Last year I asked us to think about our image of the Trinity. When you think of the Trinity and the persons of God how do you imagine them? God as Father, the Son – Jesus, and the Holy Spirit often depicted in the form of a dove or tongues of fire– the Holy Spirit descending on Jesus at his baptism and then tongues of fire coming on the disciples on the day of Pentecost.
Rob spoke about the Trinity a few weeks ago and showed us this painting by Rublev of the Trinity which shows the Trinity as 3 persons. One aspect of this painting that is helpful is that the 3 persons of the trinity are depicted equally. There is no hierarchy, no superiority. They are all equally God. I think we often forget this, especially if we are thinking of the Holy Spirit as a dove… These ideas really are too wonderful for us to comprehend! But by faith it is what we are called to believe.
Article one of the 39 Articles of Religion form 1562 says this of the Trinity…
- Of Faith in the Holy Trinity.
There is but one living and true God, everlasting, without body, parts, or passions; of infinite power, wisdom, and goodness; the Maker, and Preserver of all things both visible and invisible. And in unity of this Godhead there be three Persons of one substance, power, and eternity; the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost.
One God, three persons.
As I said earlier the concept of the Trinity can really challenge our little brains and to try and imagine these three persons might really stretch our imaginations. So, ask God to help you use your imagination…God is not confined to our intellect!
In his sermon, Rob referred to the Holy Spirit as a ‘she’ as the Hebrew word for Spirit is feminine. You might remember I also challenged us with that thought last year as I showed you a little clip from the book made into a movie The Shack. This also shows God as a black “Mother” for part of the movie and “Father” in another section. God is above gender/colour. Jesus the son who was born to Mary is the only one we can define as a male and a Jew. In this book/movie the Holy Spirit is shown as a willowy female, who is almost transparent in some scenes. Let’s look at that scene again… the author/ director’s use of their God given imagination…
(show video clip from The Shack – introducing the Trinity https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=auUMwFjH3vs)
Rather than a debate about the gender of God, what I love in this clip is the portrayal of a warm relationship between three persons. All distinct but all God…When Mack asks which one of you is (God (unsaid)) they all reply I AM. God say’s she has many names but likes the name Elisha – Hebrew for God – meaning Salvation. The Holy Spirit is Serah, breath of wind.
As well as there being a lively, joyful, human type relationship between the Trinity, the movie also shows each of them interacting individually with the main character Mack as they love him and seek to bring about healing and wholeness in his life.
God is all about relationship. The Trinity models a healthy complete relationship. God desires a relationship with us and through the work of the Trinity we can live in a healthy, whole relationship with God. As shown in the movie clip, God in 3 persons knows and loves us so much and longs for us to know and love him too.
God the Father so loved us that he sent his one and only Son that whoever believes in him should not perish but have everlasting life (John 3:16). God the Son so loved us that he gave up his life for us – he went to the cross to die that we might be forgiven and enjoy a restored relationship with God the Father. God the Son, Jesus, promised to never leave us and sent God the Holy Spirit to live in us, filling us with his very self.
We were created to be in a relationship with God – the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Our reading from Romans 5 today reminds us that through the grace of Jesus Christ we can have peace with God and his love is poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.
I pray that the Holy Spirit, will teach us all truth so that God the Father/ Mother and Jesus the Son is made known to us. Truth that we will not fully understand during our earthly life! That’s where faith comes in…
I have shared this prayer before from the well-respected theologian John Stott who apparently worshipped the Trinity in a prayer every morning. He recognized their distinctives, while praising their wholeness as one God. Many of you may still have this as a bookmark. Today it is fitting that we pray it together…
Good morning heavenly Father,
good morning Lord Jesus,
good morning Holy Spirit.
Heavenly Father, I worship you as the creator and sustainer of the universe.
Lord Jesus, I worship you, Saviour and Lord of the world.
Holy Spirit, I worship you, sanctifier of the people of God.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit.
Heavenly Father, I pray that I may live this day in your presence
and please you more and more.
Lord Jesus, I pray that this day I may take up my cross and follow you.
Holy Spirit, I pray that this day you will fill me with yourself and cause your fruit to ripen in my life: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.
Holy, blessed, and glorious Trinity, three persons in one God,
have mercy upon me. Amen.
We began with the Gloria, and I invite you now to stand as we affirm our faith in God, the Father, Son and Holy Spirit in the words of the Nicene Creed.
We believe in one God,
the Father, the almighty,
maker of heaven and earth,
of all that is, seen and unseen.
We believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ,
the only Son of God,
eternally begotten of the Father,
God from God, Light from Light,
true God from true God, begotten, not made,
of one being with the Father;
through him all things were made.
For us and for our salvation
he came down from heaven,
was incarnate of the Holy Spirit and the virgin Mary
and became truly human.
For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate;
he suffered death and was buried.
On the third day he rose again
in accordance with the Scriptures;
he ascended into heaven
and is seated at the right hand of the Father.
He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead
and his kingdom will have no end.
We believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord,
the giver of life,
who proceeds from the Father and the Son,
who with the Father and the Son
is worshipped and glorified,
who has spoken through the prophets.
We believe in one holy catholic and apostolic Church.
We acknowledge one baptism for the forgiveness of sins.
We look for the resurrection of the dead,
And the life of the world to come. Amen.