June 18, 2000
Trinity Sunday

LECTIONARY READINGS
from the Revised Common Lectionary

Isaiah 6:1-8
Psalm 29
Romans 8:12-17
John 3:1-17

[ Read the texts at the Vanderbilt Divinity On-Line Library ]
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"Homo-ousios,"  "Homoi-ousios,"  "Who Cares?"

A group of college students was having a discussion about the nature of God.  Some of the students did not believe that there was a God (sophomores no doubt!), but most of them had a belief in some kind of God. The discussion was lively.

"God is like a great big Teddy Bear who gives me a hug when I need it," One young woman said. To this, a young man replied, "No Teddy Bear God for me!  God is the Chief Justice of some kind of universal Supreme Court who's going to nail me to the wall when I show up for judgment!"

The discussion raged on for some time and finally someone offered, "God is whatever we think God is.  One person's idea is as good as another person's idea.  We shouldn't be judging other people's religious ideas."  The opinion seemed to gain the assent of the majority.  It seemed fair enough -- everyone gets to have their own idea of God.  Seems like the democratic thing.

As a mostly silent, facilitator of the group, I asked a question.  "What about Son of Sam's idea of God?  He said God told him to kill some people. Is his idea of God okay?"

There was some modification of the God of the democratic way. People can have any idea they want of God as long as they don't hurt other people.  That really sounded like the most reasonable way to many of the students.  Nobody gets hurt and everybody gets their own god.

***

Today is Trinity Sunday.  For just about 700 years now, the western church has set this Sunday aside for reflection on the tremendous mystery of the Trinity. When we sing the words of one of our best known hymns, Holy, Holy, Holy, we sing, "God in three persons, blessed Trinity."

Many pastors would just as soon skip by preaching about the Trinity and most Christian folk I know have little or no desire to grapple with this concept when the world is already confusing enough!  Daniel T. Benedict, director of worship resources for the General Board of Discipleship (United Methodist Church) wrote, "Trinity Sunday is not a Sunday for theological and spiritual "sissies"! ¹ 

Indeed.  A few years ago, after a sermon on the Trinity, a man who was leaving the sanctuary shook my hand and remarked how he really didn't appreciate the sermon that day.  "I come here for peace of mind," he said, "I don't come here to think!"  (I bit my tongue about how obvious this was.)

Here are just a few of the comments about the Trinitarian issue I've heard over the years:

"The trinity is too complicated and faith should be simple."

"How can there be three gods, I thought we believed in one God!"

" The whole thing seems silly to me, how can one plus one plus one equal three?"

"I'm a good Christian -- I believe in the Trinity -- but I don't have a clue about what it means."

And perhaps the most important question:

"Trinitarian, Unitarian -- who cares?  Does it matter?"

I believe that this is the most important question of all.  Does it matter?  What difference does this teaching make to people who rise each day to meet the challenge of making a living, balancing their lives, and caring for home and family?

***

A little bit of history is important for our discussion.  This is no new issue.  It has been the source of debate, struggle and bitter name calling over the ages.  In fact one of the reasons some folks want to skip the issue is because of all the pain and anguish that has attended the question of the Trinity.

Yet, struggle over a thing is never satisfactorily resolved by simply doing away with it.  The name of Jesus has brought about struggle for many people.  Public prayer in the name of Jesus is offensive to many.  If Jesus is a problem for some people, would the best way around the issue be to drop all talk of Jesus?  For most of us (but unhappily, not all of us)  Jesus as a part of our faith is a "non-negotiable."

Ah -- but here's where we enter the murky waters of detail.  It has been said that the devil is in the details -- but the fact is that truth is frequently found or lost in the details.  Everything from baking a cake to launching a shuttle is dependent upon details.

Even a simple little comma can change the meaning of something entirely.  Have you heard the story of a woman who many years ago was visiting in Paris when she came across the most wonderful painting which could be hers for the bargain price of $150,000 dollars.  She immediately sent a telegram to her husband in New York saying that she absolutely loved the painting and wondered if she could have it for her birthday.  He replied by asking that this telegram be sent in reply:

No, price too high.

The clerk at Western Union however, made one tiny error in sending the telegram. This is what was sent to the woman:

No price too high.

The meaning was absolutely reversed for lack of a comma!

Something like that was going on about 1675 years ago when the Emperor Constantine called 317 bishops from all over the Christian world to settle the question of the divinity of Jesus Christ.  Was Christ simply another great prophet and teacher -- even a high ranking angel from God -- or was he the divine Son of God, co-equal and co-eternal with God? ²

The long and short of the story of Nicea is that the debate centered around the inclusion or leaving out of one simple letter.  The Greek letter iota.  If everyone would agree to include the letter, all could go return home in  peace and there would be unity in the church all over the Empire.  After all, hadn't the church been through enough with all the persecution and struggle to come out of the catacombs?  Who would squabble over one little letter?

There was one bishop named Athanasius who wouldn't let go of the issue.  He came off to many as an obnoxious stickler for detail.  The Greek words involved in the debate even sounded alike.  One group, led by Athanasius, wanted to use the term "homo-ousios" to describe Jesus.  It was used in a phrase which meant Christ was "of one substance" with the Father.  The other group, led by a bishop named Arius, wanted to use the word, "homoi-ousios" - which meant Christ was "of like substance" with the Father.

So what was the big deal with Athanasius?  "Homo-ousios."  "Homoi-ousios."  "Same substance."  "Like substance."  Who cares?

Athanasius would not fare well in any of our church meetings these days when we are impatient with people who haggle over details.  And as a matter of fact he did not fare well in his own time.  He was considered a trouble maker by Constantine and his successors and was banished from Alexandria -- not once -- not twice, but five times, by various emperors!

So did it matter?

Athanasius did not live to see the triumph of his position.  But there are are many who credit Athanasius with preserving the Christian Faith. The issue was whether Jesus Christ was the unique, fully divine, incarnate Son of God -- as the Nicene Creed states it:  "God from God, Light from Light, true God from true God, begotten, not made, of one Being with the Father."  Or -- was he simply another person? A very good -- even the very best person to be sure.  But not "God become flesh."

***

Athanasius and his followers finally prevailed and the Nicene Creed expresses our faith in the most widely accepted statement of Christian Faith in the church around the world.  The more familiar Apostle's Creed is widely accepted in the western churches, but only the Nicene Creed brings east and west together. ³

Now all of this goes to the question, "What does all of this have to do with you and me?  Does it really matter?" 

 Actually it does.  That is if it matters to you whether God is a great big Teddy Bear, or the Chief Justice waiting to condemn you.  It matters and makes all the difference in the world because it helps me answer the question, "Who is this God we have come together to worship?" 

God is Personal

The very first area in which the Trinity impacts our lives is that God is personal.  God is not an unknown "First Cause" or a strange power that can not be fathomed.  God is not an empty concept that waits to be filled with our own imaginings.

God is a personal being.  This has two important consequences for our daily lives. [1] We can relate to God in a personal way.  The shortest, simplest definition of God in the bible says, "God is love."  [1 John 4:8]  Our fundamental relationship with God is premised on a relationship of love. Love can not be exchanged with a "cause" or an "unknown."  We can love a cause in some fashion, but we can not have a love relationship with a cause. Because God is personal, relationship is possible. [2] Since we affirm that we are made in the image of God, our own personhood is rooted in God.  Because God is personal and we are persons, our worth can not be increased or decreased by any human power or any life circumstances.  Our value is rooted in God alone.

God is Savior

To say that God is love is a wonderful thing and to further say that we can have a relationship of love with God is an incredible thing.  But here's where our teaching on the Trinity is crucial.  The fact is, I am not always in touch with God's love and further, I am fully aware that I can in no way measure up to this amazing love.

What can we do when we look at our lives and the world around us and realize that we are far from "godlike"?  We have, in so many words, made quite a mess of things on poor old planet earth.  Although there are wonderful high points in our lives and in human history, the painful truth is that countless millions of persons (who are made in the image of God) have suffered at the hands of other persons (who are made in the image of God.)  More than the question, "What can we do about all of this?" is the question, "What will God do?"

The answer for Christian people is that God took on human flesh and came to us in the person of Jesus Christ.  God is not only our Maker, but God is our Savior.  As the Nicene Creed says of Jesus Christ who is "of one being with the Father," "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."

Do you see?  If he is not God, he can not truly be Savior.  God alone can save what God alone has created. If Jesus Christ were simply another created person, he could not truly be the Savior.  This does not mean that he could not have been a wonderful teacher, a standout person and maybe even one of history's greatest persons -- but he could not be Savior if he were not, "of one Being with the Father."

Because God loves us and is merciful and not indifferent to our needs, God has come to us as Savior in the person of Jesus Christ.

God is Present

Now we come to the point at which we might say, "The rubber meets the road."   Not only did God create you and come to you as Savior -- but God is always and everywhere present to encourage and empower, comfort and care for you -- in every twist and turn your life's journey may ever take you!

God the Holy Spirit, is "The Lord, the Giver of life... who with the Father and the Son is worshiped and glorified..."   When Jesus met with his disciples in the Upper Room shortly before his arrest, the disciples were tremendously disturbed and grieving because he told them he would be crucified.  In the midst of that, he said to them, "I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate, to be with you forever. This is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, because he abides with you, and he will be in you. "I will not leave you orphaned; I am coming to you."  [John 14:16-18]

When we are in pain, when we struggle, when we miss the mark and when we enjoy our finest moments, God the Holy Spirit is present with us.

We shall never fully comprehend the mystery of the Trinity, but so shall we never be without the hope, joy and love which are ours because of:

"God in three persons...
Blessed Trinity!"

***

When we gather for worship, it is not simply a pep rally for the faithful, or a memorial service for a great man we've come together to remember with reverence.  When we gather for worship, we truly join with the One who said, "Where two or three are gathered in my name, I am there among them." [Matt. 18:20]

The gathering of persons who have been crated in the image of God and redeemed by God the Savior is joined by the Savior and transported into the very presence of God where they join with the saints of all the ages who are "Casting down their golden crowns, around the glassy sea."  As we join our hearts together in worship we are transported with Isaiah into the presence of God where we hear the angel's cry, "Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts; the whole earth if filled with his glory."

And so our hearts, for a time, are lifted from this broken world and our hearts too are filled with the glory of God.  It is in these moments of worship that we more fully grasp the words of the Apostle Paul that we have been given the sense that we are truly God's children and our hearts cry, "Abba Father!" 

In the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.  Amen.

¹  The article is available here  >>> Trinity Sunday

²  For a brief article on Athanasius and the Council of Nicea go to >>>  Nicea

³  You can read the creed in two versions here >>> Nicene Creed

Connections in the Text

The holiness of God, the sacrificial ministry of the Son of God and the ministry of the Holy Spirit in our lives provides the broad strokes of our texts for today.  In Isaiah's vision, God seeks some one to go for "us".  The trinity is not mentioned in the bible, but the "persons" of the Godhead are implicit throughout the scriptures. The use of "trinity" is not a matter of some fantastic math where 1+1+1 = 1.  Another term might have been chosen, the issue is not the sacredness of the word trinity, but the reality about the nature of God that stands behind it.  There were some bishops at the Council of Nicea who did not like the use of the term "homoousios" to describe the nature of Jesus Christ, but when faced with the Arian challenge, relented in favor of preserving the reality of who Christ was with a non-biblical term.

Our fell text sermon is not a defense of the term trinity, but an attempt to address the reality of the Godhead as it has been revealed to us and as we have come to know God in Jesus Christ.  Another approach to these texts would be to use the first line of this section and do a homily on, "The Holiness of God, The Sacrifice of the Son and the Ministry of the Spirit."

Isaiah 6:1-8

Most people need no introduction to the wonderful vision of Isaiah which includes the words which are repeated in worship all over the world, "Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of Hosts; the whole earth is full of his glory."

Isaiah's experience of being "undone," reminds us of the absolute holiness of God who, "... dwells in unapproachable light, whom no one has ever seen or can see..." [I Tim. 6:16]  When Moses asks to see God, he is told, "...you cannot see my face; for no one shall see me and live." [Ex. 33:20]  One homiletical approach for this Sunday would be to address the issue of the holiness of God and the loss of reverence in our culture.

The Isaiah passage is a "good news" passage.  It develops the themes of the holiness of God, the sinfulness of human beings, the forgiveness of God, and the commissioning of those who have experienced redemption for service to God.

John 3:1-17

This most familiar and best loved text from the gospel of John speaks of God the Giver, God the Given and God the Generator of new life.  The essence of what Christians mean by "trinity" is contained in these verses.  For those who have difficulty with the term trinity because of its seeming mathematical incoherence, the text shows the ministry in action in the plurality of the Godhead.

Jesus' interaction with the Pharisee Nicodemus is the story of an honest religious seeker and spiritual reality.  As a leader and teacher of the Jews, he is well versed in the scriptures and schooled in tradition.  Yet, something is missing.  He can see in the ministry of Jesus what is lacking in his own experience and in his ministry. There is an opportunity to explore here the difference between "religious" and "spiritual."  The Spirit brings about new birth and new life.  Nicodemus, even though a religious leader, is missing the spiritual.  "How can I tell you about spiritual things," Jesus asks him.  There is a strong caution here for all of us who have leadership roles in the church and are involved in public ministry.  It is all about being cautious that we do not "miss the forest for the trees." 

The text continues as the theme turns from Nicodemus' question to the "gospel in a nutshell" -- John 3:16-17.  Can anything new be said about these verses?  Likely not -- and maybe we are best to not attempt to say something new about John 3:16, but give ourselves to simply telling, "The old, old story."

Romans 8:12-17

The epistle focuses on the ministry of the Holy Spirit in the life of the child of God.  The Holy Spirit has two essential functions in this text.  [1] The Spirit equips and leads us in living the new life that is God's gift to those who believe. (The gift of John 3:16]    and  [2] The Spirit is active in our inner lives to bring an assurance that we are indeed children of God and even more that we relate to God as one would relate intimately to an earthly parent.  The "Abba" (Aramaic for "daddy") is the endearing term a child uses only with his or her very own father.  This takes the child of God into the same place Jesus occupied when he cried out in anguish to God in the Garden of Gethsemane.  [Mark 14:36]

The final verse (17) of this text points to the core of the Christian's identity.  We are God's own dear children -- and we are joint heirs with Christ.  Our destiny is intimately bound to the destiny of Jesus Christ.  In terms of the trinitarian focus of today's texts, our life as Christian persons is very much gathered up into the life of the trinity.  It is especially in worship that we are transported into the glorified life of Father, Son and Holy Sprit.

 Worship Helps

Call to Worship  (Based on Isaiah 6)

Leader:   Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lord of Hosts.
People:  Heaven and earth are full of the glory of God!
Leader:   Be gracious to us O Lord and forgive us our sin,
People:  For apart from your mercy and grace we are undone.
Leader:   God is gracious and forgives us of all our sin,
People:  We have gathered to praise the Lord and will depart to serve!

Prayer of Confession

Eternal God, our Maker and our Redeemer, we confess that we have tried to hide from you because we have done wrong. We have lived our lives for self and have so often turned away from the path you set before us.  We have not heard the cries of those who are oppressed and hide from our sight those who are in need.  O God, in your great mercy, cleanse us from our sin and grant us the renewal of your Holy Spirit.  Through Jesus Christ our Savior. Amen.

Assurance of Pardon

Sisters and brothers in Christ, the scriptures declare that if we confess our sin, God is faithful and just to forgive us our sin and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.  Believe the good news -- in Jesus Christ we are forgiven.  Amen.

Prayer of Thanksgiving

O gracious Lord of love and mercy, we rejoice in your grace today.  You have accepted us as your children -- not because of any good thing we have done or price we have paid -- but because we have heard the good news of your Son Jesus Christ and have turned to you.

You have fed our spirits with spiritual food, nourished us in the Body of Christ and lifted us up to heavenly heights in Christ.  When we open up our spirits to you and see who we are in Christ, we are richer than we have ever dared to imagine.

We would love and serve you all the days of our lives, O Lord God.  We would receive your strength today to have courage, gladness and singleness of heart as we embrace the destiny you have bestowed upon us.  What a wonderful, life changing thing to know that we are children of the Most High God!

Amen.

Prayer of Dedication

We would not even dare to think we could give anything to you, O God, if you have not called us to present ourselves and our gifts to you.  We are blessed that you take the gifts we bring to bring blessing to others.  May these gifts bring honor to your holy name.   Amen.