The Feast of the Most Holy Trinity
In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Today we celebrate the Feast of the Most Holy Trinity. On the one hand, this day is the start of the ordinary “time of the Church.” Beginning next week we will observe the Sundays after Trinity—marked by their characteristic color of green—for the next six months. On the other hand, this day is also the conclusion of the feasts of Christmas, Epiphany, Holy Week and Easter, the Ascension, and Pentecost. At Christmas and Epiphany, we celebrate the Father sending His Son to earth to take on human flesh. In Holy Week and Easter, we celebrate the redemptive work of Christ on our behalf—His suffering and death, which culminates in His glorious resurrection. At the Ascension and Pentecost, we celebrate that our ascended and glorified Lord Jesus Christ has not left us alone—He has sent to us the Comforter who teaches us to know the blessed Trinity whose redemptive work is our only hope of salvation. While there is a sense in which every Sunday is devoted to the praise and honor of the Most Holy Trinity, this day is particularly focused on this greatest and most profoundly incomprehensible truth of our Christian faith.
And incomprehensible is a good word to describe the Blessed Trinity. There certainly are things we can say about the Most Holy Trinity based on Scripture. These truths are beautifully and clearly articulated in the Athanasian Creed. And yet, the mystery of the Most Holy Trinity is and ever remains just that—a mystery. The truth of the Godhead cannot be comprehended by human reason or effort. It is a truth which must be accepted by faith. The problem that many Christians have with the Trinity in general or Trinity Sunday and the Athanasian Creed specifically is that they try too hard to understand it. The doctrine of the Most Holy Trinity is not a truth to be grasped and mastered by human reason. After all, the Apostle says in today’s Epistle: Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and His ways past finding out! (Romans 11:33). Attempting to grasp the doctrine of God by reason alone is the error of Nicodemus in today’s Gospel. But Christ diverts this man’s attention away from trying to understand intellectually. Rather, Christ invites Nicodemus and us to experience our Triune God. Therefore, let us turn our attention away from deep doctrinal assertions to consider how: The Christian life begins and ends in the name of the Blessed Trinity.
The Pharisee Nicodemus came to our Lord with a certain amount of intrigue. It seems likely that our Lord’s cleansing of the temple in John chapter 2 was the impetus for his approach. He saw the signs which our Lord performed, and he recognized, at least on some level, that these signs demonstrated our Lord’s divinity or at least His association with God. For Nicodemus said: “Rabbi, we know that You are a teacher come from God; for no one can do these signs that You do unless God is with him” (John 3:2b). But the gospel writer also gives us this important fact about Nicodemus’ approach: This man came to Jesus by night (John 3:2a). The fact that it was night when Nicodemus approached Christ reveals two things about him. First, Nicodemus did not want others to know that he was speaking with our Lord. He came by night so that he would not be seen by others and become an outcast among the other members of the Jewish Ruling Council. But the second reason why it is significant that Nicodemus approached our Lord by night is a theological insight. It reveals that Nicodemus was “in the dark” spiritually.
Such spiritual darkness is also revealed in Nicodemus’ lack of understanding both of Christ and of the things of God. He recognizes, at least on some level, that this Man is from God. And yet, he does not recognize the fullness of His divinity. For he calls Him merely a teacher and one whom God is with. Nicodemus does not understand the full picture. And so, our Lord says to him: “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God” (John 3:3). And in response to Nicodemus’ confusion, our Lord again says: “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God” (John 3:5). On the surface, it seems that our Lord only adds to Nicodemus’ confusion. “How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born?” (John 3:4). The things of God are not rational. They do not make sense to our limited minds. Nicodemus was incapable of understanding the new birth of water and the Spirit just as we are incapable of grasping every detail of the doctrine of the Blessed Trinity. Nicodemus doesn’t need more knowledge to combat his lack of faith. He needs to be born again. He needs his life to begin anew—a gift which only comes from God. Those who are born of the flesh—that is, those who are born in sin—remain fleshly. They are not able to understand the things of God. It is only when one is born of the Spirit that he becomes spiritual. Thus, we all need our own Pentecost in the waters of the font. We must be born from above in order to both “see” (cf. John 3:3) and to “enter” (cf. John 3:5) the kingdom of God. For it is only by new birth that we are granted to see our Lord Jesus Christ for who He is. He is the one who was lifted up on the cross for you (cf. John 3:14-15). He is the one who has atoned for your sins. He is the one who has made you right with God. He is the one who has sent His Spirit into your hearts by whom you come to see and know the blessed Trinity—not through rationality, but through experiencing the love of God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. For the Christian life begins in the name of the Blessed Trinity.
And if the Christian life begins in the name of the Blessed Trinity, as we have said, then all of life is characterized by this blessed name. So it is that Martin Luther, in his Small Catechism, exhorts Christians to begin and end each day by making the sign of the holy cross and saying: “In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.” This is more than merely a symbolic, ritual action. It is a claim: “I am baptized! I have received the new birth of water and the Spirit. Satan and the demons have no power over me, for I belong to the Blessed Trinity.” He who sits enthroned above the cherubim, He who is the redeemer of the world, and He who is the Lord and Giver of Life has claimed you in the blessed waters of Holy Baptism. He sustains you in His name through the absolution spoken by the pastor: “I forgive you all your sins in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.” He grants you the right to pray to Him and to sing His praises. The entirety of the Christian life is characterized by the name of the Blessed Trinity.
And likewise, the Christian life ends in the name of the Blessed Trinity. In the rite of the Commendation of the Dying, the pastor stands next to the Christian on his deathbed and says: Go in peace. May God the Father, who created you, may God the Son, who redeemed you with His blood, may God the Holy Spirit, who sanctified you in the water of Holy Baptism, receive you into the company of saints and angels to await the resurrection and live in the light of His glory forevermore. Amen. The pastor then echoes these words at the graveside when he stands next to the casket and says: May God the Father, who created this body; may God the Son, who by His blood redeemed this body; may God the Holy Spirit, who by Holy Baptism sanctified this body to be His temple, keep these remains to the day of the resurrection of all flesh. Amen.
Dear friends in Christ, we cannot fully understand the mystery of the Most Holy Trinity. There are things about Himself that our Lord has revealed to us in Sacred Scripture. And as much as we are able, we should delight in studying and knowing these things because to learn about our triune God is to know Him. At the same time, understanding of the finer details of the doctrine of the Blessed Trinity is not a necessity. If the Athanasian Creed overwhelms you, there’s no reason to feel bad or “less than.” Perhaps hearing it more than once a year would help. But even if not, your salvation is not dependent upon right knowledge of complex theological doctrines. Your salvation is dependent upon your experience of the Blessed Trinity in Holy Baptism and in the life of faith. He has claimed you as His own, and His Spirit continues to dwell with you.
And so, dear friends in Christ, let us strive, first of all, to live in our Baptism. For a life of daily contrition and repentance, that is, a continual returning to Baptism and the name of the Blessed Trinity, is the essence of the Christian faith. Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and His ways past finding out! “For who has known the mind of the LORD? Or who has become His counselor?” “Or who has first given to Him And it shall be repaid to him?” For of Him and through Him and to Him are all things, to whom be glory forever. Amen. (Romans 11:33-35).
In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
