Trinity Sunday 2018
Notes
Transcript
Today is trinity Sunday. It is the one big church day that is not about something God has done in history like the incarnation at Christmas or the Resurrection at Easter, but is about who God is. Now everyday Sunday is in some way Trinity Sunday, just like every Sunday is an Easter celebration, but today we take time to remember and celebrate our triune God. That God is one being and three persons. Three and one.
Today is trinity Sunday. Now everyday Sunday is in some way Trinity Sunday, just like every Sunday is an Easter celebration, but today we take time to remember and celebrate our triune God. That God is one being and three persons. Three and one.
Develop the idea that we are made in the image of the triune God.
God is unity and diversity. The one and the many.
And no Christians are not just really bad mathematicians. God’s triunity is essential for Christian faith. Of all the most important Christian beliefs this is probably the one that is least understood and most neglected.
are made in the image of the triune God.
And it is this.
And that is we are made in the image of the triune God.
are made in the image of the triune God.
God’s triunity has so many implications for our lives, if we want to know God, we must know him as trinity.
And God is triune, or another way is to say God is love.
And far from being some weird math problem, God’s triune nature actually matters for us, because we are made in the image of the triune God, God made each one of us as a unique representative of himself on earth. We are living breathing holy icons of God on earth. Images of the divine. Humanity is God’s image, created as diverse individuals and yet united and bonded together.
God’s triune nature actually matters for us, one reason is because we are made in the image of the triune God, God made each one of us as a unique representative of himself on earth. We are living breathing holy icons of God on earth. Images of the divine. Humanity is God’s image, created as diverse individuals and yet united and bonded together.
We are made in the image of the triune God.
FCF: But there is a problem, and it is the problem of unity and diversity, how can one individual person completely unique be in community without losing his unique identity. Or how can a community have unique individuals without losing its unique identity as a whole.
But the
We are
In marriage we struggle to be unified without feeling like one person has to disappear. Or as churches we struggle to be united as one, with so many different ages and cultures of people.
And we see this in families, you are part of your family, but yet distinct from them, yet in some ways inseparable.
But many times we can have a truncated view of what it means to be made in the image of God. Maybe it has become an empty word that basically means people are important. Or maybe we have simply lost our sense of wonder people, and have lost the ability to see icons of the living God in our very own home. Or maybe it is because we have bought into a kind of naturalism that sees people as nothing more than chemicals reacting.
But God in his word reveals to us his triunity and as his images bearers gives us the anwser to the problem of unity and diversity.
But while distortion is there, his image is never gone. Every sing person on the earth is made in the likeness of God in his image as his icon on earth.
We have lost our sense of wonder as we stare at icons of the living God
But God’s word tells us that we are made in his image, the image of the triune God.
We are made in the image of the triune God.
And if it is true that we are made in his triune image, what does it imply for our lives? It means we are made to love one another.
FCF:
Love.
And our passage shows us we shoulld
We should love creativity, love diversity, and love unity.
First our passage shows us that the image of the triune God is made to love in
Diversity
Diversity
Love creativity
Love creativity
God is himself diverse. Let us make, we read in Genesis. Because we can read the Old Testament in light of the New we see when God say us, he is not simply using a royal we. In the New testament most clearly that God has revealed himself as three distinct persons. The father, the son and the Holy Spirit. Each are unique persons. Jesus commaned us to be baptised in the name of the father the son and the Holy Spirit. We also see each person of the trinity has taken on different roles or different jobs in our salvation. So in Ephesians we see that it is the Father who chooses or plans.
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. In love
And each has taken
:
Then just a few verses later we see that it is Jesus the son who accomplishes executes our salvation
In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace,
Eph
And we then just a little bit later we see the Holy Spirit applying our salvation
In him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit,
:
The father, son and Spirit are different, they are diversity.
And when God made humanity he made us diverse. male and female. And not only that each individual human being is different. Not only in physical makeup, but in thoughts, and personalities, languages, and cultures. Different ways of relating to power, and authority, social responsibility, and mannerisms. He made all nations, look with me at acts 17:26-27
When God made humanity he made them diverse male and female.
And he made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined allotted periods and the boundaries of their dwelling place,
And he made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined allotted periods and the boundaries of their dwelling place, that they should seek God, and perhaps feel their way toward him and find him. Yet he is actually not far from each one of us,
After hoisting it up, they used supports to undergird the ship. Then, fearing that they would run aground on the Syrtis, they lowered the gear, and thus they were driven along.
Acts 2
God was multicultural before being multicultural was cool.
God was multicultural before multicultural was cool.
I
Tells us that God is love. God is not simply loving, but is love. This a proof for a triune God. This means that God has to be multiple because for him to be love implies that there is something or someone else to be loved.
So when we see in
And for God to be love as part of his nature
Let us make man in our own image, we see the triune God creating. And God created because he is love. Because love is generative, love spills over, love moves to create. God in his infinite love created us for himself.
But Genesis does not tell us why he did, more just that he did. But since we know that God is love, we know that it is in his nature to create, to generate. Because love is generative, love spills over, love moves to create.
Second we are made in the image of the triune God who is love.
So the responsibilities we see God give humanity in verses 26 and 28 of creating, cultivating, and generating is because we are made in his image of love. This creating, cultivating is humanity's call to image a God who is love.
Illustration:
As an American I have an idea of personal space bubble, that is well culturally American. You know if am walking down the sidewalk with a friend there is this unspoken cultural agreement there is no touching. If my hand accidentally grazes your hand, I will probably say sorry man didn't mean to do that.
But when I spent A summer in Kazakhstan on a cultural exchange project. I experienced a different understanding of personal space.
And it was my first time being not in the majority culture.
A long while ago I spent a summer in Kazakhstan on a cultural exchange project. And it was my first time being not in the majority culture. And while we were over there I experienced being a part of a community that did things differently than I did.
Well once I had been there for a few weeks and made some friends something happened. It was like my invisible bubble disappeared.
When I would walk to the internet cafe with Danyar or Azimat, our arms would almost be interlocked. For most Americans that space is reserved for our girlfriend or wife, but over there that is just friend space.
The personal space bubble was different over there. And if I were to like pull back and not walk that close it would be like a friend here walking on the other side of the road. We would be like is everything okay, you okay, do I stink or something?
Application:
First comes love then marriage then a baby in a baby cariage
Application:
And we are to image God in cultivating and filling, cultivating creation so that all creation flourishes and grows and being fruitful and multiplying generating more of God image on earth.
Both if the ruling and filling are generated from love. It is easy to see how when love generates
Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. And God blessed them. And God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.”
People are diverse, and cultures are diverse because God made us in his image and he is diverse.
But while we are images of God, we are broken images. So sin creeps in and tries to squeeze out God glorifying diversity.
Look with me at
we might ask “why did God who is perfectly complete, lacking absolutely nothing, not needing anything, completely happy and content in himself, why did God create? Genesis does not really answer that question directly but we get a hint in verse 26 when God says
One way this happens is by an overpowering force for sameness that squeezes out God’s designed diversity.
Now most people generally like the idea of diversity, because from a distance it looks so compelling but when the rubber meets the road our sin nature can kick in, and the differences that can look nice from a distance are a different story when they are close, especially if it has implications for us individually.
Whether we face the diversity in our marriage, or a small group or a church, social club, or nation.
And the force for sameness is strong, and the strategies that we employ to get squeeze out diversity will look different for different people,
Some people use compliance, you covering up what you think, feel and do to fit in with others.
Some are not as compliant, but more rebellious, “you can’t make me..” that’s not me ain’t no way am I going to do that or think that.
Others get into power struggles, trying to get others to change and conform to your wishes, how those people should be more loving or or accepting, or reverent, or expressive.
Or it can simply look like distancing yourself, and break off relationship all together and peace out.
But because we are made in the image of our triune God we actually can experience diversity in a unified body. And we can love differences of gender, age, thoughts, culture, actions, and expressions.
One is to see difference as bad or wrong. So in a marriage we can be frustrated if our spouse thinks differently than us. Sometimes pushing too hard for unity can squelch God’s designed diversity.
Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.
Sin: diferent is bad,
Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.”
English Standard Version Chapter 1
Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness.
First god said let us make Man in our own image.
When we come
Genesis 1:26-27
And as we experience the differences of others our first response should be to seek to understand before moralizing something right or wrong.
Or how often have we hear or said “oh them they are just like so and so” or she is just like me. Well
We can and should love God’s created diversity.
“Let us”, who is God talking to, but himself. And while it may simply be a fancy way of talking, Christians see the triune God because in the New Testament God has revealed himself as one and three.
Because God is love he made us: In his infinite love he made us.
And because we are made in God’s triune image we should
Love In Unity
Love In Unity
God is one.
In we see something of a an Old Testament confession of faith
“Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one.
As opposed to the many gods the nations worshiped, the Israelite’s worshiped one God. And in the new testament we see the onness of God affirmed as well such as in
There is one body and one Spirit—just as you were called to the one hope that belongs to your call— one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.
Ephesians 4:
Christians worship one God, one God in trinity, and trinity in unity. Neither conflating the distinct three persons nor dividing them in such a way to make them not one. The Father, Son and Spirit are one, none of them were created, they are the same in glory, and equal in majesty. None is before or after another, all are eternal.
God is one, one Lord, one almighty.
And as image bearers of God, like God and unlike God, we are created to be one, united to one another. Most intimately we see this in marriage in Genesis 2
Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and they shall become one flesh.
:
The two shall become one
And we also see that Christians are to be one. Jesus prays in
“I do not ask for these only, but also for those who will believe in me through their word, that they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me.
We are to be one like Jesus and the Father are one.
Or as we read in Ephesians
There is one body and one Spirit—just as you were called to the one hope that belongs to your call— one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.
:4-
Like God is one we as his image bearers are also to be one with one another.
Illustration:
There is a part in St. Augustine’s confessions where he is talking about the solace of friendship. And he recounts a friendship he had when he was a student. He goes into detail about how the depth of love he had for his friend and this union that existed between the two of them. But then he friend became sick and eventually died. He felt his friends death as if it were his own. He said: “The loss of life of those who die become the death of those still living.”
Those of you who have lost someone that is dear to you, knit to your soul know what he is talking about. It as if a part of you is missing. You in some way die with them.
Augustine believed that when each person loves another as himself, there is a powerful unifying force, that when we love another as our self, it makes a unity out of the diversity. it makes one out of the many. The Latin phrase he used being ex pluribus unum, E pluribus unum out of the many, one.
You might recognize the phrase because it is on all the spare change in your pocket.
Application:
When image bearers of God love one another as himself we make one out of many. We make unity out of diversity. The bond of love unifies people.
When we love as Augustine loved his friend we experience a union of souls beig knit together. In the Old Testament we see that David loved Jonathan as his own soul. In marriage we see the two become one.
God made people to reflect not only his diversity, but his unity.
When each person loves the other as much as himself it make one out of the many
And so just like sin can creep in and try to squeeze out diversity with an powerful drive toward sameness, sin can creep in and try to push out unity by extenuate differences, and make unity seem impossible.
Or as someone once said we have a whole lot of plubribus and not a lot of unum.
True diversity can only come when there is true unity.
For true unity to happen first there has to be a shared overarching story, or grand narrative. Where did we come from, whats the problem, where are we going.
So for example if you don’t think global warming is happening then you could not be a member in good standing of Green Peace. You can’t be unified if you don’t share an overarching story.
In a similar way in the church for us to be unified we need to share the same story of God who created this world, that humanity rebelled, that God has redeemed this world and will come again to judge the living and dead.
So if we want true unity we need to constantly be telling and remembering our story together. People love stories, it is like we were made for them. We watch TV, read books, listen to music, because we love the drama of stories.
Shared stories give us a common language, a common vision, a common life together. We reenact God’s overarching story together through our common practices of baptism and the Lord’s Supper.
We share it together. And as we live together we are being knit together in love.
The second thing we need for true unity is self giving love. With out this you cannot have unity. If we constantly push for our own self interest and often find our selves asking the question “what about me?” we won’t experience unity.
If instead of asking the question what do I want, we ask what do they want, you want, and we give ourselves to them.
well we will taste and know the bond of love that is unity.
You know we are going to go to two services in the fall and the services will be slightly different. We will be one church with two expressions. And some of you may have an affinity for one expression more than the other. But with these two expressions we have an opportunity to experience unity and diversity and celebrate each others joy.
And with these two expressions we have an opportunity celebrate with one another
That we are so bound together in love that even if this service or that service is not your cup of tea, you feel the joy of the one whose it is.
But what I hope it looks like is that we are so bound together in love that we experince joy with
So you can say, oh so and so is so reassured in God’s love and comforted by his faithfulness when they confess with the church Nicene Creed every week. Or so and so is so they are so enraptured by the third song we sing it is as if they are lifted into heaven itself.
It is not inauthentic to do so, because when we experience the unity that comes from loving one another their joy becomes our joy.
And this unity, this bond of love begins to spin in reciprocity becoming something like a perpetual motion machine of love and joy.
Around and around and around we go in a state of perpetual self giving love.
Conclusion:
And this is the life we were made for in God. We are made in his image in the image of the God who is love.
And he is in a perpetual state of self giving love, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit in a perceptual circle dance of love and joy.
And in his infinite love he made us for himself, and when we had fallen into sin, God, who so loved the world, gave of himself, to bring us back, and by his Spirit poured his love into our hearts,
So that we might live as restored images of the God who is love, perfectly diverse and unified, and join with him in his perceptual circle dance of self giving love and joy.
God who
God is one, and Jesus prayed that we would be one.