"The Majesty of God"
A sermon preached by the Rev. Christopher E. Yopp in the pulpit of Edgemont Chrsitian Church (Disciples of Christ), based on Genesis 1:1-2:4, Psalm 8 and Matthew 28:16-20.
I read of a preacher who proudly boasted that he does not preach doctrinal sermons. He said; “They are boring and people do not understand them nor can they relate to them.” He went on to say; “Furthermore, I am a preacher, not a theologian. I get down to the practical issues and focus on the struggles that Christians face daily. Now, while I understand this preacher’s philosophy, I don’t fully agree with his statement that he is not a theologian and his implication that theology isn’t practical nor applicable to our lives as Christians. You see, the fact is, everyone is a theologian to a certain extent. To understand this, you must first understand what the word “theology” means. The word “theology” comes from two Greek words, theos, meaning “God” and logos meaning “word” or “reason” or “understanding.” The Latin form of “theology” is defined as a “discourse about God.” And so, if you have ever waxed on anything pertaining to the mystery of God or faith, then you have acted as a theologian - one who thinks about God and faith. Now, personally, I love theology and I preach theology, because, after all, theology gets down to the very core of our existence - who we are as the people of God!
One of the things that I like about the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) is, we honor the Lectionary and the seasons of the church year. And the reason I like this is because it insures a witness to the whole Gospel of Jesus Christ. I mean, after all, how can we go through the season of Advent and not consider the doctrine of the incarnation? How can we go through Lent without contemplating the doctrine of the resurrection? Likewise, how can we embark upon the season of Pentecost without mentioning the doctrine of the Trinity? And so, here we are - Trinity Sunday!
The church has celebrated Trinity Sunday since the 10th century. Perhaps there is no greater mystery than the doctrine of the Trinity - God is one, yet God is three! It almost seems like a contradiction. God is one, yet God is three – I mean, to me, it’s an oxymoron. How can that be? Yet, it is a doctrine of the Church!
But let me begin by saying that the doctrine or the idea of the Trinity does not attempt to define God. Defining God is impossible! First of all, words cannot begin to describe something that is beyond words. We cannot begin to define something that is beyond definition, and to do so, is to limit God! And secondly, God is beyond our mere intellectual understanding. That is why God has created us spirit, so that we might have that Spirit-to-spirit communion and communication with God. And so, the doctrine of the Trinity only explains to us in a very elemental way, what God has chosen to reveal to us about God’s-self. To describe the tip of the iceberg above the water is not to describe the entire iceberg. And so, in the same way, the Trinity is not an explanation or definition of God, but simply a way of describing what God has chosen to reveal to us – it is a revelation of God.
Now, friends, let’s be honest. It is hard to wrap our tiny little brains around the doctrine of Trinity. Sure, we’ve all heard the shamrock idea: just as the shamrock is one plant with three leaves, so God is one God with three faces. Or maybe we’ve heard the water analogy: just as H2O can take on three forms: ice, liquid and steam, so God has three forms. Are these analogies helpful? Yes, to a certain degree. Yet, they are still limiting.
The truth is, the Trinity is a great mystery that is hard to understand and even harder to explain. Try to explain this to a child whose questions are endless or to an adult who is skeptical. But this doctrine lies at the very foundation of what we Christians believe and profess about God. Almost every creed of the church affirms the doctrine of the Trinity.
But the question is, is the Trinity just an obscure doctrine that we give lip service too because the church calendar tells us to do so or does it have anything to do with our daily living? What does the Trinity mean to you? Perhaps this is the question we are forced to ask ourselves on this Trinity Sunday.
In our Scripture Readings this morning and throughout our worship, we have heard about the three persons of the Trinity. We have recalled how God has revealed God’s self to us in three distinct ways.
One of the theologians of the early church, Tertullian, explained the Trinity in a metaphor. He said; “God the Father is like a deep root, the Son is the shoot that breaks forth into the world, and the Spirit is the bloom that spreads beauty and fragrance.” And what a beautiful thought!
One of the greatest things the Trinity teaches us about God is that God is constantly reaching out to humanity. The Creator yearns for a loving, intimate and personal relationship with creation. God wants to walk with us daily. God years for communion and fellowship with us. Through Christ, we have a picture of who God is and what God is like. Christ reveals to us God! And the Holy Spirit allows us to experience God’s beauty and fragrance - God’s eternal presence.
Randall opened our worship this morning with a beautiful reading of the Litany of Creation found in Genesis chapter 1. Those words recount the power of God the Creator. “In the beginning God” – the whole presence and being of God, “created the heavens and the earth.” A loving and powerful God made the universe in all its vastness, and complexity and mystery. This magnificent litany tells of God's creation of the world in an orderly fashion during a six-day period. Now, friends, I think it is important to realize, that the Bible is not meant to be understood or viewed as a science book. The Bible makes a religious statement rather than presenting a scientific hypothesis. While science may be able to give us plausible understanding of how and when the universe came into being, it cannot take us beyond the mystery of the beginning to God’s gracious spiritual purpose as this litany does. Here we see the One who is behind creation.
There is an interesting comparison between the Creation account of Genesis chapters 1 and 2 and the Re-creation account found in John chapter 1. In Genesis, we are told that God speaks and through God’s Word the physical realm comes into existence and chaos gives way to order, void gives way to beauty and darkness gives way to light. In John chapter 1, we are told that God once again acts, and through God’s Word – the Logos – Jesus, God brings redemption and salvation – bringing spiritual order and light to the spiritual chaos and darkness of this world.
In Psalm chapter 8, we see that the Psalmist reiterates the majesty of this litany of creation found in Genesis chapter 1. Here, the Psalmist celebrates what God has done and is doing in the universe in which we live. More than that, it states how we, as part of God’s creation, fit into the plan of God as conscious stewards of creation.
Psalm chapter 8 sings of the wonders of the universe and how they reveal to us the power of our Creator. The stars, and the planets, and the oceans, and the mountains - all of them came from God, the Master Designer and Architect. But, as the Psalmist reminds, God isn’t just concerned about the grandeur of the universe. God is also our loving parent. We have a place in this universe and a calling to fulfill. It is God who has created us in love and who calls us to live in love.
If you were going to take a trip to the moon and leave something there, what would it be? You know, to my understanding Psalm 8 is the first biblical text left on the moon. The Apollo mission left a disk containing messages from seventy-three nations. The Vatican contributed Psalm 8, which was our Responsorial Psalm this morning, as part of its message. One commentator has called this psalm the “Majesty of God and the glory of [humanity].”
The psalmist asks; “Who am I, and why am I here?” Certainly, we have all asked ourselves that question one time or another. And, without a doubt, some would have some different opinions. For instance, Karl Marx would probably define humanity in economic terms. Darwin would have said that humanity is essentially a highly developed animal. Freud may have said that humanity is an underdeveloped child. But the psalmist describes humanity’s significant purpose. We are a reflection of our Creator. We are an incarnation of God’s love. For we possess within us the very Spirit of the one who gives life amid chaos and disaster, amid darkness and confusion.
One of the ways in which God teaches us how to love creation and one another is in the person of Jesus Christ and in the presence of the Holy Spirit. In our Gospel Lesson this morning, Jesus commanded his followers: “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you” (Matthew 28:19-20). The love we find in the Trinity, the communion we find with one another, is not just for our own sakes. It’s for the sake of the world. It’s meant to be shared!
In her article, The Trinity: Relevant or Not? Carol Dillon shares about an icon of the Trinity that can be found in museum in St. Petersburg, Russia. The icon dates back to around 1400 A.D. Now, this article caught my eye, because I have recently taken an interest and am even a collector of icons. But for those of you who are unfamiliar with icons, they are pictures that are used in prayer, to help the worshiper to focus his or her heart upon God and to set the distractions of life aside. It is said that, “icons are a window into the heart of God.”
But this particular icon that Dillon was referring too, portrays the three persons of the Trinity as three divine images or persons, sitting around a table together. The head of each person is inclined toward the other, so that there seems to be a circular movement around the table, connecting the three to one another. On the table is a chalice. Dillon writes; “What this image reveals to me is, in God there is a living, loving community. From the beginning of time until the end of the age, God - Creator, Redeemer and Sustainer has existed as a holy community of love and grace. God is community.” And what a beautiful thought!
And now, we as God’s children are invited into that holy community. We are invited into the holy dance of the Creator, Redeemer and Sustainer. We join in the dance when we respond to the love of God by loving God and one another.
And so, as we reflect the Trinity, don’t let it be just a vague, dry doctrine. Don’t write it off as something that’s just too complicated to understand. Don’t leave it to the seminary professors to debate over. Let’s think about the community of love that has been within God since the beginning of time. Let’s accept God’s invitation to join in that community. As we see real, concrete examples of how God has created us, redeemed us, and sustained us, let us respond with love and gratitude. Let us add our love to the Trinity’s communion of love, so that we might become a reflection of our Creator, our Redeemer and our Sustainer – the Three-in-One!
One of the things that I like about the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) is, we honor the Lectionary and the seasons of the church year. And the reason I like this is because it insures a witness to the whole Gospel of Jesus Christ. I mean, after all, how can we go through the season of Advent and not consider the doctrine of the incarnation? How can we go through Lent without contemplating the doctrine of the resurrection? Likewise, how can we embark upon the season of Pentecost without mentioning the doctrine of the Trinity? And so, here we are - Trinity Sunday!
The church has celebrated Trinity Sunday since the 10th century. Perhaps there is no greater mystery than the doctrine of the Trinity - God is one, yet God is three! It almost seems like a contradiction. God is one, yet God is three – I mean, to me, it’s an oxymoron. How can that be? Yet, it is a doctrine of the Church!
But let me begin by saying that the doctrine or the idea of the Trinity does not attempt to define God. Defining God is impossible! First of all, words cannot begin to describe something that is beyond words. We cannot begin to define something that is beyond definition, and to do so, is to limit God! And secondly, God is beyond our mere intellectual understanding. That is why God has created us spirit, so that we might have that Spirit-to-spirit communion and communication with God. And so, the doctrine of the Trinity only explains to us in a very elemental way, what God has chosen to reveal to us about God’s-self. To describe the tip of the iceberg above the water is not to describe the entire iceberg. And so, in the same way, the Trinity is not an explanation or definition of God, but simply a way of describing what God has chosen to reveal to us – it is a revelation of God.
Now, friends, let’s be honest. It is hard to wrap our tiny little brains around the doctrine of Trinity. Sure, we’ve all heard the shamrock idea: just as the shamrock is one plant with three leaves, so God is one God with three faces. Or maybe we’ve heard the water analogy: just as H2O can take on three forms: ice, liquid and steam, so God has three forms. Are these analogies helpful? Yes, to a certain degree. Yet, they are still limiting.
The truth is, the Trinity is a great mystery that is hard to understand and even harder to explain. Try to explain this to a child whose questions are endless or to an adult who is skeptical. But this doctrine lies at the very foundation of what we Christians believe and profess about God. Almost every creed of the church affirms the doctrine of the Trinity.
But the question is, is the Trinity just an obscure doctrine that we give lip service too because the church calendar tells us to do so or does it have anything to do with our daily living? What does the Trinity mean to you? Perhaps this is the question we are forced to ask ourselves on this Trinity Sunday.
In our Scripture Readings this morning and throughout our worship, we have heard about the three persons of the Trinity. We have recalled how God has revealed God’s self to us in three distinct ways.
One of the theologians of the early church, Tertullian, explained the Trinity in a metaphor. He said; “God the Father is like a deep root, the Son is the shoot that breaks forth into the world, and the Spirit is the bloom that spreads beauty and fragrance.” And what a beautiful thought!
One of the greatest things the Trinity teaches us about God is that God is constantly reaching out to humanity. The Creator yearns for a loving, intimate and personal relationship with creation. God wants to walk with us daily. God years for communion and fellowship with us. Through Christ, we have a picture of who God is and what God is like. Christ reveals to us God! And the Holy Spirit allows us to experience God’s beauty and fragrance - God’s eternal presence.
Randall opened our worship this morning with a beautiful reading of the Litany of Creation found in Genesis chapter 1. Those words recount the power of God the Creator. “In the beginning God” – the whole presence and being of God, “created the heavens and the earth.” A loving and powerful God made the universe in all its vastness, and complexity and mystery. This magnificent litany tells of God's creation of the world in an orderly fashion during a six-day period. Now, friends, I think it is important to realize, that the Bible is not meant to be understood or viewed as a science book. The Bible makes a religious statement rather than presenting a scientific hypothesis. While science may be able to give us plausible understanding of how and when the universe came into being, it cannot take us beyond the mystery of the beginning to God’s gracious spiritual purpose as this litany does. Here we see the One who is behind creation.
There is an interesting comparison between the Creation account of Genesis chapters 1 and 2 and the Re-creation account found in John chapter 1. In Genesis, we are told that God speaks and through God’s Word the physical realm comes into existence and chaos gives way to order, void gives way to beauty and darkness gives way to light. In John chapter 1, we are told that God once again acts, and through God’s Word – the Logos – Jesus, God brings redemption and salvation – bringing spiritual order and light to the spiritual chaos and darkness of this world.
In Psalm chapter 8, we see that the Psalmist reiterates the majesty of this litany of creation found in Genesis chapter 1. Here, the Psalmist celebrates what God has done and is doing in the universe in which we live. More than that, it states how we, as part of God’s creation, fit into the plan of God as conscious stewards of creation.
Psalm chapter 8 sings of the wonders of the universe and how they reveal to us the power of our Creator. The stars, and the planets, and the oceans, and the mountains - all of them came from God, the Master Designer and Architect. But, as the Psalmist reminds, God isn’t just concerned about the grandeur of the universe. God is also our loving parent. We have a place in this universe and a calling to fulfill. It is God who has created us in love and who calls us to live in love.
If you were going to take a trip to the moon and leave something there, what would it be? You know, to my understanding Psalm 8 is the first biblical text left on the moon. The Apollo mission left a disk containing messages from seventy-three nations. The Vatican contributed Psalm 8, which was our Responsorial Psalm this morning, as part of its message. One commentator has called this psalm the “Majesty of God and the glory of [humanity].”
The psalmist asks; “Who am I, and why am I here?” Certainly, we have all asked ourselves that question one time or another. And, without a doubt, some would have some different opinions. For instance, Karl Marx would probably define humanity in economic terms. Darwin would have said that humanity is essentially a highly developed animal. Freud may have said that humanity is an underdeveloped child. But the psalmist describes humanity’s significant purpose. We are a reflection of our Creator. We are an incarnation of God’s love. For we possess within us the very Spirit of the one who gives life amid chaos and disaster, amid darkness and confusion.
One of the ways in which God teaches us how to love creation and one another is in the person of Jesus Christ and in the presence of the Holy Spirit. In our Gospel Lesson this morning, Jesus commanded his followers: “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you” (Matthew 28:19-20). The love we find in the Trinity, the communion we find with one another, is not just for our own sakes. It’s for the sake of the world. It’s meant to be shared!
In her article, The Trinity: Relevant or Not? Carol Dillon shares about an icon of the Trinity that can be found in museum in St. Petersburg, Russia. The icon dates back to around 1400 A.D. Now, this article caught my eye, because I have recently taken an interest and am even a collector of icons. But for those of you who are unfamiliar with icons, they are pictures that are used in prayer, to help the worshiper to focus his or her heart upon God and to set the distractions of life aside. It is said that, “icons are a window into the heart of God.”
But this particular icon that Dillon was referring too, portrays the three persons of the Trinity as three divine images or persons, sitting around a table together. The head of each person is inclined toward the other, so that there seems to be a circular movement around the table, connecting the three to one another. On the table is a chalice. Dillon writes; “What this image reveals to me is, in God there is a living, loving community. From the beginning of time until the end of the age, God - Creator, Redeemer and Sustainer has existed as a holy community of love and grace. God is community.” And what a beautiful thought!
And now, we as God’s children are invited into that holy community. We are invited into the holy dance of the Creator, Redeemer and Sustainer. We join in the dance when we respond to the love of God by loving God and one another.
And so, as we reflect the Trinity, don’t let it be just a vague, dry doctrine. Don’t write it off as something that’s just too complicated to understand. Don’t leave it to the seminary professors to debate over. Let’s think about the community of love that has been within God since the beginning of time. Let’s accept God’s invitation to join in that community. As we see real, concrete examples of how God has created us, redeemed us, and sustained us, let us respond with love and gratitude. Let us add our love to the Trinity’s communion of love, so that we might become a reflection of our Creator, our Redeemer and our Sustainer – the Three-in-One!
posted by Pastor Christopher @ 12:51 AM
<< Home