God’s Love Overflowing
Proverbs 8:1-11, 22-31; Romans 5:1-5; John 16:12-15[1]
When you think about
religion as our human efforts to worship and serve God, you would think that a
concept so basic to the human experience would be consistent across the board.
But the opposite is true. The cultures of the world throughout history have
held many beliefs about “God.” In ancient religions, the “gods” were simply a
picture of human impulses on a large scale. But while the “gods” may have
embodied the best human qualities, they also embodied the worst. Other cultures
have approached their understanding of “God” through nature, and some even
found their way to a “benevolent” notion of God. But our notions of “God” have
always been as varied as the human family is.
Even in the Christian
faith there are very different images of God. Some see God as a stickler for
rules, always eager to punish those who go astray. And in many cases, those who
understand God like that have come up with all kinds of things you have to do
in order to stay on God’s “good side” so you can go to heaven when you die.
Others have such a casual view of God that they turn the creator of the vast
universe into their “buddy.” And they think this “buddy” of theirs is a
personal “genie in a bottle” who will make their every wish come true. How you
understand God makes a difference!
That’s why we observe
“Trinity Sunday.” It’s a day for us to recall that there are important reasons
we worship one God as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. I realize that may sound
like a “stretch” to some. A lot of people these days think it doesn’t matter
what you believe, as long as you have some kind of faith. But I would insist
that the Bible bears witness to God in this unique way of understanding that we
call “Trinity.” And it’s not just about making sure we follow the Bible.
Believing in, worshipping, and serving God as “Trinity” makes a big difference
in what your faith and your life look like.
Our scripture lessons
for today point out some of the reasons why it’s important that we understand
God in this way. In our lesson from Proverbs, we get a better glimpse of what
it means to say “I believe in God the Father Almighty, maker of heaven and
earth.” There is something intimidating about the notion that God created all
the galaxies we can see with the new James Webb Space Telescope. But our lesson
shows us a different side: God enjoying creation and delighting in the human
family. Creation was not only an expression of God’s power, but also of God’s
love, overflowing in the beauty of the world that is “very good” (Gen 1:31).
Part of what it means to believe in “Trinity” is that we see God not only as
all-powerful but also as one who takes great delight in loving all creation.
Our lesson from John’s
Gospel reminds us of what it means to say, “I believe in Jesus Christ God’s
only Son our Lord.” As we’ve seen in our journey through John’s Gospel during
Easter, Jesus’ whole life was one act of demonstrating God’s love for us. By
coming in human flesh, he showed us what God’s love looks like. By serving “the
least of these” (Mt 25:40), he demonstrated God’s love for everyone. And by
giving his life on the cross, Jesus revealed just how far God is willing to go
to draw us into the embrace of love shared eternally by Father, Son, and Holy
Spirit. Part of what it means to believe in “Trinity” is that we know God’s
love for us through Jesus Christ.
Our lesson from Romans
reminds us of what it means to say, “I believe in the Holy Spirit.” God not
only poured out his love when he created all things “very good.” And God not
only poured out his love by sending Jesus to show us what love looks like in
real life. God also continually pours out his love in our hearts through the
Holy Spirit. Again, as we have seen in John’s Gospel, the Spirit is our
constant companion, the one who leads us to faith, who shows us the truth of
what God is doing in and among us, and who guides us daily. Part of what it
means to believe in “Trinity” is that we trust that God’s love for us means
that he continually accompanies, guides, sustains, and empowers us.
In the Bible, it takes
all three, God the Creator, Jesus the Redeemer, and the Spirit who sustains us,
to fully understand who God is. If it’s true that “God is love” (1 John 4:8),
it should come as no surprise that the one God who is three—Creator, Redeemer,
and Sustainer—exists in a relationship of love and community. This is the image
of God in the Bible: God in relationship, God in community, God involved in our
lives. This is central to our faith, because the love shared between the
Father, Son, and Holy Spirit is the basis for everything God does in our lives,
for all that God does in our community of faith, and for all that God does
through us as we serve others.
The point of the Trinity is that God is a God
of love—not just love that observes from afar, but love that reaches out to us
and seeks a relationship with us. The God who creates and redeems and sustains
us is a God who shows us a love that is constantly present among us, that gets
involved in our lives, and that takes action to fill our lives with love. About
twenty years ago, the PCUSA commissioned a study of our understanding of God as
“Trinity.” That doesn’t take any kind of stretch of imagination! The (inevitable)
report encouraged churches to explore ways to include affirmations of our faith
in God as “Trinity,” using the range of expressions in the Bible and in the
history of the Church. And the overarching theme was framed in the title of the
report: “The Trinity: God’s Love Overflowing.” I can think of no better way to
understand God: love overflowing in and through all creation and in and through
every one of our lives!
[1] ©
2022 Alan Brehm. A sermon delivered by Rev. Alan Brehm Ph. D. on 6/12/2022 for
Hickman Presbyterian Church, Hickman, NE.
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