February 20, 2005

June 7, = 2009: Trinity Sunday

Rev Ken Wratten at St. Stephen’s San Jose

Isaiah 6:1-8 &nbs= p; Isaiah seeing the Heavenly Host, understands his unworthiness, ‘send me̵= 7;.

Canticle 13

Romans 8:12-17 All led by the HS are children of God (made worthy)

John 3:1-17 = ; Nicodemus meets Jesus; must be born from above; ancestry not =3D worthy

Last night was our daughter Lau= rie’s birthday, so the TV was only on for a while before the birthday cake, to wa= tch some golf. What a great choice golf was. I am at the point now that I need = to feel rested up and mentally ready to watch the news. There is very little g= ood news in the news. A friend recently offered the observation that news is re= ally just a sales tactic. ‘Reporting from San Francisco, a horrific explosion billowed= thick smoke and flames a hundred feet into the air today. Were people killed? We’ll be right back after this commercial message.’ And so begi= ns another half hour of mostly frightening stories, sprinkled between about fi= fty commercials in the half hour. What do we = do with scripture’s challenge to begin a new life, in the middle of this barr= age of chaos?

Last week was Pentecost Sunday, when we celebrated God sending His Holy Spirit upon every believer. Today is Trinity Sunday, when we acknowledge that the Holy Spirit is more than a gift from God, but it is God Herself. God the Spirit is often called Sophia in t= he Old Testament, which is the Greek word for Wisdom. Some people see the Holy Spirit as the feminine, mothering side of God; and I support that view.

In the Old Testament reading to= day, we heard the description of the prophet Isaiah’s visions of heaven. Isaiah was a scribe in the royal court in Jer= usalem arou= nd 740 BC. But in that year he was given a vision of the royal court of heaven, wi= th seraphs – six winged angels – flying in front of God’s throne, and worshipping God so loudly that the foundations of heaven shook = like there was a strong earthquake.

This sight showed Isaiah how sm= all, and imperfect, and unworthy he was to even be where he found himself. But G= od had him cleansed, and made worthy; simply because God wanted to. And when Isaiah realized how loving and generous God is to accept this court scribe = with all his failings, Isaiah submitted himself fully and completely to God̵= 7;s service. “Here am I, send me.”

Isaiah was not given much credibility by the people of Jud= ah. But= he never left his assignment. He was Israel’s greatest prophet during the reign of five kings. After his lifetime, his insights into Israel’s future and into salvation history became more and more clear. He was quoted= at least 50 times in the New Testament.

Before Jesus’ ascension, = God the Holy Spirit was given to selected individuals like Isaiah, for empowerm= ent to accomplish a particular task they were being given by God. But now a new= era of time has arrived. Now Jesus has ascended to heaven to be with God the Father; and on Pentecost Day God has sent God the Holy Spirit to be with, a= nd to live within, every single person who believes in Jesus Christ. <= /span>

Nicodemus was a Jewish intellec= tual trying very hard to figure out how the life Jesus was preaching works; in t= he midst of Israel’s subjugation to brutal Roman rule, a life of relative poverty by most, and Hellenism becoming more and more of a threat to the existence of Israel’s religion and culture, how are people supposed t= o realistically find God’s Kingdom for themselves?

Nicodemus was a member of the S= anhedrin, the Jewish high council in Jerusalem. Filled with learning; he still saw something in Jesus that lured him.

Jews understood Israel to be God’s chosen people. Having ancestry from Abraham defined being a chi= ld of God. Jesus explained the confusing news; NO. Being a child of God does n= ot depend on blood line.

John 3:17; “God did not s= end his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.” God had come to the whole world, not just the Jews.<= /span>

John 3:5; “No one can ent= er the Kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit.” <= /o:p>

Everyone must be born again, bo= rn spiritually; that is to say, the K of G is personal; not national or ethnic= or inherited.

Luke 17:21; Jesus said, “= The kingdom of God does not come with your careful observation, nor will people say, ‘Here it is’, or ‘There it is,’, because the Kingdom of God is within you.”

K of G has already begun in the hearts of believers.

It will be fully realized when Jesus returns.

So how do you begin living in t= he K of G now?

Don’t let your work and y= our deadlines define you.

Don’t let people who irri= tate you, or wear you out, or hurt you, define you.

Don’t let the chaos in the world define you.

Have your relationship with God define you.

On Trinity Sunday we acknowledge the three relationships we have with our one God.

God the Father created the plan= for humankind to be in loving, agape, relationship with Him and with each other= .

God the Son took on full humani= ty to model that love,
to make us worthy to be in relationship with God,
and to open the way for the Holy Spirit to come to every one of us.

God the Holy Spirit gives us ne= w life, a life aware of our spiritual nature,
a life that sees beyond the circumstances of this world;
knowing in the core of our being the sovereign power and holiness of God; <= br> gratefully taking up our adoption as children of God;
accepting the truth that God the Holy Spirit lives in us,
and making our choice to ask the Holy Spirit to guide and empower our life;= a life lived for God.

May God’s Trinity of Being fill you with awe at who God is, and who God calls you to be. Come = Holy Spirit. Amen.