Worship – The Way Into The Trinity
Sermon preached at The Church of the Holy Trinity, Philadelphia on Sunday June 7th 2009 by The Reverend Alan Neale
“Worship – The Way Into The Trinity”
Today is Trinity Sunday… the day when churches throughout the world celebrate this glorious, engaging and always challenging doctrine of the Trinity… three Persons, yet One God. But for us, it is also our Patronal Festival… the day when we celebrate the Naming of our Church… The Church of the Holy Trinity!
Yesterday two members of this church reminded me of the challenge of today. One, noting the display of our historic and wonderful silver, said, “Well, Alan, tomorrow that silver will attract our attention… you’ll really have to dazzle to compete”.
And the other told me the story of a previous Rector, Jack Smart. During his tenure, Jack became aware of a man who only worshipped at the church on Trinity Sunday. At last Jack could contain himself no longer and said to the man, “Now… some people worship, come to church, only on Easter Day or at Christmas… but why only Trinity Sunday?”.
“Oh” the infrequent worshipper said, “I come on Trinity Sunday to see again how you are going to dig yourself out of it!”.
Well, friends, today… rather than “dig my way out”, I am drawn and excited by the opportunity to “dig my way into” the Trinity… not so much into a cerebral, dry, academic exposition of this creedal statement but rather into the vibrant, dynamic, alive experience of this doctrine first defined centuries ago.
Many years ago I was presented with this famous, if not notorious, definition of the game of cricket (perhaps you’ve heard it?)… You have two sides one out in the field and one in. Each man that’s in the side that goes in goes out and when he’s out he come in and the next man goes in until he’s out. When they are all out the side that’s out comes in and the side that’s been in goes out and tries to get those coming in out. When both sides have been in and out including not outs, that’s the end of the game. HOWZAT!
No matter how many times you recite, or read, this classic definition… you will not understand the game, in fact you may even become more mesmerically (is that really a word?) confused! But… actually play the game, get involved, engaged… ah that’s the way to understand.
And so it is with the doctrine of the Trinity.
There is, as far as I know, no defined exposition of the doctrine of the Holy Trinity in Scripture… what we discover are illusions, references to the Trinity and whenever they occur… they involve, engage the participants.
Today’s reading from Isaiah (6:1-8)… is there a reference to the Triune God as the angels worship “Holy… Holy… Holy”? And, even more tentative, is the Lord’s question “Who will go for us?” indicative of plurality within the Godhead? All very tentative, yes? But all involving participation… first, worship and then, service!
The reading from Romans (8: 12-17) speaks of the Father, the Spirit and Christ… but in the context of our prayers and spiritual living.
And the Gospel from John 3 sets before the reader God and His Son, and the moving of the Spirit… but, again, all experienced in the work of spiritual birth and spiritual growth.
I believe that today is not for armchair theologians, a day of theological debate; nor is it the day for the mere recitation of historic truths formulated by the church in ages past in a philosophical time quite distinct from our own.
No, I believe that today is the day for Christian engagement, action, involvement, participation in God, in the Trinity… and we do this best by our worship! Which is, by the way, the sole purpose of this Church as defined in its charter of 1856! Part Three, Section 1 Purpose The purpose for which the Corporation is formed is the support of the public worship of Almighty… My, what a way to honour our founders and those who have gone before… the worship of Almighty God.
And Isaiah chapter 6 speaks to us clearly of what should be the nature of our worship.
Verse 1: Constant Worship.
Verses 5 & 7: Transforming Worship
Verse 8: Responsive Worship.
Constant Worship. “In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord [in the Temple]” – 6:1. He came to reign when he was 16, and his reign lasted for 52 years – the second longest in the history of the people of Israel. Reformer, military hero, inventor, man of the soil; King Uzziah was all these. But his overriding legacy was of a man faithful to the Lord. Not too difficult to worship during his reign but what of worship in the year that he died… a time of anxiety, turmoil, uncertainty. All the more reason to be in the Temple worshipping the Lord. Constant worship… It was recently said of Prime Minister Gordon Brown, “He is a fair-weather patriot whose pride is rooted in political expediency”. We are not to be “fair-weather” worshippers of our Triune and One God. In all places, in all situations, in all moods, in all successes, in all failures… let us worship the Lord with constancy!
Transforming Worship. “And I said, ‘Woe is me… I am a man of unclean lips’. Then… a live coal touched my mouth… and the angel said, ‘Your guilt is departed and your sin is blotted out’” – 6:5&7. Authentic worship will, it must, transform us… not one of us should leave church today exactly the same as we came in… we leave perhaps encouraged… inspired… directed… challenged or all and more of the above. In the previous parish in which I served, I began two men’s Bible studies. Vividly I still remember one morning of my experience of sometimes hurtful, caustic, insensitive comments made as people leave church. One man, puzzled, asked, “But who can that be?”. Ah, one of the eternal questions… how can it be that a service of worship leaves us unchanged? Authentic worship is always transforming. Oh how I love Bishop Claude Peyton’s description of the bona fide, legitimate church… “a welcoming community of miraculous expectation and transformation”.
And, Responsive Worship. “And I heard the voice of the Lord saying, ‘Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?’. And I said, ‘Here am I. Send me’” – 6:8. During last Sunday’s “Conversations About God”, someone remarked that probably the first thing Isaiah said after the hot coal touched his lips was “Ouch!” – if so, he soon moved beyond that! He said neither “Ouch” nor “Here am I, send him” but rather “Here I am. Send me!”.
Today the charge is given… please give to support the ministry and worship of this Church. “Lord, here I am, send me”.
In the Fall we will need volunteers to assist with our Sunday School. “Lord, here I am, send me”.
Today is not the day to consider how to “dig our way out of” the theological niceties and conundrums of Trinitarian debate… no, today is the day to “dig our way into” the heart of the One yet Diverse God. To jump into the waters of the divine life, to submerge ourselves in the heart of God, to respond to the invitation to the dance.
“Will you, won’t you, will you, won’t you, won’t you the dance”… of worship?
AMEN
