Trinity Sunday.
The Collect.
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LMIGHTY and everlasting God, who hast given unto us thy servants grace, by the confession of a true faith, to acknowledge the glory of the eternal Trinity, and in the power of the Divine Majesty to worship the Unity; We beseech thee that thou wouldest keep us stedfast in this faith, and evermore defend us from all adversities, who livest and reignest, one God, world without end. Amen.
Trinity Season marks the last half of the Christian Calendar Year. The first half, beginning with the Advent Season, define the great doctrines of the Church. The last half, Trinity, define our response to the works of Christ and our duties to God.
Trinity Sunday is the day that links the two halves together. Both the offer of free grace made available in Christ by the acts of the first half are equally important to our response to that grace through faith unto good works required by the teaching of the second half. We begin the Church year by the promise of God the Father. The Father has promised to send unto us His only Begotten Son that the Advent Season heralds. The Christmas Season is the consummation of that promise. God the Father sent God the Son to us at Christmas. On Whitsunday, we observe the consummation of the Trinity (Triune God) by the gift and coming of the Holy Ghost. So, Trinity Sunday recognizes the fullness of God's presence with His people by the sending of the Holy Ghost of Pentecost.
Grace is a gift of God made available through the life and sacrifice of Christ. ALMIGHTY and everlasting God, who hast given unto us thy servants grace. A gift does not assume value until it has been received. The means by which the gift is received is by FAITH. The evidence of our salvation BY GRACE THROUGH FAITH is GOOD WORKS. Good works cannot save. It is by grace through faith that saves and makes us yearn to do good. 8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: 9 Not of works, lest any man should boast. 10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them. (Eph 2:8-10) There are three prepositions that seals the whole: BY grace are we saved, THROUGH faith, UNTO good works. "..... by the confession of a true faith" Any works, good or bad, by the unsaved are without any merit whatsoever. An high look, and a proud heart, and the plowing of the wicked, is sin. (Prov 21:4)
". . . . to acknowledge the glory of the eternal Trinity." It is the gift of grace by way of faith that compels us to acknowledge the glory of the eternal Trinity - the fullness of God in His Triune nature. ". . . . and in the power of the Divine Majesty to worship the Unity." To what 'Unity' does our worship apply? To the same Unity of Father, Son, and Holy Ghost that are ONE in nature and of which we, too, must be ONE in nature with the Church and with the Trinity. Jesus prayed that we would be One with Him just as He was One with the Father. If that be so, we will be One with each other so that no division of the Body of Christ is possible. If we are divided and fragmented by non-essential matters such as carpet color, type of pews, or personality differences, we are not One with Christ.
Just as we cannot boast of our good works, neither can we boast of the free, unmerited grace that saves us; nor of the faith that brought us to receive that grace from God. We beseech thee that thou wouldest keep us stedfast in this faith. It is the power of God that keeps us secure in faith. When God shut the door on Noah and his family, He made them secure in their salvation. Noah was secure in the salvation of the Ark. He could not fall from the Ark because He was shut in. So the truly chosen and elect of God can not fall from the strong and secure hand of his Savior (Ark).
We have no self-defense against such a powerful enemy as Satan. It is Christ who defeated that old Serpent and won our salvation. If we are in Christ, we are defended against the wiles of the devil. ". . . . and evermore defend us from all adversities" Christ is our Tower, our Bulwark, and our everlasting Defense - the very Rock of our Salvation that is immovable.
The last line of the Collect sums the whole of Trinity - One God, in Trinity! ". . . . who livest and reignest, one God, world without end. God is forever alive and He reigns in power and glory. How would we ever presume to come before Him with indifference or irreverence. If Moses was told to remove His shoes before the glorious appearing of God, why are we less respectful. We must approach God with reverential worship, silence before He speaks, and humility of person. Do we observe this reverence before, during, and after worship each service of the Church?
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HERE was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews: 2 The same came to Jesus by night, and said unto him, Rabbi, we know that thou art a teacher come from God: for no man can do these miracles that thou doest, except God be with him. 3 Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. 4 Nicodemus saith unto him, How can a man be born when he is old? can he enter the second time into his mother's womb, and be born? 5 Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. 6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. 7 Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again. 8 The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit. 9 Nicodemus answered and said unto him, How can these things be? 10 Jesus answered and said unto him, Art thou a master of Israel, and knowest not these things? 11 Verily, verily, I say unto thee, We speak that we do know, and testify that we have seen; and ye receive not our witness. 12 If I have told you earthly things, and ye believe not, how shall ye believe, if I tell you of heavenly things? 13 And no man hath ascended up to heaven, but he that came down from heaven, even the Son of man which is in heaven. 14 And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up: 15 That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life. 16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. (John 3:1-16)
Today, we observe Trinity Sunday – the day on which we observe the fullness of the Godhead expressed in the Three Persons of the Holy Trinity – Father, Son and Holy Ghost. We also remember the valiant soldiers of our Country who died that we might live in Liberty.
In a way, those who gave their lives for our liberty are lesser types and shadows of the Lord Jesus Christ whose dying on the cross assured us all the privilege of Liberty who believe and receive Him.
During the arduous battles of World War One, a beautiful tribute was written to memorialize our fallen heroes in Flanders, France. The name of the poem is “In Flanders Fields.” The author, too, later died in that War:
In Flanders Fields
By: Lieutenant Colonel John McCrae, MD (1872-1918)
Canadian Army
In Flanders Fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.
We are the Dead.
Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders fields.
Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.
This poem was written to honor a friend of Dr. MCrae who was killed and buried on the Field of Flanders where poppies grew over their graves, yet it came to symbolize all soldiers who have perished in the fight to defend our liberties.
But this poem can also have spiritual implications on the manner in which we honor and remember those who have given their lives in the cause of Christ.
Remember and Honor them. We do, as well, honor Christ and take up the Gospel Torch in doing battle against the legions of Satan which are armed with hate, malice, deceit, and cruelty.
Returning to today’s text, let us study together to glean all we possibly can glean from what God is telling us in thes passages. Remember that it is God who speaks to us and not the imagination of your pastor.
Christ was often quite harsh and frank in condemning the hypocritical Pharisees. But He treated them with disdain because of the hardness of their hearts, but there were others among the Pharisees with whom Christ was very kind and forgiving – those who honestly sought to know the Truth. One such Pharisee, a member of the powerful Sanhedrin, was Nicodemus.
Note the approach of Nicodemus:
1. He came under cover of darkness. Actually, we all are just like Nicodemus. We begin our search in the darkness of our sins, but, invoked by the urgings of the Holy Spirit, we cautiously (at first) seek to know more of Christ. (1 There was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews: 2 The same came to Jesus by night)
2. Nicodemus had an elementary knowledge of Jesus. He had heard of the condemnation of Christ by His fellow Pharisees, but he had also hear of the amazing miracles Christ had performed (an may have even witnessed some of those miracles), and he had heard of the beautiful doctrines Christ had proclaimed. He wondered at His goodness, and he wondered how could such a one be evil? (and said unto him, Rabbi, we know that thou art a teacher come from God: for no man can do these miracles that thou doest, except God be with him.)
a. The important thing about Nicodemus was that is: He did not allow his mind to be blocked from learning truth for himself)
3. He was told a mystery by Christ which he could not comprehend: Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. Nicodemus saith unto him, How can a man be born when he is old? can he enter the second time into his mother's womb, and be born? This was an honest question, unlike those asked by the Pharisees who tried always to find fault in Christ. Even though Nicodemus could scarcely understand the depths of the mystery of which Christ spoke, he nevertheless kept his mind in pursuit of Truth.
4. Jesus keeps on the mystery and even broadens it. A keen intellect (which Nicodemus possessed) often needs greater challenge for understanding: Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water (natural birth) and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. 6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. 7 Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again. 8 The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit.
5. Do we understand this? Can we see the wind? Do we know that there is a force called ‘wind’ even if we cannot see it? It is not necessary to visibly observe a phenomenon to know that it exists. We cannot see heat or cold, but we certainly understand it. We cannot see darkness, but we can see light and contrast the two.
6. Nicodemus, though he is an infant to these mysteries, presses on for more truth. He does not give up and quit the search! . 9 Nicodemus answered and said unto him, How can these things be? Jesus loves honesty and simple faith.
7. The response of Christ to the seeker of truth: 10 Jesus answered and said unto him, Art thou a master of Israel, and knowest not these things? 11 Verily, verily, I say unto thee, We speak that we do know, and testify that we have seen; and ye receive not our witness. 12 If I have told you earthly things, and ye believe not, how shall ye believe, if I tell you ofheavenly things?(This is the reason Christ spoke in Parables) 13 And no man hath ascended up to heaven, but he that came down from heaven, even the Son of man which is in heaven.(This clearly refutes the notion that has been the subject of recent books, that someone has visited heaven and returned to tell us about it. This is the height of arrogancy) 14 And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up: (Numbers 21: 5 And the people spake against God, and against Moses, Wherefore have ye brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? for there is no bread, neither is there any water; and our soul loatheth this light bread. 6 And the LORD sent fiery serpents among the people, and they bit the people; and much people of Israel died. 7 Therefore the people came to Moses, and said, We have sinned, for we have spoken against the LORD, and against thee; pray unto the LORD, that he take away the serpents from us. And Moses prayed for the people. 8 And the LORD said unto Moses, Make thee a fiery serpent, and set it upon a pole: and it shall come to pass, that every one that is bitten, when he looketh upon it, shall live. 9 And Moses made a serpent of brass, and put it upon a pole, and it came to pass, that if a serpent had bitten any man, when he beheld the serpent of brass, he lived. The comparison is perfect. WE, being dead in trespasses and sins (Eph 2:1) need only look to the Cross of Calvary for our healing. He who was without sin, became sin for us on the Cross. He bore our VERY sins. 15 That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life. 16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
8. The change that happened to Nicodemus:?
a. He publicly defended Christ before the Sanhedrin: John 7:50 - 50 Nicodemus saith unto them, (he that came to Jesus by night, being one of them,) 51 Doth our law judge any man, before it hear him, and know what he doeth? 52 They answered and said unto him, Art thou also of Galilee? Search, and look: for out of Galilee ariseth no prophet.
b. He publicly came to beg the body of Christ for burial (in the face of all the enemies of Christ) John 19: 34 But one of the soldiers with a spear pierced his side, and forthwith came there out blood and water. 35 And he that saw it bare record, and his record is true: and he knoweth that he saith true, that ye might believe. 36 For these things were done, that the scripture should be fulfilled, A bone of him shall not be broken. 37 And again another scripture saith, They shall look on him whom they pierced. 38 And after this Joseph of Arimathaea, being a disciple of Jesus, but secretly for fear of the Jews, besought Pilate that he might take away the body of Jesus: and Pilate gave him leave. He came therefore, and took the body of Jesus. 39 And there came also Nicodemus, which at the first came to Jesus by night, and brought a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about an hundred pound weight.
Conclusion:
1. Nicodemus came with some basic understanding, but he also came with doubts. Just as we may have first came to Christ.
2. Nicodemus persevered to understand the mystery of Salvation just as you and I may have done.
3. Nicodemus was not afraid to ask questions, and neither should we be.
4. Though he came in darkness, he left in the Light of Christ – just as the beginning of Creation happened in darkness, there was Light in the morning!
5. Nicodemus was associated with the wrong crowd. Some of you may be as well.
6. Nicodemus turned his back on fear and on his former faithless associates on the Sanhedrin. So should we.
7. Nicodemus BELIEVED Christ! And so should we!
8. Nicodemus left a changed man, and so should we.
9. Nicodemus defended the Gospel of Christ, and so should we.
10. Nicodemus, in the end, had great courage for Christ. Do we have that courage?
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