Inspired by Genesis 1:27 – 2:3, 2Corinthians 13:11-14, Matthew 28:16-20
Today we are focused on the Holy Trinity – God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. The doctrine of the Holy Trinity is the best explanation for the New Testament descriptions of how Jesus and the Holy Spirit fit into the First Testament descriptions of the fullness of the Godhead, that is: One God, composed of one divine essence and experienced as three persons. The divine essence which animates all persons of the Trinity is unconditional love. We experience Father, Son and Holy Spirit as entities possessing a single-minded focus on loving us and all of creation without any barriers or exceptions.
Single-mindedness, that super power of unrelenting focus to achieve a goal, is admired and even idolized in today’s world. Consider those much revered and successful inventors, athletes, business tycoons, social innovators, and local folks who have dedicated their lives and energy toward a specific business, cause or career. People with a single-minded focus put everything else aside and follow what they understand is their purpose in life. All this can make them quite successful in many ways, but it can also be an Achille’s heel. Think about all those people who have been so single-minded, bordering on obsessive, that they have never developed alternative interests, hobbies, cultivated personal relationships, etc. We watch many professional athletes, business executives or owners, and others with all-consuming careers struggle when they no longer are competing, directing a business, or acting within the hierarchy of a larger organization or profession. They focused all of their time and energy on a thing that was finite and which would never love them back.
That’s where it is important for us to evaluate where our focus is for our lives and world. Are we engaged single mindedly on the things of the world to the point of idolization, or do we spend time focused on the infinite and transformative love of God present in our lives and in our world? The reality is that most of us are all on a continuum between those two poles – hopefully growing ever more in our single mindedness toward growing in love for God and our neighbors.
Our scripture readings for this Trinity Sunday bring out the wonder that is God in three persons, blessed Trinity, and our need to be single-minded in our pursuit of an ever-deepening relationship with God. The readings from Genesis and the Nicene Creed fit together nicely. Genesis tells of the last day of creation where God makes humankind – male and female – in God’s likeness and placed God’s image inside them. God blessed them and looked over all that had been created and called it very good indeed. The Nicene Creed is now more than 1700 years old. It speaks of God in three persons and the roles of each of those entities. Interestingly, the last paragraph on the Holy Spirit was not added until the later Council of Constantinople and was the handiwork of the Eastern Church fathers Basil and Gregory. It would require many more centuries of Council debates and word smithing before the Doctrine of the Trinity would be fully elucidated and codified. However, the work done at Nicea and Constantinople were foundational.
The final paragraphs of the Gospel according to Matthew and the letter we know as 2Corinthians speak of being of one mind in following Jesus. Paul writes that they should all “…Strive for full restoration, encourage one another, be of one mind, live in peace. And the God of love and peace will be with you…May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all….” Matthew has Jesus speaking to the 11 disciples from the Mount of Olives before his ascension. Jesus tells them to be single minded in their commission saying, “…Therefore, go 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 I have commanded you….” Jesus reminds them that they do not go alone, but that he will be with them “always, even to the end of the age”.
The idea of growing into the single mindedness of Jesus is an important concept for us as followers of the Christ. John Wesley was often asked what made Methodist believers different from other Christian believers. In a treatise entitled, “The Characteristics of Methodists” he answered, “…A Methodist is one who has ‘the love of God shed abroad in his heart by the Holy Ghost given unto him;’ one who ‘loves the Lord his God with all his heart, and with all his soul, and with all his mind, and with all his strength.’ God is the joy of his heart, and the desire of his soul; which is constantly crying out, ‘Whom have I in heaven but thee? and there is none upon earth that I desire beside thee! My God and my all! Thou art the strength of my heart, and my portion forever!...’"
Thus, John Wesley firmly believed that the people called Methodists should have a singular focus on the Two Great Commandments of Jesus and lovingly orient their lives and their outreach to the world from those teachings. Methodist teaching has always emphasized a lived experience of God – especially God’s grace (the freely given gift of God’s unconditional love) – that is discovered by attending to all the means of grace such as worship (both corporate and private), Bible reading and study, prayer, and participation in Holy Communion as often as possible. In this way, the fullness of God is presented over and over again to the believer as God’s love transforms the person into the mind and heart of Jesus.
Much of what John Wesley taught about belief in God and living out those beliefs in the world, emphasized changing the focus from helping ourselves to helping others. Case-in-point, he preached a sermon entitled, “Christian Perfection”. In it he promoted the idea of single-mindedness. Wesley preached, “…beware of desiring anything other than God. Jesus said, ‘If your eye remains single your whole body shall be full of light.’ (Mt 6:22) Do not allow the desire for tasteful food or any other pleasure of the senses, the desire of pleasing the eye or the imagination, the desire for money or praise or power, to rule you. While you have the ability to feel these desires, you are not compelled to act upon [feel] them. Stand fast in the liberty wherewith Christ has made you free!
Be an example to all of denying yourself and taking up your cross daily. Let others see that you are not interested in any pleasure that does not bring you nearer to God, nor regard any pain which does. Let them see that you simply aim at pleasing God in everything. Let the language of your heart sing out with regard to pleasure or pain, riches or poverty, honor or dishonor, ‘All’s alike to me, so I in my Lord may live and die!...’”
A single-minded focus on living out the transformative power of God’s Almighty love is not something that is easy or quick – it takes a lifetime of intentional devotion. Though Wesley taught (and firmly believed) that growing fully into the mind and heart of Jesus was possible during our lives, he also noted that this could only come to a believer through the grace of God and the power and presence of the Holy Spirit. Growth into the mind and heart of Jesus requires a belief in and experience of the Holy Trinity. We seek to experience God the Father, the Almighty who created and continues to create all things seen and unseen. We seek to experience Jesus the eternally begotten Son of God as the person of the Trinity who became truly human that we might learn and grow to be in loving relationship with the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. We seek to experience the indwelling Holy Spirit who brings our God-given gifts to life. The Spirit that empowers, advocates for, guides and counsels, and loves us so that we can be all that God created us to be.
The key to experiencing the fullness of the Holy Trinity in our lives is to have a single-minded focus on the two great commandments of Jesus. In Methodist terms, we are to actively engage in works of piety (worship attendance, bible study, prayer, fasting, Holy Communion) AND works of mercy (i.e., loving our neighbors enough to develop deep and loving relationships with them and engaging in activities that improve the common good). The Holy Trinity lives, moves and has their being as unconditional love. Genesis tells us we are made in the likeness and have that same image inside us. Therefore, let us endeavor from this day forward to live with unconditional loving single-mindedness toward God and our neighbors. Amen!