Rev Lesley Taylor
Reading: Matthew 28: 16-20 The Great Commission
16 Then the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. 17 When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted. 18 Then Jesus came to them and said, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 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, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age."
This Sunday...the Sunday after Pentecost is Trinity Sunday and the Gospel reading set for today is Matthew 28: 16-20. In these verses, Jesus sends his disciples out in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit...a form of words which we use to describe the Trinity... to describe God who is One in Three.
And if you find the idea of the Trinity a hard one to grasp...just how can God be One and Three at the same time...don't worry. It took the early church over 300 years to work it out in what we know as The Nicene Creed, which states that Jesus is "of one Being with the Father" and the Spirit "proceeds from the Father and the Son." One in Three.
That's the difficult bit for today. What I'd like to share with you now is one way of looking at the Trinity, which works for me. And it's based on the work of the theologian, Paul Fiddes.
So, I'd like you to picture three seperate people.
These people are now going to hold hands and form a circle. It's difficult to tell where a circle begins and ends. As you look at the circle, it's not easy to tell where one person begins and ends in the circle. Three separate people become one in the circle.
And the circle dances.
So it is with the Trinity. God who is Father...God who is Son...God who is Holy Spirit...they hold hands together and they become one. One in Three.
And, they, too, dance. The Trinity dances together. As someone who loves dancing, I love that image. The Trinity dances together.
But, that's not all. This is not an exclusive dance for the Trinity alone. As followers of God who comes to us in Jesus, we are caught up in the dance and we become part of it. We become part of the life of God, as he lives in us.
And that's where our reading from Matthew comes in. When Jesus sends his disciples out, he sends them out in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. He sends them out to be a part of the life and purpose of God...to be part of the divine dance. How wonderful and awesome is that?
The doctrine of the Trinity isn't easy to explain and I can't do it full justice in fewer that 500 words. But, don't forget, the Trinity isn't just a difficult idea...it's also the place where we dance with God. Amen.
Wharfedale & Aireborough Methodist Circuit ℅ Menston Methodist Church
Main Street, Menston
LS29 6AH