The Trinity
Commentary
Few, in their right minds, would address this subject if they could get out of it; yet it does need addressing. There are many in every congregation who are thoroughly confused. I imagine that I will not dispel all the confusion in these short lines, but let me say a thing or two.
First, the doctrine of the Trinity has nothing to do with tritheism, which is our attempt to spatialize God, or to put him into a time frame, such as God until the time of Jesus. Jesus until the Holy Spirit, and then the Age of the Spirit. The doctrine of the Trinity was and is meant to help us maintain the unity of our concept of God. Note that -- our concept. In this doctrine we are not trying to explain the anatomy of God, but to hold together our concept of God, and to say that whatever we know about God we know about Jesus we know about the Holy Spirit. All share the same characteristics and all seek to accomplish the same purposes.
Take time to listen to most discussions of the Trinity; you may discover that they are not discussing the Trinity at all, but some variation of tritheism.
Further, you will discover that those who argue are trying to work out some rational explanation of the existence of God; when, in fact, the doctrine of the Trinity is a confession of faith in a God who is always and forever making himself known to us, and yet is always the same. See Hebrews 1:1.
There are those who imagine that theology and the study of backgrounds to our scripture are not needed. They think all we need to do is to approach the page and make what sense we can of what we read. Don't let them sell you that bill of goods. Much remains to be known. Take time to find a good book on the Trinity and wrestle with it a bit. It will keep you from sounding like a tritheist or a Jesus-only-from-the-pulpit.
OUTLINE I
A Choice: Sons or Slaves
Romans 8:12-17
Introduction: It is important that you do some work on the matters of spirit and flesh. By flesh, Paul does not mean meat or even the material; rather, that which is essentially limited to the earthy. Look up Barclay on this subject, since he does some careful thinking about the Greek word "sarx." Barclay also does some helpful thinking about the matter of sonship, in the section where he deals with adoption. We have a choice.
A. To Be Sons. If God is a Spirit and we live by the Spirit, then we are one with God. To live in the Spirit does not mean that one has nothing to do with material things or the world. On the contrary, it means they have everything to do with both, but from the spiritual point of view, from the point of view of love, of truth, of self-giving, of concern, of caring. To be a son of God is to be like God.
B. Slaves. There are those who imagine that when they are not beholden to God they are free -- free to do as they please with no one telling them what to do or preaching to them. The truth is that they are victims of their own self-delusion, and given over to slavery to forces beyond their control. This is a good place to refer to Luke 15 -- the Parable of the Two Brothers. One brother thought he was free and all the while was a slave to his passions. The other thought he was a prisoner of the father and all the while had more freedom than he would claim.
Conclusion: Offer that freedom of the Spirit that comes from sharing the Spirit of God. From that sharing comes a certainty that one is a child of God. No matter then, what the outer circumstances of life; one knows that there is inner freedom that no one can give or take away.
OUTLINE II
Born Again
John 3:1-17
Introduction: I hardly know of a selection of scripture that has been more misunderstood or misused than this one. Without doing their homework, many have decided for themselves what all the imagery here means. Let's walk through it.
A. Nicodemus. At first he seems to be a bit dense. He understands Jesus to mean he has to be born again physically. And why not. It would never have occurred to him to be born again spiritually. After all, he was a child of Abraham. He was already "in." Jesus' meaning never reached him.
B. A Shocked Nicodemus. You must be born again. That is how Jesus must have said it. You! Little wonder Nicodemus would reply, "How can this be?" The boggled mind. Gentiles had to be born again in order to become Jews. Everybody knew that. That is why they baptized Gentiles -- to show that they were baby Jews and starting over.
C. The Decision. We are not told. Did Nicodemus make that decision? Was he ready to give up his trust in Judaism and in the merits of Abraham? And, if he was, did he understand what was in store for him? (See second sermon on this lesson.)
Conclusion: You may want to pursue this element of the selection for today alone; you may wish to do this one and then the other; or you may want to meld them. Use your own judgment. But be sure that you do one thing. Inform the people about the true nature of being born again as opposed to the popular views being held today; let them know what that new birth implies.
OUTLINE III
Born Again?
John 3:1-17
Introduction: I grow a bit irritated and impatient with those who rather blithely and simply challenge all the rest of us and want to know whether we have been born again. I have nothing against the phrase, just a concern about whether some really understand what they are saying.
A. After All. Doesn't birth imply certain things like pain and starting over and being new at things? Wouldn't rebirth imply the same? Why then, do I hear some talking about rebirth as if it meant that they were reborn as fully-grown Christians? It seems they know all the answers, are sure and certain of everything, and ready to set standards for all others. If there is true rebirth, then, it seems to me, there ought to be some humility present.
B. And Pain. Anyone who has had a real counseling experience is familiar with the pain involved when persons are changed and made into a new creation.
C. And There Ought to be Growth. See the end of chapter 5 and the beginning of chapter 6 of Hebrews, for instance. Let those who insist on being born again go the whole way. Let them understand it the way the Jews did on behalf of the Gentiles. They knew that they had to make a new beginning to learn, to understand, to grow up in the faith. Check out Ephesians 3:11-16 and comment on that.
Conclusion: Suggest to your hearers a concept of being born again that they can understand, accept, and live out in life. The emotional, unrealistic idea that somehow a person miraculously becomes a fully-adult Christian doesn't sell too well for many. Offer what they can grasp and do.
First, the doctrine of the Trinity has nothing to do with tritheism, which is our attempt to spatialize God, or to put him into a time frame, such as God until the time of Jesus. Jesus until the Holy Spirit, and then the Age of the Spirit. The doctrine of the Trinity was and is meant to help us maintain the unity of our concept of God. Note that -- our concept. In this doctrine we are not trying to explain the anatomy of God, but to hold together our concept of God, and to say that whatever we know about God we know about Jesus we know about the Holy Spirit. All share the same characteristics and all seek to accomplish the same purposes.
Take time to listen to most discussions of the Trinity; you may discover that they are not discussing the Trinity at all, but some variation of tritheism.
Further, you will discover that those who argue are trying to work out some rational explanation of the existence of God; when, in fact, the doctrine of the Trinity is a confession of faith in a God who is always and forever making himself known to us, and yet is always the same. See Hebrews 1:1.
There are those who imagine that theology and the study of backgrounds to our scripture are not needed. They think all we need to do is to approach the page and make what sense we can of what we read. Don't let them sell you that bill of goods. Much remains to be known. Take time to find a good book on the Trinity and wrestle with it a bit. It will keep you from sounding like a tritheist or a Jesus-only-from-the-pulpit.
OUTLINE I
A Choice: Sons or Slaves
Romans 8:12-17
Introduction: It is important that you do some work on the matters of spirit and flesh. By flesh, Paul does not mean meat or even the material; rather, that which is essentially limited to the earthy. Look up Barclay on this subject, since he does some careful thinking about the Greek word "sarx." Barclay also does some helpful thinking about the matter of sonship, in the section where he deals with adoption. We have a choice.
A. To Be Sons. If God is a Spirit and we live by the Spirit, then we are one with God. To live in the Spirit does not mean that one has nothing to do with material things or the world. On the contrary, it means they have everything to do with both, but from the spiritual point of view, from the point of view of love, of truth, of self-giving, of concern, of caring. To be a son of God is to be like God.
B. Slaves. There are those who imagine that when they are not beholden to God they are free -- free to do as they please with no one telling them what to do or preaching to them. The truth is that they are victims of their own self-delusion, and given over to slavery to forces beyond their control. This is a good place to refer to Luke 15 -- the Parable of the Two Brothers. One brother thought he was free and all the while was a slave to his passions. The other thought he was a prisoner of the father and all the while had more freedom than he would claim.
Conclusion: Offer that freedom of the Spirit that comes from sharing the Spirit of God. From that sharing comes a certainty that one is a child of God. No matter then, what the outer circumstances of life; one knows that there is inner freedom that no one can give or take away.
OUTLINE II
Born Again
John 3:1-17
Introduction: I hardly know of a selection of scripture that has been more misunderstood or misused than this one. Without doing their homework, many have decided for themselves what all the imagery here means. Let's walk through it.
A. Nicodemus. At first he seems to be a bit dense. He understands Jesus to mean he has to be born again physically. And why not. It would never have occurred to him to be born again spiritually. After all, he was a child of Abraham. He was already "in." Jesus' meaning never reached him.
B. A Shocked Nicodemus. You must be born again. That is how Jesus must have said it. You! Little wonder Nicodemus would reply, "How can this be?" The boggled mind. Gentiles had to be born again in order to become Jews. Everybody knew that. That is why they baptized Gentiles -- to show that they were baby Jews and starting over.
C. The Decision. We are not told. Did Nicodemus make that decision? Was he ready to give up his trust in Judaism and in the merits of Abraham? And, if he was, did he understand what was in store for him? (See second sermon on this lesson.)
Conclusion: You may want to pursue this element of the selection for today alone; you may wish to do this one and then the other; or you may want to meld them. Use your own judgment. But be sure that you do one thing. Inform the people about the true nature of being born again as opposed to the popular views being held today; let them know what that new birth implies.
OUTLINE III
Born Again?
John 3:1-17
Introduction: I grow a bit irritated and impatient with those who rather blithely and simply challenge all the rest of us and want to know whether we have been born again. I have nothing against the phrase, just a concern about whether some really understand what they are saying.
A. After All. Doesn't birth imply certain things like pain and starting over and being new at things? Wouldn't rebirth imply the same? Why then, do I hear some talking about rebirth as if it meant that they were reborn as fully-grown Christians? It seems they know all the answers, are sure and certain of everything, and ready to set standards for all others. If there is true rebirth, then, it seems to me, there ought to be some humility present.
B. And Pain. Anyone who has had a real counseling experience is familiar with the pain involved when persons are changed and made into a new creation.
C. And There Ought to be Growth. See the end of chapter 5 and the beginning of chapter 6 of Hebrews, for instance. Let those who insist on being born again go the whole way. Let them understand it the way the Jews did on behalf of the Gentiles. They knew that they had to make a new beginning to learn, to understand, to grow up in the faith. Check out Ephesians 3:11-16 and comment on that.
Conclusion: Suggest to your hearers a concept of being born again that they can understand, accept, and live out in life. The emotional, unrealistic idea that somehow a person miraculously becomes a fully-adult Christian doesn't sell too well for many. Offer what they can grasp and do.
