Join the Dance of Trinity
This is the reflection I shared with the people of St. Timothy Lutheran Church.
Second Reading: Romans 8:12-17
12Brothers and sisters, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh—13for if you live according to the flesh, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. 14For all who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God. 15For you did not receive a spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received a spirit of adoption. When we cry, “Abba! Father!” 16it is that very Spirit bearing witness with our spirit that we are children of God, 17and if children, then heirs, heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ—if, in fact, we suffer with him so that we may also be glorified with him.
This Sunday we celebrate the Holy Trinity, the only feast concerning a doctrine of the church. I must admit that at first glance, I didn’t exactly see the connection between the Trinity and this passage from Romans. However, there’s a little intro from sundaysandseasons.com that nicely summarizes it.
“In describing the new life of faith, Paul refers to all three persons of the Trinity: the Spirit leads us to recognize that we are children of God the Father and sisters and brothers with Christ the Son.” Look again at this passage and see if you can find these connections. At first, all I saw was more about the Holy Spirit.
What I am repeatedly brought back to as I look at this passage is our inability on our own to do anything to please God. Martin Luther wrote in The Small Catechism, “I believe that I cannot by my own reason or strength believe in Jesus Christ, my Lord, or come to Him; but the Holy [Spirit] has called me by the Gospel, enlightened me with His gifts, sanctified and kept me in the true faith.”
Be encouraged that it is God who works in and through you. God has made you his own. You can call him, “Daddy,” which is what “Abba” means. Not only that, but we are God’s family together for the sake of the world.
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