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Grounded in One in Three
From Matthew's last chapter, 28:16-20: Now the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had directed them. When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted. And Jesus came and said to them, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore 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 that I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age."
"The Trinity is a mystery. Always has been, always will be." This was the nervous response to a stern teacher/priest of a Catholic schoolboy in an ancient movie, "Heaven Help Us." (It's one of those movies you can watch on Youtube.com). But this coming Sunday is the day we celebrate the nature of God. And we start by saying it is a mystery. Who can fully understand God. We believe in a God whose knowledge we repeat every time we say one of the creeds, but Who's true identity eludes us on a personal level if we're not intentional about knowing God. The sharing of Who God is in this passage comes as Jesus is about to ascend into Heaven. Jesus directed them to meet Him at this mountain in Galilee and there upon seeing Him, "they worshiped Him, but some doubted," which is like most churches every Sunday. Jesus approaches them and says that He has received all authority in Heaven and earth adding, "Go therefore 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. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age." This part of the passage is called The Great Commission and almost every church knows it as such, but usually does little to nothing about it. But let's look at the passage with hopeful and trusting eyes to accomplish what Jesus has asked of us all.
We believe in a God of constant movement. The Bible shares how God's favorite word is go. The God of creation continues to move and do. We're asked to do the same thing. The stirring church is a faithful and fruitful one. It constantly tries new things to reach people. The stagnant church is a dying church. The next part of the commission uses the word make. Interestingly enough, my wife asked, "What's the difference between baptizing people and making disciples?" The making of disciples, I replied, is a process. This passage implies that we must first convince a person to the point of baptism about God and God's love and action in his or her life. The response to that new faith is usually to ask or offer baptism as a sign of entrance into this new body of faith. Baptism is not the end of the making of a disciple in my opinion; it is part of the entire journey of, to use a Wesleyan concept, of sanctification. A true disciple will seek to grow daily in her or his walk with God.
This baptism, Jesus said, must be in the name of the One who sent us; Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. And here comes where we have the Trinity to emphasize and explain. I could just say, Go to your church this Sunday and hear a wonderful explanation of God as One and Three, but that would not be fair to your pastor or to you. Jesus' use of the three is a reminder to the believers that God is One, and God is three. The other way we have explained the Trinity has been to say God is Creator, Redeemer, and Sustainer, but that does not do full justice to the awesomeness of God. Yes, God did create, but we also believe Jesus was present and involved in creation as was the movement of the Holy Spirit. The same God in three persons, whose involvement and love have always been at work in all creation and especially in us. And Jesus is saying as we bring people to faith, all three must be acknowledged and believed as we welcome them into God's kingdom. The blessing of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit is a complete blessing on new believers.
After the baptism should come the instruction of God's purpose and plan for humanity and as we believe, for individual lives. Our desire should be to grow and learn every single day. And when discouragement or disappointment comes, we should hear what Jesus said at the last: "And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age."
PRAYER: Loving God, come to us and make us know just how awesome You are. Stir in us the desire to do Your will among all people in all ways. This we pray in Christ Jesus' precious and powerful name, amen.
Have a great and blessed day in the Lord! Eradio Valverde
