The church year is interesting once we celebrate Easter. We have a few Sundays in the Easter season, Ascension of our Lord happens on a Thursday (but we celebrated it on a Sunday this year), then we move to Pentecost and then this Sunday we celebrate the Holy Trinity. Confused yet? For this Sunday, as we emphasize the Trinity, I wonder if a history lesson might help us understand how this came to be a topic of emphasis. 

For the early church the divinity of Jesus was an issue of life and death. There were some who viewed Jesus as some sort of demigod. Not quite God but certainly not God either. We have well known stories that highlight the humanity of Jesus, but we also celebrate the divinity of Christ. This is what we know as the dual nature of Christ. Maybe a need to define the trinity, one God, yet three parts, three parts yet one God, because the identity of Christ was in question. 

So how does the Holy Spirit come into play? Well, Jesus talks a lot about the Spirit, especially in the gospel of John. Jesus gives the disciples the Holy Spirit in the same gospel after the resurrection and before he ascends. And then the well known story of Acts 2 where the disciples are given the ability to share God's story in every language. The Holy Spirit becomes the driving force that will continue the ministry that Jesus began. The Holy Spirit will transform the disciples into apostles and they will share this message to the ends of the earth. That should sound daunting but with the power of the spirit, the disciples are able to accomplish even that which seems impossible. 

Which part of the trinity do you need to speak to your faith at this stage of your journey? Do you need a reminder of a God who creates and calls the created good? Do you need a reminder of the one who sanctifies you, fulfills what you can't, and extends the amazing gift of grace? Or do you need a reminder that we have never been left orphaned, that God always has been and always will be with us? And if you need all three, God is certainly that gracious. 

Over time other faiths have called Christianity polytheists because a three-part god isn't the easiest thing to understand. Instead of understanding God, in three parts, we experience the triune God. We experience the wonder and beauty of creation, we receive the gift of grace, and we feel the power of the holy spirit moving in our lives as we live out our faith. I haven't spent too much time wondering how God feels about the way we have chosen to explain the three personhood of Jesus, but it has worked for the church for nearly 2000 years. May we continue to experience the totality of God in the Father, Son and Holy Spirit.