Embracing the Mystery of the Trinity
Summary
Trinity Sunday stands apart from other days in the church year—not because it marks a historical event, but because it draws our attention to the profound mystery of who God is: one God in three persons—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. While we may not have family traditions or special meals for this day, the doctrine of the Trinity is not just a theological puzzle; it is foundational for understanding both God and ourselves. In a world where people often define God by their own experiences, we are reminded that our experiences are limited and sometimes misleading. If we try to shape God according to our own image, we end up with a God no bigger than our imagination, and our sense of identity becomes fragile and confused.
Throughout history, the church has wrestled with misunderstandings about God, like the ancient heresy of Arianism, which tried to make sense of God through human logic rather than Scripture. The Athanasian Creed, which we recite only once a year, anchors us in the truth revealed in God’s Word, not in our shifting experiences or analogies that always fall short. As Martin Luther wisely said, to deny the Trinity is to risk our salvation, but to try to explain it fully is to risk our sanity. Instead, we are called to live in the tension and wonder of this mystery, trusting what God has revealed.
Psalm 8 asks, “What is a human being that you remember him?” In the vastness of creation, God gives humanity a unique place: made in His image, crowned with glory and honor. This intrinsic worth is not just for us, but for every person—even those we might be tempted to dismiss or label as enemies. Yet, sin has distorted that image, and so the Son, Jesus Christ, enters the story—not just to affirm our value, but to restore it at the cost of His own life. Jesus takes our brokenness and shame and transforms us, making us new and bringing us into God’s family.
The Holy Spirit assures us of this identity, dwelling within us, working through baptism, the Lord’s Supper, and the Word to remind us that we are beloved children of God. This truth is not just for us to hold, but to share—especially for fathers, grandfathers, and all who influence the next generation. Our calling is not to perfection, but to forgiveness and faithfulness, passing on the truth of who God is and who we are in Him. In a world eager to redefine God, we point to Jesus, the one who reveals the heart of the Triune God and declares our worth.
Key Takeaways
- Defining God by our own experience leads to confusion and fragmentation, both in our understanding of God and in our own identity. When we make God in our own image, we end up with a faith that is as limited and fragile as we are, and we risk losing sight of the God who is far greater than our imagination. Instead, we are called to let God define Himself through His Word, which anchors us in truth beyond our shifting experiences. [04:21]
- The doctrine of the Trinity is not a puzzle to be solved by human reason or analogy, but a mystery to be received in faith. Attempts to explain the Trinity with analogies or logic always fall short, and can even lead us away from the truth. The creeds of the church, especially the Athanasian Creed, point us back to Scripture, reminding us that God is both beyond our understanding and yet has revealed Himself clearly for our salvation. [09:28]
- Every human being has intrinsic worth and value, being made in the image of God. This truth is not just for those we like or agree with, but extends to every person, including those we might be tempted to exclude or cancel. Recognizing the image of God in others challenges us to see them as God sees them, with dignity and honor, regardless of their status or our feelings toward them. [14:56]
- Jesus Christ, the Son, restores what sin has broken, declaring us worth the cost of His own life. Our value is not just in our creation, but in our redemption—Jesus takes our brokenness, shame, and guilt, and transforms us into something beautiful. In Him, we move from darkness to light, from outsiders to beloved members of God’s family, not by our own merit but by His grace and sacrifice. [17:52]
- The Holy Spirit assures us of our identity as God’s beloved children and empowers us to share this truth with others. Through baptism, the Lord’s Supper, and the Word, the Spirit dwells in us, giving us faith and the strength to live out our calling. Especially for fathers and those who influence the next generation, our task is not to model perfection, but to model forgiveness and faithfulness, passing on the truth of God’s love and identity in Christ. [24:43]
Youtube Chapters
[00:00] - Welcome
[02:38] - Why Trinity Sunday Feels Different
[04:21] - The Problem of Defining God by Experience
[06:16] - Athanasius, the Creed, and the Authority of Scripture
[09:28] - The Mystery and Limits of Explaining the Trinity
[12:11] - Psalm 8: Humanity’s Place in Creation
[14:56] - The Image of God and Human Worth
[15:40] - The Distortion of Sin and the Need for Restoration
[17:52] - Jesus Restores Our Brokenness
[18:48] - The Cross: Brokenness Made Beautiful
[21:01] - The Holy Spirit’s Assurance and Baptism
[23:42] - The Influence of Fathers and Role Models
[24:43] - The Power of Forgiveness Over Perfection
[25:56] - The Shema: Passing on the Faith
[27:46] - Pointing to Jesus: The Heart of the Trinity
[28:38] - Living in Our God-Given Identity
[29:35] - Sharing the Truth in a Confused World
Study Guide
Bible Study Discussion Guide: Trinity Sunday – The Mystery and Gift of Our Triune God
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### Bible Reading
Psalm 8
(Primary text; see [12:11] and throughout sermon)
Genesis 1:26-27
("Let us make man in our image..." – referenced at [12:11])
Colossians 1:17-20
(Jesus as the one who reconciles and restores – see [15:40])
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### Observation Questions
1. In Psalm 8, what questions does David ask about humanity’s place in creation? ([12:11])
2. According to Genesis 1:26-27, what is unique about the way God created human beings compared to the rest of creation? ([12:11])
3. In Colossians 1:17-20, what does Paul say about Jesus’ role in creation and redemption? ([15:40])
4. The sermon mentioned the Athanasian Creed and its focus on the Trinity. What tension or challenge does the Creed highlight about understanding God? ([06:16])
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### Interpretation Questions
1. The sermon warns about defining God by our own experiences. Why does the pastor say this leads to confusion and a fragile sense of identity? ([04:21])
2. The doctrine of the Trinity is described as a “mystery to be received in faith.” What does it mean to live in the tension of not fully understanding God, but still trusting Him? ([09:28])
3. The pastor says every person is made in the image of God, even those we might be tempted to dismiss or label as enemies. How does this truth challenge the way we view and treat others? ([14:56])
4. According to the sermon, how does Jesus restore what sin has broken in us, and what does this say about our worth to God? ([17:52])
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### Application Questions
1. The pastor said that when we define God by our own experience, we end up with a God no bigger than our imagination. Are there ways you have tried to shape God in your own image? How has this affected your faith or sense of identity? ([04:21])
2. The Trinity is a mystery that can’t be fully explained. How do you respond when you encounter things about God that you can’t understand? Do you tend to avoid them, try to explain them away, or accept them in faith? ([09:28])
3. Think of someone in your life whom you find difficult to love or respect. How might remembering that they are made in the image of God change your attitude or actions toward them this week? ([14:56])
4. The sermon described Jesus as the one who takes our brokenness and shame and transforms us. Is there an area of brokenness or shame in your life that you need to bring to Jesus for healing? What would it look like to trust Him with it? ([17:52])
5. The Holy Spirit assures us of our identity as God’s beloved children. Are there practices (like remembering your baptism, receiving communion, or reading God’s Word) that help you remember who you are in Christ? Which one could you focus on this week? ([21:01])
6. For fathers, grandfathers, and those who influence the next generation: The pastor said your calling is not to perfection, but to forgiveness and faithfulness. What is one way you can model forgiveness and faithfulness to those watching you? ([24:43])
7. In a world eager to redefine God, the pastor encouraged us to point to Jesus. What is one practical way you can share the truth of who God is and who we are in Him with someone this week? ([29:35])
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Closing Prayer Suggestion:
Thank God for the mystery and gift of the Trinity, for making us in His image, for sending Jesus to restore us, and for the Spirit’s assurance. Ask for help to live out your identity as His beloved child and to share His love with others.
Devotional
Day 1: God Defines Himself, Not Our Experience
In a world where people often shape their understanding of God based on personal experiences or cultural trends, we are reminded that God is not a projection of our own ideas or feelings. Instead, He reveals Himself through His Word, unchanging and steadfast, inviting us to know Him as He truly is—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. When we try to define God by our own limited perspective, we risk confusion and despair, but when we turn to Scripture, we find a God who is both mysterious and trustworthy, who assures us of His presence and love even when our experiences are uncertain. [04:21]
Isaiah 55:8-9 (ESV)
“For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.”
Reflection: In what area of your life are you tempted to define God by your own feelings or experiences, and how can you intentionally seek His truth in Scripture instead this week?
Day 2: Humanity’s Worth—Created in God’s Image
From the very beginning, God set humanity apart by creating us in His own image, giving each person intrinsic worth and value that is not based on achievement, status, or even our own perception. This truth means that every human being, including those we might struggle to love or understand, is precious in God’s sight. Our identity is rooted in being made by the Creator Himself, and this shapes how we see ourselves and others, calling us to honor the image of God in every person. [14:56]
Genesis 1:26-27 (ESV)
Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.”
So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.
Reflection: Who is someone in your life you find difficult to value or respect—how might remembering they are made in God’s image change the way you treat or pray for them today?
Day 3: Jesus Restores Our Brokenness
Though sin has marred the image of God in us, Jesus, the Son, came to restore what was broken. He sees our worth, not just as created beings, but as beloved people worth redeeming at the cost of His own life. Through His death and resurrection, Jesus gathers up the shattered pieces of our lives—our guilt, shame, and pain—and transforms them into something beautiful, making us new and bringing us into God’s family. No matter how broken you feel, you are not discarded; you are cherished and restored by Christ. [18:48]
Colossians 1:17-20 (ESV)
And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together. And he is the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in everything he might be preeminent. For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross.
Reflection: What is one area of brokenness or shame in your life that you need to bring to Jesus today, trusting Him to restore and transform it?
Day 4: The Spirit Assures Us of Our Identity
The Holy Spirit dwells within us, assuring us that we belong to God and are never alone. Through the Spirit’s presence, especially in the promises of baptism and the gifts of the church, we are reminded that our identity as beloved children of God is secure—not because of what we have done, but because of what God has done for us. The Spirit works faith in our hearts, strengthens us in our daily walk, and empowers us to live out our calling as God’s people in the world. [21:01]
1 John 4:13-16 (ESV)
By this we know that we abide in him and he in us, because he has given us of his Spirit. And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world. Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God. So we have come to know and to believe the love that God has for us. God is love, and whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him.
Reflection: When you doubt your worth or feel alone, how can you remind yourself of the Spirit’s presence and the promises God has spoken over you—perhaps by recalling your baptism or a specific promise from Scripture?
Day 5: Passing On the Faith—Pointing to Jesus
God calls us not only to know Him but to share His truth with others, especially the next generation. The Shema reminds us to speak of God’s love and faithfulness in our homes and daily lives, not just as a private belief but as a living testimony. Our children and those around us are watching, and what they need most is not our perfection, but our authenticity—our willingness to confess, forgive, and point them to Jesus, who is the heart of our faith. In a world full of shifting ideas about God, we are called to anchor ourselves and others in the unchanging truth of Christ. [26:48]
Deuteronomy 6:4-7 (ESV)
“Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise.”
Reflection: What is one practical way you can share your faith or speak of God’s love to someone in your family or community this week—whether through a conversation, a prayer, or an act of service?
Quotes
That my friends, is the problem, the problem of understanding God based on my experience. Because sometimes, when it comes to my experience, I may not be the best judge of my experience. Especially in those emotionally charged situations, those tragedies we go through, even the highest joys of life, if I'm going to understand who God is simply based on my experience, it is going to lead me to tragedy.Because then I have a God who is only as big as my own imagination and experience.And it will lead me to not just doubt who God is, but it will cause me to have a crisis of my own identity by a God that I've created in my own image. [00:05:01] (57 seconds)
Athanasius would point back to the scriptures over and over and over again to try to figure out who God is, not based on my experience, but based on something set and firm, not something changing and shifting like my experience because my experience could be shaped by what I'm going through and I couldn't necessarily understand what's happening based on my experience. [00:06:46] (21 seconds)
What is man that you are mindful of him? God would look at him and say, you're made in my image. You have an intrinsic worth and value simply by being a human being. And that's true, not just of you sitting here. That's true of the people that you would tend to put in other groups.People that you would be tempted to cancel.People that you would be tempted to be labeled as your enemy. They are, friends, they are created in the image of God with an intrinsic worth and value.Just as you have, so do they by the God who has created them. [00:14:39] (36 seconds)
Jesus, the Son of God, the second person of the Trinity says, you are worth it. You are worth it. For you are not just created in my image, but you were worth having that image restored. And that restoration is going to cost Jesus everything. He's going to go all in, shedding his blood on the cross.suffering and dying for your sins, for the express purpose of taking your brokenness, your guilt, your shame upon himself and transforming you from the kingdom of darkness into the kingdom of light, from an outsider to an insider, from outside the family of God, from being spiritually dead and blind to being able to see and be made alive in the washing and the renewal of his baptism where he's called you by a name and made you his very own. [00:17:05] (47 seconds)
We know this not because of our experience and what we've done but because what god has done for us we just spent some time this morning in bible class looking at that work of the spirit in our life and especially as the spirit is connected to the promise and the word of the water of your baptism where god in the name of the father and the son and the holy spirit washed you in the renewal of that baptism and said that's my son that's my daughter in whom i am well pleased in whom i will dwell with my spirit working faith and working the strength giving the fruit of the spirit giving my gifts i want to dwell within you says the spirit and we look to our baptism of his assurance of that we look to his table when we come to it to be strengthened in that identity as chosen sons as beloved daughters, made so not because of anything we've done or could do, but because of everything that God has done for us, as His words and His promises declare. [00:19:56] (65 seconds)
It is the work of the Holy Spirit who has called us by the gospel, as Pastor Franco reminded us last week, as we remembered on Pentecost, and the working of that Spirit giving us the ability to declare Jesus is Lord, working through means like baptism and the Lord's Supper, but also working through the means of His very Word, a Word that each of us has the ability to speak in the places God has perfectly positioned us. [00:21:01] (29 seconds)
Fathers, grandfathers, father figures, male role models, kids are watching you.And I know that's a bit of the law and it comes off pretty heavy, but it's a reminder that the task you've been given is a noble one. It's an important one.One given to you by the Father in heaven and one that, yes, you are going to fail at times.And what they need to see is not your perfection, but to see your forgiveness, your confession for when you do mess it up and you do some knuckleheaded things.and say some things that you would later regret, what they need to see is not a person of perfection. What they need to see is a person of forgiveness who knows who they are in Christ Jesus, a beloved son of a heavenly father, made so not because of anything they have done but by everything the Father has done through the Son by the power of the Spirit for them. [00:24:43] (67 seconds)
And so this charge to dads, this charge to moms, this charge to the community of faith is still the same charge that God gives to us to continue to proclaim the truth of who God is.It doesn't mean we simply sit down and say to a person who doesn't know God or who has a God of their own making that we're not going to sit down and explain the Trinity to them. No.We're going to point to the Son.Because when we've gotten to understand God, God came in real flesh and He came to dwell among us in the person and work of Jesus Christ.And that's where we continue to point people to. Let's look and look at Jesus. [00:27:15] (36 seconds)
And for that we look to his Son and we say, thank you Jesus.Thank you Jesus for that identity you've given to me.Help me by the power of your Spirit to live in that identity in the places you've perfectly positioned me, to speak up when opportunities pop up.In a culture where they're trying to define God by their own terms, you can give them a God who actually defines himself, who is beyond our figuring out our own reason or strength, but a God who yet reveals himself to assure us who he is and who you are for the sake of the world around you. [00:29:30] (40 seconds)
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