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Drawn into Relationship, Guided into Truth

By Vicar Lisa

The doctrine of the Trinity invites us to consider how a God constituted by relationship—the Father with the Son, the Son with the Spirit, the Spirit with the Father—draws us into that relationship with God and one another. Gradually or suddenly, through the work of the Spirit, we come to know our belonging to the Father and to Christ’s body.

In such loving relationships, truth is discovered. But people cannot bear the truth all at once, so discipleship and faith formation are gradual processes of listening for the Spirit’s voice. Christian practices such as worship, learning, and service are occasions for people of all ages to be “guided into truth.” Such practices are rooted in baptism, in which God draws us into a lifelong relationship in which we grow into truth and love over time — guided by the Spirit, accompanied by Jesus, and having peace with the Creator.

In Romans, we hear the truth of how love originates and grows in us: Poured into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, God’s love gives us a hope that will never disappoint. Christian community offers the delightful opportunity to experience one’s own growth in hope, faith, and love, and to witness others’ growth as they too are drawn more deeply into relationship with the triune God. Trinity Sunday offers the delightful opportunity to celebrate that growth.

June 15, Holy Trinity Sunday

10 a.m. Sunday Worship with Communion            

Announcements

  • Fellowship Time: Please join us after worship today in the Fellowship Hall for coffee and conversation.
  • Santa Fe Trail Celebration Team: We are looking for people willing to help support our booth at the Santa Fe Trail Celebration scheduled for June 13-14. A sign-up sheet is posted in the Fellowship Hall. We need help with set up and tear down, as well as with staffing, and with special activities. If you have questions, please let Terri Watson or T.M. Garner.
  • PRIDE Sunday: June 22 is PRIDE Sunday. Please join us for this special service of love and inclusion. An ice-cream social and snacks will be served at fellowship.
  • Flower Chart: Remember to use the new flower chart to sign up for Sunday flowers. A gift of $35 is suggested for flower donations.
  • Worship Assistance Needed: Are you able to serve as an usher, communion preparation and clean up volunteer, or lector — for the summer months. The summer assistants list (July to September) will be distributed June 15. If you are interested in helping in one of these worship roles, please let Vicar Lisa or Jo Moss know.
  • Lost & Found: Did anyone find an I-phone in the sanctuary or fellowship hall last Sunday? If so, please let Coralie Lashbrook or Jo Moss know.
  • Upcoming Senior Center Activities: (see Norine for more information)
    • June 12 Preventing elder abuse (10 am)
    • June 17 How to fall (10 am)
    • June 18 Free Vaccines (10 – 12)
    • June 20 Root Beer Floats (noon)
    • June 26 Sundaes at Tutti Scoops (noon)
  • Save the Dates:
    • Zion’s annual garage sale is Saturday, Aug. 2. See Julie Wersal for details.
    • Vicar Lisa’s installation and ordination will be at 1 p.m. on Sunday, Aug. 10.

E-formation – Holy Trinity Sunday, June 15

The Sunday after Pentecost is celebrated each year as Trinity Sunday, a day on which the church meditates on the mystery of our God, one divine unity of three distinct presences. Each way that we speak about the Trinity is inadequate. Indeed, a God we could understand wouldn’t be much of a God. This Sunday we will be helped by a poem in Proverbs, a psalm, Paul, John, our prayers, several hymn writers, the text of our liturgy, a sermon, and the gift of bread and wine, as in worship we are gathered into the life of our unfathomable God. 

John 16:12-15

John’s gospel, written in the late first century, alternates narratives that are usually referred to as “signs” (see 2:11) with “discourses,” long speeches that declare the christological intent of the sign. Today’s gospel comes from the longest discourse, chapters 14–17, which precedes the greatest sign, Christ’s death and resurrection. Jesus promises that the Father will disclose the truth, which comes in the Spirit of the Son. In this early Johannine proclamation of the Trinity, the Father and the Spirit both attest to the truth of Christ. The evangelist is assuring the Christian communities that they have received the truth, despite the controversies that were dividing the unity of early believers.

Proverbs 8:1-4, 22-31

Coming to its present form in about the fourth century bce, the book of Proverbs belongs to the Old Testament wisdom tradition. The collection of sayings, compiled over several centuries, makes no reference to Israelite history or to the theology of election. Originally used in boys’ schools, Proverbs includes passages in which wisdom is described as a good woman who offers knowledge, and evil is pictured as a foolish woman who tempts people away from the correct path. In this poem, Wisdom is God’s first creation who then assists in the creation of the world. It may be that this poetic imagery developed in reaction to the myths of Israel’s neighbors in which a goddess assists a god in creation. For Israelites, the Lord is the only god.

Romans 5:1-5

This selection from Paul’s letter of 57ce to the Christians in Rome begins his explication of the meaning of Christ’s suffering and death. Paul declares that suffering, which he and others in Rome have experienced, is like the cross in that it leads to God’s love given us through the Spirit. Stereotypical advice about enduring suffering opens to Trinitarian theology.

Zion's Lutheran Church

A Reconciling in Christ Community
zionsluth@gmail.com
719-846-7785