Download Epiphany 2 C, 2013

The Sermon for the Feast of the Holy Trinity
Augsburg Confession Article I
Good Shepherd Lutheran Church, Hoopeston, IL
May 26, 2013; Rev. James T. Batchelor
The original Hebrew of the very first words of the Bible take it for granted that while there is only one God,
there is also a plural something about God. The verb that is translated into English as “created” very clearly
requires a singular noun … that is it requires one and only one creator. At the same time, the noun that is
translated as “God” is a plural noun. Right from the beginning, the Bible assumes that God is one and only one.
At the same time, it also assumes that there is something about God that is more than one.
Right away in the second verse of Genesis, we hear that there is a second something or someone who is called
the Spirit of God who hovers over the face of the waters. It isn’t long after the Spirit comes into the picture that
the Bible introduces us to the Word by which God speaks and says things like, “Let there be light,” and so forth.
So it is, that before we finish the first day of creation, the Bible speaks of one and only one God who is also
Creator, Spirit, and Word.
As God continues the creation process, He has this dialogue with Himself: [Genesis 1:26a] Then God said, “Let us
make man in our image, after our likeness.” In this verse, God speaks to Himself using the plural pronouns of
“us” and “our.” Then, as we continue to read in the Bible, we encounter creedal statements such as, [Deuteronomy
6:4]
“Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one.”
As we read through the Bible, we constantly encounter two numbers associated with God, “one” and “three.”
After a while, you want to ask the Bible, “Well, which is it? Is it one, or is it three?” To this question, the Bible
answers, “Yes. It is both one and three.” There is one God and three persons, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
This teaching becomes clearer when the Son of God takes on human flesh and begins His public ministry. At
His baptism, the Son of God is in the water, the Spirit of God is descending as a dove, and God the Father is
speaking from the cloud, “This is My beloved Son …” There you have it … the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit
revealing themselves in the same place at the same time. Of course, we can never really fully understand how
the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit can all be God and yet, there is only one God. We are limited human beings
and God has no limits. We live in space and time. God is the creator and ruler of space and time. There are
some things that God tells us about Himself that we cannot understand and must accept by faith.
This teaching that the one and only God is a community of three persons is the first teaching that the early
Lutherans included in their presentation to Emperor Charles V at a general assembly of government officials in
Augsburg, Germany. The Emperor had called this meeting because the state of theology in Europe had erupted
in chaos. Martin Luther was not the only one who had noticed the corruption and abuse in the church and many
people were trying to find ways to reform the church. The newly invented printing press meant that all these
reformers could get their ideas out faster than before. It also meant that a lot of rumors could also spread
quickly as well. The Emperor needed to determine who believed what and why they believed it just so that he
could rule effectively. So Emperor Charles V issued a command that representatives from all the factions
should present their beliefs at a general assembly in Augsburg, Germany.
Since the Emperor had already declared Martin Luther to be an outlaw, Philip Melanchthon, a professor friend
and colleague of Martin Luther, prepared the statement of faith for the Lutherans. He prepared this statement in
both German and Latin. German was the local language and Latin was the language of the educated class
throughout Europe. On June 25, 1530, a layman, Dr. Christian Beyer, read the German version of the Lutheran
confession before the assembled emperor, rulers, and churchmen. At the conclusion of his presentation,
Chancellor Beyer said to Emperor Charles V, “Most gracious Emperor, this is a Confession which, with the
grace and help of God, will prevail even against the gates of hell.” That day in Augsburg was truly the birthday
of the Lutheran Church. From that day forward, this statement of faith was known as the Augsburg Confession.
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We read Article I of the Augsburg confession earlier in the service. It deals with the teaching of this day, the
doctrine of the Holy Trinity. First of all, it confesses what we believe. Then it condemns some of the false
teachings that have been popular down through the centuries. Valentinus and his followers refused to believe
that the Son of God took on human flesh. Mani and his followers were into Yin and Yang … they taught that
good and evil were two equal and balanced principles or gods. Arius and his followers believed that at one time
there was only God the Father … that God the Father created God the Son and then created the universe as we
know it.
Why is it so important that we understand that the Father is God, the Son is God, and the Holy Spirit is God and
yet there are not three gods, but only one God? It is important because the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are a
team who work together to save us from our sin.
We can see the teamwork in the incarnation. John 3:16 teaches us that God demonstrated His love for us by
sending His Son into the world so that whoever believed in Him would not perish but have eternal life. The
Bible also says that the Angel Gabriel told Mary that she would become pregnant by the power of the Holy
Spirit and give birth to the Son of God in human flesh. An angel also spoke to Joseph in a dream and told Him
that Mary’s baby was of the Holy Spirit. Thus we see the teamwork of the Triune God as God the Father sent
the Son, and God the Holy Spirit conceived the human flesh of the Son, and of course God the Son took on
human flesh in the womb of the Virgin Mary. This is but one example of the teamwork of the Triune God that
saves us from sin.
One of the crucial elements of the teamwork that saved us occurs as Jesus is in the depths of His suffering on
the cross. At that time, [Matthew 27:46] Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying … “My God, my God, why have
you forsaken me?” Here we learn that in a way that we cannot possibly understand, God the Father beheld the
sin of the world poured out on God the Son and forsook Him. This is an anguish that is beyond our
understanding. This is the anguish that earned our salvation. This is also an anguish that would be impossible
if either the Father or the Son were not fully God. This is an anguish of love for us that would be impossible
without the teamwork of the Triune God.
The amazing salvation that Jesus earned for us with His anguish would do us no good if we did not know about
it. Somehow, the forgiveness, life, and salvation that Jesus earned for us in His anguish must be delivered to us.
That is the role of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit brings God’s gifts to us. The Holy Spirit works through the
Word of God to create and sustain faith in us. He does this as we read, hear, and study God’s Word. He also
does that through the wet word of Holy Baptism and the body and blood of our Lord that we receive with the
bread and wine of the Lord’s Supper.
Sadly, there are people who reject the work of the Holy Spirit. Jesus has earned forgiveness for all people, in all
times, and in all places. Never the less, there are some people who force the Holy Spirit to leave that
forgiveness on the shelf. Those who reject faith and forgiveness until the day they die will never experience the
sweet salvation that the Triune God has for them. Their salvation will remain unused. They will not receive the
benefits of the great love that God has for them. Instead, they will experience the full, dreadful terror that
caused the Son of God to cry out on the cross. They will spend eternity paying for those sins in hell. They will
not spend eternity in hell because God does not love them. They will spend eternity in hell because they utterly
refused that love. They rejected the only gift that can save them.
We poor sinners who have been blessed with the gift of faith by the Holy Spirit will receive the gifts that only
the Triune God can give – the gifts of forgiveness, life, and salvation.
We receive those gifts by:
God the Father’s grace for:
God the Son’s sake through:
God the Holy Spirit’s gift of faith.
Amen
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