Holy Trinity Ankeny

We live in a world that has reduced faith to things concerned with personal spirituality that only deals with questions of “heaven.” Further, we rob the gospel of its power as we reduce faith to a series of “If/Then” equations: IF I follow the rules, THEN God will love me; IF I am a good person, THEN I will go to heaven; IF I repent, THEN God will forgive me. According to the Apostle Paul, this is, well… nonsense. The good news of Christ addresses the “groaning” of creation and each of us as we suffer under the weight of a broken world. Our “if/then” statements start with God’s action in Christ: “IF God is for us, THEN who can be against us.”

Paul proclaims that followers of Jesus are Spirit filled. Sin and death no longer bind us, instead we are people who are transformed through Jesus. Listen to hear what a life of no condemnation looks like, and who gives it to us. 

In the wake of Paul’s proclamation of God’s gracious acceptance, those familiar with God’s Word can ask, “What’s the law go to do with it, then?” In Romans 7, Paul reveals that while the law is God’s good gift to us, because of our rebellious nature and self-centeredness, we turn it into a curse. “I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate.”(Romans 7:15) What are we to do then? This sermon wrestles with that question.

The gospel tells us that there is not one thing any of us can have, possess, achieve or do to be accepted by God. Our acceptance is given in grace, a free gift revealed in Jesus Christ. It begs the question, “So, should we just keep sinning, doing whatever we please since God’s grace has us covered?” Paul’s answer is “By no means!” In the waters of baptism we die to all the powers that call us to reject God. In fact, in Christ, we die and then are raised to a life where we can serve the only master who pays wages of life – and we all must serve a master.

In order to function in the world, we need to learn how to obtain access to what we need and desire. Usernames and passwords give us access to our accounts, students work hard to gain access to the college of their dreams, and we lock our houses so only those who we want to have access have keys. Today we begin a sermon series from Paul’s Letter to the Romans. Hear how throughout history people have tried to obtain access to God’s love, and what the real answer is for obtaining this access.

As we broaden our imagination of the Trinity, we experience a God in motion; active, engaging, and inviting. Like those ubiquitous fidget spinners, we see the Godhead surrounding us in presence, encircling humanity as in a dance, a Divine dance.  The Good News is our invitation into the community of God, held together by the powerful force of love, and the presence of Christ Jesus who is with us, even to the end of the age.

The gift of the Spirit on Pentecost allowed disciples to speak, and hearers to "hear" in languages that represented all the nations. But some in the crowd heard just “crazy” (drunken) talk. The good news of peace, grace and forgiveness often sounds like “crazy talk,” especially when it speaks of accepting the unacceptable; forgiving the unforgivable; or not passing some test to be worthy of God’s love. The Holy Spirit grants us all the ability to receive and share God’s “crazy talk” of grace, peace and mercy.

The Ascension of Jesus can leave us staring into the sky, waiting for heaven and worried about the End, just like the disciples in the book of Acts. When Church and faith become all wrapped up in what happens when we die and when Jesus will return, we miss the hope and grace revealed in the Ascension of Jesus. Ascension reveals a gracious and merciful God, who shares our humanity and imparts divinity to all through faith. Ascension reveals who is in charge of this world and in whose hands the ultimate fate of the world rests.

Our compassionate and generous God will not leave us orphaned. Jesus promises the gift of the Holy Spirit, the Advocate, to guide, comfort and befriend us. The Spirit dwells within us and inspires us to reveal Christ to the world, in and through our love for one another.