Trinity Sunday

What does Jesus mean when He tells his disciples, "I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now"? I had one explanation figured out by last night. But this morning, as I read Morning Prayer, I heard another, from Job. First he recalls what God first said to him, "Who is this that hides counsel without knowledge?" And then Job responds, "Therefore I have declared that which I did not understand. Things too wonderful for me, which I did not know." Neither God nor Job says that Job declared anything wrong about God. Job didn't declare a false teaching. He didn't misstate any facts about God. But Job's knowledge of God was still puny compared to the understanding that only comes from an experience of God's presence that is beyond any human thought or man-made doctrine, but no less felt in the depths of the human heart.

Another clue to understanding Jesus is found in the word,"bear." Only one other time in John's Gospel do we hear anyone bearing anything. Then it is Jesus who "bears" his cross. Certainly, none of us can bear what Jesus has borne on our behalf. We have a hard enough time bearing the burdens of those closest to us, much less the burdens of all human beings for all time. But Jesus did bear our shame, our anger, our fear. His disciples could not understand just how far true love will go, for us and with us, until they saw it in action on the Cross. They could not understand the power of true love until they saw the crucified and resurrected Jesus in front of them. So one way to interpret what Jesus says here is that his revelation, his declaration of all that the Father has given Him to say is completed in His death, His rising, and His ascension. So everything we need to guide us on our spiritual journey is contained in these words of Holy Scripture.

But can this "Spirit of truth" who will guide us into all the truth, be reduced to a set of doctrines? As useful as teaching is, will it help us "bear" the enormity of what Jesus had to do for us? Doctrines can be useful guides. But how useful are they when we come to a fork in the road, a question for which holy scripture doesn't provide a direct answer. Anyone can say they're being guided by the Spirit of truth. But how do you know if that's really who is guiding them? Oh how we want some assurance that we're headed in the right direction. We want to make plans for every possible contingency. Like good scouts, we want to be prepared for every possible twist and turn in our lifelong journey. We want to figure out a plan. And if we just follow that plan, step by step; and if everyone else will follow our plan, step by step, then everything will be just fine. Of course, it is better to plan for the future, as best we can, rather than be blown about by the crisis of the day. But as one general said, no battle plan ever survives first contact with the enemy.

And so, here we are, reading words that are now some 2,000 years old. Here we are, trying to understand those words as best we can. Here we are trying to live by those words as best we can. Are we any closer to these wonderful words becoming a reality? Are we any closer to seeing the kingdom of God breaking open in our world today, than we were 2,000 years ago? I don't know. But God the Father knows. God the creator is the beginning of all things and all things end in him. Jesus said earlier that in His Father's house are many, many rooms. And in that house is a special place for all of us. What do they look like? None of us knows. But we have Jesus's promise that those special rooms are waiting for us at the end of our journeys. And Jesus has sealed that promise by sharing our human journey. Jesus the divine and human one has passed through every obstacle, every doubt and fear that we pass through. He has even passed through death and come out on the other side. And where the Human One has passed through, so shall we pass through to the other side.

And while we are still passing through, we have the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of truth, who is guiding us into all truth. But that Spirit doesn't guide us by giving us a detailed plan. The Greek word for "guide" is a combination of two Greek words, "lead" and "way." To be guided by the Spirit of truth is not to have a map with every stop laid out, and the destination clearly marked. To be guided by the Spirit of truth is to be led along the way. It is to stop at the unexpected questions, those events we had not anticipated, and to trust that we will have enough answers to continue on the right path. To be guided by this Trinitarian God is to trust in the One God, who knows our beginning and our end, who has gone before us, and who is with us along the way.

Note that I said, "We" and "us." In our English, "you" can mean "you," or it can mean, "You all." It is the plural form of "you" that Jesus uses when He says, "When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth…and he will declare to you the things that are to come." All that the Father has he shares with the Son, and all that the Son has he shares with the Spirit, who shares it with us; not with me or with you but with us. There is no holding back, no behind-the-scenes murmuring. Father, Son and Spirit do nothing but give and receive. And the love they give to each other and receive from each other they share with us, a community called to be one as they are one.

Theologians have spent centuries trying to come up with analogies to explain the Trinity. But nothing can explain our Trinitarian God better than a community that lives the Trinitarian life. When we can trust that whatever detours come, our special place is still waiting for us, we reveal the Trinity to those around us. When we walk with each other through those detours, we reveal the Trinity to those around us. When we speak openly to each other and listen to each other, we reveal the Trinity to those around us. When we do those things, the Trinity will be much more than an intellectual teaching or doctrine. It will be the warmth in our hearts. It will be the peace in our hearts. It will be the love in our hearts.