Matthew 28:16-20 on May 31th, 2026
Above is audio of the sermon pulled from the video and amplified.
Below is transcript pulled from the video and formatted by artificial intelligence. There may be inconsistencies or errors.
Understanding the Trinity Through Experience
The first Sunday after Pentecost is known as Holy Trinity Sunday. After last week's rush of wind and tongues of flame, we have now met the three persons of God throughout the church here. So let's talk about them all together.
To recap, God the Father gets a lot of attention in the Old Testament and does a lot of behind-the-scenes stuff the rest of the time. The Holy Spirit, at least in mainline Protestant churches, gets acknowledged on the one Sunday of Pentecost. And the star of the whole thing is Jesus the Son, manger cross empty-tune. But today it's about all three of them at the same time.
The Challenge of Explaining the Trinity
The problem with all of this is that I don't think there has ever been a sermon explaining the Trinity where the congregation returns home, explaining, wow, that really helped. The early church basically invented words to explain what they were trying to say. Not easily put into a sermon. So though I know you all will be thoroughly disappointed, I'm not going to even try and explain anything about our three and one and three God of ours. Besides breaking down Greek theological terms, how does that help us know God? Well for somebody it does, but not for most of us.
But I will say this. When the early church was inventing words, they were simply trying to share how they experienced God. And that idea of experiencing God I think is way more helpful for us than anything I might pull out on my seminary notes and try to explain to you. Because what someone tells you, pales in comparison to your own experience, right?
How Do We Experience God?
Peter and Lamont says it in a way that helps me. I didn't need to understand the hypostatic unity of the Trinity. I just needed to turn my life over to whoever came up with redwood trees.
In Creation: Some of us do experience God in the beauty of creation, like those magnificent redwoods, or the vastness of the ocean, or sun rises, sunsets, mountain top views, cells, atoms, quarks, balls of fire, light years away. We experience God in the awe of creation.
In the Intangible: We encounter God in the intangibles of life. The way music makes us feel. The way art connects with our different moods, the way of poem, folks, emotion, we experience God through things that transcend senses.
In People: Some experience God in people. It is through family relationships. It is connection and interdependence and bonds. Experiencing God is built on experiencing love between us.
In Service: Still others see God in serving others. As we give, as we help, as we share, we know that God is present in those actions. What we do is God liken so we experience God in service and sacrifice for another.
In Comfort: We experience God in comfort. We know that God is present when we console and are consoled, when we show up for one another. God is present in the relief of forgiveness, the joy of reconciliation, and the hope for something more. God is there in comfort.
The Promise of God's Presence
While we experience God, meet God, see God in many and various ways, today we hear God. The triune God is present in a promise. Our gospel reading is trinitarian simply in that it names Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. It seems that Matthew thought no further explanations were necessary. There is only a promise, which is actually the heart of who the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are.
That promise is a relationship. "I am with you always to the end of the age." That type of promise is at the heart of any authentic, genuine, and nurturing relationship. I am with you. I am for you. I am beside you. The announcement is that God is with us. The Trinity affirms that God's eternal presence is with us. The Trinity means that no matter what we experience, God is in relationship with us. God will be there in it all through it all, no matter what. That is the promise.
Living Out God's Promise at St. Philip
And since that is the promise, because God's promise to us is, "I will be with you always," what does that look like? Where do we see God keeping that promise? How do we participate in that relationship?
In Our Sacred Space: Just walking into the renovated sanctuary reminds us of majesty and beauty similar to that of God's creation. We stand glass, catches the light. We gather in a space that is designed to help us see the sacred, to lift our eyes beyond ourselves. Like God's creation, this place can inspire all.
In Worship and Music: As we worship together, we sing. Music rises, it moves us. We know God in the intangibles. Times and liturgies stir up emotions of authentic worship connects us. God touches us through the intangibles.
In Small Groups and Relationships: In our small groups, people are connecting with each other. Whether on our church grounds or someone's home, people are forming connections, bonds and relationships, sharing joys and sorrows, labors and fun. And that is knowing God and people in relationships and personal connections.
In Service to Others: We serve our neighbors with meals for anyone who is hungry and we connect with God. Hands are plating food, sharing resources, giving of time, talent and treasure to make sure that people have what they need to live. This service to another is God like. And God is present as we care for others.
In Congregational Care: In our congregational care, we show up for each other in hard moments. We console others. We bring meals, we write cards, we make calls. We remind each other that God is there no matter the dark valley or the winding road. That is God in comfort. That is God in promise.
In the Sacraments: In God's promises made in earthy, tangible things, we see touch, taste, the goodness of God. We are claimed in baptism. We are fed at the table. God comes to us in real things to nourish us, to strengthen us, to be present with us.
A Living Affirmation
Today four young people have seen God in action in this place and in their lives. So they are going to stand up here and affirm, yes, God is with me. Yes, God has my back. Yes, I want to live learning to be closer to God. Because somewhere along the way through worship and people and songs and service and laughter and care, they have experienced God.
And because of the promise, we all will continue to experience a God who keeps showing up through the generation's communities, meal, song, service and people.
A Final Promise
So as you leave today, don't leave wondering whether or not we can explain the Trinity. Instead leave remembering the promise. God is with you and beauty and joy. God is with you in grief and uncertainty. God is with you in this community. God is with you at the table. God is with you wherever you go next. God is with you always.
And that promise will hold long after every human sermon is forgotten. "I am with you always to the end of the age in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.”