Trinity Sunday
at Epiphany on
Grace, mercy, and peace to
you through God the Father who created us, through God the Son who redeemed us,
and through the Holy Spirit, who sanctified us. Amen.
2. God gives life
Sitting in her car on a dark road just outside of town, a young high school girl looks at her life. This is what she sees: I am overweight; I have no friends; my future holds no promise; as she slides the bullet in the chamber of her father’s 38 revolver, she thinks; "It’s no use, there is no hope."
A middle-aged executive sits alone in a motel room,
a day of meetings just completed. He thinks about his life: The kids are all gone;
my wife doesn’t seem to love me anymore; my job is a dead-end; as he reaches for
the phone book to look up the number of a local escort service, he thinks to himself,
"Maybe, at least, I can have a couple hours of pleasure."
A housewife sits at home, alone. As she sits there, she looks at her life: My husband
has his job; the kids are all in school I am so alone; as she pours herself another
drink, she thinks to herself, "Thank goodness I have my soaps …”
And so it goes. Everyday, we hear about it or read about it. People are checking
out on life. Children running away from home. Someone committing suicide. Alcoholism,
drug addiction, divorce, adultery, and depression.
And as this is going on, we have to ask ourselves; Why? Why are people checking
out on life? The answer to that question is as varied as the people themselves.
However, if you were to analyze the answers, there would be one consistent. All
of the answers would reveal that most of these people have found that their life,
or at least an important aspect of their life is meaningless – it is empty, it is
unfulfilling, it is formless and void. It’s as if there is a dark hole that they
are living in, and they can’t get out.
Maybe this is a feeling that some of you can relate to. You understand the idea
of emptiness, meaninglessness, and being unfulfilled. Now, it may not be your entire
life, it could just be a very important aspect of your life. Maybe it’s your career,
or your family, or your marriage, or maybe it’s a relationship with your children
or with your parents. It seems as if no matter what you do, you still feel the emptiness,
the hopelessness of the entire situation.
Let me tell you something this morning – there is hope. Your life can be meaningful
and fulfilling. So can your career, your marriage, and your relationships. Whatever
it is in your life, that feels empty, it can be fulfilling. God promises you that.
But it may surprise you to find out that the promise of that hope can be found right
in the very first chapter of your Bible.
1. God gives form
Genesis 1 reveals to us our beginnings. It tells the
story of God’s creating the universe, the earth, and mankind. I’ll admit that I
love this chapter because I despise the theory of evolution just that much. Most
of science has also gone a long way in trying to explain those beginnings without
God. But, all you have to do is look at the beauty, the synchronization and the
organization of the universe to know that an intelligent, loving and creative God
was behind it.
Scientists claim that our world and our universe were formed from a giant explosion
– a Big Bang. I can think of planes flying into skyscrapers, armored tanks blowing
up buildings, WWII bombers dropping atomic weapons on
Go outside tonight and gaze at the stars. Then open your Bible and read the first
sentence. There you meet the engineer who designed and created those stars. “In
the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.” When you accept that sentence
by faith, then the world and the universe take on a special beauty as you begin
to discover the God who loved us so much that he created such a marvelous place
for us to live and explore.
Notice especially the second verse: “The earth was formless and empty, darkness
was over the surface of the deep.”
Observe how God did not create the earth to be instantly splendid. It’s like the
potter who begins with a big ugly, wet lump of clay. Second, notice the almost depressing
tone Moses used to describe the beginnings of God’s new creation. Words like “empty,
formless, and darkness.”
These are tough words, words of chaos and hopelessness.
But, maybe that’s the point. All of us, at some time or another have found something
about our lives that can be described with words of emptiness and void and darkness.
As we go into the world, daily we come face-to-face with others who feel as if these
are the words that describe their lives. They feel as if there is no hope. That
everything is formless and void, and darkness is surrounding the deep.
If this happens to be true in your life, I have good news for you today. Because,
it is exactly at this point that God begins to work on a new creation. Listen to
the next sentence: “and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters.”
What an incredible gift – knowing, that in our time of darkness, when we need him
the most, God is right there, waiting for us to turn to him, waiting to create life
in an otherwise empty world. When we
get to the point in our life, when it seems everywhere we look, there is nothing
but darkness – there you can find God. And he is always there – waiting and wanting
to create something extra-ordinary in your life. And, you know what? If we are willing
to let him, that is exactly what he does. He creates something new in our lives.
The Bible tells us that “ if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old
has gone, the new has come!” (2 Corinthians 5:17)
Look at how God takes that which is empty, void and
full of darkness, and creates life out of it. The first thing he does is give it
form. On the first day, he gave the earth light. Not the sun and moon kind of light,
but a divine light. I don’t know if you have ever seen this before, but God brought
light to the earth three days before he made the sun and the moon and the stars.
And, that is the first thing God does when he begins to work in our lives – he fills
us with a divine light. Jesus said, "I am the light of the world." John 1:4 tells
us that "in Him was life, and that life was the light of men.”
So, when we turn to God we find the light of Jesus Christ. We discover hope and
promise and a future. We discover, much to our amazement, that God has been there
all along, and now, as we trust in him, he is going to do great things in our lives.
2. God gives
life
On the second day, God created an expanse to separate the waters and the sky. On
the third day, God brought dry land out of the water and caused plant life to grow
on the land. On the fourth day, God placed the sun, the moon and the stars in the
sky. So, what is God doing these first four days?
Well, he is preparing his creation for new life.
Over the years, we have had numerous hamsters in our home and buried those same
hamsters. We either have a faulty hamster home or inferior animals. Either way,
God did not have this problem when he created life and an environment to support
that life.
What God created those first four days was an earth that was perfect for humanity
to survive in. The same is true for our lives today. When we have lived long enough
in the darkness and we are ready for God to come in and recreate us and give us
new life, he does so by first preparing our hearts. As he does this, he begins to
point out the things in our life that will destroy our new lives. That is why confession
and repentance are so important. As the light of God begins to shine in our lives,
it reveals our sin. The sin that Christ died for, the sin that was forgiven on the
cross of
When our hearts are clean, then Christ can literally come in and take up residency.
He gives us "New Life.”
3. God gives
purpose
On day five, God created the fish for the waters and the birds for the sky. On day six, God created all the animals
of the earth, and then he created man and woman in his image. God took the beautiful
work of creation and gave it life. He then created man and woman to have a purpose
in that life.
One of the most discouraging and depressing things in the whole world is a life
without purpose. Have you ever met a person who is going through life just waiting
to die? He or she seems to be just going through the motions. There is no sense
of mission or purpose.
Adam and Eve were created with purpose. First of all, they were to fellowship with
God. Secondly, they were to be fruitful and multiply and they were to subdue the
earth. And finally, Adam and Eve were to be the original caretakers of God’s creation.
God has the same purpose for us. God wants us to have an intimate relationship with
him. That is the principle reason Jesus died on the cross – for us. So that we would
be reconciled with God and adopted into his holy family. So we could receive eternal
life through him and live in his heavenly mansions.
God also wants us to be fruitful. Jesus said; "I am the vine, you are the branches.
If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit, apart from me you
can do nothing.” Isn’t that what we said is wrong with much of the world today?
Our lives are empty – nothingness abounds. But, in Jesus Christ we have purpose,
we have meaning. Our purpose is to fellowship with God in worship, Bible study,
prayer, and communion. Our purpose is also to share our God with others. Jesus has
commissioned us to go into all nations teaching and baptizing in the name of the
Triune God who creates, redeems and sanctifies.
Have you ever felt a little bit like those three people I mentioned at the beginning
of my sermon? Let me tell you how things worked out for them.
The married woman with the drinking problem – she is doing much better today. She
turned her life over to Jesus Christ. Instead of filling her life with drink and
TV, she now fills it by helping with a children’s ministry during the day. It is
a ministry that provides a service to families where the mother has to work.
The man in the motel – he changed his mind. Instead of calling an escort service,
he called a local pastor for prayer, then he called his wife. Today, they are happily
married. He quit the job that had forced him to travel so much. He will tell you
"I don’t make as much money, but because of what God has done in my life, I am a
lot happier."
The young girl in the car, I wish I could say that things turned out well for her
also, but I can’t. She went through with it and committed suicide. She was a lovely
girl, but no one knew she was in such turmoil.
All three of these people are just like us – people who need the love of God in
their lives. Friends, God loves you, and no matter how desperate you become, he
wants to take away your darkness and fill it with light. He wants to take away the
nothingness and give it form. He wants to take away the emptiness and fill it with
life. He wants to take away the void and fill it with purpose. He will do it, if
you allow him to. That was God’s desire for this world. That is God desire for every
one of us.
I love the way the first chapter of Genesis ends. Listen again to these words: “God
saw all that he had made, and it was very good.” You see, whenever God creates,
that is the final conclusion. It is very good. That is what God does with every
person who is brought to him by the Holy Spirit through Jesus Christ – he gives
them form; he gives them life; and he gives them purpose. It is a new creation.
And when he is finished – it is very good! Amen.
To God be the glory. Amen.