The Trinitarian God
Father Peter Fitzgibbons
June 3 – 4, 2023
Gospel: John 3: 16 – 18
16 For this is how God loved the world: He gave His only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him may not perish but may have eternal life. 17 For God sent His Son into the world not to judge the world, but so that through Him the world might be saved. 18 No one who believes in Him will be judged; but whoever does not believe is judged already, because that person does not believe in the Name of God’s only Son.
In life, there are two ways in which we are able to learn. One is by instruction, and the other is by experience. Notice that I said, “able to learn.” That doesn’t mean we always learn – just that we are able to learn. During instruction we are taught stuff that we have no possible way of knowing about. We know it exists and that’s about all.
Pope Leo XII said, “The most sublime of all the mysteries is the Trinity through which all the other mysteries flow.” Indeed, we cannot know who God is unless He reveals Himself to us. And He does. Throughout Scripture, He has revealed who He is. . . one divine nature and three Persons. He revealed His love on the Cross. Beyond that we probably can’t comprehend who He is because we are able to comprehend so little. However, we gain greater knowledge of Him through experience. And that experience is gained by letting Him become a part of us . . . to become one with Him. Unfortunately, some people don’t learn through experience. Look at any drunk. The first time they get sick from drinking too much most people say, “I’m not doing that again!” On the other hand, the drunk says, “Hey, that was great! Let’s do it again.” They did not learn from the experience.
If we allow His nature into our sinful bodies, our souls, which have been disfigured by original sin and the sins committed after Baptism, are transformed into His own image and likeness. The Holy Sacrifice of the Mass is the greatest gift of all. If you were a salesman and you had the greatest product in the world, you would approach people and say, “Hey, I’ve got the greatest product in the world, and you’re going to love it! This is what it does for you. Try it.” It’s the same with me and bacon. . . if I have some, I want more and more. So, people will try your product because it is the greatest thing, and they will want more and more of it because of the benefits.
The Holy Sacrifice of the Mass is the greatest thing because we see the nature of God. We see Heaven on the altar. He is love itself, and He offered His Son on our behalf. The most sublime act of love happened at Calgary before the Father and made present for us. Through the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, He gives us the fruits of that love which is the gift of Himself. We receive the nature of God through the Seven Sacraments. It becomes part of us if we let it. But you have to cooperate.
Now, through the Sacraments, we receive the whole God and not just parts of Him . . . the whole Trinitarian God becomes a part of us as long as we remain in a state of grace. Do we understand it? No, and we never will. But we become one with God. We have His nature inside of us. By perfecting our human nature, we will grow ever more holy. This is how we experience Trinitarian love through the Sacraments. It is how we preach Trinitarian love . . . by having God within us and taking His love to the world by living Christian lives. This is how we should evangelize.
When you receive any of the Sacraments, you receive the whole God. Some will say, “But at Confirmation, you receive the Holy Spirit.” Yeah. Each Sacrament contains a particular grace. Another bad teaching is that Jesus Christ is received for the first time at Confirmation. That’s not true. You receive Jesus Christ for the first time at Baptism. However, you receive the whole God in all of the Sacraments . . . not just pieces of Him. Each of the Sacraments has a specific purpose in which a part of God’s love is more emphasized than in the others. For example, the precious blood of Christ is given at the Sacrament of Penance; however, you receive the whole Trinitarian God.
We become more aware of the nature of God as we conform our souls into His likeness which is brought about by the grace given to us. God offers to share His very nature with us which is love. This is the greatest gift of all. He shares the Trinitarian God . . . the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. When we do good things as a response to the grace God has given us, those acts are Trinitarian because we do it out of love for the whole God. And that is how we can bring God’s love to the world.
How will you apply this message to your life? ______________________________________
You can read all of Father Fitzgibbons’ sermons by going to annunciationcatholicalbemarle.com and clicking on “Blog” then “Categories” then “Sermon Notes.” On a cell phone: click on “Blog” and then “Menu.” Scroll to the bottom of the screen and click on “Categories.” Sermon Notes are also available on the church Facebook page at ola.catholic.church. Click on “Groups” and then “Sermon Notes.”
