Holy Trinity Sunday starts what is known as the churches half year. The first half of the church year is from advent through the ascension of Jesus. I trust that you have made that an annual journey. Advent proclaims the promise of a savior and the promise that the savior will return. Christmas reveals the Word of God made flesh and living among us as true God and true man. Epiphany is a time of revealing Jesus Christ to be true God and true man. Lent records the acts of Jesus as he journeys from the Mountain of the Transfiguration to the cross. Easter and the Sundays after Easter proclaims that Christ has risen and death is held captive to life. The ascension celebrates Christ’s return to the Father and carries the promise that the Holy Spirit will be sent to call, gather, enlighten, comfort, guide, empower the church and all who say that Jesus is Lord.

All this is that you might see Jesus and proclaim Jesus as Lord. All that is needed for your salvation is revealed in Christ’s half year. In the church’s half year the texts from the gospels are the teachings of Jesus. These teachings are given and proclaimed for your growth in Christian faith, hope and love, for your growth into the body of Christ, for your growth in service, stewardship, knowledge, fear of the Lord and certainty of salvation.

To grow you must be a disciple, one who follows and one who is taught. To be disciplined is not to be punished. It is to be taught. For your growth and for the growth of those you influence your are to be disciplined. You are to overcome yourself that you are free to be a servant of Christ. Students, you are to overcome yourselves to be free to be students. For the development of any virtue you must first overcome yourself. Growth demands outside influence. The stuff of growth is transcendent; it comes from above, given by the Holy Spirit working in you that which is pleasing to God. When you are content with yourself growth stops. A saying to remember, “When you are green you are still growing, when you are ripe you begin to rot.”

Pentecost/Trinity season is a time of growth. I invite you to worship. Grow!