Relationship is Divine! Eternal. Everywhere. Always.
God has only revealed himself in relationship! In Genesis 1, God says, to his Triune self, “Let us make man in our image…” In John’s Gospel prologue, the Word is both God and with God. (John 1.1f) At Jesus’ baptism the Spirit descended, and the Father made his Voice of blessing heard. There are myriad of examples of our God as three in one – our singularly plural God in relationship with Himself. And since he is the Creator, his fingerprints of relationship are found…well essentially everywhere.
Galaxies and astronomical entities pull and spin in relationship to one another. Our solar system is delicately balanced for earth’s perfect distance from the sun. Earth’s ecology is an interactive system evident as weather models consider global meteorological events to predict where a hurricane will go, for example. Creation is in relationship.
People are in relationship (I know, I know, very self-evident). Change a member of a group and you have a whole new group. Watch families change with the addition of a baby. Watch friendships change at the occasion of a divorce. Watch committees shift with one new member. Watch for the heartbreak of a romantic breakup.
Each person has a relationship with him or her self. It can vary very much – from self-hatred to narcissistic. Listen to people say, “I can’t forgive myself” and you’ll witness the detrimental effects of self-incrimination. Witness forgiveness and the Grace of God accepted, and you’ll find a Divine Love that produces an appropriate love of self that, paradoxically, is more likely to form healthy relationships. Yup, the more God has his way within you, the more Grace sustains others!
Our mission statement at Peace is to “Receive, Welcome and Invest in God’s Power and Peace.” The first calling of God is to personally receive: forgiveness, grace and God’s Spirit of love, power and self-discipline” (2 Tim 1.7) As God provides it in Word and Sacrament, every relationship to which we’re connected is altered…for the better! You become the personal messenger, and your delivery system is the most powerful in the universe and has it’s origin in the Triune Godhead. It is relationship!
See you Sunday in worship at 9a or 11a, Good Lord willing,
Karl