On the Festival of the Holy Trinity, the congregation of Immanuel Lutheran Church in Joplin, Missouri gathered in a white-draped sanctuary to worship the triune God — Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. In a sermon titled “Signature Style: God’s Unique Flair,” Pastor Christopher Ramstad opened the first pages of Holy Scripture and asked a compelling question: what does God’s creation tell us about who he is? The answer, drawn from Genesis 1 and 2, is as stunning as the world he made.
Festival of the Holy Trinity: God’s Signature on All Creation
The Festival of the Holy Trinity is one of the most distinctive days in the church year. The paraments return to white. The Athanasian Creed is spoken — the ancient, full-voiced declaration of who our God is: Father Almighty, Son eternally begotten of the Father, Holy Spirit proceeding from the Father and the Son. Three persons, co-eternal, co-equal. One God.
Pastor Ramstad opened with a reflection on signature styles — how an artist leaves a mark on a canvas, how a composer like Stephen Schwartz fills a musical like Children of Eden with an unmistakable sound, how a great director’s name in the credits tells you something about what you’re about to see. “Can you see his signature style in the things of creation?” he asked. And then: Genesis 1.
“Then God said, ‘Let us make man in our image, after our likeness.’ … So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.”
Genesis 1:26–27 (ESV)
Scripture Readings for the Festival of the Holy Trinity
The lectionary for the Festival of the Holy Trinity draws from across Scripture to show the triune God at work. The First Reading from Genesis 1:1–2:3 recounts the six days of creation, concluding with God’s rest on the seventh. Psalm 8 — “What is man that you are mindful of him?” — invited the congregation into a meditation on human dignity within the vastness of God’s creation. The Epistle from Acts 2:14a, 22–36 placed the voice of St. Peter on Pentecost, proclaiming that the crucified and risen Jesus has been exalted to the Father’s right hand and now pours out the promised Holy Spirit. The Holy Gospel from Matthew 28:16–20 brought us to the mountain in Galilee, where the risen Christ commissions his disciples with the words that have marked every Christian baptism ever since: “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.”
Order Out of Chaos: What Genesis 1 Reveals About Our God
Pastor Ramstad walked through the creation account carefully, pointing out a structure that’s easy to miss. Days one through three establish spaces — light and dark, sky and sea, land and vegetation. Days four through six fill those spaces — sun, moon, and stars; birds and fish; animals and humanity. This is not chaos. This is a God who creates with order, pattern, and purpose.
And right from the opening lines, the Trinity is present. “The Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters” (Genesis 1:2). Later: “Let us make man in our image.” The Son was there — John 1:3 tells us that nothing was made without him. Father, Son, and Spirit, creating together from the very beginning. This is God’s signature style: three persons, one God, together making and sustaining all things.
The crown jewel of that creation? You. When God makes human beings, he doesn’t simply speak them into existence from a distance. He gets hands-on. He puts his fingerprints on us. And his verdict — “very good” — is different from everything else. You are made in the image of God, and you matter to him.
Sin, of course, fractures that story. By Genesis 3, humanity uses the freedom God gave us to break his law, and creation is marked by separation from its Creator. But God does not give up. He promises a Redeemer. He sends his Son. Jesus of Nazareth — crucified by the hands of lawless men, and raised from the dead — bought you back with his holy precious blood. In Christ, God’s original verdict stands: you can once again be called very good.
The same Spirit who hovered over the waters at creation now hovers over the waters of baptism. In the water and the Word, in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, you are claimed as God’s own. As Pastor Ramstad reminded the congregation: make it personal. Put your name in it. “[Your name] is a beloved, baptized, redeemed child of God.” Every time you see water — in a creek, in your morning shower, in a glass at dinner — you have a daily reminder of who you are and whose you are.
In the children’s talk, DCE Jason Glaskey used the image of a family to open up the Trinity for the youngest worshipers. A family has a mom, a dad, and children — and each person stays who they are. Then: a tricycle has three wheels; the Trinity has three persons. Simple, memorable, and rooted in the reality of what God has done for each of us in holy baptism.
Trinity Sunday also marked a bittersweet milestone for Immanuel’s music ministry. The adult choir — under the long and faithful direction of Susan Ideker — sang their final two anthems of the season: “I Heard the Voice of Jesus Say” as the Hymn of the Day, and “A Joyful, Jubilant Song” during the offering. After years of leading Immanuel’s choir with grace and skill, Susan offered her final Sunday as director. The congregation gave a warm round of applause in her honor. Thank you, Susan, for the gift of your time and talent to the glory of God.
The congregation closed the service with LSB 801, “O Lord My God (How Great Thou Art)” — four stanzas tracing creation, the cross, and Christ’s return. It was the perfect capstone to a sermon rooted in the wonder of what God has made and what he has done for us in his Son.
O Lord my God, when I in awesome wonder
Lutheran Service Book 801, “O Lord My God (How Great Thou Art)” — Closing Hymn
Consider all the worlds Thy hands have made,
I see the stars, I hear the rolling thunder,
Thy power throughout the universe displayed —
Then sings my soul, my Savior God, to Thee:
How great Thou art! How great Thou art!
☀️ Summer Worship Schedule — Starting June 8
Attention Immanuel family: Beginning Sunday, June 8, we move to ONE SERVICE at 9:00 AM through the end of August. Bible Class and Sunday School follow at 10:15 AM. Come join the whole congregation worshiping together this summer. Jesus Brings Life. Meet Him Here.
Frequently Asked Questions About the Holy Trinity
What is the Holy Trinity?
The Holy Trinity is the Christian teaching that the one true God exists eternally as three distinct persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Each person is fully God; there is only one God. The word “Trinity” doesn’t appear in Scripture, but the reality it describes is there from Genesis 1 to Matthew 28.
Is the word “Trinity” in the Bible?
The word itself isn’t, but the truth is. “Trinity” (trinitas) was developed by early church theologians to faithfully describe what Scripture clearly teaches. The Council of Nicaea in 325 A.D. defined Trinitarian doctrine, and the Lutheran Catechism teaches it as foundational to Christian faith. Lutherans confess the Athanasian Creed on the Festival of the Holy Trinity as a full-voiced statement of this doctrine.
How does Genesis 1 point to the Trinity?
Three ways: the Spirit hovers over the waters (Genesis 1:2); the plural “Let us make man in our image” (Genesis 1:26) implies multiple persons; and John 1:1–3 tells us the Son — the Word — was present and active in all of creation. Pastor Ramstad used the days 1–3 / 4–6 pattern to show that creation bears the mark of an ordered, purposeful, trinitarian God.
What does baptism have to do with the Trinity?
Everything. Jesus commands baptism “in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit” (Matthew 28:19). The triune name is placed on you at baptism, claiming you as God’s own. The same Spirit who hovered over the waters of creation now hovers over the waters of baptism, bringing new life, forgiveness, and daily renewal.
Why do Lutherans confess the Athanasian Creed?
Along with the Apostles’ and Nicene Creeds, the Athanasian Creed is one of the three ecumenical creeds received by the Lutheran church. It provides the most thorough statement of Trinitarian and Christological doctrine. Confessing it on the Festival of the Holy Trinity is a declaration: this is what we believe, teach, and confess about the God who made us, redeemed us, and sanctifies us. Read more about what Lutherans believe →
About Immanuel Lutheran Church, Joplin, Missouri
Immanuel Lutheran Church is a confessional congregation of the Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod (LCMS), located at 2616 S Connecticut Ave, Joplin, MO 64804. We worship in the historic Lutheran liturgy using Lutheran Service Book and hold fast to the Lutheran Confessions as a faithful exposition of Holy Scripture.
Immanuel is home to Martin Luther School, a fully accredited PK–8 Lutheran school. Our youth ministry, Vacation Bible School, LifeLight Bible Study, and other ministries serve the Joplin community year-round. Jesus Brings Life. Meet Him Here.
Browse more sermons and worship services, or contact us to learn more about visiting or joining the Immanuel family.