“I and the Father are one.” (John 10:30, NIV)
Shane Lowry, so lately the Champion Golfer of the Year for his winning effort at Royal Portrush, uses golf balls imprinted with a shamrock. It’s the symbol of his native Ireland, which is the country occupying the southern section of the island that also bounds Northern Ireland. The latter is part of the United Kingdom and thus a qualified host of the Open Championship.
But as we saw on Sunday, these islanders have an affinity. A boundary may split their governed territories, but they are a like people, and Lowry gained the crowd’s relentless support with his stalwart run on Saturday that set up his victory.
Lowry’s Saturday performance was strong enough to be deemed “legendary,” for he separated himself from a tightly bunched group of aspirants, missing just one green and carding eight birdies without a blemish.
The most legendary performance in Ireland’s history, however, may have been that of St. Patrick, a transplanted British missionary who would become the patron saint of Ireland, and venerated in the Roman Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, Anglican, and Lutheran churches. That’s a lot of love among rivals!
While a shamrock on our golf ball or anywhere else may be only a symbol, it can point us in the direction of true greatness.A careful reading of the history books, however, will inform you that much of what made Patrick “great” has been relegated to mythology. Patrick drove all snakes from Ireland? Patrick’s walking stick grew into a tree? Patrick spoke with his ancient ancestors? All these appear to be later fabrications, especially since they bear magical qualities.
But what of Patrick’s storied use of the three-leaved shamrock to explain the Trinity? From 16 centuries down the line, it’s impossible to know if this one is true, but it isn’t magical and it follows the pictorial examples we often find in Scripture. (And indeed, at Links Players, we’re big advocates of using the language and pictures of golf to open the door to considerations about Christ and our faith!)
Whatever the case, to be reminded of the nature of God is always a good thing. Our pictures of the Trinity may never be fully accurate, for our minds can’t grasp all of God’s nature in their limitations. But when Jesus declared his oneness with the Father and the Jews then grabbed stones to kill him, we know they understood his meaning. “You make yourself God,” they accused him.
The entangling of the triune godhead was expanded when Jesus said later, “But when the Helper comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth, who proceeds from the Father, he will bear witness about me” (John 15:26).
The Father, the Son, and the Spirit function as one and are to be worshipped as one. While a shamrock on our golf ball or anywhere else may be only a symbol, it can point us in the direction of true greatness. It can point us to the fullness of God.
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Jeff Hopper
July 23, 2019
Copyright 2019 Links Players International
The Links Daily Devotional appears Monday-Friday at www.linksplayers.com.