A sermon shared
at First Presbyterian Church, Spring City, TN, May 21, 2017
Micah
6:1-8 (see also Numbers 22-25, for the inside
story)
Has anyone ever offered you a deal
that is just too sweet to be true? It goes somewhat like, “This is the best
deal you will ever find, let me tell you how to get it?” Or, have you ever tried
to do someone a favor, or give them a gift of value, but wanted them to listen
to why you do it? Or tried to apologize for some past hard words or
misunderstanding and been brushed off? After
a few rejections, you may say, “I’m done with this! Let them stew in their
juices.”
God has offered humankind a gift
too sweet to be true along some free advice since humanity was created. “I will
never give up my lovingkindness for you, my people, but I do expect you to do
as I do.” The Lord said,
“You shall be holy because I am holy,” and through Moses spoke of the Law to Israel,
“If you will only obey the LORD your God,
by diligently observing all his commandments that I am commanding you today,
the LORD your God will set you high above all the nations of the earth…Surely,
this commandment (The Law) that I am commanding you today is not too hard for
you, nor is it too far away. It is not in heaven,… Neither is it beyond the
sea, that you should say, ‘Who will … get it for us so that we may hear it and observe
it?’ No, the word is very near to you; it is in your mouth and in your heart
for you to observe.” We call that gift the “grace of God.” Regardless of the
simplicity of the Law, “You shall be Holy because IAM holy,” Israel and us found it impossible to be
holy because of ego, selfishness, jealousy and thirst for power fills our
hearts. We reject this gift.
Our
inability to accept priceless gifts contingent on free advice became so bad
that the Lord simplified the message in Micah, “O people, the Lord is good to you, all
you have to do is justice, love kindness, and to
walk humbly with your God.” That gracious covenant remained on the table even in
the face of human disobedience because of the loving kindness of the Lord (hesed). Though the
Lord loves us in spite of ourselves,” we seldom reciprocate.
Rather
than throw humankind in the trash bin and start over, something fully unjustified, God’s hesed came to us in the form of Jesus to right all our
wrongs. The message of Jesus in John’s gospel is, “believe in me and you will
not perish” but as usual the Lord tosses in a contingency (really an
instruction on faith-based action), “If you believe in me, you will love each
other as I love you; so that others will believe you (and Me).” Someone’s
salvation depends on our loving others. Why is that “free advice” so hard to
accept?
The difference in
the demand for faith-based action between what the Lord said in the Law and the
message of Jesus is very small but significant. (We ought to expect that since
Jesus said he came to fulfill the Law.) Jesus says the Law means this, “Just as I
love you, love one another.” And,
“I will ask the Father (the Lord), and he will give you the Spirit of truth within
you to be …forever... I will not leave you orphaned; ... but … because I
live, you also will live. Then you will know that I am in my Father, and
you in me, and I in you.”
Lately I’ve talked about the symbolic language of scripture and multiple meanings of words
in scripture. The difference in Law and Gospel lies in a small but significant word.
advocate. The actual Greek word is paraclete. It has multiple
meanings. Paraclete has a legal meaning as a defender, lawyer, advisor or
spokesperson. Jesus is our defender before the judgment of God. It can mean cheerleader,
or one who gives comfort or solace in times of trouble.
We have a habit to rely on
selective hearing and memory, hearing and thinking what we expect rather than
what is actually said. Without that
defender and comforter from Jesus we can worsen a situation of fear, confusion,
uncertainty.
When we are faced with difficult
moral or ethical problems that need an advisor or confidant. It is seldom the
case that we find in the gospels a clear-cut situation in Christ’s time specific to the present circumstance to be able to apply a formulaic recipe developed from a
literal reading of scripture. We have a real problem when some scripture condemns a
situation but, contradictorily the gospel like this passage in John prescribes love. When the
“right” answer is not at all clear, or has negative consequences, we need help.
What do we do when we encounter a
circumstance completely outside the world and experience of the days of Jesus.
Is it morally wrong to refuse to vaccinate your children against measles, mumps,
tetanus and polio because someone told you fraudulently it causes autism? (The
person who started this hoax to sell his patent had his medical license revoked
and governments spent millions of dollars in subsequent research that refute
the claim.) Or, should we force all parents to have children vaccinated because
it protects not just your children, but everyone by eliminating the disease? What
is it the right thing to do? What if we hear from someone a report about a congregant,
member of the session, or the pastor that sounds wrong, or unjust? Should we repeat
it to others before confirming that is correct by challenging the person? Even
if true, should we repeat it? That is why we need the Holy Spirit.
There are two clear messages in
this text. One is about how we treat people who are transgressors, or who do us
wrong. We are judges of right and wrong to the extent we can verify that we
have no guilt ourselves. (Reread that last sentence.) How many of us fit
that requirement?... We are messengers of grace. The primary message of Jesus about
transgressors comes from the Law: We are to love as Jesus loved. That part of the new Law is as difficult for
us as the old Law to the Jews which is why Paul says the Law is death.
The second message advises us to
use the Holy Spirit to decide what actions are right and wrong. Paul captured the message in his letter to the
Corinthians, “All things
are lawful for me, but not all things are beneficial.” I will not be dominated by anything.” “Do not
seek your own advantage, but that of the other. Don’t let the effect of your actions be a
millstone around your neck.”
This is where the gift of the advocate,
or Holy Spirit is needed. The Holy Spirit is our teacher who helps us
understand right from wrong. John intends to capture all the subtle differences,
lawyer, advisor, comforter, counselor, as he describes a promised Divine Friend
who is available always to those who love him and each other.
The advocate is both free
advice and half of a gracious gift that frees us the literal body of the Law. The
gift is the simple command “Just as I love you, love one another,” and the free
advice sent to us, “our Advocate.” The Holy Spirit is in us - the
gift of free advice from the Lord to determine how to love each other makes
us holy. The Holy Spirit helps us chose actions that show we love each
other.
As Protestants, we choose willingly
to carry a very heavy personal burden to rely on the Holy Spirit in deciding
what actions build up and what action tears down Christian fellowship. We
formally reject the authority of any human to dictate to us what is right or
wrong. We intentionally embrace the obligation decide for our self - advised not
by intuition, or prejudice, but by being informed by scripture and the Holy
Spirit that is our advocate. We use a process of prayer, scripture and thought
to determine proper behavior to build up and not tear down. It requires grace.
Ego always should take second place.
When faced with a question about
right and wrong behavior, we should ask, “What does the scripture say? Is there
clear guidance for our action? Is my action so guided by an obviously supported
reading of scripture that the answer is self-evident?” Will it lift up, or tear down our fellowship? Most
choices that tear down have no grace but lead to anger and harm to Christian
fellowship and become a millstone around our neck.
If scripture is silent or
ambiguous, then we must go to the next level. Take the vaccine dilemma I mentioned in an earlier post. There were
no vaccines in the time of Jesus, folks did not even know what germs and
viruses are. We must ask if vaccinations support love between our brothers and
sisters, or discord? Is it right to vaccinate because it prevents my child from
getting the disease and helps eradicate the disease that may strike other
children? Is it right to believe someone who fraudulently says vaccines cause
autism and not have my child vaccinated, endangering everyone? Who should we
believe? The person who lost his medical license or the scientific evidence
that refutes the claim? If you can’t answer those questions with scripture or certainty,
find someone who does understand the science or discuss it with knowledgeable
friends. Then listen to your advocate, pray that the Holy Spirit helps you to understand
whether my ego, lack of knowledge, uncertainty or anger blinds my ears, eyes
and mind to the choice of grace.
In the real world we know rumors,
gossip, grudges, fraud, ill will and misunderstanding are ever present and threats
to congregations. They impede good decisions, but we can never deny these
things are present in each of us. Read Paul’s letters if you want examples.
Yet, every member of our
congregation is precious and filled fully with the enthusiasm of the Spirit,
from A to Z. We have been called to this
journey. We are brothers and sisters in Christ who fought back from the edge of
disaster and are walking towards to light and our only weapon is the grace of
God. Never let rumor, gossip, grudges, ill will and misunderstanding separate
us from mutual love. When you hear wrong, contradictory, or unfair, or
inexplicable comments, confront the issue and clarify the situation. Engage a friend for assistance. Don’t
assume the worst, assume the best. We are in this struggle together.
Remember two things, (1) Jesus
said, “If you believe in me, you will love each other as I love you so
others will believe you.” Show grace to the world and each other and put ego in
second place. (2) In that same spirit, whenever you hear something that sounds
wrong, are tempted to do something that feels wrong, ask and pray about it, remember
we all are called by Jesus to build up. Get your concerns addressed. Remember there's only one
question worth asking: "In what ways did I love another today?"
Amen.
Amen.
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