The offensiveness of grace

Texts: Numbers 16.36-50; Romans 4.13-25; Matthew 20.1-16

A few years ago, homeowners in the northeast were given an opportunity to avoid projected increases in their monthly heating bills by signing contracts which set their rates at a fixed level for two years. Some signed the contracts, believing it would save them money, while others decided not to. But, due to circumstances unforeseen at the time the contracts were signed, the price of home heating oil dropped and the homeowners who had signed the fixed rate contracts ended up paying more per month than the homeowners who had not. Some who had signed the contracts complained that this was unfair, but they had no case. They had agreed to a fixed rate, and they were obligated to pay according to the terms of the contract they had signed.

The beauty of the parable of the laborers in the vineyard is Jesus' teaching that the grace of God is not a contractual arrangement. The laborers hired first complained about the laborers hired last receiving the same wage, but their complaint was unfounded. At the beginning of the day, they had agreed to work for a denarius; at the end of the day they received a denarius. The owner had kept his word. There was nothing unfair about the way he treated the laborers he hired at the beginning of the day. What he chose to pay the other laborers, hired at various times throughout the day, should not have been of any concern to those hired first. The owner, and the owner alone, would make that determination. If he chose to be generous, then he chose to be generous.

For those who know its benefits, the grace of God is a beautiful thing. For those who think the favor of God is something they must work for and earn, grace is a highly offensive proposition. The first laborers thought they deserved more for having worked longer and harder. But, at the end of the day, they got what they had bargained for, nothing more and nothing less. Likewise, those who try to earn their way into the kingdom of God will find, at the end of the day, that bargaining with God will get them far less than what God would have generously given them if only they had relied on his grace alone.

Come, Let Us Use the Grace Divine

Come, let us use the grace divine, and all with one accord,
In a perpetual covenant join ourselves to Christ the Lord;
Give up ourselves, through Jesus’ power, His Name to glorify;
And promise, in this sacred hour, for God to live and die.

The covenant we this moment make be ever kept in mind;
We will no more our God forsake, or cast these words behind.
We never will throw off the fear of God Who hears our vow;
And if Thou art well pleased to hear, come down and meet us now.

Thee, Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, let all our hearts receive,
Present with Thy celestial host the peaceful answer give;
To each covenant the blood apply which takes our sins away,
And register our names on high and keep us to that day!

• Charles Wesley

"On the Eminent Dignity of the Poor in the Church" (Luther)

Texts: Numbers 16.20-35; Romans 4.1-12; Matthew 19.23-30

Commemoration: Alban

Almighty God, by whose grace and power your holy martyr Alban triumphed over suffering and was faithful even unto death: Grant to us, who now remember him with thanksgiving, to be so faithful in our witness to you in this world, that we may receive with him the crown of life; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

In every kingdom, in every empire, there are privileged men; that is to say, eminent persons with rights beyond the ordinary; and the source of these privileges is that by birth or by office they are closer to the person of the prince. It belongs to the sovereign's greatness and majesty that the lustre of his crown should be in some sort reflected on those who approach him near. Now we know from Holy Writ that the Church is a kingdom well-ordered; do not doubt then that it too has its privileged men. And whence will they gain their privileges but from fellowship with its prince, Jesus Christ? But if we would be united with Christ, let us not look among the rich for the privileges of Holy Church. Our monarch's crown is a crown of thorns, its lustre is suffering and affliction. In the poor, in those who suffer--there dwells the majesty of the spiritual kingdom. Christ himself being poor and needy, it was right that he should enter into fellowship with those like him, and shed his favours on those who share his lot.

• Martin Luther

Holy God, We Praise Thy Name

Holy God, we praise Thy Name;
Lord of all, we bow before Thee!
All on earth Thy scepter claim,
All in Heaven above adore Thee;
Infinite Thy vast domain,
Everlasting is Thy reign.

Hark! the loud celestial hymn
Angel choirs above are raising,
Cherubim and seraphim,
In unceasing chorus praising;
Fill the heavens with sweet accord:
Holy, holy, holy, Lord.

Lo! the apostolic train
Join the sacred Name to hallow;
Prophets swell the loud refrain,
And the white robed martyrs follow;
And from morn to set of sun,
Through the Church the song goes on.

Holy Father, Holy Son,
Holy Spirit, Three we name Thee;
While in essence only One,
Undivided God we claim Thee;
And adoring bend the knee,
While we own the mystery.

• Ignaz Franz

The man who was in it for himself

Texts: Numbers 16.1-19, Romans 3.21-31, Matthew 19.13-22

Commemoration: Onesimos Nesib

Almighty and everlasting God, we thank you for your servant Frumentius, by whom your Church was first planted in Ethiopia, and for your servant Onesimos Nesib, whom you called to minister to the Galla people of Ethiopia. Raise up in this and every land evangelists and heralds of your kingdom, that your Church may proclaim the unsearchable riches of our Savior Jesus Christ; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

We cannot doubt the sincerity of the rich young man. He came to Jesus desiring to do that one "good deed" through which he might "have eternal life." He had kept the commandments, or so he said, down to their last detail. But, in his heart, he knew this was not enough. "What do I still lack?" he asked.

But the young man's sincerity could not hide his blindness to his imperfection. Even if he had kept all the commandments perfectly, observing even the most obscure details of the law, he would still be falling short. His legalistic mindset had made him self-centered. His initial question, "Teacher, what good deed must I do to have eternal life?" betrays him. He is in it for himself, not for others. The law is merely a vehicle for his own self-congratulation. Eternal life is something he wants for himself, with no thought of sharing the gift with others.

In his heart, he knew he still lacked something, but his heart was in the wrong place. Jesus exposes his shortcoming by telling him, "If you would be perfect, go, sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me."

A loose translation of Jesus' instructions to the rich young man might be, "If you are who you say you are, prove it by demonstrating what a self-giving, self-sacrificing person your perfect adherence to the commandments has made you. Give of yourself for the sake of others and put your trust in me, and me alone, to provide for your needs."

But this is more than the rich young man can handle. Hearing this, Matthew writes, "he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions." Keeping the commandments had not made him perfect. In the end, it only made him sorrowful. Legalism is not the way to eternal life. There is no "good deed" the rich young man or anyone else could do to have it. What the young man lacked was not a good deed, but a living faith. For if he had faith, he would have responded to Jesus' command with joy, not sorrow. Faith awakens charity, not the other way around. As Paul states so powerfully, "the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law . . . the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe."

The law did nothing for the rich young man except to make him self-centered and self-reliant. He could not understand that the law was not about him! The law was about God! It was a reflection of his holiness and his righteousness; a holiness and righteousness that the rich young man, a fallen human being, could never attain through his self-centered ways. God alone is holy. God alone justifies, and he does so as an act of mercy; as a free gift of his grace. The only response one so justified can offer is the response of faith; and faith manifests itself in acts of self-giving, giving of ourselves for others just as God, in Christ, gave of himself for us.

Let Us Plead for Faith Alone

Let us plead for faith alone
Faith which by our works is shown;
God it is Who justifies,
Only faith the grace applies.

Active faith that lives within,
Conquers hell and death and sin,
Hallows whom it first made whole,
Forms the Savior in the soul.

Let us for this faith contend,
Sure salvation is the end;
Heaven already is begun,
Everlasting life is won.

Only let us persevere
Till we see our Lord appear,
Never from the Rock remove,
Saved by faith which works by love.

• Charles Wesley

The town that was not ready

Texts (Sunday Lectionary): Isaiah 65.1-9, Galatians 3.23-29, Luke 8.26-39

The Fourth Sunday after Pentecost

O Lord, make us have perpetual love and reverence for your holy Name, for you never fail to help and govern those whom you have set upon the sure foundation of your loving-kindness; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

The reaction of the people to Jesus' healing of the Gerasene demoniac is all too typical. Rather than welcome Jesus with open arms, they insist that he leave. Why? Well, the pigs are gone. When Jesus ordered the demons into the herd of pigs, the pigs then "rushed down the steep branch into the lake and were drowned" (v. 33). The Gerasene region is, of course, Gentile territory. The town had a lot invested in those pigs. Jesus might be bad for business if he stayed around.

Jesus responds to the people's demand the way he always responds to faithlessness. He doesn't stay where he is not wanted. He will not force a stubborn people to accept him. He came to show them that they could be set free from whatever was keeping them in bondage. But their only response was, "The pigs are gone." They are a people who cannot accept the gracious offer of God in the flesh, at least not at this time.

But, although he departs from them, Jesus does not leave himself without a witness. The demoniac, now healed, wants to go with Jesus. But Jesus tells him, "Return to your home, and declare how much God has done for you" (v. 39). When ministering among the Jews, Jesus would often instruct those he healed to keep quiet about it. But he sends this Gentile back to his home with instructions to tell everyone about the healing and transforming power of God. So, with great enthusiasm, the man goes about spreading the Good News. The town was not ready for Jesus when he came in person. But the man he healed continued to be a witness to the fact that the Son of God had paid them a visit.

I Heard the Voice of Jesus Say

I heard the voice of Jesus say, “Come unto Me and rest;
Lay down, thou weary one, lay down Thy head upon My breast.”
I came to Jesus as I was, weary and worn and sad;
I found in Him a resting place, and He has made me glad.

I heard the voice of Jesus say, “Behold, I freely give
The living water; thirsty one, stoop down, and drink, and live.”
I came to Jesus, and I drank of that life giving stream;
My thirst was quenched, my soul revived, and now I live in Him.

I heard the voice of Jesus say, “I am this dark world’s Light;
Look unto Me, thy morn shall rise, and all thy day be bright.”
I looked to Jesus, and I found in Him my Star, my Sun;
And in that light of life I’ll walk, till traveling days are done.

I heard the voice of Jesus say, “My Father’s house above
Has many mansions; I’ve a place prepared for you in love.”
I trust in Jesus—in that house, according to His word,
Redeemed by grace, my soul shall live forever with the Lord.

• Horatius Bonar

Judgment and consequences: A few thoughts with contemporary examples

Texts: Romans 1.1-2.11 (Monday thru Wednesday)

A few years ago, Christianity Today ran a poll on the question, "Does God judge nations through human evil (including terrorist attacks)?" The question is prompted by a review of Stephen J. Keillor's book, God's Judgments: Interpreting History and the Christian Faith, a study which attempted to give scholarly cover to the simplistic comments of Pat Robertson and the late Jerry Falwell following the 9/11 attacks. One astute reader noted in the discussion forum following the review the inappropriateness of such a review appearing in a respected evangelical publication.

Keillor's thought reveals a profound (and unforgivable) misunderstanding of the biblical text, most notably the OT texts upon which his premises seems to rely. This makes Falwell's snap judgments, foolish in their own right, seem fairly benign. Americans want to believe that they are some how special. Or that because America is a so called Christian nation, it is blessed by God. Or that because America is protective of the Jews, God will protect them. All of this is hogwash, pure and simple. That Webb and CT don't call it as much is a reflection on their own complicity in spreading such false beliefs, which have absolutely no foundation in or support from the biblical text. I simply cannot imagine what CT had in mind with this review, or why Webb cannot see nonsense when he sees it, and call it such. CT should refrain from even recognizing the existence of works of this sort. They have no credibility and make CT (and Webb) seem like they have never actually read the OT text.

Keillor, like Robertson and Falwell before him, failed to understand the distinction between judgment and consequences. Yes, God judges. He judges individuals, communities, and even nations. But the manner in which he pours out his wrath is, more often than not, indirect rather than direct.

It is all too easy, for example, to say that AIDS is God's judgment against homosexuals and others who engage in unnatural sexual conduct. But such a view is not consistent with what Paul says in this week's readings from Romans 1-2. God's does not mete out his judgment against the wicked by afflicting them with disease and suffering. Rather, he metes out judgment by "[giving] them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves" (Romans 1.24). In other words, God's judgment against the ungodly is to give them over to their ungodliness. Having "exchanged the truth of God for a lie and worshiped the creature rather than the Creator" (Romans 1.25), they are left wide open to the deadly consequences of their actions, thus "receiving in themselves the due penalty for their error" (Romans 1:27). Judgment, then, would seem a rather benign decision on God's part simply to permit an ungodly people to sink to the lowest possible depths of depravity. It is the consequences of his judgment that can be deadly, but the ungodly have no one to blame but themselves for the final outcome.

Paul would also take issue with the claims of Fred Phelps and his cultish followers (mostly extended family members) who go around the country protesting at funerals of servicemen killed in Iraq and Afghanistan. Such deaths, Phelps and company claim, are God's judgment on America for tolerating homosexuality in the military and other institutions.

Conservative Christian leaders from all branches of the faith have rightly denounced Phelps and company for their despicable behavior. But many of the denunciations are as shallow as Phelps's vile rhetoric. The chief concern, most often, is with the damage such over the top tactics do to mainstream Christian opposition to legitimization of homosexual behavior.

But a deeper issue goes largely unaddressed.

There is nothing in the vitriol of Phelps and company that even remotely resembles authentic Christianity, neither in belief nor practice. Spokeswoman Shirley Phelps-Roper, appearing on television several years back, seemed quite gleeful in railing about "a raging, mad God" who is pouring out the cup of his wrath on America, but never once mentioned the name of Jesus. Neither did she say anything about how the country might turn back the wrath of God through repentance.

Even the most abrasive of the Old Testament prophets did not declare God's judgment merely for its own sake. Whenever God announced his judgment in advance, he did so in the sincere hope that he would not have to carry out the sentence. There was always included a clarion call to a wicked nation or a rebellious people to turn away from sin and turn back to God. Phelps and company make no such call to repentance. Having no concern whatsoever for the moral state of the nation, they merely declare judgment for judgment's sake.

David Uncensored

Texts: Psalm 51, Ecclesiastes 5.1-7, Galatians 3.15-22, Matthew 14.22-36

Commemoration: John XXIII

Almighty God, whose will it is to heal all division and discord among those who call upon the name of your Son: We thank you for the good will shown in your servant John, and we pray that we may always be ready to hear our fellow Christians with humility and a willingness to learn, and may also speak the truth in love, to the healing of faction and the renewed witness of your people; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and ever. Amen.

"In the spring of the year, the time when kings to out to battle, David sent Joab and his servants with him, and all Israel. And they ravaged the Ammonites and besieged Rabbah. But David remained at Jerusalem."

So opens the eleventh chapter of 2 Samuel, with hardly any indication of the treachery, betrayal, and murder that is about to bring hardship upon Israel's greatest king.

"It happened, late one afternoon. . ." Now, we know what's coming next. David eyes Bathsheba. Bathsheba is married to one of David's most trusted and loyal soldiers. But Uriah is off at war and David is at the palace in Jerusalem. An adulterous liaison results in Bathsheba's conceiving a child. David tries to cover it up by recalling Uriah, but Uriah will not afford himself the pleasure of his wife's company while his fellow soldiers are encamped on the battlefield. So, David sends him back, with orders that he be placed on the front line, guaranteeing his death. With Uriah out of the way, David takes Bathsheba as his wife. "But," we are told, "the thing that David had done displeased the LORD" (2 Samuel 11.27b).

This is not the first time David takes in a widow whose first husband has died under mysterious circumstances. In 1 Samuel 25, David takes in Abigail, widow of Nabal, who was struck dead by the Lord after refusing hospitality to David and his men.

Absent the filter of preconceived notions planted mostly by the heroic stories we learned in Sunday School, the biblical account of David's life does not always paint a very flattering picture. Here is a man who could just as easily be scorned for his ruthlessness toward both friend and foe as praised for his faithfulness to the God who raised him up from a simple shepherd to a mighty monarch.

One may well wonder just what kind of God is so willing to stand by so flawed a man as David. But, in the end, that is the whole point of the story. For all of his exploits--be they good, bad, or just plain ugly--David is not the hero; God is. It is God's faithfulness to David, not David's faithfulness to God, that secures David's legacy as the greatest of Israel's kings.

David uncensored is a man whose commitment to decency, morality, and justice is sporadic at best. But, as we see in today's Psalter reading, he is brought to his knees when confronted with his failings. It is not his own desire to be godly which leads him to repent but, rather, his humble recognition of God's desire to use him as an instrument in bringing about Israel's (and the world's) redemption. David realized that in spite of all his wealth, fame, and power, he was only a man. It is for that reason alone that he is remembered as "the man after God's own heart."

Depth of Mercy

Depth of mercy! Can there be
Mercy still reserved for me?
Can my God His wrath forbear,
Me, the chief of sinners, spare?

I have long withstood His grace,
Long provoked Him to His face,
Would not hearken to His calls,
Grieved Him by a thousand falls.

I my Master have denied,
I afresh have crucified,
And profaned His hallowed Name,
Put Him to an open shame.

I have spilt His precious blood,
Trampled on the Son of God,
Filled with pangs unspeakable,
I, who yet am not in hell!

Lo! I still walk on the ground:
Lo! an Advocate is found:
“Hasten not to cut him down,
Let this barren soul alone.”

Jesus speaks, and pleads His blood!
He disarms the wrath of God;
Now my Father’s mercies move,
Justice lingers into love.

Kindled His relentings are,
Me He now delights to spare,
Cries, “How shall I give thee up?”
Lets the lifted thunder drop.

Whence to me this waste of love?
Ask my Advocate above!
See the cause in Jesus’ face,
Now before the throne of grace.

There for me the Savior stands,
Shows His wounds and spreads His hands.
God is love! I know, I feel;
Jesus weeps and loves me still.

Jesus, answer from above,
Is not all Thy nature love?
Wilt Thou not the wrong forget,
Permit me to kiss Thy feet?

If I rightly read Thy heart,
If Thou all compassion art,
Bow Thine ear, in mercy bow,
Pardon and accept me now.

Pity from Thine eye let fall,
By a look my soul recall;
Now the stone to flesh convert,
Cast a look, and break my heart.

Now incline me to repent,
Let me now my sins lament,
Now my foul revolt deplore,
Weep, believe, and sin no more.

• Charles Wesley

The role of faith

Texts: Ecclesiastes 3.16-4:3; Galatians 3.1-14; Matthew 14.13-21

Commemoration: The Martyrs of Uganda

O God, by whose providence the blood of the martyrs is the seed of the Church: Grant that we who remember before you the blessed martyrs of Uganda, may, like them, be steadfast in our faith in Jesus Christ, to whom they gave obedience, even unto death, and by their sacrifice brought forth a plentiful harvest; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

Know then that it is those of faith who are the sons of Abraham. And the Scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, preached the gospel beforehand to Abraham, saying, “In you shall all the nations be blessed.” So then, those who are of faith are blessed along with Abraham, the man of faith.

Faith, as we have seen, is not merely mental assent or rudimentary human response to God's gracious initiative in giving his Son to die for our sins. True faith, the faith through which salvation is wrought in the life of the believer, involves abandoning oneself so completely and utterly to Christ as to be literally "crucified with Christ" (Galatians 2.20). Such abandonment of oneself is impossible for fallen human beings, left to their own devices. Only God, who by his grace created human beings in his image and likeness, is able by that same grace to create faith within the heart of his chosen ones.

It is even something of a misnomer to say faith is a condition of salvation, although such a term has been used in times past when, perhaps, it carried less humanistic connotations. Christ's sacrifice on the cross is effective for all humanity, whether or not all humanity accepts it. Those with faith who accept this gracious gift will enter into salvation and eternal life; those without faith who reject it will enter into judgment and eternal torment. But it is, ultimately, the sacrifice itself, being an act of unspeakable self-giving on the part of God, which determines the destiny of all humanity, faithful and unfaithful alike.

It is undeniably true, then, that without faith, it is impossible to be saved. Yet faith is impossible without God's grace awakening it in the heart of the believer. Faith, then, is not (as some present-day fundamentalists claim) the "necessary first step" in salvation. The "first step" was taken by Christ at Calvary and it was neither necessary on God's part nor requested on humanity's part. Rather, it was an act of total self-giving by a God whose love, mercy, and grace were so boundless that he would literally span heaven and earth to win back that which he had created in his own image.

The role of faith can best be described as that of the necessary means through which God effects salvation in the life of the believer. He who gave of and abandoned himself completely, unconditionally, and sacrificially to rescue a fallen race expects nothing more and nothing less than the same complete, unconditional, and sacrificial act of self-giving and self-abandonment (literally being "crucified with Christ") on the part of those to whom his gift of salvation is offered.

Let Us Plead for Faith Alone

Let us plead for faith alone
Faith which by our works is shown;
God it is Who justifies,
Only faith the grace applies.

Active faith that lives within,
Conquers hell and death and sin,
Hallows whom it first made whole,
Forms the Savior in the soul.

Let us for this faith contend,
Sure salvation is the end;
Heaven already is begun,
Everlasting life is won.

Only let us persevere
Till we see our Lord appear,
Never from the Rock remove,
Saved by faith which works by love.

• Charles Wesley

Grace and the death of Christ

Texts: Ecclesiastes 3.1-15, Galatians 2.11-21, Matthew 14.1-12

Commemoration: The Martyrs of Lyons

Grant, O Lord, we pray, that we who keep the feast of the holy martyrs Blandina and her companions may be rooted and grounded in love of you, and may endure the sufferings of this life for the glory that shall be revealed in us; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

For Paul, grace is central to understanding how God effects salvation. But it is no mere concept. Throughout Paul's writings, grace is synonymous with Christ crucified. The cross is God's declaration of unmerited favor toward a human race which, left to its own devices, cannot redeem itself out of its state of fallenness. Grace, according to Paul, is realized, actualized, and personified in Jesus Christ and given its definitive expression through his death on the cross. To be saved by grace, then, is to be saved by the sacrificial death of Christ. Salvation by grace is both an accomplished fact (having been actualized in history at the cross) and a work in progress (being continually worked out in the life of the believer).

The means through which salvation is wrought in the life of the believer is faith. Again, with Paul, this is no mere concept.

I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. I do not nullify the grace of God, for if justification were through the law, then Christ died for no purpose.

Here, Paul equates "grace" with the death of Christ. Moreover, he equates "faith" with identification with Christ in that death. Faith, then, is not simply mental assent or rudimentary human response to God's gracious initiative. Faith is abandoning oneself so completely to Christ as to become one with him in his once for all sacrifice for our sins. Such an act of self-giving is impossible for human beings who are already dead in their sins. Thus, even faith is of divine, not human, origin.

The end of faith is salvation, but the beginning and the end of salvation is grace, and grace is not a concept but a Person: Jesus Christ the crucified.

Jesus, United by Thy Grace

Jesus, united by Thy grace,
And each to each endeared,
With confidence we seek Thy face
And know our prayer is heard.

Still let us own our common Lord,
And bear Thine easy yoke,
A band of love, a threefold cord,
Which never can be broke.

Make us into one spirit drink;
Baptize into Thy Name;
And let us always kindly think,
And sweetly speak, the same.

Help us to help each other, Lord,
Each other’s cross to bear;
Let all their friendly aid afford,
And feel each other’s care.

Up onto Thee, our living Head,
Let us in all things grow;
Till Thou hast made us free indeed
And spotless here below.

Touched by the lodestone of Thy love,
Let all our hearts agree,
And ever toward each other move,
And ever move toward Thee.

To Thee, inseparably joined,
Let all our spirits cleave;
O may we all the loving mind,
That was in Thee receive.

This is the bond of perfectness,
Thy spotless charity;
O let us, still we pray, possess
The mind that was in Thee.

Grant this, and then from all below
Insensibly remove:
Our souls their change shall scarcely know,
Made perfect first in love!

With ease our souls through death shall glide
Into their paradise,
And thence, on wings of angels, ride
Triumphant through the skies.

Yet, when the fullest joy is given,
The same delight we prove,
In earth, in paradise, in Heaven,
Our all in all is love.

• Charles Wesley