Confronting sin's power
Commentary
Object:
A fifty something father comes home after a long twelve-hour day at work to his wife, who remains unemployed after she went to a community college, and his twenty something-year-old daughter, who has a child or grandchild whom this father also supports. The daughter complains about how unfair life is since she had her child out of wedlock. Her father shares that back in his day, a pregnant high school teenager simply disappeared from the public school, had her baby, the baby was put up for adoption, and the young girl then went back to high school -- in hopes that she learned a valuable lesson. However, this changed a decade or so later. Young pregnant high school girls do have more choices now. With these choices comes responsibility. This also means people can make bad choices that carry not so pleasant consequences. This creates anxiety in which people will try to find false gods, escape through substance abuse, or blame others who may or may not have any clue they are being blamed. This is the power of sin in the twenty-first century. Authors Peter and Brigitte Berger and Hansfield Keller wrote a book in 1974 titled The Homeless Mind (Vintage Books). If modern Americans do not want a monarch, dictator, or George Orwell's Big Brother (1984) watching over them, then the choices made will result in anxiety. This is a product of sin's power. Today's Reformation Sunday texts provide some helpful hints about confronting sin's power.
Jeremiah 31:31-34
A supervisor makes a bad decision about a department policy, and this has negative consequences for all of the employees who work in that area. Now the whole group has to suffer and possibly lose their jobs over the bad choice of a supervisor whom they disagreed with in the first place. Welcome to the world of Jeremiah and the people of Judah, as King Zedekiah made bad choices that resulted in the conquest and destruction of their nation by the foreign power of Babylon. Much of the Old Testament or Hebrew Bible frames the people's problems based on God punishing an entire community for the leader's decisions. However, the leader, being a servant if not priestly figure on behalf of God, was responsible for the total well-being of the people as well. This did not work out well, as evidenced by the final exile of the people. Power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely as the saying goes. So God is doing a new thing by creating a covenant that allows the landless people to reclaim an identity based on the laws of the Torah being written on their hearts (Jeremiah 31:34).
This covenant allows each believer to have an inner transformational experience with God based on the laws written on their hearts. No longer must they feel guilty because a leader has chosen to disobey God. Believers can know the Lord God in their own personal faith journeys. In response to the daughter who has a child at home for the grandparents to raise, Jeremiah suggests that the whole family does not have to be the victims of a sin's power. They can seek out self-help groups and learn more responsible ways to be a family. They are always invited to the community of faith or the church as a resource of sorting out the complex problems that many families face today.
A sermon direction to examine is not feeling as if we have to suffer the consequences of other people's decisions, as the people of Judah did with King Zedekiah. Jeremiah 31 is an invitation to examine other options as we grow informed in our understanding of scripture. One core teaching of Jeremiah's theology is 1:10: "See, today I appoint you over nations and over kingdoms, to pluck up and to pull down, to destroy and to overthrow, to build and to plant." [Sources: Louis Stulman, Abingdon Old Testament Commentaries: Jeremiah (Abingdon Press, 2005); Paul Tillich, Systematic Theology: Existence and Christ, Volume 2 (University of Chicago Press, 1975)]
Romans 3:19-28
"For we hold that a person is justified by faith apart from works prescribed by the law" (Romans 3:28). One has to qualify what one means by "works of the law." Jesus is the final sacrifice of atonement that was originally the purpose of the Mosaic covenant. One must assume that human sin separates people from the love of God (Romans 3:23). However, human sin is not the final word; rather, God has sent Jesus to die on the cross for the sins of humanity. Faith in this death and resurrection of Jesus is the core of the Christian gospel (Romans 1:17). This is the basic, clear-cut traditional message of the gospel. If one assumes that the Pharisees of the times were using the Old Testament as a testing tool to see who is in and out of the covenant of God, then law served as a yoke and the gospel is freedom.
Recently there has been dispute about the nature of the covenant. The "New Perspective on Paul" is a scholarly movement that began in 1977 by E.P. Sanders and James Dunn. It argues that Judaism was a religion of grace where God unconditionally chooses the people of Israel. The law or Torah was not intended to create a religion of legalism or self-righteous works. Rather, the laws regarding circumcision, the sabbath, and food regulations were meant to be "markers" or ways to identify the people of faith. The law is a response to salvation or election, not a means to obtaining a right relationship with God. One can suggest that it is the specific views of Pharisee Judaism that might have leaned toward the law becoming a requirement for salvation. However one chooses to proceed in either view, the law remains a guideline for people of faith -- while still not a requirement.
The bottom line is that there is no boasting for those who are made right with God. All that we have is a gift from God. In response to the family in the opening illustration, despite any bad choices made by any members of the family there remain certain ethical guidelines that may make living in this household better. But such guidelines are not requirements for family membership. [Source: Walter F. Taylor, Paul, Apostle to the Nations: An Introduction (Augsburg Fortress, 2012)]
John 8:31-38
"And you will know the truth and the truth will set you free" (John 8:34). This verse is often used out of context to justify anybody's views on how life operates in the modern era. The context of the verse is grasping the revelation of God through Jesus as the Christ. That is the Christ who is God in the flesh (John 1:1, 14). The truth that Jesus offers is reliable. The Greek root word of alaythia indicates a consistency and stability the world cannot offer.
This is juxtaposed to a life of slavery, which needs a redeemer. Instead, one lives a life that glorifies the one who sets humans free. This life is lived in both a qualitative and quantitative manner (John 10:10). The text draws a contrast between slaves and those who have a permanent place in the household of God. Having the same faith Abraham had in God (Genesis 12) is to be preferred to simply riding on Abraham's coattails or invoking Abraham's name. In John's gospel, Jesus is God in the flesh (John 1:1-14; 20:28). It is a very high Christology, only similar to the epistles of Hebrews.
Just as Jesus is the "light" earlier in John 8, now he is the "truth." Remaining in the word, which has a dual meaning of Christ and the words of God, is a sure way of having a fulfilled life. If one's life is empty and meaningless, it is simply because they are not worshiping the God who created them and can deliver them life beyond the grave (Paul Tillich, Systematic Theology, Vol. 2, referenced above).
In practical terms, the family in the above illustration has a daily choice to either follow the possibility of new life in the community of faith, its love, nurture, and yes, guidelines for living, or they can continue to remain slaves to what Martin Luther called "the old Adam/Eve." The "truth that sets people" free in John's gospel is to live in response to God's salvation in Jesus the Christ (John 3:16-17). Following Jesus is not a means to obtain salvation but a response to what Christ has done. Still, humans remain fallen creatures to some extent. This and the other texts invite Christians of all times and denominational stripes to revisit how God and the community of faith help reshape their faith and daily lives. We are already in the family and secure in the household of God, as John 8 reminds us. However, the quest to have life abundantly (John 10:10) is an ongoing journey. Some faith traditions might call this "sanctification." [Source: G.R. Beasley-Murray, Word Biblical Commentary: John (Word Books, 1987)]
Application
While we are part of the community of faith, sin is the ugly reality that seeks to destroy our joy and mislead us into paths of destruction. God does not destroy us or apply apocalyptic means then start all over again, according to these texts. Rather, God works to create a new agreement (covenant with us, Jeremiah 31), reminds us that salvation is a gift (Romans 3), and continues to teach us the truth (John 8). For example, a worker has a job that she or he hates very much. The employee can explore ways to change the agreement or contract with the employer (Jeremiah 31). The person can explore what it means to belong to this organization and think about whether they see this as a "gift" or "burden" (Romans 3). Finally, what new skills and truths can the person develop in terms of reading, continuing education, or activity within the field of the occupation to become more valuable to their current or any future employer (John 8)?
God works within the organization, family, or community to change things incrementally and in a more positive direction. This is one message of these texts and what are sometimes called "Reformation Sunday" texts. These texts each call for an inner reflection and "tweaking" within any given group or community someone spends much of their lives working or existing in. While incremental change can lead to huge reformations, none of these texts demand such an outcome. They are about examining the relationship within the community and seeking ways to grow toward fulfillment within the family of God.
An Alternative Application
What does it mean to say Jesus is the "truth"? In days of interfaith conversation is it enough to define such "truth" as a teacher, moral example, or one who blazes the trail for new ways of living out the faith? One direction to push the envelope in this text is to explore what it means to continue in Jesus' word. What if a non-confessing person of faith actually practices the words of Jesus more diligently than a confessing Christian who is lucky to darken the church doors around Christmas, Easter, and an occasional wedding or funeral? Has "Jesus" become another diminished name like "Abraham" here? What does it mean to be a disciple in action, not just claiming a name? Or does simply claiming a name ensure eternal justification? These texts raise such lively questions. Many congregations struggle with how to develop committed disciples in times when some people wish to do the minimal church community life they can so they will avoid hell and get into heaven when they die.
Jeremiah 31:31-34
A supervisor makes a bad decision about a department policy, and this has negative consequences for all of the employees who work in that area. Now the whole group has to suffer and possibly lose their jobs over the bad choice of a supervisor whom they disagreed with in the first place. Welcome to the world of Jeremiah and the people of Judah, as King Zedekiah made bad choices that resulted in the conquest and destruction of their nation by the foreign power of Babylon. Much of the Old Testament or Hebrew Bible frames the people's problems based on God punishing an entire community for the leader's decisions. However, the leader, being a servant if not priestly figure on behalf of God, was responsible for the total well-being of the people as well. This did not work out well, as evidenced by the final exile of the people. Power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely as the saying goes. So God is doing a new thing by creating a covenant that allows the landless people to reclaim an identity based on the laws of the Torah being written on their hearts (Jeremiah 31:34).
This covenant allows each believer to have an inner transformational experience with God based on the laws written on their hearts. No longer must they feel guilty because a leader has chosen to disobey God. Believers can know the Lord God in their own personal faith journeys. In response to the daughter who has a child at home for the grandparents to raise, Jeremiah suggests that the whole family does not have to be the victims of a sin's power. They can seek out self-help groups and learn more responsible ways to be a family. They are always invited to the community of faith or the church as a resource of sorting out the complex problems that many families face today.
A sermon direction to examine is not feeling as if we have to suffer the consequences of other people's decisions, as the people of Judah did with King Zedekiah. Jeremiah 31 is an invitation to examine other options as we grow informed in our understanding of scripture. One core teaching of Jeremiah's theology is 1:10: "See, today I appoint you over nations and over kingdoms, to pluck up and to pull down, to destroy and to overthrow, to build and to plant." [Sources: Louis Stulman, Abingdon Old Testament Commentaries: Jeremiah (Abingdon Press, 2005); Paul Tillich, Systematic Theology: Existence and Christ, Volume 2 (University of Chicago Press, 1975)]
Romans 3:19-28
"For we hold that a person is justified by faith apart from works prescribed by the law" (Romans 3:28). One has to qualify what one means by "works of the law." Jesus is the final sacrifice of atonement that was originally the purpose of the Mosaic covenant. One must assume that human sin separates people from the love of God (Romans 3:23). However, human sin is not the final word; rather, God has sent Jesus to die on the cross for the sins of humanity. Faith in this death and resurrection of Jesus is the core of the Christian gospel (Romans 1:17). This is the basic, clear-cut traditional message of the gospel. If one assumes that the Pharisees of the times were using the Old Testament as a testing tool to see who is in and out of the covenant of God, then law served as a yoke and the gospel is freedom.
Recently there has been dispute about the nature of the covenant. The "New Perspective on Paul" is a scholarly movement that began in 1977 by E.P. Sanders and James Dunn. It argues that Judaism was a religion of grace where God unconditionally chooses the people of Israel. The law or Torah was not intended to create a religion of legalism or self-righteous works. Rather, the laws regarding circumcision, the sabbath, and food regulations were meant to be "markers" or ways to identify the people of faith. The law is a response to salvation or election, not a means to obtaining a right relationship with God. One can suggest that it is the specific views of Pharisee Judaism that might have leaned toward the law becoming a requirement for salvation. However one chooses to proceed in either view, the law remains a guideline for people of faith -- while still not a requirement.
The bottom line is that there is no boasting for those who are made right with God. All that we have is a gift from God. In response to the family in the opening illustration, despite any bad choices made by any members of the family there remain certain ethical guidelines that may make living in this household better. But such guidelines are not requirements for family membership. [Source: Walter F. Taylor, Paul, Apostle to the Nations: An Introduction (Augsburg Fortress, 2012)]
John 8:31-38
"And you will know the truth and the truth will set you free" (John 8:34). This verse is often used out of context to justify anybody's views on how life operates in the modern era. The context of the verse is grasping the revelation of God through Jesus as the Christ. That is the Christ who is God in the flesh (John 1:1, 14). The truth that Jesus offers is reliable. The Greek root word of alaythia indicates a consistency and stability the world cannot offer.
This is juxtaposed to a life of slavery, which needs a redeemer. Instead, one lives a life that glorifies the one who sets humans free. This life is lived in both a qualitative and quantitative manner (John 10:10). The text draws a contrast between slaves and those who have a permanent place in the household of God. Having the same faith Abraham had in God (Genesis 12) is to be preferred to simply riding on Abraham's coattails or invoking Abraham's name. In John's gospel, Jesus is God in the flesh (John 1:1-14; 20:28). It is a very high Christology, only similar to the epistles of Hebrews.
Just as Jesus is the "light" earlier in John 8, now he is the "truth." Remaining in the word, which has a dual meaning of Christ and the words of God, is a sure way of having a fulfilled life. If one's life is empty and meaningless, it is simply because they are not worshiping the God who created them and can deliver them life beyond the grave (Paul Tillich, Systematic Theology, Vol. 2, referenced above).
In practical terms, the family in the above illustration has a daily choice to either follow the possibility of new life in the community of faith, its love, nurture, and yes, guidelines for living, or they can continue to remain slaves to what Martin Luther called "the old Adam/Eve." The "truth that sets people" free in John's gospel is to live in response to God's salvation in Jesus the Christ (John 3:16-17). Following Jesus is not a means to obtain salvation but a response to what Christ has done. Still, humans remain fallen creatures to some extent. This and the other texts invite Christians of all times and denominational stripes to revisit how God and the community of faith help reshape their faith and daily lives. We are already in the family and secure in the household of God, as John 8 reminds us. However, the quest to have life abundantly (John 10:10) is an ongoing journey. Some faith traditions might call this "sanctification." [Source: G.R. Beasley-Murray, Word Biblical Commentary: John (Word Books, 1987)]
Application
While we are part of the community of faith, sin is the ugly reality that seeks to destroy our joy and mislead us into paths of destruction. God does not destroy us or apply apocalyptic means then start all over again, according to these texts. Rather, God works to create a new agreement (covenant with us, Jeremiah 31), reminds us that salvation is a gift (Romans 3), and continues to teach us the truth (John 8). For example, a worker has a job that she or he hates very much. The employee can explore ways to change the agreement or contract with the employer (Jeremiah 31). The person can explore what it means to belong to this organization and think about whether they see this as a "gift" or "burden" (Romans 3). Finally, what new skills and truths can the person develop in terms of reading, continuing education, or activity within the field of the occupation to become more valuable to their current or any future employer (John 8)?
God works within the organization, family, or community to change things incrementally and in a more positive direction. This is one message of these texts and what are sometimes called "Reformation Sunday" texts. These texts each call for an inner reflection and "tweaking" within any given group or community someone spends much of their lives working or existing in. While incremental change can lead to huge reformations, none of these texts demand such an outcome. They are about examining the relationship within the community and seeking ways to grow toward fulfillment within the family of God.
An Alternative Application
What does it mean to say Jesus is the "truth"? In days of interfaith conversation is it enough to define such "truth" as a teacher, moral example, or one who blazes the trail for new ways of living out the faith? One direction to push the envelope in this text is to explore what it means to continue in Jesus' word. What if a non-confessing person of faith actually practices the words of Jesus more diligently than a confessing Christian who is lucky to darken the church doors around Christmas, Easter, and an occasional wedding or funeral? Has "Jesus" become another diminished name like "Abraham" here? What does it mean to be a disciple in action, not just claiming a name? Or does simply claiming a name ensure eternal justification? These texts raise such lively questions. Many congregations struggle with how to develop committed disciples in times when some people wish to do the minimal church community life they can so they will avoid hell and get into heaven when they die.
