Pentecost 4C

The reason for the green paraments on the altar and for my vestments is to reflect the theme of the season after Pentecost: a season of growth, spiritual growth in particular. And like many of Jesus’ teachings, the agricultural metaphor is also at work: once the crop has grown, it must be harvested. But before it can grow, the seeds must be planted. In both our Epistle lesson and our Gospel for today, the message is working toward the harvest. The difference is that in the Gospel lesson, the focus is on others; but in the Epistle, the focus is on us. [Sola Publishing, Thoughts on the Readings, Pentecost 4C] For now, that’s a good place for us to focus. This morning, let’s talk about Paul’s message to the Galatian church.

In Luther’s teaching of God’s Law, there are 3 uses: the first use is the “curb” - to keep us on the road God wants us to be on. Luther describes it this way: “to restrain sins by threats and fear of punishment and by the promise and offer of grace and favor.” [Tappert, Book of Concord, 303.]

The 2nd use of the Law is the “mirror” - it shows us our sin and our need for a Savior. The 3rd use of the Law is to teach us how to live in a God-pleasing way. Not to earn God’s favor, but through obedience to show our love for Him. Paul’s message to the church in Galatia is one example of the 2nd use of the Law. Someone who is “caught” in a transgression - how are we to treat them?

Have you ever caught someone mid-sin? I hope most of us immediately thought to the scene of catching a young child with their hand in the cookie jar. Amusing, sure, but that’s not what Paul’s talking about. He’s talking about when we know that someone has committed a sin, and they know they’ve been caught…exposed…and are now humiliated. How are we to handle it?

If you’re anything like me, you don’t want to be the bad guy, even if you know you’re in the right. During my time in the military, we had frequent drug tests. Once, I had to have my whole unit be drug-tested one morning. I came in early to catch the night shift before they left, and one of our Airmen came forward and said “I’m going to fail this test…I have a drug problem”. Sadly, the only time you can do that is before they tell you that you’re going to be tested. I had no choice but to send him to Court Martial, and from there he was sentenced to a military prison term, followed by a dishonorable discharge - a felony charge that will follow him for his whole life. I simply upheld the law, and yet I still felt like the bad guy.

Ok, that’s kind of an extreme example, but it makes my point: we don’t like to be the one to say “hey, you’re in the wrong.” I suspect most of us don’t like it because it almost always results in conflict. And why wouldn’t it? Nobody wants to hear that they’re wrong. And those who knowingly do wrong certainly don’t want to be caught or called out.

But Paul is teaching us how to do this in a Christ-like way: in a spirit of gentleness. Is that even possible? To correct someone gently? One of the older Bible translations calls it a “spirit of meekness”. How can you wield the authority to correct someone and do so meekly? Well first of all, Paul doesn’t say “correct” does he? He says “restore”. But actually, the Greek word there means a bit more than simply that. Martin Luther says that this word really means “correct, refresh, and renew him; and by your meekness repair that about him which has perished through the devil’s deception or through the weakness of his flesh. For the kingdom into which you have been called is not a kingdom of fear and of sadness; it is a kingdom of confidence and happiness.” [Martin Luther, Luther’s Works, Vol. 27, 111.]

Correct, refresh, renew, repair. Let’s take those one at a time.

Correct: point out the sin, and what would instead be proper.

Refresh: to restore strength or spirit; to relieve from fatigue or depression. So here we would need to help the person get their strength back - especially regarding their faith. Like an athlete tired after a competition, help them refresh and get ready to compete once more - refreshed.

Renew: to give new life to, rejuvenate, reestablish, recreate, rebuild. To make new spiritually. Here we can assure the sinner that they have a clean slate - a chance to start over.

Repair: “by your meekness repair that about him which has perished” - fix what’s broken. Through the Law, the sin has been identified. That which is broken about this person has has been brought into the light. Now, having been refreshed and renewed, they are now equipped and prepared to make it right. And that means they need to repent - to turn away from their sin and turn toward God. The spirit of gentleness/meekness here is so very critical. If this isn’t done in gentleness, the result could end up being the very opposite of what Paul is teaching…and of what God is hoping for.

Luther continues: “If you see some brother in terror because of a sin of which he has been guilty, run to him, and extend your hand to him in his fallen state. Comfort him with sweet words and embrace him in your motherly arms. The obdurate and stubborn, who fearlessly and smugly persist and continue in their sins, you should rebuke sharply. But those who are overtaken in a trespass and sorrow and grieve over their fall should be encouraged and instructed by you who are spiritual. And this should be done in a spirit of gentleness, not of zeal for righteousness or cruelty, as some confessors did, who, when they should have refreshed thirsty hearts with some sweet comfort, gave them gall and vinegar to drink, just as the Jews did to Christ on the cross.” [Ibid., 111.]

That’s quite a comparison - someone who restores with zeal for righteousness or cruelty likened to those who gave Christ sour wine on the cross. Remember: the Law convicts. It drives us to despair. Without the Gospel, we would be stuck in that despair. When we restore someone, it must be done gently. We must be Christ-like in our gentleness.

And Paul goes from that straight to the Law’s mirror - “Keep watch on yourself, lest you too be tempted.” St. Augustine said that, “There is no sin that one man has committed that another man could not commit.” In other words, “there but for the grace of God go I.” Any sin you see another commit, remember that you, too, could fall prey to that sin or something comparable. None of us is above it. And Jesus himself cautioned against it - “Why do you see the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye?” (Matt 7:3)

Luther finally lifts up King David as an additional caution: “If David—such a holy man, filled with faith and with the Spirit of God, one who had received such outstanding promises and who had performed such great things for the Lord—fell so disgracefully and, though well along in years, was seized by youthful passion after the many different trials with which God had disciplined him, what right do we have to presume about our own constancy? By means of such examples God discloses our own weakness to us, so that we do not become puffed up but are properly fearful; He also discloses His judgment, namely, that there is nothing more intolerable to Him than pride, whether toward Him or toward the brethren.” [Luther’s Works, Vol. 27, 112–113].

In the last few years, I have found it increasingly difficult to view our country as living up to its name: “United” States. We are divided in ways I could not have imagined in the 80s and 90s. I submit that much of this is because we do not restore each other. We merely correct our neighbors. If we restored each other in the sense that Paul is teaching, first we would do so with a spirit of gentleness. You know, like some of you do when you gently tell me that my sermon was too long. Gently. Meekly.

But we don’t do that anymore. Instead, we shout at each other. And no one says “I disagree with you” either. Now it’s “You’re wrong!” when the argument is typically a matter of opinion or perspective. And by saying “you’re wrong”, it’s automatically understood that the person shouting that must logically, then, be the only one who’s “right”. Anyone who would dare disagree must be corrected to assume the perspective of the one who is right. So what happens when both parties think they are the one who is right? You guessed it: shouting. Or worse.

Here’s your vocabulary word for the week: hubris. That’s what this is. That means excessive pride or self-confidence. And pride is *not* something that God looks kindly on. In fact, that’s often what leads to people feeling God’s wrath - their own pride. But in our public discourse, there is no spirit of gentleness or meekness anymore. Instead, it’s a spirit of hubris and pride. Between gentleness and hubris, which do you think is more likely to increase the conflict, and which is more likely to bring peace? Which is more Christ-like?

The next verse helps to affirm what we know. “The Law of Christ is the law of love. After redeeming and regenerating us and constituting us as His church, Christ did not give us any new law except the law of mutual love (John 13:34): ‘A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another, even as I have loved you’... To love does not mean, as the sophists imagine, to wish someone else well, but to bear someone else’s burdens, that is, to bear what is burdensome to you and what you would rather not bear. Therefore a Christian must have broad shoulders and husky bones to carry the flesh, that is, the weakness, of the brethren; for Paul says that they have burdens and troubles. Love is sweet, kind, and patient—not in receiving but in performing; for it is obliged to overlook many things and to bear with them.” [Luther’s Works, Vol. 27, 113.]

So much of what divides us at this moment in our country could be healed if we followed Christ’s commandment. We may not fix the entire nation, but we can work on our part of it. Think in terms of your own circles: which of your “neighbors” are you being called to bear their burden? Which of the people you know or run into does Jesus want you to love, “even as I have loved you”?

Following the Commandments of Christ and obeying him is a significant part of what it means to be his disciple. We are going to be looking at the many parts of discipleship over the coming weeks. As we cover this topic, I encourage all of you to look deeply at your own sense of discipleship and what it is that Jesus is calling you to do or to be as his disciple. Where are you strong? What could you offer to someone who is not strong in that area? Where do you need to grow? And who is strong that could help you to grow? We are called to grow as individuals, but we are also called to help each other to grow. I look forward to the ways that we will grow together as we follow Christ’s call in our lives.