Sermon for June 19

The reading

2 Cor 5:11- 21

Therefore, knowing the fear of the Lord, we try to persuade others; but we ourselves are well known to God, and I hope that we are also well known to your consciences. We are not commending ourselves to you again, but giving you an opportunity to boast about us, so that you may be able to answer those who boast in outward appearance and not in the heart. For if we are beside ourselves, it is for God; if we are in our right mind, it is for you. For the love of Christ urges us on, because we are convinced that one has died for all; therefore all have died. And he died for all, so that those who live might live no longer for themselves, but for him who died and was raised for them.

From now on, therefore, we regard no one from a human point of view; even though we once knew Christ from a human point of view, we know him no longer in that way. So if anyone is in Christ, there is a new creation: everything old has passed away; see, everything has become new! All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation; that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting the message of reconciliation to us. So we are ambassadors for Christ, since God is making his appeal through us; we entreat you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.

 The messasge 

 This morning, my message is going to be a little more theological than usual.  You are welcome to ask or write me some questions after church (or if you are feeling bold and totally confused at some point, feel free to text me now).  We are going to look at Paul’s defense of his faith practices and his explanation of the doctrine of original sin 

Paul starts this conversation by addressing one of the many criticisms he faced from the rival teachers in Corinth.  This time they accused Paul of not being “beside himself” enough.  This is a reference to Paul’s lack of ecstatic behavior and experience.  People accuse him of being a false teacher since he rarely, if ever, reports visions, goes into prophetic trances or acknowledges speaks in tongues.  Paul responds to this attack by saying “For if we are beside ourselves, it is for God; if we are in our right mind, it is for you”. Paul’s work is to guide, teach and direct them in the faith through the clearest use of logic, scripture and experience. Being beside himself was a more personal experience, meant to praise, worship, encounter mystery and celebrate God.  It was a cause of joy, hope and great comfort but not really meant for teaching and guiding people in the faith. 

 That work required more clarity and direct focus.  

Paul is also aware that if he encouraged estatic behavior and built his ministry on it, his rivals will simply fake experiences, standing up in the assembly, making a scene and loudly proclaiming a vision where the Lord tells them “Paul is a liar”.  Being beside ourselves, this estatic, profound experience of God is important to personal faith experiences and to the history and life of the church. It can also be a great danger, easily misunderstood and abused for personal gain. The way to measure and judge is to ask, does whatever is being said and done in this moment of being beside yourself proclaim Christ, died and risen for the forgiveness of sins.  No estatic event can lead people astray from the story of God’s love revealed through the death and resurrection of Christ. The people in Corinth were not so clear on that very important point and, therefore, were very susceptible to be being misled.    

Paul’s view on estatic experiences, the ease at which people can be distracted from God by something shinny like wealth, power or fame, is one example of the doctrine on original sin and human brokenness.(here I added some words about the events in  Orlando and the human brokenness we see and feel and mourn everywhere in our world)  Even something as important and powerful as estatic experience could be misused and turned into a tool for human glory. Original sin is basically the idea that something has hurt the connection between God and us. Things like sin, death, and disobedience, have prevented us from being in the right relationship with God.   The origins of this human desire for something that is not God is often told in the story of Adam and Eve.  This early couple created in the Garden of Eden were given everything and very few demands.  All they are told to do is honor God, care for creation and not to eat from the tree of knowledge of good and evil.  Over time (and with some encouragement from the serpent) they succumb to their desire for the knowledge of good and evil. This choice to disobey God’s command and this desire to have  control, judgment, knowledge and power for themselves, is the original sin.  After this, things are never the same. Adam and Eve are given punishments, thrown out of the garden, told they will die and their relationship with God will be different. 

Now, God does not take joy in this or just accept it as stuff happens.. In fact, throughout history God has constantly made attempts to call people back, to heal this separation. God reaches out with covenants, agreements and deals where conditional, if / then promises are made, with people and God each doing their part. The Lord says  ‘if you love me and obey me, then I will be your God and you will be my people”, The problem was that these things depended on people, who always and often completely, failed to keep their side of the agreement. There is a constant cycle of punishment, repentance, forgiveness and restoration that occurs over and over again. The punishments were meant to drive people back to God and the restoration was meant to show people the joy of being God’s people but neither works for long.  People did not stay faithful to God. Paul announces that through Christ’s death and resurrection God has done a new thing.  The old law and cycle of punishment, repentance and restoration had failed.  Paul writes “Christ God was reconciling the world to himself not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting the message of reconciliation to us”. 

 This is at the heart of who we are as a church, the comfort and joy of the Gospel that Luther looked for in the late medieval world and realized was missing from an uncertain and anxious church. Being in the right relationship with God would no longer be an if / then agreement.  It would be a gift of Grace.  We would be forgiven because of God’s love (not because we were rightly repentant and earned it). We would inherit eternal life because Christ died and rose again (not because we followed the law well enough).   We could not free ourselves from the power of sin and death by being nice, figuring out riddles, offering sacrifices or praying a lot, so God does it for us.   

 
This is one thing that the people in the churches of Corinth were having some trouble understanding or realizing and living out the implications of.  They wanted to replace God’s grace with great ideas, reason their way into heaven instead of receiving God’s gift.   The Augsburg Confession (the document that summarizes the teachings of the reformation, that they are called to defend before the Roman Catholic church and world) starts with the affirmation of the nicean creed and doctrine of the Trinity. Then it moves on to the idea of Original Sin.
 

Article 2 reads:  Also they teach that since the fall of Adam all men begotten in the natural way are born with sin, that is, without the fear of God, without trust in God, and with concupiscence (strong desire or lust); and that this disease, or vice of origin, is truly sin, even now condemning and bringing eternal death upon those not born again through Baptism and the Holy Ghost.  They condemn the Pelagians and others who deny that original depravity is sin, and who, to obscure the glory of Christ's merit and benefits, argue that man can be justified before God by his own strength and reason.

I’m going to repeat that in English (as opposed to church speak or whatever language that was). Since the first disobedience, when Adam and Eve give in to the promises of great power and knowledge, all people carry that original sin or longing for things that are not God.  Without God’s intervention sin will damn people to eternal death. We are made new and free through Christ’s death and resurrection, which we are joined through in baptism and the Holy Spirit. That is how we escape the power of sin. Any attempt to say people can be justified before God by their own strength and reason is a dead end and a reflection of our longing for glory, choice and control instead of trust in God.   

A few weeks ago, I had the chance to share the opening message with the Street to Street  basketball program holding a tournament here in the gym.  I sat down with 60 or so young people of various or no faiths and talked about who we were and how we use what we have. I know there is a lot of bad impressions about churches, especially among young people. I wanted to show them who we were.  I talked about how we use this space to help, serve, create, improve and share God’s message with our community.  I then challenged them to think about how they use their own skills, knowledge and resources and finally invited them to think about what we can do with God’s grace, inviting them into the comfort and peace that comes from knowing you are forgiven and loved by God.  I share that same invitation here.  You have been made new, your sins are forgiven, through Christ you have been reconciled with God.  Go, trusting these things are true, Go with joy to love and help others, Go, show the world who we are.