WELCOMING ONE ANOTHER TO NEW HUMANITY
Dr. Stephen D. Jones, preaching
Second Baptist Church
October 28, 2007
Text: Romans 15:5-7
Karl Menninger of
the famed Menninger Foundation wrote a book some years ago, entitled,
Whatever Became of Sin? In that book, he observed what we already knew but
perhaps hesitated to admit: “sin” no longer “works” in modern-America. Sin is
even more a misfit at the dawn of the 21st Century. It’s a
theological concept without a home. It’s not that we are unaware of our mistakes
and errors. It’s not that we think we have arrived at perfection. But sin
carries so much baggage, so much of a theological construct, that most of us
have tried to intentionally unload. Many have spent years in therapy unloading
guilt. Sin no longer connects with us as it once did. It no longer inspires us
to do better. Most of us are “done” with sin.
Are you a sinner? Unless you hang out with evangelicals, I doubt you are ever
asked that question. Can you imagine going to a job interview and being asked,
“Are you a sinner?” Can you imagine a teacher in the public schools asking a
troubled student, “Are you a sinner?” Can you imagine going on a blind date and
being asked over dinner, “Are you a sinner?” Would your boss ever ask, “Are you
a sinner?” We don’t even call criminals sinners these days. Sin is a religious
concept. It isn’t used in the courts or criminal justice. It’s a church word.
And a tired, worn one, at that.
The word is too
heavy for most of us. When I say, “I am a sinner,” the first thing I am saying
about myself pertains to my deficiencies, my short-comings. When I say, “I am a
sinner,” I dwell on my failings. But a sinner is more than a person who commits
individual sins. A sinner is a description of people hopelessly enslaved to sin.
It describes a human condition of being left to our own devices, left to our
natural inclinations, about which we can do little or nothing. But what of the
natural impulse of kindness? What is that to sinners? What of the natural
impulse to love? What of the natural impulse of gentleness? What of the
sacrificial impulse of generosity?
Are we just
sinners? Are we only sinners? Is this a helpful way to describe
ourselves? Aren’t human beings capable both of sin and kindness? of sin and
compassion? of sin and gentleness? of sin and generosity? Of course we are
sinners but are we not more than sinners? We naturally do both harm and good, to
ourselves, to our loved ones and to strangers and neighbors. We are not just
sinners: we are also children of God. We are not just sinners, we are also
capable of extraordinary good. We are not just sinners, we are also exceedingly
generous. No one, not even the most hardened criminal, is totally evil. A
firefighter carrying a child from a burning building…is he a sinner? A soldier
defending his people from a cruel invasion…is he a sinner? A mother nursing her
child…is she a sinner? A benefactor setting up a scholarship fund for
impoverished young people…is she a sinner?
Thus, sin is a
lop-sided way of viewing human beings. In Christian theology, we speak of
sinners as those hopelessly caught, mired, in their sinful ways, unable, on
their own, to recover.
In Jesus’ day, “sinner” did not refer to everyone, but to a group of people
opposed to the righteous. Sinners were people who chose not to abide by the
strict requirements of the Mosaic Law. (Luke 7:37, Luke 15:7, Luke 19:7, Mark
2:15, Luke 7:34) Tax collectors and prostitutes were therefore sinners, but
so were a lot of others who were more apathetic toward keeping the Law. The
expression, “tax collectors and sinners” was frequently used (Matthew
9:11, Mark 2:16, Luke 5:30,
Luke 15:2, Matthew 11:19, Luke 7:34)
to describe people guilty of not keeping Mosaic Law.
When the word, sin, or sinner is
mentioned in the Gospels, it more often describes the message of John the
Baptist. John’s central message was “proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the
forgiveness of sins. . ." (Mark 1:4)
When Jesus used the word sin, it is on
the lips of the prodigal son. After squandering his father’s estate, he returned
to his father and said, “Forgive me, father, for I have sinned. . ." It was
also on the tax collector’s mouth as he confessed, “God, be merciful to me, a
sinner!” (Luke 18:13)
The most
traditional formula for becoming a Christian is that you are a sinner,
hopelessly separated from God. Jesus died for your sins. If you confess your
sins, you can be reunited with God and have the gift of eternal life.
For many people,
this formula still works. It is being preached all over St. Louis this morning.
But for others, it is lacking because they are already burdened with shame,
guilt and low self-esteem. They do not find themselves attracted to a faith that
requires them to begin as a sinner. The message, “you are a sinner,” no
longer connects with them, even if they recognize a kernel of truth to it. Many
modern people today are saying, “If you call me a sinner, I will walk away from
you and we will have nothing more to do with each other. I feel judgment from
such a statement. And I feel you are trying to make me feel guilty or ashamed.
And I have had enough of self-loathing feelings.”
The beloved song, written by a man who turned from the slave trade, “Amazing
Grace,” has in its first line a phrase that makes many of us choke, “Amazing
grace, how sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me. . ." There are
times when I am painfully aware of my wretchedness, but you probably are not
going to attract me to a new way of looking at myself with my wretchedness as
your starting place. Present me with a more positive message, a more positive
beginning place, and I will listen to you. Do you have good news? Or just more
of the same judgmental, guilt-inducing words?
What we may be seeking is not as escape from our sins, or even forgiveness for
our sins. For many today that is the wrong starting place. That begs the
question. If we keep on with sin as the central message, we may miss an entire
generation that has grown weary of guilt religion.
The message of sin breeds a guilt religion. You are a sinner and you need
God. You are a bad person filled with shame. You need God. A message of sin
breeds guilt. And the modern generation has largely had it with guilt. It
doesn’t inspire and it doesn’t stir and it doesn’t provoke conversion. Guilt is
what we used to allow religion to do to us. No longer. If your message is sin
and guilt, preach elsewhere.
One day a little girl was watching her mother do the dishes. She noticed that
her mother had several strands of white hair sticking out in contrast to her
brunette hair. She finally asked, “Why are some of your hairs white, Mom?”
Her mother playfully replied, “Every time you do something wrong, one of my
hairs turn white.”
The little girl thought about this a while and then asked, “Momma, how come ALL
of grandma’s hairs are white?”
The message of sin depends upon a Savior, someone to save us from our sins,
someone to transform us from sinner to saved. Are you aware that Jesus never
spoke about the need for a savior in the Gospels? The word, savior, appears only
three times in all the Gospels. Once, in the Magnificat when Mary called God her
savior (Luke 1:47). Once in the nativity story when the angel told the
shepherds, “unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior…” (Luke
2:11) And the third time when the Samaritans called Jesus “the savior of the
world.” (John 4:42) Strange, isn’t it, that Jesus as Lord and Savior is such a
common part of the church’s traditional message and yet the word, savior, is
missing from Jesus’ language?
If we want to offer
salvation to others, we would do well to speak more holistically to people, even
to those keenly aware of their errors and shortcomings. In the early church, it
was the Good News that was proclaimed. When Philip sat in the chariot with the
Ethiopian eunuch, he didn’t refer to the man’s sinfulness. “He proclaimed to him
about the good news of Jesus” (Acts 8:35).
This doesn’t call for a rejection of Christianity, but rather a reformulation of
Jesus’ invitation to faith. In addition to saying, “Jesus died for our sins”, we
can say that Jesus lived, died and rose from the dead for our fulfillment.
Maybe what most people seek is not a savior to transform their sins but an
inviter to transform their lives. And Jesus was an inviter. He invited all
kinds of people. He invited the woman at the well to face the truth about her
bankrupt relationships with men. He invited Zaccheaus to turn from his
oppressive lifestyle. He invited James and John and Peter and Andrew to drop
their nets and follow him.
Jesus was an inviter. He invited Legion to turn from the demons and return to
sanity. He invited Nicodemus to be born again. He invited the rich young ruler
to turn from his worship of riches. He invited the disciples of John the Baptist
to come and see the lame walking, the deaf hearing, the blind seeing. He invites
us to live a more fulfilled life.
And he welcomes us! He welcomes us to our new humanity! He stands in the gateway
with us, in the threshold, and looks with us into a bright vision of how our
lives could be. He invites us to step beyond the gate, beyond the threshold, to
embrace the New Life ahead of us.
When I think of the people I have misunderstood, when I think of the people I
have misjudged, when I think of the people whom I have discarded as unimportant,
when I think of the people I have misused for my own purposes, when I think of
the people whom I have failed to hear, when I think of the people whom I did not
take time to truly encounter, when I think of the people with whom I have failed
to reconcile, when I think of the people I have wronged, when I think of the
people of whom I have spoken badly behind their backs, when I think of people
for whom I have made their way harder, when I think of people I have
disappointed, when I think of how I have plotted against some people as my
antagonists, I can think of real people and real situations. I can name names
and cite dates when all these transgressions occurred. All of these things are
true about me. It is true: I am a sinner. But where does this line of thinking
lead? It leads me, perhaps, to be a realist about myself and stop pretending
that I am better than I am. It can lead me perhaps to want to better myself. But
it might more likely lead me to feel depressed about myself and about my
life. It can lead me to become mired down in the muck of life. It can lead me
to say, “What’s the use? If I try again, I’ll just mess it up again. So, why
try?” It can lead me to such guilt that I cannot rise above it.
Jesus wasn’t very interested in peoples’ sins. He rarely if ever talked
about it with known sinners. He talked about forgiveness. Plotting against
others? Forgiven. Those you have wronged? Forgiven. Those you have mis-judged? Forgiven. Those
with whom you have failed to reconcile? Forgiven. Those of whom you have spoken
badly behind their backs? Forgiven. Those whom you have misused or
mistreated? Forgiven.
Forgiveness doesn’t take us off the hook of doing the work of reconciliation, of
making amends, of setting things right, but it does take us off the hook of
guilt. Stop wallowing. You’re forgiven. Now, what are you going to do about the
New Humanity that stands before you? Yes, yes, we know about the Old
Humanity. But, what about the New Humanity?
I think the woman caught in adultery that I mentioned last week might be an
extraordinary example (John 8:1). We might first ask, “Where’s the man?” The
sexual act requires two participants and in this case we have no reason to
believe that it is anything but consensual. Here’s the woman, standing before
us, condemned, shamed, embarrassed, belittled, humiliated. Where’s the man? But
that’s another story.
Here’s the woman. And here’s Jesus standing between her and the righteous men
ready to stone her. And he reminds them that they aren’t as righteous as they
think. If none of them has committed a sin, then go ahead and cast the first
stone. Jesus is standing there beside the woman. The first stone would be aimed
at him as well as her. He stands beside her in her humiliation and shame. He
will not leave her side. He will not leave her alone. He will not leave her to
face those who condemn her. If there’s to be a stoning on this day, two people
will be stoned. Not the man and woman caught in adultery. But the woman and
Jesus. He said, “If you are so good as to be this woman’s judge, then stone me
as well.” The men, of course, are not spotless, and they drop their stones,
embarrassed now themselves and walk away. And now Jesus and the woman are
standing alone. Alone in the temple. She is no longer the center of a
spectacle. Those jeering her, looking down upon her, making fun of her, have all
walked away.
It’s just Jesus and the woman. This place, littered with shame and accusation
and stones all over the ground, has drawn quiet again. And he straightens
himself up and says to her, “Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned
you?” And she said to Jesus, “No one, Lord.” Tenderly, Jesus said to her, “Then
neither do I condemn you.” You can just feel the shame, humiliation and
embarrassment evaporating into thin air.
You and I could be this woman. If not adultery, we could be judged and ridiculed
for a hundred offenses. Jesus disarms the judgmental and sends them away, their
stones dropped to the ground as they leave. “Judge not,” he said, “lest ye be
judged.” And then we are left alone with Jesus.
Then Jesus said to the woman, “Go on your way. But from now on, do not sin
again.” Go on your way, but make it a new way, a different way. Take the road
that leads to life.
Jesus and the woman were standing in the threshold together. They were standing
in the gateway to a new way for this woman to live. No longer judged or
condemned, no longer only a “sinner,” no longer unforgiven, she now had the
opportunity to go a new way.
Jesus stood in the gateway with people and invited them to take in the view of
their New Humanity. He invites you and me to our New Humanity. He says to us,
“I’m frankly not very interested in discussing your long list of sins. I’m not
interested in all your past deficiencies. I forgive you. Make amends where you
must. But, now, let me stand with you in the threshold. Let us take in together
the New Humanity which I offer to you. Will you claim it? Will you embrace
it? Will you walk away from your brokenness and walk with me into
wholeness? Will you reach with me for shalom in your life?
Jesus invites us
and welcomes us to our New Humanity, to a new Wholeness of Life. This isn’t
about being a sinner. This is about embracing the Good News that stands before
us. This is about embracing the call that God places before us. It is a call not
from shame but to life!
I’ve told several of you the story of a day when I was sitting in a restaurant
in downtown Birmingham, Michigan. And a multi-millionaire developer had been
redeveloping several blocks of new condominiums and retail stores nearby. I knew
who he was just because of his reputation. He came up to my table one day and
said, “Are you the pastor of First Baptist Church?” And I said I was. And he
said, “You have changed my life. May I shake your hand?” I shook his hand with a
puzzled look and he explained. “I am an alcoholic. And I attend AA sessions in
the Fellowship Hall of your church. And because your church has been so
welcoming of us in your building, you have turned my life around.”
That is the kind of reputation I would like us to have. I’d like a young adult
piano maestro someday to see me in a restaurant and say, “You gave me my start,”
and explain that with a grand piano in our sanctuary, we opened the doors on
many Sunday afternoons and this maestro held his first piano concerts in our
facility while still a child. And I’d like to see our otherwise empty Fellowship
Hall filled with people transforming their lives, taking courses, meeting in
support groups. And I’d like someone to come up to me and say, “I was ready to
take my life,” and for some reason I pulled my car into your lot and I saw your
labyrinth. And by walking your labyrinth something spiritual happened, an
unexplainable light began to shine in my darkness and the darkness has never
again put it out.
Let’s be an inviting and welcoming
community. Let’s become known for our invitations and our welcome. Church
membership really isn’t the point. The point is God’s transforming love. Let
Second Baptist Church be known far and wide as a place that invites people to a
New Humanity, a new Wholeness, a New Shalom in their lives. Amen.
Another sermon
Home
