Galatians 6:1-10 In every human
relationship—marriage, family, church, the workplace and school-- there are
going to be times when someone sins—and someone gets hurt by that sin. A spouse commits adultery. Angry words are spoken between family members
about a will. A fellow employee takes
credit for our work. Gossip destroys a
friendship.
The temptation is
to wash our hands of that person or to give back just as good as we got. We have a terrible human capacity to carry
around grudges for years and lash out in anger.
But that is the way of the world.
What are to do as Christ’s
disciples when sin has hurt a relationship? The Bible says:
Brothers, if anyone
is caught in any transgression, you who are spiritual should restore him…
Like so many
things in the Kingdom of God—this is counter-intuitive. When we have a conflict, we expect the one
who was wrong to come to us and try to make things right—preferably on their
knees. “I’m not going to her—she’s gotta
come to me!” But Jesus says it’s to be just
the opposite with his disciples: “If your brother sins against you, go and
tell him his fault, between you and him alone.”
As God’s people we
are called to work for the sinner’s restoration—to bring them to that place
where they can be reconciled to those they have hurt and reconciled to
God.
That
reconciliation always begins in the same place—with the hard truth about the
sin and the sinner revealed in the Law.
That is why Paul tells us that we are to restore those who have fallen
into sin with a spirit of gentleness.
It is a painful
thing to see the truth about ourselves when we’ve sinned. None of us enjoys having our failures pointed
out. That is why we are to be gentle
with others when they fall short of what God expects them to be so that they
can come to the place where they can say:
You’re right. I’m sorry. What I did was wrong. Please forgive me.
At that moment, the
most powerful words that we will ever speak are spoken: “I forgive you”. Jesus promised his disciples that if they
forgave the sins of anyone—they were forgiven—not just on earth but in heaven.
That promise of
powerful forgiveness was not just for the twelve- and it is not just for
pastors- but the call to forgive is for all of Christ’s people because those
words find their power in the cross of Jesus Christ where all forgiveness is
found.
When Christians say
“I forgive you” to those who have sinned we assure them that our relationship
with them- and their relationship with God- has been restored by the atoning
death of Jesus on the cross. And in
speaking those words to others we remind ourselves that we too need the
forgiveness of Christ. The Bible says we
are to:
Keep watch on
yourself, lest you too be tempted-for if anyone thinks he is something, when he
is nothing, he deceives himself.
When someone has
sinned and there has been a conflict we like to tell ourselves “that of course we would never treat someone that way”—“I’m
not that kind of person”. But we must
not kid ourselves that we are somehow magically immune from the failures of our
fellow human beings--we are in this sin-mess together with all people. That is why Paul tells us that we are to Bear one another's burdens…
There are all kinds of things that people
use to identify themselves as true Christians.
In Galatia it was circumcision and keeping the Mosaic Law. Today it’s worship style—denominational
affiliation—clothing—school choice—personal piety--and so on that people mistakenly
use to identify themselves as Christians.
But there is one
thing that is a sure sign of whether or not we are Christ’s people: whether or not we are people of forgiveness. It is in our willingness to forgive that we
show true Christ-likeness because forgiveness is the story of our own salvation.
Our heavenly Father
looked upon a world full of people that were alienated from him—a world full of
people that sinned against him—and He loved them and longed for their
restoration as his children.
He sent his Son
Jesus into this world of sinners and he carried our sin burden to the cross where
it was forgiven in his shed blood--speaking the words that changed our lives
for times and eternity: “Father, forgive them” spoken to
every person into the world whose sins burdened him and brought him to the
cross that day.
“Forgive
them.” That is how we do good to all
people—that is how we bear one another’s burdens—that is how we fulfill the law of Christ.
The word “law” in
this verse does not mean an oppressive command that must be obeyed but an
example that is followed by Christ’s disciples.
And so the question for us this morning is this, “How are we doing
showing the forgiveness of Christ to others”?
The Bible says: Let
each one test his own work, and then his reason to boast will be in himself
alone and not in his neighbor.
When
we test our lives in this (in forgiving others just as Christ forgave us) how do
we measure up? Do we still carry some
ill will in our hearts towards someone that has wounded us? Are we constantly bringing up some past hurt
that we have told someone has been forgiven?
Are we still bearing some grudge against this person or that?
If we are, it does
US
no good to say: “Well, they made me mad”
or “It’s all their fault” or “They shouldn’t have done that or said that.” The Bible says that “Each will have to bear his own load.”
That means that it
is we, and we alone, who bear the responsibility for the anger and bitterness in
our heart. Yes, that other person
genuinely hurt us and sinned against us.
Yes, they have a responsibility to repent and confess and seek God’s
forgiveness. But all of that is between
them and the Lord. We are the ones who
have to deal with our own spiritual life and what we have in our hearts.
When we measure our
lives as Christ’s people against the pure standard of our Savior’s forgiving
love—when we try to fit our actions and attitudes into the mold of the cross--we
can’t help but see that we haven’t always followed Jesus’ example.
We have carried
grudges—we have kept others at arm’s length—we have looked for opportunities
for revenge—we’ve put the worst construction on what others have said and done.
Today is the day
to be done with that—to confess it for the sin that it is and to seek Christ’s
never-ending forgiveness and the Spirit’s help to began again as his people to
live out his life in this world.
It is not easy to
do—this forgiving thing-- and we would never even begin to realize that we
needed to do it if the Holy Spirit did not speak to us about it in God’s Word. That is why the Bible says that the “One who is taught the word must share all
good things with the one who teaches.”
What a blessing it
is for me to commend this congregation in the way that you gladly fulfill this
apostolic command in sharing with your pastor and so there is nothing
self-serving in my pointing out how important the office of the Holy Ministry.
Left to ourselves we
have a terrible capacity (even when it comes to our own private study of the
Word of God) to seek out those words that validate our own behavior and those words
that judge the behavior of others.
That is why we
need the office of the Holy Ministry—so that we can hear that Word of God that
is outside of us—maybe a word of rebuke that we would just as soon have
avoided—maybe a word of forgiveness that we would have never dared to apply to
ourselves—but we needed to hear it for what it is—a Word from the Lord--because
what’s at stake in our spiritual lives is serious and eternal. The Bible says:
Do not be deceived:
God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap. For the one who sows to his own flesh will
from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from
the Spirit reap eternal life. And let us not grow weary of doing good, for
in due season we will reap, if we do not give up. So then, as we have opportunity, let us do
good to everyone, and especially to those who are of the household of faith.
These words of
Paul point us to the Last Day when there will be a final judgment for the
living and the dead—with eternal life or eternal death as the judgment-- and
when it comes to conflict and hard feelings between ourselves and others that
is a helpful thing to remember because what we sow in this life we will reap in
eternity.
What does our
fussing and fighting and feuding with one another in our marriages, homes,
friendships, and congregations look like in the light of eternity but a bunch
of petty, childish silliness? Now
picture this in the light of eternity: a
life of Christian love spent doing good to others, bearing their burdens, and
forgiving their sins.
There is nothing
easy about the Christian life. It is not
an accident that Jesus likes it to taking up a cross because this kind of life
requires us to die to ourselves and live for Christ and others. But we have the help of the Holy Spirit who
lives in us and is strengthened in us today through God’s gifts of Word and
Sacrament.
And so we begin
again today to live lives of forgiveness, doing good to all because our hearts have
been transformed by the cross and our eyes are fixed on the Last Day when all
of Christ’s faithful people will receive the reward of eternal life. Amen.
