Epiphany 4 (4)
Notes
Transcript
26 Brothers and sisters, think of what you were when you were called. Not many of you were wise by human standards; not many were influential; not many were of noble birth. 27 But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. 28 God chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things—and the things that are not—to nullify the things that are, 29 so that no one may boast before him. 30 It is because of him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God—that is, our righteousness, holiness and redemption. 31 Therefore, as it is written: “Let the one who boasts boast in the Lord.”
Brothers and sisters, think of what you were when you were called. Not many of you were wise by human standards; not many were influential; not many were of noble birth. But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. God chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things—and the things that are not—to nullify the things that are, so that no one may boast before him. It is because of him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God—that is, our righteousness, holiness and redemption. Therefore, as it is written: “Let the one who boasts boast in the Lord.”
“The maker of the stars would rather die for you than live without you. And that is a fact. So if you need to brag, brag about that.”
― Max Lucado, Traveling Light: Releasing the Burdens You Were Never
This past Sunday the sporting world was stunned to learn that former NBA player and superstar Kobe Bryant had perished in a helicopter crash along with eight others including his 13 year-old daughter. It is a tragedy whenever someone dies unexpectedly but seldom does such a death have such media exposure. Whether we agree with it or not, news related to celebrities has a greater impact than news related to the common man. Kobe Bryant was not the only person to die unexpectedly last weekend. He is not the only person to have ever died in a helicopter crash. What makes this death so much more newsworthy is the celebrity status of the person who died.
This is nothing new. Many of us can still remember the events of November 22nd, 1963 when JFK was assassinated. On Tuesday, we were reminded of the event that happened on January 28th, 1986 when the Challenger exploded. And even when it wasn’t a sudden death by violence or accident, we may recall where we were when we learned that “The King is Dead.” — Elvis Presley.
Society does nave a tendency to respect and even idolize prominent people. This was even true in the congregation in Corinth. Last week we had heard how there were factions in the church because some members favored one prominent religious leader over another.
11 My brothers and sisters, some from Chloe’s household have informed me that there are quarrels among you. 12 What I mean is this: One of you says, “I follow Paul”; another, “I follow Apollos”; another, “I follow Cephas”; still another, “I follow Christ.”
Those who have their heroes will often boast about them and praise who they are and what they have accomplished — boasting about them to others and finding solace in the fact that they identify with them and therefore must be special too. Those who follow the Los Angeles Lakers and the NBA have long spoke highly of Kobe Bryant and many (but not all) of the things he did on and off the court. [There are those too who think it is necessary to remind us of the indiscretions and even failures of well-know celebrities.] Even in the Bible we praise King David for a host of things that he did but in the back of our mind remains his adultery with Bathsheba and his complicity in the murder of her husband.
It seems as though boasting about who they admired and even who they were was one of the many troubles experienced in the church in Corinth. Although St. Paul would praise them, this did not give them a pass on him addressing their sins.
Recall how he began his letter to them. (NIV)
4 I always thank my God for you because of his grace given you in Christ Jesus. 5 For in him you have been enriched in every way—with all kinds of speech and with all knowledge—6 God thus confirming our testimony about Christ among you. 7 Therefore you do not lack any spiritual gift as you eagerly wait for our Lord Jesus Christ to be revealed. 8 He will also keep you firm to the end, so that you will be blameless on the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 God is faithful, who has called you into fellowship with his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.
But right after that he had this to write. (NIV)
10 I appeal to you, brothers and sisters, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree with one another in what you say and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be perfectly united in mind and thought.
And then this section in which he warns them against false boasting and teaches them and us about whom we can truly boast. We can see this as a combination of warning against boasting about other people but also about boasting about ourselves.
28 God chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things—and the things that are not—to nullify the things that are, 29 so that no one may boast before him. 30 It is because of him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God—that is, our righteousness, holiness and redemption. 31 Therefore, as it is written: “Let the one who boasts boast in the Lord.”
I referenced this several weeks ago. Many of those that God has chosen to be his children were not and are not all that prominent by the world’s standards. We are just plain, ordinary people, who are relatively unknown outside of our families, coworkers, and neighborhood. And more and more our neighbors don’t even know who we are. On a spiritual level, it is even more pronounced. God did not choose saints to be his own and cherry pick the most moral and righteous in the community all the time. One of the complaints the Pharisees had about Jesus was that he almost seemed to favor the tax collectors and sinners (the outcasts of the religious community) over against them. They even complained about. “This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.” St. Paul reminds Christians of what they were before they were called.
(NIV)
10 nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. 11 And that is what some of you were. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.
23 This is what the Lord says:
“Let not the wise boast of their wisdom
or the strong boast of their strength
or the rich boast of their riches,
24 but let the one who boasts boast about this:
that they have the understanding to know me,
that I am the Lord, who exercises kindness,
justice and righteousness on earth,
for in these I delight,”
declares the Lord.
25 “The days are coming,” declares the Lord, “when I will punish all who are circumcised only in the flesh—26 Egypt, Judah, Edom, Ammon, Moab and all who live in the wilderness in distant places. For all these nations are really uncircumcised, and even the whole house of Israel is uncircumcised in heart.”
In this passage that St. Paul quotes, we have the instruction from the Lord that there are certain things that people often boast about but that as Christians, we do better to boast about our Lord and the great things he has done for us.
What do people boast about?
Wisdom — how knowledgeable they are on certain subjects or what degrees they have earned. Some educated people proudly display their diplomas on the wall — espcially if they have the Latin inscription of “Magna or Summa cum Laude” on it.
Strength — how much can you lift or how many push ups you can do or how far you can run and not grow weary. Included in this would be athletic achievements. (I know I used to boast that I had received not one but three Presidential Physical Fitness awards in high school.)
Riches — how much a person’s annual income is or how much property they own or how successful their business is.
These have always been the types of things that people use to measure how successful they are. Even in the Bible we have many examples of descriptions of how successful people were at times.
Now it isn’t necessarily wrong to note the acheivements of successful people. Recall how the book of Job starts by listing his success.
(NIV): 1 In the land of Uz there lived a man whose name was Job. This man was blameless and upright; he feared God and shunned evil. 2 He had seven sons and three daughters, 3 and he owned seven thousand sheep, three thousand camels, five hundred yoke of oxen and five hundred donkeys, and had a large number of servants. He was the greatest man among all the people of the East. 4 His sons used to hold feasts in their homes on their birthdays, and they would invite their three sisters to eat and drink with them. 5 When a period of feasting had run its course, Job would make arrangements for them to be purified. Early in the morning he would sacrifice a burnt offering for each of them, thinking, “Perhaps my children have sinned and cursed God in their hearts.” This was Job’s regular custom. 6 One day the angels came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan also came with them. 7 The Lord said to Satan, “Where have you come from?” Satan answered the Lord, “From roaming throughout the earth, going back and forth on it.” 8 Then the Lord said to Satan, “Have you considered my servant Job? There is no one on earth like him; he is blameless and upright, a man who fears God and shuns evil.”
But note at the end of the sections that the Lord does not boast about Job’s wealth or health or family but about what he considers to be more important: “He is blameless and upright, a man who fears God and shuns evil.”
God has certainly blessed us with a variety of physical and spiritual gifts. We humbly thank him for them and seek to use those resources to give him glory. So we do not boast about ourselves or what we have. Instead, we are encouraged even commanded to boast about the One who gives them to us.
(NIV): 30 It is because of him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God—that is, our righteousness, holiness and redemption. 31 Therefore, as it is written: “Let the one who boasts boast in the Lord.”
Conclusion
And isn’t that what witnessing really is? During the Epiphany season of the church year we reflect on how Jesus has been revealed as the Son of God and Savior of the World. We note how he made that known and how those who believed in him talking about him as well. After Jesus’ resurrection, Peter and John were asked for money in the temple from a beggar. Instead of giving him silver or gold (of which they had none), Peter healed him in the name of Jesus and taught that although Jesus was the Messiah, the religious leaders had him put to death. When arrested and ordered to speak no longer to anyone in his name, we have their bold reply: (NIV): 19 But Peter and John replied, “Which is right in God’s eyes: to listen to you, or to him? You be the judges! 20 As for us, we cannot help speaking about what we have seen and heard.”
They were like the person who had just accomplished something great or met someone great and they were telling everyone. They had to boast about Jesus.
Well, Jesus has done great things for us as well and we meet him in worship and he comes to us word and sacrament. How can we not also boast about who he is and what he has done for us? Amen.