06/18/17 The Difference Christ Makes Galatians Pastor Douglas Scalise, Brewster Baptist Church

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Barnard Chase
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1 06/18/17 The Difference Christ Makes Galatians Pastor Douglas Scalise, Brewster Baptist Church I have to confess when I saw on the news this past Wednesday, Scalise shot at baseball practice, it kind of gave me pause. A few of you expressed that thought to me as well. Rep. Steve Scalise is just a year younger than I am, also loves baseball, but pronounces his last name in a more anglicized manner. Several of you asked if we re related. I m guessing if we went back several generations, it s quite possible. If I was a Senator or a Representative, you know I d be at baseball practice. It was a sad, painful week on many fronts in addition to the mass shootings in Alexandria, VA and at a UPS facility in San Francisco. There was a verdict in the Philando Castile case in Minnesota that evoked strong reactions along racial and other lines, and here in MA, a verdict in a case in which a young woman was found guilty of involuntary manslaughter because she knew a troubled young man was attempting to end his life, and she failed to contact police or his parents or to tell him to get out of his truck. These are just a few stories from our country to say nothing of other events around the world. What many troubling events have in common is the power of words to inspire actions that are violent, destructive, corrosive, or harmful, or conversely and painfully noticeable by their absence in these situations the power of words to be helpful, hopeful and to build up, encourage and unite. We re all thankful for the actions of Capitol Police Special Agents: Crystal Griner, David Bailey and Henry Cabrera whose courage, selflessness and quick response on Wednesday morning likely saved many lives. In the aftermath, there were the usual responses of thoughts and prayers being with those most impacted, but at some point we need to move beyond thoughts and prayers to actions; actions that help change the climate of our nation, which will mean changing how we think and communicate. It will mean moving away from the mean-spirited demonization of those with whom we disagree, and ceasing to use language that is coarse, rude and inappropriate. We need to take ownership of what we can do to make a difference. Perhaps the thing we can most easily influence is acknowledging our role in the current climate by what we choose to read, who we choose to listen to, and how we speak, treat and regard others, who on some levels, we perceive to be different than ourselves. Jesus says in Luke 6:45, The good person out of the good treasure of the heart produces good, and the evil person out of evil treasure produces evil; for it is out of the abundance of the heart that the mouth speaks. We need to guard and nurture our hearts so what comes out of our mouth is good. If we re to have any hope for the future, it will require us moving away from focusing on what divides and separates us, and focusing instead on what unites us that we hold in common. I m not optimistic about seeing that in Washington D.C., but that doesn t mean we can t strive for it where we live. For those of you who are guests today or arriving for the summer, we re taking a brief look at a different book of the Bible each month throughout This month we re hearing from Paul s epistle to the Galatians. The Apostle Paul founded the churches in the region of Galatia (what is now the highlands of central Turkey) during his first missionary journey (Acts 13-14). After he left the area, apparently some other Jewish Christians arrived who told the Galatians that they needed to submit to 1

2 Jewish laws and customs in order to be truly Christian (see Acts 15). Having been raised a devoted Jew, Paul was aware of Jewish sensitivities (Acts 16:3). However, he vehemently opposed the idea that one had to become a Jew in order to be a disciple of Christ. Paul argued that the ways that Jewish and Roman society divided itself no longer mattered being in Christ is what mattered. What we share in Christ is more important than any differences we perceive or construct from a human point of view. Paul wrote in Galatians 3:25-29 these words, which are perhaps the most crucial in the book: But now that faith has come, we are no longer subject to a disciplinarian, for in Christ Jesus you are all children of God through faith. As many of you as were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. There is no longer Jew or Greek, there is no longer slave or free, there is no longer male and female; for all of you are one in Christ Jesus. And if you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham s offspring, heirs according to the promise. Do you hear the emphasis on Christ in these verses? Through faith in Christ, we re all children of God. We re baptized into Christ and clothe ourselves with Christ, are one in Christ, and belong to Christ. That s who we are. That s what defines us more than anything else, and also greatly enlarges our family, our perspective and our world. For most of human history, people have been largely about division how we divide ourselves from other people and all the walls we put up; walls of ethnicity, race, religion, nationality, economic and social status, gender, language, political affiliation, you name it. With the coming of Christ, his early followers moved, however haltingly, from division to multiplication all the barriers and walls people build don t matter compared to being in Christ, and the number of children who belong to God, and with whom we re related to by faith as sisters and brothers, increases exponentially. It is hard to imagine how stunning these words from Galatians were to those who first heard them. Although maybe not, because they re still radical today. Because Christians and the church haven t lived up to them for most of the last 1,900 years, Christians have failed more than succeeded at living out the truth of God s Word on this point. We ve continued to elevate what divides and separates rather than what unites. Imagine sitting in a house with a group of people in the first century in Galatia and hearing that both Jews and Gentiles have experienced a dramatic change thanks to God s sending and resurrecting Christ, and as a result Jews and Gentiles are now united in faith? The division is over. In fact, the most basic divisions of the Greco-Roman world, from a Jewish point of view, have ended, in terms of those God loves and saves, and who are part of God s family. Pagans, slaves, women, all are welcome and equal through faith in Christ as children of God. All are the offspring of Abraham, and heirs of all that God has promised (verse 29). Amazing. The fact that God s word said this 1,900 years ago in Turkey about Jews and Gentiles, slaves and free, men and women, sounds more incredible when we consider that there was still slavery in the United States of America just over 150 years ago. Women didn t have the right to vote in the United States of America until less than 100 years ago (August 18, 1920, the 19th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution granted American women the right to vote). The US military slowly began racial integration around 70 years 2

3 ago. As Christians and as human beings, we ve been way too slow to get with what God has been trying to do in and through Christ for centuries. This point of people being equal before God is tremendously important to Paul. He insists that the Lord s Supper be enjoyed among all equally, that worship and prayer belong to all those claimed by God as heirs. This is very subversive of normal Greco-Roman law and experience, and it would have been shocking and likely very hard for some people to accept. But it s Paul s claim about God, based on scripture and the lives of women and men claimed by the Holy Spirit. In first century Roman culture and in our own time, when we re insecure, we can often focus more on how we re different from someone else rather than on what we have in common. We can look down on and judge others as a way to feel better about ourselves. We can stereotype people who look, act, think or believe in ways that are different from us. As Christians, we re called to model unity for the world, even if Christians so often have failed and fail miserably to do so. If movies like The Day the Earth Stood Still, Close Encounters, Independence Day, or Arrival are any indication, the only thing that will unite the endlessly divided human race is if the earth is reached by aliens. Other than that, Christ, love and compassion are our best hope. As Christians, we can begin with the truth that our differences don t matter as much as what we have in common: our oneness in Christ and our shared humanity. It s good to be in a church, where you worship with and meet people you d otherwise never know. It isn t good if we live in smaller and smaller bubbles only getting our news from sources we agree with, and only associating with people who think the same way we do. One of the great values of being a part of the church of Jesus Christ, going on mission trips and having missionaries come here, is to see the oneness we can have in Christ with people who in some worldly terms may seem to be different from ourselves. This past week the Cape Cod Baseball League opened its season with ten teams composed of players from all across the United States. One of the tasks of coaches and players is turning young men from very diverse backgrounds, experiences and upbringings from a group of individuals into a team. On the field, players wear uniforms that make it clear which team they re on. Uniforms serve to unify and unite the very different individuals who wear them. Thirty-eight years ago the Pittsburgh Pirates came back from a three games to one deficit and won the World Series over the Baltimore Orioles. That season, the Pirates adopted We Are Family by Sister Sledge as their theme song. Besides being a great song to dance to, it expressed the truth that a team that had quite a mix of personalities with black, white and Hispanic players from the US, Panama, Mexico, and the Dominican Republic, could unite around a common purpose and have fun. They did what the church is supposed to do. We value differences but those differences should create interest and help us do great things for God rather than divide us. On Wednesday, the same day as the shooting incident in Alexandria, the Southern Baptist Convention voted on a resolution condemning the anti-gospel of alt-right white supremacy. The vote capped a turbulent 48 hours at the SBC s annual meeting in Phoenix that revealed the deep racial tensions that remain in a denomination that was originally founded in 1845 after a split over the issue 3

4 of slavery. A few weeks ago, Rev. William Dwight McKissic, a prominent black Southern Baptist pastor in Texas, submitted for consideration at the SBC s annual meeting a Resolution On The Condemnation of the Alt-Right Movement and the Roots of White Supremacy. McKissic spoke of the biblical reasons why racism is antithetical to Christianity, and of the toxicity of the current political movement. The final revised resolution was titled, On the Anti-Gospel of Alt-Right White Supremacy. Russell Moore, who s been the head of the SBC s Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission since 2013, put it clearly and importantly, "We are saying that white supremacy and racist ideologies are dangerous because they oppress our brothers and sisters in Christ. If we're a Jesus people, let's stand where Jesus stands." Ed Stetzer, Executive Director of the Billy Graham Center for Evangelism, tweeted a similar sentiment: The alt-right is an evil movement, filled with hate disguised as pride, and needs to be denounced by Christians everywhere. #SBC17. He later spelled out the importance of the SBC s move, writing, Southern Baptists need to speak [against the alt-right] for several reasons, not the least of which is that too many Southern Baptists were on the wrong side of the fire hoses in Birmingham. They need to get on the correct side, against the rising tide of racism, often associated (rightly or wrongly) with where many Southern Baptists live. Ultimately, after a tumultuous process, the Southern Baptists unanimously voted for a resolution to "decry every form of racism, including altright white supremacy as antithetical to the Gospel of Jesus Christ" and "denounce and repudiate white supremacy and every form of racial and ethnic hatred as a scheme of the devil." This is a good thing. Our unity and oneness in Christ needs to take priority and precedence over every other way we view our identity. In Christ, we are part of a large, global, diverse family, and that s what heaven is going to be like so we should start getting used to the idea now. Those of us who are Christians can recognize and appreciate some of the family traits that unite us: Creation. We re all created by God and are part of God s larger creation, which God said was Good and we are to care for as God would. Calling. There is purpose in life for each and every one of us that we re to discover and strive with all our ability, courage, faith, and perseverance to fulfill. Sin. All of us have fallen short of what God requires; we all have our flaws, faults and failings. Christ. We share in the grace and mercy of Jesus Christ. God loves us regardless of our failings. All this means we can t separate our love for God from love for one another. What we have in common is far more important than any differences. This is a lesson that we need to learn and live. 1 Corinthians 12:12-13 states, For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ. For in the one Spirit we were all baptized into one body Jews or Greeks, slaves or free and we were all made to drink of one Spirit. We are family. We are one in Jesus Christ. Colossians 3:8-11 describes the way of life to which we re called, But now you must get rid of all such things anger, wrath, malice, slander, and abusive language from your mouth. Do not lie to one another, seeing that you have stripped off the old self with its practices and have clothed yourselves with the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge according to the image of its creator. In that renewal there is no longer Greek and Jew, circumcised and uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave and free; but Christ is all and in all! 4

5 Questions for Reflection or Discussion: 1. The Galatians, to whom Paul wrote in the first century, lived in a very divided society and so do we. What are some of the boundary lines by which people divide or define themselves compared to other people? 2. Notice how many times Paul refers to "Christ" in Galatians 3:25-29; why do you think he does that? 3. In Galatians 3 Paul offers a new basis for our identity as people. Three times he says, There is no longer Why do you think it s important how we identify ourselves and others? 4. Why is labeling one s self or others with broad terms such as liberal or conservative, native or wash-ashore, longtime member or newcomer not necessarily helpful for building understanding or relationships or even healthy communication? 5. In the first century, those in the church called one another brother or sister; a tradition that still exists in some churches today. Why might that be a healthy custom to carry on? How is the church like a family? 6. What family traits unite those of us who are Christians? 5

SERMON NOTES Galatians 3: June 2012 DMM

SERMON NOTES Galatians 3: June 2012 DMM SERMON NOTES Galatians 3:23-29 23 June 2012 DMM 1. Writing to the Galatians, Paul shocked the religious world by asserting that we are made right with God by faith. I want to begin this morning by looking