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| Date of Sermon: September 3, 2006 |
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When I was nine years old I went on my first cross-country trip from Findlay, Ohio to Riverside, California. Most of the trip was on the famous Route 66 with an occasional detour for sight seeing. One of those junkets was to Four Corners National Monument. I have since visited a lot of National Parks and National Monuments, but I’m not sure I’ve ever been to one with so little to see. Two lines intersect in a bronze circle forming four sections. They are entitled Utah, Colorado, New Mexico and Arizona. I can still hear Uncle Bill exclaim, “OK, there they are. Now get in the car.” We had seen it all. Now here’s the weird part. I have been back to that metal disk, at least twice. Somehow it fascinates me to know that with one step I can cross the line into another state and that I know how far I can go without leaving my current state. Now if only I can find Four Corners Spiritual Monument. You know, that place where we can tell when we leave one spiritual state and enter another. Wouldn’t it be great to have a place where we could find four quadrants: “Right Where God Wants Me to Be”, “Not Exactly Where God Wants Me to Be – but Fun and Not Too Far”, “Not Even Close to Where God Wants Me to Be – but Amazing Grace How Sweet the Sound”, and “No Man’s Land – Get Out Now!” Throughout the month of September we will be considering Questions That Matter, questions that ramble around in the hearts and minds of many of us, questions of the soul. The question that we consider today is, “Can I do that and still be a Christian?” It is not a new question. It has been around as long as Christianity. People have been on the lookout for Four Corners Spiritual Monument. The people of Galatia, in present day Turkey, were asking this question in the first century. They were getting all kinds of answers. Some told them that the only way to really be safe was to be under the law and become a practicing Jew as well as a professing Christian. Other told them that as long as they were under grace they could do whatever they wanted with their bodies. Their spirits were safe. Paul was amazed at how confused they became so quickly after he left and he wrote them a letter. It is in that letter that I believe we find our answer to today’s question that matters. I invite you to turn to Galatians 5:16-26 and follow along as we seek an answer to this question that matters, “Can I do that and still be a Christian?” Hear now the Word of the Lord:
There is an answer to today’s question, but it is not found at Four Corners Spiritual Monument. Allow me to present it in two rhyming phrases that you can take with you on your journey that I’m sure contains questions that matter. The first phrase is this: You cannot win Against Sin. Paul doesn’t really use the word, “sin” in this passage, instead he highlights what he refers to as works of the flesh. These are the “inevitable, overflowing consequences” of trying to do it yourself, according to R. Alan Cole in his commentary on Galatians. Paul pitted the desires of the flesh and the desires of the Spirit against each other, leaving no question as to our powerlessness in trying to draw the line between acceptable and unacceptable offenses. He then listed fifteen offenses, some with which we have no problem and others that hit a little too close to home. And if that is not enough, he adds an etcetera with the words, “and things like these.” Then he declares the consequences, “I am warning you, as I warned you before: those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.” I started writing a story a few years ago about a town that became infested with the dreaded Sarx Monkey. These mythical monkeys would attach themselves to a human host and ride on his or her back everywhere. The residents of the town would walk stooped over from the weight of the monkeys. These infected individuals could no longer come close to one another, because the monkeys on their backs would bite and claw each other and the hosts if they got close enough. Eventually the people got so use to the monkeys on their backs that they could not think or even dream of life any other way. So they existed, stooped over, keeping their distance from one another and going wherever the Sarx Monkey directed. Then one day, a man walked into town uninhabited and unburdened by monkeys. He looks like life itself, walking tall, smiling broadly, loving. The monkeys hate him – but all who trust him are shed of the Sarx Monkeys from their backs. Sarx is the Greek word for “flesh” and I have seen too many lives burdened by its inevitable, overflowing consequences. If we try to locate Four Corners Spiritual Monument and determine things like: “Can I go to this website and still be a Christian? Can I drink this much of that stuff and still be a Christian? Can I go this far in my relationship and still be a Christian? Can I hate just this one person and still be a Christian? Can I engage in destructive conversation just this once and still be a Christian?” We are going to be sorely disappointed. You cannot win against sin. You cannot by your own power escape the grasp of this Velcro villain. You cannot win against sin. That is the first part to the answer of this question that matters, “Can I do that and still be a Christian?” The second phrase is this:
The solution - now hear it - is life with the Spirit. Paul contrasted these 15 inevitable, overflowing consequences of self-centeredness and its etcetera with the Fruit of the Spirit: “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.” He then offered some wonderful advice, “If we live by the Spirit, let us also be guided by the Spirit.” Paul knew that there were factions among the Galatians vying for their membership. “Be a Judaizer and follow closely everything that we tell you.” “Be an antinomian and throw away the law. This is your life now, live it as you please.” Paul proposed another guide, the Spirit of God. Years ago I took Zachary to his first college football game. We had not yet been to College Station and Kyle Field so we were excited, even if it was in Reliant Stadium. I love going to sporting events so my pace was faster that it usually is. I’m not really sure why that is, I have a reserved seat, it’s not like I’m boarding a Southwest Airline flight. Nevertheless, I become focused and move pretty fast. At that time Zac’s legs were much shorter than mine and he was having a hard time keeping up, but he didn’t complain. He just ran to catch up every now and then. As I entered the turnstile Zac was right behind me. I gave the usher my ticket and headed toward my seat. Several paces into the stadium I heard a voice saying, “Dad!” He had been drinking a Sprite and the usher would not let him enter. He had to find a trash or chug his soda and he did not know where to go. It’s a moment that has been etched in my mind, I am standing inside the stadium and he is standing outside calling my name. When our eyes locked I got the message clearly, “Dad, don’t go without me.” The Spirit has no desire to go without you. “If we live by the Spirit, let us also be guided by the Spirit.” The solution – now hear it – is life with the Spirit. We will never locate Four Corners Spiritual Monument with their clear lines of demarcation that inform us when we have left one spiritual state and entered another, but we don’t really need such a place. We have a guide willing to hold our hand and walk with us every step of the way. This guide will take us to places much nicer than we could find on our own. Places of love, joy, peace and so many others. So to the question, “Can I do that and still be a Christian?” The answer can be found in two phrases: ● You cannot Win Against Sin.
● The
solution - now hear it - is life with the Spirit. There’s no need to stand outside the gates of the life that God has intended for you. There’s no need for you to look for Four Corners Spiritual Monument. Come to this Table, feast on this grace, live by and be guided by the Spirit of God. Amen.
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