A sermon outline/transcript
June 18, 2023
Readings: Genesis 18, Romans 5, Matthew 9-10
In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
“Since we are justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.”
So declares St. Paul in his magisterial letter to the Romans. What does it mean to have peace with God?
This question has not been a theoretical one for many Christians throughout history. Some sensitive souls have been afflicted with what is called scrupulosity— an obsessive concern with displeasing God, a constant worry that they are not in the right with God, which leads to all manner of compulsive activities meant to alleviate these anxieties.
St. Alphonsus Ligouri, St. Ignatius of Loyola, St. Therese the Little Flower, John Bunyan, and Martin Luther— all of them experienced obsessive thoughts about God being displeased with them. Luther in particular struggled with this. As an Augustinian monk, he felt that no matter what he did, he felt insecure in his relationship with God. He always felt uncertain as to where he stood with God. Every morning he’d wake up and feel like he was already in debt. God was displeased with him, and Luther had to work hard to get into God’s good graces— he would pray, he would fast, he would perform works of mercy and piety. But no matter how much he did, he never felt secure. He did not feel at peace with God.
So the discovery that we are justified— that is, that we are restored to a right relationship with God— through faith and not through works, changed his life— and eventually the course of Western Christianity.
Yet the subject of justification by faith, which is so central to our Epistle reading this morning, is by no means simple. Luther himself said that a preacher who could properly distinguish Law and Gospel deserves a doctor’s cap.
Two extremes to be rejected: mere exhortation or antinomianism
This morning I want to look at what it means to have peace with God, according to St. Paul’s letters.
What it does not mean:
Not about changing God (Romans 5): God is already “for” us, which he proves by sending His Son
The Gospel is not about affecting a change in God. We are the ones who need to change.
Still, some are not at peace with God (God is not at peace with their alienation from Him!)
How are we restored to a right relationship with God? Paul’s argument in Romans: Not through works, but through faith
Not through works (whether works of the law like circumcision, Sabbath observance, keeping kosher… or good works in general) but by faith
What God wants most from us is faith—TRUST
Cf. Genesis reading (Abraham, “reckoned to him as righteousness”, Sarah’s childbearing “is anything too wonderful for the Lord?”)
We are restored to a right relationship with God not through our works but through faith.
Effect on our spiritual life: Frees us up (anxiety to serenity)
Since we are justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.
Peace, joy: Our relationship with God is not predicated on our performance, but on His goodness and love for us
What, then, of the place of good works? The attitude of the antinomian described
Response: The faith that justifies us is a living faith (“faith without works is dead,” “faith working through love,” FAITH WORKS)
If we truly have faith in our Lord Jesus Christ, we will demonstrate this faith in the way we live.
Grace is not just something that covers us, but something that fills us and changes us from the inside out (“the love of God has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit that has been given to us”)
Good works are the fruit of faith: the expression of a living, saving faith
In this context, good works have been transformed— rather than our works emerging from anxiety and compulsion, they emerge from a grateful heart
And in any case, they’re not really “our” works
Galatians 2: I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.
Christ lives in me, doing his work
1 Corinthians 15: I worked harder than any of them, yet not I, but the grace of God that is with me.
Key verse: Ephesians 2 [salvation is by grace through faith but necessarily includes good works]
“Because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions…
For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith— and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast.
For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.”
St. Paul is clear that we are saved by grace through faith, but that believers are made for good works and indeed, that we are the handiwork of God. If you are a Christian, not only will you do good works, your life will become a good work, that is, the good work of God.
Good News:
God loves us, even though we were far from Him, even though we have all rebelled against Him in different ways, God loves us so much He gave His only begotten Son to live and die and rise for us. For you to be restored to a right relationship with God, what God requires of you is not to perform a series of works but to turn from your sin and trust in Christ. And trusting in Christ with all your heart, reaching out in faith and holding on to the hem of his robe, you receive forgiveness and healing. You will have peace with God.
And God will live in you through the Holy Spirit and change you from the inside out, and your faith in Christ will express itself in how you think and speak and act. Your faith will be a living faith that works through love, and your good works will be the expressions of a grateful and joyful heart. You will move through life, not with anxiety or compulsion, but with joy and peace and confident serenity. That is what God wants for you.
And not only will you do good works, your life will be a good work: God’s work, as He works in you and through you. This is Good News, beloved. Since we are justified by faith, we have with peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Thanks be to God. Amen.
Dogmatic Joy 