On May 28, 2006, the 7th Sunday of Easter is celebrated. The three designated readings in the common three year lectionary are Acts 1:15-26 (Choosing Matthias); 1 John 4:13-21 (Abiding in God) and John 17:11b-19 (High Priestly Prayer of Jesus). The text chosen to preach about is 1 John 4:13 which reveals, “By this we know that we abide in Him, and He in us, because He has given us of His Spirit.”
The text incorporates the question asked by all Christians as to how might we know that we abide in God and He in us. Another way of phrasing this universal question is, “How can I know that I am saved?” There are two ways in which people arrive at an answer that satisifies. The first way is the way of the Law done by those who live under the Law and are theologians of glory.
That means that our assurance of salvation is found in us; that is, in something we have done to gain the favor of God. Whether is it a change of our life from one of great sin to minimal sin–at least from our point of view–or whether it is because of the great knowledge we have amassed about God or whatever, we look to that for our assurance.
In contrast, the theologian of the cross looks outside of himself to find assurance. At first reading, however, the verse that provides assurance sounds like our assurance is something we do. It is verse 15, “Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God.” However, that we are able to confess that Jesus is the Son of God is NOT something we have done but rather a gift from God Himself to us the unworthy.
An analogy that is helpful is to recognize that the assurance that I am in the family of my parents is because I refer to myself as Tom BAKER. Though it is I who calls myself Baker, that name was not of my creation but rather an act of my parents in naming me at my birth. Therefore the assurance of abiding in God and He in me is indeed due to a gift of faith which God provided me by grace on account of the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.
It would also be important to recall our baptism in which Peter preaches according to Acts 2 that one of the gifts received in Holy Baptism is the gift of the Holy Spirit. To deny that I have received that gift is to regard God as a liar because He attaches His promise to water and the Word. Thus, rather than look at my changed life or bounty of good works, I look to the Word of God connected to the sacrament of baptism and find assurance that I abide in Him and He in me by grace, through faith on account of Jesus Christ.
Name:Tom Baker
Dear Pastor Baker,
Thanks for giving me your answer over the airwaves. The reason I wanted your feedback on the passage in Matthew is because of all the horrific misapplications of that particular text that I’ve heard in past in sermons from some of the most prominent evangelical leaders. One of the most popular misapplications is when the text is being used as an example of how to ward off temptation. ‘If we can only quote the scriptures with enough faith’ these people say like it’s some magical mantra, ‘then Satan will flee from us and we’ll be victorious over the temptations’. Now it’s taught in Romans that the Law hardens us and can do nothing to help us to overcome temptations. In retrospect to what I said in my previous email and from what I’ve learned from the Lutheran perspective. It is not our active quoting of the Law that is the ultimate refuge from our temptation, but, rather it is the passive receiving of the Gospel through Word and Sacrament that will indeed bring us to overcome our temptations. Let me add that even if we are to quote Gospel promises to our situation of temptation, I’ve come to learn that it is not ‘our quoting’ of such passages that will bring us to overcome the temptations but rather it is the promises themselves that bring us first, the comfort that no one can snatch us out of the Master’s hands, and ultimately because of such a wonderful truth, we then rejoice and spontaneously respond and often overcome temptation without even being aware of it. Until I started listening to KFUO, I was under the delusional that it was my lack of faith that brought me to such despair and that I had to somehow muster up enough faith to be able to quote such passages and ultimately ward off temptation. But thanks to KFUO, and especially Law & Gospel, I’ve learned that the same Gospel that created faith in me will nurture that faith to the end as I am in Him.
David,
North Bergen, NJ
(Hebrews 12:2)
P.S. My new man hopes you will read this on the air for the sake of others who might have gone through the same despair that I have. As for my old Adam…well…let’s just say he speak for himself.