A true follower of Christ is a loyal, law-abiding citizen of the Kingdom of God.
Opening question: Martin Luther had a problem with James – He called it the Epistle of Straw, why?
“Though I lived as a monk without reproach, I felt that I was a sinner before God with an extremely disturbed conscience. I could not believe that he was placated
by my satisfaction. I did not love, yes, I hated the righteous God who punishes sinners, and secretly, if not blasphemously, certainly murmuring greatly, I was angry with God, and said, As if, indeed, it is not enough, that miserable sinners, eternally lost through original sin, are crushed by every kind of calamity by the law of the decalogue, without having God add pain to pain by the gospel and also by the gospel threatening us with his
righteousness and wrath!” Thus I raged with a fierce and troubled conscience.
Nevertheless, I beat importunately upon Paul at that place, most ardently desiring to know what St. Paul wanted. At last, by the mercy of God, meditating day and night, I gave heed to the context of the words, namely, “In it the righteousness of God is revealed, as it is written, ‘He who through faith is righteous shall live.’” There I began to understand that the
righteousness of God is that by which the righteous lives by a gift of God, namely by faith. And this is the meaning: the righteousness of God is revealed by the gospel, namely, the passive righteousness with which merciful God justifies us by faith, as it is written, “He who through faith is righteous shall live.” Here I felt that I was altogether born again and had entered paradise itself through open gates. There a totally other face of the entire
Scripture showed itself to me.”
Paul talks about you can’t “do” where as James talks about you must “do”
Paul in his letter to the Galatians describes the law as a prison from which the gospel of Christ of salvation by faith liberates us. James on the other hand seems to say that faith is not enough, but faith must be
demonstrated and evidenced through action.
James 2:17-18
“Faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead. But someone will say, “You have faith; I have deeds.” Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by my deeds.”
James is clear that we are not saved through theology, but obedience to the word of Christ.
Despite allegations launched against him by his hypocritical critics Jesus was no Law breaker in fact as we read in our gospel reading he claimed to BE the Law.
“Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not
come to abolish them but to fulfill them.”
Jesus’ sacrificial death fulfilled the requirements of the Law, but He was also a Law giver.
One day a young lawyer approached Jesus and enquired:
“Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?”
Now bearing in mind that there are 613 biblical commands in the Hebrew Scriptures.
Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbour as yourself.’All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”
Matthew 22:36-40
It is all too easy to take Jesus’ distillation of the Laws of Moses and kid ourselves that we obey them.
Over and above the Laws of Moses, Jesus established Laws for his own followers which amplify the Greatest Commandment a great many of which appear in the gospel of Matthew most particularly in the Sermon on the Mount.
Do not swear an oath
Do not turn away from the one who wants to borrow from you.
Do not to practice your righteousness in front of others
Do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing,
Do not be like the hypocrites in the way they pray to be seen.
You must forgive others their sins.
Do not look somber as you fast,
Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth.
Do not worry about your life.
Do not judge
Do not condemn
Do not despise and hinder children
Do not doubt
Do not call anyone on earth ‘father’ or ‘rabbi.’
Do not withhold your shirt from someone who takes your coat.
Do not demand back property freely lent
Do not take the place of honour.
Do not invite your friends, your brothers or sisters, your relatives, or your rich neighbours in favour of the poor and disadvantaged.
Do not work for food that spoils, but for food that endures to eternal life,
Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God;
‘You must be born again.’ Deny yourselves and take up
your cross and follow me.
To become great you must be
a servant
God’s worshipers must worship in the Spirit and in truth.”
Love one another. As I have loved you.
Make disciples and baptise – teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.
Many of these are straight forward, but some are especially challenging.
Matthew 5:39
Do not resist an evil person. If anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to them the other cheek also.
Matthew 5:32
Anyone who divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, makes her the victim of adultery, and anyone who marries a divorced woman commits adultery.
These a tough requirements, but to what extent can we take them or leave them? Jesus is quite clear one the matter.
Luke 6:46
Jesus said, “Why do you call me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ and do not do what I say?
And elsewhere:
John 14:23
“Anyone who loves me will obey my teaching.
We are called to be Law abiding citizens of the Kingdom of God and many of Jesus’s Laws surpass those of Moses.
How many of us can claim to have kept all of these? How can we then be saved? Are we back to the dark and bleak predicament of Martin Luther before his conversion?
I have good news for you.
The truth of the Gospel of Grace still stands, but for God’s Grace we stand condemned because none of us can claim to be totally Law abiding citizens.
Jesus is the fulfilment of the Law. That which required our justification before God through his sacrificial death has won our salvation. Let’s briefly remind ourselves:
Lev 16:21-22 – demanded on the day of atonement for a goat bearing the sins of the people to be led outside the camp whilst a second goat was sacrificed. Jesus bore the weight of every sin on His
shoulders as he was driven by Roman soldiers outside the city. It wasn’t a symbolic act, but rather a literal bearing of sin and shame for the entire world.
In reflecting on the cross that he would one day bear Jesus taught:
Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, that everyone who
believes may have eternal life in him.” For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.
John 3:14-16
Luther was right to feel joy. We are saved through faith, BUT we follow Jesus and serve Jesus through obedience.
A true follower of Christ is a loyal, law-abiding citizen of the Kingdom of God.
When I first joined the army, our barrack room accommodation had mirrors in the corridor with a poster of a perfectly turned out soldier in varieties of uniform dress next to it. The idea is that each recruit looks into the mirror and comparing what they see in the poster make appropriate adjustments.
James in his Epistle wrote: James 1:22-24
Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like someone who looks at his face in a mirror and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like.
The perfect Law of Christ which does not include all the unnecessary regulations and hypocrisy which he so despised is like that mirror in basic training and the poster alongside it is of course Jesus Himself.
Let us remember that:
As James wrote that we demonstrate our faith by action and must not only be
hearers of the Word, but ‘doers’ of the same.
We might be free of many aspects of the Laws of Moses, but we are still subject to military Law if we are soldiers of Christ.
Amen