One of the favorite television commercials of many of us, for the past few years, has been John Houseman's commercials for a banking investment firm. You remember his famous words in that commercial. In a beautiful British accent he would say, "We make money the old fashioned way. We earn it." Houseman expresses the deeply held belief of many people that what resources one has should be earned. Expecting to get something for nothing is wrong. Gains that come too easily or too quickly or as the result of taking advantage of the benevolence of the government or some other means of attaining wealth are unacceptable.
George Brushaber, musing on this television advertisement, once wrote, "I think John Houseman, gold watch chain encircling his vested girth, perfectly fits the image of God as the scribes, pharisees and Judaizers imaginedproper, solid, dependable, tolerating no nonsense, a comfort to do business with...They gained God's favor the old fashioned way. They earned it." Many people are seeking to earn God's favor, even today. (1)
St. Paul in his letter to the Ephesians tells us that there is no way we can earn God's favor. Christ has done that for us.
A chaplain was addressing the soldiers in his company one day. He said to them, "There are two possibilities following death. Heaven and hell. If you would like to know your destination I will be happy to give you a little testthe results of which will be your answer." They answered in unison, "Okay. Give us the test." They found some pencils and paper and the chaplain told them to number off ten spaces. Each question would count ten points. Question number one was, "Have you always loved God above all else and not put anything else before Him?" Each soldier was to grade himself on a scale from number one to ten. "Have you ever misused God's name or made light of Him?" There were other questions about family, God and conduct as the chaplain went through the Ten Commandments. When the test was completed, he asked the men to tally up their scores. One thought that he had scored quite well and had given himself a 75. He recalled in school that was considered passing. Eventually, one of the men asked, "Say Padre, what's a passing score for this test, anyway?" The chaplain answered, "100 points." The men shook their heads. "What's the use of trying? No one could be that perfect. Certainly they were all doomed." The chaplain smiled and said, "I've got good news. There was a man who walked this earth and took this test and scored a 100 points. His name is Jesus. And he says that the purpose of the test is not to score a 100 points but to indicate our need for help. There is mercy and forgiveness for all who will receive it. Even though we may not score a 100 points we can substitute his test score for our own. Because of what he has done, we are accepted. "
We don't attain heaven the old fashion way. We don't earn it. It is a gift. That is of course the meaning of the word "grace." The theme of God's unmerited and unrestrained love for sinners was so important to St. Paul that the word grace occurs 101 times in writings attributed to him. It only appears 28 times in the rest of the New Testament. Why was it important to St. Paul? Because he had tried his best to earn his way to heaven. He was the most passionate Pharisee of all. He had even persecuted the early Church in his zeal. And yet he met Jesus on the Damascus road. There Jesus turned his life around. He, who was in his words, the chief of sinners, came into the knowledge and love of Jesus Christ not because of works but because of grace. So St. Paul wanted the whole world to know that salvation is something we cannot earn. Salvation is a gift freely given.
Why is this important to us? The knowledge of our acceptance by God, in spite of our unworthiness, is important for three reasons. IN THE FIRST PLACE THE GOOD NEWS OF GOD'S GRACE IS A CALL TO HUMILITY. No one can boast says St. Paul in another of his letters about his or her status as a Christian. We are all sinners saved by grace.
Reinhold Neibuhr in his great work The Nature and Destiny of Man divides pride into three categories. There is the pride of power. That's the sin of Hitler, Napoleon, Ghengis Khan. There is the pride of knowledge. There are many people who allow their intellect to be destructive to their spirit. Then there is the pride of virtue. And of course this was the grievous sin of the Pharisees. "God, I thank thee that I am not as other men." (Luke 18:11). The Pharisees were proud of their virtue. It became a barrier in their feelings toward other people. This was highly offensive to Jesus and it is to us.
The great preacher Dwight L. Moody once said, "It is well that a man cannot save himself for if a man could only work his way into heaven, you would never hear the last of it. Why, if a man happens to get a little ahead of his fellow and scrapes a few thousand dollars together, you will hear him boast of being a self made man. I've heard so much of this sort of talk, that I am sick of the whole business. And I am glad that through all eternity in heaven we will never hear anyone bragging that he worked his way to get there."
It is so rare to encounter a genuinely humble person but how refreshing when we do. I ran across one such tidbit recently, though. Humility is not something one usually finds in people of great accomplishment. Particularly with movie stars. Especially in books written about movie star's lives. Even more especially in books by movie stars written about their own life. So I thought you might enjoy this quote from Katherine Hepburn's biography. It offers a kind of pleasant surprise. Actually it is from the jacket flap of her new autobiography. Usually on the flap of the jacket, the publishers boast of the author's credentials. Their aim of course is to help sell the book. Katherine Hepburn did not need that. Here is what is on the book jacket. "Katherine Hepburn is an actress. She is interested in tennis and gardening and lives in a small town in Connecticut. This is her first book." I like that.
The knowledge of God's unmerited, unrestrained love for unworthy humanity is first of all a call to honest humility. We are all sinners saved by grace. None of us is superior to any other in God's eyes. We cannot earn God's favor. God's grace is a call to humility.
THE KNOWLEDGE OF GOD'S GRACE IS ALSO A CALL TO COMPASSION. Once we admit our status as sinners saved by grace then we can look with compassion on others and understand that they too are fellow strugglers. Rather than divide the world into two camps, the deserving and the undeserving as many are prone to do, we can move towards acceptance of those who have failed miserably
This was Jesus' problem with the selfrighteous Pharisees. They had a superiority complex that caused them to disdain those who did not have what they had. This came to mind when I read about an event at the Special Olympics. Ed Beck, a former all-American basketball player at Kentucky and a minister, doubles as a part time chaplain to our U.S. Olympic team. Once he suggested that the kingdom of heaven is like the best, first class athletes. Seeing them train at the Air Force Academy practice field with all the technology and their native skill he concluded that here might be the pearl of great price and commitment.
But then he wandered down to the running of the Special Olympics, which feature the physically and mentally limited persons of all ages, races and backgrounds. He watched while eight of these special Olympians lined up for the world 100 hundred yard dash. All eight charged over the starting line at the sound of the gun, but suddenly a small framed boy fell to the asphalt and began to cried loudly. What happened next is an amazing and beautiful thing. The other seven soon heard him and all returned to help. One large sized girl bent down, kissed his hurt knee and said, "That will help it feel better." Then all eight joined hands and walked to the finish line to the roar of the crowd.
In this selfcentered, competitive prone, isolated, suspicious world, that is a little like the kingdom of God. You see how different that is from the dog eat dog kind of world in which we live. We can learn from those special Olympians to move from competition to compassion. (2)
When you come to God the newfashioned way not earning it, but simply receiving it you are led to a sense of humility and of compassion for others. But there is one thing more to be said, ACKNOWLEDGING GOD'S UNMERITED UNRESTRAINED LOVE FOR US IS A CALL FOR US TO MOVE OUT IN MINISTRY TO THE WORLD. If while we were unworthy Christ would give his life for us, then we are to give our lives in service to others. It is not enough to feel humility and compassion. It is time for us to take up a cross!
Dan Walker in his book, Energy in the Pew, points this out about the purpose of faith. "Reviewing the gospels recently," he said, "I was astounded at the number of times Jesus sent his followers out to do something. The record is punctuated with these orders. Go preach. Go tell. Go work. Go into the highways. Go to the next town. Go into the country. Go to the other side. Go into the deep. Go into the streets. Go into the city. Go into the village. Go to the lost sheep. Go call your husband. Go make it right with your brother. Go and learn. Go quickly. Go in peace. Arise and go!" (3)
Many of us want the pride and prestige of being a part of a special group but few of us want to take that next step of going and serving.
It is said that the city commission of Miami, sometime back, established a municipal beautification committee. They appointed twentyfive members to it. But word got around, and it seems that everyone wanted to belong to that committee. Request after request was granted until 131 citizens were appointed. Then the committee had a meeting. Nineteen members showed up.
They wanted to belong to the committee but they did not want to do the work. And something like that can happen in the church.
Somewhere I read about a fire engine company in Tennessee. A new fire station was built and firemen in full uniform gathered with the people in the community for the unofficial opening. They had a big ceremony to celebrate this new fire hall. During the activities, the station's first fire call came in. However, the firemen wouldn't interrupt the ceremony to answer the call. They had to ask another company to respond to it.
When we understand that we are the recipients of the grace of God, it leads us to humility and compassion, but more than anything else it leads us to a sense of mission. In the last act of John Van Druten's play, I Remember Mama, there is a scene about a man named Uncle Chris. Uncle Chris has just died and the relative have gathered to read the will. While most of them have considered Uncle Chris a good for nothing and an embarrassment to them, they did not want to miss the event of the reading of the will. Maybe, just maybe, there might be some goody for them. Mama comes in to announce that there seems to be no will and no money either. But there is a notebook that is an account of the way Uncle Chris spent his money. And Mama wants to read it to the rest of the family.
"You know that Uncle Chris was lame?" she asked. "How he walked with a limp? It was his one thought, lame people. He would have liked to have been a doctor to help them. Instead he helped in other ways. I will read the last page of his notebook. ˜Joseph Spinelli 4 yrs. old. Tubercular left leg. $317.18. Walks now.
Estes Jensen, 9 years old, club foot, $217.50. Walks now. Arn Solefelt, 9 years old, fractured knee cap. $442.16." Just then in the scene the boy Arn Solefelt comes running into the yard where they can see him. Arn's mother is overcome. For she knew nothing of what Uncle Chris had done. And then after a moment, mama continues. "It does not tell the end of Arn. I would like to write, ˜Walks now.'" (4)
Lame Uncle Chris had compassion for others who were lame, and he put his money where his heart was.
When we understand that none of us are deserving of the grace of God, none of us deserve to stand before the throne of God in the white robes that have been prepared for us, none of us would pass the test, none of us would score even close to 100 but there is someone who has taken the test for uswhen we understand these things, then there is opportunity for us to have our hearts filled with humility and compassion for those who also will not pass the test. There is also motivation for us to go beyond those feelings of humility and compassion into a life of mission and service and ministry.
We have been saved by grace. Now we are called to go in the name and spirit of Christ to save a sick and dying world.
1. C. Thomas Hilton
2. Stan McCready
3. Eugene Brice
4. John Van Druten, I REMEMBER MAMA, in EIGHT AMERICAN ETHNIC PLAYS, ed. Francis Griffith and Joseph Mersand (New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1974), pp. 120121 cited in George F. Regas, KISS YOURSELF AND HUG THE WORLD, (Waco: Word, 1987).