The Lutheran Hour
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"No Boasting"
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Text: Galatians 6:14
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Christ is risen! He is risen, indeed! The Savior’s empty cross on a skull-shaped hill; His tomb left empty on resurrection morning. These gracious gifts are God’s proof that the law has been fulfilled; that death and devil have been defeated. Today, The Lutheran Hour glorifies the Savior and His cross as we bring Christ to the nations. Amen.
I’m really not a great fan of Country-Western music, but in preparing this message, I couldn’t get a Country-Western lyric out of my head. You might remember the words to the Mac Davis tune: “Oh Lord it’s hard to be humble when you’re perfect in every way. I can’t wait to look in the mirror cause I get better looking each day.” Lord, it’s hard to be humble. Most of us smile at those words. We smile, at least in part, because they’re true, or at least we’d like them to be. Although we’d never say so out loud, most of us like to imagine we’re special, the smartest, the fastest, the richest, the most powerful or popular.
Years ago I heard a speaker talk about a lion who thought he was pretty much perfect in every way. When that lion reached his full lionly maturity, he made it a practice to wander the jungle forest asking anyone he met: “Who is the king of the forest?” He met a warthog and asked, “Who’s the king?” and the warthog was quickly ready to shout out: “You are, oh king!” The lion encountered a chimpanzee and asked his standard question: “Who is the king of the forest?” The chimp knew the right answer, and didn’t hesitate in sharing: “None other than you, your highness.” The chimp’s opinion was immediately echoed by a nearby giraffe and zebra who thought they might as well get their answer out before the lion started to bother them.
Then, one day, the lion met an elephant. He had never seen an elephant before, but that was of little consequence to him. The lion shouted, “Sir! Hey, Tiny, do you know who is the king of the forest?” With nary a word, the elephant’s trunk reached out, grabbed the lion’s tail, twirled him until he was limp as a noodle, bounced him off some nearby trees, dragged him through some thorny bushes and tossed him into a pool of stagnant water. Watching the still silent elephant walk away, the lion, in a very quite voice mumbled, “Just because you don’t know the answer to my question, you don’t have to get nasty.” Lord, it’s hard to be humble when you’re perfect in every way.
The story of the boastful lion isn’t unique. People in the ancient world used to tell of the fly who landed on the ear of the horse pulling a general’s chariot. Looking back at where they’d been, the fly was pleased to think to himself, “My, aren’t we raising a lot of dust?” In the Far East they talk about the ant who rode on the back of an elephant as it passed over a hanging bridge. When they had reached the other side, the ant shouted into the elephant’s ear: “My friend, we sure made this bridge shake!” And of course, it wasn’t so many years ago that someone told me about the woodpecker who was pounding away on the trunk of a dead tree when lightning struck. Flying away, the woodpecker thought out loud, “My, look at what I’ve done.” Lord, it’s hard to be humble when you’re perfect in every way.
Of course you know, and I know, these animal stories which speak of prideful boasting are just an amusing way of addressing that questionable quality which is found in most of us. In the late 1700s, the brilliant German author Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (I like saying that name: Johann Wolfgang von Goethe) was out for an afternoon stroll with the equally brilliant Ludwig von Beethoven. As they passed, the adulation of the people was obvious. The men they met would doff their hats and bow; the women would smile and politely curtsy. After a considerable period of time, Goethe, like a modern day matinee movie idol, with exasperation in his voice, muttered, “This is so maddening. Wherever I go, I simply can’t escape the adulation of the crowds.” To which Beethoven leaned over and whispered in the great poet’s ear, “There, there, my friend, I wouldn’t be all that distressed about what’s happening. After all, it is just possible that some of this praise might be directed toward me.”
Lord, it’s hard to be humble when you’re perfect in every way. On the first day of school, first graders come into the classroom boasting their dad is stronger, richer, bigger, smarter, than anyone else’s father. By the time we’re in our teen years we want to have the right shoes, the right jeans, the right purse, the right look so we can be accepted by the right crowd. Proud boasting doesn’t stop when we get our driver’s license; nor when we reach the age we can vote or have a legal drink. Congressmen proudly tell their constituents of the wonderful work they’re doing in Washington. And if you’re not a politician, you do all you can to make sure you’ve got a good spot in the rat race. Parents play a perpetual game of one-upsmanship. Are your children smart? Mine are smarter. Are your little ones athletic, wise, and popular? Mine are super-stars, brilliant, and the presidents of their class. Did your children get into Harvard? Mine made it into Concordia University. Yes we like prideful boasting. If you doubt it, look at how, when a city’s hockey, baseball, basketball, football team becomes number one, their elated fans riot at their supremacy.
Lord, it’s hard to be humble when you’re perfect in every way. Even church people are not immune from a little prideful boasting. We say, “Yes, your preacher may be good and on the radio, but my preacher is better ’cause he’s on TV.” One person says, “My congregation just built a big, new church” and another counters with, “I’m sure that’s fine, but we just built a big, new church and it’s paid for.” With God on their side, church people like to let the world know that they are happier, more content, more fulfilled, more secure, more successful, more blessed, and more at peace. We dress right, eat right, we speak right, we believe right, and we do right. Lord, it’s hard to be humble.
The amazing thing is, sometimes other folks – folks like you who aren’t part of the church – actually believe us. You drive by our big, stately worship facilities with their parking lots which stretch out like a freeway, and you think, “Those folks have really got it together. Guess there’s no place for me there.” You hear church people talking about their congregation and the wonderful things that are happening and, just for an instant, you say to yourself, “I might not mind going there.” But then, when you think about walking up the steps and going through those big doors, you get intimidated and think, “I don’t sing very well; and I don’t know when to get up and sit down; and I don’t know all those prayers; and I don’t know if I could pass the dress code; and I don’t know their secret handshake, or even if there is a secret handshake.” (Just in case you’re wondering, there isn’t.) At any rate, it can be pretty frightening to be an outsider looking at all those dressed up folks going into church.
That’s what some of you believe. Others, taking a closer look at the church and its membership; having listened to the news reports of scandals in the clergy; having seen some of the marriages of your Christian neighbors end up in a messy divorce; having watched the Christian kids of the community arguing and teasing and crying and fighting and being spoiled; you long ago stopped believing that church-goers were superior. You’re pleased to point out that you’re not impressed. “The church,” you say, “may look good on the outside, but on the inside, those folks aren’t any better than I am.” Paraphrasing the song, you say, “Lord, they ought to be humble, because they’re imperfect in every way.”
If those are some of the things you skeptics-about-Christianity are thinking this Lord’s Day, I’m not going to argue with you. On our own, we Christians aren’t prettier, happier, wealthier, stronger, more mentally agile, and physically fit than are other folks. And you Christian people, don’t get all bent out of shape here – you know we’re not. Church people have the same sins, struggles, sorrows, and shortcomings as do non-church people. Left on our own, believers are tempted, and although we struggle against it, we still end up committing the same transgressions as do unbelievers. Most of us know that merely having our name on the roster of a church doesn’t mean that we immediately sprout wings, grow a halo, walk on water, and constantly hum hymns. We might want all of these things to happen, but things don’t because we haven’t yet made it into heaven. We are poor, miserable sinners who, like the rest of humanity, are in desperate need of a Savior – the Savior, Christ, the Lord.
If there is a difference between us, and there is, that difference can be summed up by the fact that we have a Savior. By the Holy Spirit’s power, Christians have been brought to Jesus Christ, who is God’s gracious, Good News of great Joy. Because of Jesus, we who are sinners have become saints; because of Him, we who were once in darkness have been moved into light; because of Him, we who were once troubled have peace; because of Him, we who once were lost have now been found. Understand, none of this has happened because we are in any way, in any manner, intrinsically better than you. These things have happened because we have a Savior, a heaven-sent substitute, the Redeemer Jesus Christ.
Which is why, if you ever see us seeming to be smug or self-satisfied, you should know, it’s not because we’re that good, it’s because Jesus is that good. Saint Paul said if any Christian thinks he’s something special, he’s kidding himself. On his own, a Christian is nothing (see Galatians 6:3). Thankfully, by God’s grace we are not on our own. Seeing our helpless and lost condition, the Lord sent His Son into this world to be our suffering substitute. When the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, to redeem, to buy back, those who were under the condemnation of the law. God sent His Son so that we might, through Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection, be forgiven and free (see Galatians 4:4,5).
Because of Christ’s cross and empty tomb we are free. That’s what Saint Paul was saying to the Christians in the New Testament church of Galatia. When some Christians who considered themselves to be super believers came up to regular, Gospel-believing Christians and told them they weren’t good enough to be Christians; that they needed to shape up, or God was going to ship them out; Paul said, “Don’t you believe it.” Pointing to the cross where the Christ carried our sins; looking to the empty tomb where death was defeated, Paul said, “I’m nothing, Jesus is everything. Your works are nothing, Jesus’ sacrifice is everything.” More specifically Paul told those believers, just like he’s telling us, “Far be it from me to boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world.” Our Father in heaven, by inspiring His apostle, wanted everyone to know that Jesus Christ has done what we could not. His perfect life fulfilled the law; His faithfulness defeated the devil; and on the cross He finished the work of buying us back. This is the Gospel, God’s Good News. If we have anything to boast about, that boast is based on what happened there on the cross which was placed on Calvary’s crest. Because of the cross, Christians are able to change those words one more time: “Lord, it’s hard to be humble when Jesus is perfect in every way.”
Forget the fancy church buildings; ignore the great pipe organs; pass over the beautiful stained glass; disregard the glorious music; pay no attention to countless programs of the church. Let’s make it simple. When Christians boast, it must always be motivated by, and directed to, the cross and empty tomb of Christ. Now when I say those words, you probably didn’t blink. When I speak about the cross, you, who have grown up hearing countless sermons, may think I’m coming up with pure pulpit oratory. I’m not. Look at the cross and see it for the symbol of death which it is. Like our hangman’s noose, like the electric chair, like the guillotine, it is a vile, vulgar, crude, cruel, dishonorable way to die. As you would never expect a Savior’s story and your redemption to be won in a gas chamber, so the ancient world found it crazy, maniacal madness, for Christians to believe the Son of God would die on a cross. The ancient historian and Roman governor, Pliny, thought Christians suffered from a mental disorder (amentia) for believing salvation could be found at the cross. A Roman orator (Caecilius) pointed out that Christians had “sick delusions” and were victims of a “senseless and crazy superstition.” Nor was this feeling held only by the educated and the elite. There is, among the ruins of ancient Rome, a wall with a bit of graffiti, a satirical cartoon directed against Christians. The picture shows the body of a man who is being crucified. It shows the Savior on the cross, but with this noticeable difference – the man’s head has been replaced by that of a donkey. The cartoon is made complete by the figure of a man who stands before the cross, his hand upraised as if in worship or supplication. The caption on the cartoon reads: “He worships his God!”
Were they right? Are Christians crazy? No matter what others thought centuries ago, no matter what you might think today, Christians are not crazy to follow Christ; we are not embarrassed by what happened to the Savior on Calvary. On the contrary, we are proud of it. Christians are glad to share the Savior, to boast on the greatness of God’s grace which is seen there and at Jesus’ borrowed tomb. That’s right, we still are proud to proclaim that God has used a baby born in a stinky, smelly, stable to save us. We praise our heavenly Father who is able to take the shameful crucifixion of His Son and wash us from our sins. Lord, it’s hard to be humble when we have a Savior who is perfect in every way.
The cross is ground zero for the joy which we have; the cross is that which swells our forgiven hearts with joy. We boast not in ourselves, but in the cross where Jesus carried every transgression which you, I, and all of humanity have ever committed. We boast of Christ’s cross where damnation was set aside and salvation was assured. We boast in the cross of Christ where we were set free from the ropes of sin which once had bound us; where we were released from the enslavement of Satan which had once held us. We boast in the cross of the Redeemer whose blood seals our adoption as sons and daughters in the household of faith. We boast in the cross of Christ. Lord, it’s hard to be humble when we have a Savior who is perfect in every way.
In the mid 1800s, a missionary, James Hudson Taylor, with his wife, went to China. Culturally sensitive, adopting native clothing, Taylor founded the China Inland Mission. Serving the people of that nation, he brought in 800 missionaries and was responsible for the conversion of over 18,000 Chinese. It was a work which didn’t go unrecognized by the rest of the world. One day, in Shanghai, two ladies started talking about the missionary, specifically they wondered if he ever became over-proud of his work. One of the ladies went to Taylor’s wife, who replied, “I don’t know, but I’ll find out.” Keeping to her promise, Mrs. Taylor went to her husband and asked. Taylor returned the question with one of his own: “Proud?” “Proud about what?” “You know,” Mrs. Taylor explained, “Proud about the things you’ve done.” To which Taylor replied, “I never knew I had done anything.” Taylor knew, “If I must boast, I will boast about the cross of Christ.”
Following in Taylor’s footsteps, for 76 years The Lutheran Hour has been bringing Christ to the nations. Seven speakers have been humbled as they stood before an unseen congregation of ever-changing listeners and each of us has rejoiced in showing the Savior’s cross to sinful souls. The cross has stayed the hands of those wanting to commit suicide and been God’s hope to those who were dying. Christ’s cross has brought hope to those convicted of their sins; strength to those who were faltering; peace to those who were perplexed and salvation to those who were beset by unforgiven sin. The cross is the beginning, the middle, and the end of this broadcast which comes to you today and every Lord’s day. If you need to know more about this cross, call us at The Lutheran Hour. Amen.
LUTHERAN HOUR MAILBOX (Questions & Answers) for July 8, 2007
TOPIC: Gossip Or Gospel?ANNOUNCER: Now Pastor Ken Klaus answers questions from listeners. I’m Mark Eischer, and Pastor, this week we have a question from a listener in Milford, Illinois.
KLAUS: Nice place, Milford.
ANNOUNCER: Well, I’ve not had the pleasure of being there, but at any rate, our listener wants you to comment on Luther’s explanation of the 8th Commandment.
KLAUS: I imagine he’s talking about what Luther wrote about the 8th Commandment in his Small Catechism.
ANNOUNCER: Which is a short, simple book that’s been used for literally hundreds of years to teach people what the Bible teaches.
KLAUS: Right, Luther wrote the Small Catechism to help parents teach their children the basics of the Christian faith. And what this fellow from Milford wants me to do is give an explanation of Luther’s explanation of the 8th Commandment.
ANNOUNCER: That’s right. And here’s the specific angle he’d like us to take. He wants to know: “Is gossiping a violation of the 8th Commandment?” In our listener’s opinion, it often seems to him that Lutherans are spreading more gossip than Gospel nowadays.
KLAUS: Well, Mark… first things first. Some of our listeners don’t know what the 8th Commandment is. Most of them probably don’t know that Luther tried to explain it. So, for our purposes, the 8th Commandment is this: “Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbor.” Simply stated, God wanted to make sure, along with not stealing from our neighbor, or causing him physical pain, we don’t try to damage his good name and reputation.
ANNOUNCER: And, spreading stories or speaking untruths can sometimes be worse for a person than an actual physical beating. After all, physical wounds can heal, but verbal wounds sometimes linger on for a while.
KLAUS: Well said.
ANNOUNCER: Well, now that we’ve defined the 8th Commandment, we ought to share what Luther wrote about it.
KLAUS: That’s the next step. Years ago, when I memorized the meaning it was: “What does this (commandment) mean? We should fear and love God that we do not deceitfully belie, betray, slander, nor defame our neighbor. Rather we should defend him, speak well of him and put the best construction on everything.”
ANNOUNCER: And that’s all pretty straightforward.
KLAUS: It is. The present generation learns it a little bit different way; with words which are a little more common. Today students learn it this way: “We should fear and love God so we do not tell lies about our neighbor, betray him, slander him, or hurt his reputation, but defend him, speak well of him, and explain everything in the kindest possible way.”
ANNOUNCER: Well, the meaning’s the same, although I always liked that part putting the best construction on everything.
KLAUS: I know. But the point remains, we are, whenever possible, supposed to speak well of someone.
ANNOUNCER: We’re supposed to give them every benefit of the doubt.
KLAUS: Yes, but without going so far as to lie about an individual.
ANNOUNCER: OK, now having said that, what do you think… are Lutherans spreading more gossip than Gospel? Are they spending their time telling stories about each other instead of sharing the story of Jesus and how He’s forgiven us?
KLAUS: Are some Lutherans doing that?
ANNOUNCER: Well, just between you and me, I’ve been told that some Lutherans do a lot of gossiping. They gossip about each other; they gossip about their church, about their pastors and their leaders. They’ve even figured out how to use newsletters and the Internet to spread their gossip.
KLAUS: Oh, hold on a minute. When Luther spoke about gossip, he said he said it’s a common evil plague; that everyone prefers hearing evil to hearing good of his neighbor. But everyone would much rather that all the world should speak of him in terms of gold, yet we cannot bear that the best is spoken about others. Let’s be careful that we don’t start spreading gossip here.
ANNOUNCER: You’re right.
KLAUS: It just goes to show… avoiding gossip is a hard thing to do and it’s not just for Lutherans that it’s hard.
ANNOUNCER: And it’s not the right thing to do, either. It’s something we need to work at avoiding.
KLAUS: Exactly. We’ve all got enough problems on our own without going around pointing out the seeming shortcomings and sins in the lives of others.
ANNOUNCER: As Jesus said, first take the 2×4 out of your own eye before you comment on the speck in your neighbor’s eye.
KLAUS: Exactly like that. So, in answer to our listener’s question: Lutherans gossip… but they shouldn’t. They also share the Gospel – and that they should.
ANNOUNCER: Thank you, Pastor Klaus. With that we come to the end of our broadcast for another week. We thank you, the listener, for making this program part of your day. This program has been a presentation of Lutheran Hour Ministries.
Music selection for this program:
“A Mighty Fortress” arranged by John Leavitt. Concordia Publishing House/SESAC
“When I Survey the Wondrous Cross” arranged by Henry Gerike. Used by permission
“When I Survey the Wondrous Cross” by Healey Willan. From Agnus Dei by the Concordia Seminary Chorus (© 1996 Concordia Seminary Chorus) Concordia Publishing House/SESAC
“Toccata in d minor, BWV538” by J.S. Bach. From Glory to His Holy Name by John Vandertuin (© 1999 Artisan Classic Organ, Inc.)