June 24, 2007
“Disciples, Not Disciplinarians”
Galatians 3:23-29

Laws - Rules - Principles - Commandments - Regulations - Decrees - Tenets - Imperatives - Precepts - Injunctions - Formulas - Traditions - Customs - Rituals - Practices - Habits - Beliefs

In Greek, the word we translate as “law” is “nomos” and we typically understand it, in the context of Paul's letters in the New Testament, as the Torah, those first five books of the Hebrew Scriptures filled with stories of the matriarchs and patriarchs of the faith, their failures and their successes, the narrative of the Israelites from slavery to freedom, and, of course, the covenants and commandments which instructed the faithful in the ways that pleased their God.

We all know a lot about laws.  They are the ever-present everyday things that help us live life more fully.

*     We have laws to guide us so that we will do our best.  Like a ruler used to make lines on a poster, rules give us guidelines to do our best work.  For example, education requirements and curfew laws for children and youth seek to give them guidance for a fuller life.
*     We have laws to teach us things we might not yet know, for our safety or for our betterment.  Like a wise elder passing on things she or he has learned.  For example, building codes help contractor's avoid possibly dangerous conditions they may never have known about or studied before.
*     We have laws that help us function more smoothly as a society, though arbitrary in essence, they make sense as seen in the whole.  For example, driving on the same side of the road helps all of society, whether it's the left side or the right side.
*     We have laws that reflect the common moral values of a community, for example laws that regulate noise or the size of buildings on a street or when and where liquor can be sold.  They may differ from neighborhood to neighborhood, or they may be more universal, based on culture or tradition.
*     We have laws based on broad-based experience and careful research that especially protect our safety and health, such as drug testing requirements and seat belt laws.

But, as you well know, for each set of laws there are qualifications and limitations.  Many laws are based on the needs of the majority and not the minority.  Laws are, necessarily so, “one-size-fits-all,” and so those who might not fit in are out of luck.   Plus, as cultural assumptions change, so do laws. One person's noise might be another person's favorite music.  The vigorous process used to test new drugs might work for the majority, but persons with fatal diseases wonder if it wouldn't be worth the risks in order to have a potentially life-saving drug on the market sooner.  Having stores closed on Sunday was the norm one hundred years ago, but rarely found today.

Into this messy mix steps the Apostle Paul, bold and confident as he almost always is.  Paul has a deep and abiding trust in the law, and understands its importance to a fully functioning and healthy civilization.  But he also knows its limitations.

Paul calls the law, by which he means that wonderful mix of commandments, stories, and traditions of the Torah, a “disciplinarian.”  Now, to be fair, we need to acknowledge our modern disdain for all things “disciplined.”  In fact, there are dictionaries on our shelves that primarily translate “discipline” as “punishment,” and I daresay many of us have that as our image of discipline and disciplines.  But really, it's a much broader idea than that, and other words that are used in various translations for Galatians 3:24 are “instructor,” “schoolmaster,” “tutor,” “guardian,” and “custodian.”  I would like to propose the word “disciple” or “one who disciples another” as an appropriate translation of “disciplinarian.”

You get the idea, “law” was and is that which helps shape our life to give it vitality, depth, a sense of safety, wisdom, and truth.  Paul sees law as an ongoing necessity for a full life, even as he helps us see its limitations.

We must be careful here, because there is a terrible and unbiblical tradition that takes Paul's intricate and carefully crafted words here and makes them a simplistic equation.  It is not correct to say that Paul is equating Hebrew Scriptures with Law, and then indicating that this Law has been superseded by Jesus Christ and the New Testament.  Equally incorrect is the pitting of Law against Faith, or rules and grace, as if they were forever in battle.

Anyone who studies the entirety of scripture with any care knows that the Hebrew scriptures, the Torah, the Prophets, the Wisdom Literature, is filled with grace and freedom.  Likewise, it is obvious that the Christian Scriptures, though clearly shorter in length, still has its share of rules, mandates, and even laws.

So if Paul isn't trying to convince us to throw out the law when we receive Christ as our savior, then what is he trying to do?  Well, to begin, let's note what is happening at this time in history in our congregation, Franklin Circle Christian Church.  Our board has presented to the congregation a revision of the by-laws.  In the by-laws it indicates that every five years they should be reviewed to see what needs updating and what changes might be made to help the congregation's life go smoother and more faithfully.  We've gone seven years, and a good look is long overdue.

A church's constitution and by-laws are essentially the rules and laws that govern the congregation's life.  If they work right, they are mostly in the background.  Some people might even wonder if they are necessary, since they are talked about so little.  But, like any laws, they are essential to the health and well-being of a congregation, for they shape the basic structure of the church's life. They are like the bones upon which the congregation's body cling.  Once they get that structure up and running, they are useful primarily when questions or conflict arises. 

But, as Paul understood so well, laws and by-laws are only as good as the human beings living them.  Ultimately, it takes good, decent, respectful, faithful, and grace-filled people to make a church.  The church is not its constitution and by-laws, it is its people.  Our nation is not the Constitution and the Bill of Rights, but the citizens.  The rules are there only to help the people live and serve better. 

Paul wanted us to see that just like a child needs to mature beyond her tutor or his schoolmaster and live fully into the faith, so we need to understand the importance of laws, but live faithfully beyond them.

How can you know when we have done that?  How can we be sure we have become “disciples” and not “disciplinarians?”  Well, Paul says it is when the differences between us no longer matter.  “There is no longer Jew or Greek, there is no longer slave or free, there is no longer male and female, for all of you are one in Christ Jesus.”  Another terribly misunderstood and distorted text of Paul's is this one.  Paul is not saying that we will all look alike, act alike, and think alike when the Church finally comes into its fullness in Christ.  Instead, he is trying to help us be prepared for our differences to matter less than our similarity, which is our faith in Jesus.

Why do I feel so passionate about preaching this sermon today at Franklin Circle?  Because I think we are on the brink of either allowing our many differences either consummate us into the beautiful mosaic of the Church that Paul's vision imagined or allowing our many differences to splinter us apart.  If we hold close to three things, disciplines let us say, I believe we will allow Law and Faith to meld, By-Laws and Grace to unite, we will usher Franklin Circle Christian Church into the Church God calls us to be.  We can transform ourselves from disciplinarians to disciples.

1.     We must remember always it is Christ's Church and not our church.  Sometimes our language betrays a territoriality that is disturbing and borders on idolatry.  This church, its buildings and programs, is Christ's Church, and we are custodians of its riches, both in property and people.  Our programs should be Christ's programs.  I am Christ's pastor.  You are Christ's people.  This is Christ's Church.

2.     We must recognize that just as following laws and rules takes time and effort, faith and grace are hard work, too.  It takes a lot of focused effort to do that which is faithful, that which is graceful. For example, communicating with people fully and patiently (especially those with whom we disagree), giving people the chance to get on board with our ideas, and being willing to listen and learn from others, and possibly change our perspectives based on what they say… all this takes time and effort.  Grace is hard work, too.


3.     Finally, we must count our differences, extreme as they may be, as gifts to be treasured.  I occasionally hear folks making fun of differences - the way people talk, the different perspectives and experiences they bring to the table, the various needs they have, the music they like, the ideas they share - and this ridicule cannot be tolerated.  We must honor one another as part of the wondrous mosaic of God's artistry.  Our differences are gifts.

If, indeed, we are going to take Paul's word to the Galatians faithfully, we must recognize that both law and grace are needed for this great endeavor we call Church to happen, and happen well.  To do this we will take the proposed changes to the by-laws home with us, read them over, and be prepared to discuss them next week at the congregational meeting after worship.  And, we must recommit ourselves to doing grace well: remembering this is Christ's Church first and foremost, and only then it is ours; recommitting ourselves to the hard but tremendously fulfilling work of grace; and we simply have to honor the diversity of all who enter this congregation as a gift to be celebrated and affirmed.

Then, we will be disciples of Christ, joining Law and Faith into one.  Then we truly we be able to say we belong to Christ, are Abraham and Sarah's children, and heirs according to God's great promise.

May it be so.
Amen.



1.     “What Is Discipline?” A sermon by the Very Rev. Samuel G. Candler on Day 1 Radio.          http://www.day1.net/index.php5?view=transcripts&tid=331 



Rev. Allen V. Harris
Franklin Circle Christian Church
www.FranklinCircleChurch.org


 

Copyright 2007 -- The Rev. Allen V. Harris

Franklin Circle Christian Church (Disciples of Christ)

1688 Fulton Rd., Cleveland, OH 44113-3096