1 Corinthians 15:1-11
February 7, 2010
“Wasted Grace”
I was paralyzed. I couldn’t think, I couldn’t rationalize – all I could do was wander aimlessly with a blank expression on my face. It had finally happened… Bed, Bath & Beyond had finally overwhelmed me. I was on an important shopping trip armed with gift cards from our wedding, determined to make the most of those wonderful gifts that our loved ones bestowed upon us. The paralysis came when I realized that I was making an important purchase – never again would I have this many gift cards in my hand at one time, and I wanted to use these little plastic gifts wisely. I didn’t want to look back on my purchases, wishing that I hadn’t wasted the gift money on a gravy boat that didn’t match our dinnerware, or a huge set of cookware that I never used. I didn’t want the gift to go to waste.
Paul never forgot where he came from. His past persecution of the church was imprinted on his mind like a tattoo inked on his skin – a reminder of his early years that was a part of his being. He routinely bought it up in his letters to the early churches, an example of which is in our 2nd lesson from his first letter to the Corinthians. In reviewing the Jesus’ visitations to his followers after the resurrection, Paul says (in The Message translation of verse 9), “…he [Jesus] finally presented himself alive to me. It was fitting that I bring up the rear. I don’t deserve to be included in that inner circle, as you well know, having spent all those early years trying my best to stamp God’s church right out of existence.” Paul, or Saul as he was known before God changed his direction, was a huge threat to the early churches, throwing anyone and everyone in prison for preaching the Gospel. Ananias, a man who was instrumental in God’s conversion of Saul-to-Paul even questioned God’s direct call to go seek out Paul, saying in Acts 9:13, “Master, you can’t be serious. Everybody's talking about this man and the terrible things he's been doing, his reign of terror against your people in Jerusalem!” Before his conversion to a life of discipleship, Paul was about as rotten as they come, and he knew it.
But Paul also knew what a wonderful gift he had been given in God’s abundant grace. Once the scales fell from Paul’s eyes and he became dedicated to building up the very church he tried to destroy, he knew that this precious gift of grace could not turn into wasted grace because of his actions or lack thereof.
God’s grace. We talk about God’s grace all the time, but do we really have a clear understanding of the nature of this amazing gift? God’s grace is a judgment of innocence when a guilty verdict is more than warranted. God’s grace is having our sins written on a white wipe-off board, ready to be erased, rather than chiseled in stone for all eternity to remember. In The Message translation of Romans 5: 6-8, Paul says, “He (Christ) presented himself for this sacrificial death when we were far too weak and rebellious to do anything to get ourselves ready. And even if we hadn’t been so weak, we wouldn’t have known what to do anyway.” Paul continues, “We can understand someone dying for a person worth dying for, and we can understand how someone good and noble could inspire us to selfless sacrifice. But God put his love on the line for us by offering his Son in sacrificial death while we were of no use whatever to him.” THAT is God’s grace – redemption of those not worth redeeming, the salvation of sinners still in the midst of their sin. It feels indescribably wonderful to have that kind of love presented to you in the gift of God’s grace, doesn’t it? Do you feel like you just need to respond to this gift?
Let’s go back to Bed, Bath & Beyond for a minute. The overwhelming notion of not wasting our wedding gift cards had rendered me useless, and so I did what anyone would do when utterly lost – I called my mom. She reminded me that, yes, I didn’t want to waste these gift cards, but I had to remember for what use they were purchased. They weren’t purchased to sit in my purse because I was too scared to use them. Our loved ones had given us these gift cards so that we could pick out special items for our life together, and if one of those special items was a huge cookware set, then that’s what we should use them to purchase. She helped me to realize that my paralysis itself almost made me not use the gift cards at all, which would have turned them into a different type of wasted gifts.
In the same way, God has given us this gift of grace for a specific purpose – to spread the Gospel and bring Christ’s love into the lives of others. What good is this miraculous gift if we keep it tucked away and don’t use it to witness to God’s redeeming love? Along with the gift, God will give you three truths: 1) You are worthy of the gift, 2) He will give you what you need to use the gift, and 3) He loves you more than you’ll ever know. So, how do we react to being handed this amazing gift?
Are we afraid that we’re not good enough to receive the gift? Look at Simon Peter in our Gospel lesson: he became paralyzed by the gift of the catch and the holiness of the event, insisting that Jesus leave the presence of a sinner such as he, one not worthy enough to be gifted. Jesus responds by saying, “There is nothing to fear. From now on you’ll be fishing for men and women.” God’s abundant grace, even more abundant than the catch of fish that needed two boats to haul, made Simon Peter worthy, and Jesus wanted him to use that gift of grace to bring others into the fold.
Maybe we’re afraid that we don’t have the resources and energy to properly use the gift. In verses 10 and 11 of our 2nd lesson, Paul says, “It was God giving me the work to do, God giving me the energy to do it.” Paul knew that God would equip him to accomplish the tasks set before him. God doesn’t call those who are equipped; he equips those who are called. Our spiritual gifts are part of the package he gives us to accomplish those tasks to which he calls us. Part of the joy in discovering our spiritual gifts is also discovering how God intends us to use those gifts. He doesn’t bless someone with the spiritual gift of healing or prophecy or wisdom with the intent that the person stow the gift away in his or her pocket. No – God’s gifts to us always come with a purpose: to spread the Gospel and to be examples of Christ’s redeeming love.
So what should our response be to the gift of grace? It can be summed up in three little words found in our 1st and 2nd Lessons today: “Here I am.” The willingness to open ourselves up to God’s plan and do his work in response to the gift of his grace not only shows our gratitude for the gift, but it puts the gift to work the way God intends. One of the themes of Paul’s letters to the early churches was “I’m not saved because I serve; I serve because I’m saved.” Our service in the name of Jesus is not to earn God’s grace – it’s a response to his unconditional gift.
At one point or another we will all find ourselves overwhelmed by the gift of God’s grace and how we should use that gift. Even though you probably won’t be in the middle of Bed, Bath & Beyond, call upon your Heavenly Parent, and he’ll remind you of those three truths: 1) You are worthy of the gift, 2) He will give you what you need to use the gift, and 3) He loves you more than you’ll ever know. God’s grace is a gift – don’t let it become wasted grace…make it grace-in-action.
Amen.
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