Learning to Live in Christ
Sermon by Rev. Mary Alice Mulligan, Ph.D.
Scripture: Colossians 2:6-19
The second chapter of the letter to the Colossian church is as jam-packed with theological ideas as the first chapter. These verses drive home what we heard during the two weeks we spent in the first chapter, but they also expand our understanding, inviting us to see the connection between the fullness of God indwelling Christ and the belief that the church comes into fullness in Christ. These verses repeat the heart of the gospel, that God, through the death and resurrection of Christ, has delivered humanity from our own destruction by uniting us with Christ. Then, as part of the body of Christ, we are nourished and held together, to grow and serve. Turn now and read Colossians 2:6-19.
In the ancient world, if a person broke a contract or reneged on a loan, the wronged party might nail the contract or the IOU to a main city pillar, so everyone could see the person’s dishonesty. The public display of people’s faults was supposed to shame them into paying their debts. In the letter to the Colossians, we are told that all of our broken promises, our unpaid debts, and in fact the entire record of our failings have been nailed, not to the city pillar, but to the cross of Christ Jesus. So when anyone investigates the record of our failings, they look at what is nailed to the cross, and all the pages are blank. Jesus Christ has erased the record that stood against us. Of course, people may stand at the cross and squint and try to figure out what the record said before everything was erased. We are all good at stirring stuff back up, but the writer says the pages nailed to the cross are absolutely blank.
People enjoy setting rules. They love to spell out how others are supposed to live, as if they have special email access God which no one else can access. Like no one else knows the password to connect to heaven. For centuries, certain people have claimed to have all the answers to any kind of question about the faith. Back in the 13th century, Thomas Aquinas influenced the Church to believe women fell short of full humanity because through their reproductive process, human sinfulness was transmitted.(1) They believed a literal Eve committed a literal first sin, precipitating the fall and banishment from Eden. Forget Adam. And somehow, every woman is still guilty for Eve’s sin.
Feminist theologian Lynn Japinga wants to ask Aquinas how strong Eve’s sin must have been if somehow Jesus’ salvation does not cover her. In fact, since Aquinas says all women are so evil that they cannot be fully forgiven, Japinga wants to know whether he means that half the population is stronger than Jesus? (2) This idea of women’s wickedness lasted for centuries (and we are still trying to correct the vestiges of it in certain circles).
But it’s not just centuries ago. There are churches today which have strict behavioral requirements. They restrict certain people from taking Communion at the Table of Forgiveness, as if their sinfulness is not forgivable. Divorced people or those who have had an affair or some other known transgression. It might remind us of the old story of the new resident who was getting a tour of heaven. They walked through lots of joy-filled banquet rooms in God’s heavenly mansion, when suddenly they turned down a hallway where the guide motioned for the newcomer to be quiet. “Shhhh. The room there is reserved for the people who think they are the only ones here.” It’s one of humanity’s strongest temptations. Wanting to establish all the guidelines for how everyone else is supposed to follow Jesus. People love to set rules.
But Jesus sets us free. Forgiveness is a done deal, for all of us. The Colossian letter says even though we were dead in our trespasses, God in Christ forgave us. Our entire “bad living” naughtiness record was expunged, including any demands for divine retribution. Human traditions and religious rules are no longer binding.
Such a claim goes against our own inclinations. We expect if we do something wrong, we need to pay for it, somehow. But the writer of Colossians says, we who have been baptized were buried and raised with Christ. We are no longer dead in our iniquity. All is forgiven. We can think of our own baptism. The minister or person doing the baptizing does all the action. We do nothing except receive the water, and we find ourselves raised to new life
That’s how it is with Jesus’ forgiving of our sins. We do nothing, except let him put our old life to death and let him raise us, forgiven. Susan Grove Eastman claims this is the heart of the gospel: “God’s gracious deliverance of humanity through the death and resurrection of Christ, and our sharing in that deliverance through union with Christ in baptism.” (3)
For many of us, such an idea is unbelievable. How can the slate be wiped clean if we do nothing? It might remind some of us of the Zen story of the monk who, walking with his novice, came to the bank of a river which was swollen from much rain. A woman was struggling to cross, but she was not strong enough to oppose the current. The monk picked her up, carried her across, and then he and his disciple went on. Several miles down the road, the disciple had to blurt out, “We have taken vows; we are never to touch a woman, much less carry her. How could you do such a forbidden thing?” The monk of course smiled and said, “I put her down at the riverbank, some miles back. Why are you still carrying her?”
For Christians too, the rules no longer bind us. We don’t have to carry them. We have been set free from our trespasses by Christ Jesus. He accomplished our salvation a long time ago. Jesus set us free, which means, we can live free in Christ. We were raised to new life in Jesus Christ through baptism. Our time can now be spent living out of a generosity which grows as a result of God’s grace given to us. As a congregation, we don’t have to fight over doctrines about how we are supposed to behave to keep us on God’s good side. Instead, we can share joy and freedom; not burdened by meticulous rules but abiding in intimate connection with Jesus.
The image Colossians offers is that we are rooted in Christ. Those of us who have ever worked a garden know the importance of being properly rooted. Being in proper soil with the right amount of water and nutrition allows the roots to receive everything the plant needs for a healthy, productive life. So it is with us. Those rooted in Christ draw in divine nutrients, just as nutrients that are part of the soil become part of the life of the plant.
Of course, freedom in Christ does not allow us to degenerate into whatever depraved behavior strikes our fancy. When we are rooted in Christ, the source of our sustenance is holy. We who are raised into life by Christ are invited to reach down into the soil of God’s merciful love and be nourished. Receive all the nutrients we need for real life, so we are able to live abundantly, generously, joyously. What is so terrific about this freedom is that as a congregation, we get to decide where to bear fruit, like with our over and above mission giving each month.
Some time ago, a gas station company trained every employee at every station to detect and respond to abused women or women suspected of being held against their will. Their T.V. ads said women could find help at their stations, even assistance in getting away. Every employee would help. That company chose one thing to focus on. They couldn’t solve world hunger or cure Alzheimer’s or reverse climate change, but they could let women know they would help. And if one woman was saved, isn’t that worth it? One company choosing one thing.
St. Andrew, one of the joys of freedom in Christ, is that we get to choose where to put our energy to benefit God’s world, because we live in the freedom of Christ Jesus.
(1) L. Susan Bond, Trouble with Jesus: Women, Christology, and Preaching (St. Louis: Chalice Press, 1999), 59.
(2) See Lynn Japinga, Feminism and Christianity: An Essential Guide (Nashville: Abingdon Press, 1999), 100-112.
(3) Susan Grove Eastman, “Exegetical Perspective,” Colossians 2:6-19 Feasting on the Word, Yr. C, vol. 3, p. 281.