This blog is adapated from a sermon preached on Sunday 14th April 2013 at St Andrews Methodist Church Swindon.
One of the passages of scripture for use this Sunday is John 21: 1 – 19. In this passage we hear of Jesus’ appearance to the disciples while they are fishing on the Sea of Tiberius. The passage is sometimes referred to as the epilogue to John’s Gospel. And, if you’re interested, it is thought by some that it was added by another writer after John. The reason for this is that John 20:31 suggests the end of the book:
31 But these are written that you may believe[a] that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.
I’m not too hung up about that. What I’m more interested in is the truths contains in John 21. And for me the most important part of the epilogue comes with Christ asking Peter three times if Peter loves him. When we hear this, we recall Christ’ prediction that Peter would deny him three times and the sad scene where the prediction comes to fruition.
It would be so easy to think only of Peter’s unfaithfulness. But the epilogue reminds us, that far more important than Peter’s denials, is the grace of Christ. The willingness to forgive and then to entrust such an important ministry to Peter – a man whose life so far has been marked by impetuosity and denial that shows the power of grace.
The grace expressed so famously in John Newton’s hymn “Amazing grace that saved a wretch like me.”
It is Christ’s grace, so vividly expressed in this passage of scripture, that for me is the key to this passage. The grace that forgives Peter. The grace that forgave John Newton his sins. The grace that forgives you and me.
I think it is helpful to think of a definition of grace
Grace in Christianity is the free and unmerited favour of God as shown in the salvation of sinners and the bestowing of blessings. It is God's gift of salvation granted to sinners for their salvation.
And it is useful to hear Paul’s words
Ephesians 2:8-9
8 For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith – and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God – 9 not by works, so that no one can boast.
It may have escaped your attention, but last week Margaret Thatcher died. For the most part the press, the TV and the radio were all falling over themselves to be complimentary about her.
You know me well enough by now to know that I am not a fan of Margaret Thatcher and all she stood for. And I find I cannot agree with David Cameron’s comment that
"Margaret Thatcher didn’t just lead our country – she saved our country."
And according to Ian Duncan Smith she “changed Britain for the better.”
I am not denying that when she came to power this country needed some changes. But I wish I could take David Cameron, Ian Duncan Smith and all the others that have made a saint out of Margaret Thatcher to the Valleys I grew up in and show them what the towns and villages were like before Thatcher and since Thatcher.
I could have a real rant. But I am not going to!
Any criticism of Mrs Thatcher was few and far between and tucked away in the newspapers. Glenda Jackson’s speech in the House of Commons the other day was given coverage.
Given the way most of the press idolised her, it is perhaps inevitable that the only criticisms given publicity was those from the “looney left” as The Sun would put it. People such as George Gallaway who was quoted as saying that he hoped she would burn in hell’s fires. (I make no comment about her being cremated!) But the burning in hell’s fires comment is interesting, for it suggests in our terms a final judgment of God with punishment if needs be.
None of us know how we are judged by God. I know many Christians (let alone non-Christians) find the idea of God sitting in judgment a difficult concept. All I can say to that is we have to look at Jesus’ teachings to form the idea that God does judge. In the famous passage in Matthew 25 where Jesus speaks of the sheep and the goats, Jesus makes it clear there will be some kind of judgment:
44 ‘They also will answer, “Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or ill or in prison, and did not help you?”
45 ‘He will reply, “Truly I tell you, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.”
46 ‘Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life.’
And it is so tempting when we hear those verses and think “Yes! Thatcher’s off to somewhere warmer!”
It is so tempting to think that someone we dislike will get their comeuppance. That they will stand before God on the day of judgment and God will send them to the hellfires. But there is small obstacle to thinking this way – Grace.
I don’t know of course what Margaret Thatcher’s beliefs were. We’ve been reminded over the last week, in case we didn’t know, that she was raised in a Methodist household. She was married in a Methodist church – Wesley’s Chapel in London and, so I’ve been told, Mark and Carol Thatcher were baptised there. But she seems to have long ago given up her Methodist connections and had become an Anglican. Whether she practised as an Anglican and whether she was in fact a Christian – the two don’t always go together – I can’t tell you.
(As Tony Benn once remarked “There are some Christians in the Church of England just as there are some socialists in the Labour Party.”)
But we’ll assume she did profess to being a Christian. And, assuming once again she was, then grace plays a
part. For grace can redeem sinners and provide salvation. And yes I am saying she was a sinner. But then again aren’t we all?
So my friends don’t be surprised that when we arrive in heaven we find Mrs Thatcher is there. As Desmond Tutu once said:
“We may be surprised at the people we find in heaven. God has a soft spot for sinners. His standards are quite low.”
And God’s standards are quite low because of grace.
However, I believe that there is a price to be paid for receiving God’s grace and that is repentance.
Going back to our scripture for a moment, it seems to me that implicit in Simon Peter’s reaction to Jesus, is a request by Peter to be forgiven and a statement of saying sorry. All this it seems to me is bundled up with Simon Peter saying that he loves Jesus. So grace is bestowed following this request for forgiveness.
And most Christian teachings would uphold that view. Forgiveness through grace comes about following repentance. However, can forgiveness through grace come without repentance? Or without a change of heart?
The German Theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer wrote a book called “Discipleship”. And one of the most quoted parts of the book deals with the distinction which Bonhoeffer makes between "cheap" and "costly" grace. But what is "cheap" grace? In Bonhoeffer's words:
"cheap grace is the preaching of forgiveness without requiring repentance, baptism without church discipline. Communion without confession. Cheap grace is grace without discipleship, grace without the cross, grace without Jesus Christ."
Or, even more clearly, cheap grace is to hear the gospel preached as follows:
"Of course you have sinned, but now everything is forgiven, so you can stay as you are and enjoy the consolations of forgiveness."
The main defect of such a proclamation is that it contains no demand for discipleship. That is living the life of a disciple of Jesus. And discipleship means saying sorry. It means a change of life.
In contrast to cheap grace is costly grace. Bonhoeffer said:
"costly grace confronts us as a gracious call to follow Jesus, it comes as a word of forgiveness to the broken spirit and the contrite heart. It is costly because it compels a man to submit to the yoke of Christ and follow him; it is grace because Jesus says: "My yoke is easy and my burden is light." "
The forgiveness is there, the grace is there, but it comes with the person who has been forgiven becoming a true disciple.
I am of the view that grace should be costly. Grace should be received and should then mean becoming a true follower of Jesus. Of wanting to live a life of discipleship. Of wanting to live by the values of God’s kingdom. Not just accepting the gift and do nothing in return.
For Peter, Christ’s grace was costly. Peter ultimately gave his life for his Lord. Christ’s grace was costly for Paul. Christ’s grace was costly for all the disciples. Grace shouldn’t come cheap.
In his book, Remember Who You Are, William H. Willimon of Duke University says that he recalls one thing his mother always told him whenever he left the house to go on a date during his high school days. As he left the house, she would stand at the front door and call after him, "Will, don't forget who you are."
We know what Mrs Willimon meant, don't we? She didn't think Will was in danger of forgetting his name and street address. But she knew that, alone on a date, or in the midst of some party, or while joined by friends, he might forget who he was. She knew that sometimes all of us are tempted to answer to some alien name and to be who we are not. "Don't forget who you are," was the maternal benediction.
We are often told that Margaret Hilda Roberts was raised in a strict Methodist household. Only God will know whether Margaret Hilda Roberts forgot who she was. And only she and God know whether his grace has been afforded to her.
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