Salvation’s Caveat

Fourth Sunday in Lent

John 3:14-21; Numbers 21:4-9; Ephesians 2:1-10


Author Robert Capon suggests that writing a sermon is a lot like making a good soup – you prepare a number of ingredients, mix them together, and then let them simmer for a while. We have wonderful scriptures for today, and even more wonderful images set before us. They all point to a marvelous bit of theological truth.

To begin, I want to bring in a couple of thoughts from the last two sermons you’ve listened to from this pulpit. Two weeks ago, I spent a little time in the Ephesians text you just heard. We camped on vv. 8-9 – “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not of your own doing; it is the gift of God – not the result of works, so that no one may boast.” I love that verse of scripture. It is so full of hope for me. My main point at that place in the sermon was that the faith with which we respond to God is a gift – that we receive from God enough faith to respond with our own measures of faith – but what we initially receive is not of ourselves – it is from God.

I love it when you listen to the sermons, and I love it even more when what you hear stirs thoughts and ideas and questions in your minds. After the sermon, one of our members came to me to say that they were contemplating the ramifications of that idea. In their deliberations, the idea that God gave us the faith with which we accept God borders on Calvinistic theology which suggests that we are saved apart from our own will – that God does the saving for us, that nothing of our own initiative would merit our salvation. I understand what they were saying and suggesting. I want to back up and spell out what I think that verse says to us about our salvation in a little more detail.

In seminary, we were introduced to a wide variety of textbooks. One of my favorite texts was a book by W.T. Conner entitled “Christian Doctrine.” It is a systematic theology text – by that, I mean that the design of the book is to start with nothing and from there, explain God, man, sin, salvation, Christ, the church, obedience – basically all the things that you and I talk about when we’re here at church. Where do you think his text would start? If you were to try to explain God and all things related to faith, where would you begin? I have read a lot of systematic theology textbooks. A good portion of them begin with the idea of revelation – the idea that God would reveal Godself to us. Some of the textbooks morph from that concept to the more literal revelation that we find in the scripture – some of them actually say, “when you want to know something about God, you must first start with the scriptures.” While I don’t discount that we move pretty fast in that direction – you know how I love for us to read scripture around here – I will say in my way of seeing things, to start off with “the scriptures” leaves a pretty big hole before you even get started.

I like the way W.T. Conner starts his systematic theological discussion. His first chapter is entitled, “Man’s capacity for God.” He makes the point that man has a capacity to understand and know God. Simply, he says these things in his text – (1) man is more than a physical organism, and (2) man is a spiritual personality. In that second part of the definition, Conner says we have capacities that are beyond the rest of the animal kingdom, namely that we possess (1) intelligence – i.e., the power to reason, reflect, investigate, arrive at conclusions, and to guide his life by those thoughts and conclusions; (2) the power to will; (3) the power of rational affection; and (4) a moral nature. He concludes that these differences reflect mankind’s capacity for God. In other words, mankind can know God in a way that other parts of the creation cannot know God because God planted within mankind this capacity to know God.

Going back to the Ephesians text – I think this is what Paul is suggesting in v. 8 – that we have the capacity to express faith in God because God made us that way – that God planted this capacity in us – this idea that we can respond to God in ways that other created beings cannot respond to God. We respond to God out of our God given ability to faith (in the Greek, faith is really a verb).

Now, I want to add something to the mix from Dr. Presnall Wood’s sermon from last week. I’m not quoting him verbatim here, but I think I get pretty close to what he was saying. I haven’t gone back to look at the tape from last week. Dr. Wood was speaking about religious freedom, and he said something to the effect that while it is one thing to possess religious freedom, it is another thing to act upon that freedom. I think he said it like this: “You have freedom of religion. Then express that freedom of religion.” Or something like that.

I would take that idea, and translate the concept to our discussion surrounding faith this morning. It is one thing that God has placed within us the capacity to respond to God in faith. It is an entirely different thing when we actually act upon that capacity.

Two ingredients in the soup so far. Man’s capacity, and our responsibility to act upon that capacity. Let me add a third ingredient. For this one, I open up my Webster’s dictionary, and turn to the word “caveat.” It’s a part of the sermon title, so I better explain what I mean when I use that word. Webster, in his secondary definition, says, “an explanation to prevent misinterpretation.” Well, that’s pretty much the way that I try to use the word. I’ll say something like, “I can do that for you, with this one caveat,” and then I go on to explain the single hesitation or possibility which might prevent me from being able to fulfill my intention.

Let’s start pulling all the texts together, shall we. In Numbers, the people of the exodus are being inundated by venomous serpents. They cry out to Moses to help them, and Moses prays to God. God replies – “Make an image of a poisonous serpent, and set it on a pole; and everyone who is bitten shall look at it and live.” Not quite what they asked for – the people wanted God to take away the snakes, and instead, God let the snakes remain, and provided a means of physical salvation anytime a snake bit anyone. All they had to do was look at the “snake-on-a-stick” and they would be healed. I would take it a step further than the writer of Numbers – all they had to do was exercise their God-given capacity to express enough faith that looking at a “snake-on-a-stick” would heal them, and they would be healed. If I had been on the Exodus, I’d probably have had to see a few people die and a few people look at the snake and live before I would have acted one way or the other.

I asked Mary Haney to read both the Old Testament and the Gospel this morning because they are reflective of each other. In John 3, the part she didn’t read was the visit from Nicodemus, one of the good Pharisees, who is confused by the concept of a righteousness apart from our own actions, and asks the rather pointed question, “How can these things be?” To which Jesus gives us this lengthy answer that Mary read for us a while ago. He makes the analogy that Jesus is just like that “snake-on-a-stick” that Moses hoisted up in the air back in Sinai – that we must look to Jesus for our salvation, rather than to our own works. Then He speaks for the first time our world’s best news – “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life.” I want you to make note that Jesus said this some time before He ever let them nail Him to that cross!!

Well, there you have it. Most of America and a good part of the entire world has heard that verse quoted to them. Believe. That’s what you have to do. But I would add salvation’s caveat – it’s more like Presnall Wood said last week. It’s one thing to have faith – it’s another thing to exercise faith. It’s not a passive kind of thing – faith is considerably more active than that. Did you listen to the rest of what Jesus had to say? Did you hear Him when he said, “Those who believe in him are not condemned; but those who do not believe are condemned already, because they have not believed in the name of the only Son of God.” Condemnation is not a future possibility – it is a present reality. The snakes are already crawling around our feet – we are all snake-bitten – already.

And did you hear Jesus when He said “And this is the judgment, that the light has come into the world, and people loved darkness rather than light because their deeds were evil.” I wouldn’t have to go very long to make this point – just read the newspaper, or listen to the Nightly News. People have a capacity for good, and people have a capacity for faith, but people certainly have a tremendous capacity to do the wrong thing – to themselves as well as to others.

So, here we come to the point of the sermon. In Ephesians, Paul tells the story in future tense. He tells the story of our salvation after it has already occurred. “You were dead,” he says, “through the trespasses and sins in which you once lived.” “All of us once lived among them in the passions of our flesh, following the desires of flesh and senses, and we were by nature children of wrath, like everyone else.” That’s the way it was, before Christ came into our lives. It wasn’t good – things were a mess, and we were a mess.

But then, Paul says, “But God.” “But God, who is rich in mercy, out of the great love with which he loves us even when we were dead through our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ – by grace you have been saved.” By grace. By God’s good grace, we have been saved!! We look to God. We look to Jesus. We look at our “snake-on-a-stick” and we trust that His sacrifice will be sufficient to accomplish our salvation, now and in the future. We trust Him.

And that’s really the essence of the story. There was a popular game show some years back called “Who Do You Trust?” That’s really the question for all of humanity. Who do you trust? I’ll tell you something – most of the people who are walking around out there practice a selective theology – they trust themselves, and not much beyond that. They even trust themselves when it comes to taking care of their relationship with God. They think that the good things that they do will make them alright with God. They think that trying to live up to the Golden Rule will make them okay. They think that trying to live up to the Ten Commandments will be all they need. They think that living “moral” lives will be their ticket into heaven. Then there’s the crowd that practices an accumulative theology. Way, way too many of them think that if they can just do more good things than bad things, that they’ll be okay. There’s an entirely different crowd that practices a comparative theology – they’re like the two guys who are out in the woods and they come across an angry grizzly bear, and one of the guys drops to his knees and starts tying his shoes. The other guy says, “You can’t outrun that bear,” and the fellow on his knees says, “I know – all I need to do is outrun you.” They think that if they just do better than the guy next door, that God will be more pleased with them. Then there’s a whole lot of folks out there who practice an ignorant theology – they don’t know what they think, but they do think that in the end God will be like a big old Grandfather, and pick them all up and set them on His knee, and say, “Aw, you weren’t really all that bad. It doesn’t matter if you trust Jesus or not!”

Salvation’s caveat. You must believe. Salvation comes to those who exercise that God given capacity to believe. It’s one thing to have a capacity to faith. It’s an entirely different thing to act on that faith – to exercise that faith – to trust the only person who can do – no, who has already done - something about your sin.

That’s where I got Friday afternoon. As I read the words to myself later that evening, I thought it sounded too much like an old fashioned “fire and brimstone” sermon to suit my tastes. You may ask, “Preacher, where’s that hope you talked about in the opening paragraph? The whole thing sounds like a bad news scenario to me – there’s nothing we can do to stop sinning, and there’s nothing we ourselves can do to pay for our sin. You actually mean that we have to trust someone else for our salvation?”

Cornerstone, this is where the analogy of church – especially this church – comes into play for me. I would hate to try to work out my salvation on my own. I value your help too much. As I encounter questions about my salvation, you are there to help. Most of us have that testimony. The church helps us do that thing that is impossible for us to do by ourselves. It’s that way with our faith – Jesus does the part we can’t do. Jesus gives us the faith with which to accept His help – His sacrifice. There is something we can do. We can believe.

Do you remember M*A*S*H. I loved Father Mulcahy. He was such a gentle soul – an honest man. There are several scenes during the series where there is some crisis, and Father Mulcahy asks what he can do to help. The answer is always the same – “We need you to pray, Father.” In one of those situations, he replies, “That’s all I ever get to do?”

We may feel a little that way when it comes to our salvation. All we get to do is believe. We can’t save ourselves. We can’t do away with our sin. All we can really do is trust Jesus. All we can really do is believe. You’d think that would be the easy part. I don’t think so. Over the years, I have experienced several seasons in my life where I questioned my faith. Others have the same experience. Faith is not easy. Belief is not easy.

I’ll tell you how difficult it is – “belief” is so different – so unusual – I try to use other words to describe my faith when I refer to other entities – family, country, church, my abilities, principles for which I strive. I try to reserve the word “believe” for the one thing that I truly believe – that Jesus died for me, that Jesus saved me, and that my faith in that truth is the thing that ultimately redeems me.

Exercise your capacity to believe in Jesus this day. It’s one thing to have a capacity for faith – it’s an entirely different thing to exercise that capacity. Trust Jesus today. Believe in Jesus. You must believe in Jesus.

Richard W. Dunn, Ph.D.