Thursday, September 20, 2018

Why Are We Here?: The Mutual Conversation and Consolation of the Brethren

Today, we come to a very interesting concept in the life of the church and one of the reasons the church is here: the mutual conversation and consolation of the brethren.  That’s probably a weird phrase to you, and perhaps you might wonder where it came from.

It actually comes from some of our foundational documents as the Lutheran Church.  It comes from what is called the Smalcald Articles.  I know, it’s a funny name.  These were written by Martin Luther in 1537 as he was preparing for a church council.  Some have called it his “last will and testament” in regards to his beliefs regarding the church.  In article 4 titled, “The Gospel,” he wrote the following:

We will now return to the Gospel, which not merely in one way gives us counsel and aid against sin; for God is superabundantly rich [and liberal] in His grace [and goodness]. First, through the spoken Word by which the forgiveness of sins is preached [He commands to be preached] in the whole world; which is the peculiar office of the Gospel. Secondly, through Baptism. Thirdly, through the holy Sacrament of the Altar. Fourthly, through the power of the keys, and also through the mutual conversation and consolation of brethren, Matt. 18:20: Where two or three are gathered together, etc.

Luther writes that we experience the Gospel, the good news of God through the preached Word; through the sacraments of baptism and Holy Communion; through the power of the keys, which is confession; and then finally, through the mutual conversation and consolation of the brethren.  Luther cites Matthew 18:20 “Where two or three are gathered together, etc.

I found it interesting that even though Luther labels the mutual conversation and consolation of the brethren here as a place where grace is experienced, he never really defines it.  He never really elaborates on it.  He kind of just leaves it there and says, “Have fun trying to figure it out!!!”  So, what does it mean?  What is it all about?

Well, let’s look at what is said and what is cited.  First, there is mutual conversation.   Mutual–which is something that is done between two or more parties, and conversation–which is talking to each other.  How does simply talking to each other build one another up?  The writer of Ephesians is pretty clear about that in our second lesson today.  Please listen again: 25 So then, putting away falsehood, let all of us speak the truth to our neighbors, for we are members of one another. 26Be angry but do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger, 27and do not make room for the devil. 28Thieves must give up stealing; rather let them labor and work honestly with their own hands, so as to have something to share with the needy. 29Let no evil talk come out of your mouths, but only what is useful for building up, as there is need, so that your words may give grace to those who hear.

I think the key here is: starting at the beginning 1) tell the truth with  2) the intent to build one another up.  I think holding those two things together is vitally important.  We are called to tell the truth. But the truth can be brutal.  I mean, we all know the jokes that get told about wives who ask their husbands, “Does this dress make me look fat?”  Has anyone ever answered that question honestly?  I mean is there a husband who would look at their wife and say, “You know, honey, that dress makes you look like you’ve been eating a half-gallon of Blue Bell every day for the past six months.”?  No one would dare do that.  But what if it was true?  To speak the truth in such a manner would be to destroy that person.

And so, there is the qualifier: speak the truth with the intent to build up.  Speak the truth with the intent to encourage and strengthen a person.  Speak the truth with the intent to bring them to a place where they may know they fall short, but that they are deeply loved and cared for.

I’m going to move away from the example of the husband, wife and dress thing and talk about something else in regards to this.  I’m going to talk about that wonderful evolution in schools where everyone gets a trophy for simply participating.  You’ve all heard about this, right?  The intent of this is to make sure no one’s self-esteem is damaged, so even if you come in dead last in a race, you still get a prize.  But is this helpful?  Is this truthful? 

No.  Of course it is not.  You and I know that we live in a world that is not fair.  We live in a world where people are vastly different.  We live in a world where some people are faster than others.  If you are in a race, and you are slow, you will lose.  I know this from many, many personal experiences!!!  (Please don’t ask me how well I fared in running track.)  And we need to be able to acknowledge such things.  We need to be able to help one another understand such things and deal with such things.  To deny this reality is to deny the truth.  But to tell someone they are slow and leave it at that is to deny someone compassion.  Because is it not better to acknowledge what the person’s slowness, but then to say, “You know, you lost that race.  You are not as fast as the others, but your worth and value is not tied to that race.  Don’t let that race define you.  There are much more important things than a race.”

Do you see how that can build another person up?  Do you see how you can acknowledge reality while building another person up?  Do you see how that is more honest and equips a person to face the reality of life? 

It’s patently biblical, and it runs hand in hand with what we say about grace.  Grace is love that is given to us when we don’t deserve it.  We all fall short of the glory of God.  This is an acknowledgment of the truth.  But it is a harsh reality.  It is a harsh thing to say, and I know there are some who cringe when those words come out of my mouth.  Yet, they must be spoken in accord with the Gospel.  For the Gospel says that despite your sin, your God loved you enough to die for you.  Your God loved you in your imperfection and paid the price to ransom you.  Therefore, your value and worth does not hinge upon you being perfect, but it hinges upon God and what He has done for you on the cross.  This is building one another up in love.  This is having mutual conversation.

But what about consolation?  I had a long conversation with one of our church members this past week.  He shared with me his experience working in the corporate world, and some of the things he said to me were extremely eye opening.  He told me that he loved his job and was excited to do the things that he did.  That included getting up way before the crack of dawn to head to work only to get home late in the evening and have just a few hours with his kids.  Day after day he did this, but because he enjoyed his job, was good at it, and had fun doing it, he was able to endure it quite well; however, he also told me that there are a lot of people who don’t love their jobs who go through the same routine.  They are up every morning before dawn; they go to their places of work and spend all day; they miss out on family time; and, because we are ever connected, are often called in to their jobs even when they are supposed to be off.  It’s miserable.  It’s not fun.  Folks are beat down on a weekly basis, and they need support and consolation.

There’s that word again.  And where can they get it?  Where should they get it?  Through the church.  Through our conversations and gatherings with one another.  This is what our first lesson from the Book of Acts is all about.  Paul is out and about preaching the Gospel, and then folks who were not happy with his proclamation showed up.  They incited the crowds and had Paul stoned.  They thought he was dead.  Now, I don’t know about you, but I have never had that bad of a day.  I have never had folks take stones and try to kill me.  There have been some rough days.  There have been times when I came back from a rough hospital visit and been depressed because off the sadness of the situation.  But I’ve never had it as bad as Paul had it. 

But what happened next speaks exactly to what can happen in the church.  You will note that “the disciples surrounded him.”  They protected him.  They gave him a place where he was no longer taking the shots.  Given room and safety, Paul was able to get back up and head back to preach the word.  Given a chance to recover, Paul was able to continue on in the mission he was given.  He was consoled. He was strengthened by other Christians in the faith.

I wonder what it would look like for something similar to happen in our congregations.  Are there places in the church where people can come together, be surrounded and protected by fellow disciples and given a place of safety, given a place where healing can take place?  Are there places where people can find others who have traveled such roads who can share their wisdom of how to navigate such rocky places and not only survive but thrive?  Are there settings where such mutual conversation and consolation can take place?

The great hymn “Blest Be the Tie that Binds” includes the following words, “We share our mutual woes, our mutual burdens bear, and often for each other flows the sympathizing tear.  From sorrow, toil, and pain, and sin we shall be free; and perfect love and friendship reign through all eternity.”  It’s a glorious picture of what the church is called to be.  It is a glorious picture of mutual love and building up.  It is a glorious picture of why we are here: to participate in the mutual conversation and consolation of the brethren.

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