Rev. David Holwick F Twelve Step Christianity series
First Baptist Church
Ledgewood, New Jersey
February 13, 1994
Ezekiel 33:11-16
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Step 8: Make a list of all persons we have harmed, and become willing
to make amends to them all.
Step 9: Make direct amends to such people wherever possible, except
when to do so would injure them or others.
I. Valentine's Day is a time to "say it with flowers."
I don't generally give flowers to Celeste.
I did once - I even brought them up to her hospital floor.
Her immediate response was, "Who died?"
Then and there I learned - you have to take out the lilies!
But what exactly is it that we say with flowers?
Sara Nelson did not get along with her boss, Jim.
He didn't like her and made her the object of some dirty tricks.
Some of their fighting had happened in public, so it was no secret.
When Jim fired her, no one pretended that her leaving was any
friendlier than it was.
Until that Friday afternoon when a messenger came to her office door.
"Package for you," he said, thrusting a bouquet of flowers into her
arms.
The card read, "Best of luck in your future. Signed, Jim."
"This is a joke, right?" she snorted to a male co-worker.
"I can't believe even Jim is such a creep."
Her friend was completely puzzled.
"A creep? He's just trying to be nice."
Her fury left him in the dust.
"Nice! He faxes lies about me all over the company and then expects
to smooth it over with some crummy flowers?!
This isn't a nice farewell; it's a condescending kiss-off!
Don't you get it?"
He didn't.
Like a lot of men, he believed that a bunch of petals and stems
could have extraordinary powers.
Like the poppy field in the "The Wizard of Oz," they would put her
anger to sleep.
Sara went on to conclude:
"Sometimes floral penance is appropriate - and adequate.
Until it becomes as predictable as the sin itself.
My advice is not to believe any man who can only say it with flowers.
No matter how beautiful the arrangement, how expensive the bouquet,
there are some guys whose offerings are more manipulative than
meaningful, some men whose generosity has suspicious roots.
Why waste your time - those relationships are better off simply
pushing up daisies."
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II. Real penance has a place.
A. Words alone are cheap.
1) Profound tears of evangelist Jimmy Swaggart.
But he kept going back to same thing.
2) Thomas Ybarra:
"A Christian is a man who feels repentance on Sunday for
what he did on Saturday, and is going to do on Monday."
Correct Quotes, "Christianity"
B. Eighth and ninth steps deal with the power of penance:
1) We made a list of all persons we had harmed, and became
willing to make amends to them all.
2) We made direct amends to such people wherever possible,
except when to do so would injure them or others.
C. Bob Smith and the roots of amends.
On the founding day of A.A., alcoholic surgeon Bob Smith
disappeared for several hours.
This really shook up his new friend Bill Wilson.
But as the Oxford Bible study group had taught him, Smith
had gone to make the rounds of people he had harmed.
He asked for their forgiveness, and made amends whenever
possible.
D. Properly understood, making amends is a powerful spiritual tool.
1) With Ash Wednesday occurring this week, it is appropriate.
III. The power of doing something good.
A. Making our repentance real to others, makes it more real to us.
1) God's forgiveness of us is emphasized. Matt 6:14f
2) Requires deep humility and concern for holiness.
B. Wounded relationships can be healed.
Celeste loved the TV series, "Hill Street Blues."
It had its perverse side, but the drama could be riveting.
In one memorable episode, the precinct sergeant hears that a
vicious criminal has been released from prison.
This criminal had been serving a long sentence for attempting
to murder the cop.
No one knows where the criminal is now, but he has put out
word that he is looking for the policeman.
All through the program, the sergeant is looking over his back
and wondering what will happen to him.
In the final scene, they confront each other in a dark alley.
The ex-con approaches hesitantly, and haltingly says,
"When you met me, I was a violent man.
But now I am different because I have repented of my sins.
Jesus Christ has made me clean.
I am sorry for what happened.
This is all I own, and I want you to have it.
He hands the sergeant a tattered Bible and disappears into the
darkness.
Astounded, the sergeant stares down at the Bible as the screen
fades out.
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Few things are more powerful than a Christian making amends.
IV. The roots of penance in Christianity.
A. Old Testament practice of restitution. Leviticus 6:5
1) Guilty parties must pay back, plus a penalty.
2) Not enough to say, "I'm sorry."
3) Works reveal true condition of our hearts. Ezekiel 33:16f
B. Zacchaeus in N.T. follows this pattern, but goes beyond it.
In Luke 19:8 he tells Jesus -
"Look, Lord! Here and now I give half of my possessions to
the poor, and if I have cheated anybody out of anything,
I will pay back four times the amount."
What is happening here?
The Jewish rabbis of that day said people should give 20% of
their income to the poor.
(This was above and beyond God's tithe.)
Zacchaeus is going way above that, as a way to make up for his
selfishness.
He is also admitting that he has gotten his wealth by stealing
from people, probably in the form of extortion.
The normal penalty for stealing was to pay back the amount, plus
one fifth.
Zacchaeus is paying back the full amount, plus a 300% penalty.
He is not purchasing salvation, but showing his joy at
receiving it.
C. Later Christians adopted this concept.
1) Instead of restitution, they spoke of "penance."
2) Penance is for Christians only, to show genuine sorrow
for their sins.
3) It reveals the sincerity of their commitment.
D. Some think we should bring penance back.
Two years ago, columnist Mike Ryuko discussed David Duke's
supposed conversion to Christianity.
The former K.K.K. leader did not impress him:
There was a time when sinners who wanted to cast off their
wicked ways really made a project of it.
You just didn't go on a TV show, wave your arms, leap about,
shout "Amen, brother" a few times and come away with a soul
that had gone through the normal soak, rinse and spin-dry
cycles.
For example, when he decided that he didn't want to be loathsome
anymore, he might have entered a remote monastery or some
such place.
That's really the way to do it. ...
David Duke might have done as some saints did, especially those
who had been youthful playboys and scamps.
They cast aside pleasures of the flesh, wore itchy clothes,
whipped themselves, went to work in leper colonies, washed
the feet of beggars and really tripped out on misery.
Had David Duke done that, then appeared one day and said, 'I
have paid for my sins and want to be governor of Louisiana,'
nobody could have questioned his sincerity."
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1) Methodist professor Stephen Long agrees:
"Without penance, forgiveness is cheap.
And cheap forgiveness is a sign that we have not taken
sin seriously."
Christian Century, 4/7/93, p. 361
V. The limits of penance.
A. Punishment became the key.
1) Root meaning of penance is "penalty."
2) Typical medieval sentences for sin:
a) Bigamy (or trigamy) - one to four years.
b) Abortion - ten years.
c) Murder - eleven years.
3) Only one lapse was allowed. Two - outa here!
B. Penance can become a substitute of repentance.
1) Douay Catholic version mistranslates repent as "do penance."
2) The tragedy of indulgences.
a) Instead of having remaining sins burned out in purgatory,
you can pay for them now. Literally.
b) Acts of contrition were reduced to cash payments.
c) More common today: rote prayers and confessions.
d) Actions can be as phony as words. (Too many flowers)
VI. Not penance, but penitence.
A. Can we pay for our sins?
1) We often try.
a) Catholics, walking on knees for miles.
b) Philippines, crucifying themselves.
c) USA, personal emotional punishment and depression.
2) Our sins are too great.
a) Our actions will always fall short.
b) They may give us false pride, but not salvation.
3) Even Purgatory doesn't hack it.
a) Not found in OT or NT, only Apocrypha.
b) If it worked, there would be no need for Jesus.
B. Only Jesus Christ can pay the price of our sins.
1) Ancient rabbi - "One act of kindness can redeem the world."
a) Powerful statement on power of good.
b) But false - only God's act of kindness can redeem us.
2) Jesus paid the price completely, for eternity.
C. Our repentance must be inward.
1) Repentance is not a "work" we do, but an acceptance of
what Jesus has done for us.
2) Any act of contrition must arise from our gratitude to God.
a) These acts do not obligate God to us in any way.
b) But they show our faith is not just empty words.
VII. Amending torn lives.
A. Creative restitution.
1) The movie, "The Mission," is about Spanish conquistadors in
Latin America in the 1600's.
Repentant soldier Robert DeNiro wants to get right with God.
The priest tells him to haul his heavy armor behind him up
a steep mountain.
He does it, then sends the gear cascading over the cliff.
2) Corporate raider Victor Posner was convicted for evading
more than $1.2 million in federal taxes.
His sentence according to "Business Week Magazine"?
Pay a $75,000 fine.
Donate $3,000,000 to help with southern Florida's
homeless problem.
Volunteer for 5,000 hours of community service, dishing
out meals to homeless people.
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3) This is also a good way to discipline children.
a) It is not enough to say we are sorry.
b) Disobedience has consequences.
c) Good living also has consequences.
B. To whom can we make amends?
1) Everyone has someone they have hurt.
2) More than a handshake, ask THEM what would be appropriate.
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