Robert
Farrar Capon was an Episcopal priest, author, and chef. A lifelong New Yorker,
for almost thirty years, Capon was a full-time parish priest in Port Jefferson,
New York.
Among his classic works are The
Supper of the Lamb, Kingdom, Grace, Judgment, Between Noon and
Three, and The Parables of Grace. Much of Capon’s contributions to
the church over the last half century has been his pithy, poignant quotes that
have made a lasting impact.
I have a dear friend who wrote
and delivered a sermon recently with this title: “200 Proof Grace.” Do you know where he got
that title? Robert Farrar Capon.
In his book, Between Noon and
Three: Romance, Law & the Outrage of
Grace, Capon writes:
“The Reformation was a time when
men went blind, staggering drunk because they had discovered, in a dusty
basement of late medievalism, a whole cellar full of 1500-year-old, 200 proof
Grace – bottle after bottle of pure distillate of scripture, one sip of which
would convince anyone that God saves (rescues) us single-handedly. The word of
the Gospel – after all those centuries of trying to lift yourself in the heaven by worrying about the
perfection of your boot straps – suddenly turned out to be a flat announcement
that the saved (rescued) were home before they started. . . Grace has to be
drunk straight no water, no ice, and certainly no ginger ale; neither goodness,
nor badness, not the flowers that bloom in the spring of super spirituality
could be allowed to enter into the case.”
Over the coming weeks I may
refer to some of Capon’s other quotes, because they capture in miniature the
astonishing, astounding, stupendous truth of what the Gospel of the Grace of
Jesus is. That’s what Martin Luther discovered after studying the Book of
Galatians. That’s what the men and women of the Great Awakening discovered in reading
Luther’s commentary on Galatians. Of all the descriptions used to summarize
Paul’s letter to the Galatians – 200 proof Grace is arguably the best. And, as Luther
admonished, it is the Gospel of Grace that is needed at every moment of one’s
life. To think of the Gospel of Grace as only the threshold of the Christian
faith is to bastardize the Gospel. If you are a new Christian weeks into your
walk with Jesus, or a Christian who’s been walking with Jesus for decades, the
Gospel of Grace is exactly what you need to move forward. And that’s exactly
what Paul tells us from the opening verses of this majesty letter.Last week Dave Shrader gave us a wonderful start in his message, “The Rescue.” This week we will seek to build on that foundation with a message entitled, “The Revelation”. In preparation for Sunday’s message you may with so consider the following:
1. Read Galatians 1:3-12 and Ephesians
1:3-10.
2. Why does Paul forego his greeting in
Galatians?
3. What is Paul saying in verse 1 when
he talks about himself?
4. How important has this letter been in
the history of the church?
5. How were the Galatians losing touch with
the Gospel?
6. Why did Luther say that he was “wed”
to this epistle?
7. How can Christians miss the Gospel?
8. How is the Gospel known?
9. How are verses 3 to 5 a summary of the
whole Gospel?
10. On what grounds will you hear the
words, “Well done, good and faithful servant.”?
See you Sunday!
