You Break It, You Buy It

The Rev. Joseph Winston

June 6, 2010

Grace and peace are gifts for you from God, the Father of our Lord Jesus
Christ.1
Taking a child into a fancy clothing store must be one of the worst nightmares
that any parent might have to face. Dirty hands that just were spotlessly clean
moments before permanently stain a frilly white dress hanging ever so nicely on
the rack. It goes without saying, that the salesperson notices the whole incident,
walks up to you, and then speaks the phrase parents’ dread. “It is yours now.”
After the sale is finished, you now are the proud owner of a stained outfit that does
not fit anyone you know.
Another reoccurring fear for parents involves little boys and delicate glass.
Before entering the store, you constantly remind them that they must keep their
hands in their pockets at all times while you find a special gift for a dear friend.
You take your eye off them for just an instant and then you hear it, the soft sound
1
Romans 1:7, 1 Corinthians 1:3, 2 Corinthians 1:2, Galatians 1:3, Ephesians 1:2, Philippians
1:2, 2 Thessalonians 1:2, Philemon 1:3.

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of crystal shattering into a million little pieces. The shop owner who has been
helping you whispers those words you first saw on the sign. “Not responsible
for unattended children. You break it, you own it.” By the time you pay for the
completely destroyed item there are only a few dollars left for the gift you planned
to purchase.
Breaking merchandise is not limited to children. Teenagers get in on the act
also. A little horseplay in a grocery store quickly turns into a disaster as a nicely
stacked display tumbles to the ground from a blow given by a wayward shopping
cart. You had better see what you can make with a bushel of bruised fruit. Adults
are not exempt either. Snapping a fishing pole after vigorously flexing it to see
how well it performs means that you now own both parts
Widening the circle even more and you soon see the same pattern of ruining
something and then being responsible for what you have done in other parts of
life. Driving without insurance is a costly mistake to make if an accident happens.
Corporations of all sizes end up in court over the results of bad designs. When
the Good News that a person is justified not by the works of the law but through
faith in Jesus Christ is changed in any way, shape, or form, the Gospel becomes
completely useless (Galatians 2:16, 2:21).
During Paul’s life, the primary issue of contention revolved around the need
for followers of Christ to also be Jews. This one item of disagreement between
the groups that favored Christians to first become Jews and those who did not
has a large number of practical implications. In the house, it meant the type of
food on the table, the clothes on your back, the work allowed, what was clean

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and what was not, the person who you married, and the ranking of male over
female. Outside of the family, the instructions continued. It told you how to handle
arguments between individuals, damage from livestock, proper punishment for
wrongdoing, the rank of people not like you, the support of the poor, the widow,
the orphan, and the stranger, and how to determine which circumstances make
a person ritually unclean. The life of faith contains its own list that includes the
proper ceremonies that specific men must perform, who has access to the gifts God
gives, the supervision of what is acceptable and what is not, the duty to uphold the
Law, and the responsibility to keep the covenant between God and man.
What is at stake in the discussion is not the background of people before they
become Christians nor is it the merits of following to the letter the instructions
given to the people of God. Instead, the entire debate hinges on the following idea.
“You cannot be a Christian unless you do this specific action.” Put more bluntly,
“You are not saved until this happens.”
Paul sees the glaring problem with this line of reasoning. It means that Jesus
did not do enough to wipe out all the marks against you.
Think about what this actually implies. If it is really true, then you cannot be
certain of what the Bible tells you about Jesus. All those places where Jesus says
everything is completed (John 19:30), or that He is the way (John 14:6), or even
though believers die they will live (John 11:25), or today you will be with me in
Paradise (Luke 23:43), or those who lose their life for Jesus will find it (Matthew
10:39; 16:25), or that Jesus came for the sick (Mark 2:17) none of those are quite
right. Remaining unanswered is the pressing issue of something else required of

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you but you do not know exactly what. Returning to the Bible, the prophets like
Isaiah who say Jesus will judge the world (Isaiah 42:1) or Zechariah that Jesus
brings salvation (Zechariah 9:9) do not know what they are talking about. Also all
the psalms that speak of help coming from Jesus are wrong (Psalm 6:4; 7:1; 18:2;
25:20; 31:1; 34:19; 37:40; 40:13; 40:17; 50:15; etc).
Then there comes the biggest stumbling block of all, the cross. In the world
that requires more than Christ can offer, the suffering, the agony, and the horrible
death of Jesus are not enough to pay off the debt of sin owed by the human race.
God needs even more work on our part.
If you can make your way past the issue that God does not tell you the com-
plete truth about who Jesus is and what He does for you, then you still have one
more little problem to solve. You need to decide exactly what is enough to make
God happy with your life.
Here the sky is the limit on what you can try. You can leave the world with all
of its pleasures and completely devote yourself to prayer and study. (But is this all
you can do?) You can sell everything you own, give the proceeds to the poor, and
live a life worthy of the Lord. (But what is your salvation really worth?) You can
totally devote yourself to justice. (But do you have the time needed to right all the
wrongs?) You can keep the Law to the letter and expect everyone you encounter
to do the same. (But what happens when you stumble?)
To anyone that would require that Christians do anything to help Jesus save
them or even less suggest that all Christians must do something to make them
right with God, Paul has these strong words that he first gave the church in Gala-

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tia. You are devoted to evil (Galatians 1:8).2 You are removing yourself from the
Church (Galatians 1:9). 3 You have left the grace Jesus gives you (Galatians 5:4).
You broke the Gospel. Your future now depends on you keeping the entire Law
(Galatians 5:3).
You would hope that these sentences pronounced over all those who would
dare to change the Gospel from a person is justified not by the works of the law but
through faith in Jesus Christ into some phrase that requires you to do something
would be enough to keep people from trying to add anything to the Good News
but it does not.
In Paul’s day, the additions came from people who wanted the new Christians
to be exactly the same as the rest of the Jews. To each and every requirement of
the Law given to Moses and the covenant made between God and Abraham, Paul
said no. Nothing can be added to the Gospel.
In the time of Luther, the modifications to the Good News came from the Ro-
man Catholic Church. They promised forgiveness in return for special offerings.
They held up careers in the Church as a way of obtaining grace from God. They
placed obligations on all believers. Luther and the other reformers went back to
Paul’s letter to the church in Galatia and said no. Any change at all must be re-
jected, they said, to the central pillar of the faith that our works count for nothing
and belief in Jesus is everything.
Echoes of these ancient battles remain with us today. For example, churches
2
᾿Ανάθεμα
3
᾿Ανάθεμα

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of all types demand consistency in appearance, economic level, along with similar
likes and dislikes before one can join. Often times there are stated requirements to
belong to a church that include giving money, following a certain political party,
or supporting a specific cause. To all these illustrations that would modify the
Gospel in the least, Paul says no.
There is a very good reason to keep the Gospel exactly as written. Jesus has
already completed every bit of the work for you. During His time here on earth,
He lived life exactly as all humans should. He loved God and His neighbor. Jesus
then followed the will of His Father and died for you. It is finished. You cannot
add anything at all to this.
There is a second benefit that we do not talk much about but we should. Be-
cause Jesus has done it all, you now have time to live. Go fishing. Jesus has already
given you the gift of free time. Bake a pie and eat it. Life is meant to be enjoyed.
Spend time with your family. Jesus gave them to you. See the world and enjoy
God’s creation.
The phrase, “You break it, you buy it” serves as a reminder. The Good News
that Jesus stands before God and gives you pardon instead of the justice you de-
serve only works when you leave it all alone.
“The peace of God, which passeth all understanding, keep your hearts and
minds through Christ Jesus.”4

4
Philippians 4:7.