1 Peter 4:7-14
As we heard a few minutes ago, St. Peter, in his First Epistle, writes as follows:
“But the end of all things is at hand; therefore, be serious and watchful in your prayers. And above all things have fervent love for one another, for “love will cover a multitude of sins.” Be hospitable to one another without grumbling. As each one has received a gift, minister it to one another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God.”
Peter begins by telling us that the end of all things is at hand. That can certainly be a frightening thing to consider.
If you believed that your life, and even the whole world, would soon come to an end, what would you do?
Some people, based on their selfish, hedonist way of looking at the world – and at themselves in the world – would probably try to fill up their last days with as much pleasure and debauchery as possible.
The code by which Epicureans of every generation have lived would kick in: “Eat, drink, and be merry, for tomorrow we shall die.”
Now, Peter is not setting a date for the end of the world. But he wants his readers to live as if the world will soon end, because it might.
Christians are not Epicureans. They are not to live in the way of self-indulgence, but in the way of love for others. Indeed, Peter tells us that within the fellowship of the church, and in our human relationships generally, we are to have a “fervent love for one another.”
The “love” of which he speaks is the Greek “agape.” This is not about romantic passion, but is a selfless and self-giving mercy for others, similar to God’s love for us.
If you think your life, or the world, might soon come to an end, one of the primary things you would be concerned about is meeting the needs of others, and encouraging and comforting others.
You would be sincerely gracious in your hospitality. You would be sincerely generous in your sharing, your giving, and your serving. And, you will be forgiving of the faults and offenses of other people.
Peter uses an expression that has sometimes been misunderstood, when he says in this context that “love will cover a multitude of sins.” He is actually quoting this from the book of Proverbs.
There was a debate about the meaning of this quoted statement at the time of the Reformation. Some Roman theologians claimed that this passage teaches that our sins are forgiven, and that we are justified before God, at least in part, because of the virtue of love being inside of us, rather than by faith in Christ alone.
In other words, they claimed that the “covering” of sin is – in effect – an atonement for sin; and that the sins that are covered by a person’s love are that person’s own sins. It’s as if your later acts of love will offset, and make up for, your previous sinful acts, as your life is weighed in the balance of divine judgment.
The Apology of the Augsburg Confession – one of the official creedal documents of our church – responded to this idea. I will quote from it at length, because it is very clear and very helpful; and is like a sermon, really, in how the true meaning of this passage is explained:
“From Peter they also quote this statement, ‘Love covers a multitude of sins.’ It is evident that Peter is…speaking about love toward the neighbor, because he connects this passage to the text that commands love for one another.”
“Indeed, it could not have entered the mind of any apostle to say that our love overcomes sin and death; or that love is an atoning sacrifice on account of which God is reconciled apart from Christ the mediator; or that love is righteousness without Christ the mediator. …the gospel…promises us reconciliation and righteousness when we believe that on account of Christ, as the propitiator, the Father is gracious to us, and that the merits of Christ are bestowed upon us.”
“Therefore a little earlier [in this epistle] Peter urges us to come to Christ so that we might be built upon Christ. And he adds, ‘Whoever believes in him will not be put to shame.’ Our love does not free us from shame when God judges and accuses us. But faith in Christ does free us in the midst of these fears, because we know that on account of Christ we are forgiven.”
“Furthermore, Peter’s statement about love is taken from Proverbs, where the antithesis clearly shows how [that statement] ought to be interpreted: ‘Hatred stirs up strife, but love covers all offenses.’ …this text does not speak about one’s own sins, but of others’ [sins], when it says, ‘love covers sins,’ namely, the sins of others: more precisely, offenses between people. That is to say, even though these offenses flare up, love conceals them, forgives, yields, and does not carry everything to the fullest extent of the law.”
“Peter, therefore, does not intend to say with this text that love merits the forgiveness of sins in God’s eyes; or that [love] is an atoning sacrifice excluding Christ the mediator; or that we are accepted on account of love, not on account of Christ the mediator. He means that in human relations love is not obstinate, harsh, or intractable; instead, it overlooks certain mistakes of its friends, and puts the best construction on even the more offensive conduct of others…”
“It is not without reason that the apostles speak so often about this responsibility of love… For this virtue is necessary for preserving public harmony, which cannot last long unless pastors and churches overlook and pardon many things among themselves.”
So far, the Apology.
Love does indeed cover “a multitude of sins” in our interpersonal relationships, as we, with Christian charity and forbearance, learn how to overlook the small offenses of others, and how to forget about them, even as we would hope that others would overlook and pardon our occasional poor behavior. And when there has been a more serious offense, followed by an expression of regret, and by forgiveness from the injured party, that forgiveness needs to be real forgiveness.
When a sin is “covered,” this means that it can no longer be seen, and therefore will not be held against the person who had committed it. When you look at that person, you will not see the sin that has been covered by the forgiveness that your Christian love generates.
Because of that love, someone who has offended you – in big ways or in small ways – will not be treated by you according to the offense, but according to the forgiveness. The Lord’s Prayer needs to be prayed in all earnestness:
“Forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us.”
But, our love – such as it is – does not cover over our many sins and trespasses before the judgment of God. And that would include the sins of not always forgiving others, and not always covering over their misdeeds with mercy and forbearance.
Our own sins and offenses against God are forgiven and covered over only by the blood of Christ and the righteousness of Christ: which are made available to us because of the love of Christ.
God, therefore, does not see our sins, and will not punish them, or judge us because of them. They are covered by God’s redeeming and absolving love. And as we repent daily and trust in Christ daily, those sins remain covered.
Peter, in today’s lesson, calls us to a remembrance of our baptism: when we were united to the mystery of the Holy Trinity. The name of Christ the Son was placed upon us, and remains upon us. The Spirit of glory – who is the Spirit of God the Father – rested upon us, and remains upon us. So, as Peter writes,
“If you are reproached for the name of Christ, blessed are you, for the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you.”
On the part of those who mock us and even persecute us – because of the way in which “love” shapes and governs our lives – Jesus is blasphemed” by such reproaches. But when this happens, then on our part Jesus “is glorified,” is honored, and is confessed as Lord of all.
In Psalm 32, King David had declared:
“Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered. Blessed is the man to whom the Lord does not impute iniquity…”
The Epistle to the Romans quotes these lines from that Psalm, and tells us that this forgiveness from God, and this covering of sin before God, is ours – today – through faith in Jesus Christ. The love of God – by which he sent his only-begotten Son into the world to save the world; and the love of that divine Son for us, which impelled him to suffer and die for us – undergirds, energizes, and defines the love that we now bear toward our neighbor in his name.
God’s Spirit delivers to us, through the means of grace, our forgiveness from God. And God’s Spirit, as he lives within us, changes our hearts. When you know that God has forgiven the enormity of your sins against him, then you cannot withhold forgiveness from your fellow human beings.
It is a good practice for Christians to receive Holy Communion together. When you commune, Jesus is placing himself, and his forgiveness, into your mouth and into your soul.
And when you commune, Jesus is drawing out of your soul, and is positioning in your mouth, your forgiveness, and your words of forgiveness, toward all those who are communing with you – and toward all others with whom you may have a relationship that has been marred and disrupted by sin.
This is what we would want to be found doing, if the world does come to an end. This is how we would spend our last days, if we perceived that our last days were upon us.
This is how we would want to die, whenever our death may come. And therefore this is how we will live: as God helps us for the sake of Christ, and as Jesus teaches us by his example. Elsewhere in his First Epistle, St. Peter writes that
“Christ…suffered for us, leaving us an example, that you should follow His steps: ‘Who committed no sin, nor was deceit found in His mouth’; who, when He was reviled, did not revile in return; when He suffered, He did not threaten, but committed Himself to Him who judges righteously; who Himself bore our sins in His own body on the tree, that we, having died to sins, might live for righteousness – by whose stripes you were healed. For you were like sheep going astray, but have now returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.”
The end of all things is at hand. Therefore be serious and watchful in your prayers. Above all things have fervent love for one another, for “love will cover a multitude of sins.” Amen.