In 1707, the great hymnwriter Isaac Watts first published his magnificent hymn “When I Survey the Wondrous Cross.”  It is a hymn which has captured the minds and imaginations of the people of God for over three hundred years and one we still sing today. It is truly a great hymn leading the Christian to despair of their own works and trust in Christ alone for their salvation. “When I survey the wondrous cross, on which the Prince of Glory died, my richest gain I count but loss, and pour contempt on all my pride.” It is beautiful and profound, a fitting correction to our glory-seeking age and self-righteous convictions of importance. But it is the second stanza in particular that stands out today, one which echoes Saint Paul’s words to the church in Galatia. He writes, “Forbid it, Lord, that I should boast, save in the death of Christ, my God; all the vain things that charm me most, I sacrifice them to His blood.”

“Forbid it, Lord, that I should boast, save in the death of Christ, my God.” These words come from Paul’s closing remarks at the end of his letter. It is a letter that has grappled with the temptation to boast in some outward work which makes one welcome in the Kingdom of God. While we may not boast in circumcision, they certainly did in Paul’s day, especially in a church that was divided between Jews and Gentiles. Some bore the outward mark of the Covenant, and others did not. In our day, we have all sorts of other marks that serve as the source of our boasting. I want you to think for a moment about what you boast about. What actions, what works, what devotion, what spiritual exercise, what ethically superior disposition is the ground for your boasting?

Now, Paul sets the actions of our lives in terms of sowing and reaping. That is, as you think about your life, about what you do with the time you have, what are you sowing? What are you giving to others? Paul says, “Do not be deceived: God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap.” What is it you give to God? What is it you withhold? Do you give of your time, your wealth, your talents? Do you give your pride and arrogance or your self-righteous desires? Or do you hold on to these, keep them close to your chest to be used only for yourself? What do you give to your brothers and sisters? Do you rally behind the hurting and the weak? Do you strive to bear their burdens? Or do you sow into their lives only when it is convenient, only when there is some recognition for the sacrifice you have made?

Paul warns the people of God to, “Keep watch on yourself, lest you too be tempted,” because, “If anyone thinks he is something, when he is nothing, he deceives himself.” The call is for humility, for a proper and faithful confession of who you are, so what you sow will not be the desires of the flesh but the Spirit of God. This is no small thing, no little aside for the people of God to keep us occupied as we await the end of all things. For we are reminded that what we sow to the desires of the flesh will reap corruption, and what we sow to the Spirit will reap eternal life.

I remember when I first became a pastor and was serving the people of God down in Southeast Georgia. We were in a bit of a financial struggle at the congregation, and when I sat in a meeting looking over the financials, I saw there had been a significant amount of money given to a refrigerator fund. Now, we had a refrigerator, a perfectly fine one, so when I inquired into the fund, I learned that a particular member had been regularly giving to this fund to eventually purchase a large commercial refrigerator for the congregation. Sounds pretty good, does it not? That is, until I did a little more digging and found out that this person had a quarrel with their previous pastor and did not want to give to their compensation. He was still going to give to the church, but in such a way that it could not be used for the general fund. Sure, it was giving, but it was sowing to the flesh.

Of course, I was young and perhaps a little rasher and eventually had a meeting with this brother in Christ. He confirmed what I had learned. I told him we could do one of two things: Either we would move that money to the general fund to help in our current struggle or we would give the money back to him. He got the point. But this, my friends, is what we tend to do with our sowing. We give with caveats or with strings attached. We give in such a way that it will serve our own needs and desires. Even within the household of faith, you will sow toward your own dreams and desires of what that household ought to look like, what it ought to be, regularly neglecting the reality that you are already a part of. The truth is all your giving falls short.

So, once again, we are called to repentance, called to confess our sins and failures. Your flesh entangles even the most compassionate and generous sowing of your life. But this is not a cause for despair. It does not mean we throw up our hands and say, “Forget it, who can do anything good?” No, this confession is a cause for joy, for in the letting go of all you have done, in the emptying out of your hands, you are then filled with all Christ has done. You are filled with what He sows into your life. And what does He give? He gives faithfulness to the Father, the promise of salvation, hope and assurance, because it does not rest in your ability but only in what He has and continues to do. “Forbid it, Lord, that I should boast, save in the death of Christ, my God.” We boast, proudly boast in what Christ is doing.

And behold what Jesus is doing. He gathers us here together, in the fellowship of His Church, gathers us so we are not alone, we are not forsaken to the desires of the flesh. He sows His Spirit into your lives as He gives us Himself. For we gather here around the table of the Lord, we gather in the presence of the only One in whom we boast, and we reap the promises of what He has sown. This is our confidence and the reason for all our boasting. Our hope rests in the sowing and reaping of Christ alone. So, with joy and confidence we sing that great hymn, “Forbid it, Lord, that I should boast, save in the death of Christ, my God; all the vain things that charm me most, I sacrifice them to His blood.”