Reformation Day - October 31, 2010

The Church Season of Trinity
Reformation Sunday
Our Savior Lutheran Church, Midland, MI (October 31, 2010)

“HE WHO HAS EARS”

Readings:   
    Psalm 46
    Revelation 14:1-6
    Romans 3:19-28
    Matthew 11:12-19

Sermon Form    Deductive

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Grace, mercy and peace be to you from the Father
and the Son and the Holy Spirit, Amen

The text for today is as recorded in the Gospel Lesson from the 11th chapter of St. Matthew, especially the following verses:

Matthew 11:12-19 (ESV)

[Jesus said]12 From the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven has suffered violence, and the violent take it by force. 13 For all the Prophets and the Law prophesied until John, 14 and if you are willing to accept it, he is Elijah who is to come. 15 He who has ears to hear, let him hear. 16 “But to what shall I compare this generation? It is like children sitting in the marketplaces and calling to their playmates, 17 “ ‘We played the flute for you, and you did not dance; we sang a dirge, and you did not mourn.’ 18 For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, ‘He has a demon.’ 19 The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, ‘Look at him! A glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!’ Yet wisdom is justified by her deeds.”

In the Name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit

“Out of love and concern for the truth, and with the object of eliciting it, the following heads will be the subject of a public discussion at Wittenberg under the presidency of the reverend father, Martin Luther, Augustinian, Master of Arts and Sacred Theology, and duly appointed Lecturer on these subjects in that place.  He requests that whoever cannot be present personally to debate the matter orally will do so in absence in writing.  Number 1.  When our Lord and Master, Jesus Christ, said “Repent”(Mt. 4:17), He called for the entire life of believers to be one of penitence.”

And so it began, that is a document written by Martin Luther entitled “The Disputation on the Power and Efficacy of Indulgences” or better known by us as Luther’s Ninety-Five Theses.  I would dare to say that most Christians have never read this document and I am pretty certain that most Lutheran’s have never read them either.  Yet on this very day, 493 years ago, a 34 year old Roman Catholic Priest and University Professor, walked about ten minutes from his university post and nailed those Ninety-Five Theses on the door of the Castle Church in Wittenberg, Germany.  In doing so, Luther tacked his ideas on a community bulletin board and thereby offered to spar with the church of Rome and the Pope himself.  Luther had attacked an evil and wicked generation and this was risky business to say the least, and at the most could draw the possibility of deadly consequences.  But, it was the Gospel truth for all who would have ears to hear or in this case read it. 

In our Gospel lesson Jesus speaks to the crowd gathered around Him and He talked to those who had an ear to hear what He was saying.  And Jesus talked of John the Baptist saying, “12 From the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven has suffered violence, and the violent take it by force. ”(v.12)  John the Baptist preached, prayed, and pointed to Christ.  And for this proclamation of truth, John met with extreme violence, his head was cut off at the birthday bidding of King Herod’s niece.  Herod like the crowd either didn’t believe the prophecy of John or he just didn’t want to hear it.  Herod didn’t care about God’s Word, Herod wanted things his own way, and why not?  By what right did anybody have to question him about marrying his brother’s wife?  So what is left to say of the generation of Herod? His evil generation passed by in time by ignoring the proclamation of Word of God.

And 1500 years after Herod died, nothing really changed.  Luther would say of his time, “God’s Word and grace is like a passing shower of rain which does not return where it has once been. It has been with the Jews, but when it’s gone it’s gone, and now they have nothing. Paul brought it to the Greeks; but again when it’s gone it’s gone, and now they have the Turk. Rome and the Latins also had it; but when it’s gone, it’s gone, and now they have the pope. And you Germans need not think that you will have it forever, for ingratitude and contempt will not make it stay. Therefore, seize it and hold it fast, whoever can; for lazy hands are bound to have a lean year.” [AELW 45:353]

“How long before Luther’s proclaimed shower of grace passes us and moves on? Can we see the rain clouds forming strongly over the countries of Africa? How dry and parched will it become here in the United States?  Let’s run out into the rain shower that is the Gospel–the cooling, life-giving shower of God’s Word of Promise in Christ. His Word of mercy, forgiveness, joy and peace pours forth continually to this day and hour from the pierced hands, feet and side of our Lord Jesus Christ, the gifts you and I need the most are given by God through the work of the Holy Spirit through the precious and powerful Word and Sacraments. Let’s return again and again to the cleansing waters of the Holy Baptism, in which we were plunged into the death of Christ and raised to new life in Him. Let’s drink deeply from the streams of the Living Water of Jesus Christ who is Himself our atoning sacrifice, eating the bread of life that He gives to us. And then, with boldness and confidence, we continue to proclaim Christ’s mission and ministry. The Holy Gospel gives us confidence, trust and courage. It always has. It always will. We do not put our trust in mortal men but always and only in the Word of the Lord, which endures forever.”

And so what can be said of us as well?  We ignore the Word of God in our daily lives.  We beg and plead with God when we need Him, yet we debate and ignore the scriptures when they do not say what we want them to say.  Our world seems to be like shifting sand, yesterday Churches full of members.  Today members full of themselves, tomorrow only God knows.  

For we are a lazy lot of fickle humans, aren’t we?  We do not want to hear about Moses and the Ten commandments.  Nor do we want our world to be shaped or guided by them.  We don’t want to hear about the destruction of all of God’s people who failed to listen to the prophets.  We do not want to hear John the Baptist say to us, “Repent”(Mt. 3:2)  That’s Law and that’s much too stern, isn’t it?  Can’t we just have the Word of God and the Gospel the way we want to hear it, without so much pain, suffering, and violence?

 Well, truthfully, if that is what we proclaimed, and that is all you heard, all cheap Gospel and no Law, then we would be changing God’s Word.  We would only be hearing the scriptures when they meet our needs, and then calling the rest outdated because it feels like God would be impinge Himself on us by pointing out favorite heresies.  Sadly, from Adam and Eve, to the church in Luther’ time, to our time, and time to come, man has been and will be quite consistent in having the desire to turn from the whole of God’s Word.  We only want to hear the portions we want to hear.  The rest of scripture we question, did God really say that? Well if He did, I’m not sure I believe it, and now let me tell you what I believe.  And so, in shouting down the scriptures, we fail to hear our own lips making ourselves into false gods.

Repent, for in remembering Christ’s deeds on this Reformation Day celebration, we are reminded that we do not find salvation in the promises or works of men, nor traditions, nor even our feelings.  Neither do we find the promise of salvation in the scribbled words written on a piece of paper tacked to a church door by a man named Martin Luther. We do honor Luther for standing up against incredible forces. Oh that we could stand up to all those who are consumed by this world and its ways.  But instead we bow to our world, confessing what is at best thinly theological, thoughtlessly theoretical, and ultimately only politically correct.  We are called by Christ to hear the Gospel, yet sadly we all too often fail to confess that our salvation is revealed not by us, but to us. 

But with great thanksgiving we hear that the Good News of salvation is won by Jesus Christ and by Him alone.  And the promise of this salvation is given to you in your Baptism, for there you died to sin and now live to Christ.  Today in the Holy Sacrament of our Lord, Jesus Christ pours Himself out for you in His body and blood, given and shed for you for the forgiveness of sins.  And for all those who “By Faith Alone, by Grace Alone, By Scripture Alone, By Christ Alone, By God Alone,” who have been given the ears to hear, let them know they will hear the eternal voice of Jesus Christ, forever and ever.  Amen.

In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, Amen.
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