Reformation Sunday
October 27, 2019
Romans 3:19-28
Then what becomes
of boasting? It is excluded. By what law? By that of works? No, but by the law of faith.
For we hold that a person is justified by faith apart from works prescribed by
the law. Romans 3:27-28
According
to recently sainted Episcopal Church leader and lay theologian, Phyllis
Tickle: “Every 500 years, the Church
cleans out it attic and has a grand rummage sale.”
We
are at the 500 year mark and in the midst of an overwhelming transition
parallel to the time of Dr. Martin Luther.
Luther lived at a time of tremendous upheaval:
The
world was beginning to reframe its life from a flat earth with a three story
universe and the world at the center to a solar system of which earth revolved
around the sun.
The
new world was being discovered and explored and Europeans were encountering
Native Americans.
Europe
was very divided and ruled by Divine Right of Kings crowned by the Pope – yet
nation states were beginning to emerge.
A divided Europe was being threatened by the Turks.
It
was a time of transition and great upheaval when Luther posted his 95 Theses on
the Castle Church Door in Wittenberg on October 31, 1517. These Theses were an attempt to engage in a
dialog regarding the abuse of Church power with the selling of indulgences to
forgive sins. Luther, a devout monk,
priest, and professor had no ill intent but to correct false church teachings
with the Gospel. Thanks to Gutenberg’s
recent invention of movable type – the printing press – Luther’s tract was
spread throughout the Empire.
And
thus began his journey toward reform and his excommunication from the Medieval
Church.
It
is 500 years hence and we live in a parallel time. Our understanding of the universe has
dramatically changed thanks to the Hubble Telescope.
Our
small pale blue dot circles a mediocre sun and our solar system is a grain of
sand in the Milky Way Galaxy among 2 trillion galaxies throughout the
universe. We now know our universe is
13.8 billion years old and that the human species is but a blink of an eye in
the evolution of this planet. Astro-physicists
are suggesting that there may be multiple universes.
We
are in a struggle between exclusive tribalism and global inclusion. Are we going to circle the wagons, or will we
embrace diversity and a global perspective?
The
terror attack of 9/11 and the ongoing war in Afghanistan and the new war in
Yemen and the Russian and Korean threats makes our time similar to that of
Luther.
Due
to human pollution and interaction with the environment, climate is changing
and warming temperatures are causing weather to be more severe more often.
Thanks
to the invention of the I-Phone communication is instant and like Gutenberg’s
printer – worldwide. Some of you may be
on your hand held computer – that is what an I-Phone is – and receiving the
latest news. This alone has changed the
way we think about each other and the world.
And
lest we forget – the Church is in decline and it seems like its influence is
continuing to wane amidst Catholic scandals and Evangelical distortions.
We
are at the 500 year mark and in a massive transition and it can feel most
disconcerting and threatening.
Reaction: Some folks retreat into denial – insisting
that despite the facts the world is only 6,000 years old, climate change is a
myth, we need to take care of our own and retreat into an isolation to protect
ourselves from the onslaught of such deep and dramatic changes. Some suggest going back in time and becoming
what we thought we were again.
How
do we as individuals and a faith community live through this time of transition? Shall we visit the ecclesiastical attic and
conduct a rummage sale? How do we make
our mark and leave a legacy?
Luther
and the change that happened 500 years ago can give us some clues.
In
the midst of such upheaval Luther was captured by this Scripture verse: “For we hold that a person is justified by
faith apart from works prescribed by the law.”
Paul
is writing to followers of ‘The Way’ in Rome.
He boldly announces God’s inclusion of Gentiles through God’s announcing
that the old covenant – the old system of counting sins has be thrown out. God has declared in Christ that grace abounds
and that God has set humanity free from bondage to SIN.
Noticed
I said SIN not sins. SIN is that lost
relationship with the Creator. That
heart of stone in each of us….that binary world of winning or losing…that
hierarchy of power over others. God in
Christ has created a covenant of presence and partnership. As Jeremiah says:
“This is the covenant I will make with the
people of Israel
after that time,” declares the Lord.
“I will put my law in their minds
and write it on their hearts.
I will be their God,
and they will be my people.”
after that time,” declares the Lord.
“I will put my law in their minds
and write it on their hearts.
I will be their God,
and they will be my people.”
God
is present in with and under all of life.
God has declared you right with God.
Are you saved is an irrelevant question.
You are – now live into this gracious way of life. You/We are free – free to be. The truth is that we are no longer under the
spell of SIN but free in Christ. God has
so declared you to be – you are God’s daughter – you are God’s son.
Living
by faith means living in this promise so then people of faith take risks.
Look
at Luther – in the freedom of the Gospel he reluctantly but boldly spoke out
against abuse and injustice of a corrupt church selling God’s grace. At his
trial at the village of Worms before Prince and Pope he spoke up when asked to
recant.
Since your most
serene majesty and your high mightiness’s require of me a simple, clear and
direct answer, I will give one, and it is this: I cannot submit my faith either
to the pope or to the council, because it is as clear as noonday that they have
fallen into error and even into glaring inconsistency with themselves.
If, then, I am not
convinced by proof from Holy Scripture, or by cogent reasons, if I am not
satisfied by the very text I have cited, and if my judgment is not in this way
brought into subjection to God’s word, I neither can nor will retract anything;
for it cannot be either safe or honest for a Christian to speak against his
conscience. Here I stand; I cannot do otherwise; God help me! Amen.
In
the freedom of the Gospel Luther was exiled and excommunicated from the
Medieval Roman Catholic Church. He
trusted in God’s promise not knowing what would happen.
Janis
Joplin got it right: Freedom is another word for nothing else to
lose.
We
live in the same freedom. At such a time
as this we dare not circle the wagons or cave into fear mongering and isolation. We dare not remain silent in the face of
divisive rallies and injustice. We need
to build bridges not walls.
In
this time of uncertainty for the church we have the freedom to experiment…take
risks as a faith community…reach out and give ourselves away. Imagine being accused of reckless compassion
for the sake of the Gospel.
As
people of the Reformation why are we so eager to cling to the way things
are? Have not God’s people lived as a
minority in exile before? And from exile called able to be a light to the
nations and to give witness to the grace of God?
Annie
Dillard is a contemporary author. Pilgrim
at Tinker Cottage is one of her best known works. Here she reflects on the Christian faith:
Does anyone have
the foggiest idea what sort of power we so blithely invoke? [At Sunday worship]
Or, as I suspect,
does no one believe a word of it?
The churches are
children playing on the floor with their chemistry sets, mixing up a batch of
TNT to kill a Sunday morning. It is madness
to wear ladies’ straw hats and velvet hats to church; we should all be wearing
crash helmets. Ushers should issue life preservers and signal flares; they
should lash us to our pews.
For the sleeping
God may wake someday and take offense, or the waking God may draw us out to
where we can never return.”
Reformation
is at the heart of the Christian faith.
Do we have the foggiest idea of what sort of power for change that we
invoke when we come together? How dare
we blithely speak of God’s compassion and the call to discipleship?
Annie
Dillard suggests crash helmets instead of straw hats, life preservers and
signal flares and safety belts on the pews to lash people in. Why?
Because we are playing with sacramental mysteries that have a way of
changing and transforming life itself!
Living
by faith means trusting God’s promise of unconditional love.
Story
after story in Scripture speaks of risk and change. Abraham leaves security and wealth behind and
journeys based on God’s promise. Moses
takes to the desert with the people of Israel for 40 years – based on God’s
promise of a new land. In Exile and in despair
the people of God return to rebuild Jerusalem and the Temple. Christ sends the
Spirit and the church moves out to the Gentiles.
Ecclesia Reformata,
Semper Reformanda
(the church reformed, always reforming).
So we live in a time of transition…like a woman in labor…we are
experiencing birth pangs. In the freedom
of the Gospel we can be faithful mid-wives of a renewed church.
Are
you ready to step into the fray with God’s message of new life?
The
Lord be with you. And also with you.
Let
us pray:
O
God, you have called your servants to ventures of which we cannot see the
ending, by paths as yet untrodden, through perils unknown. Give us faith to go
out with good courage, not knowing where we go, but only that your hand is
leading us and your love supporting us; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Any of this Message may be quoted.
for permission contact
kennstorck@gmail.com
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