St. John 8:31–36
In the name of the Father and of the + Son
and of the Holy Spirit –
On the Eve of All Saints’ Day, October 31,
1517, Martin Luther posted his 95 Theses on the church door in Wittenberg. This
was not originally the grand, dramatic event it later came to be. On that
evening he never dreamed that one day churches would bear his name. (The
thought would have scandalized him to the core.) No one knew that this call for
study and debate would start a world-changing event known as the Reformation. And
frankly, the 95 Theses are in no way the most important, nor even the most
“Lutheran” of Luther’s writings. But this seemingly small act by a German monk
came to be known as the spark that would ignite the Reformation. In just 2
years, in 2017, we will be 500 years from that fateful day. And as this major
anniversary comes closer I bet you’ll be hearing about the Reformation from
those in the media as well as from the Church. However, what they will be
saying about the Reformation will be quite different from what we talk about in
the Church.
The prevailing secular views on
the Reformation have very little to say about Jesus. For them, the Reformation
was the beginning of the modern world. It was a revolution, a glorious protest
against the old, out-dated hierarchy of the Middle Ages: the unjust lords, the
corrupt bishops, and power-hungry popes. Modern scholars see the Reformation as
the force that finally started to break-down the old institutions of church and
king, freeing the common man to make up his own mind and choose his own path. It
created more tolerant societies, led to the pursuit of science rather than
religious superstition, and spurred on economic growth. But is that really what
the Reformation was all about? The improvement of society? Would Martin Luther
say that any of these were his goals? These temporal, societal improvements may
have been by-products of the Reformation, many of them even good by-products. But
they are not what it was all about.
The thing is, modern man can
stomach the Reformation if it’s just an historical event. We can understand
political movements, protests against corruption, and shakedowns of
old-fashioned, ineffective authorities. Most people would probably like Martin
Luther if he had been more of a freedom fighter. Maybe he could do well in the
polls if he was known as a “political outsider.” But Luther was not William Wallace
or George Washington fighting for the freedom of his country. He was not Donald
Trump, saying the audacious things that the people wanted to hear. He was a
pastor – a student and a teacher of God’s Word. And the Reformation was in
truth, the activity of God’s Church. Or even more accurately, the Reformation
was the activity God’s Spirit and the Lord Jesus Christ at work in and on His
holy Church. In short, the Reformation was another Pentecost.
This might sound incredibly
arrogant. How can we claim that what Luther and the Reformers did in the 16th
century is even close to the same level as the coming of the Holy Spirit in the
Book of Acts? Isn’t this turning into the worship of Luther? Isn’t this putting
Luther’s writings and the Book of Concord above Scripture? Not if you have a
right understanding of what Luther and the other Reformers did. And to say the
Reformation was another Pentecost – another coming of the Holy Spirit – is not
as audacious a claim as it might sound if you have a right understanding of how
the Holy Spirit comes to us.
What Luther did was to help steer
the Church back to the Scriptures. And what did He find there? Or better yet,
whom did He find there? The Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit who inspired the
Scriptures also comes to us in and through the Scriptures. The Holy Spirit only
comes with the Word of God. He is present in the hearing and reading of that
Word. And with that Word, the Holy Spirit delivers the Son, Jesus Christ our
Lord, so that in hearing that Word, you may hold onto the Son by faith and be
saved. This is what Pentecost was all about – the coming of the Holy Spirit and
the Word of God that proclaims the Gospel of Jesus Christ. And so that is why
we have red on Reformation Day. Red is the color of the Spirit – the color of
the fire that accompanied the preaching of the Word by the apostles on that
first Pentecost. And so red is also the color of the preaching of Jesus Christ.
It’s not so arrogant to claim that the Reformation is another Pentecost, when
you understand how Pentecost happens every time you return to God’s Word. It is
not arrogant, but it is truly wonderful, because we know what Jesus promises us
who abide in His Word. If you abide in my
word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth
will set you free.
But what kind of freedom is this?
What are we freed from or freed for? Once again, this “Freedom” is not the
battle cry of an earthly revolution. This is not the freedom of civil rights,
political independence, or even the freedom of thought. Jesus is talking about
spiritual slavery and spiritual freedom. Jesus sets us free from slavery to
sin, death, and the Devil. Truly, truly,
I say to you, everyone who commits sin is a slave to sin… but if the Son sets you free, you will be free
indeed. Yet, in some ways we like being slaves to sin. We like being able
to do what we want to do. We like being able to think what we want to think. But
this is not freedom, as much as we might try to convince ourselves. It is
slavery. Slavery to our sinful hearts and minds that do not know and do not want
to know the Truth of God’s Word, because it means we are wrong. This is slavery
to our sinful actions that can only lead to death. Slavery to the temptations
and lies of the Devil who only wants to confuse us and lead us captive away
from the Truth, away from the forgiveness of sins, away from Christ, His Word
and His Spirit.
Repent. You are not free on your
own – to be what you want to be. You are not heroic liberators of your destiny.
What you are on your own is a slave to sin, a prisoner of death, a conquered
subject of the Devil. Repent. Repent and run back to the Word! Back to God’s
Word! – says Luther. Back to where the Spirit is! Back to where forgiveness,
life, and salvation are found! Back to the freedom of abiding in Christ’s Word!
Any disciple of Jesus’ Word could have done this – there wasn’t anything
particularly special about Luther. Jesus promises all of us: Abide in my word and you are truly my disciples, and you will
know the Truth. And with His Truth, Jesus sets you free from your self-made
slavery. His blood and word of Absolution forgives the sins you have committed
against Him and against your neighbors. His death and resurrection, His Baptism
and life-giving Spirit bestow life that conquers death. His authority and
glory, His Sacrament of His risen body and blood save you from this kingdom of
darkness where the Devil seeks to overpower you, and it brings you into the
light and joy of the feast with Your Savior King.
To say that the Reformation is
another Pentecost is to say it is a returning to the true and certain Word of
God. And in the Word we receive the Spirit. And by the Word of the Spirit we
receive Jesus Himself. The Reformation is not about the greatness of Martin
Luther (no hero-worship here). It’s not about revolution, progress, or the new
ideas of men. The LCMS slogan for the 500th Anniversary sums up well
what it’s really all about: Reformation 2017 – It’s STILL all about Jesus.
And it is still our task, as
disciples of Jesus abiding in His Word, to tell
it to the next generation. In every age, every generation, every
Reformation anniversary, every Sunday, really every day, the Church must return
to the Word of God. In every
returning to His Word we participate in what the Reformation is all about. We do what Luther did and so many other
faithful disciples. In every returning to the Word and Sacraments of Jesus we
experience another Pentecost. And the Church is revived, reformed, living
always by the power of the Spirit, set free by the Son, to be children of the
Father.
Let us pray. Come quickly Lord
Jesus and save Your Church from falsehood, sin, and destruction. Keep us steadfast in Your Word. Set us
free by the Truth of Your forgiveness, and send us Your Holy Spirit. Come Holy
Spirit, guide divine, now cause the Word
of life to shine. Teach us to know our God aright and call Him Father with
delight. From every error keep us free; let none but Christ our master be That
we in living faith abide, in Him, our Lord, with all our might confide. By Your
power prepare each heart, and to our weakness strength impart That bravely here
we may contend, through life and death to You, our Lord, ascend. Alleluia!
Alleluia! (LSB 497)
In the Holy + Name of Jesus –
Happy Reformation Day!
Immanuel Lutheran Church, Charlotte, IA
October 25, 2015
