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Reformation
Jeremiah 31:31-34 10/29/06
“Reformation or Restoration”
There’s a move afoot in
recent years to de-emphasize the Reformation. Those who prefer
that we Lutherans avoid or at least, limit celebration of
Reformation Sunday mean well.
We live in an ecumenical age
where our likeness to other denominations is being constantly
highlighted. Making a big deal of the Reformation and our
identity as Lutherans undermines our ecumenical efforts, according
to some.
Also, I’ve heard the
criticism that our emphasis on our Lutheran heritage tends to make
us self-righteous and even bigoted. Having grown up Lutheran
Church-Missouri Synod, I know how easy it is to believe that
only we have the correct beliefs and be dismissive of the
beliefs of others. I don’t know if I’ll ever outgrow that
attitude completely.
And finally, it’s pointed
out that this isn’t our Lutheran parents’ church anymore. In the
past nearly all the members of a church grew up in the church that
their families had belonged to for generations. In a case like
St. Paul’s this was literally true, but even in areas where the
population was more mobile, Lutherans usually married Lutherans
and worshipped in Lutheran churches. And this was true for other
denominations as well. As children came along they were
thoroughly indoctrinated in the beliefs of their faith group.
Since social life was centered around activities of the church,
people had little exposure to other beliefs and felt very secure
in the belief that what they had been taught was the “TRUTH”.
Today, society and
the church are very different…even for churches like ours.
Membership is made up of people from all kinds of backgrounds,
including no religious background at all. Even cradle Lutherans
(or whatever denomination the people are) have beliefs that
reflect exposure to other denominations or to a more secular
culture. In our modern age, political correctness, freedom from
doctrine and an “all paths lead to God” tolerance are more
important to many people than correct belief.
Thus, even publications from
our national church suggest moving away from a focus on being
Lutheran. In many of our churches today, the lessons we read will
even be exchanged for the lessons suggested in the Revised Common
Lectionary.
I think this is very
unfortunate. Among other reasons, being grounded in a
denomination’s history and traditions gives us roots. While I
feel concern when people are so attached to tradition that they
can’t or won’t try anything new, being part of a group with a
history can help us establish a sense of identity. “I am a
Lutheran, I am a member of the ELCA, I am a member of St. Paul’s
Evangelical Lutheran Church, Drakes Mills.” Each of those
statements means something and says something about me.
And so, as long as I am the
pastor, any church I serve will celebrate Reformation
Sunday, even if I have to depart from the lessons appointed by the
ELCA for that Sunday.
On the other hand though, I
did come across a word that in some ways better describes what
Luther did when he challenged the Roman Catholic Church of the
Middle Ages to correct certain false teachings. That word is
“Restoration”.
Though it can’t be denied
that Luther tried with every gift he possessed to reform the Roman
church, what he was really attempting and largely succeeded in
doing, was to restore God’s people to the relationship promised in
Jeremiah, declared in John and proclaimed in Romans.
Going back to an age long
before Jeremiah, God made a covenant with his people. God
established a special relationship with them. He would be their
God and they would be His people. He would love them and forgive
them.
Over the many centuries of
their history, Israel broke their part of the covenant
repeatedly. They followed other gods and suffered the
consequences. But, God was always faithful. There was
always another chance given.
In the time of the writing
of Jeremiah, God was once again planning to discipline His people
in order to bring them back to worship of Him alone. Today’s
lesson with its beautiful promise is set in the midst of a
prophecy that Israel is about to be taken into exile again. But,
even as God through the prophet issues His dire warning, His love
compels him to also issue a promise of a new chance at
relationship in the future.
At some future date, when
the people have learned their lesson God will restore them. And
this time, they won’t have to work at learning and remembering who
their God is; that knowledge will be planted directly in their
hearts. This restoration was God’s grace in action.
Through the many up’s and
down’s of their post-exilic history this grace continued. God
continued in covenant with His people. Then, since keeping even
this augmented covenant was beyond the people, God sent His Son.
All the people had to do was
believe in the word Jesus declared. God in His great love and
grace had sent His own Son – a part of His own Godly Self – to
restore the people to their covenant relationship with Him again.
This He would do by shedding His own blood as a sacrifice for
their sin. In the future, they would only need to remember this
sacrifice to be forgiven. This restoration was God’s grace
incarnate.
But, people continued to
sin, and one of their most grievous sins was falling back into
belief that they could or needed to do something to earn God’s
forgiveness. The original sin still in them deluded them into
thinking they could be good enough to do their own restoration of
the covenant relationship. Paul proclaims that just as they are
all equally sinful, they are equally saved by God’s grace. This
restoration was by God’s grace alone.
Then through the centuries
following the establishment of the Christian Church, sin again led
people away from that pure covenant of grace - that relationship
God offered so freely. The system of prayer to saints, veneration
of relics, the treasury of merits, sale of indulgences and
salvation based on works developed. The Church controlled people
by keeping them terrified of the fires of hell and their certain
condemnation to such a place if they dared deviate from what the
church taught. In a real sense, the Church replaced God as lord
of people’s lives and hope of ultimate salvation.
It was in this state of
broken covenant and denial of God’s grace that Martin Luther was
born and grew up. As Luther struggled with his fears of hell,
first as a Law student and then as an Augustinian monk, he
constantly sought something he could do to assure his salvation.
Finally, while studying for his doctorate he came across those
life-giving words from Romans: “For we hold that a person is
justified by faith apart from works prescribed by the law.”
We know the rest of the
story: how he sought a debate of his understanding by posting a
notice on the church door, worked with Melancthon to write the
Augsburg Confession, went to Worms to defend his position only to
be condemned, was kept under protection by Prince Frederick.
Yes, a new church did form
around Luther’s understanding of God’s grace in Christ, but
Luther’s intention was always the restoration of the people of God
to their covenant relationship with God. Reformation was meant to
be restoration to the enjoyment of living in the presence of a God
so loving that He was willing to die to have us back.
Since there is nothing we do
to make ourselves deserving of restoration, we surely have no
reason for self-righteousness, including any related to our having
some kind of exclusive hold on the TRUTH. The Truth not only
makes us free from the Law and salvation by works, it also frees
us from the need to prove that we have the TRUTH.
Instead, we celebrate being
included in the covenant relationship first offered by God to
Israel of old, the grace of God that justifies us through Christ
and the freedom that knowing the Truth (Jesus Christ our Lord)
brings. And let us never cease giving thanks to God for leading
Martin Luther to initiate the Reformation that led to our
restoration with God. Amen
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