Romans
3:19-28
Moving
from Fear to Love
I
am never quite sure, on Reformation Sunday, whether to emphasize what is unique
about the theological tradition in which we stand or if it is better to talk
about what we hold in common with the whole of Christianity.
Martin
Luther wanted to remain firmly rooted in the whole of Christianity. He insisted that “No one be known by the name
‘Luther.’” His immediate followers, as well
as the folks who currently attend “Lutheran” Churches in Germany, we known as
the Evangelischies, or
Evangelical.
Then
again, it seems appropriate to spend a bit of time talking history. More and more of those who find themselves in
a Lutheran worship service got there by means of a differing route that baptism
in a Lutheran congregation and three years of instruction in Lutheran
Catechetical class. So, maybe we do need
to spend some time speaking with the voice which is uniquely ours.
The
decision on which way to go came during the discussion a few of us shared last
Sunday. I found myself asking why it is
important that there be a Lutheran church at all. Why should we give of our time, talent, and
treasure in order to keep this place running?
The
answer has to do with the opportunity to gather each week and practice
forgiveness. You heard me right – practice
forgiveness. The world is not a place
where forgiveness is readily offered.
When the world discovers a mistake or a short-coming there is pouncing
and exploitation. Seldom is there
understanding and forgiveness.
Lutherans
are not unique in that we are the only denomination which believes in and
practices forgiveness. But our history
begins there. And while there are issues
which divided the Church during that period of history called The Reformation,
it was the centrality of God’s grace which served as the impetus for the
Lutheran theological tradition.
The
whole of the Reformation can trace its origins to the fear Martin Luther had
that he was not going to be saved. His
life story (which I will turn to in just a moment) returns time and time again
to the issue of whether God would or could forgive him. His writings, his
sermons, his table talk conversations were all geared toward helping others
come to understand that God’s grace is boundless and God’s forgiveness is
always at hand.
Luther
lived in a time when life was rather bleak.
Some peasants (his father among them) had started scratching their way
up out of the pits by means of increased mechanization and an openness to an
emerging merchant class. Hans Luther had
great hopes for his son. He spent a good
sum of that hard earned money to send Luther to the Latin School in Esienach
and finally to Law School in Erfurt. But
the young Luther was not at peace with himself.
In conversations with his classmates he revealed a disdain for the
pleasures and trinkets of the world. He
was drawn to the life of a monk; he expressed a desire to spend his time
contemplating the fate of one’s soul.
The
crucial point came as he as making his way back to Erfurt from his parent’s
home. A terrible lightening storm had
come up and he was frightened. When a
bolt struck close by him he is reported to have considered it an attack from an
angry God. He prayed to Saint Anne to
intercede on his behalf, promising that if she were to see to his survival he
would enter the monastery. As one
Lutheran historian was quick to quip – “She did; so he did.”
But
Luther’s attempts to appease and angry God did not end there. Even among the monks he was unique in his
attempts to demonstrate his dedication to God.
It was reported that he would often throw off his blankets. He would punish himself with long hours in
the confessional booth.
In
the end, it was his confessor, Stauptz, who exposed to Luther his misguided
attempt at justification. After one
particularly long and tedious attempt at delineating his sins, Stauptz lost
patience with Luther and snapped at him, “Good God man! All that is required is that you love
God!” “Love God?” Luther is reported to have replied, “I hate
God!”
You
cannot love a God whom you believe is looking for every opportunity to condemn
you to hell. You cannot love a God who
sets up traps to lead you away. You
cannot love a God who is vengeful and ready to condemn. The God who is lovable is the God whose grace
is abundant and never ending. The God
who is lovable is the God who is more ready to forgive that we are to ask for
forgiveness.
Every
Christian denomination in the world would agree with this. Lutherans are not unique in believing
this. What makes us unique is that we
begin (and end) every theological discussion there. Our history compels us to return over and over
and over to the central affirmation that nothing should ever be allowed to
cause us to doubt the abundance of God’s grace.
If
it has been a while since you read the Augsburg Confession (that is the foundation document for the Lutheran Theological tradition) if it has been a
while since you read it, I suggest that you do so soon. You will find two articles which deal with
the issue of Free Will. These articles
lay before us the role of grace in the assurance of salvation.
The
first is Article 4 which speaks of the complete absence of free will when it
comes to salvation. Salvation is the
gift of God, it is the act of God, and it is totally beyond us and our
influence. This is not an addition to
the message of the scriptures – it is what lies at the center of the New
Testament. Read also that Romans text
printed in your bulletin. Or the whole
of the book of Galatians – sometimes referred to as the Christian Megna Carter. We are justified by (God’s) grace as a
gift.
There
is a second article in the Augsburg Confession which addresses free will with
regard to temporal things. The writings
of our church affirm that we do have the ability to choose how we will respond
to the goodness of God’s mercy. Article
20 points out that we can chose to do good or we can choose to misuse our
freedom. Our good works are added to our
faith, but it is not a prerequisite.
Many
in our world, in our neighborhood, will abuse God’s unlimited eagerness to
forgive. But their misuse does not
change God or God’s attitude toward creation.
God
remains loving and forgiving; compassionate and merciful.
Lutherans
are not the only ones who speak of God in this way, but we are among those who
speak of it most often and most clearly.
There is not a Christian in the world who would disagree with the
Lutheran rally cry of “Justification by grace through faith.” It just that some of them would emphasis the
faith over the grace; or speak of faith in a way which makes it something other
than a trusting relationship. You can
make faith as much of a “work” as any
other prescribed by the law.
Our
observance of Reformation Sunday should not take the form of a celebrations to glorify
Martin Luther or the congregations which bear his name. What this day should be about it a strong and
faithful reminder that it is God’s grace which saves us; God’s grace, and
nothing else. Faith, itself a gift from
God, is the vessel which makes it possible for that grace to reside in us. It is God’s grace which saves us, and since
our God is a gracious God there is no ending to his salvation.
There
is no fear that it will come to others and skip over us. And there should never be any doubt that God
has forgiven us of our sins.
Amen.
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