A blessed Reformation Day to you all! Oct. 31st is the commemoration of the beginning of what we call “the reformation of the Church”. It started as Martin Luther first questioned raising of funds through the buying and selling of forgiveness of sin by the church of his day.
But the Reformation is more than the proper way to raise money for the church, it has to do with our status before God. How is a person saved? Our answer: by grace, through faith, apart from works, based solely on Christ crucified and raised in payment for sin and the judgement that they deserve. Jesus Christ overcame the temptations of the devil, the world, and human flesh. He lived the perfect life of obedience. For us our Lord the Passover Lamb died, offering Himself up as a sacrifice for sin, satisfying the wrath of God over sin, even our sin. There can be no talk about the merits of the saints or of Mary, or our own as aiding in salvation. There can be no other way to pay for our sins as in selling “an indulgence”. Christ’s life and death alone paid the price of our salvation, and His resurrection is the seal of our victory.
The Devil, the world, and the flesh do not accept this defeat. They despise the message of God’s Word. They always have and always will until Christ returns. The doctrine of forgiveness of sins because of the blood of Christ is so precious and comforting that Christians were willing to lose their lives for it throughout history. At the time of the Reformation many men and women were put to death by the forces of the Roman Pope and the emperor, all for the sake of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Yet in order to preach and teach and receive God’s Word and sacraments in all their grace and purity, they continued to risk their lives. They were convinced that “it is better to die with and for the Gospel of Christ’s victory in eternity than to live here on earth without that Word of God.” They confessed that no other message, no other truth can give peace here on earth.
This willingness to suffer for the truth of Jesus Christ to preserve the truth for the future enrages the devil, the world and the flesh… That is why there is an ongoing and never-ending spiritual battle even in our own lives. The devil wants to destroy that boldness.
Ultimately this is a battle for the entire truth of God in Jesus Christ crucified. The world will ridicule the truth. The flesh desires to reject God’s wisdom and grace. Look at our Gospel lesson for today. Jesus talked who had once believed in Him. He talked about the freedom that comes from the Truth of God’s Word in Jesus Christ, but they rejected it and misunderstood it. The people ridiculed and found fault in Jesus because they rejected the Truth. It didn’t matter that He was the Christ who preached repentance and forgiveness and the fulfillment of Scripture with His miraculous signs. They rejected Him.
This is how Satan tries to attack believers in order to make them weak. He turns people from Christ and His Word to self. By justifying and emphasizing “the self”, he can weaken, expose, and destroy otherwise good well-meaning Christians and even cause them to do all sorts of evil. In the day of Luther it was emphasizing the meriting God’s grace by works of the Law or appealing to an authority which had added to God’s Word. Now the devil uses the spirit of emphasizing making people feel good about their own opinions and emotions while watering down the teachings of God in Jesus Christ. Or he convinces people that if God is loving then they can sin all they want and there so many other temptations…Any way he can do it: using the flesh or the world to remove people from Christ, the devil will try. As soon as any person turns to self as an authority, or uses something other than God’s Word to arm and protect themselves, they become weak and vulnerable.
The way to boldness and strength and peace is not in ourselves but by resting in Jesus Christ crucified and raised. By letting our faith be subject to, and encouraged and strengthened by His Holy Spirit working where the Word of God is taught in its truth and purity and the sacraments are administered in the promises and as God has commanded, that is where strength and boldness is possible.
When we say such things we must separate ourselves from other so-called protestants. Christians who may mean well but disparage, that is, put down Holy Baptism and the Lord’s Supper. Christians who turn God’s gracious gifts into mere regulations and symbols which we do. They are what God does in grace: the Great Physician’s gift of medicine for the soul: the very real world application of all that He accomplished for us upon the cross: A gift for His soldiers to give them the foretaste of the victory which is His.
So, this Reformation Day, we must say such things again. With boldness, let us defy the devil, the world, the flesh, even death itself. This defiance includes false prophets, popes, pastors, laypersons… denying our own selves. Let us in all ways not seek friendship with the world.
The Secular Religion of self seeks to devour all who seek to be faithful to the Lord Jesus, God’s eternally begotten Son, who came to save us. All the more reason to celebrate the Reformation, and to draw from its lessons of truth and courage. The Bible is still the sole source of doctrine against the lies of the world. Our courage is born of the fact that Christ remains with us, though our boat may seem small, rocked by the waves. Our courage is born of the fact that the Bible is true, and that he who endures to the end will be saved. So, today let us say what Luther said about grace and faith. “We are saved by grace through faith in Jesus Christ.”
Let us dwell in the mighty fortress which is our God. Let us flee to Him in times of pride, to repent of our error. Let us hide in Him at the time of our fear. Let us open our catechisms and our Bibles to study His wisdom. Let us hearken to the call of God’s voice in His liturgy and hymns based on His word to sing and make melody in His truth. Let us not cry at the songs and dirges of the world, nor dance at their songs of mockery of Christ when they taunt us. Let us be unmovable to their push, but movable in our following the banner of Christ’s cross. Then surrounded by the wall, the fortress, and shield of Jesus Christ, we shall live in peace, even now.
True peace on earth is lived out in His Church in its confession and witness. There is peace even in the midst of spiritual war and battle. Peace can come to our hearts and minds because our faith is not in our worthiness, it is not in how much we can fit in with the world, or in getting whatever desires fulfilled we can. We are freed from such things in Jesus Christ. We are redeemed to focus on His gifts eternal.
Be of good courage. God is here in the midst of us. He has physically come to us in Jesus Christ not only in His earthly ministry of paying for our sin, but He is here as He applies His salvation to us again and again. Hemming us and hedging us in from every side against the devil, by His sacrifice. Holy Baptism is God’s gracious act of coming to us, washing us in the blood of Jesus, calling us by name. Here we are in the mighty fortress, brought into God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. We confess our sins and are forgiven by grace in God’s name for Christ’s sake. Cleaned up, washed and given His righteousness, we live by faith.
He is in the very midst of us in His Word as it is preached, and as it is sung. He is talking to you. Jesus comes to us and serves us His body and blood as we celebrate His victory.
Remember Jesus is the word which causes Satan to fall even if it looks like the devil is beating us. Jesus is strong to save. He is sabbaoth Lord as we sing in “A mighty Fortress”. That means He is the Lord of hosts. Pray and Jesus will come with all His angelic hosts to you in the midst of temptation so that you may resist the devil.
You can confess and hold steadfast in God’s Word, because He will hold you… if you don’t reject Him. Difficulties and trials and hardships which the devil could use to overthrow you? Hide behind Jesus. Be bold. Satan, the world, they may hate you, but they can harm you none. They are judged, the deed is done. Even if you were to lose your mortal life for the sake of this truth, remember the hope that sustained the reformers and so many faithful before us:
“The Word they still shall let remain, nor any thanks have for it;
He’s by our side upon the plain, with His good gifts and Spirit.
And take they our life, Good, fame, child and wife, Let these all be gone,
They yet have nothing won; The Kingdom ours remaineth.”
Together we stand with God among us. He continues to speak and encourage in His Word. May God make us able to confess “it is better to die with and for the Gospel of Christ’s victory in eternity than to live here on earth without that Word of God.” “Through life it guides our way, In death it is our stay.” We pray: “Lord, grant that while worlds endure, We keep its teachings pure throughout all generations.” By His grace, through faith in Jesus Christ, it will. God grant it for Jesus’ sake, Amen.
Pr. Aaron Kangas