Happy Reformation Sunday! This October 31st will mark 503 years since Martin Luther nailed the 95 Theses to the door of the Castle Church in Wittenberg, Germany. His theses described his objections to the Roman Catholic Church’s practice of selling indulgences. He was emphatic that we cannot purchase or earn what God has freely given, and for the church to suggest or demand this, especially from the poor and vulnerable, was a travesty.
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| Martin Luther, Wittenberg |
Our continued commemoration of the Reformation even 503 years later is about more than a moment in history, or even Luther as an individual. Instead, we lift up this festival Sunday to remind ourselves that the church is always reforming. It’s not that the church was broken and Luther fixed it. No, the message of Reformation Sunday is that sin and brokenness are ongoing realities of the human experience, and God is the only one who can fix it. God has fixed it, in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus. We are saved by grace, through faith, freed for life that is abundant and eternal, and joined to God and to one another.
This is the two-fold
truth that Jesus speaks of in today’s Gospel reading from John when he says “You
will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.” The first truth is that
we are enslaved to sin and cannot free ourselves. We are curved inward by sin,
looking to our own comfort and privileging self-preservation above all else. We
fail to love one another, fail to see others as beloved and made in God’s image,
fail to tend our relationships with God and with one another. It may feel
like freedom to be in charge of our own destiny, but the reality is that we will
never be good enough or holy enough on our own. We cannot earn or deserve or
work our way into salvation.
The second truth is
that we belong to God. In the waters of baptism, we are called children of God
and claimed as God’s own forever. God’s promises are faithful and sure. Resting
in these promises, we are freed for the life that really is life – a life
shaped by forgiveness, gratitude, service, and love. Filled with the Holy
Spirit, we are strengthened and empowered to live out our baptismal promises.
Today, as we celebrate
the ways that God is living and active in our midst, we also celebrate with our
confirmands, who will publicly affirm God’s promises made to them in baptism
and be received as adult voting members of the congregation. Confirmation is a
special milestone here at Trinity, but we remember that it is not a graduation ceremony. Instead, it is an affirmation of an ongoing relationship with God and with one another. When these students were baptized, you, the congregation, made promises to support them in their life of faith, and we affirm those promises as we celebrate with them today. Together,
we listen for the truth and share it with the world God so dearly loves. Together, we roll up our sleeves, to serve the ones God has created and called beloved.
Two things are true:
we are bound by sin and brokenness, in spite of (or sometimes even because of)
our best efforts to free ourselves. And, we belong to God, by whose grace we
are made free. These truths are at the heart of our faith. It is these truths
that Luther lifted up in his call for reformation, and these truths that our confirmands
will affirm.
In a world where so
many things are frightening and uncertain, today we give thanks that God’s promises
stand firm. In a world that is constantly changing, we give thanks that the
Holy Spirit is always reforming the Church, so that we might show forth God’s
love and grace in the world. In a world that is bound by sin and death, we give
thanks for a God who frees us for life abundant and eternal.
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