Reformation Sunday
October 30, 2016
Jeremiah 31:31-34
“The time is coming,” declares the LORD, “when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah. It will not be like the covenant I made with their forefathers when I took them by the hand to lead them out of Egypt, because they broke my covenant, though I was a husband to them,” declares the LORD. “This is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel after that time,” declares the LORD. “I will put my law in their minds and write it on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people. No longer will a man teach his neighbor, or a man his brother, saying, ‘Know the LORD,’ because they will all know me, from the least of them to the greatest,” declares the LORD. “For I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more.” (NIV1984)
Dear fellow heirs of the Lutheran Reformation,
What comes to mind when you think of the Lutheran Reformation? Does the mere mention of the word Reformation automatically lead you to start humming the tune to “A Mighty Fortress Is Our God”? Do you picture a Roman Catholic monk making his way through the streets of Wittenberg, Germany, with a piece of paper in one hand, a hammer and nail in the other hand and then nailing his 95 Theses to the door of the Castle Church? Do you picture that same monk standing before the religious and political powerhouses of his day, men who were demanding that he recant his writings, only to hear him say, “Unless I am convinced by the teachings of Holy Scripture or by sound reasoning— for I do not believe either the pope or councils alone, since they have often made mistakes and have even said the exact opposite about the same point— I am tied by the Scriptures I have quoted and by my conscience. I cannot and will not recant anything, for to go against conscience is neither safe nor right. Here I stand. God help me! Amen.”? What comes to mind when you think of the Lutheran Reformation?
While we do indeed recognize the pivotal role that the good Lord gave to Dr. Martin Luther in the Reformation and while the Reformation did indeed result in many wonderful hymns that still has the church singing some 499 years later, the one thing that we want to remember more than anything else when it comes to the Lutheran Reformation, the one thing that I am sure that Martin Luther would want us to remember about the Reformation is the central truth of Scripture that the Lutheran Reformation brought back into beautiful focus for God’s faithful people: “For we maintain that a man is justified by faith apart from observing the law” (Romans 3:28).
As we gather together here in God’s house today to celebrate the Lutheran Reformation let’s see how these words of the prophet Jeremiah— words that were written some 2,000 years before Luther nailed his 95 Theses to the door of the Castle Church— let’s see how these words of Jeremiah reveal to us: The Heart of the Lutheran Reformation. There are two things we want to see today on the basis of this text. First let’s see how the heart of the Lutheran Reformation leads us to recognize and reject any and every notion of salvation by works. Then let’s see how the heart of the Lutheran Reformation leads us to rejoice in the proclamation of salvation by grace.
Look at the opening portion of our text. Jeremiah writes, “’The time is coming,’ declares the LORD, ‘when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah. It will not be like the covenant I made with their forefathers when I took them by the hand to lead them out of Egypt, because they broke my covenant, though I was a husband to them,’ declares the LORD.”
As you know, shortly after the Lord God rescued His Chosen People from slavery in the land of Egypt He entered into a “covenant” with them as they camped at the base of Mt. Sinai. This covenant was designed to keep God’s people separate and distinct from the unbelieving nations around them. This covenant was designed to keep God’s people focused on the Messiah, the Savior, whom the Lord their God had promised to send into this world.
Tragically, God’s people broke the covenant the Lord God had made with them. Not only did God’s people start living and thinking and acting like the unbelieving nations round them, but they actually bowed down to worship their worthless idols. Instead of allowing the ceremonial laws (such as the laws concerning sacrifices and offerings) to keep them focused on the Promised Messiah, God’s people got to the point where they were simply “going through the motions.” As long as they did what they were “supposed” to do, as long as they went to the Temple in Jerusalem at the “required” times, as long as they brought the “prescribed” sacrifices— they figured that was “good enough” to guarantee that they would remain the Chosen People of God, “good enough” to guarantee that they would always be allowed to live in the Promised Land. (See Jeremiah 7 & Micah 6) In short, many of God’s people either walked into the dark abyss of unbelief or fell into the deadly trap of work-righteousness.
Because God’s people broke the covenant He had made with them, the Lord God declares through His servant Jeremiah that He would establish a “new covenant” with His people. The Lord then describes and defines that “new covenant” in verses 33 & 34 of our text. Look at verse thirty-three. While the “old covenant” was teeming with rules and regulations that governed and guided every single aspect of the outward lives of God’s people, the “new covenant” would be written on the “hearts” of God’s people. The “new covenant” would motivate God’s people from the “inside out.” The “new covenant” would lead the hearts of God’s people to rejoice in knowing that the LORD is their God and they are His people.
Then comes verse thirty-four. This verse pulsates with the heart of the “new covenant” that God promised He would make with His people. Look at what the Lord God says, “For I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more.” Why? Why will the Lord “forgive the wickedness” of His people? Why will the Lord “remember their sins no more”? Was it because God’s people finally got it right? Was it because God’s people finally dedicated themselves to being the best people they could possibly be? Was it because God’s people finally decided that they wanted the Lord as their God? No, my friends. God forgives the wickedness of His people; God remembers our sins no more— purely because He is the God of amazing grace, purely because He is the God of unbounded compassion. (See Exodus 34:6)
“For I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more.” Not only are these words the very heart of the “new covenant” that God promised to make with His people, but these words are the very heart of the Lutheran Reformation. Now, one would think that as Lutheran Christians we wouldn’t need to be reminded of this, but that is not necessarily so. As Lutheran Christians we need to continue standing alongside of Martin Luther so that we can continue to recognize and reject any and every notion of salvation by works. I say any and every notion because work-righteousness comes in various degrees and in various disguises. Let me explain what I mean by that.
I have attended more than one Catholic funeral over the course of the years. I have grown weary of sitting in a Catholic church and hearing a Catholic priest say things such as, “May his sins be forgiven…” or “When she enters into your presence….” I even attended one funeral where the priest looked at the two young daughters of the woman who had died and said, “Yes, your mother is in purgatory and yes, she is suffering, but we can get her out.” I was mortified. I attended a funeral for a young lady at a Baptist church that was near my home in Michigan. During the funeral “sermon” the pastor kept assuring everyone that he knew “Sally” was in heaven because he was there when she made her decision to accept Jesus as her Lord and Savior. He was there when Sally was “saved.” He didn’t emphasize what Jesus did for Sally. He didn’t point everyone to the cross. He just kept emphasizing what Sally did— her decision, her acceptance. That is simply a more subtle form of work-righteousness. And I have met more than one Lutheran who seems to think that as long as they are in church every now and then, as long as they take Communion at least a few times a year, as long as they put a little something into the offering plate when they do happen to be in church, then they are “good-to-go”! That may be the most subtle form of work-righteousness there is! And so, yes, my friends we need to continue stand alongside of Luther so that we can continue to recognize and reject any and all notions of salvation by works.
On the positive side of that coin, as Lutheran Christians we stand alongside Luther and we rejoice in the proclamation of salvation by grace! Why do we rejoice at this proclamation? Because this proclamation assures us that our eternal salvation is completely dependent on what God has done for us. Look at how clearly that is brought out here in our text. The Lord says, “I will make a new covenant…I will put my law in their minds and write it on their hearts. I will be their God and they will be my people…I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more.”
The “heart” of the “new covenant” that God has now established with us, the “heart” of the Lutheran Reformation fills our heart with joy because it so simply and so clearly promises that eternal salvation is ours— purely by grace through faith in what Jesus Christ has done for us. (Pointing to the cross) The “heart” of the “new covenant” that God has now established with us, the “heart” of the Lutheran Reformation fills our heart with joy because it takes away all the doubts and all the fears that are always part and parcel of salvation by works and it replaces that doubt and fear with the joyful confidence of knowing that our salvation is “finished” (John 19:31), our salvation is secure because our salvation is 100% God’s work. When we realize that truth, my friends, how can we not stand with Luther and rejoice in the proclamation of salvation by grace— alone!
As Lutheran Christians we do indeed thank the good Lord for that Augustinian monk who boldly nailed those 95 Theses to the door of that church and then boldly stood before both the religious and political leaders of his day and refused to step off of the rock-solid foundation of Scripture. As Lutheran Christians we do indeed thank the good Lord for the many wonderful hymns that we inherited from Martin Luther— yes, even though some of those hymns may not be easy to sing, they beautifully proclaim the Truth— “the truth that sets you free” as Jesus said in our Gospel lesson this morning. But most importantly, as Lutheran Christians we humbly thank the good Lord for filling our heart with the “heart” of the Lutheran Reformation, for filling our heart with the “heart” of the “new covenant” that He has now graciously established with us— “For I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more.”
Here we stand!
To God be the glory!
Amen
