CROWN OF LIFE EV. LUTHERAN CHURCH
Pastor Michael Helwig
November 2, 2003
Revelation 14: 6-7 (Reformation)
“Why Do Lutherans Do What They Do?”
Have you heard about the family that cuts the end off of their Christmas ham before baking it? One year the young daughter got brave enough to ask her mother why she cut the end of the ham. Her mother explained that she learned that from her mother. So they both asked grandmother why she cut the end of the ham off. Even grandmother was stumped, so they asked great-grandmother why they had to cut the heel of the ham. Great-grandmother patiently answered, “I sure don’t know why YOU do it. I did it because my pan was too short for the ham.”
Many things that we do as Confessional Lutherans serve valuable purposes. Some are things that are passed down as tradition. It is often difficult to distinguish the things that we do as a matter of tradition, and the things that we do because we are bound by the Word of God to do them that way. Reformation is not simply a time to raise our Lutheran banner high, celebrating our traditions and heritage. In fact it is more importantly a time to reflect on what was a preserved by God’s grace through that period of history. It is a time to thank him for the men and women he used to fight for the truths we know and love as the gospel.
Revelation 14: 6-7 has been chosen by the church at large as the reading for Reformation Sunday. Many Lutherans feel strongly that the angel mentioned in this prophecy is Martin Luther himself, or at least the people and events of the Lutheran Reformation of the early 1500’s. No one can really say for sure. What we can say, is that God promised to preserve the truth of his gospel from the time of the Ascension to the Day of Judgment.
In other
words, you too, are the angel that flies in mid-air with the eternal gospel to
proclaim to those who live on the earth. We do many things, as Lutherans, but
what counts most are the things we do as Christians. Two of the most important
things we do are confession and worship. We proclaim the eternal gospel to
everyone. We worship our God with loud voices, full throated songs and deeds
done to the glory of our Saving God.
1. To Proclaim the Eternal Gospel to
Every One
Eternal?
To me, one of the most fascinating passages of the Bible is the very first:
“In the beginning God created the
heavens and the earth.” Before time, God exists. In eternity he thinks,
knows, plans and loves. At some point in eternity, he begins time. He speaks.
He starts. He sets boundaries for water and land, fish and bird, animal and
mankind. At some point and time he determines your place in this world. He
gave us life and breath. “He made
the heavens, the earth, the sea and the springs of water.”
In time, mankind failed to glorify God and fell into sin. Adam and Eve, though created to be perfect for ever, became mortals who can only bring sin and death to the world. I am a son of that fallen world. By nature I can only be an object of God’s wrath for my sin. I am born in sin, and hostile to the God who gave me life. All of us are that way. It only takes a small glance into our lives and into our own hearts, that God was right when he says, “Every inclination of his heart is sinful from childhood.” If we wish to deny it, we only deceive ourselves and make God out to be liar. When we do that we fail to confess. We fail to proclaim the truth. We put off the ultimate need, the need for God’s plan to work.
God message to us is an eternal gospel. Paul tells us in Ephesians, “For he chose us in Christ before the creation of the world, to be holy and blameless in his sight.” (Ephesians 1:4). The angel flies in mid-air to tell Mary that the Holy one to be born of her would save his people from their sins. The angel flies to the shepherds to tell them that this good news shall be for ALL the people. The waters of Baptism connected with God’s word assure us that we are God’s children, washed in the blood of the Lamb, who was slain for sinners.
That
eternal good news is news for us to share. We are now a part of the prophecy.
We are now the ones who live to speak the gospel of Christ and speak to live
the gospel. That is what Evangelical (in our name) means. The
2. To Worship the True God with Full
Throats
Notice
that the angel spoke IN A LOUD VOICE. What
is our worship like? Is it historical? Yes. Is it moved by tradition? Yes. Is
it constantly seeking to “Sing to the Lord a new song?” Yes. Does it carry
the gospel in music, voice, actions, symbols, colors, banners? Yes. Is it FULL
THROATED? Is it the best we have to bring to our God?
In other words, are we worshiping our God in such a way that proclaims the gospel loudly and clearly to the people of the world? In order to do that and do it well, we grow in our faith through the word. We are willingly warned not to honor with lips while our hearts are far away. We also grow in our understanding of the history of God’s church, the gifts he has placed before us, the opportunities we have to share it, and our love for our fellow Christians.
Worship with full throats. Remember that he is the God who made the heavens, the earth, the sea and the springs of water. Remember the last Psalm? Praise him in his sanctuary; praise him in his mighty heavens. Praise him with the sounding of the trumpet, praise him with the harp and lyre, praise him with tambourine and dancing, praise him with the strings and flute, praise him with the clash of cymbals, praise him with resounding cymbals. Let everything that has life and breathe praise the Lord.”
John’s vision had taken him to the New Testament church. The angel’s message is clear. The gospel of the eternal God cannot and will not be squelched. False teaching cannot over come it. The darkest of ages and the most wicked of times cannot over come it. The gates of Hell cannot overcome it!! Christ has won, the victory is ours, the good news is ours to share, the worship of God is ours to enjoy as we “let the word of Christ dwell richly in us teach and admonish one another with all wisdom and patience and as we sing psalms hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in our hearts to God” (Colossians 3: 16).
Why do we do what we do? What does it mean to be Lutheran? John reminds us of two very important things: proclaim and worship. Everything we do in centered on the gospel. Our joy is to learn it and speak it well to all people. Our joy is to worship the God who gave us such good news to share. Our heritage is that the God who made all things will not let his kingdom be destroyed and will keep us safe and courageous in this world of sin as we look forward to the world of peace, where faith hope and love remain forever through Christ our Savior.
Amen.