Dear Members and Friends of St. John,
Next Tuesday, October 31, will mark the 500th
anniversary of Martin Luther nailing 95 statements for debate to the door of
the castle church in Wittenberg, Germany.
Luther intended for those statements to be considered in a scholarly
debate in the small eastern German university town where he taught. Instead, “The Ninety-Five Theses” were
printed and spread around Europe, beginning the historic movement we call “The
Reformation.” Many churches will celebrate
the 500th anniversary of this historic event this Sunday.
Luther was not just a reformer of the church. Luther’s challenge to the authorities of his
time, by appealing to the higher authority of God and His Word, makes him an
important figure in Western history. Luther’s
translation of the Bible into German, the language of his people, continues to
define the German language until this day.
At the end of the last millennium many lists were made of important
people. Time Life had Luther listed as
the 4th most important person of the previous 1000 years. A&E had him listed as number 3. Other lists considered him as equally
important.
But, it is always
dangerous to put a human being on a pedestal. We are all weak and sinful. We all fail.
Luther himself said and did things that continue today to point to his
sinful humanity, such as his writings about Jewish people.
I am thankful, however, that Luther consistently pointed,
not to himself, but to God, who is our only and real hope. When brought before the representatives of
the pope and before the Holy Roman Emperor, Charles V, in Wurms in 1521, Luther
was asked to recant or withdraw his writings and his words in order to escape
punishment and to save his life. His
answer points to God and to God’s Word as the source of reliable truth for the
life of a child of God.
“Unless I am convinced by
the testimony of the Scriptures or by clear reason (for I do not trust either
in the pope or in councils alone, since it is well known that they have often
erred and contradicted themselves), I am bound by the Scriptures I have quoted
and my conscience is captive to the Word of God. I cannot and will not recant
anything, since it is neither safe nor right to go against conscience. [Here I
stand. I can do no other.*] May God help me. Amen.” (* debated words)
When
on his death bed Luther was asked by friend and pastor, Justus Jonas, “Do you
die trusting in Christ and what you have taught?” Perhaps Luther’s answer sums up his work and
his life. Whether the words were spoken,
or written, or both, is debated, but there is agreement that Luther’s last
words were his answer to that question. “Yes! We are beggars. This is true!”
Thankfully, though he was seldom quiet, Luther
consistently pointed, not to himself, but to Jesus. We are indeed all sinful beggars before our
holy and almighty Creator, God. But, God
is gracious and forgives and saves us in Jesus.
So, we trust, not ourselves, but the grace of God in Jesus.
There are many Bible verses
that state the truths which Luther taught.
One of His favorite verses was John 3:16, which he called “The Gospel in
a nutshell.” But, for me the words of
Galatians 2 express our lives as children of God saved by His grace for us in
Jesus.
“20 I
have been crucified with Christ and I
no longer live, but
Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. 21 I do not set aside the grace of God, for if righteousness could be
gained through the law, Christ died for nothing!" (Galatians 2:20-21) (See also Acts 4:10-12, 1 Timothy 1:15-17, Titus 3:3-5,
1 John 4:10, etc.)
There is a way in which Luther’s words on his death bed
could be frightening. “Yes!
We are beggars. This is true!” We don’t want to be beggars. But, when we realize that, even though we
cannot count on ourselves or on our righteousness before God, but we can be SURE
that Jesus lived and died and rose for us, it is good to be a beggar! The grace of God in Jesus is what we need The grace of God in Jesus is all we need!
A Child of God, Thankful for Spiritual Fathers who Have
Pointed Me to Jesus,
Pastor Jonathan
P.S. Yes, we do have worship at St. John this
Sunday at our normal times of 8:15 and 11:00 a.m. (I was asked.) This Sunday is our last Sunday in our sermon
series on the Reformation and we will have a visit by “Martin Luther” himself
(though I am still looking for a Luther).
ALSO, PLEASE REMEMBER our Alaska celebration of the 500th
Anniversary of the Reformation held Sunday afternoon at Anchorage Lutheran
Church, 1420 N Street.
P.P.S. The St.
John Men’s Group – Promise Keepers, held a beginning of the school year get
together at the home of Eric and Chris Wyatt.
Here are some pictures from the October 21 fellowship activity. https://photos.app.goo.gl/LjMfX35NIkX2Syal2
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ABOUT ‘THOUGHTS FROM THE
PASTOR’ - I am sending these e-mail messages, hopefully weekly, to
all St. John members and friends whose e-mails I have. (I am regularly
adding new names of friends and members – in case you are just receiving this
e-mail for the first time.) However, if you do not want to receive this
e-mail, please let me know, and I’ll gladly leave your name off my list for
this message.
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