In Jesus Holy Name October 30, 2021
Romans 1:17, 3:22-24 Reformation Redeemer
“Once a Heretic, Now a Hero”
Today Protestant churches are celebrating the Reformation, remembering the man Martin Luther and singing the hymns he wrote. For a moment this morning would you please take out the bible that is in the pew or your own, and turn to Romans 3:21-24. Now turn your bible upside down. Would you do that. Just turn it upside down. What if I asked you to read your bible upside down. It would be pretty difficult. Confusing isn’t it. (illustration from a sermon by Charles Swindoll)
I asked you to do that little experiment with me to remind you of the privilege we have to read God’s word in our own language. You see for centuries the people of the church were not able to do that. To help you understand the boldness of what we do day after day, I’d like to remind you of a man name William Tyndale. (1494-1536) He was the first to translate the Greek and Hebrew bible into the English language in 1525.
His effort caused him to flee for his life to Europe from the King Henry VIII of England. Tyndale was aware of the German monk who was also under an excommunication ban from the Pope Leo X. These were dangerous times in Europe. The printing press had been invented in 1440 by Johannes Gutenberg. His invention helped to spread knowledge and ultimately provided the printing of the Bible.
While Tyndale was overseeing the printing of the English bible in Cologne, Germany, a Roman Catholic City, it was discovered. The shop was raided and he fled to Worms and completed the translation. Tyndale was later captured in Brussels and burned at the stake in 1536 as a heretic.
Martin Luther was born in 1483, November 10, the oldest of 7 children. The historian, Philip Schalf writes: Luther had a hard youth without sunny memories and brought up under stern discipline.. He was taught to pray. Taught to pray to saints and the virgin Mary. He was told stories of witches and demons. The rod was not spared in his home. He was bright, so his parents sent him to Latin schools in Mansfield. At the age of 17 in 1501 he entered the university of Erfurt to become a lawyer. By 1505 he entered the Augustinian monastery.
His child hood memories of the stained glass window in the church at Mansfield that had Christ sitting on a throne with a raised sword ready to judge all sinners never left him. He was constantly worried about how he could save his soul. Ultimately he entered a strict monastery believing that he could earn God’s forgiveness. Luther was seeking peace with God.
This is the human question: “How can I have peace with God?” This was Luther’s soul search….He was overwhelmed with the burden of his sin, his separation from God. He tried everything the Church of his day offered, prayers, monastic vows of poverty, religious pilgrimage to Rome and even flagellation, all in an attempt to find peace with God.
But the more he sought to live a holy life the more he realized that his sin was overwhelming. He knew that within his body there existed both a Dr. Jykell and a Mr. Hyde. He was alienated from God, cast out of God’s presence like Adam and Eve. You can catch a feel of his emotional struggle in the words of the hymn he wrote: “Dear Christians One and All Rejoice”.
“Fast bound in Satan’s chains I lay, Death brooded darkly over me. Sin was my torment night and day …. My life became a living hell.”
In 1512 he received his doctorate in theology and became a Professor of Theology at Wittenberg University . Luther taught the book of Psalms, Galatians, Hebrews and Romans. The more he taught the more he struggled with the views of the Roman Catholic church penance and grace. It was in his study of the book of Romans that the Word of God set his heart free from the burden of his sin.
The Spirit of God broke through to Luther’s heart when he understood the words of Paul in Romans 1:17. Luther wrote: “Either sin is with you, lying on your shoulders, or it is lying on Christ, the Lamb of God. Now if it is lying on your back, you are lost; but if it is resting on Christ you are free, and you will be saved. Now choose what you want.”
By October 31, 1517 in his attempt to discuss abuses in the Roman Catholic Church over indulgences, he posted His 95 points of debate. By 1520 he was brought before the Roman Catholic Diet at Worms, a collection of Roman Catholic scholars, Bishops and representatives of Pope Leo X. They asked Luther to defend his theology and works. But their mind was already made up.
In January 1521, Pope Leo X excommunicated Luther. For what ever reason they did not arrest Luther on the spot. As he was returning to Wittenberg he was kidnapped and placed in hiding at the Warburg Castle. This is where he translated the Greek and Hebrew bible into the German language in 11 months. The New Testament published in 1522, the Old Testament in 1534.
While publishers and printers made fortunes, Luther never received or asked a copper for this greatest work of his life. Between 1525 and 1529 he wrote the catechism, (Large and Small) and wrote the Lutheran liturgy. He wanted parents to help their children memorize the commandments, Lord ’s Prayer and creeds.
Several times a week Colleen and I work out at our local gym. One of the classes is a cycling class. This past week I was next to a young Hmong gal. We chatted a bit and she said. I know who you are Pastor Eisberg. I was in your confirmation class just over 20 years ago. She then shared her confirmation memory verse, Ephesians 3:17-19. I thanked God for the moment our lives intersected.
Everything about the American way of life teaches you to get what you earn in life. We value work, sweat equity, effort and performance. It’s called the American work ethic. It’s good. It enables people to succeed. The only problem is it causes difficulty in our ability to relate to God because God does not relate to us on the basis of our performance. God does not relate to us on the basis of our effort, our work, our ethic.
The Bible says that God relates to us by grace as a free gift. You don’t earn it, you don’t deserve it, you don’t work for it. It’s just a free gift of God. The Bible says that everything is a gift of grace.
(read Romans 1:17 & 5:1-2)
In the 14th, 15th and 16th century Christianity had lost this understanding of God. Luther and his contemporaries grew up in a religious world that only knew and angry God. You could only “hope” that you could go to heaven but you were never really sure.
Martin Luther makes this comment in 1525 in his Bondage of the Will. “Grace is freely given to the most undeserving and unworthy and is not obtained by any strenuous efforts, endeavors, or works, either small or great….(as a matter of fact) “to want to merit grace by works..is laughing at God and only provokes the wrath of God.”
Christians in all denominations are forever indebted to Martin Luther. He brought Christianity out of the Dark Ages and back to the heart of God. For God knew our human state. The reality of sin in our lives leave human beings at a loss as how to please a righteous and holy God. God’s truth, His offer of love and forgiveness, his offer of reconciliation comes to us though Jesus.
Max Lucado in his book: “Gentle Thunder” writes: “We know that works are necessary for the Christian. (Ephesians 2:10) Good character and “
fruits of the Spirit” must be on display in a believers life as we imitate Jesus. But in order to get into heaven neither good works nor good character will open the heavenly gates.
“how then can we go to heaven?” How can I have peace with God? These were the questions for the ordinary man on the street in the 16th century. It remains the questions today. The answer: “Only believe that Jesus died on the cross for you.” Accept the work already accomplished at the cross (Romans 5:6) “therefore we have been justified through faith…and we now have peace with God through Jesus Christ.” (Romans 5:1) It’s that simple. It’s that easy. But there was nothing easy about the cross on which Jesus died. The cross was heavy, the blood was real and the price to set us free was extravagant. God paid the price to bring us back to himself so that we would know his love and acceptance.
(Close by reading together Romans 3:21-24 4:23-25 and 5:1-6)
