Reformation Sunday
Jeremiah 31:31-34 Psalm 46 Romans 3:19-28 John 8:31-36 Dear fellow ministers of the gospel of Jesus Christ, grace and peace to you from the one who sees us through the eyes of Christ. Amen This month my bookclub read one of the best books I’ve read in awhile, Wonder by R.J. Palacio, yes there was a movie made of it with Julia Roberts a couple of years ago. The book centers around the character of August Pullman who is starting 5th grade at a new school, actually it’s his first school, he’s been homeschooled up to this point because he was born with some genetic mutations that wreaked havoc with his face, from how it’s described in the book, nothing is quite where it should be and is quite startling to people who have never seen him before he’s come to expect that people will stare and react but even the expected isn’t easy when he is the center of attention for looking so different, when really he is just another smart, funny kid. Which is why August’s favorite holiday is Halloween. He gets to dress up and put a mask on and when he does he becomes just another kid celebrating Halloween, there is no longer any distinction between him and everyone else he is free to just be a kid. It’s this kind of freedom Jesus proclaims to us today. The freedom to be what we truly are. all of us want this freedom And when we think of it from our human perspective Sometimes it looks like being like everyone else. Because there are so many ways to be divided and categorized, and while not all of them are bad, it seems like we humans are obsessed with figuring out just which box everyone including ourselves fits into, and if we’ve been placed in a box we’re not happy with we go to great lengths to try and change how people see and categorize us, we go into credit card debt to get those things that will make us fit in, we exclude certain other groups of people to fit in, we constantly try to figure out where people fit in and where we fit in, and in our quest for freedom we become bound to these things and it’s exhausting. But of course we don’t stop there, we take this logic and apply it to God. We want to know just where we fit in with God and we think we can determine that based on our own actions, which is why people are attracted to interpretations of religion with a lot of rules or strict codes of ethics so they know where they stand, if they do everything right then they are clearly on God’s good side and as an added bonus feel justified pointing out to others when they break the rules and therefore logically are on God’s bad side. And this too is an exhausting way to live because no matter how many rules we follow or things we do right the law will always end up showing us just how short we fall of perfection. This is what Paul is talking about in Romans when he says “through the law comes knowledge of sin” the law shows us that if it is up to us, we will never be good enough and that quickly leads to despair. So it’s a good thing it’s not up to us, Paul continues: “But now apart from the law, the righteousness of God has been disclosed, and is attested by the law and the prophets, the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction since all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God; they are now justified by his grace as a gift through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus” There is no distinction, just like August Pullman on Halloween, we are all the same, according to the law we’re sinners, according to Christ we’re saints. God knows that the system of the law only takes us so far, it gives us structure for living with one another, and it shows us how much we need God but that’s about it, humans need more than the law and God loves humans so God sent Jesus to do whatever needed to be done to bring God and humans together, and that’s what Jesus did on the cross a free gift given in love so that now there is no distinction when God sees us, God sees us through the eyes of Christ and Christ sees us each as we are, fearfully and wonderfully made by God. Thinking about this reminds me of an experience that I had the summer after my first year in college. I taught swim lessons as part of my summer job and in one class that I had, I had a very energetic little boy, he loved swim lessons and the water, though he struggled with holding on to the wall and waiting his turn while the other kids had their turns but I could see that he really wanted to be there and I was happy to teach him but the other kids rejected him, they didn’t want to be near him on the wall and were impatient with his struggles to hold on, and I was struck by the contrast, his peers saw him as annoying, someone to be avoided, who they wished weren’t there, and I saw him as an energetic little kid who wanted to learn how to swim, who was worthy of being there. When God looks at us through the eyes of Christ, God sees that little kid in all of us, the one who is excited to participate in life, who is worthy of being here in our own way. In Christ we are set free from distinctions and allowed to be fully ourselves, not because of anything we have done but as a gift and we accept that gift by trusting that it is so, by having faith that God keeps the promises God makes. Jesus tells his disciples “If you continue in my word, you are truly my disciples; and you will know the truth and the truth will make you free.” The word of Jesus is that nothing can separate us from the love of God we have been set free, free from the distinctions that others place on us, free from the distinctions that we place on ourselves, and Christ invites us to continue living in this freedom through faith. Confirmands, this is the faith you publicly proclaim today the faith that you are freed from sin to love and serve your neighbors, not because of anything you’ve done but because of Christ and as you stand before us, you are saying you intend to continue in this faith, to continue in the gift of freedom living as Christ sees you, with no distinctions. And it’s true, there will be times when you feel different, when you feel bound by the distinctions the world places on you, but that’s why we gather as a community where we hear the proclamation that there is no distinction, and Jesus brings us to the table, feeds us with his body and blood, forgives us and reminds us of the gift that is already ours, and strengthened we go out to live in freedom once again. So dear confirmands, dear people of Christ, in whom there is no distinction, continue in the word of God, you know the truth and the truth has set you free. Amen
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AboutPastor Emily Johnson preaches weekly at Christ Lutheran. These are manuscripts of her sermons given at Christ Lutheran. Feel free to engage with them in the comments section of the blog. Archives
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