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“Christ Will Build His Church” (Matthew 16:13-20) “Will we have to shut the doors?” I’m guessing some of you at least have had that thought cross your mind recently. “Will we have to shut the doors of our church? Will our little congregation make it? Do we have enough people, do we have enough money, to keep the doors open?” And I can understand how you might think like that. Yes, our church is small. And on top of that, your pastor came down with cancer and moved out of state. And the guy filling in for him, the man...

“A Reformation in Liturgy and Hymnody” (John 8:31-36) Jesus said, “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” Friends, this is really what the Reformation was all about: that people would abide in the living, life-giving word of Christ; that they would know the truth of the gospel, which had been obscured by the errors that had crept into the church; and that this truth would set people free from the slavery they had been laboring under. Luther himself had labored under that slavery,...

“Eleutherios: Free Indeed!” (John 8:31-36) Today, October 31, along with millions of other Christians around the world, we are celebrating Reformation Day. Why? What’s so special about this day? Well, 504 years ago today, on October 31, 1517, Dr. Martin Luther posted his Ninety-five Theses against the sale of indulgences on the door of a church in Wittenberg, Germany. And what Luther did that day started the movement known as the Reformation, which corrected many bad practices that crept into the church. Ever since, we observe the last Sunday in October as Reformation Day, and we thank God for using...

“Inculcating the Reformation through Catechesis” (Romans 3:19-28; John 8:31-36) First, let me tell you my title for this message. It’s “Inculcating the Reformation through Catechesis.” Now the next thing I want to tell you is this: Don’t let that title scare you off! Don’t worry, I’ll explain each of those terms: “Inculcating the Reformation through Catechesis.” So here we go. The first one I’ll explain is “the Reformation.” What is the Reformation? This term refers to the much-needed reforming of the church--straightening it out where it had gone wrong--the reforming movement undertaken by Martin Luther and his associates in the...

“Justification Is the Article on Which the Church Stands or Falls” (Romans 3:19-28) There is a saying attributed to Luther that, in the Latin, goes like this: “Justificatio est articulus stantis et cadentis ecclesiae.” Which, being translated, means: “Justification is the article on which the church stands or falls.” Dear friends, on this Reformation Day I submit to you that this is what the whole Reformation was about, namely, the doctrine of justification. This is the article of doctrine on which everything else depends. It is the article on which the church stands or falls. What’s more, it is the...

“An Eternal Gospel to Proclaim” (Revelation 14:6-7) Our text is one of the traditional readings for Reformation Day, Revelation 14:6-7. There St. John writes: “Then I saw another angel flying directly overhead, with an eternal gospel to proclaim to those who dwell on earth, to every nation and tribe and language and people. And he said with a loud voice, ‘Fear God and give him glory, because the hour of his judgment has come, and worship him who made heaven and earth, the sea and the springs of water.’” Now the question immediately arises: How did this text come to...

“How Do We Get God’s Grace?” (Romans 3:19-28) On the last Sunday in October every year, we celebrate Reformation Day. For on October 31, 1517, Martin Luther nailed Ninety-five Theses to a church door in Wittenberg, Germany, thus starting the great Reformation of the Christian church. Last year, 2017, was the 500th anniversary of that momentous event, and there were huge celebrations around the world. This year, 2018, is the 501st anniversary, so the occasion is toned down accordingly. But we still have something to celebrate. Indeed, 1517 was just the beginning of the Reformation. Every year now we will...

“Reformation 500: By Grace Alone” (Romans 3:19-28) Happy Reformation Day! Now I could say that every year on the last Sunday in October, which is when we observe Reformation Day. But this year it is something special. Because this year, 2017, and this week, October 31--this is the 500th anniversary of that day in 1517 when the Reformation really began. And you and I are here as a result. We are in a church, this congregation, and a church body, the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod, that hold to the teachings that came out of that great Reformation. We are partnered with...

“An Eternal Gospel to Reclaim and Proclaim” (Revelation 14:6-7; Romans 3:19-28) It was 499 years ago tomorrow, on October 31, 1517, that Martin Luther nailed Ninety-Five Theses to the door of the Castle Church in Wittenberg, thus beginning the movement known as the Reformation. We are the heirs of that heritage, and so it is that on the last Sunday in October every year we observe Reformation Day in our churches. We are grateful to God for raising up his servant Luther to bring the clear truth of the gospel to light and to prominence once again. And we want...

“The Law and the Prophets Bear Witness” (Romans 3:19-28)Today being the last Sunday in October, this is the day we observe Reformation Day, celebrating what happened 498 years ago, when, on October 31, 1517, Dr. Martin Luther went to a church door in Wittenberg, Germany, and there posted 95 Theses questioning the sale of indulgences. That was the beginning of the great Reformation of the church, and as Lutherans we are here today as the beneficiaries of that movement and that heritage. We thank God that he used Luther as his instrument to bring the clear gospel of Christ to...

In a few Lutheran churches in Huntsville and Alabama, the last Sunday in October celebrates some points for Reformation Day. It is a time to reflect on Protestantism when Martin Luther, a Catholic monk, nailed his 95 Theses (Propositions) to the door of the Castle Church in Wittenberg, Germany, on October 31,1517, 497 years ago. Luther's actions, which began the Protestant Reformation, were exposing the Roman church of errors and neglected truths from the Holy Scriptures. It is a sad commentary that many Protestant churches in America have lost sight of their sacred history, and have looked upon it with...

The Great Western Earthquake Reformation - No one could have known it then, but what happened then set in motion an earthquake whose aftershocks are still being felt in the churches today. That earthquake had three epicenters, one in Wittenburg with Martin Luther, another in Geneva with John Calvin, and still another in Canterbury with Thomas Cranmer. What were the contributions of each of these men? Wittenburg, Geneva, Canterbury. Luther, Calvin, Cranmer. An earthquake with three epicenters. The quake continues to roll. Reformation Day 2014The date that marks the beginning of the Protestant Reformation is October 31, 1517. No one could have...

“Justification: The Heart of the Reformation” (Romans 3:19-28) Today is the last Sunday in October, and so we are observing Reformation Day. It will be 497 years ago this Friday, on October 31, 1517, that Martin Luther nailed 95 Theses to the door of the Castle Church in Wittenberg, Germany, thus setting in motion the great Reformation of the Christian church. We are the heirs of that Reformation, blessed to be so, and so we join with faithful Lutherans all around the globe in celebrating that historic event and all the blessings of pure doctrine and sound practice that came...

Reformation Day is a public holiday in Slovenia. It's dedicated to the Reformation and Protestant movement which gave the first printed book in Slovenian language. In 1550 Primož Trubar, a Protestant priest, published his Abecedarium spelling book and Catechism in Slovenian language. The day has been observed as a bank holiday since 1992. The main ceremony ahead of the event was held yesterday in Kranj. On the eve of the holiday another one of Trubar's most important works was revealed. The Slovenian Academy of Sciences and Arts presented pictures of a preserved copy of Primož Trubar’s "Cerkovna ordninga". It was...

Westminster Reformed Presbyterian (RPCNA) church and Reformation Orthodox Presbyterian church will be celebrating the birth of Protestantism this weekend. Instead of Halloween, they celebrate Reformation Day. The RPCNA church has invited local area churches to their Friday night celebration of food and fun, especially for the children. Reformation OPC, in Castle Rock, will celebrate Saturday afternoon with a longer program. Both churches request an RSVP. [SNIP] Although there are many Protestant churches in Denver, only a handful still remember or celebrate the start of the Reformation, usually smaller Presbyterian churches like the Orthodox Presbyterian Church. In fact, this same handful...

“A Reformation in Catechesis” (John 8:31-36)“If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” This is the word of our Lord Jesus Christ, which he spoke in John 8:31-32. His word is truth, and this truth sets us free. Free from all our sins, and from our slavery to sin. Free from the burden of the law, which would crush us with its demands we can never meet. Free from our bondage to death and the grave, free to live forever. Yes, “if the Son...

Tomorrow we have our choice -- we can go with Reformation Sunday or All Saints Day. We can sing "For All the Saints" or "A Mighty Fortress is Our God." Being that I pastor neither a Lutheran nor a Presbyterian Church, and thus my connections as a Disciple to the Reformation of the 16th century are more derivative than direct, and perhaps because my sermon tomorrow has to do with the Worship of God, we'll take the All Saints Day route. But, instead of For All the Saints, we'll be singing Holy, Holy, Holy. But, it would be appropriate to...

  The Reformation was a political and religious movement in Europe that began in the 1500’s and lasted for roughly 150 years. It is difficult to pinpoint exact starting and ending dates for the Reformation, but we can point to two events that seem to begin and to culminate the Reformation era: 1517 (Martin Luther’s 95 Theses and his protest against the indulgence system of the Roman Catholic Church) and 1648 (The Peace of Westphalia, treaties that ended both the Thirty Years’ War and the Eighty Years’ War and thus put an end to most of the civil disruption caused...

The 95 ThesesOn this day in 1517 a relatively unknown German monk pounded a proclamation of sorts onto a church door in Wittenburg, Germany. In the empty spiritual bucket created by a corrupt Catholic Church hierarchy and alongside a godless Renaissance, Luther’s 95 Theses represented renewal. They were a call back to personal and corporate holiness that resounded well past the door frames of the church.There are six attributes common to all movements and we can easily see them in Luther’s Reformation. For those of us bent on seeing movements of transformation the lessons are worth reviewing.Affinity group recruitment: Luther’s...

When Martin Luther started the Reformation in 1517, what did he imagine that the church would look like when he was done? What was the goal toward which he was taking those who were willing to follow his lead? Was he simply reacting against things he thought were wrong? Or did he have a new vision of what the church could and should be? Our Gospel lesson expresses what Martin Luther had in mind when he attacked the Pope and the doctrines of the Catholic church. Jesus said in John 8:31, “If you abide in my Word, you are truly...