Reformation Day

John 8:31-38 - liberation through the Son, not by heritage

Just being a descendant is not enough

Good morning, and happy Reformation Day!

What does it mean to be free? It’s a question our country wrestles with, our culture celebrates, and on this Reformation Day, it’s a question our faith demands that we ask.

Let's be honest with ourselves—without the Reformation, none of us would be here in this way. Not Lutheranism, not the ELCA, not the North Carolina Synod, not this very church, Calvary. It came to a head with one Augustinian monk, Martin Luther, who had the courage to say “enough.” But he wasn't entirely alone. His ideas caught fire because of a new technology—the printing press—and a deep hunger for reform that was already simmering across Europe. He wanted to debate the selling of indulgences, which were being aggressively marketed by preachers like Johann Tetzel to fund the extravagant rebuilding of St. Peter's Basilica in Rome. There are a few steps of greed and corruption in between, but that is the gist of it: a manipulative and theologically suspect capital campaign, basically.

Luther was protesting a single capital campaign. But that same spirit he challenged—the dangerous marriage of wealth and faith—hasn't vanished. We have traveled a long way from Jesus, a poor itinerant rabbi who declared God's bias/preference for the poor and who warned that it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for the wealthy to enter the kingdom of God. We have traveled to a time of pastors owning private jets, building town-sized church compounds, and selling their own personalized Bibles and expensive merch. That is a long journey, much longer than the one from Galilee to Jerusalem.

This confusion, this tendency to equate institutional loyalty with genuine faith, isn't new. Jesus confronted it head-on. To a crowd in the temple who thought their heritage and temple dues were enough, who believed they were already free simply by being part of the right institution and the right family tree, he offered a radically different path. He proclaimed:

"If you continue in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free." (John 8:31-32)

A confessional requirement to be free, not an institutional one. The word for "continue"—μένω (menō)—means to stay, to abide, to live within Jesus’ Word (logos). This can be a hard concept to grasp for those who are religious by culture but not by confession—that is, by a personal, trusting faith. In some traditions, you can be born into the religion; it is simply your heritage.

In Christianity, we do not have that. You cannot inherit faith like a piece of property; we confess it, we live into it. As the text in Romans 3 attests:

"For we hold that a person is justified by faith apart from works prescribed by the law. Or is God the God of Jews only? Is he not the God of gentiles also? Yes, of gentiles also, since God is one, and he will justify the circumcised on the ground of faith and the uncircumcised through that same faith." (Romans 3:28-30)

We become Christians through our faith. We are liberated into freedom and, at the same time, into responsibility. As free citizens of the Kingdom of God, we don’t have to give anything to earn our place among God’s beloveds. And yet, this is our vocation as part of the body of Christ in our neighborhood: to be generous and joyful givers, for, as Martin Luther wrote, we have enough in Christ, but we labor much for the sake of our neighbor!

We choose to be generous in response to God’s grace, not hoping to earn it through our giving. If it were the latter, we could never pay enough. For a world that sees everything as a transaction, this is baffling news. But for all of us who know we are spiritually bankrupt, it is the best news there is: the grace of God is not for sale.

Our offering is not a ransom we pay in fear. That would be a return to the coercive indulgences of the late Middle Ages. No, our offering is an occasion to express our sufficiency and joy in Christ’s love through our time, talents, and treasure. Ultimately, it is between you and God what and how you give.

To continue in the legacy of the Reformation is to honor the truth that the church must always be reforming. This principle—semper reformanda—is our inheritance, a sacred duty to ensure no one traps us in a cage again, be it in the church or the world. It is a call to never let them take our freedom to question, discern, disagree, and make choices.

Our work as reformers is never done. The legacy of the Reformation isn't a historical document we frame; it’s a living, breathing mission. It’s a call to embrace what the missionary Vincent Donovan called a holy restlessness:

"Never accept and be content with unanalyzed assumptions, assumptions about the work, about the people, about the church or Christianity. Never be afraid to ask questions about the work we have inherited or the work we are doing. There is no question that should not be asked or that is outlawed. The day we are completely satisfied with what we have been doing; the day we have found the perfect, unchangeable system of work, the perfect answer, never in need of being corrected again, on that day we will know that we are wrong, that we have made the greatest mistake of all."

Let it be so. Amen.

Children’s activity:

Children's Time: God's Free Gift & Our Happy "Thank You"

Props Needed:

A small, decorated box or treasure chest.

A handful of play coins or real pennies.

Several paper hearts (enough for each child and a few extras).

(Estimated Time: 5 Minutes)

Leader: Good morning, everyone! Happy Reformation Day! That's a big word, but it just means a time we remember something super important about God.

First, I have a question. Who likes getting presents? (Let children respond). Me too! What's the best thing about a present? Is it that you have to pay for it?

(Wait for responses, guide them to the idea that presents are gifts, they are free).

That's right! A gift is something someone gives you for free, just because they love you.

Well, a long, long time ago, some people in the church got a little mixed up. They started telling people they had to buy God's love. They would say, "If you give us a coin..." (Hold up a play coin) "...then God will love you more." Does that sound right?

(Let children respond).

No, it doesn't! And a man named Martin Luther knew that wasn't right at all. He said, "Wait a minute! God's love isn't for sale! God's love is a free gift for everyone!" He wanted to tell everybody this amazing news. And you know how he did it? He used something like a giant, super-fast stamp called a printing press to make lots of copies of his idea so everyone could read it. Let's be printing presses! Can you make a stamping motion with your hands? Stamp, stamp, stamp! Great job!

Because of Martin Luther, we remember that the most important thing in the whole world—God’s love—is totally free. We don't have to do anything to earn it. We just have to believe it and accept it.

So, if God gives us this amazing, free gift of love, what do we do? We get so full of happiness and thankfulness that we just want to share it!

That’s what our offering is all about. It's not a payment for God's love. (Toss the coin aside). It's our joyful, happy "thank you" gift back to God. It’s us saying, "Wow, God! Thank you so much for loving me! I want to share that love with everyone else!"

I have a treasure chest here. (Show the decorated box). This is our "Joyful Generosity" box. Instead of putting money in to get something out, we're putting our love in to share it with the world. I want each of you to take a heart. This heart is a reminder of God's free love for you.

(Hand out the paper hearts).

Now, let's fill our treasure chest with our thank yous to God, so we can share this treasure with everyone. On the count of three, let's put our hearts in the box. One... two... three!

(Children place their hearts in the box).

Look at that! Our church is filled with so much love and generosity, not because we have to, but because God first gave us the free gift of love.

Let's pray.

Dear God, thank you for your love, which is the best gift ever. Thank you that it's free. Help us be so filled with your love that we joyfully share it with everyone we meet. Amen.